I 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5428 

To provide for the implementation of the negotiated property division regarding Former Fort Wingate Depot Activity in McKinley County, New 

Mexico, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 9, 2014 

Mr. PEARCE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To provide for the implementation of the negotiated property 

division regarding Former Fort Wingate Depot Activity 

in McKinley County, New Mexico, and for other purposes. 

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 ‘‘Return of Certain 

5 Lands At Fort Wingate to The Original Inhabitants Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) In January 1993, the active mission of the 

2 Fort Wingate Activity Depot located in McKinley 

3 County, New Mexico (in this Act referred to as 

4 ‘‘Former Fort Wingate Depot Activity’’), ceased, 

5 and the installation was closed pursuant to title II 

6 of the Defense Authorization Amendments and Base 

7 Closure and Realignment Act (Public Law 100–526; 

8 10 U.S.C. 2687 note). 

9 (2) The lands occupied by the Former Fort 

10 Wingate Depot Activity were originally the ancestral 

11 lands of both the Zuni Tribe and Navajo Nation, as 

12 indicated by the ancestral history and large number 

13 of archaeological and cultural sites identified on the 

14 lands. 

15 (3) The Secretary of the Interior, with the sup16 port of the Zuni Tribe, the Navajo Nation, and 

17 other concerned parties, determined that upon com18 pletion of environmental remediation of Former Fort 

19 Wingate Depot Activity, lands no longer needed by 

20 the Department of the Army would be transferred to 

21 the Secretary of the Interior and held in trust by the 

22 United States for the benefit of the Zuni Tribe and 

23 the Navajo Nation. 

24 (4) On July 8, 2013, the Zuni Tribe and Nav25 ajo Nation, acting through the respective tribal leadVerDate Mar 15 2010 01:56 Sep 11, 2014 Jkt 039060 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5428.IH H5428

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1 ership, who received authority from their tribal gov2 ernments to enter into good faith discussions, and 

3 through their respective legal representatives, met in 

4 the Capitol office of Congressman Don Young, with 

5 Congressman Ben Ray Luja ́n and Congressman 

6 Steve Pearce present, for final discussions to fairly 

7 divide Former Fort Wingate Depot Activity. 

8 (5) In the resulting discussions, the tribal lead9 ers informally agreed to the property divisions re10 flected in the map titled ‘‘Fort Wingate Depot Activ11 ity Negotiated Property Divisions July 2013’’ pre12 pared by the Army Corps of Engineers (in this Act 

13 referred to as the ‘‘Map’’), and the land division out14 lined in section 3 was created in consultation with 

15 the Zuni Tribe and the Navajo Nation. 

16 (6) This Act achieves the goal of fairly dividing 

17 Former Fort Wingate Depot Activity for the benefit 

18 of the Zuni Tribe and the Navajo Nation. 

19 SEC. 3. DIVISION AND TREATMENT OF LANDS OF FORMER 

20 FORT WINGATE DEPOT ACTIVITY, NEW MEX21 ICO, TO BENEFIT THE ZUNI TRIBE AND NAV22 AJO NATION. 

23 (a) IMMEDIATE TRUST ON BEHALF OF ZUNI TRIBE; 

24 EXCEPTION.—Subject to valid existing rights and to ease25 ments reserved pursuant to section 4, all right, title, and 


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1 interest of the United States in and to the lands of Former 

2 Fort Wingate Depot Activity depicted in blue on the Map 

3 and transferred to the Secretary of the Interior are to be 

4 held in trust by the Secretary of the Interior for the Zuni 

5 Tribe as part of the Zuni Reservation, unless the Zuni 

6 Tribe otherwise elects under subparagraphs (B) and (C) 

7 of subsection (c)(3) to have the parcel conveyed to it in 

8 Restricted Fee Status. 

9 (b) IMMEDIATE TRUST ON BEHALF OF THE NAVAJO

10 NATION; EXCEPTION.—Subject to valid existing rights 

11 and to easements reserved pursuant to section 4, all right, 

12 title, and interest of the United States in and to the lands 

13 of Former Fort Wingate Depot Activity depicted in blue 

14 on the Map and transferred to the Secretary of the Inte15 rior are to be held in trust by the Secretary of the Interior 

16 for the Navajo Nation as part of the Navajo Reservation, 

17 unless the Navajo Nation otherwise elects under sub18 section (c)(3) to have the parcel conveyed to it in Re19 stricted Fee Status. 

20 (c) SUBSEQUENT TRANSFER AND TRUST; RE21 STRICTED FEE STATUS ALTERNATIVE.— 

22 (1) TRANSFER UPON COMPLETION OF REMEDI23 ATION.—Not later than 60 days after the date on 

24 which the New Mexico Environmental Department 

25 certifies that remediation of a parcel of land of 


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1 Former Fort Wingate Depot Activity has been com2 pleted consistent with section 5, the Secretary of the 

3 Army shall transfer administrative jurisdiction over 

4 the parcel to the Secretary of the Interior. 

5 (2) NOTIFICATION OF TRANSFER.—Not later 

6 than 30 days after the date on which the Secretary 

7 of the Interior assumes administrative jurisdiction 

8 over a parcel of land of Former Fort Wingate Depot 

9 Activity under paragraph (1), the Secretary of the 

10 Interior shall notify the Zuni Tribe and Navajo Na11 tion of the transfer of administrative jurisdiction 

12 over the parcel. 

13 (3) TRUST OR RESTRICTED FEE STATUS.— 

14 (A) TRUST.—Except as provided in sub15 paragraph (B), the Secretary of the Interior 

16 shall hold each parcel of land of Former Fort 

17 Wingate Depot Activity transferred under para18 graph (1) in trust— 

19 (i) for the Zuni Tribe, in the case of 

20 land depicted in blue on the Map; or 

21 (ii) for the Navajo Nation, in the case 

22 of land depicted in green on the Map. 

23 (B) RESTRICTED FEE STATUS ALTER24 NATIVE.—In lieu of having a parcel of land held 

25 in trust under subparagraph (A), the Zuni 


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1 Tribe, with respect to land depicted in blue on 

2 the Map, and the Navajo Nation, with respect 

3 to land depicted in green on the Map, may elect 

4 to have the Secretary of the Interior convey the 

5 parcel or any portion of the parcel to it in re6 stricted fee status. 

7 (C) NOTIFICATION OF ELECTION.—Not 

8 later than 45 days after the date on which the 

9 Zuni Tribe or the Navajo Nation receives notice 

10 under paragraph (2) of the transfer of adminis11 trative jurisdiction over a parcel of land of 

12 Former Fort Wingate Depot Activity, the Zuni 

13 Tribe or the Navajo Nation shall notify the Sec14 retary of the Interior of an election under sub15 paragraph (B) for conveyance of the parcel or 

16 any portion of the parcel in restricted fee sta17 tus. 

18 (D) CONVEYANCE.—As soon as practicable 

19 after receipt of a notice from the Zuni Tribe or 

20 the Navajo Nation under subparagraph (C), but 

21 in no case later than 6 months after receipt of 

22 the notice, the Secretary of the Interior shall 

23 convey, in restricted fee status, the parcel of 

24 land of Former Fort Wingate Depot Activity 


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1 covered by the notice to the Zuni Tribe or the 

2 Navajo Nation, as the case may be. 

3 (E) RESTRICTED FEE STATUS DEFINED.— 

4 For purposes of this Act only, the term ‘‘re5 stricted fee status’’, with respect to land con6 veyed under subparagraph (D), means that the 

7 land so conveyed— 

8 (i) shall be owned in fee by the Indian 

9 tribe to whom the land is conveyed; 

10 (ii) shall be part of the Indian tribe’s 

11 Reservation and expressly made subject to 

12 the jurisdiction of the Indian Tribe; 

13 (iii) shall not be sold by the Indian 

14 tribe without the consent of Congress; 

15 (iv) shall not be subject to taxation by 

16 any government other than the government 

17 of the Indian tribe; and 

18 (v) shall not be subject to any provi19 sion of law providing for the review or ap20 proval by the Secretary of the Interior be21 fore an Indian tribe may use the land for 

22 any purpose, directly or through agreement 

23 with another party. 

24 (d) SURVEY AND BOUNDARY REQUIREMENTS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Inte2 rior shall— 

3 (A) provide for the survey of lands of 

4 Former Fort Wingate Depot Activity taken into 

5 trust for the Zuni Tribe or the Navajo Nation 

6 or conveyed in restricted fee status for the Zuni 

7 Tribe or the Navajo Nation under subsection 

8 (a), (b), or (c); and 

9 (B) establish legal boundaries based on the 

10 Map as parcels are taken into trust or conveyed 

11 in restricted fee status. 

12 (2) CONSULTATION.—Not later than 90 days 

13 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec14 retary of the Interior shall consult with the Zuni 

15 Tribe and the Navajo Nation to determine their pri16 orities regarding the order in which parcels should 

17 be surveyed, and, to the greatest extent feasible, the 

18 Secretary shall follow these priorities. 

19 (e) RELATION TO CERTAIN REGULATIONS.—Part 

20 151 of title 25, Code of Federal Regulations, shall not 

21 apply to taking lands of Former Fort Wingate Depot Ac22 tivity into trust under subsection (a), (b), or (c). 


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1 SEC. 4. RETENTION OF NECESSARY EASEMENTS AND AC2 CESS. 

3 (a) EASEMENTS FOR CLEANUP AND REMEDI4 ATION.—The lands of Former Fort Wingate Depot Activ5 ity held in trust or conveyed in restricted fee status pursu6 ant to section 3 shall be subject to reservation by the 

7 United States of such easements as the Secretary of the 

8 Army determines are reasonably required to permit access 

9 to lands of Former Fort Wingate Depot Activity for ad10 ministrative, environmental cleanup, and environmental 

11 remediation purposes. The Secretary of the Army shall 

12 provide to the governments of the Zuni Tribe and the Nav13 ajo Nation written copies of all easements reserved under 

14 this subsection. 

15 (b) SHARED ACCESS.— 

16 (1) PARCEL 1 SHARED CULTURAL AND RELI17 GIOUS ACCESS.—In the case of the lands of Former 

18 Fort Wingate Depot Activity depicted as Parcel 1 on 

19 the Map, the lands shall be held in trust subject to 

20 a shared easement for cultural and religious pur21 poses only. Both the Zuni Tribe and the Navajo Na22 tion shall have unhindered access to their respective 

23 cultural and religious sites within Parcel 1. Within 

24 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, 

25 the Zuni Tribe and the Navajo Nation shall ex26 change detailed information to document the existVerDate Mar 15 2010 01:56 Sep 11, 2014 Jkt 039060 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5428.IH H5428

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1 ence of cultural and religious sites within Parcel 1 

2 for the purpose of carrying out this paragraph. The 

3 information shall also be provided to the Secretary 

4 of the Interior. 

5 (2) OTHER SHARED ACCESS.—Subject to the 

6 written consent of both the Zuni Tribe and the Nav7 ajo Nation, the Secretary of the Interior may facili8 tate shared access to other lands held in trust or re9 stricted fee status pursuant to section 3, including, 

10 but not limited to, religious and cultural sites. 

11 (c) I–40 FRONTAGE ROAD ENTRANCE.—The access 

12 road for the Former Fort Wingate Depot Activity, which 

13 originates at the frontage road for Interstate 40 and leads 

14 to the parcel of the Former Fort Wingate Depot Activity 

15 depicted as ‘‘administration area’’ on the Map, shall be 

16 held in common by the Zuni Tribe and Navajo Nation to 

17 provide for equal access to Former Fort Wingate Depot 

18 Activity. 

19 (d) DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE ACCESS TO MISSILE

20 DEFENSE AGENCY FACILITY.—Lands held in trust or 

21 conveyed in Restricted Fee Status pursuant to section 3 

22 shall be subject to easements reasonably required to per23 mit access to the Missile Defense Agency facility as needed 

24 by the Department of Defense. 


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1 SEC. 5. ENVIRONMENTAL REMEDIATION. 

2 (a) RESPONSIBILITY FOR CLEANUP.—Nothing in this 

3 Act shall be construed as alleviating, altering, or affecting 

4 the responsibility of the United States for cleanup and re5 mediation of Former Fort Wingate Depot Activity accord6 ing to the terms previously agreed to by the Secretary of 

7 the Army and the New Mexico Environment Department. 

8 (b) LIABILITY.—Neither the Zuni Tribe nor the Nav9 ajo Nation shall be liable for any damages resulting from 

10 Department of the Army activities on Former Fort 

11 Wingate Depot Activity or the use by the Department of 

12 the Army of hazardous substances, toxic substances, heavy 

13 metals, explosives, pollutants, contaminants, waste or pe14 troleum products, or any combination thereof, regardless 

15 of when the contamination is discovered or where it has 

16 spread. 

17 (c) TREATMENT OF CLAIMS AGAINST TRIBES.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Zuni Tribe and the 

19 Navajo Nation shall be held harmless from any 

20 claim, suit, demand, judgment, cost, or fee arising 

21 from Department of the Army activities on or off 

22 the Former Fort Wingate Depot Activity site, or the 

23 prior use of hazardous substances, toxic substances, 

24 heavy metals, explosives, pollutants, contaminants, 

25 waste or petroleum products, or any combination 


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1 thereof, regardless of when the contamination is dis2 covered or where it has spread. 

3 (2) NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENT.—After a 

4 parcel of land of Former Fort Wingate Depot Activ5 ity has been transferred or conveyed under section 

6 3, the Zuni Tribe or the Navajo Nation shall notify 

7 the Secretary of the Army of the existence or dis8 covery of any contamination or hazardous material 

9 on the parcel. 

10 (d) EFFECT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CERTIFICATION.— 

11 Certification by the New Mexico Environment Department 

12 that a parcel of land of Former Fort Wingate Depot Activ13 ity has been fully remediated shall satisfy all Federal envi14 ronmental requirements necessary for the Secretary of the 

15 Army and the Secretary of the Interior to carry out their 

16 responsibilities to transfer or convey the parcel under sec17 tion 3. 

Æ 


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