Sandia Pueblo Settlement Technical Amendment Act

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 611) to make a technical amendment to the T'uf Shur Bien Preservation Trust Area Act, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, S. 611 authorizes a transfer of land between the U.S. Forest Service and the Pueblo of Sandia in the State of New Mexico. The bill would complete a series of pending land exchanges that were originally authorized under a 2003 law. The exchanges were intended to resolve the Pueblo's ownership claims to Sandia Mountain and to retain certain lands and interests in public ownership as part of the Cibola National Forest.

Some of the land exchanges were not executed because of a disagreement over land valuation. In 2009, Congress attempted to resolve this matter through a technical amendment but, in the view of the Forest Service, the bill did not resolve the land valuation dispute. So, Mr. Speaker, it is hoped that round two of the technical amendments to the 2003 act will conclude the matter.

The Committee on Natural Resources has reported the House companion measure to this bill, H.R. 3605, and we have no objection to passing S. 611 in lieu of H.R. 3605.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I will advise my friend from New Mexico that I have no further speakers, and I am prepared to close.

Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.