Skip to main content
HR 538 114th Congress House Native Americans Administrative law and regulatory procedures Administrative remedies Alternative and renewable resources Civil actions and liability Coal Contracts and agency Department of the Interior Electric power generation and transmission Environmental assessment, monitoring, research Environmental regulatory procedures Federal-Indian relations Forests, forestry, trees Indian lands and resources rights Indian social and development programs Judicial review and appeals Land transfers Land use and conservation Legal fees and court costs Licensing and registrations

Native American Energy Act

Introduced: January 26, 2015 See on congress.gov
Sign in to write a letter Sign in to watch
This bill died when the 114th Congress ended
It never became law before the 114th Congress (2015–2016) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 28 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Oct 19, 2015
Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs.
Oct 8, 2015
Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
Oct 8, 2015
On passage Passed by the Yeas and Nays: 254 - 173 (Roll no. 544).
Oct 8, 2015
On motion to recommit with instructions Failed by the Yeas and Nays: 184 - 239 (Roll no. 543). (consideration: CR H6919)
Oct 8, 2015
The previous question on the motion to recommit with instructions was ordered without objection. (consideration: CR H6919)
Oct 8, 2015
Floor summary: DEBATE - The House proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Ben Ray Lujan (NM) motion to recommit with instructions. The instructions in the motion seek to report the same back to the House forthwith with an amendment to ensure that nothing in the underlying legislation will infringe on the authority of the President to protect any sacred or ceremonial Native American tribal site.
Oct 8, 2015
Mr. Lujan, Ben Ray (NM) moved to recommit with instructions to the Committee on Natural Resources. (consideration: CR H6918-6919; text: CR H6918)
Oct 8, 2015
The House adopted the amendment in the nature of a substitute as agreed to by the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union. (text of amendment in the nature of a substitute: CR H6916-6917)
Oct 8, 2015
The House rose from the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union to report H.R. 538.
Oct 8, 2015
DEBATE - Pursuant to the provisions of H. Res. 466, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Lujan Grisham (NM) Part A amendment no. 2.
Oct 8, 2015
DEBATE - Pursuant to the provisions of H. Res. 466, the Committee of the Whole proceeded with 10 minutes of debate on the Young (AK) Part A amendment no. 1.
Oct 8, 2015
GENERAL DEBATE - The Committee of the Whole proceeded with one hour of general debate on H.R. 538.
Oct 8, 2015
The Speaker designated the Honorable David Rouzer to act as Chairman of the Committee.
Oct 8, 2015
House resolved itself into the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union pursuant to H. Res. 466 and Rule XVIII.
Oct 8, 2015
For H.R. 538, resolution provides for one hour of debate, makes specified amendments in order and allows one motion to recommit, with or without instructions. For H.R. 702, resolution provides for one hour of debate, makes specified amendments in order and allows one motion to recommit, with or without instructions.
Oct 8, 2015
Considered under the provisions of rule H. Res. 466. (consideration: CR H6911-6920)
Oct 7, 2015
Rules Committee Resolution H. Res. 466 Reported to House. For H.R. 538, resolution provides for one hour of debate, makes specified amendments in order and allows one motion to recommit, with or without instructions. For H.R. 702, resolution provides for one hour of debate, makes specified amendments in order and allows one motion to recommit, with or without instructions.
Oct 1, 2015
Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 208.
Oct 1, 2015
Reported by the Committee on Natural Resources. H. Rept. 114-276.
Sep 10, 2015
Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources Discharged.
Sep 10, 2015
Subcommittee on Indian, Insular and Alaska Native Affairs Discharged.
Sep 10, 2015
Ordered to be Reported by the Yeas and Nays: 23 - 12.
Sep 10, 2015
Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
Sep 9, 2015
Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
Mar 2, 2015
Referred to the Subcommittee on Indian, Insular and Alaska Native Affairs.
Mar 2, 2015
Referred to the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources.
Jan 26, 2015
Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
Jan 26, 2015
Introduced in House
 Votes taken on this bill 2
DateChamberWhat was voted onResultYes–No
Oct 8, 2015 House · vote #544 On Passage Passed 254–173 See who voted →
Oct 8, 2015 House · vote #543 On Motion to Recommit with Instructions Failed 184–239 See who voted →
 Amendments to this bill 2

Amendments propose changes to this bill. Members vote on amendments separately before the final bill vote. An agreed amendment becomes part of the bill; a failed amendment does not.

2 agreed to

AmendmentSponsorPurposeStatusLatest action
HAMDT 712 — Amendment allows the Forest Service to create a pilot program that would execute contracts with tribes to per… Agreed to Oct 8, 2015
HAMDT 711 — Amendment clarifies who may submit public comments on a NEPA study concerning a Federal permit or land approv… Agreed to Oct 8, 2015
 Ask about this bill AI · grounded in the bill text

Have a question about what this bill does? Ask in plain English; the answer is drawn from the bill's actual text and official record, and it'll tell you when something isn't in the text rather than guess.

AI answers can be imperfect; always confirm against the full bill text.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Native American Energy Act

(Sec. 2) This bill amends the Energy Policy Act of 1992 to allow the Department of the Interior, an affected Indian tribe, or a certified third-party appraiser under contract with the Indian tribe to appraise Indian land or trust assets involved in a transaction requiring Interior approval. (Currently, Interior sets appraisal requirements.)

Interior must approve or disapprove an appraisal within 60 days or the appraisal is deemed approved.

A tribe may waive the requirement for an appraisal if it also waives any claims for damages it might have against the United States as a result of the lack of an appraisal.

(Sec. 3) Each agency within Interior involved in the review of oil and gas activities on Indian lands must use a uniform system of reference numbers and tracking systems for oil and gas wells.

(Sec. 4) This bill amends the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 to make the environmental impact statement for a major federal action (excluding an action related to gaming) on Indian lands available for review and comment only to the affected tribe, individuals residing within the affected area, and state, tribal, and local governments within the affected area.

(Sec. 5) This bill sets forth provisions for the judicial review of a cause of action related to energy development on Indian land.

(Sec. 6) This bill amends the Tribal Forest Protection Act of 2004 to direct Interior, for land under Bureau of Land Management jurisdiction, and the Department of Agriculture (USDA), for land under Forest Service jurisdiction, to enter into agreements with Indian tribes to carry out demonstration projects that promote biomass energy production on Indian forest land and in nearby communities by providing tribes with reliable supplies of woody biomass from federal lands. Interior and USDA may carry out demonstration projects by which tribes may perform the functions of programs under the Tribal Forest Protection Act of 2004.

(Sec. 7) Activity pursuant to a tribal resource management plan or an integrated resource management plan approved by Interior under the National Indian Forest Resources Management Act or the American Indian Agricultural Resource Management Act is considered to be a sustainable management practice.

(Sec. 8) This bill amends the Long-Term Leasing Act to allow the Navajo Nation to enter into mineral resource leases on their restricted lands without Interior's approval. The maximum term of a Navajo Nation lease that does not require Interior's approval is extended for commercial and agricultural leases and established for mineral resource leases.

(Sec. 9) Interior rules regarding hydraulic fracturing do not apply on land held in trust for Indians or on restricted Indian land, except with the express consent of the Indian beneficiaries. Hydraulic fracturing or fracking is a process to extract underground resources such as oil or gas from a geologic formation by injecting water, a propping agent (e.g., sand), and chemical additives into a well under enough pressure to fracture the geological formation.

What's happening now October 19, 2015

Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs.

 Related & companion bills 5
  • HR 1487 Related bill American Energy Renaissance Act of 2015
  • S 791 Related bill American Energy Renaissance Act of 2015
  • HR 3682 Related bill Reducing Employer Burdens, Unleashing Innovation, and Labor Development Act of 2015
  • HRES 466 Related bill Providing for consideration of the bill (H.R. 538) to facilitate the development of energy on Indian lands by reducing …
  • S 2012 Related bill Energy Policy Modernization Act of 2016
 Bill text 4 versions

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 4
 Cosponsors 1
All 1 Republican 1
R
Gosar, Paul A.
Arizona · Sep 10, 2015
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 538: Native American Energy Act. 114th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HR-538/
MLA
"H.R. 538: Native American Energy Act." 114th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HR-538/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 538, 114th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HR-538/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 538: Native American Energy Act](https://openamerica.io/bill/114-HR-538/)
Report a problem