[House Report 108-345]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
108th Congress Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
1st Session 108-345
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LAND EXCHANGE ALASKA NATIVE VILLAGE CORPORATION AND INTERIOR DEPARTMENT
_______
November 4, 2003.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the
State of the Union and ordered to be printed
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Mr. Pombo, from the Committee on Resources, submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 924]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Resources, to whom was referred the bill
(S. 924) to authorize the exchange of lands between an Alaska
Native Village Corporation and the Department of the Interior,
and for other purposes, having considered the same, report
favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill
do pass.
PURPOSE OF THE BILL
The purpose of S. 924, is to authorize the exchange of
lands between an Alaska Native Village Corporation and the
Department of the Interior, and for other purposes.
BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION
S. 924 directs the Secretary of the Interior to complete a
land exchange with Newtok Native Corporation, a Village
Corporation organized pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims
Settlement Act of 1971 (ANCSA).
Newtok is located on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta of western
Alaska. The people of this region are Yupik Eskimo and have
lived along the Bering Sea coast for 2,000 years. The current
village has been occupied since 1949 after the villagers moved
from another site that flooded. There are approximately 300
residents of Newtok. The village is unincorporated and has no
taxing authority. Most villagers pursue a subsistence
lifestyle, and fifty percent of them live below the poverty
level. Most are shareholders of the Newtok Native Corporation.
Lands selected by Newtok under ANCSA were chosen to provide
good hunting areas for the villagers. These lands enclose or
abut the core township where Newtok is located. The Yukon Delta
National Wildlife Refuge surrounds the village.
S. 924 is necessary because the Ninglick River is eroding
the bank near the village, severely threatening the airport,
homes, and other buildings. Each year since the early 1950s,
the shifting course of the river has moved closer to the
village. The erosion has been particularly rapid in the last
decade. To save the village and its way of life, a new location
for Newtok must be provided soon. S. 924 directs a land
exchange so that Newtok can exchange its current site for a
newly identified site. Under the exchange, the Secretary of
Interior is required to accept the 12,101 acres of Newtok lands
defined in the bill in exchange for 10,941 acres of
``Identified Lands'' conveyed to the Newtok Native Corporation.
The lands accepted and conveyed, as well as additional terms
and conditions, are specified in the bill.
COMMITTEE ACTION
S. 924 was introduced on April 11, 2003, by Senator Lisa
Murkowski (R-AK). The bill was passed with an amendment by the
Senate by unanimous consent on July 17, 2003. In the House of
Representatives, the bill was referred to the Committee on
Resources. On October 29, 2003, the Full Resources Committee
met to consider the bill. No amendments were offered and the
bill was ordered favorably reported to the House of
Representatives by unanimous consent.
COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the
Committee on Resources' oversight findings and recommendations
are reflected in the body of this report.
CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY STATEMENT
Article I, section 8 of the Constitution of the United
States grants Congress the authority to enact this bill.
COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII
1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(2) of rule XIII of the
Rules of the House of Representatives requires an estimate and
a comparison by the Committee of the costs which would be
incurred in carrying out this bill. However, clause 3(d)(3)(B)
of that Rule provides that this requirement does not apply when
the Committee has included in its report a timely submitted
cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the
Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
2. Congressional Budget Act. As required by clause 3(c)(2)
of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and
section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, this
bill does not contain any new budget authority, spending
authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in tax
expenditures. According to the Congressional Budget Office,
enactment of this bill could affect offsetting receipts, but
``any such effects would be negligible.''
3. General Performance Goals and Objectives. This bill does
not authorize funding and therefore, clause 3(c)(4) of rule
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives does not
apply.
4. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate. Under clause
3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of
Representatives and section 403 of the Congressional Budget Act
of 1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate
for this bill from the Director of the Congressional Budget
Office:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, October 31, 2003.
Hon. Richard W. Pombo,
Chairman, Committee on Resources,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 924, an act to
authorize the exchange of lands between an Alaska Native
Village Corporation and the Department of the Interior, and for
other purposes.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contacts are Deborah
Reis and Megan Carroll.
Sincerely,
Douglas Holtz-Eakin,
Director.
Enclosure.
S. 924--An act to authorize the exchange of lands between an Alaska
Native Village Corporation and the Department of the Interior,
and for other purposes
CBO estimates that enacting S. 924 would not significantly
affect the federal budget. The act could affect direct
spending, but we estimate that any such effects would be
negligible. S. 924 contains no intergovernmental or private-
sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act
and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal
governments.
S. 924 would direct the Secretary of the Interior to convey
the surface and subsurface estate to 10,943 acres of federal
lands in Alaska to the Newtok Native Corporation. In exchange,
the corporation would convey the surface estate to 12,101 acres
of lands and relinquish its claim to 4,956 acres of other lands
that it has selected under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement
Act. Under S. 924, the Calista Regional Corporation, another
Alaska Native corporation, could select additional subsurface
rights to certain lands if the proposed land exchange affects
that corporation's existing entitlement to certain subsurface
rights.
Based on information provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, CBO estimates that completing the proposed exchange
would increase the agency's costs by less than $500,000,
assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts. Conveying
lands and interest to the tribal corporations could result in
forgone offsetting receipts (a credit against direct spending)
if, under current law, those lands and interests would generate
income from programs to develop natural resources. According to
the agency, however, the lands and interests that would be
conveyed under the act currently generate no significant
receipts and are not expected to do so over the next 10 years.
Hence, we estimate that any forgone offsetting receipts under
S. 924 would be negligible.
On June 27, 2003, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for S.
924 as ordered by the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural
Resources on June 25, 2003. The two versions of the legislation
are identical, as are the CBO costs estimates.
The CBO staff contracts for this estimate are Deborah Reis
and Megan Carroll. This estimate was approved by Peter
Fontaine, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104-4
This bill contains no unfunded mandates.
PREEMPTION OF STATE, LOCAL OR TRIBAL LAW
This bill is not intended to preempt any State, local or
tribal law.
CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW
If enacted, this bill would make no changes in existing
law.