Navajo-Hopi Little Colorado River Water Rights Settlement Act of 2012
Latest action. Read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs. (text of measure as introduced: continuing resolutionA stopgap law funding the government at existing levels when the annual appropriations bills are not done by October 1.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) S621-636)
Navajo-Hopi Little Colorado River Water Rights Settlement Act of 2012 - Approves, and directs the Secretary of the Interior to execute, the Navajo-Hopi Little Colorado River Water Rights Settlement Agreement, except to the extent that it conflicts with this Act.
Requires all water rights of the Navajo Nation and the Hopi Tribe to be held in trust for the Nation, the Tribe, and their allottees.
Directs the Bureau of Reclamation, subject to the availability of appropriations, to plan, design, and construct: (1) the Leupp-Dilkon Groundwater Project and the Ganado Groundwater Project for transfer to the Navajo Nation, and (2) the Hopi Groundwater Project for transfer to the Hopi Tribe.
Releases the federal government from any obligation to cover the operation, maintenance, and replacement costs of the projects after title to the projects is transferred and certain amounts are deposited in trust accounts for such costs.
Authorizes the Navajo Nation, Hopi Tribe, and federal government to waive and release specified claims pursuant to the Agreement. States that the parties retain all rights not expressly waived.
Provides that, except as provided in the Agreement, benefits realized by the Navajo Nation, the Hopi Tribe, and their allottees under the Agreement and this Act are in full satisfaction of their claims for water rights, injury to water rights, and injury to water quality with respect to their lands or allotments.
Amends the Navajo-Hopi Land Dispute Settlement Act of 1996 to authorize the Secretary to allow the Hopi Tribe to enter into a service agreement for the temporary delivery, use, or transfer of groundwater from newly acquired trust land within 20 miles of Winslow, Arizona, for use in that city or on nearby Hopi fee land.
Limits the water rights of lands taken into trust for the Navajo Nation or Hopi Tribe after this Act's enactment to those rights provided under the Agreement, the Navajo-Hopi Land Dispute Settlement Act of 1996, and this Act, unless additional rights are established in a subsequent Act.
The summary continues for 6 more paragraphs. Read it in full on Congress.gov
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in Senate" stage on February 14, 2012. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on February 14, 2012: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs. (text of measure as introduced: CR S621-636)
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the Senate
- Passage by the House
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 112th Congress (2011-12), 283 of the 10,618 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 2.7 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
Jon Kyl (R-AZ) introduced it on February 14, 2012, and 1 member has since signed on as a cosponsor.
They are 1 Republican.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on February 14, 2012, 5322 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 5322 days ago, on February 14, 2012.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 112th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2013 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- SenateIntroduced, no floor vote yet
- HouseAwaits Senate passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers