To transfer certain land in Riverside County, California, from the Bureau of Land Management to the United States to be held in trust for the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Mission Indians, and for other purposes.

July 22, 2004

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

To transfer certain land in Riverside County, California, from the Bureau of Land Management to the United States to be held in trust for the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Mission Indians, 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 `Pechanga Band of Luiseno Mission Indians Land Transfer Act of 2004'.

SEC. 2. TRANSFER OF LAND IN TRUST FOR PECHANGA BAND OF LUISENO MISSION INDIANS.

(a) Transfer and Administration- Effective on the date of the enactment of this Act, all right, title, and interest of the United States in and to the Federal lands described in subsection (b), including all improvements thereon, appurtenances thereto, and rights to all minerals thereon or therein, including oil and gas, water, and related resources, shall be held by the United States in trust for the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Mission Indians, a federally recognized Indian tribe. The transferred land shall be declared part of the Pechanga Indian Reservation and administered in accordance with the laws and regulations generally applicable to property held in trust by the United States for an Indian tribe.

(b) Description of Land- The lands referred to in subsection (a) consist of approximately 990.74 acres in Riverside County, California, which, before the transfer under such section, were administered by the Bureau of Land Management and are more particularly described as follows:

(1) Sections 29, 30, and 32 of township 8 south, range 2 west, San Bernardino base and meridian.

(2) Section 6 of township 9 south, range 2 west, San Bernardino base and meridian.

(3) Mineral Survey 3540, section 22 of township 5 south, range 4 west, San Bernardino base and meridian.

(c) 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 transferred under subsection (a) for the purpose of establishing the boundaries of the lands.

(d) Legal Descriptions-

(1) PUBLICATION- On approval of the survey completed under subsection (c) by the duly elected tribal council of the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Mission Indians, the Secretary of the Interior shall publish in the Federal Register--

(A) a legal description of the boundary lines; and

(B) legal description of the lands transferred under subsection (a).

(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 the boundary lines and the lands transferred under subsection (a).

(e) Rules of Construction- Nothing in this Act shall--

(1) enlarge, impair, or otherwise affect any right or claim of the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Mission Indians to any land or interest in land that is in existence before the date of the enactment of this Act; or

(2) affect any water right of the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Mission Indians in existence before the date of the enactment of this Act.

END