Tuolumne Me-Wuk Land Transfer Act of 2008

Tuolumne Me-Wuk Land Transfer Act of 2008 - Declares that specified federal lands are to be held in trust by the United States for the benefit of the Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians of the Tuolumne Rancheria of California (the Tribe) for nongaming purposes.

Subjects: (1) such lands to the same terms and conditions as those lands described in the California Indian Land Transfer Act; and (2) specified lands taken or to be taken into trust for the Tribe's benefit to the Act's requirements regarding the applicability of laws governing lands which are to be held in trust for the benefit of a tribe, band, or group of Indians pursuant to the Act.

Requires the Office of Cadastral Survey of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to complete: (1) fieldwork required for a survey of the federal lands and trust lands for the purpose of incorporating those lands within the boundaries of the Tuolumne Rancheria; and (2) the survey within 90 days after the fieldwork is completed.

Requires the Secretary of the Interior, upon the approval by the Community Council of the Tribe of such survey, to publish in the Federal Register a legal description of the new boundary lines of the Tuolumne Rancheria and a legal description of the land surveyed.

[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3490 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3490

 To transfer administrative jurisdiction of certain Federal lands from 
the Bureau of Land Management to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, to take 
   such lands into trust for Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians of the 
              Tuolumne Rancheria, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 6, 2007

Mr. Radanovich introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                     Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To transfer administrative jurisdiction of certain Federal lands from 
the Bureau of Land Management to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, to take 
   such lands into trust for Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians of the 
              Tuolumne Rancheria, 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 ``Tuolumne Me-Wuk Land Transfer Act of 
2007''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) the Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians of the Tuolumne 
        Rancheria, California (referred to in this Act as the 
        ``Tribe''), is a federally recognized Indian tribe;
            (2) 3 tracts of Federal lands managed by the Bureau of Land 
        Management are adjacent to the Tuolumne Rancheria of 
        California, a federally recognized Indian Reservation held in 
        trust for the benefit of the Tribe;
            (3) one such tract is a cemetery within which are buried 
        the remains of ancestors of the Tribe and other Indians;
            (4) another such tract is needed for use by the Tribe for a 
        cultural center and other public uses of the Tribe;
            (5) the remaining tract is needed for use by the Tribe for 
        agricultural, housing, and open space needs;
            (6) none of the foregoing 3 tracts are to be used by the 
        Tribe for gaming purposes;
            (7) certain parcels of lands adjacent to the Tuolumne 
        Rancheria were taken into trust for the benefit of the Tribe; 
        and
            (8) 2 parcels of fee lands owned by the Tribe and adjacent 
        to the Tuolumne Rancheria, commonly referred to as the ``Thomas 
        and Coenenburg properties'', have been approved and are pending 
        transfer into trust status by the Bureau of Indian Affairs for 
        the benefit of the Tribe.

SEC. 3. LANDS TO BE TAKEN INTO TRUST.

    (a) In General.--Subject to valid existing rights, all right, 
title, and interest (including improvements and appurtenances) of the 
United States in and to the Federal lands described in subsection (b) 
are hereby declared to be held in trust by the United States for the 
benefit of the Tribe for nongaming purposes, and shall be subject to 
the same terms and conditions as those lands described in the 
California Indian Land Transfer Act of 2000 (title IX, Public Law 106-
568; 114 Stat. 2868, 2921). Lands taken or to be taken in trust by the 
United States for the benefit of the Tribe which are described in 
subsection (c) of this Act shall be subject to subsection (c) of 
section 903 of the California Indian Land Transfer Act of 2000.
    (b) Federal Lands Described.--The Federal lands described in this 
subsection, comprising approximately 66 acres, are as follows:
            (1) Township 1 North, Range 16 East, Section 6, Lots 10 and 
        12, MDM, containing 50.24 acres more or less.
            (2) Township 1 North, Range 16 East, Section 5, Lot 16, 
        MDM, containing 15.35 acres more or less.
            (3) Township 2 North, Range 16 East, Section 32, Indian 
        Cemetery Reservation within Lot 22, MDM, containing 0.4 acres 
        more or less.
    (c) Trust Lands Described.--The trust lands described in this 
subsection, comprising approximately 357 acres, are commonly referred 
to as follows:
            (1) Thomas property, pending trust acquisition, 104.50 
        acres.
            (2) Coenenburg property, pending trust acquisition, 192.70 
        acres, subject to existing easements of record, including but 
        not limited to a non-exclusive easement for ingress and egress 
        for the benefit of adjoining property as conveyed by Easement 
        Deed recorded July 13, 1984, in Volume 755, Pages 189 to 192, 
        and as further defined by Stipulation and Judgment entered by 
        Tuolumne County Superior Court on September 2, 1983, and 
        recorded June 4, 1984, in Volume 751, Pages 61 to 67.
            (3) Assessor Parcel No. 620505300, 1.5 acres, trust land.
            (4) Assessor Parcel No. 620505400, 19.23 acres, trust land.
            (5) Assessor Parcel No. 620505600, 3.46 acres, trust land.
            (6) Assessor Parcel No. 620505700, 7.44 acres, trust land.
            (7) Assessor Parcel No. 620401700, 0.8 acres, trust land.
            (8) A portion of Assessor Parcel No. 620500200, 2.5 acres, 
        trust land.
            (9) Assessor Parcel No. 620506200, 24.87 acres, trust land.
    (d) Survey.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Office of Cadastral Survey of the Bureau of 
Land Management shall complete a survey of the lands described in 
subsections (b) and (c) for the purpose of incorporating those lands 
within the boundaries of the Tuolumne Rancheria.
    (e) Legal Descriptions.--
            (1) Publication.--On approval by the Community Council of 
        the Tribe of the survey completed under subsection (d), the 
        Secretary of the Interior shall publish in the Federal 
        Register--
                    (A) a legal description of the new boundary lines 
                of the Tuolumne Rancheria; and
                    (B) a legal description of the land surveyed under 
                subsection (d).
            (2) Effect.--Beginning on the date on which the legal 
        descriptions are published under paragraph (1), such legal 
        descriptions shall be the official legal descriptions of those 
        boundary lines of the Tuolumne Rancheria and the lands 
        surveyed.
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