Description:
As ordered reported by the House Committee on Natural Resources on June 12, 2013
H.R. 1548 would make several changes related to environmental laws, energy programs, and the management of mineral resources on Native American reservations. CBO estimates that implementing the bill would cost $29 million over the 2014-2018 period, assuming appropriation action consistent with the bill.
Pay-as-you-go procedures apply because enacting the legislation would affect direct spending. However, CBO estimates that the effect on direct spending would be insignificant in each year over the 2014-2023 period. Enacting H.R. 1548 would not affect revenues.
H.R. 1548 would impose an intergovernmental and private-sector mandate by requiring plaintiffs, including public and private entities, to post a bond when seeking a preliminary injunction to stop Native American energy projects. Based on the number of injunctions that would require bonds and the aggregate value of the bonds required to reach the annual thresholds, CBO estimates that the costs for public and private entities would probably fall below the annual thresholds established in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) ($75 million and $150 million, respectively, in 2013, adjusted annually for inflation).
