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H.R. 1491 — what changed

Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians Land Affirmation Act of 2017

From Introduced in House to Reported in House. 1 section amended and 1 removed between Introduced in House and Reported in House.

Sec. 2 Reaffirmation of status and actions

(a)
added Ratification of trust status— The action taken by the Secretary on January 20, 2017, to place approximately 1,427.28 acres of land located in Santa Barbara County, California, into trust for the benefit of the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians is hereby ratified and confirmed as if that action had been taken under a Federal law specifically authorizing or directing that action.

removed Congress finds as follows:

(b)
changed Ratification of actions of the secretary— The Chumash People have resided along California’s Central Coast since time immemorial. Prior actions taken by the Secretary to contact with European settlers in 1769, an estimated 22,000 Chumash lived assume jurisdiction over the appeals relating to the fee-to-trust acquisition of approximately 1,427.28 acres in villages between Malibu Santa Barbara County, California, on January 30, 2015, is hereby ratified and Monterey, California.confirmed as if that action had been taken under a Federal law specifically authorizing or directing that action.
(c)
changed Ratification of actions of the secretary— Like many California Indians, many of The actions taken by the Chumash people were forced Secretary to live on Spanish Missions. Mission life was cruel and resulted in the decimation of dismiss the Chumash people so that by 1831, appeals relating to the number fee-to-trust acquisition of mission registered Chumash approximately 1,427.28 acres in Santa Barbara County, California, on January 19, 2017, is hereby ratified and confirmed as if that action had fallen to 2,788.been taken under a Federal law specifically authorizing or directing that action.
(d)
added Administration—
(1)
added Administration— The land placed into trust for the benefit of the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians by the Secretary of the Interior on January 20, 2017, shall be a part of the Santa Ynez Indian Reservation and administered in accordance with the laws and regulations generally applicable to the land held in trust by the United States for an Indian tribe.
(2)
added Effect— For purposes of certain California State laws (including the California Land Conservation Act of 1965, Government Code Section 51200, et seq.), placing the land described in subsection (b) into trust shall remove any restrictions on the property pursuant to California Government Code Section 51295 or any other provision of such Act.
(3)
removed After the dissolution of Mission Santa Ines, in current day Santa Ynez, California, the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indian was able to begin to reassemble its government and culture. Tribal leaders and members continued to be marginalized until the United States granted the tribe 99 acres to establish its reservation in 1901.
(e)
changed Legal description of lands transferred— More than 100 years later, the tribe finally secured the resources The lands to expand its reservation and purchased roughly 1,400 acres only a few miles away from its current lands. This land is more accurately described in section 3(e) of be transferred pursuant to this legislation.Act are described as follows:
(f)
changed Rules of construction— On June 1, 2011, the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians deliver a proposed cooperative agreement to the County of Santa Barbara as an initial offer to mitigate any potential impacts of taking the land into trust.Nothing in this Act shall—
(1)
added enlarge, impair, or otherwise affect any right or claim of the Tribe to any land or interest in land that is in existence before the date of the enactment of this Act;
(2)
added affect any water right of the Tribe in existence before the date of the enactment of this Act; or
(3)
added terminate or limit any access in any way to any right-of-way or right-of-use issued, granted, or permitted before the date of the enactment of this Act.
(g)
changed Restricted use of transferred lands— On June 27, 2013, after waiting more than two years for a response from Santa Barbara County to the tribe’s proposed mitigation agreement, The Tribe may not conduct, on the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians submitted a fee-to-trust application land described in subsection (b) taken into trust for the Camp 4 property.Tribe pursuant to this Act, gaming activities—
(1)
added as a matter of claimed inherent authority; or
(2)
added under any Federal law, including the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.) and regulations promulgated by the Secretary or the National Indian Gaming Commission under that Act.
(h)
changed Definitions— The BIA published a Notice of Availability for the initial Environmental Assessment and invited comments through an extended comment period ending on November 18, 2013. In response to comments and changes in the plan for development of Camp 4, For the BIA conducted another Environmental Assessment. A final, revised EA was published in May 2014 through a Notice purposes of Availability, and comments on the revised Environmental Assessment were accepted through and extended comment period ending July 14, 2014.this section:
(1)
added Secretary— The term “Secretary” means the Secretary of the Interior.
(2)
added Tribe— The term “Tribe” means the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Mission Indians.
(8)
removed Based on the comments submitted to the revised Environmental Assessment for the proposed Federal action to accept the fee-to-trust transfer for the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians, the Bureau of Indian Affairs issued a Finding of No Significant Impact on October 23, 2014.
(9)
removed On December 24, 2014, the Bureau of Indian Affairs Pacific Region issued a Notice of Decision indicating its intent to accept the fee-to-trust transfer of the Camp 4 land.
(10)
removed Throughout 2015, a number of parties appealed the Bureau of Indian Affairs’ proposed decision to take the Camp 4 land into trust on behalf of the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians.
(11)
removed On January 19, 2017, Department of the Interior Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Lawrence S. Roberts dismissed the appeals and affirmed the December 24, 2014, Bureau of Indian Affairs Pacific Region decision to place the Camp 4 land into trust on behalf of the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians.

Sec. 3 Reaffirmation of status and actions

removed
(a)
removed Ratification of trust status— The action taken by the Secretary on January 20, 2016, to place approximately 1,427.28 acres of land located in Santa Barbara County, California, into trust for the benefit of the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians is hereby ratified and confirmed as if that action had been taken under a Federal law specifically authorizing or directing that action.
(b)
removed Ratification of actions of the secretary— The actions taken by the Secretary to assume jurisdiction over the appeals relating to the fee-to-trust acquisition of approximately 1,427.28 acres in Santa Barbara County, California, on January 20, 2015, is hereby ratified and confirmed as if that action had been taken under a Federal law specifically authorizing or directing that action.
(c)
removed Ratification of actions of the secretary— The actions taken by the Secretary to dismiss the appeals relating to the fee-to-trust acquisition of approximately 1,427.28 acres in Santa Barbara County, California, on January 19, 2017, is hereby ratified and confirmed as if that action had been taken under a Federal law specifically authorizing or directing that action.
(d)
removed Administration—
(1)
removed Administration— The land placed into trust for the benefit of the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians by the Secretary of the Interior on January 20, 2017, shall be a part of the Santa Ynez Indian Reservation and administered in accordance with the laws and regulations generally applicable to the land held in trust by the United States for an Indian tribe.
(2)
removed Effect— For purposes of certain California State laws (including the California Land Conservation Act of 1965, Government Code Section 51200, et seq.), placing the land described in subsection (b) into trust shall remove any restrictions on the property pursuant to California Government Code Section 51295 or any other provision of such Act.
(e)
removed Legal description of lands transferred— The lands to be transferred pursuant to this Act are described as follows:
(f)
removed Rules of construction— Nothing in this Act shall—
(1)
removed enlarge, impair, or otherwise affect any right or claim of the Tribe to any land or interest in land that is in existence before the date of the enactment of this Act;
(2)
removed affect any water right of the Tribe in existence before the date of the enactment of this Act; or
(3)
removed terminate or limit any access in any way to any right-of-way or right-of-use issued, granted, or permitted before the date of the enactment of this Act.
(g)
removed Restricted use of transferred lands— The Tribe may not conduct, on the land described in subsection (b) taken into trust for the Tribe pursuant to this Act, gaming activities—
(1)
removed as a matter of claimed inherent authority; or
(2)
removed under any Federal law, including the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.) and regulations promulgated by the Secretary or the National Indian Gaming Commission under that Act.
(h)
removed Definitions— For the purposes of this section:
(1)
removed Secretary— The term “Secretary” means the Secretary of the Interior.
(2)
removed Tribe— The term “Tribe” means the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Mission Indians.