Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe Project Lands Restoration Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. CRANK. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2388) to take certain Federal land in the State of Washington into trust for the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe, and for other purposes.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 2388

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 ``Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe Project Lands Restoration Act''. SEC. 2. LAND TAKEN INTO TRUST FOR THE LOWER ELWHA KLALLAM TRIBE.

(a) Definitions.--In this section:

(1) Reservation.--The term ``Reservation'' means the Lower Elwha Indian Reservation, also known as the Lower Elwha Reservation, located in the State of Washington.

(2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of the Interior.

(3) Tribe.--The term ``Tribe'' means the Lower Elwha Tribal Community, also known as the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe, located in the State of Washington.

(b) Land Held in Trust.--

(1) In general.--Subject to all valid existing rights of the United States, the approximately 1,082.63 acres of Federal land generally depicted as ``NPS Parcels to be Transferred to Tribe'' on the map entitled ``Olympic National Park Proposed Transfer of Elwha Lands'', numbered 149/178020, and dated December 2021 is hereby taken into and held in trust by the United States for the benefit of the Tribe.

(2) Inclusion in reservation.--The land taken into trust under paragraph (1) shall be part of the Reservation.

(3) Law applicable to certain land.--The land taken into trust under paragraph (1) shall not be subject to any requirements for valuation, appraisal, or equalization under any Federal law.

(c) Land Management.--Of the land taken into and held in trust under subsection (b)(1), the portion of the Elwha River subject to section 3(c)(3) of the Elwha River Ecosystem and Fisheries Restoration Act (Public Law 102-495; 106 Stat. 3175) shall be managed in accordance with subsection (b) of the first section of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act (16 U.S.C. 1271), except for necessary modifications under section 3(c)(3) of the Elwha River Ecosystem and Fisheries Restoration Act (Public Law 102-495; 106 Stat. 3175).

(d) Map and Survey.--

(1) Boundary adjustment; survey.--As soon as practicable after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall conduct a survey to define the boundaries of the land taken into and held in trust under subsection (b)(1).

(2) Adjustments.--The Secretary may--

(A) make minor boundary adjustments to the land taken into and held in trust under subsection (b)(1); and

(B) correct any minor errors in any map, acreage estimate, or description of that land.

(e) Gaming Prohibition.--No land taken into and held in trust for the benefit of the Tribe under this section shall be considered Indian lands for the purpose of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.). SEC. 3. NO IMPACT ON TREATY RIGHTS.

Nothing in this Act affects treaty rights under the Treaty between the United States of America and the S'Klallams Indians, concluded at Point no Point, Washington Territory, January 26, 1855 (12 Stat. 933) (commonly known as the ``Treaty of Point No Point'').

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Mr. CRANK. 2388, the bill now under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2388, the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe Project Lands Restoration Act, sponsored by Congresswoman Randall. H.R. 2388 would take approximately 1,083 acres of National Park Service land into trust for the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe.

The Tribe is located within the Olympic Peninsula in northwest Washington and has approximately 984 enrolled members.

The Tribe signed the Treaty of Point No Point in 1855, which entitled them to share a small reservation not on their traditional lands. After signing the treaty, most Tribal members opted not to live on their reservation, instead choosing rivers, shorelines, and sites of their ancestral burial grounds.

Through the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, the Federal Government acquired 372 acres of land and assigned it to 14 families in the Tribe. In 1968, the Tribe received Federal recognition, which included the acres given to the families. As a result of Federal recognition, the Lower Elwha Reservation was formally established for the Tribe.

The approximately 1,083 acres of National Park Service land in this legislation were acquired in the 1990s through the Elwha River Ecosystems and Fisheries Restoration Act. The act required the National Park Service to identify lands to be transferred to the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe for housing, cultural, or economic development purposes and place them into trust.

Mr. Speaker, I urge support for this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. CRANK. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2388 takes approximately 1,083 acres of National Park Service land into trust for the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Ms. Randall for her work on this legislation, I urge the adoption of the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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