109TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4876
AN ACT 
To ratify a conveyance of a portion of the Jicarilla Apache 
Reservation to Rio Arriba County, State of New Mexico, 
pursuant to the settlement of litigation between the 
Jicarilla Apache Nation and Rio Arriba County, State 
of New Mexico, to authorize issuance of a patent for 
said lands, and to change the exterior boundary of the 
Jicarilla Apache Reservation accordingly, and for other 
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. DEFINITIONS. 
For the purposes of this act, the following definitions 
apply: 
(1) JICARILLA
APACHE
NATION.—The term 
‘‘Jicarilla Apache Nation’’ means the Jicarilla 
Apache Nation, a tribe of American Indians recog-
nized by the United States and organized under sec-
tion 16 of the Act of June 18, 1934 (25 U.S.C. 476; 
popularly known as the Indian Reorganization Act). 
(2) 1988 RESERVATION ADDITION.—The term 
‘‘1988 Reservation Addition’’ means those lands 
known locally as the Theis Ranch that were added 
to the Jicarilla Apache Reservation in the state of 
New Mexico by the proclamation of the Secretary of 
the Interior issued on September 1, 1988 pursuant 
to authority granted by section 7 of the Act of June 
18, 1934 (25 U.S.C. 467; popularly known as the 
Indian Reorganization Act), and published in the 
Federal Register on September 26, 1988 at 53 F.R. 
37355–56. 
(3) 
SETTLEMENT
AGREEMENT.—The 
term 
‘‘Settlement Agreement’’ means the agreement exe-
cuted by the President of the Jicarilla Apache Na-
tion on May 6, 2003 and executed by the Chairman 
of the Rio Arriba Board of County Commissioners 
on May 15, 2003 and approved by the Department 
of the Interior on June 18, 2003 to settle the Law-
suit. 
(4) LAWSUIT.—The term ‘‘Lawsuit’’ means the 
case identified as Jicarilla Apache Tribe v. Board of 
County Commissioners, County of Rio Arriba, No. 
RA 87–2225(C), State of New Mexico District 
Court, First Judicial District, filed in October 1987. 
(5) RIO
ARRIBA
COUNTY.—The term ‘‘Rio 
Arriba County’’ means the political subdivision of 
the state of New Mexico described in Section 4–21–
1 and Section 4–21–2, New Mexico Statutes Anno-
tated 1978 (Original Pamphlet). 
(6) SETTLEMENT LANDS.—The term ‘‘Settle-
ment Lands’’ means Tract A and Tract B as de-
scribed in the plat of the ‘‘Dependent Resurvey and 
Survey of Tract within Theis Ranch’’ within the 
Tierra Amarilla Grant, New Mexico prepared by Leo 
P. Kelley, Cadastral Surveyor, United States De-
partment of the Interior, Bureau of Land Manage-
ment, dated January 7, 2004, and recorded in the 
office of the Rio Arriba County Clerk on March 8, 
2004, in Cabinet C–1, Page 199, Document No.
242411, consisting of 70.75 acres more or less. Title 
to the Settlement Lands is held by the United States 
in trust for the Jicarilla Apache Nation. 
(7) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of the Interior. 
(8) DISPUTED COUNTY ROAD.—The term ‘‘Dis-
puted County Road’’ means the county road passing 
through the 1988 Reservation Addition along the 
course identified in the judgment entered by the 
New Mexico District Court in the Lawsuit on De-
cember 10, 2001 and the decision entered on De-
cember 11, 2001, which judgment and decision have 
been appealed to the New Mexico Court of Appeals. 
SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) The lands constituting the 1988 Reserva-
tion Addition to the Jicarilla Apache Reservation 
were purchased by the Jicarilla Apache Nation in 
June 1985 and were conveyed to the United States 
by a trust deed accepted by the Secretary of the In-
terior in March 1988 pursuant to authority granted 
by section 5 of the Act of June 18, 1934 (25 U.S.C. 
465; popularly known as the Indian Reorganization 
Act).
(2) The lands constituting the 1988 Reserva-
tion Addition were added to the Jicarilla Apache 
Reservation in September 1988 by proclamation of 
the Secretary of the Interior pursuant to authority 
granted by section 7 of the Act of June 18, 1934 
(25 U.S.C. 467; popularly known as the Indian Re-
organization Act). 
(3) There is pending before the Court of Ap-
peals of the State of New Mexico a lawsuit, filed in 
October 1987, that involves a claim that a county 
road passing through the 1988 Reservation Addition 
had been established by prescription prior to acquisi-
tion of the land by the Jicarilla Apache Nation in 
1985. 
(4) The parties to that lawsuit, the Jicarilla 
Apache Nation and the County of Rio Arriba, have 
executed a Settlement Agreement, approved by the 
Secretary of the Interior, to resolve all claims relat-
ing to the disputed county road, which agreement 
requires ratifying legislation by the Congress of the 
United States. 
(5) The parties to the Settlement Agreement 
desire to settle the claims relating to the disputed 
county road on the terms agreed to by the parties, 
and it is in the best interests of the parties to re-
solve the claims through the Settlement Agreement 
and this implementing legislation. 
SEC. 3. CONDITION ON EFFECT OF SECTION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 4 of this Act shall not 
take effect until the Secretary finds the following events 
have occurred: 
(1) The Board of Commissioners of Rio Arriba 
County has enacted a resolution permanently aban-
doning the disputed county road and has submitted 
a copy of that resolution to the Secretary. 
(2) The Jicarilla Apache Nation has executed a 
quitclaim deed to Rio Arriba County for the Settle-
ment Lands subject to the exceptions identified in 
the Settlement Agreement and has submitted a copy 
of the quitclaim deed to the Secretary. 
(b) PUBLICATION OF FINDINGS.—If the Secretary 
finds that the conditions set forth in subsection (a) have 
occurred, the Secretary shall publish such findings in the 
Federal Register. 
SEC. 4. RATIFICATION OF CONVEYANCE; ISSUANCE OF PAT-
ENT. 
(a) CONDITIONAL RATIFICATION AND APPROVAL.—
This Act ratifies and approves the Jicarilla Apache Na-
tion’s quitclaim deed for the Settlement Lands to Rio 
Arriba County, but such ratification and approval shall be
effective only upon satisfaction of all conditions in section 
3, and only as of the date that the Secretary’s findings 
are published in the Federal Register pursuant to section 
3. 
(b) PATENT.—Following publication of the notice de-
scribed in section 3, the Secretary shall issue to Rio Arriba 
County a patent for the Settlement Lands, subject to the 
exceptions and restrictive covenants described subsection 
(c). 
(c) CONDITIONS
OF PATENT.—The patent to be 
issued by the Secretary under subsection (b) shall be sub-
ject to all valid existing rights of third parties, including 
but not limited to easements of record, and shall include 
the following perpetual restrictive covenant running with 
the Settlement Lands for the benefit of the lands com-
prising the Jicarilla Apache Reservation adjacent to the 
Settlement Lands: ‘‘Tract A shall be used only for govern-
mental purposes and shall not be used for a prison, jail 
or other facility for incarcerating persons accused or con-
victed of a crime. For purposes of this restrictive covenant, 
‘governmental purposes’ shall include the provision of gov-
ernmental services to the public by Rio Arriba County and 
the development and operation of private businesses to the 
extent permitted by applicable State law.’’.
SEC. 5. BOUNDARY CHANGE. 
Upon issuance of the patent authorized by section 4, 
the lands conveyed to Rio Arriba County in the patent 
shall cease to be a part of the Jicarilla Apache Reservation 
and the exterior boundary of the Jicarilla Apache Reserva-
tion shall be deemed relocated accordingly. 
Passed the House of Representatives September 27, 
2006. 
Attest:
Clerk.
109TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4876
AN ACT 
To ratify a conveyance of a portion of the Jicarilla 
Apache Reservation to Rio Arriba County, State 
of New Mexico, pursuant to the settlement of liti-
gation between the Jicarilla Apache Nation and 
Rio Arriba County, State of New Mexico, to au-
thorize issuance of a patent for said lands, and 
to change the exterior boundary of the Jicarilla 
Apache Reservation accordingly, and for other 
purposes.