Navajo Utah Water Rights Settlement Act of 2020

IB Union Calendar No. 557 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 644 [Report No. 116–673] To approve the settlement of the water rights claims of the Navajo Nation in Utah, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JANUARY 17, 2019 Mr. BISHOP of Utah introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources DECEMBER 18, 2020 Additional sponsors: Mr. STEWART, Mr. CURTIS, Mr. MCADAMS, Mr. LUJA´N, and Mr. O’HALLERAN DECEMBER 18, 2020 Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] [For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on January 17, 2019] VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:28 Dec 18, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H644.RH H644 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 644 RH A BILL To approve the settlement of the water rights claims of the Navajo Nation in Utah, and for other purposes. VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:28 Dec 18, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H644.RH H644 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 644 RH Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Navajo Utah Water 4 Rights Settlement Act of 2020’’. 5 SEC. 2. PURPOSES. 6 The purposes of this Act are— 7 (1) to achieve a fair, equitable, and final settle- 8 ment of all claims to water rights in the State of 9 Utah for— 10 (A) the Navajo Nation; and 11 (B) the United States, for the benefit of the 12 Nation; 13 (2) to authorize, ratify, and confirm the Agree- 14 ment entered into by the Nation and the State, to the 15 extent that the Agreement is consistent with this Act; 16 (3) to authorize and direct the Secretary— 17 (A) to execute the Agreement; and 18 (B) to take any actions necessary to carry 19 out the agreement in accordance with this Act; 20 and 21 (4) to authorize funds necessary for the imple- 22 mentation of the Agreement and this Act. 23 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 24 In this Act: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:28 Dec 18, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H644.RH H644 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 644 RH (1) AGREEMENT.—The term ‘‘agreement’’ 1 means— 2 (A) the document entitled ‘‘Navajo Utah 3 Water Rights Settlement Agreement’’ dated De- 4 cember 14, 2015, and the exhibits attached there- 5 to; and 6 (B) any amendment or exhibit to the docu- 7 ment or exhibits referenced in subparagraph (A) 8 to make the document or exhibits consistent with 9 this Act. 10 (2) ALLOTMENT.—The term ‘‘allotment’’ means a 11 parcel of land— 12 (A) granted out of the public domain that 13 is— 14 (i) located within the exterior bound- 15 aries of the Reservation; or 16 (ii) Bureau of Indian Affairs parcel 17 number 792 634511 in San Juan County, 18 Utah, consisting of 160 acres located in 19 Township 41S, Range 20E, sections 11, 12, 20 and 14, originally set aside by the United 21 States for the benefit of an individual iden- 22 tified in the allotting document as a Navajo 23 Indian; and 24 (B) held in trust by the United States— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:28 Dec 18, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H644.RH H644 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 644 RH (i) for the benefit of an individual, in- 1 dividuals, or an Indian Tribe other than 2 the Navajo Nation; or 3 (ii) in part for the benefit of the Nav- 4 ajo Nation as of the enforceability date. 5 (3) ALLOTTEE.—The term ‘‘allottee’’ means an 6 individual or Indian Tribe with a beneficial interest 7 in an allotment held in trust by the United States. 8 (4) ENFORCEABILITY DATE.—The term ‘‘enforce- 9 ability date’’ means the date on which the Secretary 10 publishes in the Federal Register the statement of 11 findings described in section 8(a). 12 (5) GENERAL STREAM ADJUDICATION.—The term 13 ‘‘general stream adjudication’’ means the adjudica- 14 tion pending, as of the date of enactment, in the Sev- 15 enth Judicial District in and for Grand County, 16 State of Utah, commonly known as the ‘‘Southeastern 17 Colorado River General Adjudication’’, Civil No. 18 810704477, conducted pursuant to State law. 19 (6) INJURY TO WATER RIGHTS.—The term ‘‘in- 20 jury to water rights’’ means an interference with, 21 diminution of, or deprivation of water rights under 22 Federal or State law, excluding injuries to water 23 quality. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:28 Dec 18, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H644.RH H644 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 644 RH (7) MEMBER.—The term ‘‘member’’ means any 1 person who is a duly enrolled member of the Navajo 2 Nation. 3 (8) NAVAJO NATION OR NATION.—The term 4 ‘‘Navajo Nation’’ or ‘‘Nation’’ means a body politic 5 and federally recognized Indian nation, as published 6 on the list established under section 104(a) of the Fed- 7 erally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 1994 (25 8 U.S.C. 5131(a)), also known variously as the ‘‘Navajo 9 Nation’’, the ‘‘Navajo Nation of Arizona, New Mexico, 10 & Utah’’, and the ‘‘Navajo Nation of Indians’’ and 11 other similar names, and includes all bands of Navajo 12 Indians and chapters of the Navajo Nation and all 13 divisions, agencies, officers, and agents thereof. 14 (9) NAVAJO WATER DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS.— 15 The term ‘‘Navajo water development projects’’ means 16 projects for domestic municipal water supply, includ- 17 ing distribution infrastructure, and agricultural 18 water conservation, to be constructed, in whole or in 19 part, using monies from the Navajo Water Develop- 20 ment Projects Account. 21 (10) NAVAJO WATER RIGHTS.—The term ‘‘Navajo 22 water rights’’ means the Nation’s water rights in 23 Utah described in the agreement and this Act. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:28 Dec 18, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H644.RH H644 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 644 RH (11) OM&R.—The term ‘‘OM&R’’ means oper- 1 ation, maintenance, and replacement. 2 (12) PARTIES.—The term ‘‘parties’’ means the 3 Navajo Nation, the State, and the United States. 4 (13) RESERVATION.—The term ‘‘Reservation’’ 5 means, for purposes of the agreement and this Act, the 6 Reservation of the Navajo Nation in Utah as in exist- 7 ence on the date of enactment of this Act and depicted 8 on the map attached to the agreement as Exhibit A, 9 including any parcel of land granted out of the public 10 domain and held in trust by the United States en- 11 tirely for the benefit of the Navajo Nation as of the 12 enforceability date. 13 (14) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 14 the Secretary of the United States Department of the 15 Interior or a duly authorized representative thereof. 16 (15) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the State 17 of Utah and all officers, agents, departments, and po- 18 litical subdivisions thereof. 19 (16) UNITED STATES.—The term ‘‘United 20 States’’ means the United States of America and all 21 departments, agencies, bureaus, officers, and agents 22 thereof. 23 (17) UNITED STATES ACTING IN ITS TRUST CA- 24 PACITY.—The term ‘‘United States acting in its trust 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:28 Dec 18, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H644.RH H644 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 644 RH capacity’’ means the United States acting for the ben- 1 efit of the Navajo Nation or for the benefit of allottees. 2 SEC. 4. RATIFICATION OF AGREEMENT. 3 (a) APPROVAL BY CONGRESS.—Except to the extent 4 that any provision of the agreement conflicts with this Act, 5 Congress approves, ratifies, and confirms the agreement (in- 6 cluding any amendments to the agreement that are executed 7 to make the agreement consistent with this Act). 8 (b) EXECUTION BY SECRETARY.—The Secretary is au- 9 thorized and directed to promptly execute the agreement to 10 the extent that the agreement does not conflict with this Act, 11 including— 12 (1) any exhibits to the agreement requiring the 13 signature of the Secretary; and 14 (2) any amendments to the agreement necessary 15 to make the agreement consistent with this Act. 16 (c) ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE.— 17 (1) IN GENERAL.—In implementing the agree- 18 ment and this Act, the Secretary shall comply with 19 all applicable provisions of— 20 (A) the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 21 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); 22 (B) the National Environmental Policy Act 23 of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:28 Dec 18, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H644.RH H644 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 644 RH (C) all other applicable environmental laws 1 and regulations. 2 (2) EXECUTION OF THE AGREEMENT.—Execu- 3 tion of the agreement by the Secretary as provided for 4 in this Act shall not constitute a major Federal action 5 under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 6 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). 7 SEC. 5. NAVAJO WATER RIGHTS. 8 (a) CONFIRMATION OF NAVAJO WATER RIGHTS.— 9 (1) QUANTIFICATION.—The Navajo Nation shall 10 have the right to use water from water sources located 11 within Utah and adjacent to or encompassed within 12 the boundaries of the Reservation resulting in deple- 13 tions not to exceed 81,500 acre-feet annually as de- 14 scribed in the agreement and as confirmed in the de- 15 cree entered by the general stream adjudication court. 16 (2) SATISFACTION OF ALLOTTEE RIGHTS.—De- 17 pletions resulting from the use of water on an allot- 18 ment shall be accounted for as a depletion by the Nav- 19 ajo Nation for purposes of depletion accounting under 20 the agreement, including recognition of— 21 (A) any water use existing on an allotment 22 as of the date of enactment of this Act and as 23 subsequently reflected in the hydrographic survey 24 report referenced in section 7(b); 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:28 Dec 18, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H644.RH H644 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 644 RH (B) reasonable domestic and stock water 1 uses put into use on an allotment; and 2 (C) any allotment water rights that may be 3 decreed in the general stream adjudication or 4 other appropriate forum. 5 (3) SATISFACTION OF ON-RESERVATION STATE 6 LAW-BASED WATER RIGHTS.—Depletions resulting 7 from the use of water on the Reservation pursuant to 8 State law-based water rights existing as of the date of 9 enactment of this Act shall be accounted for as deple- 10 tions by the Navajo Nation for purposes of depletion 11 accounting under the agreement. 12 (4) IN GENERAL.—The Navajo water rights are 13 ratified, confirmed, and declared to be valid. 14 (5) USE.—Any use of the Navajo water rights 15 shall be subject to the terms and conditions of the 16 agreement and this Act. 17 (6) CONFLICT.—In the event of a conflict between 18 the agreement and this Act, the provisions of this Act 19 shall control. 20 (b) TRUST STATUS OF NAVAJO WATER RIGHTS.—The 21 Navajo water rights— 22 (1) shall be held in trust by the United States for 23 the use and benefit of the Nation in accordance with 24 the agreement and this Act; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:28 Dec 18, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H644.RH H644 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 644 RH (2) shall not be subject to forfeiture or abandon- 1 ment. 2 (c) AUTHORITY OF THE NATION.— 3 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Nation shall have the au- 4 thority to allocate, distribute, and lease the Navajo 5 water rights for any use on the Reservation in accord- 6 ance with the agreement, this Act, and applicable 7 Tribal and Federal law. 8 (2) OFF-RESERVATION USE.—The Nation may 9 allocate, distribute, and lease the Navajo water rights 10 for off-Reservation use in accordance with the agree- 11 ment, subject to the approval of the Secretary. 12 (3) ALLOTTEE WATER RIGHTS.—The Nation 13 shall not object in the general stream adjudication or 14 other applicable forum to the quantification of rea- 15 sonable domestic and stock water uses on an allot- 16 ment, and shall administer any water use on the Res- 17 ervation in accordance with applicable Federal law, 18 including recognition of— 19 (A) any water use existing on an allotment 20 as of the date of enactment of this Act and as 21 subsequently reflected in the hydrographic survey 22 report referenced in section 7(b); 23 (B) reasonable domestic and stock water 24 uses on an allotment; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:28 Dec 18, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H644.RH H644 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 644 RH (C) any allotment water rights decreed in 1 the general stream adjudication or other appro- 2 priate forum. 3 (d) EFFECT.—Except as otherwise expressly provided 4 in this section, nothing in this Act— 5 (1) authorizes any action by the Nation against 6 the United States under Federal, State, Tribal, or 7 local law; or 8 (2) alters or affects the status of any action 9 brought pursuant to section 1491(a) of title 28, 10 United States Code. 11 SEC. 6. NAVAJO TRUST ACCOUNTS. 12 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall establish a 13 trust fund, to be known as the ‘‘Navajo Utah Settlement 14 Trust Fund’’ (referred to in this Act as the ‘‘Trust Fund’’), 15 to be managed, invested, and distributed by the Secretary 16 and to remain available until expended, consisting of the 17 amounts deposited in the Trust Fund under subsection (c), 18 together with any interest earned on those amounts, for the 19 purpose of carrying out this Act. 20 (b) ACCOUNTS.—The Secretary shall establish in the 21 Trust Fund the following Accounts: 22 (1) The Navajo Water Development Projects Ac- 23 count. 24 (2) The Navajo OM&R Account. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:28 Dec 18, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H644.RH H644 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 13 •HR 644 RH (c) DEPOSITS.—The Secretary shall deposit in the 1 Trust Fund Accounts— 2 (1) in the Navajo Water Development Projects 3 Account, the amounts made available pursuant to sec- 4 tion 7(a)(1); and 5 (2) in the Navajo OM&R Account, the amount 6 made available pursuant to section 7(a)(2). 7 (d) MANAGEMENT AND INTEREST.— 8 (1) MANAGEMENT.—Upon receipt and deposit of 9 the funds into the Trust Fund Accounts, the Secretary 10 shall manage, invest, and distribute all amounts in 11 the Trust Fund in a manner that is consistent with 12 the investment authority of the Secretary under— 13 (A) the first section of the Act of June 24, 14 1938 (25 U.S.C. 162a); 15 (B) the American Indian Trust Fund Man- 16 agement Reform Act of 1 [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]