court system, contrary to the analysis of the 
General Accounting Office. 
(D) Many land grants-mercedes or their 
common lands were improperly rejected in their 
entirety, others lost substantial amounts of 
acreage by improper application of boundary 
descriptions, and others were foreclosed from 
being confirmed by earlier adverse rulings. 
(E) The Federal Government in a great 
many cases did not provide constitutionally suf-
ficient notice of its confirmation activities, 
which contributed directly to many land grants- 
mercedes being erroneously misconfirmed. 
(F) The Federal Government and various 
Federal agents and officials involved in the con-
firmation process helped create a climate in 
which land speculators were able to undermine 
the adjudication process to dispossess land 
grants-mercedes of their common lands. 
(15) Compared to their original claims, land 
grants-mercedes suffered enormous loss of land to 
the Federal Government and others. This loss nega-
tively impacted the economic, environmental, and so-
cial well-being of these communities. 
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(16) The following land grant-merced priority 
rights were protected by the Treaty of Guadalupe 
Hidalgo: 
(A) Water rights, including all surface, 
ground, and runoff water within the former 
common lands that are now under the manage-
ment of the Federal Government. 
(B) Natural resource rights, including 
gathering of fuelwood, timber, vegetation, vege-
tation products, rocks, soils, and grazing and 
watering of livestock that are now under the 
management of the Federal Government. 
(C) Mineral rights, including any and all 
surface and subsurface minerals located within 
the existing and former common lands as well 
as rights to compensation for minerals ex-
tracted from former common lands now under 
management of the Federal Government. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) ADJUDICATION PROCESS.—The term ‘‘adju-
dication process’’— 
(A) means the processes required by treaty 
by which the United States recognized land 
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claims between 1854 and 1904 in the territories 
ceded under— 
(i) the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo; 
and 
(ii) the Gadsden Purchase; and 
(B) includes the processes provided for in 
the 1854 Act establishing the Office of Sur-
veyor-General of New Mexico (10 Stat. 308) 
and the 1891 Act establishing the Court of Pri-
vate Land Claims (26 Stat. 854). 
(2) CLAIM.—The term ‘‘claim’’ means the dec-
laration of property rights protected by the Treaty 
of Guadalupe Hidalgo vested in a land grant-merced, 
including— 
(A) land, land title, mineral, and natural 
resource claims; and 
(B) water rights. 
(3) CLAIMANT.—The term ‘‘claimant’’ means a 
land grant-merced as represented by its governing 
body or an agent thereof. 
(4) GADSDEN PURCHASE.—The term ‘‘Gadsden 
Purchase’’ means the Treaty of Boundary, Cession 
of Territory, Transit of Isthmus of Tehuantepec. 
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(5) GOVERNING BODY.—The term ‘‘Governing 
body’’ means the governing body, as recognized by 
State law, of a land grant-merced. 
(6) LAND
GRANT-MERCED.—The term ‘‘land 
grant-merced’’ means— 
(A) a community land grant identified in 
tables 1 and 2 of the General Accounting Office 
Report #GAO–01–951; or 
(B) a community, village, town, or settle-
ment, the land of which was granted by the 
Government of Spain or by the Government of 
Mexico, in accordance with the laws, usages, 
and customs of Spain or Mexico between 1689 
and 1854, within the boundaries of the Terri-
tory of New Mexico, which now includes the 
States of New Mexico, Colorado and Arizona, 
to— 
(i) the community, village, town, or 
pueblo; or 
(ii) a person for the purpose of found-
ing or establishing a community, village, 
town, or settlement. 
(7) QUALIFYING PETITION.—The term ‘‘quali-
fying petition’’ means a petition submitted under 
section 5. 
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(8) SECRETARY CONCERNED.—The term ‘‘Sec-
retary concerned’’ means the Secretary that admin-
isters the relevant Federal land. 
(9) TREATY
OF
GUADALUPE
HIDALGO.—The 
term ‘‘Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo’’ means the 
Treaty of Peace, Friendship, Limits, and Settlement 
between the United States and the Republic of Mex-
ico, effective February 2, 1848. 
SEC. 4. TREATY OF GUADALUPE HIDALGO LAND GRANT- 
MERCED CLAIMS COMMISSION. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is hereby established a 
commission to be known as the Treaty of Guadalupe Hi-
dalgo Land Grant-Merced Claims Commission (in this Act 
referred to as the ‘‘Commission’’). 
(b) DUTIES.—The duties of the Commission shall be 
to— 
(1) conduct a hearing on each qualifying peti-
tion and formulate a recommendation on restitution, 
as described in section 5(c); and 
(2) submit to Congress the reports required 
under section 6. 
(c) MEMBERSHIP.— 
(1) NUMBER AND APPOINTMENT.—The Com-
mission shall be composed of 9 members, appointed 
by the President of the United States, of which— 
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(A) 1 member shall be appointed in con-
sultation with the Secretary of the Interior; 
(B) 1 member shall be appointed in con-
sultation with the Secretary of Agriculture; 
(C) 1 member shall be appointed who has 
a background in Spanish colonial and Mexican 
legal history as it applies to the Southwestern 
United States; 
(D) 1 member shall be appointed who has 
a background in Spanish colonial, Mexican, and 
United States history of the Southwestern 
United States; 
(E) 1 member shall be appointed who has 
a background in international laws pertaining 
to succession of States and treaties as they re-
late to property rights, land tenure, and usu-
fruct rights; 
(F) 1 member shall be appointed who has 
a background in past and present socioeconomic 
conditions of the Southwestern United States; 
(G) 1 member shall be appointed who has 
a background in cultural geography; and 
(H) 2 members shall be members of the 
governing body of a land grant-merced. 
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(2) TERMS.—Each member shall be appointed 
for the life of the Commission. 
(3) VACANCIES.—A vacancy in the Commission 
shall be filled in the manner in which the original 
appointment was made. 
(4) RATE OF PAY.—To the extent or in the 
amounts provided in advance in appropriation Acts, 
Members shall each be entitled to receive daily com-
pensation not to exceed the rate of basic pay for 
level V of the Executive Schedule for each day, in-
cluding travel days, during which they are engaged 
in the performance of duties vested in the Commis-
sion. 
(5) PREPARATION BEFORE HEARINGS.—Before 
the start of the first hearing under section 5, each 
member of the Commission shall prepare for such 
hearing by becoming familiar with the history of 
land grant-merced claims in the United States 
Southwest. This preparation may include— 
(A) the purchase, by the Commission, of 
pertinent literature on the subject for each 
Commission member to review; and 
(B) requests by the Commission for train-
ing and presentations on the subject from ap-
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propriate Federal or State agencies, institutions 
of higher education, and private organizations. 
(d) POWERS OF COMMISSION.— 
(1) HEARINGS AND SESSIONS.—The Commis-
sion shall, for the purpose of carrying out this Act, 
hold hearings, sit, and act at times and at a location 
in the State where the petitioning land grant-merced 
is located, take testimony, and receive evidence as 
the Commission considers appropriate. The Commis-
sion may administer oaths or affirmations to wit-
nesses appearing before it. 
(2) POWERS OF MEMBERS AND AGENTS.—Any 
member or agent of the Commission may, if author-
ized by the Commission, take any action that the 
Commission is authorized to take by this Act. 
(3) GIFTS, BEQUESTS, AND
DEVISES.—The 
Commission may accept, use, and dispose of gifts, 
bequests, or devises of services or property, both real 
and personal, for the purpose of aiding or facili-
tating the work of the Commission. 
(4) MAIL.—The Commission may use the 
United States mail in the same manner and under 
the same conditions as other departments and agen-
cies of the United States. 
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(5) AUTHORITY TO HIRE STAFF.—The Commis-
sion may hire or contract staff necessary for the 
Commission to carry out its responsibilities under 
this Act. 
(6) ADMINISTRATIVE
SUPPORT
SERVICES.— 
Upon the request of the Commission, the Adminis-
trator of General Services, Secretary of the Interior, 
and Secretary of Agriculture shall provide to the 
Commission, on a reimbursable basis, the adminis-
trative support services necessary for the Commis-
sion to carry out its responsibilities under this Act. 
(7) IMMUNITY.—The Commission is an agency 
of the United States for the purposes of part V of 
title 18, United States Code. 
(8) SUBPOENA POWER.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The Commission may 
issue subpoenas requiring the attendance and 
testimony of witnesses and the production of 
any evidence relating to any qualifying petition. 
(B) FAILURE TO OBEY A SUBPOENA.—If a 
person refuses to obey a subpoena issued under 
subparagraph (A), the Commission may apply 
to a United States district court for an order 
requiring that person to appear before the Com-
mission to give testimony, produce evidence, or 
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both, relating to any qualifying petition. The 
application may be made within the judicial dis-
trict where the hearing is conducted or where 
that person is found, resides, or transacts busi-
ness. Any failure to obey the order of the court 
may be punished by the court as civil contempt. 
(C) SERVICE
OF
SUBPOENAS.—The sub-
poenas of the Commission shall be served in the 
manner provided for subpoenas issued by a 
United States district court under the Federal 
Rules of Civil Procedure for the United States 
district courts. 
(D) SERVICE OF PROCESS.—All process of 
any court to which application is made under 
subparagraph (B) may be served in the judicial 
district in which the person required to be 
served resides or may be found. 
(e) TERMINATION.—The Commission shall terminate 
not later than 180 days after the Commission submits the 
report required under section 6(b). 
(f) ASSISTANCE FOR COMMISSION.— 
(1) FEDERAL AGENCY ASSISTANCE TO COMMIS-
SION.—At the request of the Commission, relevant 
Federal agencies shall make available personnel, 
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equipment, and facilities to assist the Commission in 
performing its activities under this Act. 
(2) STATE
AGENCY
ASSISTANCE
TO
COMMIS-
SION.—The Commission may accept assistance from 
relevant State agencies and institutions of higher 
education in performing its activities under this Act. 
SEC. 5. HEARINGS ON QUALIFYING PETITIONS. 
(a) QUALIFYING PETITION HEARING.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall con-
duct a hearing on each qualifying petition, as de-
scribed in subsection (b), to formulate a rec-
ommendation on restitution to the claimant, of the 
possible restitutions described in subsection (c). 
(2) DESIGNATION OF LOCATION.—The Commis-
sion shall designate one or more locations in the 
claimant’s State in which to hold such hearing. 
(3) RIGHT TO TESTIFY.—All persons having an 
interest in the land involved in a qualifying petition 
shall have the right, upon notice, to be present and 
testify before the Commission during such hearing. 
(4) HEARING PROCESS.—As part of such hear-
ing, the Commission shall— 
(A) review each qualifying petition and re-
ceive testimony in order examine— 
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