Letter of December 13, 1979- Boschwitz, Hon. Rudy, a U.S. Senator from Minnesota__ Gahbow, Arthur, chairman, Mille Lacs Indian Reservation_ Letter from his attorney- Documentation submitted. ACQUIRE LANDS FOR THE MILLE LACS BAND OF MINNESOTA CHIPPEWA INDIANS MONDAY, DECEMBER 10, 1979 U.S. SENATE, SELECT COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS, Washington, D.C. The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 2:07 p.m., in room 5110, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Senator John Melcher (chairman of the committee), presiding. Present: Senator Melcher. Staff present: Max Richtman, staff director; Jo Jo Hunt, staff attorney; and Peter Taylor, special counsel. Senator MELCHER. The committee will come to order. This afternoon we are holding a hearing to receive testimony from the administration, the Mille Lacs Band of Chippewa Indians, and other interested parties on the bill which would direct the Secretary of the Interior to acquire certain lands for the benefit of the Mille Lacs Band of the Minnesota Chippewa Indians. S. 1464, a bill introduced by Senator Boschwitz, would amend legislation passed by the 95th Congress, Public Law 95-571, which authorized but did not direct the Secretary of the Interior to purchase a 25-acre parcel, generally known as Government Lot 4, located in Mille Lacs County, Minn. Some problems have arisen with respect to the purchase. The Secretary has not heretofore been able to resolve them. The Department of the Interior and the owner of the property have not been able to reach agreement on the purchase price, and the Secretary has not sought the property through the condemnation procedure. The Department of the Interior, until recently, took the position that the legislation passed in the 95th Congress authorized purchase of the land for fair market value and no more, and that purchase was the only means of acquisition authorized. S. 1464 also amends Public Law 95-571 by providing for two additional parcels to be purchased. These additional parcels are in the same tract with lot 4. I now place in the record a copy of S. 1464. [The bill follows:] To direct the Secretary of the Interior to acquire certain lands for the benefit of the Mille Lacs Band of the Minnesota Chippewa Indians. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES JULY 9 (legislative day, JUNE 21), 1979 Mr. BOSCHWITZ introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Select Committee on Indian Affairs A BILL To direct the Secretary of the Interior to acquire certain lands 1 for the benefit of the Mille Lacs Band of the Minnesota Chippewa Indians. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 3 That (a) section 1(a) of the Act entitled "An Act to authorize 4 and direct the Secretary of the Interior to acquire certain 5 lands for the benefit of the Mille Lacs Band of the Minnesota 6 Chippewa Indians", approved November 2, 1978 (92 Stat. 7 2452), is amended to read as follows: |