Summary
The Navajo-Hopi Land Settlement Amendments of 2005 (S. 1003) was designed to finalize the long-standing relocation process for tribal members living on partitioned lands in Arizona and New Mexico. The bill proposed a definitive timeline to wind down the Office of Navajo and Hopi Indian Relocation (ONHIR), setting a termination date of September 30, 2008, and transferring any remaining duties to the Secretary of the Interior.
For affected citizens, the bill established a final deadline for heads of households to be certified for relocation benefits and created an expedited appeals process for those denied eligibility. It also authorized the government to provide homesite leases to extended family members of eligible Navajo Indians to help keep families together, while ensuring that funds for replacement homes would be held in trust for those who had been certified but had not yet received their housing. Overall, the legislation aimed to transition the relocation program from an independent temporary agency to a permanent federal department to ensure the completion of remaining housing obligations.
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