I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 2547
To provide for the conveyance of land interests to Chugach Alaska Corpora-
tion to fulfill the intent, purpose, and promise of the Alaska Native
Claims Settlement Act.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JULY 16, 1999
Mr. YOUNG of Alaska introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Resources
A BILL
To provide for the conveyance of land interests to Chugach
Alaska Corporation to fulfill the intent, purpose, and
promise of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act.
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 ‘‘Chugach Alaska Na-
tives Settlement Implementation Act of 1999’’.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
For the purposes of this Act, the following definitions
apply:
(1) The term ‘‘ANCSA’’ means the Alaska Na-
tive Claims Settlement Act, as amended (43 U.S.C.
1601 et seq.).
(2) The term ‘‘ANILCA’’ means the Alaska
National Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1980,
as amended (16 U.S.C. 3101 et seq.).
TITLE I—EASEMENT FOR
ACCESS
SEC. 101. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds that—
(1) Chugach Alaska Corporation, formerly
known as Chugach Natives, Inc., is the Alaska Na-
tive Regional Corporation organized under the au-
thority of ANCSA for the Chugach people in the
Chugach region;
(2) ANCSA promised the Chugach people a fair
and just settlement of their aboriginal claims to
lands and waters in Alaska;
(3) pursuant to section 1430 of ANILCA, the
Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Agri-
culture, the State of Alaska, and Chugach Alaska
Corporation were directed to study land ownership
in and around the Chugach region for the purposes
of—
(A) providing a fair and just land settle-
ment for the Chugach people and realizing the
intent, purpose, and promise of ANCSA by
Chugach Alaska Corporation; and
(B) identifying lands that, to the maximum
extent possible, are of the like, kind, and char-
acter of those traditionally used and occupied
by the Chugach people, and, to the maximum
extent possible, are coastal accessible and eco-
nomically viable;
(4) on September 17, 1982, the aforementioned
parties entered into the 1982 Chugach Natives, Inc.
Settlement Agreement in order to set forth a fair
and just land settlement for the Chugach people
pursuant to the study directed by Congress, which
among its many provisions—
(A) required the United States to convey
to Chugach Alaska Corporation not more than
73,308 acres of land in the vicinity of Carbon
Mountain, which tract of land contains signifi-
cant natural resources, but is inaccessible by
road;
(B) granted Chugach Alaska Corporation
rights-of-way across Chugach National Forest
to such tract of land, and required the United
Chugach National Forest, conducted a field review
of the road location and affirmed such concurrence;
(11) on January 12, 1999, the Forest Super-
visor determined that Chugach Alaska Corporation
had completed all studies and provided adequate
documentation to support its easement application;
(12) on January 19, 1999, Chugach Alaska
Corporation submitted the complete easement appli-
cation, containing all information prescribed by the
Forest Supervisor, in a multivolume collection of the
extensive field work, reviews, reports, analyses, and
modifications performed and relied upon in support
of the easement, and entitled ‘‘Documentation in
Support of an Easement Application for Road Ac-
cess Via the Martin River Valley to the Bering River
Coal Fields as Granted by the 1982 CNI Settlement
Agreement’’;
(13) to date, the United States Forest Service
has failed to grant Chugach Alaska Corporation an
easement for access to its lands in the vicinity of
Carbon Mountain;
(14) without such easement, the lands conveyed
to Chugach Alaska Corporation in the vicinity of
Carbon Mountain cannot be utilized or developed in
a manner consistent with the intent of congress as
expressed in the ANILCA and ANCSA;
(15) Chugach Alaska Corporation has incurred
considerable expense and delay in its efforts to
achieve the fair and just settlement Congress in-
tended and promised to the Chugach people more
than 2 decades ago pursuant to ANCSA;
(16) the easement requirement under the 1982
Chugach Natives, Inc. Settlement Agreement should
be granted without further delay.
SEC. 102. PURPOSE.
The purpose of this title is to provide Chugach Alaska
Corporation with access to and for the utilization and de-
velopment of land interests in the vicinity of Carbon
Mountain that were conveyed to Chugach Alaska Corpora-
tion pursuant to ANCSA.
SEC. 103. CONVEYANCE.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, as soon
as practicable but not later than 90 days after the date
of the enactment of this title, the Secretary of Agriculture
shall grant Chugach Alaska Corporation a perpetual ease-
ment located and having the specifications as set forth in
the ‘‘Documentation in Support of an Easement Applica-
tion for Road Access Via the Martin River Valley to the
Bering River Coal Fields as Granted by the 1982 CNI
Settlement Agreement’’, for the purposes and facilities de-
scribed therein.
SEC. 104. EASEMENT.
Unless otherwise agreed to by the Secretary of Agri-
culture and Chugach Alaska Corporation, the easement
granted under section 103 of this title shall—
(1) include sufficient lands for logistical staging
areas and construction material sites used for the
construction and maintenance of a single-lane forest
road; and
(2) include the right for Chugach Alaska Cor-
poration, or its assignees, to construct, operate, and
maintain related facilities and structures within the
right-of-way.
SEC. 105. TRANSFER.
If within 6 months from the date of the enactment
of this title the Secretary of Agriculture and Chugach
Alaska Corporation fail mutually to agree on the terms
and conditions of the use of the easement, then the ease-
ment is hereby granted to Chugach Alaska Corporation,
and such grant shall be deemed as a conveyance pursuant
to ANCSA.
TITLE II—CEMETERY SITES AND
HISTORIC PLACES
SEC. 201. DEFINITIONS.
For the purposes of this title, the following defini-
tions apply:
(1) The term ‘‘Federal Government’’ means any
Federal agency of the United States.
(2) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary
of the Interior.
SEC. 202. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds the following:
(1) Pursuant to section 14(h)(1) of ANCSA,
the Secretary has the authority to withdraw and
convey to the appropriate regional corporation fee
title to existing cemetery sites and historical places.
(2) Pursuant to section 14(h)(7) of ANCSA,
lands located within a National Forest may be con-
veyed for the purposes set forth in section 14(h)(1)
of ANCSA.
(3) Chugach Alaska Corporation, the Alaska
Native Regional Corporation for the Chugach Re-
gion, applied to the Secretary for the conveyance of
cemetery sites and historical places pursuant to sec-
tion 14(h)(1) of ANCSA in accordance with the reg-
ulations promulgated by the Secretary.
(4) Pursuant to such regulations, Village Cor-
poration selections were given priority over Regional
Corporation selections for the same lands.
(5) Chugach Alaska Corporation’s section
14(h)(1) applications for lands that were selected by
and conveyed to Village Corporations in the Chugach
Region were either withdrawn by Chugach Alaska
Corporation or denied by the Secretary.
(6) As part of the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Res-
toration Program, the Federal Government has ac-
quired and is in the process of acquiring lands from
Village Corporations in the Chugach Region that
Chugach Alaska Corporation applied for pursuant to
section 14(h)(1) of ANCSA and lands from other
private parties in the Chugach Region that contain
cemetery sites and historical places.
(7) The fulfillment of the intent, purpose, and
promise of ANCSA requires that lands Chugach
Alaska Corporation selected or would have selected
under section 14(h)(1) of ANCSA and that were
subsequently acquired by the Federal Government
should be made available for conveyance to Chugach
Alaska Corporation as cemetery sites and historical
places pursuant to section 14(h)(1) of ANCSA, sub-
ject only to a determination that such lands meet
the eligibility criteria for historical places or ceme-
tery sites, as appropriate, set forth in the Sec-
retary’s regulations.
SEC. 203. WITHDRAWAL OF LANDS.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Sec-
retary shall withdraw from all forms of appropriation—
(1) all public lands for which Chugach Alaska
Corporation filed an application for conveyance pur-
suant to section 14(h)(1) of ANCSA as a cemetery
site or an historical place, and such application was
denied because the land was selected by and con-
veyed to a Village Corporation; and
(2) all lands that the Federal Government ac-
quired or hereafter acquires from Village Corpora-
tions or other private parties in the Chugach Region
in connection with the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Res-
toration Program.
SEC. 204. APPLICATION FOR CONVEYANCE OF WITHDRAWN
LANDS.
Chugach Alaska Corporation shall apply to the Sec-
retary for the conveyance of lands as cemetery sites or
historical places under section 14(h)(1) of ANCSA as fol-
lows:
(1) With respect to lands withdrawn pursuant
to subsection 203(1) of this title, by filing with the
Secretary a request for reinstatement of its original
application, together with any amendments author-
ized under section 205 of this title.
(2) With respect to lands withdrawn pursuant
to subsection 203(2) of this title, for which Chugach
Alaska Corporation has not filed an application
under section 14(h)(1) of ANCSA with the Sec-
retary, by filing with the Secretary an application in
accordance with the regulations promulgated by the
Secretary as of the date of enactment of this title.
The Secretary shall accept all such requests filed within
the periods set forth in section 207 of this title.
SEC. 205. AMENDMENTS.
Chugach Alaska Corporation may amend original ap-
plications filed with the Secretary for the conveyance of
lands pursuant to section 14(h)(1) of ANCSA—
(1) to include lands withdrawn pursuant to sec-
tion 203 of this title which are adjacent to lands
Chugach Alaska Corporation selected in its original
application and that Chugach Alaska Corporation
deems culturally important and potentially eligible as
a cemetery site or historical place; and
(2) to cure technical defects.
SEC. 206. PROCEDURE FOR EVALUATING AND CONVEYING
SELECTED LANDS.
The lands selected by Chugach Alaska Corporation
pursuant to sections 204 and 205 of this title shall be
evaluated for their eligibility as cemetery sites and histor-
ical places, as appropriate, and conveyed to Chugach Alas-
ka Corporation, in accordance with the criteria and proce-
dures set forth in the regulations promulgated by the Sec-
retary as of the date of the enactment of this title. To
the extent that such criteria and procedures conflict with
any provision of this title, the provisions of this title shall
control.
SEC. 207. REINSTATEMENT PERIOD.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, Chugach
Alaska Corporation shall have—
(1) 1 year from the date of enactment of this
title to file a request for reinstatement under sub-
section 204(1) of this title, together with any
amendments authorized under section 205 of this
title; and
(2) 4 years from the date of recording the con-
veyance document for any Federal acquisition of
lands to file an application under subsection 204(2)
of this title.
SEC. 208. APPLICABILITY.
This title shall apply to all Federal acquisitions of
the lands described in section 203 of this title, whether
occurring prior to or after the date of enactment of this
title.
TITLE III—FOREST SYSTEM
LAND MANAGEMENT
SEC. 301. DEFINITION.
For the purposes of this title, the term ‘‘Alaska Na-
tive Corporation’’ means a ‘‘Native Corporation’’ as that
term is defined in section 3(m) of ANCSA, as amended
(43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.).
SEC. 302. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds that—
(1) pursuant to ANCSA and ANILCA, Alaska
Native Corporations own hundreds of thousands of
acres of land intermingled with, adjacent to, or de-
pendent for access upon National Forest System
lands in Alaska;
(2) the United States Forest Service, in a letter
dated June 30, 1998, to Chugach Alaska Corpora-
tion, the Alaska Native Regional Corporation for the
Chugach Region established under ANCSA, dis-
claimed any legal obligation to coordinate the revi-
sion of the Chugach National Forest land and re-
source management plan with the plans of Alaska
Native Corporations for the utilization of their lands
and resources;
(3) the uncoordinated development, mainte-
nance, or revision of land and resource management
plans for units of the National Forest System in
Alaska adversely affects the use, development, and
value of the lands and resources conveyed to Alaska
Native Corporations under ANCSA and ANILCA;
and
(4) the proper management of National Forest
System lands in Alaska and the fulfillment of the in-
tent, purpose, and promise of ANCSA require co-
ordination in the development, maintenance, and re-
vision of land and resource management plans for
units of the National Forest System in Alaska with
the plans of Alaska Native Corporations for the uti-
lization of their lands which are intermingled with,
adjacent to, or dependent upon for access National
Forest System lands.
SEC. 303. COORDINATION REQUIRED.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Sec-
retary of Agriculture shall coordinate the development,
maintenance, and revision of land and resource manage-
ment plans for units of the National Forest System in
Alaska with the plans of Alaska Native Corporations for
the utilization of their lands which are intermingled with,
adjacent to, or dependent for access upon National Forest
System lands. At a minimum, such coordination shall
involve—
(1) notifying Alaska Native Corporations in ad-
vance of the development, maintenance, or revision
of a land and resource management plan for a unit
of the National Forest System in Alaska;
(2) meeting with Alaska Native Corporations at
the beginning of the plan preparation, maintenance,
or revision process to develop procedures for coordi-
nation;
(3) reviewing the plans of Alaska Native Cor-
porations for the utilization of their lands and re-
sources;
(4) assessing the impacts of Alaska Native Cor-
poration land use plans on National Forest land and
resource management planning, and determining
how to address those impacts; and
(5) identifying conflicts between National For-
est land and resource management plans and the
land use plans of Alaska Native Corporations, and
considering alternatives for resolving those conflicts.
SEC. 304. APPLICABILITY.
This title shall apply to all land and resource manage-
ment plans for units of the National Forest System in
Alaska—
(1) in the process of being developed or revised
on the date of enactment of this title; and
(2) developed, maintained, or revised after the
date of enactment of this title.
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