§ 640d-28. — Life estates.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 25USC640d-28]
TITLE 25--INDIANS
CHAPTER 14--MISCELLANEOUS
SUBCHAPTER XXII--NAVAJO AND HOPI TRIBES: SETTLEMENT OF RIGHTS AND
INTERESTS
Sec. 640d-28. Life estates
(a) Omitted
(b) Application for lease; contents; filing date; extension
Any Navajo head of household who desires to do so may submit an
application for a life estate lease to the Commissioner. Such
application shall contain such information as the Commissioner may
prescribe by regulation, such regulation to be promulgated by the
Commissioner within ninety days of July 8, 1980. To be considered, such
application must be filed with the Commissioner on or before April 1,
1981: Provided, That the Commissioner may, for good cause, grant an
extension of one hundred and eighty days.
(c) Application groupings
Upon receipt of applications filed pursuant to this section, the
Commissioner shall group them in the following order:
(A) Applicants who are determined to be at least 50 per centum
disabled as certified by a physician approved by the Commissioner.
Such applicants shall be ranked in the order of the severity of
their disability.
(B) Applicants who are not at least 50 per centum disabled shall
be ranked in order of their age with oldest listed first and the
youngest listed last: Provided, That, if any applicant physically
resides in quarter quad Nos. 78 NW, 77 NE, 77 NW, 55 SW, or 54 SE as
designated on the Mediator's partition map, such applicant shall be
given priority over another applicant of equal age.
(C) Applicants who did not, as of December 22, 1974, and
continuously thereafter, maintain a separate place of abode and
actually remain domiciled on Hopi partitioned lands, and who, but
for this subsection would be required to relocate, shall be rejected
by the Commissioner.
(D) Applicants who were not at least forty-nine years of age on
December 22, 1974, or are not at least 50 per centum disabled, shall
also be rejected by the Commissioner.
(d) Number of leases; priorities
The Commissioner shall have authority to award life estate leases to
not more than one hundred and twenty applicants with first priority
being given to applicants listed pursuant to subsection (c)(A) of this
section and the next priority being given to the applicants listed
pursuant to subsection (c)(B) of this section, in order of such listing.
(e) Area; allowable livestock; assistance by Secretary in feeding
livestock
Each life estate lease shall consist of a fenced area not exceeding
ninety acres of land which shall include the life tenant's present
residence and may be used by the life tenant to feed not to exceed
twenty-five sheep units per year or equivalent livestock. The Secretary,
under existing authority, shall make available to life estate tenants
such assistance during that tenure, as may be necessary to enable such
tenant to feed such livestock at an adequate nutritional level.
(f) Individuals permitted to reside; regulations
No person may reside on a life estate other than the life tenant,
his or her spouse, and minor dependents, and/or such persons who are
necessarily present to provide for the care of the life tenant. The
Commissioner shall promulgate regulations to carry out the intent of
this subsection.
(g) Termination
The life estate tenure shall end by voluntary relinquishment, or at
the death of the life tenant or the death of his or her spouse,
whichever occurs last: Provided, That each survivorship right shall
apply only to those persons who were lawfully married to each other on
or before July 8, 1980.
(h) Relocation benefits upon voluntary relinquishment; compensation upon
death of life tenant or surviving spouse; relocation of
dependents
Nothing in this section shall be construed as prohibiting any such
applicant who receives a life estate lease under this section from
relinquishing, prior to its termination, such estate at any time and
voluntarily relocating. Upon voluntary relinquishment of such estate, by
such means or instrument as the Secretary shall prescribe, such
applicant shall be entitled to relocation benefits from the Secretary
comparable to those provided by section 640d-14 of this title. For life
estates terminated by the death of the life tenant or his or her
surviving spouse, compensation shall be paid to the estate of the
deceased life tenant or surviving spouse based on the fair market value
of the habitation and improvements at the time of the expiration of such
tenure and not before. Such payment shall be in lieu of any other
payment pursuant to subsection (a) of section 640d-14 of this title.
Assistance provided pursuant to section 640d-14(b) of this title, shall
be paid to any head of household lawfully residing on such life estate
pursuant to subsection (f) of this section who is required to move by
the termination of such life estate by the death of the life tenant and
his or her surviving spouse and who does not maintain a residence
elsewhere. Compensation under section 640d-14(a) of this title shall be
paid and distributed in accordance with the last will and testament of
the life tenant or surviving spouse or, in the event no valid last will
and testament is left, compensation shall be paid and distributed to his
or her heirs in accordance with existing Federal law. Upon termination
of a life estate by whatever means, the dependents residing with the
individuals having such life estate so terminated shall have ninety days
following such termination within which to relocate.
(i) Payment of fair market rental value
The Secretary shall pay, on an annual basis, the fair market rental
value of such life estate leases to the tribe to whom the lands leased
were partitioned.
(j) Improvements
Nothing in this subchapter or any other law shall be construed to
prevent a life tenant from making reasonable improvements on the life
estate which are related to the residence and agricultural purposes of
the life tenancy.
(k) Additional leases for Hopi heads of household
The Commissioner is authorized to grant not to exceed ten additional
life estate leases to Hopi heads of household residing on Navajo-
partitioned lands under such terms of this section as may be
appropriate.
(Pub. L. 93-531, Sec. 30, as added Pub. L. 96-305, Sec. 11, July 8,
1980, 94 Stat. 934; amended Pub. L. 100-666, Sec. 4(b), Nov. 16, 1988,
102 Stat. 3930.)
Codification
Subsec. (a) provided for the repeal of section 640d-4(a)(4) of this
title.
Amendments
1988--Subsecs. (b) to (d), (f), (k). Pub. L. 100-666 substituted
``Commissioner'' for ``Commission'' wherever appearing.
Section Referred to in Other Sections
This section is referred to in sections 640d-9, 640d-24 of this
title.
