[Senate Report 114-114]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 194
114th Congress } { Report
SENATE
1st Session } { 114-114
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ALBUQUERQUE INDIAN SCHOOL LAND TRANSFER ACT
_______
August 4, 2015.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Barrasso, from the Committee on Indian Affairs,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 986]
The Committee on Indian Affairs, to which was referred the
bill (S. 986) to require the Secretary of the Interior to take
into trust 4 parcels of Federal land for the benefit of certain
Indian Pueblos in the State of New Mexico, having considered
the same, reports favorably thereon without amendment and
recommends that the bill do pass.
PURPOSE
The purpose of S. 986 is to require the Secretary of the
Interior to take into trust four parcels of Federal land for
the benefit of certain Indian Pueblos in the State of New
Mexico.
BACKGROUND
This bill would require the Secretary of the Interior
(Secretary) to take four tracts of land totaling approximately
11.11 acres into trust for the benefit of the 19 Pueblo tribes
(Pueblos) in the State of New Mexico. Upon transfer and after
the Secretary satisfies requirements under the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), the
lands would be used by the Pueblos for educational, health,
cultural, business, and economic development purposes. All
classes of gaming as defined under section four of the Indian
Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. Sec. 2703) would be prohibited
on the lands.
The four tracts were historically part of the Albuquerque
Indian School (School). In 1881, the United States established
the School for Native American children. The School closed in
1979.
In response to requests from the Pueblos, the Department of
the Interior took ownership of 44 acres, a portion of the
former School site, and placed the land into trust for the
collective benefit of the Pueblos in 1984. The Pueblos have
since used that land to establish the Indian Pueblo Cultural
Center and to create businesses and government offices.
This bill, S. 986, uses a similar legislative process as
the 2008 Albuquerque Indian School Act (introduced by Senator
Domenici and enacted into law in December, 2008 as Public Law
No: 110-453). The Albuquerque Indian School Act required the
Secretary to take into trust roughly 18 additional acres of
Federal land that were part of the former School site. The need
for the 2008 Albuquerque Indian School Act arose because the
Department of the Interior changed its regulations in 1995.
That regulatory change did not contemplate the placement of
land in trust in common for multiple tribes.
A prior bill was considered in the 113th Congress. On June
11, 2014, Senator Udall of New Mexico introduced S. 2465, the
Albuquerque Indian School Land Transfer Act. On July 9, 2014,
the Committee held a legislative hearing on S. 2465. On July
30, 2014, the Committee favorably reported an amended version
of S. 2465. This amended version of S. 2465 is identical to S.
986.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS OF BILL
Sec. 1. Short title
The Act may be cited as the ``Albuquerque Indian School
Land Transfer Act.''
Sec. 2. Definitions
Section 2 defines the key terms used throughout this Act.
Sec. 3. Land taken into trust for the benefit of 19 Pueblos
Section 3 requires the Secretary to take the land into
trust, and to take any action which the Secretary determines is
necessary to document the transfer. Section 3 also provides a
legal description, in conjunction with a map, of the property
to be transferred. The Secretary is required to conduct a land
survey and may make any minor corrections to the survey and
legal description as necessary to correct clerical,
typographical and surveying errors. The land taken into trust
is to be used for the educational, health, cultural, business,
and economic benefit of the 19 Pueblos identified in the bill.
The property remains subject to any private or municipal
encumbrance, right-of-way, restriction, easement of record, or
utility service agreement in effect on the date of enactment of
this Act, and the 19 Pueblos must allow the BIA to continue to
use facilities located on the property until the Secretary
determines they are no longer needed by the BIA.
Sec. 4. Effect of other laws
The land taken into trust shall be subject to Federal laws
otherwise applicable to or relating to Indian Land. No Class I
gaming, Class II gaming, or Class III gaming shall be carried
out on this parcel of land.
NEED FOR LEGISLATION
The Federal government closed the Albuquerque Indian School
in 1979. The Pueblos have sought to have the former School's
Federal parcels held in trust for their education, cultural,
business, and economic development purposes. Other parcels
already in trust for the Pueblos have been used for the
collective benefit of the Pueblos and includes establishing the
Indian Pueblo Cultural Center and creating businesses and
government offices.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
On April 16, 2015, Senator Udall and cosponsor Senator
Heinrich introduced S. 986, the Albuquerque Indian School Land
Transfer Act. On May 13, 2015, the Committee on Indian Affairs
met to consider the bill.
An identical bill was introduced in the House of
Representatives. On April 16, 2015, Representative Michelle
Lujan Grisham and cosponsor Representative Ben Ray Lujan
introduced H.R. 1880, the Albuquerque Indian School Land
Transfer Act. On May 7, 2015, the bill was referred to the
House Committee on Natural Resources. On July 22, 2015, the
Subcommittee on Indian, Insular and Alaska Native Affairs held
a legislative hearing on H.R. 1880.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
On May 13, 2015 the Committee on Indian Affairs ordered the
bill to be reported favorably to the full Senate with the
recommendation that it do pass.
COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS
The following cost estimate, as provided by the
Congressional Budget Office, dated May 26, 2015, was prepared
for S. 986:
May 26, 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. 986, the Albuquerque
Indian School Land Transfer Act.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Martin von
Gnechten.
Sincerely,
Keith Hall.
Enclosure.
S. 986--Albuquerque Indian School Land Transfer Act
S. 986 would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to
place four parcels of federal land (totaling about 11 acres) in
Albuquerque, New Mexico, into trust for the benefit of 19
Indian Pueblos in New Mexico. Under the bill, those Pueblos
would be authorized to use the land for educational, health,
cultural, business, or economic purposes. The bill would
prohibit gaming activities on the affected properties.
Additionally, the bill would allow the Bureau of Indian Affairs
(BIA) to continue to use the facilities on that land as they
were used prior to enactment.
CBO estimates that implementing the legislation would have
no significant effect on the federal budget. Discretionary
spending for the administrative costs of the transfer would be
negligible.
Based on information provided by BIA, those parcels of
federal land currently generate no receipts and are not
expected to do so over the 2016-2025 period. Therefore, CBO
estimates that transferring the lands into trust for the
Pueblos would not affect offsetting receipts (a credit against
direct spending). Because enacting S. 986 would not affect
direct spending or revenues, pay-as-you-go procedures do not
apply.
S. 986 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Martin von
Gnechten. 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. 986.
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. 986 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, the Committee finds that the
enactment of the S. 986 will not make any changes in existing
law.
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