S. 616

Leech Lake Reservation Restoration Technical Corrections Act of 2023

STATEMENT OF
BRYAN NEWLAND
ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR INDIAN AFFAIRS
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
BEFORE THE
COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS
UNITED STATES SENATE

July 12, 2023

Aanii (Hello)! Good afternoon Chairman Schatz, Vice Chairman Murkowski, and members of the Committee. My name is Bryan Newland, and I am the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs at the Department of the Interior (Department). Thank you for the opportunity to present testimony regarding S. 616, the Leech Lake Reservation Restoration Technical Corrections Act of 2023.

In December 2020, Congress enacted the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Reservation Restoration Act, Public Law 116-255 (Act). The Act directed the Secretary of Agriculture to transfer approximately 11,760 acres in the Chippewa National Forest to the Secretary of the Interior to be held in trust for the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe in Minnesota (Band). The 11,760 acres were restored to the Band after being identified as wrongfully transferred from the Band and its members.

Since the enactment of Public Law 116-255, the Department identified an additional 4,362.21 acres of land that met the same criteria as in Public Law 116-255. S.616 amends Public Law 116-255 to authorize the transfer of any additional lands in the Chippewa National Forest in Cass County, Minnesota that are identified as having been sold without the consent of a majority of rightful landowners. This approach will allow for on-going implementation of Public Law 116-255 to continue and allow for the inclusion of any additional lands that the Department may identify as having been wrongfully transferred. S. 616 would also authorize an acre-for-acre substitution of lands within the Chippewa National Forest in Cass County, Minnesota if the Band identifies certain parcels as unsuitable for future use.

The Department supports S. 616 as it allows flexibility in the implementation of Public Law 116-255 while allowing for additional lands to be identified and restored to the Band.

Chairman Schatz, Vice Chairman Murkowski, and Members of the Committee, thank you for the opportunity to provide the Department’s views. I look forward to answering any questions.

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