43 U.S.C. § 1629h — Kake Tribal Corporation land transfer

Page 501 TITLE 43—PUBLIC LANDS § 1629h System in the State that the Secretary esti- mates would be necessary to make allot- ments available for selection by eligible in- dividuals. (4) Identifying Federal land in units of the Na- tional Wildlife Refuge System In identifying whether Federal lands within units of the National Wildlife Refuge System in the State should be made available for al- lotment under paragraph (2)(B), the Secretary shall not identify any Federal land in a unit of the National Wildlife Refuge System— (A) the conveyance of which, independ- ently or as part of a group of allotments— (i) could significantly interfere with bio- logical, physical, cultural, scenic, rec- reational, natural quiet, or subsistence values of the unit of the National Wildlife Refuge System; (ii) could obstruct access by the public or the Fish and Wildlife Service to the re- source values of the unit; (iii) could trigger development or future uses in an area that would adversely affect resource values of the surrounding Na- tional Wildlife Refuge System land; (iv) could open an area of a unit to new access and uses that adversely affect re- sources values of the unit; or (v) could interfere with the management plan of the unit; (B) that is located within 300 feet from the shore of a navigable water body; (C) that is not consistent with the pur- poses for which the unit of the National Wildlife Refuge System was established; (D) that is designated as wilderness by Congress; or (E) that is within the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. (d) Limitation No Federal land may be identified for selec- tion or made available for allotment within a unit of the National Wildlife Refuge System un- less it has been authorized by an Act of Congress subsequent to March 12, 2019. Further, any pro- posed conveyance of land within a unit of the National Wildlife Refuge System must have been identified by the Secretary in accordance with subsection (c)(4) in the report to Congress required by subsection (c) and include patent provisions that the land remains subject to the laws and regulations governing the use and de- velopment of the Refuge. (Pub. L. 116–9, title I, § 1119, Mar. 12, 2019, 133 Stat. 630.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT Act of May 17, 1906, as in effect on December 17, 1971, referred to in subsec. (a)(2)(A)(ii)(I), means act May 17, 1906, ch. 2469, 34 Stat. 197, which was classified to sec- tions 270–1 to 270–3 of this title prior to its repeal by Pub. L. 92–203, § 18(a), Dec. 18, 1971, 85 Stat. 710. CODIFICATION Section was enacted as part of the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act, and not as part of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act which comprises this chapter. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries DEFINITION OF ‘‘SECRETARY’’ ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary of the Interior, see section 2 of Pub. L. 116–9, set out as a note under sec- tion 1 of Title 16, Conservation. § 1629h. Kake Tribal Corporation land transfer (a) In general If— (1) the State of Alaska relinquishes its selec- tion rights under the Alaska Statehood Act (Public Law 85–508) to lands described in sub- section (c)(2) of this section; and (2) Kake Tribal Corporation and Sealaska Corporation convey all right, title, and inter- est to lands described in subsection (c)(1) to the City of Kake, Alaska, then the Secretary of Agriculture (hereinafter referred to as ‘‘Secretary’’) shall, not later than 180 days thereafter, convey to Kake Tribal Cor- poration title to the surface estate in the land identified in subsection (c)(2) of this section, and convey to Sealaska Corporation title to the sub- surface estate in such land. (b) Effect on selection totals (1) Of the lands to which the State of Alaska relinquishes selection rights and which are con- veyed to the City of Kake pursuant to sub- section (a), 694.5 acres shall be charged against lands to be selected by the State of Alaska under section 6(a) of the Alaska Statehood Act and 694.5 acres against lands to be selected by the State of Alaska under section 6(b) of the Alaska Statehood Act. (2) The land conveyed to Kake Tribal Corpora- tion and to Sealaska Corporation under this sec- tion is, for all purposes, considered to be land conveyed under this chapter. However, the con- veyance of such land to Kake Tribal Corporation shall not count against or otherwise affect the Corporation’s remaining entitlement under sec- tion 1615(b) of this title. (c) Lands subject to exchange (1) The lands to be transferred to the City of Kake under subsection (a) are the surface and subsurface estate to approximately 1,430 acres of land owned by Kake Tribal Corporation and Sealaska Corporation, and depicted as ‘‘KTC Land to City of Kake’’ on the map entitled ‘‘Kake Land Exchange-2000’’, dated May 2000. (2) The lands subject to relinquishment by the State of Alaska and to conveyance to Kake Tribal Corporation and Sealaska Corporation under subsection (a) are the surface and sub- surface estate to approximately 1,389 acres of Federal lands depicted as ‘‘Jenny Creek-Land Selected by the State of Alaska to KTC’’ on the map entitled ‘‘Kake Land Exchange-2000’’, dated May 2000. (3) In addition to the transfers authorized under subsection (a), the Secretary may acquire from Sealaska Corporation the subsurface estate to approximately 1,127 acres of land depicted as ‘‘KTC Land-Conservation Easement to SEAL Trust’’ on the map entitled ‘‘Kake Land Ex- change-2000’’, dated May 2000, through a land ex- change for the subsurface estate to approxi- mately 1,168 acres of Federal land in southeast Page 502 TITLE 43—PUBLIC LANDS § 1631 Alaska that is under the administrative juris- diction of the Secretary. Any exchange under this paragraph shall be subject to the mutual consent of the United States Forest Service and Sealaska Corporation. (d) Withdrawal Subject to valid existing rights, the lands de- scribed in subsection (c)(2) are withdrawn from all forms of location, entry, and selection under the mining and public land laws of the United States and from leasing under the mineral and geothermal leasing laws. This withdrawal ex- pires 18 months after the effective date of this section. (e) Maps The maps referred to in this chapter shall be maintained on file in the Office of the Chief, United States Forest Service, the Office of the Secretary of the Interior, and the Office of the Petersburg Ranger District, Alaska. (f) Watershed management The United States Forest Service may cooper- ate with Kake Tribal Corporation and the City of Kake in developing a watershed management plan that provides for the protection of the wa- tershed in the public interest. Grants may be made, and contracts and cooperative agreements may be entered into, to the extent necessary to assist the City of Kake and Kake Tribal Cor- poration in the preparation and implementation of a watershed management plan for the land within the City of Kake’s municipal watershed. (g) Effective date This section is effective upon the execution of one or more conservation easements that, sub- ject to valid existing rights of third parties— (1) encumber all lands depicted as ‘‘KTC Land to City of Kake’’ and ‘‘KTC Land-Con- servation Easement to SEAL Trust’’ on a map entitled ‘‘Kake Land Exchange-2000’’ dated May 2000; (2) provide for the relinquishment by Kake Tribal Corporation of the Corporation’s devel- opment rights on lands described in paragraph (1); and (3) provide for perpetual protection and man- agement of lands depicted as ‘‘KTC Land to City of Kake’’ and ‘‘KTC Land-Conservation Easement to SEAL Trust’’ on the map de- scribed in paragraph (1) as— (A) a watershed; (B) a municipal drinking water source in accordance with the laws of the State of Alaska; (C) a source of fresh water for the Gunnuk Creek Hatchery; and (D) habitat for black bear, deer, birds, and other wildlife. (h) Authorization of appropriations There are authorized such sums as may be nec- essary to carry out this chapter, including to compensate Kake Tribal Corporation for relin- quishing its development rights pursuant to sub- section (g)(2). No funds authorized under this section may be paid to Kake Tribal Corporation unless Kake Tribal Corporation is a party to the conservation easements described in subsection (g). (Pub. L. 92–203, § 42, as added Pub. L. 106–283, § 3, Oct. 6, 2000, 114 Stat. 867; amended Pub. L. 116–9, title I, § 1105, Mar. 12, 2019, 133 Stat. 607.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT The Alaska Statehood Act, referred to in subsecs. (a)(1) and (b)(1), is Pub. L. 85–508, July 7, 1958, 72 Stat. 339, which is set out as a note preceding section 21 of Title 48, Territories and Insular Possessions. For com- plete classification of this Act to the Code, see Tables. AMENDMENTS 2019—Subsecs. (h), (i). Pub. L. 116–9 redesignated sub- sec. (i) as (h), struck out ‘‘and to provide assistance to Kake Tribal Corporation to meet the requirements of subsection (h)’’ after ‘‘pursuant to subsection (g)(2)’’, and struck out former subsec. (h). Prior to amendment, text of subsec. (h) read as follows: ‘‘Notwithstanding any other provision of law, timber harvested from lands conveyed to Kake Tribal Corporation under this section shall not be available for export as unprocessed logs from Alaska, nor may Kake Tribal Corporation sell, trade, exchange, substitute, or otherwise convey such timber to any person for the purpose of exporting that timber from the State of Alaska.’’ Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries DECLARATION OF PURPOSE Pub. L. 106–283, § 2, Oct. 6, 2000, 114 Stat. 867, provided that: ‘‘The purpose of this Act [see Short Title of 2000 Amendment note set out under section 1601 of this title] is to authorize the reallocation of lands and se- lection rights between the State of Alaska, Kake Tribal Corporation, and the City of Kake, Alaska, in order to provide for the protection and management of the mu- nicipal watershed.’’ CHAPTER 33A—IMPLEMENTATION OF ALAS- KA NATIVE CLAIMS SETTLEMENT AND ALASKA STATEHOOD Sec. 1631. Ownership of submerged lands. 1632. Statute of limitations on decisions of Sec- retary and reconveyance of land by Village Corporation. 1633. Administrative provisions. 1634. Alaska Native allotments. 1635. State selections and conveyances. 1636. Alaska land bank. 1637. Use of protraction diagrams. 1638. National Environmental Policy Act. 1639. Construction with Alaska Native Claims Set- tlement Act. 1640. Relinquishment of selections partly within conservation units. 1641. Conveyances to Village Corporations. 1642. Land conveyances. § 1631. Ownership of submerged lands (a) Meandering in the surveying of submerged land (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), when- ever the Secretary surveys land selected by a Native, a Native Corporation, or the State pur- suant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act [43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.], the Alaska Statehood Act, or this Act, lakes, rivers, and streams shall be meandered in accordance with the principles in the Bureau of Land Management, ‘‘Manual of Surveying Instructions’’ (1973). (2) If title to lands beneath navigable waters of a lake less than fifty acres in size or a river or