OPA

The Department of the Interior announced today that it has taken joint action with the Department of Agriculture in designating the Klamath Indian Forest and Klamath Marsh on the Klamath Indian Reservation in Oregon.

The designations were made under a law enacted last August 23 which amended the Klamath Termination Act of 1954. Under terms of the amendatory law, 617,000 acres of the Klamath Indian Forest will be offered for sale to private purchasers in appropriately sized forest units. Purchasers will be required to manage the lands “as far as practicable according to sustained-yield principles so as to furnish a continuous supply of timber.” The Klamath Marsh consisting of 15,000 acres will be purchased by the Federal Government and used as a national wildlife refuge.

Sales of forest units and the Federal purchase of marshlands may not be at less than the realization value as determined by a group of appraisers who are now reviewing a previous appraisal which was made several months ago. No sales of forest units may be made before April 1, 1959.

If all the forest units are not sold before April 1, 1961, the United States will purchase as much of the forest land as has, together with the marshland, an appraised value of not to exceed 90 million dollars, unless a different amount is authorized by law in the meantime. Federally purchased forest land would be added to the national-forest system.

The original proposal to establish the national wildlife refuge at Klamath Marsh was approved by the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission composed of members of Congress and members of the President's Cabinet. Their approval was based on the assumption that Wocus Bay, an area of some 1,000 acres, would be included in the refuge. However, the Klamath Indians who elected to stay within the tribe did so on the basis of a plan which, among other things, provided that Wocus Bay would be retained as a part of their tribal lands. Private trustees will administer the bay along with other tribal lands. The bay's value for hunting purposes will be materially enhanced because of the adjoining refuge. It is also vital to control of the water level in the marsh.

The Department of the Interior says that if the refuge cannot be developed and managed compatibly without Wocus Bay, then the Government will be forced to acquire the bay and make it a part of the refuge.

Proceeds from the sale of tribal lands will be paid out on a proportionate basis to the 1,659 members of the Klamath Tribe who chose at a tribal election last April to withdraw and receive such payments. This represents over 77 percent of the 2,133 enrolled tribal members. A portion of the Klamath Indian Forest consisting of about 145,000 acres will be retained by the 474 members remaining in the tribal organization and will be managed as a sustained-yield unit.

About 85,000 acres of tribal lands are not included in the Klamath Indian Forest and Klamath Marsh by the designations because they consist mainly of grazing and farmlands. The grazing and farmlands contain scattered tracts of timber which can be offered for sale immediately without sustained-yield restrictions. Sales of these lands are being processed now.

The descriptions of the designated Klamath Indian Forest and Klamath Marsh areas will be published in the Federal Register in the near future.

Secretary of the Interior Fred A. Seaton today announced that the Bureau of Indian Affairs will step up its program of helping natives of Alaska modernize their fishing vessels so that they can compete more effectively by using the most efficient mechanical devices on their seine boats.

A recent development which has increased the efficiency of purse seine fishing in Alaska is the perfecting of a mechanical power block. This device takes advantage of engine power to help haul the seine and is being widely used by fishermen in purse seine operations on both the Pacific and Atlantic Coasts. While some of the native boats have installed the new power blocks during the past year, it was emphasized to Secretary Seaton on his recent trip to Alaska, that the further mechanization of the native fishing fleet would increase its efficiency.

The Indian Bureau's lending program in southeast Alaska is concentrated mainly in the villages of Angoon, Hydaburg, Kake, Klawock and Metlakatla where there are associations of the natives which own salmon canneries. Loans have been made by the Bureau to these associations and they have re-loaned money to their members for acquiring and operating fishing boats. Under the program announced today "the councils of these villages will make additional loans to members for power blocks and other modernization measures.

The associations now owe the United States $1,300,000 on loans previously made for boats and gear. In turn, they had loans outstanding to their individual members last June amounting to $1,100,000 and over $200,000 of cash available for additional loans.

Additional loans of more than $500,000 have been made by the associations this year, to help some members in modernizing their boats and to assist others in acquiring new and larger vessels capable of fishing in open waters. Prior to 1958 most of the native-owned boats were comparatively small and suitable for fishing safely only in the "inside" waters of Alaska.

Secretary of the Interior Cecil D. Andrus said today that Burnett Construction Company of Durango, Colo., has been awarded a $4.5 million contract by the Bureau of Reclamation for construction of 40 miles of collector drains on the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project near Farmington, N.M.

The contract is for work on the 10,000-acre Block No.2 of the 110,000- acre project.

When the Navajo Irrigation Project is complete, it should provide more than 6,550 farm-oriented and related jobs and an improved standard of living for more than 33,000 Navajo Indians, Commissioner of Reclamation R. Keith Higginson said.

Burnett's contract covers the construction and installation of drainage inlets, road crossings and inclined drops, as well as excavation of nearly 1 million cubic yards of soil. The Bureau engineer's estimate for the project was $3,886,920.

Interior Solicitor Leo M. Krulitz Friday said Indian tribal sovereignty could be endangered unless tribal leaders weigh the political ramifications of tribal decisions as carefully as they weigh other factors.

Krulitz told leaders of the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians meeting in Pocatello, Idaho, that the mood in the United States toward Indian rights has shifted in recent years as measured by a spate of anti-Indian legislation introduced in the last session of Congress. Federal courts, for years thought to be the last and strongest defense of Indian rights, have delivered a number of opinions recently which were adverse to Indian interests.

"The constituency for legislation such as that to abrogate all Indian treaties grew in part from a reaction to the progress, the gains of the Indian people--meager as those gains have been," said Krulitz. "And the constituency grew in part from the simple tenor of the times-­the realization that resources are scare and growing scarcer; the reality that there are no unclaimed resources and every assertion of Indian claims for those resources threatens those who also claim them.

"But those factors alone simply do not explain the vehemence, the hostility embodied in some of these anti-Indian legislative proposals. If we are going to be honest with ourselves, I think we have to conclude that the hostility grew, in significant part, from some of the things done or proposed in the name of tribal sovereignty."

As examples, Krulitz cited:

--Tribal governments which have asked the Interior Department to accept into trust status isolated tracts of land in non-Indian residential neighborhoods, then putting the land to commercial use for liquor stores, smokehouses or other things "all in the name of tribal sovereignty and all in disregard for the nature of the neighborhood."

-Proposals by some tribes to operate gambling casinos on trust lands;

--The "cavalier" treatment some tribal governments have given business agreements--trying to "change the economics of a deal by using the tribes taxing power."

"These are the kinds of things which threaten to make the air in this country plainly poisonous to tribal sovereignty," said Krulitz. "The tribes zoning powers are important and we'll defend them, but their indiscriminate use subjects both the zoning power and tribal sovereignty to risk.

"Bingo is one thing, but casino gambling? It's reasonable to expect hostility toward such proposals. And finally, many bad deals have been approved in the past and we'll do our best to correct them. But using the taxing power to do it places the taxing power itself in jeopardy."

Krulitz said tribal leaders must remember the unique status of Indian tribes in this country--that of "dependent sovereigns."

"If we forget the word 'dependent' we risk losing sovereignty," he said. "Secretary Cecil Andrus is charged with trusteeship over Indians, their property and the future of their way of life in this country. You know where he stands on the question of Indian rights.

"But he is legally bound to act in your long-term best interests and he takes that obligation very seriously. He won't approve a contract which provides you less than a fair return; he won't allow anything which threatens the long-term value of an Indian resource. Similarly, where he has the authority to approve or disapprove an ordinance, he will take into account the potential impact of tribal sovereignty and act accordingly--whether or not the tribes agree."

Krulitz said the Secretary has not only the authority but a legally binding duty to deny or disapprove any action or activity which could damage Indian interests or which threaten; to endanger tribal sovereignty.

"We hope the days of Washington’s dictating to the tribes is past," said Krulitz. "But the Secretary will carry out his duty. We are in a sensitive time, a delicate time--a time when perceptions are often more important than facts. We must conduct our affairs in such a way that we do not make it impossible for our friends in the Congress to continue showing that friendship.

'"You will have to consider in tribal decisions not only the economic and social implications of a given course but also the political--the public relations--implications."

The 1979 calendar of Indian fairs, exhibits, ceremonials, dances, feasts and other celebrations is now available, the Bureau of Indian Affairs announced today.

Most of the events in the state-by-state listings occur in the summer or fall months and are open to tourists and other visitors. The pocket-size booklet lists more than 500 items, giving the nature of the activity, dates and locations.

The booklet also contains some summary information about. Indians in the United States and the addresses of Bureau of Indian Affairs' field offices.

The calendar may be obtained for $2.30 from the, Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402. The stock number is 024-002-0067-5.

Regulations governing the preparation of a Yurok Indian voting list are being published in the Federal Register, the Bureau of Indian Affairs announced today.

The regulations, establishing criteria and procedures for developing such a voter list, are a first step toward the election of an interim governing committee and subsequent organization of the Yurok Tribe.

Proposed regulations were published December 28t 1978 and again on March 6t 1979. I addition to the written comments received in response to these publications, four meetings on the regulations were held on or near the Hoopa Valley Indian Reservation in Northern California.

The Federal Register notice responds to objections received that the proposed action would constitute an interference in Short v. United States, litigation which involves the question of who is entitled to participate in the distribution of income from assets of the Hoopa Valley Indian Reservation.

The notice summarizes that "the benefits to be derived from the establishment of a Yurok tribal government are substantial and go far beyond the assets and issues before the Court of Claims.

"Decisions may be made by the tribe itself on such matters as tribal membership, management and utilization of resources, rehabilitation of reservation lands I and fish and game environments, tribal housing, economic development~ protection of children, education and participation in other Federal programs. "

The exercise of tribal sovereignty and jurisdiction on the reservation may also take place. These benefits are not the subject of the Short case and will not be affected by a decision of the court.”

The regulations will become effective 30 days after publication.

Further information may be obtained from the Bureau of Indian Affairs Area Director, 2800 Cottage Way, Sacramento, Calif. 95825, 916-484-4682 or the office of Indian Services, Bureau of Indian Affairs 19th and C Streets, N.W., Washington D.C. 20240, 202-343-2111.

Interior Secretary Cecil ·D. Andrus said today that the proposed Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will provide a more orderly process for deciding which Federal land will be developed and which will be protected as wilderness.

Andrus said the current Federal organization makes it difficult to assemble and fully analyze the information choices available.

"Until we have the organizational framework to assemble this data, to analyze this data, and to propose comprehensive policies and programs based on these find­ings, we will continue to literally wander through the wilderness, our fate left to uncoordinated decisions based sometimes on fact and sometimes on emotion, but lacking relevance to the total needs of man, society and nature," Andrus said in remarks prepared for the Wilderness Resource Distinguished Lecture Series at the University of Idaho in Moscow.

The proposed Department would consist of all agencies now in the Department of the Interior, the Forest Service which would be transferred from the Department of Agriculture, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration from the Department of Commerce.

"We would have coordinated, consistent and efficient programs and policies to decide which areas should be designated as wilderness," Andrus said in describ­ing benefits of a DNR. ''We would eliminate situations where actions by one agency on land it manages impairs the wilderness potential of adjacent or nearby land administered by another Federal agency. We will be able to actually manage our Federal lands and resources rather than to continue playing a guessing game with each agency pursuing its own goals."

The Secretary noted that both industry and environmental groups have criticized the Federal government for its wilderness program.

"With DNR we will have a focal point; we will have one department were we can establish a policy and a rationale for it," Andrus said. If the policy displeases industry, industry will know where to place the blame. And just as industry has a "target to draw a bead on if it feels shorted, so do conservationists, preservationists, environmentalists and the like.”

The Secretary said that this still would amount to only 5 percent of the total gross area of the United States.

"Five percent is precious little to set aside for the regeneration of the natural world essential to maintain a planet worth living on," Andrus said.

The Secretary of the Interior Fred A. Seaton today announced the award of a $3,178,412 contract for construction of new boarding school facilities for more than 600 additional Indian children in the elementary grades at Leupp, Arizona, on the Navajo Reservation.

The new plant will have a capacity of 672 pupils. It will replace a 67-pupil school now operated by the Bureau at Leupp. Upon completion of the new facilities, the present school will be abandoned.

Construction of the new school is part of the Indian Bureau's long-range program to provide educational opportunities for all Indian children. Since the program was initiated on the Navajo Reservation five years ago, enrollment of Navajo children in schools of all types has increased from about 14,000 to over 28,000 in the school year that ended last spring.

Included in the Leupp construction contract are a 25-classroom and multipurpose building, four dormitories with a capacity of 168 pupils each, a kitchen and dining hall, an office building, a bus garage, a maintenance shop, a firehouse and warehouse, concrete sidewalks and play areas, paved streets and parking areas, utility systems, and quarters for 82 employees.

The successful bidder is Craftsman Construction Company, Denver, Colo. Their bid includes $7,000 for providing the streets with bituminous surfacing rather than gravel as called for in the Bureau’s basic invitation. Even with this addition, the bid was the lowest of 19 received. The others ranged from $3,205,700 to $3,710,000.

Proposed regulations to implement the provisions of the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 (P.L. 95-608) were published in the Federal Register April 23, Interior Deputy Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Rick Lavis said today.

Lavis also said that proposed regulations establishing procedures for Tribal Reassumption of jurisdiction over child custody proceedings and a statement of recommended guidelines for use by state courts in Indian child custody cases were published in the same Federal Register issue.

The Act deals with a deeply felt concern of the Indian community -- the proper care of Indian children needing adoptive or foster home care. Its main objective is to restrict the placement of Indian children by non-Indian social agencies in non-Indian homes and environments.

The Act makes clear that tribal courts have jurisdiction for children living on reservations. For those not living on reservations, it provides for the transfer of jurisdiction from state courts to tribal courts, under certain conditions and upon request of the child's parent, custodian or tribe.

The recommended guidelines for state courts are not mandatory. They were prepared by the Department of the Interior in response to the request of judges who asked for the Department's views on how they might best implement the Act.

Comments on the proposed regulations must be received by May 23.

For further information contact Raymond V. Butler, Division of Social Services, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Washington, D.C. 20240 (703-235-2756) or David Etheridge, Solicitor's Office, Department of the Interior, Washington, D.C. 20240 (202-343-6967).

A score of Indian leaders, representing the national Indian community, met in Albuquerque May 3-4 with Interior Assistant Secretary Forrest Gerard and staff to be briefed about Gerard's management improvement program for the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The Indian participants, invited through the National Tribal Chairmen's Association (NTCA) and the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) were told about the plans --and accomplishments to date --to decentralize Bureau management authority, install a new, expanded computer system for both program and fiscal operations, establish an administrative services center and a training and technical assistance center, and clarify the roles of the Bureau's central and area offices.

Gerard has spoken frequently to Indian groups about his plans to make more-than-cosmetic changes in the BIA management system. The session in Albuquerque was the first opportunity for a nuts-and-bolts review on all the projects involved.

Discussion covered the operations and cost of the new computer system and how services would be paid for; Gerard's interest in a continued Indian consultation process; whether the studies will lead to real decentralization, particularly at Area level; how the Bureau might respond to tribes needing management assistance now in operating contracts under P.L. 93-638; and how this study/plan is leading to short-term results, as well as setting the stage for longer term benefits.

Participants received summary information in a 30-page handout which included reports on information systems, a system for improved tracking of budget execution, administrative services reform, the central office review, the technical assistance and training project, and the Area Office reviews.

Gerard described the Bureau's present computer system as "ready for the Smithsonian." He said that the cost of replacing it and putting in the right kind of system will be "exceedingly high," hence he stressed the need for prudent acquisition and effective and efficient operations. He noted that Congress was providing some direct funding for the needed changes.