Us Congress 2025-2026 Regular Session

Us Congress House Bill HB1324 Compare Versions

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Old	New	Differences
1	1	I
2	2	119THCONGRESS
3	3	1
4	4	STSESSION H. R. 1324
5	5	To approve the settlement of water rights claims of the Navajo Nation
6	6	in the Rio San Jose´Stream System in the State of New Mexico, and
7	7	for other purposes.
8	8	IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
9	9	FEBRUARY13, 2025
10	10	Ms. L
11	11	EGERFERNANDEZ(for herself and Ms. STANSBURY) introduced the
12	12	following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources
13	13	A BILL
14	14	To approve the settlement of water rights claims of the
15	15	Navajo Nation in the Rio San Jose´Stream System in
16	16	the State of New Mexico, and for other purposes.
17	17	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-1
18	18	tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2
19	19	SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 3
20	20	(a) S
21	21	HORTTITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 4
22	22	‘‘Navajo Nation Rio San Jose´Stream System Water 5
23	23	Rights Settlement Act of 2025’’. 6
24	24	(b) T
25	25	ABLE OFCONTENTS.—The table of contents for 7
26	26	this Act is as follows: 8
27	27	Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
28	28	Sec. 2. Purposes.
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31	31	•HR 1324 IH
32	32	Sec. 3. Definitions.
33	33	Sec. 4. Ratification of Agreement.
34	34	Sec. 5. Navajo Nation’s Water Rights.
35	35	Sec. 6. Navajo Nation Rio San Jose´Settlement Trust Fund.
36	36	Sec. 7. Funding.
37	37	Sec. 8. Enforceability Date.
38	38	Sec. 9. Waivers and releases of claims.
39	39	Sec. 10. Satisfaction of claims.
40	40	Sec. 11. Consent of United States to jurisdiction for judicial review of a Navajo
41	41	Nation Water Use Permit decision.
42	42	Sec. 12. Miscellaneous provisions.
43	43	Sec. 13. Relation to Allottees.
44	44	Sec. 14. Expansion of Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project service area.
45	45	Sec. 15. Antideficiency.
46	46	SEC. 2. PURPOSES.
47	47	1
48	48	The purposes of this Act are— 2
49	49	(1) to achieve a fair, equitable, and final settle-3
50	50	ment of all claims to water rights in the general 4
51	51	stream adjudication of the Rio San Jose´Stream 5
52	52	System captioned ‘‘State of New Mexico, ex rel. 6
53	53	State Engineer v. Kerr-McGee, et al.’’, No. D–1333– 7
54	54	CV–1983–00190 and No. D–1333–CV–1983–00220 8
55	55	(consolidated), pending in the Thirteenth Judicial 9
56	56	District Court for the State of New Mexico, for— 10
57	57	(A) the Navajo Nation; and 11
58	58	(B) the United States, acting as trustee 12
59	59	for the Navajo Nation; 13
60	60	(2) to authorize, ratify, and confirm the agree-14
61	61	ment entered into by the Navajo Nation, the State, 15
62	62	and various other parties to the Agreement, to the 16
63	63	extent that the Agreement is consistent with this 17
64	64	Act; 18
65	65	(3) to authorize and direct the Secretary— 19
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68	68	•HR 1324 IH
69	69	(A) to execute the Agreement; and 1
70	70	(B) to take any other actions necessary to 2
71	71	carry out the Agreement in accordance with 3
72	72	this Act; and 4
73	73	(4) to authorize funds necessary for the imple-5
74	74	mentation of the Agreement and this Act. 6
75	75	SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 7
76	76	In this Act: 8
77	77	(1) A
78	78	CEQUIA.—The term ‘‘Acequia’’ means 9
79	79	each of the Bluewater Toltec Irrigation District, La 10
80	80	Acequia Madre del Ojo del Gallo, Moquino Water 11
81	81	Users Association II, Murray Acres Irrigation Asso-12
82	82	ciation, San Mateo Irrigation Association, Seboyeta 13
83	83	Community Irrigation Association, Cubero Acequia 14
84	84	Association, Cebolletita Acequia Association, and 15
85	85	Community Ditch of Rio San Jose´de la Cienega. 16
86	86	(2) A
87	87	DJUDICATION.—The term ‘‘Adjudication’’ 17
88	88	means the general adjudication of water rights enti-18
89	89	tled ‘‘State of New Mexico, ex rel. State Engineer v. 19
90	90	Kerr-McGee, et al.’’ , No. D–1333–CV–1983–00190 20
91	91	and No. D–1333–CV–1983–00220 (consolidated) 21
92	92	pending, as of the date of enactment of this Act, in 22
93	93	the Decree Court. 23
94	94	(3) A
95	95	GREEMENT.—The term ‘‘Agreement’’ 24
96	96	means— 25
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99	99	•HR 1324 IH
100	100	(A) the addendum dated June 11, 2024, 1
101	101	to, and as provided in Article 17 of, the docu-2
102	102	ment entitled ‘‘Rio San Jose´Stream System 3
103	103	Water Rights Local Settlement Agreement 4
104	104	Among the Pueblo of Acoma, the Pueblo of La-5
105	105	guna, the Navajo Nation, the State of New 6
106	106	Mexico, the City of Grants, the Village of 7
107	107	Milan, the Association of Community Ditches of 8
108	108	the Rio San Jose´and Nine Individual Acequias 9
109	109	and Community Ditches’’ and dated May 13, 10
110	110	2022, and the attachments thereto and to the 11
111	111	addendum; and 12
112	112	(B) any amendment to the documents re-13
113	113	ferred to in subparagraph (A) (including an 14
114	114	amendment to an attachment) that is executed 15
115	115	to ensure that the Agreement is consistent with 16
116	116	this Act. 17
117	117	(4) A
118	118	LLOTMENT.—The term ‘‘Allotment’’ 18
119	119	means a parcel of land that is— 19
120	120	(A) located within— 20
121	121	(i) the Rio Puerco Basin; or 21
122	122	(ii) the Rio San Jose´Stream System; 22
123	123	and 23
124	124	(B) held in trust by the United States for 24
125	125	the benefit of— 25
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128	128	•HR 1324 IH
129	129	(i) 1 or more individual Indians; or 1
130	130	(ii) an Indian Tribe holding an undi-2
131	131	vided fractional beneficial interest. 3
132	132	(5) A
133	133	LLOTTEE.—The term ‘‘Allottee’’ means— 4
134	134	(A) an individual Indian holding a bene-5
135	135	ficial interest in an Allotment; or 6
136	136	(B) an Indian Tribe holding an undivided 7
137	137	fractional beneficial interest in an Allotment. 8
138	138	(6) D
139	139	ECREE COURT .—The term ‘‘Decree 9
140	140	Court’’ means the Thirteenth Judicial District Court 10
141	141	of the State of New Mexico. 11
142	142	(7) E
143	143	NFORCEABILITY DATE .—The term ‘‘En-12
144	144	forceability Date’’ means the date described in sec-13
145	145	tion 8. 14
146	146	(8) N
147	147	AVAJO NATION; NAVAJO; NATION.— 15
148	148	(A) I
149	149	N GENERAL.—The terms ‘‘Navajo 16
150	150	Nation’’, ‘‘Navajo’’, and ‘‘Nation’’ mean the 17
151	151	body politic and federally recognized Indian na-18
152	152	tion, as published on the list required under 19
153	153	section 104(a) of the Federally Recognized In-20
154	154	dian Tribe List Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 21
155	155	5131(a)), also known variously as the ‘‘Navajo 22
156	156	Nation of Arizona, New Mexico, & Utah’’, and 23
157	157	the ‘‘Navajo Nation of Indians’’ and other simi-24
158	158	lar names. 25
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161	161	•HR 1324 IH
162	162	(B) INCLUSIONS.—The terms ‘‘Navajo Na-1
163	163	tion’’, ‘‘Navajo’’, and ‘‘Nation’’ include all 2
164	164	bands of Navajo Indians and chapters of the 3
165	165	Navajo Nation and all divisions, agencies, offi-4
166	166	cers, and agents thereof. 5
167	167	(9) N
168	168	AVAJO NATION LANDS ; NAVAJO LANDS.— 6
169	169	(A) I
170	170	N GENERAL.—The terms ‘‘Navajo 7
171	171	Nation Lands’’ and ‘‘Navajo Lands’’ mean any 8
172	172	real property— 9
173	173	(i) in the Rio San Jose´Stream Sys-10
174	174	tem that is held by the United States in 11
175	175	trust for the Navajo Nation, or owned by 12
176	176	the Navajo Nation, as of the Enforceability 13
177	177	Date; or 14
178	178	(ii) in the Rio Puerco Basin that is 15
179	179	held by the United States in trust for the 16
180	180	Navajo Nation, or owned by the Navajo 17
181	181	Nation, as of the Enforceability Date. 18
182	182	(B) I
183	183	NCLUSIONS.—The terms ‘‘Navajo Na-19
184	184	tion Lands’’ and ‘‘Navajo Lands’’ include land 20
185	185	placed in trust with the United States subse-21
186	186	quent to the Enforceability Date for the Navajo 22
187	187	Nation in the Rio San Jose´Stream System and 23
188	188	in the Rio Puerco Basin. 24
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191	191	•HR 1324 IH
192	192	(C) EXCLUSION.—The terms ‘‘Navajo Na-1
193	193	tion Lands’’ and ‘‘Navajo Lands’’ do not in-2
194	194	clude Allotments. 3
195	195	(10) N
196	196	AVAJO NATION WATER CODE .—The term 4
197	197	‘‘Navajo Nation Water Code’’ means the water code 5
198	198	enacted in 1984 by the Navajo Nation Council 6
199	199	through Resolution CAU–34–84. (22 N.N.C. 1101 7
200	200	et seq.). 8
201	201	(11) N
202	202	AVAJO NATION WATER USE PERMIT .— 9
203	203	The term ‘‘Navajo Nation Water Use Permit’’ 10
204	204	means a document specifying terms and conditions 11
205	205	for diversion and use of water on Navajo Nation 12
206	206	Lands issued by the Navajo Nation within the scope 13
207	207	of its authority under the Navajo Nation Water 14
208	208	Code and the Settlement Agreement. 15
209	209	(12) N
210	210	AVAJO NATION’S WATER RIGHTS.— 16
211	211	(A) I
212	212	N GENERAL.—The term ‘‘Navajo Na-17
213	213	tion’s Water Rights’’ means— 18
214	214	(i) the water rights of the Navajo Na-19
215	215	tion in the Rio San Jose´Stream System— 20
216	216	(I) as identified in the Agreement 21
217	217	and section 5; and 22
218	218	(II) as confirmed in the Navajo 23
219	219	Partial Final Judgment and Decree; 24
220	220	and 25
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223	223	•HR 1324 IH
224	224	(ii) the water rights of the Navajo Na-1
225	225	tion in the Rio Puerco Basin, as identified 2
226	226	in the Agreement and section 5. 3
227	227	(B) E
228	228	XCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘Navajo Na-4
229	229	tion’s Water Rights’’ does not include— 5
230	230	(i) any interest that the Nation may 6
231	231	have in an Allotment that is determined by 7
232	232	the Secretary to be patented pursuant to 8
233	233	section 1 of the Act of February 8, 1887 9
234	234	(commonly known as the ‘‘Indian General 10
235	235	Allotment Act’’) (24 Stat. 388, chapter 11
236	236	119; 25 U.S.C. 331) (as in effect on the 12
237	237	day before the date of enactment of the In-13
238	238	dian Land Consolidation Act Amendments 14
239	239	of 2000 (Public Law 106–462; 114 Stat. 15
240	240	1991)); or 16
241	241	(ii) any undivided interest that the 17
242	242	Nation may have in an Allotment that is 18
243	243	determined by the Secretary to be patented 19
244	244	pursuant to an authority other than sec-20
245	245	tion 1 of the Act of February 8, 1887 21
246	246	(commonly known as the ‘‘Indian General 22
247	247	Allotment Act’’) (24 Stat. 388, chapter 23
248	248	119; 25 U.S.C. 331) (as in effect on the 24
249	249	day before the date of enactment of the In-25
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252	252	•HR 1324 IH
253	253	dian Land Consolidation Act Amendments 1
254	254	of 2000 (Public Law 106–462; 114 Stat. 2
255	255	1991)). 3
256	256	(13) N
257	257	AVAJO PARTIAL FINAL JUDGMENT AND 4
258	258	DECREE.—The term ‘‘Navajo Partial Final Judg-5
259	259	ment and Decree’’ means a final or interlocutory 6
260	260	partial final judgment and decree entered by the De-7
261	261	cree Court with respect to the Navajo Nation’s 8
262	262	Water Rights— 9
263	263	(A) that is substantially in the form de-10
264	264	scribed in Article 17.14.7.2 of the Agreement, 11
265	265	as amended to ensure consistency with this Act; 12
266	266	and 13
267	267	(B) from which no further appeal may be 14
268	268	taken. 15
269	269	(14) N
270	270	AVAJO TRUST FUND.—The term ‘‘Navajo 16
271	271	Trust Fund’’ means the Navajo Nation Rio San 17
272	272	Jose´Settlement Trust Fund established under sec-18
273	273	tion 6(a). 19
274	274	(15) R
275	275	IO PUERCO BASIN .—The term ‘‘Rio 20
276	276	Puerco Basin’’ means the area defined by the 21
277	277	United States Geological Survey Hydrologic Unit 22
278	278	Codes (HUC) 13020204 (Rio Puerco subbasin) and 23
279	279	13020205 (Arroyo Chico subbasin), including the 24
280	280	hydrologically connected groundwater. 25
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283	283	•HR 1324 IH
284	284	(16) RIO SAN JOSE´STREAM SYSTEM .—The 1
285	285	term ‘‘Rio San Jose´Stream System’’ means the geo-2
286	286	graphic extent of the area involved in the Adjudica-3
287	287	tion pursuant to the description filed in the Decree 4
288	288	Court on November 21, 1986. 5
289	289	(17) S
290	290	ECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 6
291	291	means the Secretary of the Interior. 7
292	292	(18) S
293	293	IGNATORY ACEQUIA.—The term ‘‘Signa-8
294	294	tory Acequia’’ means an acequia that is a signatory 9
295	295	to the Agreement. 10
296	296	(19) S
297	297	TATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the 11
298	298	State of New Mexico and all officers, agents, depart-12
299	299	ments, and political subdivisions of the State of New 13
300	300	Mexico. 14
301	301	SEC. 4. RATIFICATION OF AGREEMENT. 15
302	302	(a) R
303	303	ATIFICATION.— 16
304	304	(1) I
305	305	N GENERAL.—Except as modified by this 17
306	306	Act, and to the extent that the Agreement does not 18
307	307	conflict with this Act, the Agreement is authorized, 19
308	308	ratified, and confirmed. 20
309	309	(2) A
310	310	MENDMENTS.—If an amendment to the 21
311	311	Agreement, or any attachment to the Agreement re-22
312	312	quiring the signature of the Secretary, is executed in 23
313	313	accordance with this Act to make the Agreement 24
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316	316	•HR 1324 IH
317	317	consistent with this Act, the amendment is author-1
318	318	ized, ratified, and confirmed. 2
319	319	(b) E
320	320	XECUTION.— 3
321	321	(1) I
322	322	N GENERAL.—To the extent that the 4
323	323	Agreement does not conflict with this Act, the Sec-5
324	324	retary shall execute the Agreement, including all at-6
325	325	tachments to, or parts of, the Agreement requiring 7
326	326	the signature of the Secretary. 8
327	327	(2) M
328	328	ODIFICATIONS.—Nothing in this Act pro-9
329	329	hibits the Secretary, after execution of the Agree-10
330	330	ment, from approving any modification to the Agree-11
331	331	ment, including an attachment to the Agreement, 12
332	332	that is consistent with this Act, to the extent that 13
333	333	the modification does not otherwise require congres-14
334	334	sional approval under section 2116 of the Revised 15
335	335	Statutes (25 U.S.C. 177) or any other applicable 16
336	336	provision of Federal law. 17
337	337	(c) E
338	338	NVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE.— 18
339	339	(1) I
340	340	N GENERAL.—In implementing the Agree-19
341	341	ment and this Act, the Secretary shall comply 20
342	342	with— 21
343	343	(A) the Endangered Species Act of 1973 22
344	344	(16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); 23
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347	347	•HR 1324 IH
348	348	(B) the National Environmental Policy Act 1
349	349	of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), including the 2
350	350	implementing regulations of that Act; and 3
351	351	(C) all other applicable Federal environ-4
352	352	mental laws and regulations. 5
353	353	(2) C
354	354	OMPLIANCE.— 6
355	355	(A) I
356	356	N GENERAL.—In implementing the 7
357	357	Agreement and this Act, the Navajo Nation 8
358	358	shall prepare any necessary environmental doc-9
359	359	uments, consistent with— 10
360	360	(i) the Endangered Species Act of 11
361	361	1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); 12
362	362	(ii) the National Environmental Policy 13
363	363	Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), in-14
364	364	cluding the implementing regulations of 15
365	365	that Act; and 16
366	366	(iii) all other applicable Federal envi-17
367	367	ronmental laws and regulations. 18
368	368	(B) A
369	369	UTHORIZATIONS.—The Secretary 19
370	370	shall— 20
371	371	(i) independently evaluate the docu-21
372	372	mentation required under subparagraph 22
373	373	(A); and 23
374	374	(ii) be responsible for the accuracy, 24
375	375	scope, and contents of that documentation. 25
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378	378	•HR 1324 IH
379	379	(3) EFFECT OF EXECUTION .—The execution of 1
380	380	the Agreement by the Secretary under this section 2
381	381	shall not constitute a major Federal action under 3
382	382	the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 4
383	383	U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). 5
384	384	(4) C
385	385	OSTS.—Any costs associated with the per-6
386	386	formance of the compliance activities under this sub-7
387	387	section shall be paid from funds deposited in the 8
388	388	Navajo Trust Fund or other sources of funding from 9
389	389	the Navajo Nation, subject to the condition that any 10
390	390	costs associated with the performance of Federal ap-11
391	391	proval or other review of such compliance work or 12
392	392	costs associated with inherently Federal functions 13
393	393	shall remain the responsibility of the Secretary. 14
394	394	SEC. 5. NAVAJO NATION’S WATER RIGHTS. 15
395	395	(a) T
396	396	RUSTSTATUS OFNAVAJONATION’SWATER 16
397	397	R
398	398	IGHTS.—The Navajo Nation’s Water Rights shall be 17
399	399	held in trust by the United States on behalf of the Nation 18
400	400	in accordance with the Agreement and this Act. 19
401	401	(b) F
402	402	ORFEITURE ANDABANDONMENT.— 20
403	403	(1) I
404	404	N GENERAL.—The Navajo Nation’s Water 21
405	405	Rights shall not be subject to loss through non-use, 22
406	406	forfeiture, abandonment, or other operation of law. 23
407	407	(2) S
408	408	TATE-LAW BASED WATER RIGHTS .—State- 24
409	409	law based water rights acquired by the Navajo Na-25
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412	412	•HR 1324 IH
413	413	tion, or by the United States on behalf of the Na-1
414	414	tion, after the date for inclusion in the Navajo Par-2
415	415	tial Final Judgment and Decree, shall not be subject 3
416	416	to forfeiture, abandonment, or permanent alienation 4
417	417	from the time they are acquired. 5
418	418	(c) U
419	419	SE.—Any use of the Navajo Nation’s Water 6
420	420	Rights shall be subject to the terms and conditions of the 7
421	421	Agreement and this Act. 8
422	422	(d) A
423	423	LLOTMENT RIGHTSNOTINCLUDED.—Con-9
424	424	sistent with section 13, the Navajo Nation’s Water Rights 10
425	425	shall not include any water rights for an Allotment, sub-11
426	426	ject to the condition that the Navajo Nation may allow 12
427	427	use of the Navajo Nation’s Water Rights on an Allotment 13
428	428	subject to the terms and conditions of the Agreement and 14
429	429	this Act. 15
430	430	(e) A
431	431	LLOTTEESNOTADVERSELYAFFECTED.— 16
432	432	Nothing in this Act quantifies or diminishes any water 17
433	433	right, or any claim or entitlement to water, of an Allottee. 18
434	434	(f) A
435	435	LLOTTEEWATERRIGHTS.—The Nation shall 19
436	436	not object in any general stream adjudication, including 20
437	437	the Adjudication, to the quantification of reasonable do-21
438	438	mestic, stock, and irrigation water uses on an Allotment, 22
439	439	and shall administer any water use in accordance with ap-23
440	440	plicable Federal law, including recognition of— 24
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443	443	•HR 1324 IH
444	444	(1) any water use existing on an Allotment as 1
445	445	of the date of enactment of this Act; 2
446	446	(2) reasonable domestic, stock, and irrigation 3
447	447	water uses on an Allotment; and 4
448	448	(3) any water right decreed to the United 5
449	449	States in trust for an Allottee in a general stream 6
450	450	adjudication, including the Adjudication, for use on 7
451	451	an Allotment. 8
452	452	(g) A
453	453	UTHORITY OF THENAVAJONATION.— 9
454	454	(1) U
455	455	SE ON NAVAJO LANDS .—The Navajo Na-10
456	456	tion shall have the authority to allocate, distribute, 11
457	457	and lease the Navajo Nation’s Water Rights for use 12
458	458	on Navajo Lands in accordance with the Agreement, 13
459	459	this Act, and applicable Federal law, including the 14
460	460	first section of the Act of August 9, 1955 (69 Stat. 15
461	461	539, chapter 615; 25 U.S.C. 415) (commonly known 16
462	462	as the ‘‘Long-Term Leasing Act’’). 17
463	463	(2) U
464	464	SE OFF NAVAJO LANDS.— 18
465	465	(A) I
466	466	N GENERAL.—The Navajo Nation 19
467	467	may allocate, distribute, and lease the Navajo 20
468	468	Nation’s Water Rights for use off Navajo 21
469	469	Lands in accordance with the Agreement, this 22
470	470	Act, and applicable Federal law, subject to the 23
471	471	approval of the Secretary. 24
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474	474	•HR 1324 IH
475	475	(B) MAXIMUM TERM .—The maximum 1
476	476	term of any lease, including all renewals, under 2
477	477	this paragraph shall not exceed 99 years. 3
478	478	(h) A
479	479	DMINISTRATION.— 4
480	480	(1) N
481	481	O ALIENATION.—The Navajo Nation shall 5
482	482	not permanently alienate any portion of the Navajo 6
483	483	Nation’s Water Rights. 7
484	484	(2) P
485	485	URCHASES OR GRANTS OF LAND FROM IN -8
486	486	DIANS.—An authorization provided by this Act for 9
487	487	the allocation, distribution, leasing, or other ar-10
488	488	rangement entered into pursuant to this Act shall be 11
489	489	considered to satisfy any requirement for authoriza-12
490	490	tion of the action required by Federal law. 13
491	491	(3) P
492	492	ROHIBITION ON FORFEITURE .—The non- 14
493	493	use of all or any portion of the Navajo Nation’s 15
494	494	Water Rights by any water user shall not result in 16
495	495	the forfeiture, abandonment, relinquishment, or 17
496	496	other loss of all or any portion of the Navajo Na-18
497	497	tion’s Water Rights. 19
498	498	(4) F
499	499	ORBEARANCE BY NAVAJO NATION FOR 20
500	500	NON-STOCK WATER RIGHTS OF CERTAIN ALLOT -21
501	501	MENTS.—Forbearance by the Navajo Nation in ac-22
502	502	cordance with Article 17.13.4 of the Agreement— 23
503	503	(A) shall be considered non-use for pur-24
504	504	poses of paragraph (3); and 25
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507	507	•HR 1324 IH
508	508	(B) shall not result in the forfeiture, aban-1
509	509	donment, relinquishment, or other loss of any 2
510	510	portion of the Navajo Nation’s Water Rights. 3
511	511	SEC. 6. NAVAJO NATION RIO SAN JOSE
512	512	´
513	513	SETTLEMENT 4
514	514	TRUST FUND. 5
515	515	(a) E
516	516	STABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall establish 6
517	517	a trust fund, to be known as the ‘‘Navajo Nation Rio San 7
518	518	Jose´Water Rights Settlement Trust Fund’’, to be man-8
519	519	aged, invested, and distributed by the Secretary and to 9
520	520	remain available until expended, withdrawn, or reverted 10
521	521	to the general fund of the Treasury, consisting of the 11
522	522	amounts deposited in the Navajo Trust Fund under sub-12
523	523	section (c), together with any investment earnings, includ-13
524	524	ing interest, earned on those amounts, for the purpose of 14
525	525	carrying out this Act. 15
526	526	(b) A
527	527	CCOUNTS.—The Secretary shall establish in the 16
528	528	Navajo Trust Fund the following accounts: 17
529	529	(1) The Navajo Nation Water Rights Settle-18
530	530	ment Account. 19
531	531	(2) The Navajo Nation Operations and Mainte-20
532	532	nance Account. 21
533	533	(c) D
534	534	EPOSITS.—The Secretary shall deposit in the 22
535	535	Navajo Trust Fund the amounts made available pursuant 23
536	536	to section 7(a). 24
537	537	(d) M
538	538	ANAGEMENT AND INTEREST.— 25
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541	541	•HR 1324 IH
542	542	(1) MANAGEMENT.—On receipt and deposit of 1
543	543	funds into the Navajo Trust Fund under subsection 2
544	544	(c), the Secretary shall manage, invest, and dis-3
545	545	tribute all amounts in the Navajo Trust Fund in a 4
546	546	manner that is consistent with the investment au-5
547	547	thority of the Secretary under— 6
548	548	(A) the first section of the Act of June 24, 7
549	549	1938 (25 U.S.C. 162a); 8
550	550	(B) the American Indian Trust Fund Man-9
551	551	agement Reform Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 4001 10
552	552	et seq.); and 11
553	553	(C) this subsection. 12
554	554	(2) I
555	555	NVESTMENT EARNINGS .—In addition to 13
556	556	the deposits made to the Navajo Trust Fund under 14
557	557	subsection (c), any investment earnings, including 15
558	558	interest, earned on those amounts held in the Nav-16
559	559	ajo Trust Fund are authorized to be used in accord-17
560	560	ance with subsections (f) and (h). 18
561	561	(e) A
562	562	VAILABILITY OFAMOUNTS.— 19
563	563	(1) I
564	564	N GENERAL.—Amounts appropriated to, 20
565	565	and deposited in, the Navajo Trust Fund, including 21
566	566	any investment earnings, including interest, earned 22
567	567	on those amounts, shall be made available to the Na-23
568	568	tion by the Secretary beginning on the Enforce-24
569	569	ability Date, subject to the requirements of this sec-25
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572	572	•HR 1324 IH
573	573	tion, except for funds to be made available to the 1
574	574	Nation pursuant to paragraph (2). 2
575	575	(2) U
576	576	SE OF FUNDS.—Notwithstanding para-3
577	577	graph (1), up to $15,000,000 of the amounts depos-4
578	578	ited in the Navajo Nation Water Rights Settlement 5
579	579	Account, including any investment earnings, includ-6
580	580	ing interest, earned on those amounts, shall be avail-7
581	581	able to the Nation on the date on which the amounts 8
582	582	are deposited in the Navajo Nation Water Rights 9
583	583	Settlement Account for the following uses: 10
584	584	(A) Feasibility studies, planning, engineer-11
585	585	ing, design, and related environmental, cultural, 12
586	586	and historical compliance, and obtaining rights- 13
587	587	of-way or permits for water supply infrastruc-14
588	588	ture to serve Navajo Nation needs consistent 15
589	589	with subsection (h)(1)(B). 16
590	590	(B) Installing, on Navajo Lands, ground-17
591	591	water wells and associated infrastructure to 18
592	592	meet immediate domestic, commercial, munic-19
593	593	ipal and industrial water needs, and associated 20
594	594	environmental, cultural, and historical compli-21
595	595	ance. 22
596	596	(f) W
597	597	ITHDRAWALS.— 23
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600	600	•HR 1324 IH
601	601	(1) WITHDRAWALS UNDER THE AMERICAN IN -1
602	602	DIAN TRUST FUND MANAGEMENT REFORM ACT OF 2
603	603	1994.— 3
604	604	(A) I
605	605	N GENERAL.—The Navajo Nation 4
606	606	may withdraw any portion of the amounts in 5
607	607	the Navajo Trust Fund on approval by the Sec-6
608	608	retary of a Tribal management plan submitted 7
609	609	by the Nation in accordance with the American 8
610	610	Indian Trust Fund Management Reform Act of 9
611	611	1994 (25 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.). 10
612	612	(B) R
613	613	EQUIREMENTS.—In addition to the 11
614	614	requirements under the American Indian Trust 12
615	615	Fund Management Reform Act of 1994 (25 13
616	616	U.S.C. 4001 et seq.), the Tribal management 14
617	617	plan under this paragraph shall require that the 15
618	618	Nation shall spend all amounts withdrawn from 16
619	619	the Navajo Trust Fund, and any investment 17
620	620	earnings, including interest, earned on those 18
621	621	amounts, through the investments under the 19
622	622	Tribal management plan, in accordance with 20
623	623	this Act. 21
624	624	(C) E
625	625	NFORCEMENT.—The Secretary may 22
626	626	carry out such judicial and administrative ac-23
627	627	tions as the Secretary determines to be nec-24
628	628	essary to enforce the Tribal management plan 25
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631	631	•HR 1324 IH
632	632	under this paragraph to ensure that amounts 1
633	633	withdrawn by the Nation from the Navajo 2
634	634	Trust Fund under subparagraph (A) are used 3
635	635	in accordance with this Act. 4
636	636	(2) W
637	637	ITHDRAWALS UNDER EXPENDITURE 5
638	638	PLAN.— 6
639	639	(A) I
640	640	N GENERAL.—The Navajo Nation 7
641	641	may submit to the Secretary a request to with-8
642	642	draw funds from the Navajo Trust Fund pursu-9
643	643	ant to an approved expenditure plan. 10
644	644	(B) R
645	645	EQUIREMENTS.—To be eligible to 11
646	646	withdraw amounts under an expenditure plan 12
647	647	under subparagraph (A), the Nation shall sub-13
648	648	mit to the Secretary an expenditure plan for 14
649	649	any portion of the Navajo Trust Fund that the 15
650	650	Nation elects to withdraw pursuant to that sub-16
651	651	paragraph, subject to the condition that the 17
652	652	amounts shall be used for the purposes de-18
653	653	scribed in this Act. 19
654	654	(C) I
655	655	NCLUSIONS.—An expenditure plan 20
656	656	under this paragraph shall include a description 21
657	657	of the manner and purpose for which the 22
658	658	amounts proposed to be withdrawn from the 23
659	659	Navajo Trust Fund will be used by the Nation, 24
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662	662	•HR 1324 IH
663	663	in accordance with this subsection and sub-1
664	664	section (h). 2
665	665	(D) A
666	666	PPROVAL.—The Secretary shall ap-3
667	667	prove an expenditure plan submitted under sub-4
668	668	paragraph (A) if the Secretary determines that 5
669	669	the plan— 6
670	670	(i) is reasonable; and 7
671	671	(ii) is consistent with, and will be used 8
672	672	for, the purposes of this Act. 9
673	673	(E) E
674	674	NFORCEMENT.—The Secretary may 10
675	675	carry out such judicial and administrative ac-11
676	676	tions as the Secretary determines to be nec-12
677	677	essary to enforce an expenditure plan to ensure 13
678	678	that amounts disbursed under this paragraph 14
679	679	are used in accordance with this Act. 15
680	680	(g) E
681	681	FFECT OFSECTION.—Nothing in this section 16
682	682	gives the Navajo Nation the right to judicial review of a 17
683	683	determination of the Secretary relating to whether to ap-18
684	684	prove a Tribal management plan under paragraph (1) of 19
685	685	subsection (f) or an expenditure plan under paragraph (2) 20
686	686	of that subsection except under subchapter II of chapter 21
687	687	5, and chapter 7, of title 5, United States Code (commonly 22
688	688	known as the ‘‘Administrative Procedure Act’’). 23
689	689	(h) U
690	690	SES.— 24
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693	693	•HR 1324 IH
694	694	(1) NAVAJO NATION WATER RIGHTS SETTLE -1
695	695	MENT ACCOUNT.—The Navajo Nation Water Rights 2
696	696	Settlement Account may only be used for the fol-3
697	697	lowing purposes: 4
698	698	(A) Acquiring water rights or water sup-5
699	699	ply. 6
700	700	(B) Planning, permitting, designing, engi-7
701	701	neering, constructing, reconstructing, replacing, 8
702	702	rehabilitating, operating, or repairing water 9
703	703	production, treatment, or delivery infrastruc-10
704	704	ture, including for domestic and municipal use, 11
705	705	on-farm improvements, or wastewater infra-12
706	706	structure. 13
707	707	(C) Navajo Nation’s Water Rights man-14
708	708	agement and administration. 15
709	709	(D) Watershed protection and enhance-16
710	710	ment, support of agriculture, water-related Nav-17
711	711	ajo community welfare and economic develop-18
712	712	ment, and costs relating to implementation of 19
713	713	the Agreement. 20
714	714	(E) Environmental compliance in the de-21
715	715	velopment and construction of infrastructure 22
716	716	under this Act. 23
717	717	(2) N
718	718	AVAJO NATION OPERATIONS AND MAINTE -24
719	719	NANCE ACCOUNT.—The Navajo Nation Water Infra-25
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722	722	•HR 1324 IH
723	723	structure Operations and Maintenance Account may 1
724	724	only be used to pay costs for operation, mainte-2
725	725	nance, and replacement of water infrastructure to 3
726	726	serve Navajo domestic, commercial, municipal, and 4
727	727	industrial water uses from any water source. 5
728	728	(i) L
729	729	IABILITY.—The Secretary and the Secretary of 6
730	730	the Treasury shall not be liable for the expenditure or in-7
731	731	vestment of any amounts withdrawn from the Navajo 8
732	732	Trust Fund by the Nation under paragraph (1) or (2) of 9
733	733	subsection (f). 10
734	734	(j) E
735	735	XPENDITUREREPORTS.—The Navajo Nation 11
736	736	shall annually submit to the Secretary an expenditure re-12
737	737	port describing accomplishments and amounts spent from 13
738	738	use of withdrawals under a Tribal management plan or 14
739	739	an expenditure plan under paragraph (1) or (2) of sub-15
740	740	section (f), as applicable. 16
741	741	(k) N
742	742	OPERCAPITADISTRIBUTIONS.—No portion of 17
743	743	the Navajo Trust Fund shall be distributed on a per capita 18
744	744	basis to any member of Navajo Nation. 19
745	745	(l) T
746	746	ITLE TOINFRASTRUCTURE.—Title to, control 20
747	747	over, and operation of any project constructed using funds 21
748	748	from the Navajo Trust Fund shall remain in the Navajo 22
749	749	Nation. 23
750	750	(m) O
751	751	PERATION, MAINTENANCE, ANDREPLACE-24
752	752	MENT.—All operation, maintenance, and replacement 25
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755	755	•HR 1324 IH
756	756	costs of any project constructed using funds from the Nav-1
757	757	ajo Trust Fund shall be the responsibility of the Nation. 2
758	758	SEC. 7. FUNDING. 3
759	759	(a) M
760	760	ANDATORY APPROPRIATIONS.—Out of any 4
761	761	money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, the 5
762	762	Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer to the Secretary 6
763	763	the following amounts for deposit in the following ac-7
764	764	counts: 8
765	765	(1) T
766	766	HE NAVAJO NATION WATER RIGHTS SET -9
767	767	TLEMENT ACCOUNT .—For deposit in the Navajo Na-10
768	768	tion Water Rights Settlement Account established 11
769	769	under section 6(b)(1), $200,271,000, to remain 12
770	770	available until expended, withdrawn, or reverted to 13
771	771	the general fund of the Treasury. 14
772	772	(2) T
773	773	HE NAVAJO NATION OPERATIONS AND 15
774	774	MAINTENANCE ACCOUNT .—For deposit in the Nav-16
775	775	ajo Nation Operations and Maintenance Account es-17
776	776	tablished under section 6(b)(2), $23,000,000, to re-18
777	777	main available until expended, withdrawn, or re-19
778	778	verted to the general fund of the Treasury. 20
779	779	(b) F
780	780	LUCTUATION INCOSTS.— 21
781	781	(1) I
782	782	N GENERAL.—The amounts appropriated 22
783	783	under subsection (a) shall be increased or decreased, 23
784	784	as appropriate, by such amounts as may be justified 24
785	785	by reason of ordinary fluctuations in costs, as indi-25
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788	788	•HR 1324 IH
789	789	cated by the Bureau of Reclamation Construction 1
790	790	Cost Index–Composite Trend. 2
791	791	(2) C
792	792	ONSTRUCTION COSTS ADJUSTMENT .—The 3
793	793	amounts appropriated under subsection (a) shall be 4
794	794	adjusted to address construction cost changes nec-5
795	795	essary to account for unforeseen market volatility 6
796	796	that may not otherwise be captured by construction 7
797	797	cost indices, as determined by the Secretary, includ-8
798	798	ing repricing applicable to the types of construction 9
799	799	and current industry standards involved. 10
800	800	(3) R
801	801	EPETITION.—The adjustment process 11
802	802	under this subsection shall be repeated for each sub-12
803	803	sequent amount appropriated until the applicable 13
804	804	amount, as adjusted, has been appropriated. 14
805	805	(4) P
806	806	ERIOD OF INDEXING.—The period of in-15
807	807	dexing and adjustment under this subsection for any 16
808	808	increment of funding shall start on October 1, 2021, 17
809	809	and end on the date on which funds are deposited 18
810	810	in the Navajo Trust Fund. 19
811	811	(c) S
812	812	TATECOST-SHARE.—Pursuant to the Agree-20
813	813	ment, the State shall contribute— 21
814	814	(1) $3,000,000, as adjusted for inflation pursu-22
815	815	ant to the Agreement, to the Bluewater Toltec Irri-23
816	816	gation District and Acequia Madre del Ojo del Gallo 24
817	817	for purposes described in the Agreement; and 25
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820	820	•HR 1324 IH
821	821	(2) if applicable, additional funding subject to 1
822	822	the provisions of Article 17.12.4 of the Agreement. 2
823	823	SEC. 8. ENFORCEABILITY DATE. 3
824	824	The Enforceability Date shall be the date on which 4
825	825	the Secretary publishes in the Federal Register a state-5
826	826	ment of findings that— 6
827	827	(1) to the extent that the Agreement conflicts 7
828	828	with this Act, the Agreement has been amended to 8
829	829	conform with this Act; 9
830	830	(2) the Agreement, as amended, has been exe-10
831	831	cuted by all parties to the Agreement, including the 11
832	832	United States; 12
833	833	(3) all of the amounts appropriated under sec-13
834	834	tion 7(a) have been appropriated and deposited in 14
835	835	the designated accounts of the Navajo Trust Fund; 15
836	836	(4) the State has— 16
837	837	(A) provided $3,000,000 of funding under 17
838	838	section 7(c)(1) into the appropriate funding ac-18
839	839	counts or entered into a funding agreement 19
840	840	with the intended beneficiaries for that funding; 20
841	841	and 21
842	842	(B) enacted legislation to amend State law 22
843	843	to provide that a Navajo Nation Water Right 23
844	844	may be leased for a term not to exceed 99 24
845	845	years, including renewals; 25
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848	848	•HR 1324 IH
849	849	(5) the Decree Court has approved the Agree-1
850	850	ment and has entered the Navajo Partial Final 2
851	851	Judgment and Decree; and 3
852	852	(6) the waivers and releases under section 9 4
853	853	have been executed by the Navajo Nation and the 5
854	854	Secretary. 6
855	855	SEC. 9. WAIVERS AND RELEASES OF CLAIMS. 7
856	856	(a) W
857	857	AIVERS ANDRELEASES OFCLAIMS BY THE 8
858	858	N
859	859	AVAJONATION ANDUNITEDSTATES ASTRUSTEE FOR 9
860	860	THENATION.—Subject to the reservation of rights and 10
861	861	retention of claims under subsection (d), as consideration 11
862	862	for recognition of the Navajo Nation’s Water Rights and 12
863	863	other benefits described in the Agreement and this Act, 13
864	864	the Navajo Nation, on behalf of the Nation and members 14
865	865	of the Nation (other than members in their capacity as 15
866	866	Allottees), and the United States, acting as trustee for the 16
867	867	Nation and members of the Nation (other than members 17
868	868	in their capacity as Allottees), shall execute a waiver and 18
869	869	release of all claims for— 19
870	870	(1) water rights within the Rio San Jose´ 20
871	871	Stream System that the Navajo Nation or the 21
872	872	United States acting as trustee for the Nation, as-22
873	873	serted or could have asserted in any proceeding, in-23
874	874	cluding the Adjudication, on or before the Enforce-24
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877	877	•HR 1324 IH
878	878	ability Date, except to the extent that such rights 1
879	879	are recognized in the Agreement and this Act; and 2
880	880	(2) damages, losses, or injuries to water rights 3
881	881	or claims of interference with, diversion of, or taking 4
882	882	of water rights (including claims for injury to land 5
883	883	resulting from such damages, losses, injuries, inter-6
884	884	ference with, diversion, or taking of water rights) in 7
885	885	waters in the Rio San Jose´Stream System against 8
886	886	any party to the Agreement, including the members 9
887	887	and parciantes of Signatory Acequias, that accrued 10
888	888	at any time up to and including the Enforceability 11
889	889	Date. 12
890	890	(b) W
891	891	AIVERS ANDRELEASES OFCLAIMS BYNAVAJO 13
892	892	N
893	893	ATIONAGAINSTUNITEDSTATES.—Subject to the res-14
894	894	ervation of rights and retention of claims under subsection 15
895	895	(d), the Navajo Nation, on behalf of the Nation (including 16
896	896	in its capacity as an Allottee) and members of the Nation 17
897	897	(other than members in their capacity as Allottees) shall 18
898	898	execute a waiver and release of all claims against the 19
899	899	United States (including any agency or employee of the 20
900	900	United States) first arising before the Enforceability Date 21
901	901	relating to— 22
902	902	(1) water rights within the Rio San Jose´ 23
903	903	Stream System that the United States, acting as 24
904	904	trustee for the Navajo Nation, asserted or could 25
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907	907	•HR 1324 IH
908	908	have asserted in any proceeding, including the Adju-1
909	909	dication, except to the extent that such rights are 2
910	910	recognized as part of the Navajo Nation’s Water 3
911	911	Rights under this Act; 4
912	912	(2) foregone benefits from non-Navajo use of 5
913	913	water, on and off Navajo Lands (including water 6
914	914	from all sources and for all uses) within the Rio San 7
915	915	Jose´Stream System; 8
916	916	(3) damage, loss, or injury to water, water 9
917	917	rights, land, or natural resources due to loss of 10
918	918	water or water rights (including damages, losses, or 11
919	919	injuries to hunting, fishing, gathering, or cultural 12
920	920	rights due to loss of water or water rights, claims 13
921	921	relating to interference with, diversion of, or taking 14
922	922	of water, or claims relating to a failure to protect, 15
923	923	acquire, replace, or develop water, water rights, or 16
924	924	water infrastructure) within the Rio San Jose´ 17
925	925	Stream System; 18
926	926	(4) a failure to provide for operation, mainte-19
927	927	nance, or deferred maintenance for any irrigation 20
928	928	system or irrigation project within the Rio San Jose´ 21
929	929	Stream System; 22
930	930	(5) a failure to establish or provide a municipal, 23
931	931	rural, or industrial water delivery system on Navajo 24
932	932	Lands within the Rio San Jose´Stream System; 25
933	933	VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:16 Mar 08, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1324.IH H1324
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935	935	•HR 1324 IH
936	936	(6) damage, loss, or injury to water, water 1
937	937	rights, land, or natural resources due to construc-2
938	938	tion, operation, and management of irrigation 3
939	939	projects on Navajo Lands (including damages, 4
940	940	losses, or injuries to fish habitat, wildlife, and wild-5
941	941	life habitat) within the Rio San Jose´Stream Sys-6
942	942	tem; 7
943	943	(7) a failure to provide a dam safety improve-8
944	944	ment to a dam on Navajo Lands within the Rio San 9
945	945	Jose´Stream System; 10
946	946	(8) the litigation of claims relating to any water 11
947	947	right of the Nation within the Rio San Jose´Stream 12
948	948	System; and 13
949	949	(9) the negotiation, execution, or adoption of 14
950	950	the Agreement (including attachments) and this Act. 15
951	951	(c) E
952	952	FFECTIVEDATE.—The waivers and releases de-16
953	953	scribed in subsections (a) and (b) shall take effect on the 17
954	954	Enforceability Date. 18
955	955	(d) R
956	956	ESERVATION OF RIGHTS ANDRETENTION OF 19
957	957	C
958	958	LAIMS.—Notwithstanding the waivers and releases under 20
959	959	subsections (a) and (b), the Navajo Nation and the United 21
960	960	States, acting as trustee for the Nation, shall retain all 22
961	961	claims relating to— 23
962	962	(1) the enforcement of, or claims accruing after 24
963	963	the Enforceability Date relating to, water rights rec-25
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966	966	•HR 1324 IH
967	967	ognized under the Agreement, this Act, or the Nav-1
968	968	ajo Partial Final Judgment and Decree entered in 2
969	969	the Adjudication; 3
970	970	(2) activities affecting the quality of water and 4
971	971	the environment, including claims under— 5
972	972	(A) the Comprehensive Environmental Re-6
973	973	sponse, Compensation, and Liability Act of 7
974	974	1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.), including claims 8
975	975	for damages to natural resources; 9
976	976	(B) the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 10
977	977	U.S.C. 300f et seq.); 11
978	978	(C) the Federal Water Pollution Control 12
979	979	Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) (commonly re-13
980	980	ferred to as the ‘‘Clean Water Act’’); and 14
981	981	(D) any regulations implementing the Acts 15
982	982	described in subparagraphs (A) through (C); 16
983	983	(3) the right to use and protect water rights ac-17
984	984	quired after the date of enactment of this Act; 18
985	985	(4) damage, loss, or injury to land or natural 19
986	986	resources that is not due to loss of water or water 20
987	987	rights, including hunting, fishing, gathering, or cul-21
988	988	tural rights; 22
989	989	(5) all claims for water rights, and claims for 23
990	990	injury to water rights, in basins other than the Rio 24
991	991	San Jose´Stream System, subject to the Agreement 25
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994	994	•HR 1324 IH
995	995	with respect to the claims of the Navajo Nation for 1
996	996	water rights in the Rio Puerco Basin; and 2
997	997	(6) all rights, remedies, privileges, immunities, 3
998	998	powers, and claims not specifically waived and re-4
999	999	leased pursuant to this Act or the Agreement. 5
1000	1000	(e) E
1001	1001	FFECT OFAGREEMENT AND ACT.—Nothing in 6
1002	1002	the Agreement or this Act— 7
1003	1003	(1) reduces or extends the sovereignty (includ-8
1004	1004	ing civil and criminal jurisdiction) of any govern-9
1005	1005	ment entity, except as provided in section 11; 10
1006	1006	(2) affects the ability of the United States, as 11
1007	1007	a sovereign, to carry out any activity authorized by 12
1008	1008	law, including— 13
1009	1009	(A) the Comprehensive Environmental Re-14
1010	1010	sponse, Compensation, and Liability Act of 15
1011	1011	1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.); 16
1012	1012	(B) the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 17
1013	1013	U.S.C. 300f et seq.); 18
1014	1014	(C) the Federal Water Pollution Control 19
1015	1015	Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) (commonly re-20
1016	1016	ferred to as the ‘‘Clean Water Act’’); 21
1017	1017	(D) the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 22
1018	1018	U.S.C. 6901 et seq.); and 23
1019	1019	(E) any regulations implementing the Acts 24
1020	1020	described in subparagraphs (A) through (D); 25
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1023	1023	•HR 1324 IH
1024	1024	(3) affects the ability of the United States to 1
1025	1025	act as trustee for the Navajo Nation (consistent with 2
1026	1026	this Act), any other Indian Tribe, or an Allottee of 3
1027	1027	any other Indian Tribe; 4
1028	1028	(4) confers jurisdiction on any State court— 5
1029	1029	(A) to interpret Federal law relating to 6
1030	1030	health, safety, or the environment; 7
1031	1031	(B) to determine the duties of the United 8
1032	1032	States or any other party under Federal law re-9
1033	1033	garding health, safety, or the environment; or 10
1034	1034	(C) to conduct judicial review of any Fed-11
1035	1035	eral agency action; or 12
1036	1036	(5) waives any claim of a member of the Navajo 13
1037	1037	Nation in an individual capacity that does not derive 14
1038	1038	from a right of the Navajo Nation. 15
1039	1039	(f) O
1040	1040	FFSETRELATING TO RIOPUERCO.—The 16
1041	1041	United States shall be entitled to offset $20,000,000 17
1042	1042	against— 18
1043	1043	(1) any judgment against the United States for 19
1044	1044	claims relating to water rights in the Rio Puerco 20
1045	1045	Basin, including breach of trust and damage claims 21
1046	1046	relating to water rights in the Rio Puerco Basin, in 22
1047	1047	a case brought by the Nation or any user of the 23
1048	1048	Navajo Nation’s Water Rights; or 24
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1051	1051	•HR 1324 IH
1052	1052	(2) a Federal contribution to any future settle-1
1053	1053	ment of water rights of the Navajo Nation in the 2
1054	1054	Rio Puerco Basin. 3
1055	1055	(g) T
1056	1056	OLLING OFCLAIMS.— 4
1057	1057	(1) I
1058	1058	N GENERAL.—Each applicable period of 5
1059	1059	limitation and time-based equitable defense relating 6
1060	1060	to a claim described in this section shall be tolled for 7
1061	1061	the period beginning on the date of enactment of 8
1062	1062	this Act and ending on the Enforceability Date. 9
1063	1063	(2) E
1064	1064	FFECT OF SUBSECTION .—Nothing in this 10
1065	1065	subsection revives any claim or tolls any period of 11
1066	1066	limitation or time-based equitable defense that ex-12
1067	1067	pired before the date of enactment of this Act. 13
1068	1068	(3) L
1069	1069	IMITATION.—Nothing in this section pre-14
1070	1070	cludes the tolling of any period of limitation or any 15
1071	1071	time-based equitable defense under any other appli-16
1072	1072	cable law. 17
1073	1073	(h) E
1074	1074	XPIRATION.— 18
1075	1075	(1) I
1076	1076	N GENERAL.—This Act shall expire in any 19
1077	1077	case in which the Secretary fails to publish a state-20
1078	1078	ment of findings under section 8 by not later than— 21
1079	1079	(A) July 1, 2030; or 22
1080	1080	(B) such alternative later date as is agreed 23
1081	1081	to by the Navajo Nation and the Secretary, 24
1082	1082	after providing reasonable notice to the State. 25
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1085	1085	•HR 1324 IH
1086	1086	(2) CONSEQUENCES.—If this Act expires under 1
1087	1087	paragraph (1)— 2
1088	1088	(A) the waivers and releases under sub-3
1089	1089	sections (a) and (b) shall— 4
1090	1090	(i) expire; and 5
1091	1091	(ii) have no further force or effect; 6
1092	1092	(B) the authorization, ratification, con-7
1093	1093	firmation, and execution of the Agreement 8
1094	1094	under section 4 shall no longer be effective; 9
1095	1095	(C) any action carried out by the Sec-10
1096	1096	retary, and any contract or agreement entered 11
1097	1097	into, pursuant to this Act shall be void; 12
1098	1098	(D) any unexpended Federal funds appro-13
1099	1099	priated or made available to carry out the ac-14
1100	1100	tivities authorized by this Act, together with 15
1101	1101	any interest earned on those funds, and any 16
1102	1102	water rights or contracts to use water and title 17
1103	1103	to other property acquired or constructed with 18
1104	1104	Federal funds appropriated or made available 19
1105	1105	to carry out the activities authorized by this 20
1106	1106	Act, shall be returned to the Federal Govern-21
1107	1107	ment, unless otherwise agreed to by Navajo Na-22
1108	1108	tion and the United States and approved by 23
1109	1109	Congress; and 24
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1112	1112	•HR 1324 IH
1113	1113	(E) except for Federal funds used to ac-1
1114	1114	quire or construct property that is returned to 2
1115	1115	the Federal Government under subparagraph 3
1116	1116	(D), the United States shall be entitled to offset 4
1117	1117	any Federal funds made available to carry out 5
1118	1118	this Act that were expended or withdrawn, or 6
1119	1119	any funds made available to carry out this Act 7
1120	1120	from other Federal authorized sources, together 8
1121	1121	with any interest accrued on those funds, 9
1122	1122	against any claims against the United States— 10
1123	1123	(i) relating to water rights in the 11
1124	1124	State asserted by— 12
1125	1125	(I) the Nation or any user of the 13
1126	1126	Navajo Nation’s Water Rights; or 14
1127	1127	(II) any other matter covered by 15
1128	1128	subsection (b); or 16
1129	1129	(ii) in any future settlement of water 17
1130	1130	rights of the Navajo Nation. 18
1131	1131	SEC. 10. SATISFACTION OF CLAIMS. 19
1132	1132	The benefits provided under this Act shall be in com-20
1133	1133	plete replacement of, complete substitution for, and full 21
1134	1134	satisfaction of any claim of the Navajo Nation against the 22
1135	1135	United States that are waived and released by the Nation 23
1136	1136	pursuant to section 9(b). 24
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1139	1139	•HR 1324 IH
1140	1140	SEC. 11. CONSENT OF UNITED STATES TO JURISDICTION 1
1141	1141	FOR JUDICIAL REVIEW OF A NAVAJO NATION 2
1142	1142	WATER USE PERMIT DECISION. 3
1143	1143	(a) C
1144	1144	ONSENT.—On the Enforceability Date, the con-4
1145	1145	sent of the United States is hereby given, with the consent 5
1146	1146	of the Navajo Nation under Article 17.14.4 of the Agree-6
1147	1147	ment, to jurisdiction in the District Court for the Thir-7
1148	1148	teenth Judicial District of the State of New Mexico, and 8
1149	1149	in the New Mexico Court of Appeals and the New Mexico 9
1150	1150	Supreme Court on appeal therefrom in the same manner 10
1151	1151	as provided under New Mexico law, over an action filed 11
1152	1152	in such District Court by any party to a Navajo Nation 12
1153	1153	Water Use Permit administrative proceeding under Article 13
1154	1154	17.10.4 of the Agreement for the limited and sole purpose 14
1155	1155	of judicial review of a Navajo Nation Water Use Permit 15
1156	1156	decision under Article 17.10.5 of the Agreement. 16
1157	1157	(b) L
1158	1158	IMITATION.—The consent of the United States 17
1159	1159	for review of a Navajo Nation Water Use Permit is limited 18
1160	1160	to judicial review, based on the record developed through 19
1161	1161	the administrative process of the Navajo Nation, under a 20
1162	1162	standard of judicial review limited to determining whether 21
1163	1163	the Navajo Nation decision on the application for the Nav-22
1164	1164	ajo Nation Water Use Permit— 23
1165	1165	(1) is supported by substantial evidence; 24
1166	1166	(2) is not arbitrary, capricious, or contrary to 25
1167	1167	law; 26
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1170	1170	•HR 1324 IH
1171	1171	(3) is not in accordance with the Agreement or 1
1172	1172	the Navajo Partial Final Judgment and Decree; or 2
1173	1173	(4) shows that the Navajo Nation acted fraudu-3
1174	1174	lently or outside the scope of its authority. 4
1175	1175	(c) N
1176	1176	AVAJONATIONWATERCODE ANDINTERPRE-5
1177	1177	TATION.— 6
1178	1178	(1) I
1179	1179	N GENERAL.—Navajo Nation Water Code 7
1180	1180	or Navajo Water Law provisions that meet the re-8
1181	1181	quirements of Article 17.10 of the Agreement shall 9
1182	1182	be given full faith and credit in any proceeding de-10
1183	1183	scribed in this section. 11
1184	1184	(2) P
1185	1185	ROVISIONS OF THE NAVAJO NATION 12
1186	1186	WATER CODE.—To the extent that a State court 13
1187	1187	conducting judicial review under this section must 14
1188	1188	interpret provisions of Navajo Nation law that are 15
1189	1189	not express provisions of the Navajo Nation Water 16
1190	1190	Code or Navajo Nation water law, the State court 17
1191	1191	shall certify the question of interpretation to the 18
1192	1192	Navajo Nation court. 19
1193	1193	(3) N
1194	1194	O CERTIFICATION.—Any issues of inter-20
1195	1195	pretation of standards in Article 17.10.6 of the 21
1196	1196	Agreement are not subject to certification. 22
1197	1197	(4) L
1198	1198	IMITATION.—Nothing in this section limits 23
1199	1199	the jurisdiction of the Decree Court to interpret and 24
1200	1200	enforce the Agreement. 25
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1203	1203	•HR 1324 IH
1204	1204	SEC. 12. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS. 1
1205	1205	(a) N
1206	1206	OWAIVER OFSOVEREIGNIMMUNITY BY THE 2
1207	1207	U
1208	1208	NITEDSTATES.—Nothing in this Act waives the sov-3
1209	1209	ereign immunity of the United States. 4
1210	1210	(b) O
1211	1211	THERTRIBESNOTADVERSELYAFFECTED.— 5
1212	1212	Nothing in this Act quantifies or diminishes any land or 6
1213	1213	water right, or any claim or entitlement to land or water, 7
1214	1214	of an Indian Tribe, band, Pueblo, or community other 8
1215	1215	than the Navajo Nation. 9
1216	1216	(c) E
1217	1217	FFECT ONCURRENTLAW.—Nothing in this Act 10
1218	1218	affects any provision of law (including regulations) in ef-11
1219	1219	fect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act 12
1220	1220	with respect to pre-enforcement review of any Federal en-13
1221	1221	vironmental enforcement action. 14
1222	1222	(d) C
1223	1223	ONFLICT.—In the event of a conflict between 15
1224	1224	the Agreement and this Act, this Act shall control. 16
1225	1225	SEC. 13. RELATION TO ALLOTTEES. 17
1226	1226	(a) N
1227	1227	OEFFECT ONCLAIMS OFALLOTTEES.—Noth-18
1228	1228	ing in this Act or the Agreement shall affect the rights 19
1229	1229	or claims of Allottees, or the United States, acting in its 20
1230	1230	capacity as trustee for or on behalf of Allottees, for water 21
1231	1231	rights or damages relating to land allotted by the United 22
1232	1232	States to Allottees. 23
1233	1233	(b) R
1234	1234	ELATIONSHIP OFDECREE TOALLOTTEES.— 24
1235	1235	(1) S
1236	1236	EPARATE ADJUDICATION .—Notwith-25
1237	1237	standing whether an Allotment is patented pursuant 26
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1240	1240	•HR 1324 IH
1241	1241	to section 1 of the Act of February 8, 1887 (com-1
1242	1242	monly known as the ‘‘Indian General Allotment 2
1243	1243	Act’’) (24 Stat. 388, chapter 119; 25 U.S.C. 331) 3
1244	1244	(as in effect on the day before the date of enactment 4
1245	1245	of the Indian Land Consolidation Act Amendments 5
1246	1246	of 2000 (Public Law 106–462; 114 Stat. 1991)) or 6
1247	1247	section 4 of that Act (24 Stat. 389, chapter 119; 25 7
1248	1248	U.S.C. 334), as determined by the Secretary, when 8
1249	1249	adjudicated— 9
1250	1250	(A) water rights for Allotments shall be 10
1251	1251	separate from the Navajo Nation’s Water 11
1252	1252	Rights; and 12
1253	1253	(B) no water rights for Allotments shall be 13
1254	1254	included in the Navajo Partial Final Judgment 14
1255	1255	and Decree. 15
1256	1256	(2) A
1257	1257	LLOTMENT WATER RIGHTS .—The Allot-16
1258	1258	ment water rights adjudicated separately pursuant 17
1259	1259	to paragraph (1) shall not be subject to the restric-18
1260	1260	tions or conditions that apply to the use of the Nav-19
1261	1261	ajo Nation’s Water Rights, subject to the condition 20
1262	1262	that if an Allotment governed by the Act of Feb-21
1263	1263	ruary 8, 1887 (commonly known as the ‘‘Indian 22
1264	1264	General Allotment Act’’) (24 Stat. 388, chapter 23
1265	1265	119) becomes Navajo Nation Lands, the water 24
1266	1266	rights associated with that Allotment shall be sub-25
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1269	1269	•HR 1324 IH
1270	1270	ject to the restrictions and conditions on the Navajo 1
1271	1271	Nation’s Water Rights set forth in this Act and the 2
1272	1272	Agreement. 3
1273	1273	(3) A
1274	1274	LLOTTEE WATER RIGHTS TO BE ADJU -4
1275	1275	DICATED.—Allottees, or the United States, acting in 5
1276	1276	its capacity as trustee for Allottees, may make water 6
1277	1277	rights claims, and those claims may be adjudicated 7
1278	1278	in the Rio San Jose´Stream System or the Rio 8
1279	1279	Puerco Basin. 9
1280	1280	SEC. 14. EXPANSION OF NAVAJO-GALLUP WATER SUPPLY 10
1281	1281	PROJECT SERVICE AREA. 11
1282	1282	(a) D
1283	1283	EFINITION OFPROJECT.—In this section, the 12
1284	1284	term ‘‘Project’’ means the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply 13
1285	1285	Project authorized under section 10602 of the North-14
1286	1286	western New Mexico Rural Water Projects Act (Public 15
1287	1287	Law 111–11; 123 Stat. 1379). 16
1288	1288	(b) E
1289	1289	XPANSION OF PROJECTSERVICEAREAAU-17
1290	1290	THORIZED.—The Nation may expand the service area for 18
1291	1291	the Project in order to deliver water supply from the 19
1292	1292	Project to communities of the Nation within the Rio San 20
1293	1293	Jose´Basin in the State. 21
1294	1294	(c) A
1295	1295	PPROVAL OFFINALDESIGN FOREXPANSION.— 22
1296	1296	If water will be supplied from facilities of the Project to 23
1297	1297	the Rio San Jose´Basin at a time when the Bureau of 24
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1300	1300	•HR 1324 IH
1301	1301	Reclamation still holds title to those facilities, the Navajo 1
1302	1302	Nation shall— 2
1303	1303	(1) obtain approval, in writing, from the Com-3
1304	1304	missioner of Reclamation for the final design of the 4
1305	1305	connection and related facilities needed to connect 5
1306	1306	the extension into the Rio San Jose´area from those 6
1307	1307	facilities; and 7
1308	1308	(2) coordinate construction of the connection 8
1309	1309	and related facilities with the Commissioner of Rec-9
1310	1310	lamation. 10
1311	1311	SEC. 15. ANTIDEFICIENCY. 11
1312	1312	The United States shall not be liable for any failure 12
1313	1313	to carry out any obligation or activity authorized by this 13
1314	1314	Act, including any obligation or activity under the Agree-14
1315	1315	ment, if adequate appropriations are not provided ex-15
1316	1316	pressly by Congress to carry out the purposes of this Act. 16
1317	1317	Æ
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