§ 487. — Spokane Indian Reservation; consolidations of land.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 25USC487]
TITLE 25--INDIANS
CHAPTER 14--MISCELLANEOUS
SUBCHAPTER V--PROTECTION OF INDIANS AND CONSERVATION OF RESOURCES
Sec. 487. Spokane Indian Reservation; consolidations of land
(a) Purchase, sale, and exchange
For the purpose of effecting consolidations of land situated within
the Spokane Indian Reservation in the State of Washington into the
ownership of the tribe and of individual tribal members and for the
purpose of attaining and preserving an economic land base for Indian
use, alleviating problems of Indian heirship and assisting in the
productive leasing, disposition, and other use of tribal lands, the
Secretary of the Interior is authorized in his discretion to:
(1) Purchase for the Spokane Tribe of Indians with any funds of such
tribe and to otherwise acquire by gift, exchange, or relinquishment any
lands or interest in lands or improvements thereon within the Spokane
Indian Reservation.
(2) Sell or approve sales of any tribal trust lands, any interest
therein or improvements thereon.
(3) Exchange any tribal trust lands, including interests therein or
improvements thereon, for any lands situated within such reservation.
(b) Individual Indian trust lands
The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to sell and exchange
individual Indian trust lands held in multiple ownership to the Spokane
Tribe or to individual members thereof if the sale or exchange is
authorized in writing by owners of at least a majority interest in such
lands; except that no greater percentage of approval of individual
Indians shall be required under this Act than in any other statute of
general application approved by Congress.
(c) Nontaxability
Title to lands, or any interests therein, acquired pursuant to this
Act for the Spokane Tribe or individual enrolled members thereof, shall
be taken in the name of the United States of America in trust for the
tribe or individual Indian, and shall be nontaxable as other tribal and
allotted Indian trust lands of the Spokane Reservation.
(d) Lands held by mortgage or deed of trust
That any tribal land that may be sold pursuant to this Act may, with
the approval of the Secretary of the Interior, be encumbered by a
mortgage or deed of trust and shall be subject to foreclosure or sale
pursuant to the terms of such a mortgage or deed of trust in accordance
with the laws of the State of Washington. The United States shall be an
indispensable party to any such proceeding with the right of removal of
the clause to the United States district court for the district in which
the land is located, following the procedure in section 1446 of title
28: Provided, That the United States shall have the right to appeal from
any order of remand in the case.
(e) Acquisition and sale procedures; land purchase and consolidation
program
The acquisition and sale of lands for the Spokane Tribe pursuant to
this Act shall be upon request of the business council of the Spokane
Tribe, evidenced by a resolution adopted in accordance with the
constitution and bylaws of the tribe, and shall be in accordance with a
land purchase and consolidation plan approved by the Secretary of the
Interior, and except as it may otherwise be authorized or prescribed by
the Secretary, shall be limited to lands situated within the boundary of
the Spokane Reservation. Such acquisition by the Spokane Tribe, or
individual members thereof, may be achieved by exchange of lands with
Indians or non-Indians as well as outright purchase, with adjusting
payments to approximate equal value. Moneys or credits received by the
tribe in the sale of lands shall be used for the purchase of other
lands, or for such other purpose as may be consistent with the land
purchase and consolidation program, approved by the Secretary of the
Interior.
(Pub. L. 90-335, Sec. 1(a)-(e), June 10, 1968, 82 Stat. 174; Pub. L. 93-
286, May 21, 1974, 88 Stat. 142.)
References in Text
This Act, referred to in subsecs. (c), (d), and (e), is Pub. L. 90-
335, June 10, 1968, 82 Stat. 174, as amended, which enacted this section
and amended section 415 of this title. For complete classification of
this Act to the Code, see Tables.
Codification
Section is comprised of subsecs. (a) to (e) of section 1 of Pub. L.
90-335. Subsec. (f) of section 1 of Pub. L. 90-335 amended section 415
of this title.
Amendments
1974--Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 93-286 substituted ``for the Spokane
Tribe or individual'' for ``by the Spokane Tribe or individual'', and
struck out proviso that the value on nontrust lands, or nontrust
interests in land, acquired under this section by the Spokane Tribe
during any twelve-month period shall not exceed the value of lands, or
interests in land, that passed in any manner from a nontaxable trust
status to a taxable fee status within the boundaries of the Spokane
Reservation in Stevens County, Washington, during the twelve-month
period preceding acquisition by the tribe.
