Congress gives Lakota tribes the Wounded Knee massacre site
H.R. 165 — Wounded Knee Massacre Memorial and Sacred Site Act · Filed by Dusty Johnson (R-SD) · Introduced Jan 3, 2025 · Signed
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What it does
The bill transfers about 40 acres at Wounded Knee in South Dakota. The Oglala Sioux Tribe and Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe will own the land permanently. The tribes cannot sell it without Congress's approval. The land is exempt from state and local taxes. The tribes have full civil and criminal jurisdiction over it. The land will be used as a memorial and sacred site. It cannot be used for gaming.
Who it affects
The Oglala Sioux Tribe and Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe gain ownership and control. The tribes can now manage the land without state interference. The site honors Lakota people who died in the 1890 massacre.
One thing to notice
Existing utility easements and rights-of-way remain in effect. Some outside groups may still have access to parts of the land.
From the analysis of the bill text, linked under Primary records below.
Where it stands
- Jan 3, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Jan 3, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Natural Resources and Senate Committee on Indian Affairs · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources”
- Jan 21, 2025 — Floor vote scheduled · Congress.gov: “Mr. Westerman moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill”
- Jan 22, 2025 — Passed the House · Congress.gov: “On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 416 - 0…”
- Mar 5, 2025 — Reported out of committee · Congress.gov: “Committee on Indian Affairs. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably”
- Dec 11, 2025 — Passed both chambers · Congress.gov: “Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent. (consideration: CR S8685)”
- Dec 18, 2025 — Sent to president · Congress.gov: “Presented to President”
- Dec 19, 2025 — Signed into law · Congress.gov: “Became Public Law No: 119-61”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
Words to know
- exempt from state and local taxes — The tribes do not have to pay taxes to the state or local government
- civil and criminal jurisdiction — The power to make and enforce laws and punish crimes on the land
- easements — The right of others to use part of the land for utilities or roads
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (3,342 characters) on Jun 8, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 14,206 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
As of — page rendered 2026-09-17.
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