Don Young Doug LaMalfa Indian Buffalo Management Act
Sponsored By: Representative Hurd (CO)
Introduced
Summary
Tribal-led buffalo restoration and management is the bill's core aim. It would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to partner with Indian Tribes and Tribal organizations to plan, implement, and manage buffalo restoration, habitat work, and related commercial activities on Indian land.
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- Tribes and Tribal organizations could receive contracts, cooperative agreements, and grants to run buffalo restoration or management programs and to support commercial buffalo activities. They could also get support for mobile tribal meat processing facilities.
- Tribal governance and conservation would be strengthened by required consultation, a buffalo management policy that aligns with tribal-approved programs and tribal laws, and protections for culturally sensitive or proprietary tribal information. Treaty rights are preserved.
- Federal operations would include technical assistance, the ability to transfer surplus federal buffalo to tribes and to waive charges for those transfers or services, and continued application of federal and state rules on diseased or escaped buffalo. Authority would end seven years after enactment.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
5 provisions identified: 4 benefits, 1 costs, 0 mixed.
Grants for Tribal Buffalo Management
If enacted, the Department of the Interior would be able to enter contracts, cooperative agreements, and award grants to Indian Tribes and Tribal organizations to plan, restore, and manage buffalo and buffalo habitat. Grants and agreements could pay for planning, commercial buffalo activities, and mobile tribal meat-processing facilities. The Department would provide technical assistance to grant and contract recipients. The Secretary would have to consult with Tribes within one year and then on an ongoing basis and make buffalo policy that aligns with Tribe-approved plans and Tribal laws. These authorities would begin on enactment and expire seven years later.
Who Qualifies for Buffalo Programs
If enacted, the Act would define key terms that decide who and what count for buffalo programs. "Buffalo" would mean the subspecies Bison bison bison. "Tribal organization" would be a legal Indian organization chartered under specific statutes and with demonstrable buffalo restoration experience. "Indian land" would use the Energy Policy Act of 1992 definition but treat "Indian reservation" without that law's date limit. These definitions would apply on enactment and for the Act's seven-year authority period.
Seven-Year Sunset for Buffalo Programs
If enacted, the Act's authorities would expire and cease to be effective seven years after the date of enactment. Any transfers, grants, contracts, or other authorities created by the Act would end then unless Congress reauthorizes them.
Surplus Federal Buffalo Transfers to Tribes
If enacted, the Secretary would be able to transfer surplus buffalo on Federal land to Indian land by agreement with an Indian Tribe or Tribal organization. Tribes or Tribal organizations could apply at times and in the manner the Secretary requires. The Secretary could waive charges, including deposits or service payments described in current regulations. This transfer authority would begin on enactment and end seven years later.
Tribal Confidentiality and Treaty Protections
If enacted, the Secretary would be prohibited from disclosing information that an Indian Tribe or Tribal organization identifies as culturally sensitive, proprietary, or confidential. That confidentiality protection would last for the Act's seven-year authority period. The Act would also state that nothing in it alters or reduces any Indian Tribe's treaty rights; that statement would take effect on enactment.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Hurd (CO)
CO • R
Cosponsors
Leger Fernandez
NM • D
Sponsored 3/17/2026
Fedorchak
ND • R
Sponsored 3/17/2026
Newhouse
WA • R
Sponsored 3/17/2026
Fleischmann
TN • R
Sponsored 3/24/2026
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
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