§2103 Secretary’s Determination on Minerals Agreements

Summary

The Secretary must approve or reject any Minerals Agreement within 180 days after it is sent in, or within 60 days after the agreement meets section 4332(2)(C) of title 42 or any other federal-law requirement, whichever date is later. Any party can force the Secretary to follow that timing under 28 U.S.C. 1361. In deciding, the Secretary must decide if the deal is in the best interest of the tribe or any individual Indian involved. The Secretary must consider things like the likely money return to the tribe, the possible environmental, social, and cultural effects, and how disputes would be handled. The Secretary is not required to do extra studies about those effects except what section 4332(2)(C) of title 42 may already require. At least 30 days before formally approving or rejecting the agreement, the Secretary must give the affected tribe written reasons for the decision. Those reasons and related studies or financial data must be kept private as the tribe’s or individual’s proprietary information. Only the Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs may be given the power to disapprove agreements. A disapproval is a final agency action and can be reviewed by a U.S. district court from the start, with the Secretary bearing the burden to justify the decision. If the Secretary approves an agreement properly, the United States is not liable for losses the tribe or an individual suffers under that agreement, but the Secretary still has a trust duty to protect tribe or individual rights if another party breaks the agreement. Nothing in the chapter removes other U.S. responsibilities to Indians arising from the trust relationship, treaties, Executive orders, or other agreements.