I 
109TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5842 
To compromise and settle all claims in the case of Pueblo of Isleta v. 
United States, to restore, improve, and develop the valuable on-reserva-
tion land and natural resources of the Pueblo, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 19, 2006 
Mr. PEARCE (for himself, Mr. UDALL of New Mexico, and Mrs. WILSON of 
New Mexico) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Resources 
A BILL 
To compromise and settle all claims in the case of Pueblo 
of Isleta v. United States, to restore, improve, and de-
velop the valuable on-reservation land and natural re-
sources of the Pueblo, 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. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Pueblo of Isleta Settle-
ment and Natural Resources Restoration Act of 2006’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 
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(1) there is pending before the United States 
Court of Federal Claims a civil action filed by the 
Pueblo against the United States in which the Pueb-
lo seeks to recover damages pursuant to the Isleta 
Jurisdictional Act; 
(2) the Pueblo and the United States, after a 
diligent investigation of the Pueblo claims, have ne-
gotiated a Settlement Agreement, the validity and 
effectiveness of which is contingent on the enact-
ment of enabling legislation; 
(3) certain land of the Pueblo is waterlogged, 
and it would be to the benefit of the Pueblo and 
other water users to drain the land and return water 
to the Rio Grande River; and 
(4) there is Pueblo forest land in need of reme-
diation in order to improve timber yields, reduce the 
threat of fire, reduce erosion, and improve grazing 
conditions. 
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are— 
(1) to improve the drainage of the irrigated 
land, the health of the forest land, and other natural 
resources of the Pueblo; and 
(2) to settle all claims that were raised or could 
have been raised by the Pueblo against the United 
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States under the Isleta Jurisdictional Act in accord-
ance with section 5. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) ISLETA
JURISDICTIONAL
ACT.—The term 
‘‘Isleta Jurisdictional Act’’ means Public Law 104– 
198 (110 Stat. 2418). 
(2) PUEBLO.—The term ‘‘Pueblo’’ means the 
Pueblo of Isleta, a federally recognized Indian tribe. 
(3) RESTORATION FUND.—The term ‘‘Restora-
tion Fund’’ means the Pueblo of Isleta Natural Re-
sources Restoration Fund established by section 
4(a). 
(4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of the Interior. 
(5) 
SETTLEMENT
AGREEMENT.—The 
term 
‘‘Settlement Agreement’’ means the Agreement of 
Compromise and Settlement entered into between 
the United States and the Pueblo, dated July 12, 
2005, as modified by the Extension and Modification 
Agreement executed by the United States and the 
Pueblo on June 22, 2006, to settle the claims of the 
Pueblo in Docket No. 98–166L, a case pending in 
the United States Court of Federal Claims. 
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SEC. 4. PUEBLO OF ISLETA NATURAL RESOURCES RES-
TORATION TRUST FUND. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 
Treasury a trust fund, to be known as the ‘‘Pueblo of 
Isleta Natural Resources Restoration Fund’’, consisting 
of— 
(1) such amounts as are transferred to the Res-
toration Fund under subsection (b); and 
(2) any interest earned on investment of 
amounts in the Restoration Fund under subsection 
(d). 
(b) TRANSFERS
TO RESTORATION FUND.—Upon 
entry of the final judgment described in section 5(b), there 
shall be transferred to the Restoration Fund, in accord-
ance with conditions specified in the Settlement Agree-
ment and this Act— 
(1) $32,838,750 from the permanent judgment 
appropriation established pursuant to section 1304 
of title 31, United States Code; and 
(2) in addition to the amounts transferred 
under paragraph (1), at such times and in such 
amounts as are specified for that purpose in the an-
nual budget of the Department of the Interior, au-
thorized to be appropriated under subsection (f), and 
made available by an Act of appropriation, a total of 
$7,200,000. 
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(c) DISTRIBUTION OF AMOUNTS FROM RESTORA-
TION FUND.— 
(1) APPROPRIATED AMOUNTS.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph 
(3), upon the request of the Pueblo, the Sec-
retary shall distribute amounts deposited in the 
Restoration Fund pursuant to subsection (b)(2) 
of this section and section V of the Settlement 
Agreement, in accordance with the terms and 
conditions of the Settlement Agreement and 
this Act, on the condition that before any such 
distribution the Secretary receives from the 
Pueblo such assurances as are satisfactory to 
the Secretary that— 
(i) the Pueblo shall deliver funds in 
the amount of $7,100,000 toward drainage 
and remediation of the agricultural land 
and rehabilitation of forest and range land 
of the Pueblo in accordance with section 
IV(C) and IV(D) of the Settlement Agree-
ment; and 
(ii) those funds shall be available for 
expenditure for drainage and remediation 
expenses as provided in sections IV(C) and 
IV(D) of the Settlement Agreement on the 
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dates on which the Secretary makes dis-
tributions, and in amounts equal to the 
amounts so distributed, in accordance with 
sections IV(A) and IV(B) of the Settle-
ment Agreement. 
(B) USE OF FUNDS.—Of the amounts dis-
tributed by the Secretary from the Restoration 
Fund under subparagraph (A)— 
(i) $5,700,000 shall be available to 
the Pueblo for use in carrying out the 
drainage and remediation of approximately 
1,081 acres of waterlogged agricultural 
land, as described in section IV(A) of the 
Settlement Agreement; and 
(ii) $1,500,000 shall be available to 
the Pueblo for use in carrying out the re-
habilitation and remediation of forest and 
range land, as described in section IV(B) 
of the Settlement Agreement. 
(C) FEDERAL
CONSULTATION.—Restora-
tion work carried out using funds distributed 
under this paragraph shall be planned and per-
formed in consultation with— 
(i) the Bureau of Indian Affairs; and 
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(ii) such other Federal agencies as are 
necessary. 
(D) UNUSED FUNDS.—Any funds, includ-
ing any interest income, that are distributed 
under this paragraph but that are not needed 
to carry out this paragraph shall be available 
for use in accordance with paragraph (2)(A). 
(2) AMOUNTS FROM JUDGMENT FUND.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph 
(3), the amount paid into the Restoration Fund 
under subsection (b)(1), and interest income re-
sulting from investment of that amount, shall 
be available to the Pueblo for— 
(i) the acquisition, restoration, im-
provement, development, and protection of 
land, natural resources, and cultural re-
sources within the exterior boundaries of 
the Pueblo, including improvements to the 
water supply and sewage treatment facili-
ties of the Pueblo; and 
(ii) for the payment and reimburse-
ment of attorney and expert witness fees 
and expenses incurred in connection with 
Docket No. 98–166L of the United States 
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Court of Federal Claims, as provided in 
the Settlement Agreement. 
(B) NO CONTINGENCY ON PROVISION OF 
FUNDS BY PUEBLO.—The receipt and use of 
funds by the Pueblo under this paragraph shall 
not be contingent upon the provision by the 
Pueblo of the funds described in paragraph 
(1)(A)(i). 
(3) EXPENDITURES AND WITHDRAWAL.— 
(A) TRIBAL MANAGEMENT PLAN.— 
(i) IN
GENERAL.—Subject to clause 
(ii), the Pueblo may withdraw all or part 
of the Restoration Fund on approval by 
the Secretary of a tribal management plan 
in accordance with section 202 of the 
American Indian Trust Fund Management 
Reform Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 4022). 
(ii) REQUIREMENTS.—In addition to 
the requirements under the American In-
dian Trust Fund Management Reform Act 
of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.), a tribal 
management plan described in clause (i) 
shall require that the Pueblo shall expend 
any funds withdrawn from the Restoration 
Fund under this paragraph in a manner 
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consistent with the purposes described in 
the Settlement Agreement. 
(B) ENFORCEMENT.—The Secretary may 
take judicial or administrative action to enforce 
the provisions of any tribal management plan 
described in subparagraph (A)(i) to ensure that 
any funds withdrawn from the Restoration 
Fund under this paragraph are used in accord-
ance with this Act. 
(C) LIABILITY.—If the Pueblo exercises 
the right to withdraw funds from the Restora-
tion Fund under this paragraph, neither the 
Secretary nor the Secretary of the Treasury 
shall retain any liability for the accounting, dis-
bursement, or investment of the funds with-
drawn. 
(D) EXPENDITURE PLAN.— 
(i) IN
GENERAL.—The Pueblo shall 
submit to the Secretary for approval an ex-
penditure plan for any portion of the funds 
in the Restoration Fund made available 
under this Act that the Pueblo does not 
withdraw under this paragraph. 
(ii) DESCRIPTION.—The expenditure 
plan shall describe the manner in which, 
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and the purposes for which, funds of the 
Pueblo remaining in the Restoration Fund 
will be used. 
(iii) APPROVAL.—On receipt of an ex-
penditure plan under clause (i), the Sec-
retary shall approve the plan if the Sec-
retary determines that the plan is reason-
able and consistent with this Act and the 
Settlement Agreement. 
(E) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Pueblo shall 
submit to the Secretary an annual report that 
describes expenditures from the Restoration 
Fund during the year covered by the report. 
(d) MAINTENANCE AND INVESTMENT OF RESTORA-
TION FUND.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Restoration Fund and 
amounts in the Restoration Fund shall be main-
tained and invested by the Secretary of the Interior 
pursuant to the first section of the Act of June 24, 
1938 (52 Stat. 1037, chapter 648). 
(2) CREDITS TO RESTORATION FUND.—The in-
terest on, and the proceeds from the sale or redemp-
tion of, any obligations held in the Restoration Fund 
shall be credited to, and form a part of, the Restora-
tion Fund. 
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(e) PROHIBITION ON PER-CAPITA PAYMENTS.—No 
portion of the amounts in the Restoration Fund shall be 
available for payment on a per capita basis to members 
of the Pueblo. 
(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated to the Restoration Fund 
$7,200,000. 
SEC. 5. RATIFICATION OF SETTLEMENT, DISMISSAL OF 
LITIGATION, AND COMPENSATION TO PUEB-
LO. 
(a) RATIFICATION OF SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT.— 
The Settlement Agreement is ratified. 
(b) DISMISSAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Pueblo and the 
United States shall execute and file a joint stipulation for 
entry of final judgment in the case of Pueblo of Isleta v. 
United States, Docket 98–166L, in the United States 
Court of Federal Claims in such form and such manner 
as are acceptable to the Attorney General and the Pueblo. 
(c) COMPENSATION.—After the date of the enact-
ment of this Act, in accordance with the Settlement Agree-
ment and upon entry of the final judgment described in 
subsection (b)— 
(1) compensation to the Pueblo shall be paid 
from the permanent judgment appropriation estab-
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lished pursuant to section 1304 of title 31, United 
States Code, in the total amount of $32,838,750 for 
all monetary damages and attorney fees, interest, 
and any other fees and costs of any kind that were 
or could have been presented in connection with 
Docket No. 98–166L of the United States Court of 
Federal Claims; but 
(2) the Pueblo shall retain all rights, including 
the right to bring civil actions based on causes of ac-
tion, relating to the removal of ordnance under— 
(A) the Comprehensive Environmental Re-
sponse, Compensation, and Liability Act of 
1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.); 
(B) the Defense Environmental Restora-
tion Program under section 2701 of title 10, 
United States Code; and 
(C) any contract entered into by the Pueb-
lo for the removal of ordnance. 
(d) OTHER LIMITATIONS ON USE OF FUNDS.—The 
Indian Tribal Judgment Funds Use or Distribution Act 
(25 U.S.C. 1401 et seq.) shall not apply to funds distrib-
uted or withdrawn from the Restoration Fund under this 
Act. 
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(e) NO EFFECT ON LAND, RESOURCES, OR WATER 
RIGHTS.—Nothing in this Act affects the status of land 
and natural resources or any water right of the Pueblo. 
Æ 
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