Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I am a cosponsor of H.R. 3642 along with the chairman of the Subcommittee on Native American and Insular Affairs, Mr. Gallegly, and the senior Democrat of the Resources Committee, Mr. Miller. Enactment of this bill would transfer small parcels of land from the Bureau of Land Management to various Indian Tribes in the State of California. In each instance the land has been declared as appropriate for disposal by the BLM and the affected tribal governments have formally requested the land be transferred to them. As part of the process of drafting this legislation, the Department of the Interior contacted local communities and received support for, or a lack of interest, in each land transfers. These parcels may not be large in size but I hope they will prove of benefit to the tribes. I believe this legislation is good policy. This is a case where the Federal Government examined its registry of lands and supports the release of lands it no longer deems necessary to remain under Federal control. The land may be excess to the needs of the Federal Government but I'm confident that the Indian tribes which will take over management of the lands will put them to good use. I ask my colleagues to join me in supporting passage of this legislation.”