DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
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Bureau of Indian Affairs
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25 CFR Part 151
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Acquisition of Title to Land in Trust
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AGENCY: Bureau of Indian Affairs
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ACTION: Notice of  proposed  withdrawal of final rule; request for 
comments
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SUMMARY: This action seeks public comment on whether the Final Rule 
entitled ``Acquisition of Title to Land in Trust'' should be withdrawn and a further rule proposed to better 
address the public's continued concerns regarding the Department's 
procedures for taking land into trust for federally-recognized Indian 
tribes.
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DATES: Comments regarding this rulemaking should be received by 
September 12, 2001.
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ADDRESSES: Comments regarding this action should be submitted to: Terry 
Virden, Director, Office of Trust Responsibilities, MS 4513 MIB, 1849 C 
Street, NW, Washington, DC 20240.
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FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Terry Virden, Office of Trust 
Responsibilities, MX 4513 MIB, 1849 C Street, NW, Washington, DC 20240; 
telephone 202/208-5831.
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SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The rule entitled ``Acquisition of Title to 
Land in Trust'' was published in the Federal Register on January 16, 
2001, and its effective date was extended by a Notice published in the 
Federal Register on April 16, 2001. This effective date of this rule 
has been further extended to November 10, 2001, by action taken today 
in this issue of the Federal Register.<p></p>
    During the comment period first extending the effective date of 
this rule (April 16-June 15, 2001), the Department received 192 
submissions from a variety of Indian tribes, state and local 
governments, and other interested groups and individuals. The comments 
articulated a variety of opposing views. For example, comments stated 
that the final rule should be revoked, amended in part only, changed in 
specific ways or made immediately effective. Even though many comments 
suggested amending only certain parts of the final rule, the Department 
finds that it may be impracticable and inefficient to repeal only part 
of the final rule. While the Department continues to review these 
comments during a further extension of the effective date, as published 
in today's issue of the Federal Register, the Department is seeking 
comments on whether to withdraw the final rule and propose a new rule 
that would better speak to the ongoing concerns of the public regarding 
the Department's procedures for taking land into trust for federally-
recognized tribes.<p></p>
    Comments that are being reviewed concern several areas of the final 
rule. One area of concern is individual applications for lands into 
trust for housing or home site purposes. The Department is considering 
the advisability of expediting and prioritizing these types of 
applications under a new proposed rule. Applications for housing or 
home site purposes could be identified as acquisitions containing five 
(5) acres of land or less for the purpose of meeting individual housing 
needs. Another area of concern has been land use issues on off-
reservation acquisitions and land use issues with the designation of 
Tribal Land Acquisition Areas (TLAA). In applications for off-
reservation acquisitions, the Department is considering the 
advisability of requiring that tribes submit land use plans for the 
parcel to be acquired. The Secretary would approve those land use plans 
as part of her review of the application. In addition, when a tribe 
submits an application to the Secretary for approval of a TLAA, the 
Department is considering the advisability of requiring that the 
application contain a land use plan for the TLAA which the Secretary 
would approve as part of her review and approval of the TLAA 
designation.<p></p>
    Several comments focused on the lack of standards contained in the 
final rule. The Department is considering clarifying the standards that 
will be used by the Secretary to determine whether to approve an 
application and defining the burdens of proof that the applicant and 
those opposing a trust application have to the application. For on-
reservation acquisitions, the Department is considering requiring a 
tribe or individual to show by substantial evidence that the 
acquisition facilitates tribal self-determination, economic 
development, Indian housing, land consolidation, or natural resources 
protection. The Department is further considering requiring opponents 
of on-reservation trust acquisitions to show by clear evidence that the 
acquisition will result in severe negative impact to the environment or 
severe harm to the local government. For off-reservation acquisitions, 
the Department is considering requiring that tribes show by substantial 
evidence that the acquisition is necessary to facilitate tribal self-
determination, economic development, Indian housing, land 
consolidation, or natural resources protection, and the tribe be 
further required to show that no demonstrable harm to the local 
community is realized. The Department is considering requiring that 
opponents of off-reservation acquisitions show by clear evidence that 
the acquisition will result in significant harm to the local community 
or severe negative impacts to the environment.<p></p>
    Another area of concern has been the availability of applications 
for review. The Department is considering changing the length of time 
that states and local communities have to comment on the application. 
Currently, for on-reservation acquisitions, the final rule provides 
state and local communities 30 days to comment on an application. The 
Department is considering allowing state and local communities 60 days 
to comment on on-reservation acquisitions. For off-reservation 
acquisitions, the final rule currently provides that state and local 
communities have 60 days to comment on an application. The Department 
is considering allowing the state and local communities 90 days to 
comment on off-reservation applications. The additional 30 days to 
review applications will provide state and local governments adequate 
time to review the application at the local Bureau of Indian Affairs 
(BIA) agency or regional office. The Department is also interested in 
using technology to make the review of applications easier and more 
efficient. Any comments on how the Internet or computer technology 
might facilitate review of trust acquisition applications would be 
helpful.<p></p>
    Considering the range of comments already received and reviewed, 
the Department takes this action to seek comment on whether the final 
rule should be withdrawn for the best interests of the constituencies 
served by the rule.
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    Dated: August 8, 2001.<BR>
Neal A. McCaleb,<BR>
Assistant Secretary--Indian Affairs.