§3106 Forest Trespass

Summary

Within 18 months after November 28, 1990, the Secretary must make rules that set penalties for forest trespass. The rules must require collecting the value of the wood or other products taken plus a penalty equal to twice that value. They must also require payment for damage to the Indian forest land and for enforcement costs, such as field exams, surveys, damage appraisals, investigations, witness costs, demand letters, court costs, and lawyer fees. The rules must put the Department of the Interior in charge of finding and investigating trespass and explain how penalties are figured and collected. Money from these penalties is treated like money from selling the forest products from the Indian land where the trespass happened. Tribes that use the Secretary’s rules can also enforce them in civil court. If a tribe asks, the Bureau of Indian Affairs and other federal agencies will defer to the tribe’s prosecutions. Tribal court rulings on forest trespass must be recognized by federal and state courts the same as a federal court ruling under this law.