Native Americans: A Compendium

This Compendium focuses primarily on American Indians with 12 sections covering topics such as educational issues, child welfare water rights the Indian Trust Fund, tribal government and tribal jurisdiction, taxation, criminal justice, and gaming. A single section is devoted to Alaska Eskimo.

Congress has extensive power to legislate on Indian affairs. This includes oversight of the trust relationship between tribes and the federal government, the regulation of Indian gaming, the extent of tribal criminal and civil jurisdiction, and the scope and administration of federal grant programs and benefits conferred on Indian tribes and other Native Americans. In addition to recurring appropriations and authorization issues involving the programs administered by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Bureau of Indian Education, the Indian Health Service, and other federal agencies, Congress contends with an array of issues stemming from the unique legal relationship
between the Indian nations and the federal government.

Updated Document as of Feb-04-2013


Date of Report: February 4, 2013
Number of Pages: 337
Order Number: C12022
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The Oregon & California Railroad Trust Lands (O&C Lands): Issues for Congress

Katie Hoover
Analyst in Natural Resources Policy

The O&C (Oregon & California) lands consist of 2.6 million acres of timberland in western Oregon (see Figure 1). The majority of these lands (2.5 million acres) were originally granted to the Oregon & California Railroad Company in 1866 for constructing approximately 300 miles of the Oregon portion of a railroad from Portland, OR, to Sacramento, CA.1 The railroad received alternating sections of land for an average of 20 miles on each side of the proposed railroad, resulting in a checkerboard ownership pattern with private, state, local and federal ownership. As part of the grant, Congress directed the Oregon & California Railroad Company to encourage settlement and development by selling parcels no larger than 160 acres at a maximum price of $2.50 per acre.2 However, the railroad violated the grant by selling larger tracts above the designated price. In 1908, the Department of Justice filed suit against the railroad company, and the case eventually reached the U.S. Supreme Court, where the Court ruled that the lands granted to the railroad should be returned to federal ownership.3 The disposition of these lands was eventually resolved with the O&C Act of 1937.4 This act directed that administration of the lands would be by the Department of the Interior (DOI) for permanent forest production. The lands initially were managed by the DOI General Land Office. In 1946, the General Land Office was merged with the U.S. Grazing Service to create the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), which continues to administer the O&C lands.5 

The O&C lands also commonly include 75,000 acres of the reconveyed Coos Bay Wagon Road (CBWR) lands. These lands—also in western Oregon—were returned to federal ownership in 1919 for failure of a company to fulfill the terms of a grant to construct a military road between Coos Bay and Roseburg. The CBWR lands have been included with the O&C lands for various legislative and management purposes.

This report provides background information about the O&C lands and discusses federal payments made to the 18 counties in Oregon to compensate for the tax-exempt status of these federal lands.


Date of Report: February 6, 2013
Number of Pages: 9
Order Number: R42951
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Carcieri v. Salazar: The Secretary of the Interior May Not Acquire Trust Land for the Narragansett Indian Tribe Under 25 U.S.C. Section 465 Because That Statute Applies to Tribes “Under Federal Jurisdiction” in 1934

M. Maureen Murphy
Legislative Attorney

In Carcieri v. Salazar, 555 U.S. 379 (2009), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a 1934 statute provides no authority for the Secretary of the Interior (SOI) to take land into trust for the Narragansett Indian Tribe (Tribe) because the statute applies only to tribes under federal jurisdiction when that law was enacted. Although the case involves only a small parcel of land in Rhode Island, the reach of the decision may be much broader because it relies on the major statute under which the SOI acquires land in trust for the benefit of Indians. The decision appears to call into question the ability of the SOI to take land into trust for any recently recognized tribe unless the trust acquisition has been authorized by legislation other than the 1934 Indian Reorganization Act (IRA) or the tribe can show that it was “under Federal jurisdiction” in 1934. A June 2012 Supreme Court decision, Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians v. Patchak, increases the possible effect that the Carcieri decision is likely to have in Indian country. In that case, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of a plaintiff seeking to bring a suit to undo a trust acquisition by showing that the tribe for whom the land was taken into trust was not under federal jurisdiction in 1934. Although that decision did not reach the merits, which will be at issue in a trial at the district court level, it is likely to encourage similar suits. 

Carcieri involves a parcel of land which the SOI had agreed to take into trust for the benefit of the Narragansett Tribe, thereby presumably subjecting it to federal and tribal jurisdiction and possibly opening the way for gaming under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. The land is outside the Tribe’s current reservation, which is subject to the civil and criminal laws of Rhode Island according to the terms of the Rhode Island Indian Claims Settlement Act of 1974 (RIICSA). RIICSA does not explicitly address the possibility that lands other than the “settlement lands” could be placed in trust; nor does it specify what jurisdictional arrangement should apply should that occur. The issues before the Supreme Court were (1) whether the authority under which the SOI has agreed to acquire the land, 25 U.S.C. §465, a provision of the IRA of 1934, covers trust acquisitions by a tribe that was neither federally recognized nor under federal jurisdiction in 1934, and (2) whether the trust acquisition violated the terms of RIICSA. The Supreme Court’s decision is predicated on the Court’s finding that the definitions of “Indians” and “Indian tribe” in the 1934 legislation unambiguously restrict the beneficiaries for whom the SOI may take land into trust to tribes that, in 1934, were “under Federal jurisdiction.” The Court also held that the Narragansett Indian Tribe was not “under Federal jurisdiction” in 1934. It, therefore, ruled that the trust was not authorized by the statute and reversed the lower court.

A number of tribes have obtained federal recognition since 1934. As a December 2010 trust acquisition for the Cowlitz Indian Tribe may indicate, the Department of the Interior (DOI) may continue to take land into trust for recently recognized tribes, provided an extensive exploration of the particular history of the tribe and its relations with the federal government demonstrates to the satisfaction of DOI that the tribe was “under Federal jurisdiction” in 1934.

In the 111th Congress, there were several bills aimed at amending the IRA; none, however, was enacted. A provision amending the IRA retroactively and ratifying past trust acquisitions was included in the continuing appropriations bill for FY2011 passed by the House of Representatives. In the 112th Congress, there were three bills to amend the 1934 legislation: including one reported by the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs on April 7, 2011 (S.Rept. 112- 166). There were also measures to compensate state and local educational agencies and governmental units for loss of tax revenues when land is taken into trust for Indians.


Date of Report: January 25, 2013
Number of Pages: 20
Order Number: RL34521
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Fishery, Aquaculture, and Marine Mammal Issues in the 112th Congress

Eugene H. Buck
Specialist in Natural Resources Policy

Harold F. Upton
Analyst in Natural Resources Policy

Fish and marine mammals are important resources in open ocean and nearshore coastal areas; many federal laws and regulations guide their management as well as the management of their habitat. Aquaculture or fish farming enterprises seek to supplement food traditionally provided by wild harvests.

Commercial and sport fishing are jointly managed by the federal government and individual states. States generally have jurisdiction within 3 miles of the coast. Beyond state jurisdiction and out to 200 miles in the federal exclusive economic zone (EEZ), the federal government (National Marine Fisheries Service, NMFS) manages fisheries under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSFCMA) through eight regional fishery management councils. Beyond 200 miles, the United States participates in numerous international agreements.

Some of the fishery measures enacted by the 112th Congress included bills with provisions to (1) authorize the Corps of Engineers to take emergency measures to exclude Asian carp from the Great Lakes (P.L. 112-74); (2) create a Gulf Coast Restoration Trust Fund to promote efforts to achieve long-term sustainability of the ecosystem, fish stocks, fish habitat, and the recreational, commercial, and charter fishing industry in the Gulf of Mexico (P.L. 112-141); (3) extend the authority to make expenditures from the Highway Trust Fund under the Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund, through FY2014 (also P.L. 112-141); (4) extend the authorization to engage foreign citizens in the U.S. distant water tuna fleet and give distant water tuna vessels the option of using Guam as their required port of call (P.L. 112-213); and (5) amend the Marine Debris Research, Prevention, and Reduction Act, to define a severe marine debris event and direct that a determination for such an event be made for the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami and for Hurricane Sandy (also P.L. 112-213).

Aquaculture—the farming of fish, shellfish, and other aquatic animals and plants in a controlled environment—is expanding rapidly abroad, yet with little growth in the United States. In the United States, important species cultured include catfish, salmon, shellfish, and trout. Some of the aquaculture measures enacted by the 112th Congress included bills with provisions to (1) direct the National Aquatic Animal Health Task Force to establish an infectious salmon anemia research program (P.L. 112-55); (2) authorize the Corps of Engineers to transfer funds to the Fish and Wildlife Service for National Fish Hatcheries in FY2012 to mitigate for fisheries lost due to Corps of Engineers projects (P.L. 112-74); and (3) direct the Secretary of the Interior to convey the McKinney Lake National Fish Hatchery to the state of North Carolina (P.L. 112-237).

Marine mammals are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA). With few exceptions, the MMPA prohibits harm or harassment (“take”) of marine mammals, unless permits are obtained. It also addresses specific situations of concern, such as dolphin mortality associated with the eastern tropical Pacific tuna fishery. Other than annual appropriations, no marine mammal legislation was enacted by the 112th Congress.

The level of appropriations for fisheries, aquaculture/hatchery, and marine mammal programs administered by NMFS and the Fish and Wildlife Service was a recurring issue during the 112th Congress due to pressures to reduce federal spending.


Date of Report: January 22, 2013
Number of Pages: 37
Order Number: R41613
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Water Resource Issues in the 113th Congress

Betsy A. Cody, Coordinator
Specialist in Natural Resources Policy

Charles V. Stern
Specialist in Natural Resources Policy

Nicole T. Carter
Specialist in Natural Resources Policy

Pervaze A. Sheikh
Specialist in Natural Resources Policy

The 113th Congress may face many issues related to water resource development, management, and protection. Such issues include how to make investment decisions in the context of federal fiscal constraints; how to distribute investments between activities to meet new demands for water supplies and aquatic ecosystem restoration and protection; how to maintain and reinvest in an aging portfolio of federal infrastructure (e.g., locks, dams, and levees); and how to effectively respond to and prepare for flood and drought emergencies. These issues often arise at the regional level, but have a federal nexus. For example, Congress may continue to be faced with issues associated with flooding (e.g., Hurricane Sandy response and recovery), navigation and water supply challenges due to drought-induced low river flows, and balancing water supply needs of farm and urban communities with protection of threatened and endangered species.

The water resource issues of the 113th Congress are in part shaped by the actions of past Congresses, including the 112th Congress. In addition to holding numerous oversight hearings on agency policies and activities, the 112th Congress provided regular annual and supplemental appropriations for major federal water research agencies, such as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) and the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation). The 112th Congress did not formally consider an omnibus Corps project authorization and policy bill—typically called a Water Resources Development Act (WRDA)—but a draft Senate Environment and Public Works bill was circulated and discussed in the fall of 2012.

The 112th Congress also considered legislation to augment developed water supplies (e.g., water storage, water reuse), settle Indian water rights claims, and facilitate small conduit hydropower development. The 112th Congress considered several bills related to aquatic ecosystem restoration throughout the country (e.g., Everglades, Gulf Coast, Great Lakes, Klamath Basin, and Chesapeake Bay). The 112th Congress also considered legislation related to the energy sector’s water use and the water sector’s energy use, as well as water research and development legislation, including research related to climate change, water resource availability, drought indicators and streamflow.

The 113th Congress may consider measures similar to those left pending in the 112th Congress (e.g., a farm bill, a WRDA, hydropower development, and water research legislation), as well as other proposals. Because of current water conditions, disasters, or legal or agency developments, certain basin issues are particularly likely to receive congressional attention (e.g., operation of federal reservoirs in the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint river basin, Sacramento and San Joaquin river basins (Central Valley Project), and Missouri River Basin). Other related legislation may include the energy-water nexus and environmental policy.

This report discusses recent congressional activity and possible topics for the 113th Congress. It provides an overview of the federal role in water resources development, management, and protection, including a discussion of the two major federal water resources agencies and related legislation. It also discusses overarching policy issues, such as flood and drought management and response; project funding and authorization priorities; and aquatic ecosystem restoration. .


Date of Report: January 31, 2013
Number of Pages: 14
Order Number: R42947
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