A bill to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain lands near Miles City, Montana, and to remove certain reservations from prior conveyances.
Public Law 97-401 · S. 187 · 97th Congress · began in the Senate
Signed by Ronald Reagan (R) on Dec 31, 1982 · Public Lands and Natural Resources
Sponsor: Sen. John Melcher (D-MT)
Cosponsors: None
Passage votes
- HouseVoice vote
- SenateVoice vote
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.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
Directs the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain lands to Miles City, Montana. Requires the patent of such conveyance to reserve to the United States all mineral rights in such lands.
Directs the Secretary to take actions as necessary to convey the reversionary interests of the United States in previously conveyed patents for certain other lands in Miles City and Custer County, Montana.
Provides for the disposition of the proceeds from the sale of land described in this Act.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Natural Resources Committee · House · markup by, referred to, reported bySubcommittee: National Parks and Public Lands Subcommittee
Energy and Natural Resources Committee · Senate · markup by, referred to, reported bySubcommittee: Public Lands, Reserved Water and Resource Conservation Subcommittee
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.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 20 actions.
- Dec 31, 1982Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 97-401.
- Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- Dec 21, 1982PresidentPresident · Presented to President.
- Dec 17, 1982Resolving differencesResolving differences · Senate agreed to the House amendment by Voice Vote.
- Sep 30, 1982FloorFloor · Passed House (Amended) by Voice Vote.
- FloorFloor · Called up by House by Unanimous Consent.
- CommitteeCommittee · Reported by House Natural Resources Committee
- Sep 29, 1982CommitteeCommittee · Markup by House Natural Resources Committee
- Sep 23, 1982CommitteeCommittee · Reported by National Parks and Public Lands Subcommittee of the House Natural Resources Committee
- CommitteeCommittee · Markup by National Parks and Public Lands Subcommittee of the House Natural Resources Committee
- Aug 17, 1982CommitteeCommittee · Hearings by National Parks and Public Lands Subcommittee of the House Natural Resources Committee
- Oct 5, 1981CommitteeCommittee · Referred to National Parks and Public Lands Subcommittee of the House Natural Resources Committee
- Sep 24, 1981CommitteeCommittee · Referred to House Natural Resources Committee
- Sep 22, 1981FloorFloor · Passed Senate with amendments by Voice Vote.
- Aug 27, 1981CommitteeCommittee · Reported by Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
- Jul 29, 1981CommitteeCommittee · Markup by Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
- Jun 24, 1981CommitteeCommittee · Hearings by Public Lands, Reserved Water and Resource Conservation Subcommittee of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
- Feb 16, 1981CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Public Lands, Reserved Water and Resource Conservation Subcommittee of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
- Jan 21, 1981CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in the Senate
Data notes
Shows the introduction, each committee and subcommittee step the source dates (referral, hearings, markup, report, discharge), and the floor, conference, presidential and became-law steps. Calendar placements, messages between the chambers, amendments and committee report numbers are not shown for laws before the 108th Congress. Two entries the source lists twice are shown once.
Official record
The bill’s full text and every action, including introduction and committee steps, are on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.