07.03.18

Cantwell, Washington Democrats Urge Interior Department Listen to Tribal Nations, Abandon Review of Fee-to-Trust Regulations

Interior proposal lacks clarity, runs risk of increasing regulatory burden for many tribes

Washington, D.C. – On Friday, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) led the Washington state delegation Democrats in sending a bicameral letter to the Secretary of the Interior to register concern regarding the department’s proposed revisions to the fee-to-trust process. Last fall, the Department of the Interior proposed changing the fee-to-trust process to “streamline” the department’s current procedures by creating a new two-step process in which the secretary would do an initial review and could disapprove applications before environmental and legal reviews are complete.

“Our tribal constituents fear that the Department’s proposal will make it increasingly difficult for tribes to restore their homelands and place land into trust status,” wrote the Washington state delegation Democrats. “Further, they are perplexed by the effort because they did not ask the Department to undertake such a review.”

The Secretary of the Interior’s authority to take land into trust has restored millions of acres of tribal homelands since 1934. But that progress has slowed dramatically, and over the past year and a half, the Bureau of Indian Affairs has taken only 16,000 acres of land into trust compared to an average of 58,860 acres per year that were taken into trust between 2009 and 2016.

“Based on the tribal consultations the Department has conducted so far, the message from tribal leaders has been clear: the proposal lacks clarity and runs the risk of increasing the regulatory burden for many tribes. Without the full support of tribal nations, it is likely that this effort will create negative unintended consequences for Indian Country,” the letter reads.

At its 2017 Annual Session, the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) adopted a resolution opposing the department’s proposed revisions to the fee-to-trust process and asked that it immediately stop any efforts to amend land-to-trust regulations. The Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians (ATNI) adopted a similar resolution.

“NCAI requests that the Congress and the Administration work with Indian Nations on a government-to-government basis,” the NCAI resolution read. “[They should] include consultation with all Indian Nations on matters that affect Indian Homelands, including the recovery of traditional homelands and land into trust regulations.”

The acquisition of land in trust is essential to tribal self-determination. Trust acquisitions provide many benefits to tribes, including the ability to enhance housing opportunities, grow businesses, and restore their homelands.

“The federal government’s tribal policies are best informed and executed when they are organized to solve problems that tribal nations identify themselves,” the Members of Congress continued in the letter. “That is the very core of self-governance and self-determination. The federal government’s tribal policies are at their worst when they seek to impose new restraints on tribal nations, diminish tribal sovereignty, and fix problems that do not exist.”

In addition to Senator Cantwell, the letter is also signed by U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) and U.S. Representatives Derek Kilmer (D-WA), Danny Heck (D-WA), Suzan DelBene (D-WA), Adam Smith (D-WA), Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), and Rick Larsen (D-WA).

The full text of the letter is available HERE and below:

The Honorable Ryan Zinke
Secretary
United States Department of the Interior
1849 C Street NW
Washington D.C. 20240

Secretary Zinke,

Several tribal nations within the State of Washington have contacted our offices to express their concern about the Department of the Interior’s failure to engage in government-to-government consultation regarding its proposed revisions to the fee-to-trust regulations (25 C.F.R. 151). The Secretary of the Interior’s authority to take land into trust pursuant to the Indian Reorganization Act has restored millions of acres of tribal homelands since 1934. However, that progress has slowed dramatically and over the past year and a half, the Bureau of Indian Affairs has taken 16,000 acres of land into trust compared to an average of 58,860 acres per year that were taken into trust between 2009 and 2016.

Our tribal constituents fear that the Department’s proposal will make it increasingly difficult for tribes to restore their homelands and place land into trust status. Further, they are perplexed by the effort because they did not ask the Department to undertake such a review. Based on the tribal consultations the Department has conducted so far, the message from tribal leaders has been clear: the proposal lacks clarity and runs the risk of increasing the regulatory burden for many tribes. Without the full support of tribal nations, it is likely that this effort will create negative unintended consequences for Indian Country.

The federal government’s tribal policies are best informed and executed when they are organized to solve problems that tribal nations identify themselves. That is the very core of self-governance and self-determination. The federal government’s tribal policies are at their worst when they seek to impose new restraints on tribal nations, diminish tribal sovereignty, and fix problems that do not exist.

We urge you to listen to the voices of the tribal nations that you serve and abandon your review of the fee-to-trust regulations.

Sincerely,

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