Technical Corrections to the Northwestern New Mexico Rural Water Projects Act, Taos Pueblo Indian Water Rights Settlement Act, and Aamodt Litigation Settlement Act
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Would authorize appropriations to deposit unpaid adjusted interest — totaling roughly $18.5 million — into three Native American water rights settlement trust funds in New Mexico that were established without allowing for interest accrual, correcting that oversight from their original 2009 and 2010 authorizations.
What this bill would do
What it would do
The bill would amend two federal laws to authorize the appropriation and deposit of adjusted interest payments into three tribal water development trust funds in New Mexico. For the Navajo Nation Water Resources Development Trust Fund, it would authorize $6,357,674.46. For the Taos Pueblo Water Development Fund, it would authorize $7,794,297.52. For the Aamodt Settlement Pueblos' Fund, it would authorize $4,314,709.18 to cover the Pueblos' share of operating, maintaining, and replacing water facilities and the regional water system. It would also direct the Secretary of the Treasury to waive any interest payments owed to the United States on Aamodt Settlement funds prior to September 15, 2017.
The bill would not alter the underlying water rights settlements or affect prior findings by the Secretary of the Interior that conditions precedent in those agreements were satisfied. It also authorizes appropriation of any future investment earnings credited to the three trust funds.
Key provisions
- 1Would authorize $6,357,674.46 to be appropriated and deposited as adjusted interest into the Navajo Nation Water Resources Development Trust Fund, excluding these deposits from a restriction on fund use.
- 2Would authorize $7,794,297.52 to be appropriated and deposited as adjusted interest into the Taos Pueblo Water Development Fund.
- 3Would authorize $4,314,709.18 to be appropriated and deposited as adjusted interest into the Aamodt Settlement Pueblos' Fund for water facility operations, maintenance, and replacement costs.
- 4Would direct the Secretary of the Treasury to waive interest payments owed to the United States on Aamodt Settlement funds credited before September 15, 2017.
- 5Would preserve the legal validity of prior Secretarial findings that conditions precedent in the Taos Pueblo and Aamodt settlement agreements were satisfied.
- 6Would authorize appropriation of any future investment earnings, including interest, credited to the three trust funds.
Who would be affected
The Navajo Nation, Taos Pueblo, and the four Aamodt Settlement Pueblos (Nambé, Pojoaque, San Ildefonso, and Tesuque) in New Mexico, all of which hold beneficiary interests in the three trust funds. The Secretary of the Interior, who would manage the deposits, and the Secretary of the Treasury, who would waive certain interest obligations, are also directly directed by the bill.
Why it matters
The original water rights settlement agreements that created these funds in 2009 and 2010 did not authorize interest accrual, leaving the tribes without compensation for the time value of delayed payments. If enacted, this bill would provide roughly $18.5 million in combined adjusted interest payments to the three tribal funds, closing that gap and ensuring the settlements deliver their intended full financial benefit.
What would change
Changes to existing law
Amends Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-11) (Sec. 2)
Adds a new subsection authorizing $6,357,674.46 in adjusted interest deposits to the Navajo Nation Water Resources Development Trust Fund, and carves those deposits out of existing fund-use restrictions.
Amends Claims Resolution Act of 2010 (Public Law 111-291) (Sec. 3–4)
Adds new sections authorizing adjusted interest deposits of $7,794,297.52 to the Taos Pueblo Water Development Fund and $4,314,709.18 to the Aamodt Settlement Pueblos' Fund, plus a Treasury interest waiver.
Agencies directed to act
Funding and costs
- $6,357,674.46
Adjusted interest deposit into the Navajo Nation Water Resources Development Trust Fund
- $7,794,297.52
Adjusted interest deposit into the Taos Pueblo Water Development Fund
- $4,314,709.18
Adjusted interest deposit into the Aamodt Settlement Pueblos' Fund for water facility operations, maintenance, and replacement
Congressional Budget Office estimate
CBO estimates S. 640 would increase the federal deficit by about $2 million over the 2025–2035 period, with $18 million in spending subject to appropriation over the same window.
CBO estimates that S. 640 would authorize $18 million in appropriations — split among three Indian water rights settlement trust funds (Navajo Nation, Taos Pueblo, and Aamodt Settlement Pueblos) — all of which would be spent over the 2025–2030 period. In addition, interest credited to those trust funds on invested Treasury obligations constitutes direct spending (mandatory spending requiring no further appropriation), which CBO estimates at roughly $2 million over 2025–2035, increasing the deficit by the same amount. Revenues would not change. The bill contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined by the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.
How implementation would work
The bill would authorize appropriations — not directly appropriate money — so funds would still need to be included in a future appropriations bill before they could be deposited. Once appropriated, the Secretary of the Interior would deposit the specified amounts into each trust fund. The Secretary of the Treasury would separately waive any pre-September 15, 2017, interest owed to the United States on Aamodt Settlement funds. The bill also authorizes future investment earnings on the funds to be appropriated, creating a standing authorization for those amounts.
Legislative status & sources
Latest action
Held at the desk.
Official CRS summary
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This bill authorizes deposits representing unpaid interest into the Navajo Nation Water Resources Development Trust Fund, the Taos Pueblo Water Development Fund, and the Aamodt Settlement Pueblos’ Fund. These funds were established in 2009 and 2010 under certain water rights settlement agreements that did not allow accrual of interest.
Legislative subjects
Government trust funds; Indian lands and resources rights; Native Americans; New Mexico
Committee report
S. Rept. 119-95