Tribes could grant rights-of-way across their land under approved rules

The bill would allow a tribe to grant a right-of-way across its land under its own approved rules. This applies to rights-of-way across a tribe’s own land, for any purpose. A right-of-way is permission to use land for a stated purpose. The Interior Secretary must approve the tribe’s rules before the tribe can use them to grant a right-of-way without the Secretary’s approval or grant. The rules must require environmental review, public notice and a reasonable chance to comment on significant effects, and responses to relevant, substantive comments before the tribe approves a right-of-way. For a project funded by a federal agency, the tribe may use that agency’s environmental review instead of its own review. The Secretary’s decision to approve tribal regulations would not be subject to the National Environmental Policy Act, section 306108 of title 54, or the Endangered Species Act; the bill still requires the tribal environmental-review and public-comment process. The Secretary must review and approve or reject a tribe’s rules within 180 days after receiving them. The Secretary may extend that period after consulting the tribe.

The bill would let the Interior Secretary review whether a tribe followed its approved rules and take steps to address a violation. This applies when an interested party asks the Secretary to review a tribe’s compliance with its approved rules for granting rights-of-way. An interested party must first use any available tribal remedies before asking the Secretary to review compliance. Before taking a remedy, the Secretary must give the tribe a hearing on the record and a reasonable chance to fix the alleged violation. The Secretary may rescind approval of the tribe’s rules or take back responsibility for approving rights-of-way through the tribe’s trust land. The hearing and chance to fix the alleged violation must come before the Secretary uses any remedy.

The bill would change provisions on leases of trust or restricted lands to include land held in trust for any other federally recognized tribe and remove specified lease-term restrictions. The amendments concern leases of trust or restricted lands under the Long-Term Leasing Act.

The bill would provide that the United States is not liable for losses tied to a tribal right-of-way, and that the Interior Secretary may enforce or cancel one. These provisions apply to rights-of-way granted by a tribe under the described process. The Secretary may enforce or cancel a right-of-way at the tribe’s discretion and after reasonable notice from the tribe. A tribe’s grant does not waive its legal immunity or reduce its authority over the land unless the grant or tribal rules provide otherwise.