Wounded Knee Massacre Memorial and Sacred Site Act
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The law directs the Interior Department to place about 40 acres at the Wounded Knee Massacre site into restricted fee status for the Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, to be held permanently as a memorial and sacred site.
It bars commercial development and gaming on the land and exempts it from state and local taxation, formalizing tribal stewardship of a site tied to the 1890 massacre.
What this law does
What it does
The law requires the Secretary of the Interior, within 365 days of enactment, to complete all actions needed to place approximately 40 acres in Oglala Lakota County, South Dakota, into restricted fee status held by the Oglala Sioux Tribe and Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe. The land becomes part of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, subject to the Oglala Sioux Tribe's civil and criminal jurisdiction, cannot be transferred without the consent of Congress and the tribes, and is exempt from state and local taxation. It must be used as set out in a 2022 covenant between the two tribes. The law prohibits gaming activity on the land under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act and does not disturb existing private or municipal utility agreements, easements, or rights-of-way already in effect. It does not otherwise expand tribal land holdings beyond this specific parcel.
Key provisions
- 1Directs the Secretary of the Interior to complete all actions needed to place about 40 acres into restricted fee status for the tribes within 365 days
- 2Makes the land part of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and subject to Oglala Sioux Tribe civil and criminal jurisdiction, and bars transfer without Congress and tribal consent
- 3Exempts the land from state and local taxation and from certain Secretary of the Interior review/approval requirements
- 4Requires the land to be used according to the 2022 Covenant Between the Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe
- 5Prohibits use of the land for gaming activity under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act
- 6Preserves existing private and municipal encumbrances, easements, and utility service agreements on the land
Who is affected
The Oglala Sioux Tribe and Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, which gain restricted fee status over the land; the Department of the Interior, which must complete the transfer actions; and local utility and municipal service providers with existing agreements tied to the parcel.
Why it matters
The law formalizes permanent tribal control and protection of a segment of the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre site as a memorial and sacred site, shielding it from state taxation, commercial development, and gaming, while requiring federal action within a fixed one-year deadline.
What changed
Changes to existing law
Amends Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.) (Sec. 3(b)(4))
Bars the newly designated Tribal land from being used for gaming activity under this Act.
Agencies directed to act
Effective dates
- Deadline for Secretary to complete restricted fee status actions for the Tribal land
Funding and costs
Congressional Budget Office estimate
CBO estimates H.R. 165 would have no effect on direct spending, revenues, or the deficit over the 2025–2035 period, with any discretionary administrative costs below $500,000.
CBO estimates that H.R. 165 would produce no changes in direct (mandatory) spending, revenues, or the federal deficit over the 2025–2035 scoring window. Any discretionary costs to the Department of the Interior — which would administer the placement of roughly 40 acres of tribal land into restricted fee status and make necessary survey corrections — are estimated to be less than $500,000 and would not be significant. The bill contains one intergovernmental mandate: it would prohibit state and local governments from taxing the land once it is placed in restricted fee status, but the foregone revenues would total less than $100,000 annually, well below UMRA's $103 million threshold for 2025. The bill contains no private-sector mandates.
How it works
Within 365 days of enactment, the Secretary of the Interior must complete documentation, minor survey and legal-description corrections, and assignment of applicable private and municipal utility or service agreements needed to place the land in restricted fee status. The land remains subject to federal Indian country laws and the statutory restriction against alienation, and its use is governed by the terms of a 2022 covenant between the two tribes.
Legislative status & sources
Latest action
Became Public Law No: 119-61.
Official CRS summary
Show the CRS summaryHide the CRS summary
This act directs the Department of the Interior to complete all actions necessary to place approximately 40 acres of land in Oglala Lakota County, South Dakota, into restricted fee status for the Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe. Restricted fee status refers to land that is owned by a tribe or tribal member but is subject to restrictions by the United States against alienation (i.e., sale or transfer) or encumbrance (e.g., liens, leases, or rights-of-way) by operation of law.
The act requires the land to be held and maintained as a memorial and sacred site, as outlined by the document titled Covenant Between the Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and dated October 21, 2022. Further, it prohibits commercial development and gaming activity on the land.
Legislative subjects
Federal-Indian relations; Indian lands and resources rights; Land transfers; Native Americans; South Dakota; State and local taxation
Committee report
S. Rept. 119-72