HR 2302: Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians Land Transfer Act of 2025

HR 2302 in plain English: This bill transfers approximately 204.14 acres of land in El Dorado County, California, into federal trust for the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians, making it part of the tribe's reservation. It combines about 85.3 acres of federal land with about 118.84 acres already held by the tribe, and explicitly prohibits gaming on the newly trusted land.

Stated purpose

This bill transfers approximately 204 acres of land in El Dorado County, California, into trust for the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians, adding it to their reservation. It also revokes an earlier federal order that had designated part of that land for Forest Service use.

Key points

• Takes approximately 204.14 acres in El Dorado County, California, into trust for the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians
• Transfers approximately 85.3 acres of federal land, including land moved from the Forest Service to the Bureau of Land Management
• Adds approximately 118.84 acres of land already held by the tribe into the trust
• Prohibits gaming on any of the land taken into trust under this bill

Arguments supporters make

• Placing this land into trust restores a land base to a federally recognized tribe, honoring longstanding federal commitments to tribal self-determination and sovereignty.
• The tribe already holds a portion of this land as fee land, so the transfer consolidates what the tribe uses into a single, legally protected reservation status.
• The explicit gaming prohibition addresses a common concern, making this a straightforward land transfer without expanding gambling in the area.

Arguments opponents make

• Converting federal or fee land to trust status removes it from local property tax rolls, potentially reducing county revenue and shifting costs onto El Dorado County residents.
• Revoking a 1964 public land order ends a designated federal use without a clear public accounting of what, if any, resources or public access may be lost.
• Critics of broad trust transfers argue that bypassing the standard administrative process through a specific act of Congress sets a precedent that sidesteps normal environmental and community review.

Tradeoffs

The bill expands the tribe's sovereign land base and fulfills federal trust responsibilities, but doing so converts federally managed and privately held fee land into trust status, removing it from local tax jurisdiction and ending its prior designated federal use.

Current status in Congress: Passed House.

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