Don Young Doug LaMalfa Indian Buffalo Management Act

Cultural and Spiritual Preservation: The bill aims to rekindle the historical, spiritual, and cultural relationship between Indian Tribes and buffalo (Section 2(a)).

Food Security and Health: Successful restoration could allow Tribal members to reintroduce buffalo into their diets (Section 2(a)).

Economic Development: The act supports the use of buffalo for economic development and provides for the planning of commercial activities related to buffalo or buffalo products (Section 2(a); Section 4(b)(1)).

Support for Infrastructure: Through grants and contracts, Tribes can support the use and deployment of mobile meat processing facilities (Section 4(b)(1)).

Increased Tribal Autonomy: The bill promotes the capacity of Tribes to manage their own buffalo and habitats in accordance with their own integrated resource management plans (Section 2(b); Section 5(b)).

Protection of Sensitive Data: The Secretary is prohibited from disclosing information identified by a Tribe as culturally sensitive, proprietary, or confidential (Section 6).

Regulatory Compliance: The bill notes that no part of the buffalo resource management provisions diminishes existing Federal or State laws and regulations regarding diseased buffalo or buffalo that escape from Indian land (Section 4(b)(2)).

Time-Limited Authority: The authority provided by this act is subject to a sunset provision, meaning it ceases to be effective 7 years after enactment (Section 9).