Floor SpeechBipartisan2026-02-26

CAPE FOX LAND ENTITLEMENT FINALIZATION ACT OF 2025

TaxesEnvironmentForeign PolicyTradeInfrastructure

Context

On 2026-02-26, Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) delivered a floor speech titled "CAPE FOX LAND ENTITLEMENT FINALIZATION ACT OF 2025" in the Senate. The speech addressed taxes and also covered the environment, foreign policy. It referenced legislation including HR2815, HR972, S697, among other bills.

Full Text

CAPE FOX LAND ENTITLEMENT FINALIZATION ACT OF 2025

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 38 (Thursday, February 26, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 38 (Thursday, February 26, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S697-S699] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] CAPE FOX LAND ENTITLEMENT FINALIZATION ACT OF 2025 ______ SLOAN CANYON CONSERVATION AND LATERAL PIPELINE ACT Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I come to the floor with my friend and colleague from Nevada Senator Cortez Masto to seek unanimous consent to pass two noncontroversial bills as a bipartisan pair. The first is H.R. 2815. This is sponsored by Congressman Begich from Alaska. It is the identical companion to my Cape Fox Land Entitlement Finalization Act. And the second is H.R. 972, sponsored by Representative Dina Titus of Nevada. It is the identical companion to Senator Cortez Masto's Sloan Canyon Conservation and Lateral Pipeline Act. These are important bills to those in Southeastern Alaska and in Nevada. It probably won't make headlines out of those two areas, but they are very significant and important bills. After more than five decades, the Cape Fox bill will finally complete the land entitlement for the Native Village of Saxman in Southeast Alaska. The Sloan Canyon bill will facilitate construction of a water pipeline in the Las [[Page S698]] Vegas Valley. This is critical infrastructure for hundreds of thousands of people. These are House-passed bills, OK, so they can go directly to the President's desk to be signed into law. I mentioned that they are both noncontroversial. Their pairing is also noncontroversial. And there are no objections on the merits, on the substance, to either one of them. Both have had full process in the Senate over the course of multiple Congresses. So if these look familiar, it is because we have seen them before. Both these bills passed the Senate by unanimous consent at the end of 2024, so over a year ago. Our cloakrooms on both sides of the aisle hotlined them again 6 weeks ago, and so that is what brings us here today as we are still trying to move them. We have kind of gotten to a really difficult and frustrating-- frustrating, as much as anything--time in our process. People are wondering, and they are asking me--those in the Ketchikan-Saxman area: What is the holdup here? If everybody is supportive of this, why is it taking so long and proving so hard for Congress to agree on things? I don't have a good answer on that. I am not sure that there is one. But, again, we are trying to move noncontroversial bills through a process that requires support and consent on both ends of this building. And this end of the building has said yes, and things are getting stuck over on the other side. And rather than point fingers and call names, I want to unstick things. I want to have us know that we can move these bills that are important in our communities and in our regions and they don't get taken hostage, if you will, by the other body as they are trying to figure out how they gain leverage over something else here. That is not fair to the constituents that we represent. That is not fair to the lawmakers who are working very hard to try to advance their bills. So I appreciate the discussion that I have had with my colleagues here on the floor about a way, a process, a dialogue that needs to be had with our colleagues on the other side of the aisle. So there are a few bills that we are looking at today specifically, but I think it goes to a bigger concern that needs to be addressed in a way that is going to work for other Members who are also trying to advance their bills into full passage by law. So my commitment to my colleagues on the Republican side of the aisle and on the Democrat side of the aisle is let's leave from here and let's make the calls to set up the sitdowns with our colleagues on the other side--in the other body--to talk about how we are going to move these in a way that is fair and does not penalize the Members, the communities. We need to do right by our own process, and I would just suggest that we need to be doing more than we are so that we are not in a situation where we are waiting months and months and months to be able to see these matters resolved. Before I make any motion on these bills, I want to yield to Senator Cortez Masto. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Nevada. Ms. CORTEZ MASTO. Mr. President, I rise today, along with my good friend and colleague from Alaska Senator Murkowski, to ask for the passage of both H.R. 2815 and H.R. 972. As the Presiding Officer has heard, they have already passed the House. There have been sets of hearings there, work to be done. Let me talk a little bit about H.R. 972. This is the Sloan Canyon Conservation and Lateral Water Pipeline Act. This is the same bill that this Chamber already passed by unanimous consent last Congress. And, right now, almost 40 percent of Las Vegas residents and businesses depend on the South Valley Lateral pipeline. That is one single pipeline for nearly 3 million people. And that pipeline is 25 years old. Ten years from now, it will reach 95 percent capacity, and it won't be able to safely and reliably serve Las Vegans long term. This bill that we are, hopefully, passing today will allow the Southern Nevada Water Authority to build a new pipeline that will improve the reliability and capacity of our existing water system and protect the water supply for nearly half of our Las Vegas residents and businesses. And if you are from the West, water is the issue. My colleague from California knows this. This is why I appreciate the conversation we have had today. Let me just say this. As a member of leadership in the Democratic caucus as well as a member of Energy and Natural Resources and the ranking member on the Public Lands Subcommittee, I couldn't agree more with not only the comments Senator Murkowski has made about our challenges in the work we need to do to pass several pieces of legislation, in both Houses, to the benefit of our constituents and my commitment to do just that. I also understand and respect my colleague from California. We work so closely on so many issues, from water issues to land issues. I understand his frustration. I understand his concern that there is a lack of movement with some of these important bills that we all need to work on together. So I make a commitment to him to use whatever authority and power I have to get this unstuck, to make sure that we are working together to address his concerns, which are completely valid, and to move forward as quickly as we possibly can, whether that is requiring meetings amongst the--bicameral--with the House Members of jurisdiction, making sure that, as a Senate caucus, this is a priority, working with our Republican colleagues as well. I really appreciate the Senator bringing this to everyone's attention in the way that he has, and I think it is important for us to continue to move forward together now to follow through and unstick a lot of the challenges that we are seeing with these lands bills and bills that we need to get passed in both Chambers. So I thank the Senator, and I will yield to Senator Murkowski. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Alaska. Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, we speak about the frustrations. There is always room for frustration around here. But I share the many concerns of my friend from California. Three of my bills and ones that he also cares about and more that I have cosponsored are also pending over there. And so this is not just the three of us sharing that we need to find a path forward, but I think it is also an effort and a need to find a path forward, working with the House to move these bills forward. In the meantime, here in the Senate, we need to keep doing our work, but we can't forget that we have the other body that we need to have a working relationship with, and passage of the bills requires just that. So I think, today, we want to get focused on outcomes, pushing to pass the bills where we can, however we can, whether they start with an ``H.R.'' or an ``S,'' not caring about who gets the credit but just making sure we are advancing some laws here. Mr. President, as if in legislative session and notwithstanding rule XXII, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources be discharged and the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of the following bills en bloc; further, that the bills be considered read a third time and passed en bloc and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, all en bloc: H.R. 2815, Cape Fox Land Entitlement Finalization Act of 2025 and H.R. 972, Sloan Canyon Conservation and Lateral Pipeline Act. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection? The Senator from California. Mr. PADILLA. Mr. President, reserving the right to object, colleagues, I have been down here many, many times and have spoken up in committee many, many times as we try to create a better way of ensuring that we, indeed, have a fair and bipartisan and bicameral approach to consideration and passage of public lands bills. I certainly understand my colleagues' frustration with how the public lands process is currently playing out. I am glad that they are acknowledging I, too, share that frustration. But I also can't believe we can't create a scenario where the Senate completely cedes to the House the ability to pick and choose which public lands bills are allowed to be sent to the White House. Regardless of who is in the majority, the process has historically been both bicameral and bipartisan, and we need to get back to that. So as I said publicly, and as I have reminded in private, my objection to [[Page S699]] these bills is not on the substance, and my objection is not an objection forever. So I appreciate when my colleagues have offered to join me in this effort to push leadership of both parties of the committees in both Houses to convene and create t

Referenced legislation: HR972, HR2815

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CAPE FOX LAND ENTITLEMENT FINALIZATION ACT OF 2025 Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 38 (Thursday, February 26, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 38 (Thursday, February 26, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S697-S699] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] CAPE FOX LAND ENTITLEMENT FINALIZATION ACT OF 2025 ______ SLOAN CANYON CONSERVATION AND LATERAL PIPELINE ACT Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I come to the floor with my friend and colleague from Nevada Senator Cortez Masto to seek unanimous consent to pass two noncontroversial bills as a bipartisan pair. The first is H.R. 2815. This is sponsored by Congressman Begich from Alaska. It is the identical companion to my Cape Fox Land Entitlement Finalization Act. And the second is H.R. 972, sponsored by Representative Dina Titus of Nevada. It is the identical companion to Senator Cortez Masto's Sloan Canyon Conservation and Lateral Pipeline Act. These are important bills to those in Southeastern Alaska and in Nevada. It probably won't make headlines out of those two areas, but they are very significant and important bills. After more than five decades, the Cape Fox bill will finally complete the land entitlement for the Native Village of Saxman in Southeast Alaska. The Sloan Canyon bill will facilitate construction of a water pipeline in the Las [[Page S698]] Vegas Valley. This is critical infrastructure for hundreds of thousands of people. These are House-passed bills, OK, so they can go directly to the President's desk to be signed into law. I mentioned that they are both noncontroversial. Their pairing is also noncontroversial. And there are no objections on the merits, on the substance, to either one of them. Both have had full process in the Senate over the course of multiple Congresses. So if these look familiar, it is because we have seen them before. Both these bills passed the Senate by unanimous consent at the end of 2024, so over a year ago. Our cloakrooms on both sides of the aisle hotlined them again 6 weeks ago, and so that is what brings us here today as we are still trying to move them. We have kind of gotten to a really difficult and frustrating-- frustrating, as much as anything--time in our process. People are wondering, and they are asking me--those in the Ketchikan-Saxman area: What is the holdup here? If everybody is supportive of this, why is it taking so long and proving so hard for Congress to agree on things? I don't have a good answer on that. I am not sure that there is one. But, again, we are trying to move noncontroversial bills through a process that requires support and consent on both ends of this building. And this end of the building has said yes, and things are getting stuck over on the other side. And rather than point fingers and call names, I want to unstick things. I want to have us know that we can move these bills that are important in our communities and in our regions and they don't get taken hostage, if you will, by the other body as they are trying to figure out how they gain leverage over something else here. That is not fair to the constituents that we represent. That is not fair to the lawmakers who are working very hard to try to advance their bills. So I appreciate the discussion that I have had with my colleagues here on the floor about a way, a process, a dialogue that needs to be had with our colleagues on the other side of the aisle. So there are a few bills that we are looking at today specifically, but I think it goes to a bigger concern that needs to be addressed in a way that is going to work for other Members who are also trying to advance their bills into full passage by law. So my commitment to my colleagues on the Republican side of the aisle and on the Democrat side of the aisle is let's leave from here and let's make the calls to set up the sitdowns with our colleagues on the other side--in the other body--to talk about how we are going to move these in a way that is fair and does not penalize the Members, the communities. We need to do right by our own process, and I would just suggest that we need to be doing more than we are so that we are not in a situation where we are waiting months and months and months to be able to see these matters resolved. Before I make any motion on these bills, I want to yield to Senator Cortez Masto. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Nevada. Ms. CORTEZ MASTO. Mr. President, I rise today, along with my good friend and colleague from Alaska Senator Murkowski, to ask for the passage of both H.R. 2815 and H.R. 972. As the Presiding Officer has heard, they have already passed the House. There have been sets of hearings there, work to be done. Let me talk a little bit about H.R. 972. This is the Sloan Canyon Conservation and Lateral Water Pipeline Act. This is the same bill that this Chamber already passed by unanimous consent last Congress. And, right now, almost 40 percent of Las Vegas residents and businesses depend on the South Valley Lateral pipeline. That is one single pipeline for nearly 3 million people. And that pipeline is 25 years old. Ten years from now, it will reach 95 percent capacity, and it won't be able to safely and reliably serve Las Vegans long term. This bill that we are, hopefully, passing today will allow the Southern Nevada Water Authority to build a new pipeline that will improve the reliability and capacity of our existing water system and protect the water supply for nearly half of our Las Vegas residents and businesses. And if you are from the West, water is the issue. My colleague from California knows this. This is why I appreciate the conversation we have had today. Let me just say this. As a member of leadership in the Democratic caucus as well as a member of Energy and Natural Resources and the ranking member on the Public Lands Subcommittee, I couldn't agree more with not only the comments Senator Murkowski has made about our challenges in the work we need to do to pass several pieces of legislation, in both Houses, to the benefit of our constituents and my commitment to do just that. I also understand and respect my colleague from California. We work so closely on so many issues, from water issues to land issues. I understand his frustration. I understand his concern that there is a lack of movement with some of these important bills that we all need to work on together. So I make a commitment to him to use whatever authority and power I have to get this unstuck, to make sure that we are working together to address his concerns, which are completely valid, and to move forward as quickly as we possibly can, whether that is requiring meetings amongst the--bicameral--with the House Members of jurisdiction, making sure that, as a Senate caucus, this is a priority, working with our Republican colleagues as well. I really appreciate the Senator bringing this to everyone's attention in the way that he has, and I think it is important for us to continue to move forward together now to follow through and unstick a lot of the challenges that we are seeing with these lands bills and bills that we need to get passed in both Chambers. So I thank the Senator, and I will yield to Senator Murkowski. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Alaska. Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, we speak about the frustrations. There is always room for frustration around here. But I share the many concerns of my friend from California. Three of my bills and ones that he also cares about and more that I have cosponsored are also pending over there. And so this is not just the three of us sharing that we need to find a path forward, but I think it is also an effort and a need to find a path forward, working with the House to move these bills forward. In the meantime, here in the Senate, we need to keep doing our work, but we can't forget that we have the other body that we need to have a working relationship with, and passage of the bills requires just that. So I think, today, we want to get focused on outcomes, pushing to pass the bills where we can, however we can, whether they start with an ``H.R.'' or an ``S,'' not caring about who gets the credit but just making sure we are advancing some laws here. Mr. President, as if in legislative session and notwithstanding rule XXII, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources be discharged and the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of the following bills en bloc; further, that the bills be considered read a third time and passed en bloc and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, all en bloc: H.R. 2815, Cape Fox Land Entitlement Finalization Act of 2025 and H.R. 972, Sloan Canyon Conservation and Lateral Pipeline Act. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection? The Senator from California. Mr. PADILLA. Mr. President, reserving the right to object, colleagues, I have been down here many, many times and have spoken up in committee many, many times as we try to create a better way of ensuring that we, indeed, have a fair and bipartisan and bicameral approach to consideration and passage of public lands bills. I certainly understand my colleagues' frustration with how the public lands process is currently playing out. I am glad that they are acknowledging I, too, share that frustration. But I also can't believe we can't create a scenario where the Senate completely cedes to the House the ability to pick and choose which public lands bills are allowed to be sent to the White House. Regardless of who is in the majority, the process has historically been both bicameral and bipartisan, and we need to get back to that. So as I said publicly, and as I have reminded in private, my objection to [[Page S699]] these bills is not on the substance, and my objection is not an objection forever. So I appreciate when my colleagues have offered to join me in this effort to push leadership of both parties of the committees in both Houses to convene and create t Referenced legislation: HR972, HR2815