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Miccosukee chairman urges Congress to add Osceola Camp to reserved area to protect village from flooding

2247256 · February 6, 2025
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Summary

Miccosukee Tribe leaders and bill sponsor told the subcommittee H.R. 504 would add the Osceola Camp to the Miccosukee Reserved Area, clarify governance, and require National Park Service work to elevate village structures ahead of Everglades restoration flows.

Witnesses, tribal leaders and members of the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Indian and Insular Affairs discussed H.R. 504, the Miccosukee Reserve Area Amendments Act, which would incorporate the Osceola Camp into the Miccosukee Reserved Area (MRA).

Representative Carlos Jimenez, sponsor of H.R. 504, said the bill “ensures that the Miccosukee tribe has the legal authority to manage and protect their land and preserve their traditional way of life.” He said adding Osceola Camp would allow the tribe to optimize water flows and raise structures to guard against flooding.

Talbert Cyprus, introduced as chairman of the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida, testified that the tribe “strongly support[s] H.R. 5 0 4 which would ensure appropriate governance for the Osceola Camp” and asked the National Park Service to work with the tribe to elevate the camp’s structures under the Central Everglades Planning Project and Tamiami Trail elevation work.

Cyprus described the village as historically inhabited and said the MRA of 1998 created a legal framework that allowed tribal residents to live permanently within Everglades National Park. He said the Osceola Camp remained under a special‑use permit and that adding the camp to the MRA would allow residents to be included as residents of tribal lands, improving access to emergency and infrastructure services.

Witnesses and members discussed rising flood risk as restoration and roadway‑elevation projects proceed; Cyprus said work has begun in cooperation with the Park Service and the Florida Department of Transportation but that without further elevation the village faces “imminent and substantial risk of frequent flooding.”

The subcommittee took testimony and asked for additional follow‑up; no legislative vote was conducted during the hearing.