S. 3752 — Introduced in Senate

II 115th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 3752 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES December 13, 2018Ms. Heitkamp introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works A BILL To require the transfer of certain land to be held in trust for the benefit of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe of North and South Dakota, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Land Restoration Act of 2018. 2. Findings Congress finds that— (1) 56,000 acres of the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation were acquired for the Oahe Dam and Reservoir, a component of the Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin program; (2) the land acquired was fertile, wooded bottomland, comprising the most productive agricultural and pastoral land of the Tribe, with arable soils, abundant timber and wildlife, and important medicinal plants of the Tribe; (3) the Joint Tribal Advisory Committee (referred to in this section as the Committee) was established by the Secretary of the Interior on May 10, 1985, to assess the impacts of the Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin program on the Tribe; and (4) the Committee issued a final report on May 23, 1986, in which the Committee recommended the transfer to the Tribe of the Oahe project land within the exterior boundaries of the Reservation that are located above 1620 mean sea level. 3. Definitions In this Act: (1) Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin Program The term Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin program means the Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin Program (authorized by section 9 of the Act of December 22, 1944 (commonly known as the Flood Control Act of 1944) (58 Stat. 891, chapter 665)). (2) Reservation The term Reservation means the Standing Rock Indian Reservation. (3) Secretary The term Secretary means the Secretary of the Interior. (4) Tribe The term Tribe means the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe of North and South Dakota. 4. Land transfer (a) In general Subject to subsection (c), the Secretary of the Army shall transfer the land described in subsection (b) to the Secretary to be held in trust for the benefit of the Tribe. (b) Land To be transferred The land that shall be transferred under this section is the Federal land that— (1) lies within the exterior boundaries of the Reservation; (2) was acquired by the United States for the Oahe Dam and Reservoir Project pursuant to Public Law 85–915 (72 Stat. 1762); and (3) is located above the top of the exclusive flood pool of the Oahe Dam and Reservoir Project, as determined by the Secretary of the Army. (c) Conditions of transfer (1) Authorized purposes The transfer of land under this section shall not interfere with any of the authorized purposes of the Oahe Dam and Reservoir Project, any project of the Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin program, or any other applicable law. (2) Retained rights The Secretary of the Army shall retain the right to inundate with water or cause erosion to the transferred land, as necessary for the operation of the Oahe Dam and Reservoir Project or of any project of the Pick Sloan Missouri River Basin program. (3) Retained property interests Notwithstanding subsection (b), the Secretary of the Army shall retain any land, structures, easements, or other property interests necessary to carry out authorized purposes of the Oahe Dam and Reservoir Project or of any project of the Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin program. (4) Other terms and conditions The transfer of land under this section shall be subject to any other term or condition that the Secretary of the Army determines to be appropriate to ensure the continued operation of the Oahe Dam and Reservoir Project or of any project of the Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin program. (d) Existing rights and interests Nothing in this Act deprives any person of any easement, leasehold, or other right or interest that, as of the date of enactment of this Act, the person may have in the land to be transferred.