S. 1438: Spokane Tribe of Indians of the Spokane Reservation Grand Coulee Dam Equitable Compensation Settlement Act

108th Congress · introduced 2003-07-22 · Native Americans · Latest: Referred to the Subcommittee on Water and Power.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2003-07-22 · official record
Who proposed it: Sen. Cantwell, Maria [D-WA] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Referred to the Subcommittee on Water and Power. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Spokane Tribe of Indians of the Spokane Reservation Grand Coulee Dam Equitable Compensation Settlement Act

Plain summary

Spokane Tribe of Indians of the Spokane Reservation Grand Coulee Dam Equitable Compensation Settlement Act - (Sec. 5) Establishes in the Treasury the Spokane Tribe of Indians Settlement Fund. Requires the payment of compensation to the Spokane Tribe for the use of their lands for the generation of hydropower from the Grand Coulee Dam. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to make deposits in the Fund for FY 2006 of $17.8 million, and of $12.8 million for each of the following four fiscal years. States that at any time after funds are deposited in the Fund, the Spokane Business Council may submit to the Secretary written notice of its adoption of a resolution requesting that the Secretary pay to it all or a portion of the amounts in the Fund. Requires that, out of the initial deposit made to the Fund for FY 2006, $5 million be used by the Council for the planning, design, construction, equipping, and continuing operation and maintenance of a Cultural Resource Repository and Interpretive Center to: (1) house, preserve, and protect the burial remains, funerary objects, and other cultural resources affected by the operation of the Grand Coulee Dam; and (2) provide an interpretive and educational facility regarding the culture and history of the Spokane Tribe. Requires the reservation by the Council of: (1) 25 percent of all other amounts deposited in the Fund for discretionary purposes of general benefit to all members of the Spokane Tribe; and (2) 75 percent for resource development, credit, scholarship, and economic development. (Sec. 6) Directs the Administrator of the Bonneville Power Administration to pay the Spokane Tribe: (1) 29 percent of the Computed Annual Payment (CAP), for FY 2005, adjusted for inflation; (2) 29 percent of the CAP for FY 2006; and (3) on or before March 1, 2008, and each following March 1, 29 percent of the CAP for the previous fiscal year. (Sec. 7) Authorizes the Council and the Tribe to use or invest payments made to them under this Act in the same manner and for the same purposes as other Tribe governmental funds. Subjects to an annual tribal audit all funds paid to the Council or the Tribe. (Sec. 8) Entitles the Bonneville Power Administration to a deduction from interest otherwise payable to the Secretary for: (1) $2.6 million in FY 2007; and (2) $1.3 million for each subsequent fiscal year in which the Administrator makes a payment to the Tribe under this Act. (Sec. 9) Directs the Secretary of the Interior to transfer administrative jurisdiction from the Bureau of Reclamation to the Bureau of Indian Affairs over certain land located within the exterior boundaries of the Spokane Indian Reservation and certain other land located on the south bank of the Spokane River. Provides that all such transferred land shall be held in Trust for the benefit and use of the Spokane Tribe and shall become part of the Spokane Indian Reservation. Declares that any land so transferred that, before enactment of this Act, was included in the Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area shall remain part of such Area. (Sec. 10) States that payments under this Act and restoration of ownership of land in trust constitute full satisfaction of the claim of the Spokane Tribe to a fair share of the annual hydropower revenues generated by the Grand Coulee Dam project for the past and continued use of land of the Spokane Tribe for the production of hydropower at Grand Coulee Dam. (Sec. 11) Authorizes appropriations. (Sec. 12) Declares that nothing in this Act establishes any precedent or is binding on the Southwestern Power Administration, Western Area Power Administration, or Southeastern Power Administration.

Congressional Research Service summary (Passed Senate amended), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

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What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Spokane Tribe of Indians of the Spokane Reservation Grand Coulee Dam Equitable Compensation Settlement Act

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Passed Senate amended)

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Cantwell, Maria [D-WA] · 2 cosponsors

Cost estimate: CBO cost estimate: S. 1438, Spokane Tribe of Indians of the Spokane Reservation Grand Coulee Dam Equitable Compensation Settlement Act (2004-10-07); CBO cost estimate: S. 1438, Spokane Tribe of Indians of the Spokane Reservation Grand Coulee Dam Equitable Compensation Settlement Act (2004-10-07)

Cosponsors on this site

Patty Murray (D-WA)

Sponsor's campaign money: Sen. Cantwell, Maria [D-WA] reported raising $985,139 (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (4)

Appropriation: Money a legislature sets aside by law for a specific purpose. Government agencies may spend public money only as it has been appropriated.
Fiscal year: The 12-month period a government uses for its budget. The federal fiscal year runs from October 1 to September 30 and is named for the calendar year in which it ends. Most states use July 1 to June 30.
Jurisdiction: The area or the matters a government or court has authority over.
Resolution: A formal statement or decision by a legislative body. Simple resolutions often only express an opinion or set rules for one chamber; they do not become law.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Passed Senate amended)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-108s1438.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/108/s>

Record fed-us-cong108-s1438 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong108 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong108