On May 8, 2019, the House is scheduled to voteon H.R. 375, a bill to amend the Act of June 18, 1934 (Indian Reorganization Act), to reaffirm the authority of the Secretary of the Interior to take land into trust for all tribal nations. Introduced by Representative Tom Cole (R-OK) with bi-partisan support, the bill presents a “clean fix” to the conflict caused by the Supreme Court’s 2009 decision in Carcieri v. Salazar, which held that the Secretary of the Interior lacks authority to take land into trust under Section 5 of the Indian Reorganization Act for tribal nations that were not under federal jurisdiction in 1934. For a decade, tribal nations have called for a clean fix to the costly turmoil caused by this misguided decision.

H.R. 375 would (1) restore the Secretary’s IRA authority to take land into trust for all federally recognized tribal nations; and (2) reaffirm existing Indian trust lands.