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Wounded Knee Massacre Memorial and Sacred Site Act

Public Law 119-61 · H.R. 165 · 119th Congress · began in the House

Signed by Donald Trump (R) on Dec 19, 2025 · Native Americans

Sponsor: Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD)

Cosponsors: None

Passage votesYeaNay

  • HouseRecorded vote: 416 yea, 0 nay416–0
  • SenateUnanimous consent
Data notes

The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.

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Summary

The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.

This act directs the Department of the Interior to complete all actions necessary to place approximately 40 acres of land in Oglala Lakota County, South Dakota, into restricted fee status for the Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe. Restricted fee status refers to land that is owned by a tribe or tribal member but is subject to restrictions by the United States against alienation (i.e., sale or transfer) or encumbrance (e.g., liens, leases, or rights-of-way) by operation of law.

The act requires the land to be held and maintained as a memorial and sacred site, as outlined by the document titled Covenant Between the Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and dated October 21, 2022. Further, it prohibits commercial development and gaming activity on the land.

Who voted for it

Every House member of the 119th Congress on the ideology compass. Highlighted: the 416 who voted yea on final passage. Faded: everyone else, including those who voted nay, did not vote, or had not yet taken office.

416 yea0 nay17 present or did not vote

ProEstablishmentAnti
Economic left–right
More liberalMore conservative

Democrats who voted yea(200)

Republicans who voted yea(216)

Data notes

The House’s recorded vote on the final version of the law (roll call 21 in Voteview), matched to the vote the record cites and checked against its totals. Positions are each member’s DW-NOMINATE score for that Congress, as on the Ideology page; left to right is more liberal to more conservative. Paired and announced yea votes count as yea. Lists follow the compass, most liberal first. A name links to a profile only for members of the current Congress. A law passed by voice vote or unanimous consent has no member list, and neither does a vote Voteview has not yet recorded.

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Committees

The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.

Data notes

A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.

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Related bills

1 bill the Library of Congress relates to this one.

  • S. 105Identical billPublic law contains the text

    Wounded Knee Massacre Memorial and Sacred Site Act

Data notes

Related bills are identified by the Congressional Research Service, the House and the Senate: companion and identical bills, bills with similar text, bills that were folded into this law, and rules that brought it to the floor. A bill that is itself a public law in this site’s data links here; the others link to Congress.gov.

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Timeline

From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 18 actions.

  1. Dec 19, 2025Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 119-61.
  2. Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
  3. Dec 18, 2025FloorFloor · Presented to President.
  4. Dec 15, 2025FloorFloor · Message on Senate action sent to the House.
  5. Dec 11, 2025FloorFloor · Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent.
  6. Oct 2, 2025CalendarCalendar · Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 177.
  7. CommitteeCommittee · Committee on Indian Affairs. Reported by Senator Murkowski without amendment. With written report No. 119-72.
  8. Mar 5, 2025CommitteeCommittee · Committee on Indian Affairs. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.
  9. Jan 23, 2025CommitteeCommittee · Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs.
  10. Jan 22, 2025FloorFloor · Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
  11. FloorFloor · On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 416 - 0 (Roll no. 22).House roll call 22
  12. FloorFloor · Considered as unfinished business.
  13. Jan 21, 2025FloorFloor · At the conclusion of debate, the Yeas and Nays were demanded and ordered. Pursuant to the provisions of clause 8, rule XX, the Chair announced that further proceedings on the motion would be postponed.
  14. FloorFloor · DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 165.
  15. FloorFloor · Considered under suspension of the rules.
  16. FloorFloor · Mr. Westerman moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
  17. Jan 3, 2025CommitteeCommittee · Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
  18. IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in House
Data notes

Every action the Library of Congress lists for the bill, from introduction to signing, plus the dated committee hearings. The source lists many steps twice (the chamber’s own entry and the Library of Congress copy, or a presidential and a became-law entry with the same words); those are shown once. Amendments are listed in their own section.

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Amendments

No amendments to this bill are on record.

Data notes

Amendments offered to this bill in either chamber, as the Library of Congress records them: each with a status read from its last recorded step: agreed to, rejected, withdrawn, ruled out of order, fell with another amendment, or offered with no vote recorded (most Senate amendments are only ever offered). The wording of each amendment is the source’s. Amendments to amendments and amendments to other bills are not listed.

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Official record

The bill’s full text is on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.