25 USC 2103 - Indian Mineral Development Act of 1982

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-CITE25 USC Sec. 2103

01/22/02

-EXPCITETITLE 25 - INDIANS
CHAPTER 23 - DEVELOPMENT OF TRIBAL MINERAL RESOURCES
-HEADSec. 2103. Secretary's determination on Minerals Agreements
-STATUTE(a) Time; enforcement
The Secretary shall approve or disapprove any Minerals Agreement
submitted to him for approval within (1) one hundred and eighty
days after submission or (2) sixty days after compliance, if
required, with section 4332(2)(C) of title 42 or any other
requirement of Federal law, whichever is later.

Any party to such

an agreement may enforce the provisions of this subsection pursuant
to section 1361 of title 28.
(b) Factors for consideration; extent of required study
In approving or disapproving a Minerals Agreement, the Secretary
shall determine if it is in the best interest of the Indian tribe
or of any individual Indian who may be party to such agreement and
shall consider, among other things, the potential economic return
to the tribe; the potential environmental, social, and cultural
effects on the tribe; and provisions for resolving disputes that
may arise between the parties to the agreement: Provided, That the
Secretary shall not be required to prepare any study regarding
environmental, socioeconomic, or cultural effects of the
implementation of a Minerals Agreement apart from that which may be
required under section 4332(2)(C) of title 42.
(c) Prior notice of proposed finding; privileged information

Not later than thirty days prior to formal approval or
disapproval of any Minerals Agreement, the Secretary shall provide
written findings forming the basis of his intent to approve or
disapprove such agreement to the affected Indian tribe.
Notwithstanding any other law, such findings and all projections,
studies, data or other information possessed by the Department of
the Interior regarding the terms and conditions of the Minerals
Agreement, the financial return to the Indian parties thereto, or
the extent, nature, value or disposition of the Indian mineral
resources, or the production, products or proceeds thereof, shall
be held by the Department of the Interior as privileged proprietary
information of the affected Indian or Indian tribe.
(d) Delegation; final action; appeal; burden on Secretary
The authority to disapprove agreements under this section may
only be delegated to the Assistant Secretary of the Interior for
Indian Affairs. The decision of the Secretary or, where authority
is delegated, of the Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Indian
Affairs, to disapprove a Minerals Agreement shall be deemed a final
agency action.

The district courts of the United States shall have

jurisdiction to review the Secretary's disapproval action and shall
determine the matter de novo.

The burden is on the Secretary to

sustain his action.
(e) Nonliability of United States; continuing obligations
Where the Secretary has approved a Minerals Agreement in
compliance with the provisions of this chapter and any other
applicable provision of law, the United States shall not be liable
for losses sustained by a tribe or individual Indian under such
agreement: Provided, That the Secretary shall continue to have a
trust obligation to ensure that the rights of a tribe or individual
Indian are protected in the event of a violation of the terms of
any Minerals Agreement by any other party to such agreement:

Provided further, That nothing in this chapter shall absolve the
United States from any responsibility to Indians, including those
which derive from the trust relationship and from any treaties,
Executive orders, or agreement between the United States and any
Indian tribe.
-SOURCE(Pub. L. 97-382, Sec. 4, Dec. 22, 1982, 96 Stat. 1938.)
-SECREFSECTION REFERRED TO IN OTHER SECTIONS
This section is referred to in section 2107 of this title.

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