Cerro Grande Fire Assistance Act

Cerro Grande Fire Assistance Act - Entitles persons suffering injury or loss of property, or personal injury or death, as a result of the Cerro Grande, New Mexico, fire (the fire resulting from the National Park Service's prescribed burn at Bandelier National Monument, New Mexico, on May 4, 2000) to receive from the United States compensation for injury suffered as a result of such fire.Establishes an Office of Cerro Grande Fire Claims within the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to receive, process, and pay claims in accordance with this Act. Authorizes the FEMA Director to appoint an Independent Claims Manager to head the Office and assume the Director's duties under this title.Provides for submission of claims no later than two years after the date regulations are first promulgated under this Act. Requires the Director, on behalf of the United States, to investigate, determine, grant, deny, or settle any claim for money damages asserted by an injured person.Applies the laws of the State of New Mexico to the calculation of damages. Limits payments under thisAct to actual compensatory damages measured by injuries suffered and excludes interest before settlement or payment of a claim or punitive damages.Requires the Director, no later than 180 days after a claim is submitted, to determine and fix the amount to be paid for the claim. Provides for the payment of subrogation claims only after paying claims submitted by injured parties that are not insurance companies seeking payment as subrogees. Requires the Director, to prevent recovery by a claimant in excess of actual compensatory damages, to reduce the amount to be paid for the claim by an amount equal to the total of insurance benefits or other payments or settlements to be paid with respect to the claim. Authorizes a claimant, if a partial payment is received, but further payment on a claim is denied, to seek judicial review and keep any received payment unless the claimant was ineligible for, or fraudulently procured, the compensation.Describes allowable damages, including uncompensated property, business, and financial losses.Requires the acceptance by a claimant of any payment under thisAct (except a partial or advance payment) to: (1) be final and conclusive on the claimant with respect to claims relating to the same subject matter; and (2) constitute a complete release of claims against the United States under the Federal Tort Claims Act or any other Federal or State law.Provides for promulgation and publication of regulations and dissemination of information on the rights conferred under this Act and regulatory requirements through newspapers and other media.Authorizes injured persons to elect to seek compensation from the United States for injuries resulting from the Cerro Grande fire by: (1) submitting a claim under this Act; (2) filing a claim or bringing a civil action under the Federal Tort Claims Act; or (3) bringing a civil action under any other law. Makes such election final and conclusive on the claimant with respect to all such injuries suffered.Requires the Director to establish procedures under which a dispute regarding a claim may be settled by arbitration. Provides that arbitration shall be binding and preclude any exercise of the right to judicial review of a claim.Authorizes civil actions to be brought in the district court for New Mexico by claimants aggrieved by the Director's final decision under this Act.Limits attorney's or agent fees to ten percent of the amount of any payment on a claim for services rendered in connection with a claim. Provides for fines for violations of such limitation.Provides that State or local projects carried out in response to the Cerro Grande fire under any Federal program that applies to an area affected by the fire shall not be subject to matching fund requirements. Makes the Federal cost share of such projects 100 percent.Describes requirements for compensation to Indians and Indian tribes under this title, including that Indians shall be entitled to proceed in the same manner as any other injured person and that the Bureau of Indian Affairs shall have no responsibility to restore land damaged by the fire except land that is the subject of the claim.Requires the Director to report annually to Congress on claims submitted under this Act.Authorizes appropriations.