North Dakota Land Swap: State Trading Trust Lands Inside Reservations for Federal Parcels Outside

The North Dakota Trust Lands Completion Act of 2025 sets up a formal, federally approved mechanism for North Dakota to trade state-owned land parcels located inside Indian reservations for federal land outside those boundaries. Essentially, the state wants to consolidate its scattered "trust lands"—parcels originally set aside to fund schools and universities—by giving up the land it holds within reservations in exchange for federal land it can manage more efficiently elsewhere. This isn’t a quick transaction; it’s a detailed, two-way land swap requiring careful valuation and specific timelines.

The Land Swap Mechanics: Equal Value Required

This bill addresses the messy reality of land ownership in North Dakota, where state school lands often exist as isolated sections within tribal reservations. Under Section 3, the State can relinquish these parcels, provided there are no existing legal rights tied to them, and in return, the Secretary of the Interior must allow the State to select unappropriated federal land of “substantially equal” value. The State gets 180 days to make its selection, and the Secretary has 60 days after approval to transfer the federal land. This is a crucial procedural detail: the federal land is immediately protected from being claimed by anyone else (like a mining company) the moment the state selects it, ensuring the parcel is secured for the swap.

What Happens to the Land Inside the Reservation?

This is where the bill delivers a major win for tribal sovereignty. For any state land given up that is located inside a reservation, Section 3 mandates that if the affected Tribe asks for it, the land will immediately become part of the reservation and be taken into trust by the Secretary for the Tribe’s benefit on the very day the State receives its federal land. This process requires consultation with the affected Indian Tribes beforehand, following existing Executive Orders. For tribal nations, this means a clear pathway to restoring their land base and consolidating jurisdiction over lands within their boundaries, which is a significant step toward self-governance.

The Money Question: How Do They Value a Piece of Dirt?

Land swaps are always tricky because land value is complex, especially when mineral rights are involved. Section 4 requires independent appraisers, chosen jointly by the State and the Secretary, to determine the value of both parcels using the Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land Acquisitions. The goal is for the values to be substantially equal. If they aren’t, the difference can be settled with a cash payment or recorded in a special ledger account for future balancing, but the cash difference cannot exceed 25% of the total value of the federal land being transferred to the State. Furthermore, if the federal land the State receives has existing mineral leases, the value is adjusted downward based on the State’s expected share of future federal revenue from those minerals. This valuation process is key—it’s designed to ensure a fair trade, but disputes over complex mineral valuations are always a risk.

Protecting the Ranchers and the Environment

The bill also includes necessary protections for people already using the land. Section 5 ensures that if land being transferred has an existing grazing lease, that lease must be honored for its full term, protecting ranchers who rely on those permits. The user keeps their existing rights and responsibilities, including the ability to get paid for any range improvements they’ve made. On the environmental side, both the Secretary and the State must inspect and certify that the land being transferred is free of hazardous materials before the exchange happens, providing a layer of due diligence.

In short, this Act provides a clear, structured way for North Dakota to clean up its land management map while simultaneously benefiting tribal nations by restoring land within reservations to trust status. It’s a complex deal, but the clear rules about valuation and the specific protections for tribal land and existing land users show that this bill is trying to balance the needs of multiple stakeholders in the state.