The House Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources is taking testimony on a bill aimed at benefiting the Crow Tribe in Montana.

H.R.8952, the Crow Revenue Act, was introduced by Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-Montana) on July 8. If enacted into law, the bill would transfer about 4,660 acres of privately-held mineral rights on the Crow Reservation in Montana to the tribe.

In exchange, the measure directs the federal government to transfer about 5,470 acres in land and mineral rights off the reservation to the Hope Family. The family, who are non-Native, owns the mineral rights that would be transferred to the tribe.

The first bill, the Crow Revenue Act, fixes long-standing inholdings on the Crow Reservation and ensures that the Bull Mountains Mine remains operating, bringing revenue and maintaining job opportunities for the community.

— Rep Ryan Zinke (@RepRyanZinke) July 8, 2024

The bill also anticipates — but does not overtly mandate — an agreement in which the Hope Family would share revenues with the tribe in the event that development occurs on the 5,470 acres in the Bull Mountains. Language in the Crow Revenue Act merely requires both parties to “notify” the federal government that they have “agreed on a formula” for sharing such revenues.

In a post on social media, Zinke — a former Secretary of the Interior — said his legislation “fixes long-standing inholdings on the Crow Reservation and ensures that the Bull Mountains Mine remains operating, bringing revenue and maintaining job opportunities for the community.”

Chairman Frank White Clay of the Crow Tribe testified in support of the measure at a hearing of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs on September 25. The U.S. Senate version of the measure is S.4444, introduced by Sen. Steve Daines (R-Montana).

“The Crow Tribe has always depended on our lands and natural resources for survival,” White Clay stated in his written testimony.

The bill enjoys the support of the Crow tribal government, the Montana governor and numerous other state and private entities. But the Apsáalooké Allottees Alliance, an organization focused on the rights of individual landowners on the Crow Reservation, has questioned whether the tribe will truly benefit.

“Our people have been promised more than is delivered time and time again. The Crow do not need another beautifully wrapped birthday present, only to open it and find it is empty inside,” Mike Hill and Alee Bird Hat, the president and vice president of the organization, wrote in The Daily Montanan on August 5.

Chairman White Clay is scheduled to testify about H.R.8952 at the hearing before the House Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources on Tuesday. Also providing testimony on the bill are Colin Williams on behalf of the Department of the Interior and Derf Johnson from the Montana Environmental Information Center, a group that has raised questions about the Crow Revenue Act and has worked with the Apsáalooké Allottees Alliance.

At the Senate hearing on September 25, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Bryan Newland, a political appointee at Interior, testified in support of the overall goals of the legislation. But he highlighted an apparent error in S.4444 which would require the tribe to share revenues with the Hope Family for mineral development on the reservation.

Daines acknowledged the error and said the language would be corrected in order to ensure that the revenue sharing provisions apply to development in the Bull Mountains — not to the reservation. H.R.8952 would presumably need to be changed as well, as it is identical to the Senate version.

The House hearing takes place at 2:15pm in Room 1334 of the Longworth House Office Building. Three other bills are on the agenda along with the Crow Revenue Act.

The subcommittee is part of the House Committee on Natural Resources.

Legislative Hearing on H.R. 7662, H.R. 7807, H.R. 8952 & H.R. 10005 (naturalresources.house.gov)
Legislative Hearing on the following bills: H.R. 7662 (Rep. Houlahan), “Critical Minerals Security Act of 2024”; H.R. 7807 (Rep. Obernolte), “Intergovernmental Critical Minerals Task Force Act”; H.R. 8952 (Rep. Zinke), “Crow Revenue Act”; and H.R. 10005 (Rep. Hageman), “Expedited Appeals Review Act” or the “EARA” (docs.house.gov)
Hearing Memo: Legislative Hearing on H.R. 7662, H.R. 7807, H.R. 8952, and H.R. 10005 (naturalresources.house.gov)