Wy’East Tribal Resources Restoration Act
This bill establishes within Mount Hood National Forest one or more Indian Treaty Resources Emphasis Zones in areas agreed upon by the Forest Service and the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon to protect and enhance treaty resources, protect the reservation from wildfires, and enable a comanagement strategy between the Forest Service and the tribe.
[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6420 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 6420
To amend the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 to establish
within the Mount Hood National Forest in the State of Oregon Indian
Treaty Resources Emphasis Zones, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
November 15, 2023
Mr. Blumenauer introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Natural Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 to establish
within the Mount Hood National Forest in the State of Oregon Indian
Treaty Resources Emphasis Zones, 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 ``Wy'East Tribal Resources Restoration
Act''.
SEC. 2. INDIAN TREATY RESOURCES EMPHASIS ZONES, MOUNT HOOD NATIONAL
FOREST.
(a) In General.--Subtitle C of title I of the Omnibus Public Land
Management Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-11; 123 Stat. 1007) is amended
by adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 1208. INDIAN TREATY RESOURCES EMPHASIS ZONES.
``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) National forest.--The term `National Forest' means
the Mount Hood National Forest in the State.
``(2) Reservation.--The term `Reservation' means the
reservation of the Tribe.
``(3) Traditional ecological knowledge.--The term
`traditional ecological knowledge' means a body of
observations, oral and written knowledge, practices, and
beliefs that--
``(A) promotes environmental sustainability and the
responsible stewardship of natural resources through
relationships between humans and environmental systems;
``(B) is applied to phenomena across biological,
physical, cultural, and spiritual systems;
``(C) has evolved over millennia, continues to
evolve, and includes insights based on evidence
acquired through direct contact with the environment
and long-term experiences, as well as extensive
observations, lessons, and skills passed from
generation to generation; and
``(D) is owned by Indigenous people, including
Tribal Nations, Native Americans, Alaska Natives,
Native Hawaiians, and other Indigenous people.
``(4) Treaty.--The term `Treaty' means the Treaty between
the United States and the confederated tribes and bands of
Indians in Middle Oregon, concluded at Wasco June 25, 1855 (12
Stat. 963).
``(5) Tribe.--The term `Tribe' means the Confederated
Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon.
``(6) Zone.--The term `Zone' means an Indian Treaty
Resources Emphasis Zone established under subsection (b)(1).
``(b) Establishment.--
``(1) In general.--There is established within the area of
the National Forest described in paragraph (3) 1 or more zones,
each of which shall be known as an `Indian Treaty Resources
Emphasis Zone', consisting of any area within the National
Forest with respect to which the Tribe and the Secretary enter
into a memorandum of understanding under subsection (c)(1) to
protect and enhance Treaty resources or to protect the
Reservation from wildfire.
``(2) Purposes.--The purposes of a Zone are--
``(A) to meet the trust responsibility of the
United States in protecting the exercise of off-
Reservation Treaty rights reserved by the Treaty in the
National Forest;
``(B) to ensure that land and resource management
priorities in the Zone maintain and enhance resources,
activities, and access reserved by the Treaty;
``(C) to protect Treaty rights and resources and
the Reservation from wildfire, drought, and insect and
disease outbreaks in the National Forest in line with
the best available science, including traditional
ecological knowledge;
``(D) to recognize and integrate traditional
ecological knowledge as an important part of the best
available science that is used in forest and resource
management areas within the Zone;
``(E) to improve the technical understanding of
Forest Service employees in the National Forest with
respect to the trust responsibilities of the Federal
Government (including the application of those
responsibilities to ongoing forest management processes
and practices);
``(F) to enable a co-management strategy between
the Forest Service and the Tribe; and
``(G) to conserve other values within the Zone,
including ecological, scenic, geological, climate, and
indigenous cultural values.
``(3) Scope.--This section shall apply to any area within
the boundaries of the National Forest in which the Tribe
retains Treaty rights.
``(c) Management Strategy.--
``(1) Memorandum of understanding.--Not later than 60 days
after the date of enactment of this section, the Secretary
shall seek to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the
Tribe--
``(A) in addition to the Tribal consultation
process, to better fulfill the trust relationship
between the United States and the Tribe by ensuring
that the Forest Service includes the Tribe in the land
and resource management decision-making process in a
Zone to mitigate against adverse effects on Treaty
rights and management of the resources on which the
Treaty rights depend; and
``(B) to cooperatively develop a management
strategy for the 1 or more Zones, including guiding
documents for the management of the National Forest and
ecosystems for Treaty rights and resources within the
Zones.
``(2) Requirements.--A memorandum of understanding entered
into under paragraph (1) shall--
``(A) include an assessment of wildfire risk to--
``(i) the Reservation from the National
Forest; and
``(ii) Treaty and cultural resources within
the National Forest;
``(B) provide that forest restoration and
management planning within a Zone includes, and is
guided by, reserved Treaty rights, and the resources on
which the Treaty rights depend;
``(C) include requirements that no temporary or
permanent road shall be constructed within a Zone,
except as necessary--
``(i) to meet the requirements for the
administration of a Zone;
``(ii) to protect public health and safety;
``(iii) to respond to an emergency; or
``(iv) for the control of fire, insects, or
diseases, subject to such terms and conditions
as the Secretary determines to be appropriate;
and
``(D) to the maximum extent practicable, to meet
the purposes of this section, provide for the retention
of large trees, as appropriate for the historic forest
structure or promotion of fire-resilient stands.
``(3) Road maintenance.--
``(A) In general.--Subject to appropriations, the
Secretary shall maintain existing roads determined by
the Secretary, in consultation with the Tribe, to be
necessary for authorized existing uses and the
administration of a Zone.
``(B) Inclusion in memorandum of understanding.--
The requirement under this paragraph shall--
``(i) not expire; and
``(ii) be included in any memorandum of
understanding entered into under paragraph (1).
``(4) Withdrawal.--Subject to valid existing rights, all
public land within a Zone, and all land and interests in land
acquired by the United States within a Zone, shall be withdrawn
from--
``(A) all forms of entry, appropriation, or
disposal under the public land laws;
``(B) location, entry, and patent under the mining
laws; and
``(C) operation of the mineral leasing, mineral
materials, and geothermal leasing laws.
``(5) Deadlines.--To the maximum extent practicable, the
Secretary shall--
``(A) not later than the date that is 1 year after
the date of enactment of this section, ratify a
memorandum of understanding under paragraph (1); and
``(B) not later than the date that is 3 years after
the date of enactment of this section, complete a
management strategy for the 1 or more Zones.
``(d) Requirements for Implementation.--In carrying out this
section, the Secretary shall, to the maximum extent practicable--
``(1) use all existing authorities available to the
Secretary, including, as applicable--
``(A) the Tribal Forest Protection Act of 2004
(Public Law 108-278; 118 Stat. 868);
``(B) the good neighbor authority under section
8206 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 (16 U.S.C. 2113a);
``(C) title XXVI of the Energy Policy Act of 1992
(25 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.);
``(D) the stewardship end result contracting
authority under section 604 of the Healthy Forests
Restoration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6591c);
``(E) section 102 of the Indian Self-Determination
and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5321); and
``(F) the authority to enter into contracts with
the Tribe to expedite projects, on request by the
Tribe, under section 8703 of the Agriculture
Improvement Act of 2018 (25 U.S.C. 3115b);
``(2) develop a programmatic analysis for the management
strategy for the 1 or more Zones under the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.);
``(3) pursue a programmatic biological assessment to
implement the actions analyzed under paragraph (2) under
section 7 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C.
1536); and
``(4) ensure compliance with all applicable laws and
regulations.
``(e) Review of MOU.--Not later than 5 years after the date on
which a memorandum of understanding is entered into under subsection
(c)(1), and not less frequently than once every 5 years thereafter, the
Secretary shall, in coordination with the Tribe, review the
accomplishments of the memorandum of understanding to determine if the
memorandum of understanding shall be extended or modified.
``(f) Funding Agreement.--The Secretary shall develop a funding
agreement with the Tribe, including the use of appropriated funding, to
ensure that the Tribe, in partnership with the Forest Service, has the
capacity to participate in designing, implementing, and monitoring
projects within a Zone.
``(g) Monitoring.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall enter into an
agreement with the Tribe under which the Tribe may, at the
discretion of the Tribe--
``(A) review and provide comments on any land
management prescriptions developed by the Secretary for
a Zone;
``(B) monitor--
``(i) the long-term effectiveness of
restoration and management treatments of
actions carried out in a Zone; and
``(ii) any other action or lack of action
that is detrimental to the purposes of a Zone;
and
``(C) share any other information with the Forest
Service that the Tribe determines to be necessary to
further the purposes of a Zone.
``(h) Management of Cultural Foods Obligations.--
``(1) In general.--If the management plan described in
section 1207(c) has not been developed and implemented as of
the date of enactment of this section, the Secretary shall--
``(A) complete a management plan in accordance with
that section not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this section; or
``(B) enter into a contract with the Tribe to draft
a management plan described in that section pursuant to
the authority of the Secretary under the Indian Self-
Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C.
5301 et seq.).
``(2) Definition of cultural foods.--For purposes of the
management plan described in paragraph (1), the Secretary shall
consult with the Tribe to define the term `cultural foods'.
``(3) Inclusion.--The management plan described in
paragraph (1) may be included in the management strategy for
the 1 or more Zones developed under subsection (c).
``(i) Land and Resource Management Plan.--Any revisions or
amendments to the land and resource management plan applicable to the
National Forest under the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources
Planning Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 1600 et seq.) shall--
``(1) be made in consultation with the Tribe and other
Indian Tribes with historical or legal interests in the
National Forest;
``(2) be consistent with the management strategy for the 1
or more Zones; and
``(3) within the 1 or more Zones, protect Treaty rights and
allow management of the resources on which the Treaty rights
depend.
``(j) Effect.--Nothing in this section--
``(1) enlarges, establishes, or diminishes the current or
future rights of any Indian Tribe, including--
``(A) the exercise of hunting, fishing, gathering,
and pasturing of livestock rights in usual and
accustomed areas; or
``(B) Indian hunting, fishing, or gathering
activities conducted under an agreement with the State;
``(2) provides any Indian Tribe with exclusive use of any
area within the National Forest; or
``(3) limits the Secretary from entering into a separate
agreement with other Indian Tribes with treaty rights or a
recognized legal interest in the National Forest.
``(k) Funding.--
``(1) Authorization of appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this section $3,500,000 for
each of fiscal years 2024 through 2028.
``(2) Authority to use other funds.--Subject to the
availability of funds, and based on priorities for the National
Forest, the Secretary may use existing funds of the Forest
Service and Forest Service program revenue generated from
forest restoration activities to carry out the management
strategy for the 1 or more Zones, in line with the purposes
laid out in subsection(b)(2).''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents of the Omnibus
Public Land Management Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-11; 123 Stat. 991)
is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 1207 the
following:
``Sec. 1208. Indian Treaty Resources Emphasis Zones.''.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR E1108)
Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
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