S-239-119
Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 686.
Sponsored by Steve Daines (R-MT)
What it does
This bill would arrange a three-way exchange of mineral interests in Montana: the Hope Family Trust would convey its mineral interests within the Crow Reservation (Hope Family Tracts) to the Crow Tribe, the federal government would accept relinquishment of an existing coal lease in the Bull Mountains, and the Secretary of the Interior would then convey the Bull Mountains mineral and surface interests to the Hope Family Trust. The tracts conveyed to the Tribe would be held in federal trust status on request and exempted from state and local taxation, and receiving benefits under this Act would not reduce the Tribe's eligibility for other federal programs.
Who benefits
The Crow Tribe of Montana, which gains mineral interests within its reservation boundaries held in tax-exempt federal trust status; the Hope Family Trust, which receives mineral and surface interests in the Bull Mountains in exchange for its Crow Reservation holdings; and the current Bull Mountains coal lessee, who is permitted to relinquish an existing federal lease under a streamlined process.
Who is hurt
Musselshell County and the State of Montana lose potential tax revenue and some regulatory jurisdiction over the Hope Family Tracts once they pass into federal trust for the Tribe, and lose future tax revenue on the Bull Mountains Tracts once they leave federal ownership. Any third parties with competing claims to the affected lands could see their interests limited, though the bill preserves "valid existing rights."
Supporters argue
Supporters argue this bill consolidates fragmented, checkerboarded mineral ownership within the Crow Reservation into tribal hands, restoring tribal control over resources located within its own reservation boundaries and enabling more coherent economic development. They contend the negotiated three-way exchange, including a pre-agreed revenue-sharing formula between the Tribe and the Hope Family Trust, reflects a voluntary, mutually beneficial arrangement rather than a unilateral federal taking.
Opponents argue
Opponents argue that removing the Bull Mountains Tracts from federal ownership and the Hope Family Tracts from state tax rolls could reduce Musselshell County's and Montana's long-term tax base and regulatory oversight over mineral development. They contend that granting the Tribe automatic tax-exempt trust status without additional environmental or fiscal review sets a template that bypasses standard land-into-trust procedures under existing federal regulations.
Constitutional context
Congress holds plenary authority over Indian affairs and tribal trust lands under Article I, Section 8's Indian Commerce Clause, which governs land-into-trust transactions like this one; no landmark case directly controls the mechanics of a specific mineral exchange, so the constitutional basis rests on this enumerated power rather than a single controlling precedent.
Checks and balances
Congress directs the specific conveyances by statute while the Secretary of the Interior administers implementation, and courts could review disputes over "valid existing rights" or property interests affected by the exchange.
Historical precedent
Congress has periodically enacted similar tribe-specific land-into-trust and mineral conveyance statutes for individual reservations, though each such bill is tailored to its own local land history and is not a direct analogue to this one.