What This Bill Does
This bill modifies a law from 1934 to reaffirm that the Secretary of the Interior (the federal official in charge of managing public lands and Indian affairs) has the power to take land into trust for Indian Tribes. The bill also protects past actions the Secretary took under this law from legal challenges about whether tribes were federally recognized at the time.
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Who It Affects
- The Secretary of the Interior
- Federally recognized Indian Tribes
- Any party that might challenge past government actions involving Indian Tribes and land held in trust (property legally owned by the federal government for a tribe's benefit)
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Key Provisions
- The bill changes the language of the original 1934 law to say it applies to "any federally recognized Indian Tribe" instead of "any recognized Indian tribe now under Federal jurisdiction" (Sec. 1(a)(1)(B))
- Any action the Secretary of the Interior took under the 1934 law for a federally recognized tribe is officially approved and confirmed, even if someone tries to challenge it based on whether the tribe was federally recognized in 1934 (Sec. 1(b))
- This bill does not change how other federal laws work or limit the Secretary's authority under other federal laws (Sec. 1(c)(1))
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What Changes
The 1934 law's language gets updated to clarify it applies to federally recognized tribes. Past government actions related to taking land into trust for federally recognized tribes become legally protected from challenges about tribal recognition status.
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Important Definitions
- **Federally recognized Indian Tribe**: A tribe that the federal government officially recognizes as having government status
- **Trust land**: Property that the federal government legally holds on behalf of an Indian Tribe
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Effective Date
The amendments take effect retroactively as if they were included in the original 1934 law when it was passed (Sec. 1(a)(2))
I
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION H. R. 1208
To amend the Act of June 18, 1934, to reaffirm the authority of the
Secretary of the Interior to take land into trust for Indian Tribes,
and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 27, 2023
Mr. COLE (for himself, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. ROGERS of Alabama, Mr.
GALLEGO, Ms. DAVIDS of Kansas, Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin, Mr. GRI-
JALVA, Ms. STANSBURY, Ms. LEGER FERNANDEZ, Mr. LAMALFA, and
Mr. CARL) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Natural Resources
A BILL
To amend the Act of June 18, 1934, to reaffirm the author-
ity of the Secretary of the Interior to take land into
trust for Indian Tribes, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
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tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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SECTION 1. REAFFIRMATION OF AUTHORITY.
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(a) MODIFICATION.—
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(1) IN GENERAL.—The first sentence of section
5
19 of the Act of June 18, 1934 (25 U.S.C. 5129),
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is amended—
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•HR 1208 IH
(A) by striking ‘‘The term’’ and inserting
1
‘‘Effective beginning June 18, 1934, the term’’;
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and
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(B) by striking ‘‘any recognized Indian
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tribe now under Federal jurisdiction’’ and in-
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serting ‘‘any federally recognized Indian Tribe’’.
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(2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made
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by paragraph (1) shall take effect as if included in
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the Act of June 18, 1934 (commonly known as the
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‘‘Indian Reorganization Act’’; 25 U.S.C. 5101 et
10
seq.), on the date of the enactment of that Act.
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(b) RATIFICATION
AND
CONFIRMATION
OF
AC-
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TIONS.—Any action taken by the Secretary of the Interior
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pursuant to the Act of June 18, 1934 (25 U.S.C. 5101
14
et seq.), for any Indian Tribe that was federally recognized
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on the date of the action is ratified and confirmed, to the
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extent such action is subjected to challenge based on
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whether the Indian Tribe was federally recognized or
18
under Federal jurisdiction on June 18, 1934, as if the ac-
19
tion had, by prior Act of Congress, been specifically au-
20
thorized and directed.
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(c) EFFECT ON OTHER LAWS.—
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(1) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this section or
23
the amendments made by this section affects—
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•HR 1208 IH
(A) the application or effect of any Federal
1
law other than the Act of June 18, 1934 (25
2
U.S.C. 5101 et seq.), as amended by subsection
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(a); or
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(B) any limitation on the authority of the
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Secretary of the Interior under any Federal law
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or regulation other than the Act of June 18,
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1934 (25 U.S.C. 5101 et seq.), as amended by
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subsection (a).
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(2) REFERENCES IN OTHER LAWS.—An express
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reference to the Act of June 18, 1934 (25 U.S.C.
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5101 et seq.), contained in any other Federal law
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shall be considered to be a reference to that Act as
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amended by subsection (a).
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Æ
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