[Senate Report 114-202]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 346
114th Congress } { Report
SENATE
2d Session } { 114-202
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TO TAKE CERTAIN FEDERAL LAND LOCATED IN LASSEN COUNTY, CALIFORNIA, INTO
TRUST FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE SUSANVILLE INDIAN RANCHERIA, AND FOR OTHER
PURPOSES
_______
January 12, 2016.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Barrasso, from the Committee on Indian Affairs,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 1761]
The Committee on Indian Affairs, to which was referred the
bill (S. 1761) to take certain land located in Lassen County,
California, into trust for the benefit of the Susanville Indian
Rancheria, having considered the same, reports favorably
thereon without amendment, and recommends that the bill do
pass.
PURPOSE
The purpose of S. 1761 is to take approximately 301 acres
of Federal land in California into trust for the benefit of the
Susanville Indian Rancheria, California (Tribe).
NEED FOR LEGISLATION
The bill, S. 1761, is needed to transfer Federal land under
the administration of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to
the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) to be held in trust for the
Tribe. After the land is taken into trust, the Tribe's future
development plans include building a recreation center, powwow
grounds, and a cultural center.
BACKGROUND
On August 15, 1923, the United States purchased 30 acres\1\
under the Congressional appropriations for homeless Indians in
California,\2\ for the benefit of the Susanville Indian
Rancheria community. The tribal government organized under the
Indian Reorganization Act (IRA) of 1934, and in 1969, the
Secretary of the Interior approved the initial tribal
constitution and bylaws.\3\ On October 14, 1978, Congress
transferred 120 acres of BLM land to add to the Tribe's base of
trust land.\4\
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\1\Testimony of the Susanville Indian Rancheria, Secretary and
Treasurer Aaron Dixon. House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Indian,
Insular, and Alaska Native Affairs. Legislative Hearing. June 10, 2015.
\2\Public Law 67-224, 42 Stat. 552 and Public Law 67-395, 42 Stat.
1174.
\3\H.R. Rep. No. 95-1631, at 1 (1978).
\4\Public Law 95-459, 92 Stat. 1262.
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Currently the Susanville Rancheria has approximately 1,100
acres held in trust.\5\ The BLM has identified the land parcel
in S. 1761 for disposal under the Eagle Lake Regional Office
Resource Management Plan.\6\
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\5\Testimony of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Deputy Director Mike
Smith. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs Legislative Hearing. October
7, 2015.
\6\Letter from Kenneth R. Collum, Field Manager, Department of the
Interior, Bureau of Land Management, Eagle Lake Field Office, to Stacy
Dixon, Chairman, Susanville Indian Rancheria, (October 3, 2014) (on
file with the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs).
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LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
On July 14, 2015, Senator Boxer introduced S. 1761 with
original cosponsor Senator Feinstein. On October 7, 2015, the
Committee held a legislative hearing on the bill at which BIA
Deputy Director Michael Smith testified in support of S. 1761.
On October 21, 2015, the bill, S. 1761, was ordered reported
favorably without amendment.
A companion bill, H.R. 2212, was introduced in the House of
Representatives on May 1, 2015, by Representative LaMalfa with
one cosponsor. On May 26, 2015, the bill was referred to the
Subcommittee on Indian, Insular and Alaska Native Affairs of
the House Natural Resources Committee. On June 10, 2015, the
Subcommittee held a hearing on the bill at which BIA Director
Michael Black testified in support of H.R. 2212. On October 8,
2015, the Subcommittee on Indian, Insular and Alaska Native
Affairs held a business meeting on the bill, which was
reported, as amended, by unanimous consent.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS OF BILL AS ORDERED REPORTED
Section 1--Land into Trust for the Susanville Indian Rancheria
Section 1(a) states that the land described in subsection
(b) is taken into trust for the benefit of the Tribe.
Section 1(b) describes the parcel of land to be taken into
trust as approximately 301 acres under Federal administrative
jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management. The parcel of
land is identified as `Conveyance Boundary' on a map titled,
`Susanville Indian Rancheria Land Conveyance' that is dated
December 31, 2014.
Section 1(c) prohibits Class II or Class III gaming under
the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act\7\ from being conducted on the
parcel to be taken into trust under this bill.
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\7\25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.
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COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS
The following cost estimate, as provided by the
Congressional Budget Office, dated November 5, 2015, was
prepared for S. 1761:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, November 5, 2015.
Hon. John Barrasso,
Chairman, Committee on Indian Affairs,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 1761, a bill to take
certain federal land located in Lassen County, California, into
trust for the benefit of the Susanville Indian Rancheria, and
for other purposes.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Megan
Carroll.
Sincerely,
Keith Hall.
Enclosure.
S. 1761--To take certain Federal land located in Lassen County,
California, into trust for the benefit of the Susanville Indian
Rancheria, and for other purposes
S. 1761 would take into trust, for the benefit of the
Susanville Indian Rancheria, approximately 301 acres of land
located in Lassen County, California, and administered by the
Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The bill would prohibit
certain types of gaming on those lands.
CBO estimates that enacting S. 1761 would have no
significant effect on the federal budget. We estimate that any
change in federal costs to manage lands affected by the bill
(which would be subject to appropriation) would be
insignificant. Taking the affected lands into trust could
affect federal receipts (which are treated as reductions in
direct spending) related to existing rights of way currently
administered by BLM; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures apply.
Based on information from BLM, CBO estimates that any such
effects would be negligible. Enacting S. 1761 would not affect
revenues.
CBO estimates that enacting S. 1761 would not increase net
direct spending or on-budget deficits by more than $5 billion
in any of the next four consecutive 10-year periods beginning
in 2026.
S. 1761 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Megan Carroll.
The estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS
The Committee has received no communications from the
Executive Branch regarding S. 1761.
REGULATORY AND PAPERWORK IMPACT STATEMENT
Paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing Rules of the
Senate requires each report accompanying a bill to evaluate the
regulatory and paperwork impact that would be incurred in
carrying out the bill. The Committee believes that S. 1761 will
have a minimal impact on regulatory or paperwork requirements.
CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW (CORDON RULE)
In compliance with subsection 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, there are no changes to existing
law made by S. 1761, as ordered reported.
[all]