II

Calendar No. 954

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2665

[Report No. 106–511]

To establish a streamlined process to enable the Navajo Nation to lease

trust lands without having to obtain the approval of the Secretary of

the Interior of individual leases, except leases for exploration, development, or extraction of any mineral resources.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

MAY 25, 2000

Mr. KYL (for himself, Mr. DOMENICI and Mr. BINGAMAN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs

OCTOBER 31 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 22), 2000

Reported by Mr. CAMPBELL, with an amendment

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic]

A BILL

To establish a streamlined process to enable the Navajo

Nation to lease trust lands without having to obtain

the approval of the Secretary of the Interior of individual

leases, except leases for exploration, development, or extraction of any mineral resources.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2

•S 2665 RS

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Navajo Nation Trust

3 Land Leasing Act of 2000’’.

4 SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS AND DECLARATION OF

5 PURPOSES.

6 (a) FINDINGS.—Recognizing the special relationship

7 between the United States and the Navajo nation and its

8 members, and the Federal responsibility to the Navajo

9 people, Congress finds that—

10 (1) the third clause of section 8, Article I of the

11 United States Constitution provides that ‘‘The Con12 gress shall have Power...to regulate Commerce...with

13 Indian tribes’’, and, through this and other constitu14 tional authority, Congress has plenary power over

15 Indian affairs;

16 (2) Congress, through statutes, treaties, and

17 the general course of dealing with Indian tribes, has

18 assumed the responsibility for the protection and

19 preservation of Indian tribes and their resources;

20 (3) the United States has a trust obligation to

21 guard and preserve the sovereignty of Indian tribes

22 in order to foster strong tribal governments, Indian

23 self-determination, and economic self-sufficiency;

24 (4) pursuant to the first section of the Act of

25 August 9, 1955 (25 U.S.C. 415), Congress conferred

26 upon the Secretary of the Interior the power to pro-
3

•S 2665 RS

1 mulgate regulations governing tribal leases and to

2 approve tribal leases for tribes according to regula3 tions promulgated by the Secretary;

4 (5) the Secretary of the Interior has promul5 gated the regulations described in paragraph (4) at

6 part 162 of title 25, Code of Federal Regulations;

7 (6) the requirement that the Secretary approve

8 leases for the development of Navajo trust lands has

9 added a level of review and regulation that does not

10 apply to the development of non-Indian land; and

11 (7) in the global economy of the 21st Century,

12 it is crucial that individual leases of Navajo trust

13 lands not be subject to Secretarial approval and that

14 the Navajo Nation be able to make immediate deci15 sions over the use of Navajo trust lands.

16 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are as fol17 lows:

18 (1) To establish a streamlined process for the

19 Navajo Nation to lease trust lands without having to

20 obtain the approval of the Secretary of the Interior

21 of individual leases, except leases for exploration, de22 velopment, or extraction of any mineral resources.

23 (2) To authorize the Navajo nation, pursuant to

24 tribal regulations, which must be approved by the

25 Secretary, to lease Navajo trust lands without the
4

•S 2665 RS

1 approval of the Secretary of the Interior of the indi2 vidual leases, except leases for exploration, develop3 ment, or extraction of any mineral resources.

4 (3) To revitalize the distressed Navajo Reserva5 tion by promoting political self-determination, and

6 encouraging economic self-sufficiency, including eco7 nomic development that increases productivity and

8 the standard of living for members of the Navajo

9 Nation.

10 (4) To maintain, strengthen, and protect the

11 Navajo Nation’s leasing power over Navajo trust

12 lands.

13 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:

14 (1) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’

15 has the meaning given such term in section 4(e) of

16 the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assist17 ance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b(e)).

18 (2) NAVAJO NATION.—The term ‘‘Navajo Na19 tion’’ means the Navajo Nation government that is

20 in existence on the date of enactment of this Act.

21 (3) TRIBAL REGULATIONS.—The term ‘‘tribal

22 regulations’’ means the Navajo Nation regulations

23 as enacted by the Navajo Nation Council or its

24 standing committees and approved by the Secretary.
5

•S 2665 RS

1 SEC. 3. LEASE OF RESTRICTED LANDS FOR THE NAVAJO

2 NATION.

3 The first section of the Act of August 9, 1955 (25

4 U.S.C. 415) is amended—

5 (1) in subsection (d)—

6 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and’’ at

7 the end;

8 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking the pe9 riod and inserting a semicolon; and

10 (C) by adding at the end the following:

11 ‘‘(3) the term ‘individually owned Navajo In12 dian allotted lands’ means Navajo Indian allotted

13 land that is owned by 1 or more individuals located

14 within the Navajo Nation;

15 ‘‘(4) the term ‘Navajo Nation’ means the Nav16 ajo Nation government that is in existence on the

17 date of enactment of this Act;

18 ‘‘(5) the term ‘Secretary’ means the Secretary

19 of the Interior; and

20 ‘‘(6) the term ‘tribal regulations’ means the

21 Navajo Nation regulations as enacted by the Navajo

22 Nation Council or its standing committees and ap23 proved by the Secretary.’’; and

24 (2) by adding at the end the following:

25 ‘‘(e)(1) Any leases by the Navajo Nation for purposes

26 authorized under subsection (a), except a lease for the ex-
6

•S 2665 RS

1 ploration, development, or extraction of any mineral re2 sources, shall not require the approval of the Secretary

3 if the term of the lease does not exceed 75 years (including

4 options to renew), and the lease is executed under tribal

5 regulations that are approved by the Secretary under this

6 subsection.

7 ‘‘(2) Paragraph (1) shall not apply to individually

8 owned Navajo Indian allotted land located within the Nav9 ajo Nation.

10 ‘‘(3) The Secretary shall have the authority to ap11 prove or disapprove tribal regulations required under

12 paragraph (1). The Secretary shall not have approval au13 thority over individual leases of Navajo trust lands, except

14 for the exploration, development, or extraction of any min15 eral resources. The Secretary shall perform the duties of

16 the Secretary under this subsection in the best interest

17 of the Navajo Nation.

18 ‘‘(4) If the Navajo Nation has executed a lease pursu19 ant to tribal regulations required under paragraph (1), the

20 United states shall not be liable for losses sustained by

21 any party to such lease, including the Navajo Nation, ex22 cept that—

23 ‘‘(A) the Secretary shall continue to have a

24 trust obligation to ensure that the rights of the Nav25 ajo Nation are protected in the event of a violation
7

•S 2665 RS

1 of the terms of any lease by any other party to such

2 lease, including the right to cancel the lease if re3 quested by the Navajo Nation; and

4 ‘‘(B) nothing in this subsection shall be con5 strued to absolve the United States from any re6 sponsibility to the Navajo Nation, including respon7 sibilities that derive from the trust relationship and

8 from any treaties, Executive Orders, or agreements

9 between the United States and the Navajo Nation,

10 except as otherwise specifically provided in this sub11 section.’’.

12 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

13 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Navajo Nation Trust

14 Land Leasing Act of 2000’’.

15 SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS AND DECLARATION OF

16 PURPOSES.

17 (a) FINDINGS.—Recognizing the special relationship

18 between the United States and the Navajo Nation and its

19 members, and the Federal responsibility to the Navajo peo20 ple, Congress finds that—

21 (1) the third clause of section 8, Article I of the

22 United States Constitution provides that ‘‘The Con23 gress shall have Power...to regulate Commerce...with

24 Indian tribes’’, and, through this and other constitu-
8

•S 2665 RS

1 tional authority, Congress has plenary power over In2 dian affairs;

3 (2) Congress, through statutes, treaties, and the

4 general course of dealing with Indian tribes, has as5 sumed the responsibility for the protection and preser6 vation of Indian tribes and their resources;

7 (3) the United States has a trust obligation to

8 guard and preserve the sovereignty of Indian tribes in

9 order to foster strong tribal governments, Indian self10 determination, and economic self-sufficiency;

11 (4) pursuant to the first section of the Act of Au12 gust 9, 1955 (25 U.S.C. 415), Congress conferred

13 upon the Secretary of the Interior the power to pro14 mulgate regulations governing tribal leases and to ap15 prove tribal leases for tribes according to regulations

16 promulgated by the Secretary;

17 (5) the Secretary of the Interior has promulgated

18 the regulations described in paragraph (4) at part

19 162 of title 25, Code of Federal Regulations;

20 (6) the requirement that the Secretary approve

21 leases for the development of Navajo trust lands has

22 added a level of review and regulation that does not

23 apply to the development of non-Indian land; and

24 (7) in the global economy of the 21st Century, it

25 is crucial that individual leases of Navajo trust lands
9

•S 2665 RS

1 not be subject to Secretarial approval and that the

2 Navajo Nation be able to make immediate decisions

3 over the use of Navajo trust lands.

4 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are as fol5 lows:

6 (1) To establish a streamlined process for the

7 Navajo Nation to lease trust lands without having to

8 obtain the approval of the Secretary of the Interior

9 for individual leases, except leases for exploration, de10 velopment, or extraction of any mineral resources.

11 (2) To authorize the Navajo Nation, pursuant to

12 tribal regulations, which must be approved by the

13 Secretary, to lease Navajo trust lands without the ap14 proval of the Secretary of the Interior for the indi15 vidual leases, except leases for exploration, develop16 ment, or extraction of any mineral resources.

17 (3) To revitalize the distressed Navajo Reserva18 tion by promoting political self-determination, and

19 encouraging economic self-sufficiency, including eco20 nomic development that increases productivity and

21 the standard of living for members of the Navajo Na22 tion.

23 (4) To maintain, strengthen, and protect the

24 Navajo Nation’s leasing power over Navajo trust

25 lands.
10

•S 2665 RS

1 (5) To ensure that the United States is faithfully

2 executing its trust obligation to the Navajo Nation by

3 maintaining federal supervision through oversight of

4 and record keeping related to leases of Navajo Nation

5 tribal trust lands.

6 SEC. 3. LEASE OF RESTRICTED LANDS FOR THE NAVAJO

7 NATION.

8 The first section of the Act of August 9, 1955 (25

9 U.S.C. 415) is amended—

10 (1) in subsection (d)—

11 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and’’ at

12 the end;

13 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking the period

14 and inserting a semicolon; and

15 (C) by adding at the end the following:

16 ‘‘(3) the term ‘individually owned Navajo Indian

17 allotted land’ means a single parcel of land that—

18 ‘‘(A) is located within the jurisdiction of the

19 Navajo Nation;

20 ‘‘(B) is held in trust or restricted status by

21 the United States for the benefit of Navajo Indi22 ans or members of another Indian tribe; and

23 ‘‘(C) was—

24 ‘‘(i) allotted to a Navajo Indian; or
11

•S 2665 RS

1 ‘‘(ii) taken into trust or restricted sta2 tus by the United States for an individual

3 Indian;

4 ‘‘(4) the term ‘interested party’ means an Indian

5 or non-Indian individual or corporation, or tribal or

6 non-tribal government whose interests could be ad7 versely affected by a tribal trust land leasing decision

8 made by the Navajo Nation;

9 ‘‘(5) the term ‘Navajo Nation’ means the Navajo

10 Nation government that is in existence on the date of

11 enactment of this Act or its successor;

12 ‘‘(6) the term ‘petition’ means a written request

13 submitted to the Secretary for the review of an action

14 (or inaction) of the Navajo Nation that is claimed to

15 be in violation of the approved tribal leasing regula16 tions;

17 ‘‘(7) the term ‘Secretary’ means the Secretary of

18 the Interior; and

19 ‘‘(8) the term ‘tribal regulations’ means the Nav20 ajo Nation regulations enacted in accordance with

21 Navajo Nation law and approved by the Secretary.’’;

22 and

23 (2) by adding at the end the following:

24 ‘‘(e)(1) Any leases by the Navajo Nation for purposes

25 authorized under subsection (a), and any amendments
12

•S 2665 RS

1 thereto, except a lease for the exploration, development, or

2 extraction of any mineral resources, shall not require the

3 approval of the Secretary if the lease is executed under the

4 tribal regulations approved by the Secretary under this sub5 section and the term of the lease does not exceed—

6 ‘‘(A) in the case of a business or agricultural

7 lease, 25 years, except that any such lease may in8 clude an option to renew for up to 2 additional terms,

9 each of which may not exceed 25 years; and

10 ‘‘(B) in the case of a lease for public, religious,

11 educational, recreational, or residential purposes, 75

12 years if such a term is provided for by the Navajo

13 Nation through the promulgation of regulations.

14 ‘‘(2) Paragraph (1) shall not apply to individually

15 owned Navajo Indian allotted land.

16 ‘‘(3) The Secretary shall have the authority to approve

17 or disapprove tribal regulations referred to under para18 graph (1). The Secretary shall approve such tribal regula19 tions if such regulations are consistent with the regulations

20 of the Secretary under subsection (a) and any amendments

21 thereto. The Secretary shall review and approve or dis22 approve the regulations of the Navajo Nation within 120

23 days of the submission of such regulations to the Secretary.

24 Any disapproval of such regulations by the Secretary shall

25 be accompanied by written documentation that sets forth
13

•S 2665 RS

1 the basis for the disapproval. Such 120-day period may be

2 extended by the Secretary after consultation with the Nav3 ajo Nation.

4 ‘‘(4) If the Navajo Nation has executed a lease pursu5 ant to tribal regulations under paragraph (1), the Navajo

6 Nation shall provide the Secretary with—

7 ‘‘(A) a copy of the lease and all amendments and

8 renewals thereto; and

9 ‘‘(B) in the case of regulations or a lease that

10 permits payment to be made directly to the Navajo

11 Nation, documentation of the lease payments suffi12 cient to enable the Secretary to discharge the trust re13 sponsibility of the United States under paragraph

14 (5).

15 ‘‘(5) The United States shall not be liable for losses

16 sustained by any party to a lease executed pursuant to trib17 al regulations under paragraph (1), including the Navajo

18 Nation, except that—

19 ‘‘(A) nothing in this paragraph shall be con20 strued to diminish the authority of the Secretary in

21 furtherance of the trust obligation of the United

22 States to ensure that the rights of the Navajo Nation

23 are protected in the event of a violation of the terms

24 of any lease by any other party to the lease, including

25 the authority of the Secretary to cancel a lease; and
14

•S 2665 RS

1 ‘‘(B) nothing in this paragraph shall be con2 strued to absolve the United States from any responsi3 bility to the Navajo Nation, including any responsi4 bility that derives from the trust relationship of the

5 United States and from any treaties, Executive Or6 ders, laws, regulations, or agreements between the

7 United States and the Navajo Nation, except as other8 wise specifically provided in this subsection.

9 ‘‘(6)(A) An interested party may, after exhaustion of

10 tribal remedies, submit, in a timely manner, a petition to

11 the Secretary to review the compliance of the Navajo Nation

12 with any regulations approved under this subsection. If

13 upon such review the Secretary determines that the regula14 tions were violated, the Secretary may take such action as

15 may be necessary to remedy the violation, including re16 scinding the approval of the tribal regulations and re17 assuming responsibility for the approval of leases for Nav18 ajo Nation tribal trust lands.

19 ‘‘(B) If the Secretary seeks to remedy a violation de20 scribed in subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall—

21 ‘‘(i) make a written determination with respect

22 to the regulations that have been violated;

23 ‘‘(ii) provide the Navajo Nation with a written

24 notice of the alleged violation together with such writ25 ten determination; and
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1 ‘‘(iii) prior to the exercise of any remedy or the

2 rescission of the approval of the regulation involved

3 and the reassumption of the lease approval responsi4 bility, provide the Navajo Nation with a hearing on

5 the record and a reasonable opportunity to cure the

6 alleged violation.’’.
Calendar No. 954

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2665

[Report No. 106–511]

A BILL

To establish a streamlined process to enable the

Navajo Nation to lease trust lands without having to obtain the approval of the Secretary of theInterior of individual leases, except leases for exploration, development, or extraction of any mineral resources.

OCTOBER 31 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 22), 2000

Reported by Mr. CAMPBELL, with an amendment