; table of contents. Sec. 2. Findings. Sec. 3. Definitions. Sec. 4. Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo Land Grant-Merced Claims Commission. Sec. 5. Hearings on qualifying petitions. Sec. 6. Reports. Sec. 7. Federal land disposal authority. Sec. 8. Authorization of appropriation. 2. Findings Congress finds the following: (1) The Western and Southwestern United States have a unique history regarding land acquisition and ownership consequent to the substantial number of Spanish and Mexican land grants-mercedes. These land grants-mercedes were an integral part of the colonization and growth of the region before the United States acquisition under the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. (2) Under the laws of Spain and Mexico, land grant-mercedes included thousands of acres of land that was owned and used by the communities, within the land grant-merced boundaries, in common. This included guaranteed right to the use of water, forest, pasture, minerals and other natural resources located on the common lands. (3) The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo as affirmed by the Protocol of Querétaro protects property rights of land grants-mercedes in the territory ceded by Mexico to the United States of America. (4) Property rights include land, land title, water rights, natural resource rights, mineral rights, and rights to physical access. (5) Congress has enacted several major public land laws subject to valid existing rights including the Organic Administration Act of 1897 ( 16 U.S.C. 473 et seq.), the Taylor Grazing Act ( 43 U.S.C. 315 et seq.), the Multiple Use and Sustained Yield Act of 1960 ( 16 U.S.C. 528 et seq.), and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 ( 43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.). (6) Various provisions of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo have not yet been fully implemented in the spirit of the United States Constitution, article VI, section 2. (7) Serious questions remain regarding the rightful ownership of lands in several western and southwestern States. Certain public lands are the focus of such questions. (8) The Gadsden