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U.S. Code as of:
01/19/04
Section 640d-28. Life estates
(a) Omitted
(b) Application for lease; contents; filing date; extension
Any Navajo head of household who desires to do so may submit an
application for a life estate lease to the Commissioner. Such
application shall contain such information as the Commissioner may
prescribe by regulation, such regulation to be promulgated by the
Commissioner within ninety days of July 8, 1980. To be considered,
such application must be filed with the Commissioner on or before
April 1, 1981: Provided, That the Commissioner may, for good cause,
grant an extension of one hundred and eighty days.
(c) Application groupings
Upon receipt of applications filed pursuant to this section, the
Commissioner shall group them in the following order:
(A) Applicants who are determined to be at least 50 per centum
disabled as certified by a physician approved by the
Commissioner. Such applicants shall be ranked in the order of the
severity of their disability.
(B) Applicants who are not at least 50 per centum disabled
shall be ranked in order of their age with oldest listed first
and the youngest listed last: Provided, That, if any applicant
physically resides in quarter quad Nos. 78 NW, 77 NE, 77 NW, 55
SW, or 54 SE as designated on the Mediator's partition map, such
applicant shall be given priority over another applicant of equal
age.
(C) Applicants who did not, as of December 22, 1974, and
continuously thereafter, maintain a separate place of abode and
actually remain domiciled on Hopi partitioned lands, and who, but
for this subsection would be required to relocate, shall be
rejected by the Commissioner.
(D) Applicants who were not at least forty-nine years of age on
December 22, 1974, or are not at least 50 per centum disabled,
shall also be rejected by the Commissioner.
(d) Number of leases; priorities
The Commissioner shall have authority to award life estate leases
to not more than one hundred and twenty applicants with first
priority being given to applicants listed pursuant to subsection
(c)(A) of this section and the next priority being given to the
applicants listed pursuant to subsection (c)(B) of this section, in
order of such listing.
(e) Area; allowable livestock; assistance by Secretary in feeding
livestock
Each life estate lease shall consist of a fenced area not
exceeding ninety acres of land which shall include the life
tenant's present residence and may be used by the life tenant to
feed not to exceed twenty-five sheep units per year or equivalent
livestock. The Secretary, under existing authority, shall make
available to life estate tenants such assistance during that
tenure, as may be necessary to enable such tenant to feed such
livestock at an adequate nutritional level.
(f) Individuals permitted to reside; regulations
No person may reside on a life estate other than the life tenant,
his or her spouse, and minor dependents, and/or such persons who
are necessarily present to provide for the care of the life tenant.
The Commissioner shall promulgate regulations to carry out the
intent of this subsection.
(g) Termination
The life estate tenure shall end by voluntary relinquishment, or
at the death of the life tenant or the death of his or her spouse,
whichever occurs last: Provided, That each survivorship right shall
apply only to those persons who were lawfully married to each other
on or before July 8, 1980.
(h) Relocation benefits upon voluntary relinquishment; compensation
upon death of life tenant or surviving spouse; relocation of
dependents
Nothing in this section shall be construed as prohibiting any
such applicant who receives a life estate lease under this section
from relinquishing, prior to its termination, such estate at any
time and voluntarily relocating. Upon voluntary relinquishment of
such estate, by such means or instrument as the Secretary shall
prescribe, such applicant shall be entitled to relocation benefits
from the Secretary comparable to those provided by section 640d-14
of this title. For life estates terminated by the death of the life
tenant or his or her surviving spouse, compensation shall be paid
to the estate of the deceased life tenant or surviving spouse based
on the fair market value of the habitation and improvements at the
time of the expiration of such tenure and not before. Such payment
shall be in lieu of any other payment pursuant to subsection (a) of
section 640d-14 of this title. Assistance provided pursuant to
section 640d-14(b) of this title, shall be paid to any head of
household lawfully residing on such life estate pursuant to
subsection (f) of this section who is required to move by the
termination of such life estate by the death of the life tenant and
his or her surviving spouse and who does not maintain a residence
elsewhere. Compensation under section 640d-14(a) of this title
shall be paid and distributed in accordance with the last will and
testament of the life tenant or surviving spouse or, in the event
no valid last will and testament is left, compensation shall be
paid and distributed to his or her heirs in accordance with
existing Federal law. Upon termination of a life estate by whatever
means, the dependents residing with the individuals having such
life estate so terminated shall have ninety days following such
termination within which to relocate.
(i) Payment of fair market rental value
The Secretary shall pay, on an annual basis, the fair market
rental value of such life estate leases to the tribe to whom the
lands leased were partitioned.
(j) Improvements
Nothing in this subchapter or any other law shall be construed to
prevent a life tenant from making reasonable improvements on the
life estate which are related to the residence and agricultural
purposes of the life tenancy.
(k) Additional leases for Hopi heads of household
The Commissioner is authorized to grant not to exceed ten
additional life estate leases to Hopi heads of household residing
on Navajo-partitioned lands under such terms of this section as may
be appropriate.
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