Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I rise today speak as an original cosponsor of an amendment to the Long Term Leasing Act of 1955. I am pleased to be an original cosponsor on this legislation which was introduced by my colleague on the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, Mr. Barrasso. The Helping, Expedite and Advance Responsible Tribal Homeownership Act of 2001, also known as the HEARTH Act of 2011, amends the Long Term Leasing Act of 1995. That act allows tribes or individual Indians to lease their lands for up to 25 years for certain purposes, including economic development, housing, education, agricultural, and natural resource development. The current act requires the Secretary of the Interior to approve each individual lease. It can take up to 2 years for each lease to be approved. Often this bureaucratic delay leads to the loss of economic development and other opportunities for tribes. Since the enactment of the Nonintercourse Act of June 30, 1834, and predecessor statutes, land transactions with Indian tribes were prohibited unless specifically authorized by Congress. Congress enacted the act of August 9, 1955, commonly known as the Long-Term Leasing Act to overcome the prohibitions contained in the Nonintercourse Act. The Long-Term Leasing Act permitted some land transactions between Indian tribes and non-Federal parties--specifically, the leasing of Indian lands. The act required that leases of Indian lands be approved by the Secretary of the Interior and limited to terms of 25 years.…”