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Union Calendar No. 177 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2181 

[Report No. 116–224] 

To provide for the withdrawal and protection of certain Federal land in 

the State of New Mexico. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 9, 2019 

Mr. LUJA ́N (for himself, Ms. TORRES SMALL of New Mexico, Ms. HAALAND, 

and Mr. GRIJALVA) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 

the Committee on Natural Resources 

OCTOBER 4, 2019 

Additional sponsors: Mr. LOWENTHAL, Mr. GALLEGO, Mr. HUFFMAN, Ms. 

DAVIDS of Kansas, Mr. TONKO, Mr. COLE, and Mr. TED LIEU of California 

OCTOBER 4, 2019 

Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union 

and ordered to be printed 


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A BILL 

To provide for the withdrawal and protection of certain 

Federal land in the State of New Mexico. 


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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Chaco Cultural Herit5 age Area Protection Act of 2019’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds that— 

8 (1) there are archeological, sacred, and historic 

9 resources located throughout the Greater Chaco re10 gion, which spans the States of New Mexico, Ari11 zona, Utah, and Colorado; 

12 (2) the Chaco Culture National Historical Park, 

13 a unit of the National Park System and a United 

14 Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organi15 zation World Heritage Site, is known around the 

16 world— 

17 (A) for multi-story buildings constructed 

18 by the Chacoan people that are still standing; 

19 and 

20 (B) as the nerve center of a culture that 

21 spread throughout and dominated the Four 

22 Corners area during the 9th, 10th, and 11th 

23 centuries; 


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1 (3) the Chacoan people built hundreds of miles 

2 of roads and a network of villages, shrines, and com3 munications sites, many of which are still visible; 

4 (4) many Pueblos and Indian Tribes in the 

5 Four Corners area claim cultural affiliation with, 

6 and are descended from, the Chacoan people; 

7 (5) the landscape around the Chaco Culture 

8 National Historical Park includes hundreds of inter9 nationally and nationally significant cultural re10 sources, including prehistoric roads, communities, 

11 and shrines— 

12 (A) many of which are related to the re13 sources found in the Chaco Culture National 

14 Historical Park, including the resources recog15 nized by the amendment made by section 3 of 

16 the Chacoan Outliers Protection Act of 1995 

17 (16 U.S.C. 410ii note; Public Law 104–11) 

18 providing for additional Chaco Culture Archeo19 logical Protection Sites; 

20 (B) a significant number of which are con21 centrated within the immediate area sur22 rounding the Chaco Culture National Historical 

23 Park; and 

24 (C) that are commonly recognized by ar25 cheologists; 


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1 (6) long considered one of the best places for 

2 stargazing in the world, Chaco Culture National 

3 Historical Park— 

4 (A) in 1991, established a night skies pro5 tection initiative and interpretive program to 

6 protect the night sky in the area of the Chaco 

7 Culture National Historical Park; and 

8 (B) in 2013, was certified as an Inter9 national Dark Sky Park; 

10 (7) the Greater Chaco landscape in the State of 

11 New Mexico extends beyond Chaco Culture National 

12 Historical Park and encompasses— 

13 (A) local communities, including Pueblos 

14 and Indian Tribes; and 

15 (B) public land, which includes additional 

16 cultural resources and sacred sites; 

17 (8) for over 110 years, the Federal Government 

18 has recognized the importance of the area in which 

19 the Chacoan people lived and has acted to protect 

20 historic and sacred sites in the area, including— 

21 (A) Chaco Canyon, which was designated 

22 as a National Monument in 1907 and as the 

23 Chaco Culture National Historical Park in 

24 1980; 


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1 (B) the Aztec Ruins, which was designated 

2 as a National Monument in 1923 and expanded 

3 in each of 1928, 1930, 1948, and 1988; and 

4 (C) the 39 Chaco Culture Archeological 

5 Protection Sites designated in 1995; 

6 (9) recognizes that the standard for Tribal con7 sultation is outlined in Executive Order 13175 (25 

8 U.S.C. 5301 note; relating to consultation and co9 ordination with Indian Tribal governments); 

10 (10) extensive natural gas development has oc11 curred in the Greater Chaco region that affect the 

12 health, safety, economies, and quality of life of local 

13 communities; 

14 (11) renewed interest in oil exploration and pro15 duction within the Mancos/Gallup Shale play has in16 creased the potential for— 

17 (A) significant impacts on resources and 

18 visitor experiences at the Chaco Culture Na19 tional Historical Park; and 

20 (B) additional impacts on local commu21 nities in the Greater Chaco region, including 

22 Pueblos and Indian Tribes; 

23 (12) a mineral withdrawal in the landscape 

24 around the Chaco Culture National Historical Park 

25 would prevent leasing and development in the immeVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:16 Oct 04, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2181.RH H2181

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1 diate area surrounding the Chaco Culture National 

2 Historical Park, which would protect resources and 

3 visitor experiences at the Chaco Culture National 

4 Historical Park; and 

5 (13) additional studies and protective measures 

6 should be undertaken to address health, safety, and 

7 environmental impacts on communities and interests 

8 of Pueblos and Indian Tribes in the Greater Chaco 

9 landscape. 

10 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

11 In this Act: 

12 (1) COVERED LEASE.—The term ‘‘covered 

13 lease’’ means any oil and gas lease for Federal 

14 land— 

15 (A) on which drilling operations have not 

16 been commenced before the end of the primary 

17 term of the applicable lease; 

18 (B) that is not producing oil or gas in pay19 ing quantities; and 

20 (C) that is not subject to a valid coopera21 tive or unit plan of development or operation 

22 certified by the Secretary to be necessary. 

23 (2) FEDERAL LAND.— 

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘Federal 

25 land’’ means— 


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1 (i) any Federal land or interest in 

2 Federal land that is within the boundaries 

3 of the Chaco Cultural Heritage Withdrawal 

4 Area, as depicted on the Map; and 

5 (ii) any land or interest in land lo6 cated within the boundaries of the Chaco 

7 Cultural Heritage Withdrawal Area, as de8 picted on the Map, that is acquired by the 

9 Federal Government after the date of en10 actment of this Act. 

11 (B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘‘Federal 

12 land’’ does not include trust land (as defined in 

13 section 3765 of title 38, United States Code). 

14 (3) MAP.—The term ‘‘Map’’ means the map 

15 prepared by the Bureau of Land Management enti16 tled ‘‘Chaco Cultural Heritage Withdrawal Area’’ 

17 and dated April 2, 2019. 

18 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

19 the Secretary of the Interior. 

20 SEC. 4. WITHDRAWAL OF CERTAIN FEDERAL LAND IN THE 

21 STATE OF NEW MEXICO. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to any valid existing 

23 rights, the Federal land is withdrawn from— 

24 (1) all forms of entry, appropriation, and dis25 posal under the public land laws; 


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1 (2) location, entry, and patent under mining 

2 laws; and 

3 (3) operation of the mineral leasing, mineral 

4 materials, and geothermal leasing laws. 

5 (b) AVAILABILITY OF MAP.—The Map shall be made 

6 available for inspection at each appropriate office of the 

7 Bureau of Land Management. 

8 (c) CONVEYANCE OF FEDERAL LAND TO INDIAN

9 TRIBES.—Notwithstanding subsection (a), the Secretary 

10 may convey the Federal land to, or exchange the Federal 

11 land with, an Indian Tribe in accordance with a resource 

12 management plan that is approved as of the date of enact13 ment of this Act, as subsequently developed, amended, or 

14 revised in accordance with the Federal Land Policy and 

15 Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) and 

16 any other applicable law. 

17 SEC. 5. OIL AND GAS LEASE MANAGEMENT. 

18 (a) TERMINATION OF NON-PRODUCING LEASES.—A 

19 covered lease— 

20 (1) shall automatically terminate by operation 

21 of law pursuant to section 17(e) of the Mineral 

22 Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 226(e)) and subpart 3108 

23 of title 43, Code of Federal Regulations (or suc24 cessor regulations); and 

25 (2) may not be extended by the Secretary. 


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1 (b) WITHDRAWAL OF TERMINATED, RELINQUISHED, 

2 OR ACQUIRED LEASES.—Any portion of the Federal land 

3 subject to a covered lease terminated under subsection (a) 

4 or otherwise or relinquished or acquired by the United 

5 States on or after the date of enactment of this Act is 

6 withdrawn from— 

7 (1) all forms of entry, appropriation, and dis8 posal under the public land laws; 

9 (2) location, entry, and patent undermining 

10 laws; and 

11 (3) operation of the mineral leasing, mineral 

12 materials, and geothermal leasing laws. 

13 SEC. 6. EFFECT. 

14 Nothing in this Act— 

15 (1) affects the mineral rights of an Indian 

16 Tribe or member of an Indian Tribe to trust land 

17 or allotment land; or 

18 (2) precludes improvements to, or rights-of-way 

19 for water, power, or road development on, the Fed20 eral land to assist communities adjacent to or in the 

21 vicinity of the Federal land. 


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pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
Union Calendar No. 177 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2181 

[Report No. 116–224] 

A BILL 

To provide for the withdrawal and protection of 

certain Federal land in the State of New Mexico. 

OCTOBER 4, 2019 

Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 

State of the Union and ordered to be printed 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS