[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 205 Engrossed in House (EH)]
112th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 205
_______________________________________________________________________
AN ACT
To amend the Act titled ``An Act to authorize the leasing of restricted
Indian lands for public, religious, educational, recreational,
residential, business, and other purposes requiring the grant of long-
term leases'', approved August 9, 1955, to provide for Indian tribes to
enter into certain leases without prior express approval from the
Secretary of the Interior, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Helping Expedite and Advance
Responsible Tribal Home Ownership Act of 2012'' or the ``HEARTH Act of
2012''.
SEC. 2. APPROVAL OF, AND REGULATIONS RELATED TO, TRIBAL LEASES.
The first section of the Act titled ``An Act to authorize the
leasing of restricted Indian lands for public, religious, educational,
recreational, residential, business, and other purposes requiring the
grant of long-term leases'', approved August 9, 1955 (25 U.S.C. 415),
is amended as follows:
(1) In subsection (d)--
(A) in paragraph (4), by striking ``the Navajo
Nation'' and inserting ``an applicable Indian tribe'';
(B) in paragraph (6), by striking ``the Navajo
Nation'' and inserting ``an Indian tribe'';
(C) in paragraph (7), by striking ``and'' after the
semicolon at the end;
(D) in paragraph (8)--
(i) by striking ``the Navajo Nation'';
(ii) by striking ``with Navajo Nation law''
and inserting ``with applicable tribal law'';
and
(iii) by striking the period at the end and
inserting a semicolon; and
(E) by adding at the end the following:
``(9) the term `Indian tribe' has the meaning given such
term in section 102 of the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe
List Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 479a); and
``(10) the term `individually owned allotted land' means a
parcel of land that--
``(A)(i) is located within the jurisdiction of an
Indian tribe; or
``(ii) is held in trust or restricted status by the
United States for the benefit of an Indian tribe or a
member of an Indian tribe; and
``(B) is allotted to a member of an Indian
tribe.''.
(2) By adding at the end the following:
``(h) Tribal Approval of Leases.--
``(1) In general.--At the discretion of any Indian tribe,
any lease by the Indian tribe for the purposes authorized under
subsection (a) (including any amendments to subsection (a)),
except a lease for the exploration, development, or extraction
of any mineral resources, shall not require the approval of the
Secretary, if the lease is executed under the tribal
regulations approved by the Secretary under this subsection and
the term of the lease does not exceed--
``(A) in the case of a business or agricultural
lease, 25 years, except that any such lease may include
an option to renew for up to 2 additional terms, each
of which may not exceed 25 years; and
``(B) in the case of a lease for public, religious,
educational, recreational, or residential purposes, 75
years, if such a term is provided for by the
regulations issued by the Indian tribe.
``(2) Allotted land.--Paragraph (1) shall not apply to any
lease of individually owned Indian allotted land.
``(3) Authority of secretary over tribal regulations.--
``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall have the
authority to approve or disapprove any tribal
regulations issued in accordance with paragraph (1).
``(B) Considerations for approval.--The Secretary
shall approve any tribal regulation issued in
accordance with paragraph (1), if the tribal
regulations--
``(i) are consistent with any regulations
issued by the Secretary under subsection (a)
(including any amendments to the subsection or
regulations); and
``(ii) provide for an environmental review
process that includes--
``(I) the identification and
evaluation of any significant effects
of the proposed action on the
environment; and
``(II) a process for ensuring
that--
``(aa) the public is
informed of, and has a
reasonable opportunity to
comment on, any significant
environmental impacts of the
proposed action identified by
the Indian tribe; and
``(bb) the Indian tribe
provides responses to relevant
and substantive public comments
on any such impacts before the
Indian tribe approves the
lease.
``(C) Technical assistance.--The Secretary may
provide technical assistance, upon request of the
Indian tribe, for development of a regulatory
environmental review process under subparagraph
(B)(ii).
``(D) Indian self-determination act.--The technical
assistance to be provided by the Secretary pursuant to
subparagraph (C) may be made available through
contracts, grants, or agreements entered into in
accordance with, and made available to entities
eligible for, such contracts, grants, or agreements
under the Indian Self-Determination Act (25 U.S.C. 450
et seq.).
``(4) Review process.--
``(A) In general.--Not later than 120 days after
the date on which the tribal regulations described in
paragraph (1) are submitted to the Secretary, the
Secretary shall review and approve or disapprove the
regulations.
``(B) Written documentation.--If the Secretary
disapproves the tribal regulations described in
paragraph (1), the Secretary shall include written
documentation with the disapproval notification that
describes the basis for the disapproval.
``(C) Extension.--The deadline described in
subparagraph (A) may be extended by the Secretary,
after consultation with the Indian tribe.
``(5) Federal environmental review.--Notwithstanding
paragraphs (3) and (4), if an Indian tribe carries out a
project or activity funded by a Federal agency, the Indian
tribe shall have the authority to rely on the environmental
review process of the applicable Federal agency rather than any
tribal environmental review process under this subsection.
``(6) Documentation.--If an Indian tribe executes a lease
pursuant to tribal regulations under paragraph (1), the Indian
tribe shall provide the Secretary with--
``(A) a copy of the lease, including any amendments
or renewals to the lease; and
``(B) in the case of tribal regulations or a lease
that allows for lease payments to be made directly to
the Indian tribe, documentation of the lease payments
that are sufficient to enable the Secretary to
discharge the trust responsibility of the United States
under paragraph (7).
``(7) Trust responsibility.--
``(A) In general.--The United States shall not be
liable for losses sustained by any party to a lease
executed pursuant to tribal regulations under paragraph
(1).
``(B) Authority of secretary.--Pursuant to the
authority of the Secretary to fulfill the trust
obligation of the United States to the applicable
Indian tribe under Federal law (including regulations),
the Secretary may, upon reasonable notice from the
applicable Indian tribe and at the discretion of the
Secretary, enforce the provisions of, or cancel, any
lease executed by the Indian tribe under paragraph (1).
``(8) Compliance.--
``(A) In general.--An interested party, after
exhausting of any applicable tribal remedies, may
submit a petition to the Secretary, at such time and in
such form as the Secretary determines to be
appropriate, to review the compliance of the applicable
Indian tribe with any tribal regulations approved by
the Secretary under this subsection.
``(B) Violations.--If, after carrying out a review
under subparagraph (A), the Secretary determines that
the tribal regulations were violated, the Secretary may
take any action the Secretary determines to be
necessary to remedy the violation, including rescinding
the approval of the tribal regulations and reassuming
responsibility for the approval of leases of tribal
trust lands.
``(C) Documentation.--If the Secretary determines
that a violation of the tribal regulations has occurred
and a remedy is necessary, the Secretary shall--
``(i) make a written determination with
respect to the regulations that have been
violated;
``(ii) provide the applicable Indian tribe
with a written notice of the alleged violation
together with such written determination; and
``(iii) prior to the exercise of any
remedy, the rescission of the approval of the
regulation involved, or the reassumption of
lease approval responsibilities, provide the
applicable Indian tribe with--
``(I) a hearing that is on the
record; and
``(II) a reasonable opportunity to
cure the alleged violation.
``(9) Savings clause.--Nothing in this subsection shall
affect subsection (e) or any tribal regulations issued under
that subsection.''.
SEC. 3. LAND TITLE REPORTS.
(a) In General.--The Bureau of Indian Affairs shall prepare and
submit to the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate a
report regarding the history and experience of Indian tribes that have
chosen to assume responsibility for operating the Indian Land Title and
Records Office (referred to in this section as the ``LTRO'') functions
from the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
(b) Consultation.--In conducting the review under subsection (a),
the Bureau of Indian Affairs shall consult with the Department of
Housing and Urban Development Office of Native American Programs and
the Indian tribes that are managing LTRO functions (referred to in this
section as the ``managing Indian tribes'').
(c) Contents.--The review under subsection (a) shall include an
analysis of the following factors:
(1) Whether and how tribal management of the LTRO functions
has expedited the processing and issuance of Indian land title
certifications as compared to the period during which the
Bureau of Indian Affairs managed the programs.
(2) Whether and how tribal management of the LTRO functions
has increased home ownership among the population of the
managing Indian tribe.
(3) What internal preparations and processes were required
of the managing Indian tribes prior to assuming management of
the LTRO functions.
(4) Whether tribal management of the LTRO functions
resulted in a transfer of financial resources and manpower from
the Bureau of Indian Affairs to the managing Indian tribes and,
if so, what transfers were undertaken.
(5) Whether, in appropriate circumstances and with the
approval of geographically proximate Indian tribes, the LTRO
functions may be performed by a single Indian tribe or a tribal
consortium in a cost effective manner.
Passed the House of Representatives May 15, 2012.
Attest:
Clerk.
112th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 205
_______________________________________________________________________
AN ACT
To amend the Act titled ``An Act to authorize the leasing of restricted
Indian lands for public, religious, educational, recreational,
residential, business, and other purposes requiring the grant of long-
term leases'', approved August 9, 1955, to provide for Indian tribes to
enter into certain leases without prior express approval from the
Secretary of the Interior, and for other purposes.