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1934 may be key to Oneida Indian Nation land trust suit

Written by Administrator

Thursday, 11 March 2010

1934 may be key to Oneida Indian Nation land trust suit Published: Wednesday, March 10, 2010 By CAITLIN TRAYNOR Dispatch Staff Writer WASHINGTON — After a Supreme Court ruling decided only Native American tribes federally recognized before the inception of the 1934 Indian Reorganization Act are eligible to put land into trust, there have been reports that Department of Interior Secretary Kenneth Salazar may attempt to bypass that ruling. The Supreme Court’s Carcieri v. Salazar decision withdrew the DOI’s authority to put land into trust for some Indian tribes. Three proposed laws are currently before Congress that would overrule the Supreme Court. Congressmen Dale Kildee, D-Mich, and Tom Cole, R-Okla. and Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D. have submitted bills to “amend the (Indian Reorganization Act) of June 18, 1934, to reaffirm the authority of the Secretary of the Interior to take land into trust for Indian tribes.” The bills seek to amend the IRA so the term “Indian tribe” refers to any tribe the Secretary of Interior acknowledges as such, regardless of the date of its recognition. Senator Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has sent a personal letter to Salazar, “urging him to hold off on administrative action that would change current U.S. law that governs the land into trust process, as it relates to the Supreme Court’s Carcieri v. Salazar decision,” a press release said. “The Supreme Court clearly stated that any change in the law needed to be enacted by Congress, so today I am calling on the Interior Department not to try to circumvent the judicial and legislative branches through unilateral action,” Schumer said. “The bottom line is that, following a Supreme Court decision like this, Congress is the only appropriate forum for any reconsideration of the Indian Reorganization Act. “Decisions like these, that profoundly impact many New Yorkers and many Americans, need to be done through the normal legislative process — not by the federal bureaucracy,” he said. Along with the actions of the senator, local officials are also demanding to be heard. Madison County Supervisors Chairman John Becker, Rocky DiVeronica, Lenox, and Dan Degear, DeRuyter, County Administrator Paul Miller and County Attorney John Campanie voted to oppose the “Carcieri fix” at the National Association of Counties (NACo) during their summit to Washington this week. “NACo opposes (the three bills proposed by Kildee, Cole and Dorgan) and any other interim related action, and calls on Congress to address the Carcieri issue as part of a comprehensive examination and congressionally enacted reform to the fee to trust process,” the policy says. The policy further calls for reform of the process to ensure counties are given “meaningful” notice of trust applications, “good faith consultation with counties regarding fee to trust issues” and agreements are made so the impacts of “tribal development projects are mitigated.” Campanie said the NACo policy statement will be distributed to lawmakers by individual county representatives. “This commands attention,” Campanie said. NACo “is very much involved in the land in trust reform. That’s not an isolated voice. It’s not just little Madison County. It’s counties and states from coast to coast.” Threats or attempts to administratively override the Supreme Court’s decision, Campanie said are “just going to result in litigation.” “I really think that would not be wise on their part,” he said of the BOI’s actions. “It won’t send a good message. It’ll send a message of arrogance and irregard. If they don’t hold off, it seems to me there’d be repercussions.” “This is a matter of significant concern,” Campanie said. What’s called into question, especially for the Oneida Indian Nation, is a tribe’s recognition date. Campanie believes the DOI has collected information and has compiled a list of dates for its more than 500 recognized tribes, but it’s not sharing the information. Madison County has demanded to see that list during its lawsuit with the OIN, but the DOI has denied requests to access that information, Campanie said. “We’re trying, the House of Representatives is trying to get it and the DOI is not providing it,” he said. “We’re not done with that; we’re pursuing it.” Nedra Darling, director of public affairs for the Department of Indian Affairs of the DOI, said the OIN has been federally recognized since the “colonial revolutionary days.” Darling refused to give an exact date, only saying “the U.S. has continued to recognize them since that time period.”Madison County officials disagree. “The Oneidas were not known as a tribe in New York in the first half of the 20th century, perhaps until the late 1940s,” Campanie said. “That issue is yet to be addressed by the court.”If the Supreme Court decision remains unchanged, Campanie said Madison County may have a strong argument against the Oneida Indian Nation in litigation. “They would have a fundamental problem,” Campanie said. “Land into trust would not be an option.” Campanie said Schumer’s letter to Salazar was “clear and direct,” and named the senator as a top leader in the land into trust reform effort. “Senator Schumer’s letter makes it clear to the administration that any action to address the so-called ‘Carcieri fix’ must consider all sides of the issues and the interests of all New Yorkers,” Becker said. “I commend the senator’s leadership on this matter and look forward to working with Senator Schumer and his staff to ensure a fair process on this initiative and the land into trust issue.” http://www.oneidadispatch.com/articles/2010/03/10/news/doc4b986b712f275695007439.txt

 

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