This bill, titled the Zuni Indian Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act of 2025, aims to achieve a fair, equitable, and final settlement of all water rights claims for the Zuni Indian Tribe and the United States, acting as trustee for the Tribe, within the Zuni River Stream System in New Mexico. It also seeks to protect the culturally and ecologically significant Zuni Salt Lake and Sanctuary. The legislation authorizes and ratifies a comprehensive settlement agreement, directing the Secretary of the Interior to execute it and take necessary actions for its implementation.

Under Title I, the bill confirms that the Tribal Water Rights will be held in trust by the United States for the Tribe, protected from loss through non-use or abandonment. The Tribe gains authority to allocate, distribute, and lease these water rights on and off Zuni Lands, with Secretarial approval for off-land use up to 99 years. The bill clarifies that these Tribal Water Rights do not include water rights for individual Allotments, and it explicitly states that nothing in the act diminishes the water rights of Allottees.

To support the settlement, the bill establishes the Zuni Tribe Settlement Trust Fund, managed by the Secretary of the Interior, with two accounts: the Water Rights Settlement Trust Account and the Operation, Maintenance, & Replacement Trust Account. Mandatory appropriations from the Treasury include $655.5 million for the Water Rights Settlement Trust Account and $29.5 million for the OMR Trust Account, subject to cost adjustments. An initial $50 million from the Trust Fund is immediately available for specific purposes such as developing economic water plans, preparing environmental documents, and installing groundwater wells.

The Water Rights Settlement Trust Account funds are designated for planning, designing, constructing, and operating water infrastructure for various uses, including domestic, municipal, irrigation, and agriculture, as well as for watershed protection and economic development. The OMR Trust Account is specifically for the operation, maintenance, and replacement costs of water infrastructure. The State of New Mexico is also required to contribute $750,000 for monitoring plans and $500,000 to mitigate impacts on non-Indian groundwater rights.

A critical component involves the Tribe and the United States waiving certain past water rights claims and related damages against parties to the Agreement and the United States, effective on the Enforceability Date. However, specific claims are reserved, including those related to water quality, future water rights acquisition, and land damages not due to water loss. The Enforceability Date is triggered when the Secretary confirms the Agreement's alignment with the bill, its execution by all parties, entry of a Partial Final Judgment and Decree, deposit of federal funds, and the State's fulfillment of financial and legislative obligations.

Title II focuses on protecting the Zuni Salt Lake and Sanctuary, an area of approximately 217,037 acres. It mandates the withdrawal of about 92,364 acres of federal land within this area from all forms of mineral entry, leasing, and disposal, reserving it for the protection of the lake, its water resources, and associated cultural values. The bill also directs the Secretary to take specific "Tribal Acquisition Area" lands into trust for the Tribe on the Enforceability Date, with associated water rights held in trust but separate from the Tribal Water Rights settlement.