Summary#
This bill directs the Interior Department to transfer about 21,578 acres of federal land inside the Denali National Park and Preserve to Doyon, Limited, an Alaska Native corporation. The conveyance must happen within one year and reserves public easements while also forbidding mining, most sales to third parties, and development that would harm the cultural value of the Geese House. It also requires the park boundary to be adjusted to remove the conveyed land.
- Main change: The United States will convey specific federal land selected by Doyon, Limited to Doyon, Limited and remove that land from Denali National Park and Preserve.
- Public easements: The Secretary must reserve easements required under section 17(b) of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (these are public access or use rights).
- Limits on use: Doyon may not sell the land to anyone other than the United States, allow mining or mineral activities, or permit development that would detract from the Geese House’s cultural value.
- Regulatory exemptions: The conveyance is not subject to a particular BLM regulation (part 2650) and is not affected by any past or existing land withdrawals.
- Administrative changes: The Interior Department must adjust the park boundary and may correct minor survey or clerical errors with Doyon’s written approval.
What it means for you#
- Doyon, Limited: Will receive title to about 21,578 acres they selected in 1978, subject to the listed limits (no mining, restricted sale, protection of cultural value).
- Visitors to Denali National Park and Preserve: Some acreage currently inside the preserve will be removed from the park boundary. Public easements will remain for access where required by law.
- Park managers (National Park Service): Will no longer manage the conveyed land and must update park boundaries and maps to exclude it.
- People concerned with cultural sites: The bill imposes a ban on development that would derogate (harm) the cultural value of the Geese House. The bill does not define what kinds of development would be allowed beyond that limit.
- General public and recreational users: The bill keeps public easements required under ANCSA, but the exact scope of public access after conveyance is not fully detailed in the bill.
Expenses#
No publicly available information.
- The bill text and supplied material do not include a fiscal note, cost estimate, or budget effect.
- The conveyance and boundary adjustment will require administrative actions by the Interior Department, but the bill does not state their cost.
- It is not stated whether the transfer will affect federal receipts, park funding, or local government costs.
Proponents' View#
- The bill appears intended to give Doyon clear title to land they selected under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act.
- This could be seen as protecting the Geese House cultural site by explicitly forbidding development that would derogate its cultural value.
- Reserving section 17(b) easements keeps public access rights in place while transferring ownership.
- Exempting the conveyance from a specific BLM procedure and from past withdrawals could speed or simplify the transfer process.
Opponents' View#
- One concern is that removing land from Denali National Park and Preserve reduces the amount of federally managed park land and could change how the land is protected over time.
- The bill does not clearly define what kinds of development would “derogate the cultural value” of the Geese House, leaving room for different interpretations.
- Exempting the conveyance from the stated BLM regulations and from past withdrawals may reduce procedural oversight; it is unclear what oversight, if any, replaces those procedures.
- It is unclear what “valid existing rights” includes and how competing claims or uses (for example, leases or permits) would be resolved.
- The bill contains no public cost estimate, so the scale of administrative or mapping costs to the Interior Department and National Park Service is unknown.