OPA

WASHINGTON – Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Kevin K. Washburn announced that the Department is extending the opportunity for public comment on a Preliminary Discussion Draft of potential changes to the Federal Acknowledgment Process by more than 30 days to September 25, 2013. This extended period is in response to written requests as well as requests received at the tribal consultation sessions and public meetings held in July and August.

The discussion draft, initially issued on June 21, 2013, is a preliminary precursor to the rulemaking process and is intended to provide tribes and the public an early opportunity to provide input on potential improvements to the Part 83 process. Once the Department begins the rulemaking process, tribes and the public will have additional opportunities to provide comment. The discussion draft is available for review at http://www.bia.gov/WhoWeAre/ASIA/ORM/83revise/index.htm.

Comments on the discussion draft may be submitted by email to consultation@bia.gov (include “1076-AF18” in the message subject line) or by mail to: Elizabeth Appel, Office of Regulatory Affairs and Collaborative Action, U.S. Department of the Interior, 1849 C Street, N.W., MS4141-MIB, Washington, D.C. 20240 (include “1076-AF18” on the cover of the submission).

-DOI-

WASHINGTON – The Secretarial Commission on Indian Trust Administration and Reform will hold the seventh in a series of public meetings on Aug. 19, 2013, in Anchorage, Alaska, as part of the Commission’s comprehensive evaluation of the Department of the Interior’s management and administration of Indian trust assets. The meeting also will be accessible by teleconference and Webinar.

Commission members will hear from speakers knowledgeable about the Federal-Indian trust relationship, other trust models and trust reform. They also will be looking at aspects of the trust relationship that are unique to Alaska under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act. The meeting will include a panel session on trust land and the U.S. Government’s trust responsibility in Alaska.

In addition, the management consultant firm Grant Thornton LLP will be present to gather attendees’ perspectives on how federal Indian trust administration currently operates. In March 2013, the company was awarded a contract in partnership with Cherokee Services Group, a Cherokee Nation-owned business, to perform a comprehensive evaluation of the Department’s management of the trust administration system in support of the Commission’s efforts.

“The Secretarial Commission on Indian Trust Administration and Reform is very interested in learning about the Alaska Native community’s views of the Interior Department’s trust management in Alaska,” said Commission Chair Fawn Sharp. “We welcome all input, perspectives and recommendations on how to improve the Department’s overall management of its trust responsibilities, and strongly encourage attendees and others to share their views and suggestions with the management consultant working with us, Grant Thornton, who also will be present to accept such information.”

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Department of the Interior today announced the launch of a new, comprehensive resource for Indian landowners and tribal governments seeking information about the Land Buy-Back Program for Tribal Nations (Buy-Back Program). The website, http://www.doi.gov/buybackprogram, will serve as a one-stop-shop for visitors interested in timely and regularly updated information about the Buy-Back Program.

As part of President Obama’s commitment to help strengthen Indian communities, the Buy-Back Program was created to implement the land consolidation component of the Cobell Settlement, which provided a $1.9 billion fund to purchase fractionated interests in trust or restricted land from willing sellers, at fair market value, within a 10 year period. The Buy-Back Program has the potential to unlock millions of acres of fractionated lands for the benefit of tribal communities.

“We know that one of the keys to the success of this program will be timely and reliable information,” said Kevin Washburn, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs at Interior. “This website will be one important tool that we will use to communicate with tribes as we work collaboratively to implement a fair, effective and efficient process for individual owners of fractionated interests to participate in the Buy-Back Program."

The new website includes extensive “Frequently Asked Questions” and information to assist individual landowners and tribes in gathering information about how they can participate in the Buy-Back Program and understand the valuation and sale process. Visitors can also get information about the Education Scholarship Fund for American Indians and Alaska Natives. The Buy-Back Program will contribute up to $60 million from land sales to this fund, which will be controlled by a board of trustees nominated by tribal governments. The fund will be administered by the American Indian College Fund in Denver, with 20% allotted to the American Indian Graduate Center in Albuquerque, NM.

As part of today’s launch, the Buy-Back Program is making available templates and guidance for the development of cooperative agreements that will allow for resources to be provided to individual tribal governments in order to facilitate their help with implementing the program, especially in key areas such as landowner outreach and education. Although these agreements will be tailored for each tribe, the templates will assist tribal governments with the development of an agreement that is responsive to the specific needs of the nation involved. Tribes may review and familiarize themselves with these documents and are encouraged to contact Buy-Back staff to discuss the documents before preparing or submitting an application.

“We have already begun work with a diverse group of tribes and will be engaging with additional locations and tribes in the coming weeks and months,” added Washburn. “To ensure that the Buy-Back Program reaches as many locations as possible over the next 10 years, we are committed to using the funds wisely and have implemented flexible purchase ceilings on each reservation to avoid premature exhaustion of available funds.”

The publication of these and other documents to assist tribal governments with outreach comes after months of government-to-government consultations and discussions with tribes to create agreements that underscore the sovereign and trust responsibilities of each party.

Interior holds about 56 million acres in trust for American Indians. More than 10 million acres are held for individual American Indians and nearly 46 million acres are held for Indian tribes. The Department holds this land in more than 200,000 tracts, of which about 92,000 (on approximately 150 reservations) contain fractional ownership interests subject to purchase by the Buy-Back Program. The Buy-Back Program plans to work with as many of the 150 tribes as possible over its 10-year period. Land research, valuation work, and outreach efforts are already underway at several locations. The Department’s goal is to make offers at one or more initial locations by the end of the year.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Assistant Secretary - Indian Affairs Kevin K. Washburn today issued a positive Secretarial Determination to the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin for an off-reservation class III gaming facility located on a 228-acre parcel in the City of Kenosha, Wisconsin. The land can be acquired in trust for gaming purposes only if the Governor concurs in the determination within one year.

Pursuant to Section 2719 of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA), the Assistant – Secretary can allow gaming on trust lands if it is determined that the Tribe’s proposed gaming facility would be: 1) in the best interest of the Tribe and its members, and 2) not detrimental to the surrounding community.

“After an extensive review of the Tribe’s gaming application it was determined that the application satisfies the rigorous standards contained in the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act,” Washburn said. “The tribe demonstrated that it had an unmet need for economic development to supplement their tribal government services to their members, and a historical connection to the Kenosha area.”

The proposed Kenosha gaming facility would be geographically located between two of the Menominee Tribe’s existing satellite offices in Milwaukee and Chicago. The Tribe intends to establish another satellite office at the Kenosha site to provide services to the Menominee tribal members that currently live in the area. The proposed gaming facility is projected to create more than 3,000 jobs in Menominee and Kenosha Counties.

The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) prohibits Indian gaming on lands acquired in trust after the law’s enactment in 1988, unless one of three explicitly crafted exceptions applies. The Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin submitted its application under IGRA’s “Secretarial Determination” exception, which requires the Secretary to determine the proposed gaming establishment is in the best interest of the tribe and its citizens, and would not be detrimental to the surrounding community, subject only to the Governor’s concurrence.

This exception for an off-reservation gaming location was previously used in Wisconsin when the Forest County Potawatomi Community established a very successful gaming operation in Milwaukee in 1990 which was located more than 200 miles from its reservation in Forest County. The proposed Kenosha operation is located 162 miles from the Menominee Tribe’s reservation headquarters in Menominee County.

Under IGRA, the Governor of Wisconsin has one year to concur in the Assistant Secretary’s determination. If the Governor does not concur in the Assistant Secretary’s determination, then the tribe may not conduct gaming on the proposed site.

Click here for the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin Gaming Decision

Click here for the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin Gaming Decision Fact Sheet

WASHINGTON, DC- On Wednesday, November 13, President Obama will host the White House Tribal Nations Conference at the Department of the Interior. The conference will provide leaders from the 566 federally recognized tribes the opportunity to interact directly with the President and members of the White House Council on Native American Affairs. Each federally recognized tribe will be invited to send one representative to the conference. This will be the fifth White House Tribal Nations Conference for the Obama Administration, and continues to build upon the President's commitment to strengthen the government-to-government relationship with Indian Country and to improve the lives of Native Americans. Additional details about the conference will be released at a later date.

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WASHINGTON – The Department of the Interior – Office of the Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs, Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), and Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) will provide limited services to tribes, students and individuals during the shutdown of the federal government. Of the total 8,143 employees, a total of 2,860 will be furloughed.

Bureau of Indian Affairs services that will continue functions that are necessary to protect life and property, including law enforcement and operations of detention centers; social services to protect children and adults; irrigation and power – delivery of water and power; firefighting and response to emergency situations.

Indian Affairs provides services directly or through contracts, grants, or compacts to a service population of more than 1.7 million American Indians and Alaska Natives who are enrolled members of 566 federally recognized tribes in the 48 contiguous United States and Alaska.

Funding for school operations is forward funded; therefore, Bureau of Indian Education activities will continue during the lapse in operations. All BIE funded schools, including Haskell Indian Nations University and Southwest Indian Polytechnic Institute, will remain open; BIE will maintain staff required to provide a safe and secure environment for students; transportation and maintenance of schools will continue; tribally-contracted school operations are forward funded and will remain open. The BIE provides education services to approximately 41,000 Indian students through 183 schools and dormitories and provides funding to 31 colleges, universities and post-secondary school.

Additional information on Indian Affairs’ contingency plan for operations during the government shutdown can be found at: www.doi.gov/shutdown.

The Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs has responsibility for fulfilling the Interior Department’s trust responsibilities and promoting self-determination on behalf of the 566 federally recognized American Indian and Alaska Native tribal governments. The Assistant Secretary oversees the Bureau of Indian Affairs and Bureau of Indian Education.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – As part of President Obama’s commitment to help strengthen American Indian communities, the Department of the Interior today released its revised Land Buy-Back Program Valuation Plan. The Appraisal Foundation (TAF), the nation’s foremost authority on appraisal standards and qualifications, performed a comprehensive review of the draft Plan, which was revised to incorporate all of TAF’s recommendations.

“There is no greater authority for establishing standards for appraisals and qualifications for appraisers than The Appraisal Foundation,” said Kevin Washburn, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs. “TAF’s independent analysis confirms that the steps we are taking to determine fair market value for offers to landowners are cost-effective and conform to the best practices for valuation. We are grateful for their comprehensive review and have incorporated their recommendations into the Valuation Plan we will use in the months and years ahead as we work through a transparent process to provide fair market value to tribal landowners.”

The Valuation Plan will guide the methods Interior uses to determine the value of fractional lands held by Indian landowners to ensure that willing sellers are offered fair market value for their land interests. The Land Buy-Back Program for Tribal Nations (Buy-Back Program) implements the land consolidation component of the Cobell Settlement, which made $1.9 billion available to purchase fractionated interests in trust or restricted land from willing sellers within 10 years. Upon purchase, interests will be held in trust for tribal governments for their beneficial use.

TAF, a non-profit, non-partisan organization authorized by Congress to issue national appraiser standards and qualifications and guidance on valuation methods, found the Department’s Valuation Plan a sound approach to meeting the appraisal demands required of the Buy-Back Program.

“We are honored to participate in this historic project and to lend our expertise to the Department of the Interior and its mission to provide Indian landowners with a fair market price for their fractional lands,” said David S. Bunton, President of The Appraisal Foundation. “The Land Buy-Back Program is a massive undertaking deserving the highest quality in appraisal standards and techniques. We are pleased that the Department has incorporated all of our recommendations and we are confident that these will greatly benefit landholders for years to come.”

The Buy-Back Program has the potential to unlock millions of acres of fractionated lands for the benefit of tribal communities. Interior holds about 56 million acres in trust for American Indians. More than 10 million acres are held for individual American Indians and nearly 46 million acres are held for Indian tribes. The Department holds this land in more than 200,000 tracts, of which about 93,500 (on approximately 150 reservations) contain fractional ownership interests subject to purchase by the Buy-Back Program.

Because of the large number of properties involved, the Buy-Back Program plans to use mass appraisal techniques in which values are assessed simultaneously for many properties within a particular geographic area. TAF specifically analyzed and concurred with the Program’s determination that mass appraisals are the most efficient and cost-effective means to appraise similar, non-complex, vacant lands that have comparable land sales available. At the same time, recognizing that mass appraisals may not be appropriate for all tracts, TAF also reviewed the other appraisal methodologies identified in the Plan for such instances, including project appraisals and property-specific appraisals.

The Buy Back Program Valuation Plan was developed by the Office of Appraisal Services in the Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians.

The revised Valuation Plan, TAF’s analysis, and the Department’s response to specific recommendations, are available at: www.doi.gov/buybackprogram/appraisals. More information about The Appraisal Foundation can be found here.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – As part of President Obama’s commitment to help strengthen American Indian communities, the Department of the Interior today released its revised Land Buy-Back Program Valuation Plan. The Appraisal Foundation (TAF), the nation’s foremost authority on appraisal standards and qualifications, performed a comprehensive review of the draft Plan, which was revised to incorporate all of TAF’s recommendations.

“There is no greater authority for establishing standards for appraisals and qualifications for appraisers than The Appraisal Foundation,” said Kevin Washburn, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs. “TAF’s independent analysis confirms that the steps we are taking to determine fair market value for offers to landowners are cost-effective and conform to the best practices for valuation. We are grateful for their comprehensive review and have incorporated their recommendations into the Valuation Plan we will use in the months and years ahead as we work through a transparent process to provide fair market value to tribal landowners.”

The Valuation Plan will guide the methods Interior uses to determine the value of fractional lands held by Indian landowners to ensure that willing sellers are offered fair market value for their land interests. The Land Buy-Back Program for Tribal Nations (Buy-Back Program) implements the land consolidation component of the Cobell Settlement, which made $1.9 billion available to purchase fractionated interests in trust or restricted land from willing sellers within 10 years. Upon purchase, interests will be held in trust for tribal governments for their beneficial use.

TAF, a non-profit, non-partisan organization authorized by Congress to issue national appraiser standards and qualifications and guidance on valuation methods, found the Department’s Valuation Plan a sound approach to meeting the appraisal demands required of the Buy-Back Program.

“We are honored to participate in this historic project and to lend our expertise to the Department of the Interior and its mission to provide Indian landowners with a fair market price for their fractional lands,” said David S. Bunton, President of The Appraisal Foundation. “The Land Buy-Back Program is a massive undertaking deserving the highest quality in appraisal standards and techniques. We are pleased that the Department has incorporated all of our recommendations and we are confident that these will greatly benefit landholders for years to come.”

The Buy-Back Program has the potential to unlock millions of acres of fractionated lands for the benefit of tribal communities. Interior holds about 56 million acres in trust for American Indians. More than 10 million acres are held for individual American Indians and nearly 46 million acres are held for Indian tribes. The Department holds this land in more than 200,000 tracts, of which about 93,500 (on approximately 150 reservations) contain fractional ownership interests subject to purchase by the Buy-Back Program.

Because of the large number of properties involved, the Buy-Back Program plans to use mass appraisal techniques in which values are assessed simultaneously for many properties within a particular geographic area. TAF specifically analyzed and concurred with the Program’s determination that mass appraisals are the most efficient and cost-effective means to appraise similar, non-complex, vacant lands that have comparable land sales available. At the same time, recognizing that mass appraisals may not be appropriate for all tracts, TAF also reviewed the other appraisal methodologies identified in the Plan for such instances, including project appraisals and property-specific appraisals.

The Buy Back Program Valuation Plan was developed by the Office of Appraisal Services in the Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians.

The revised Valuation Plan, TAF’s analysis, and the Department’s response to specific recommendations, are available at: www.doi.gov/buybackprogram/appraisals. More information about The Appraisal Foundation can be found here.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – As part of President Obama’s commitment to help strengthen Indian communities, and following nation-to-nation consultations with tribal leaders, the Department of the Interior is expanding the implementation strategy for the Land Buy-Back Program for Tribal Nations (Buy-Back Program).

The move to engage a significant amount of tribal governments expands on the Department’s initial plan to launch pilot efforts with less than a dozen tribes, allows for a greater amount of engagement across Indian Country, and provides more flexibility and transparency for tribal governments. The cooperative agreements would make funds available to tribal governments to implement key aspects of the Buy-Back Program, such as owner outreach and education. Tribes have the opportunity to actively participate in the process, including identifying acquisition priorities, which will improve the program’s effectiveness and efficiency while minimizing administrative costs.

“This is a major step forward toward strengthening tribal sovereignty by supporting consolidation of tribal homelands,” said Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell. “We are moving quickly to establish individualized cooperative agreements, which address the specific needs of each tribe and provide resources for tribal communities to implement the program. Although the task ahead is challenging, we have been given a historic opportunity to work together with Indian Country to meet this challenge.”

The Buy-Back Program was created to implement the land consolidation component of the Cobell Settlement. The Settlement provided for a $1.9 billion Trust Land Consolidation Fund (Fund) to consolidate fractional trust or restricted land interests across Indian Country. The BuyBack Program allows interested individual owners to receive payments for voluntarily selling their land. All lands sold will immediately be held in trust for the tribe with jurisdiction.

Interior holds about 56 million acres in trust for American Indians. More than 10 million acres are held for individual American Indians and nearly 46 million acres are held for Indian tribes. The Department holds this land in more than 200,000 tracts, of which nearly 94,000 – on about 150 reservations – contain fractional ownership interests available for purchase by the Buy-Back Program.

This solicitation will expand the program implementation work already underway and requests tribes to work with Interior to determine the estimated schedule in which they wish to ultimately conduct outreach and engagement. An open solicitation period will be held through March 14, 2014, during which tribes with jurisdiction over these most fractionated locations are invited to submit letters of interest or cooperative agreement applications for participation in the program. Additional solicitations will follow this initial period. Significant outreach, mapping and mineral evaluations are already occurring at many locations.

“We have heard from tribal leaders and individual landowners that they want predictability and transparency on the timing of implementation efforts,” said Kevin K. Washburn, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs. “This open solicitation puts much of the timing in the hands of tribal governments and will allow the program to move on a quicker timeline.”

Implementation decisions will still rely on a number of factors, such as the severity of fractionation; degree of ownership overlap between tracts; geographic location to maximize efficiency and resources; appraisal complexity; and overall interest of the tribe as indicated by their cooperative agreement application.

More information on this solicitation is available here.

Outreach and tribal engagement will also continue with the tribes that represent the locations with the remaining 10 percent of fractionated lands. Flexible purchase ceilings will be used to protect against the risk of premature exhaustion of the available funds.

The program also released an Updated Implementation Plan today, which builds upon significant consultation and feedback from tribal nations over the past year. Updates outlined in the plan include a number of steps that tribal nations can take now to prepare for involvement in the BuyBack Program. These steps include increasing owner awareness of the value and benefits of participation in the program and designating an authorized tribal point of contact to engage with the Program.

The Updated Implementation Plan can be found here.

WASHINGTON, DC – In advance of the 5th White House Tribal Nations Conference, Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Kevin K. Washburn today announced a final rule that demonstrates the Obama Administration’s continuing commitment to restoring tribal homelands and furthering economic development on Indian reservations. The final rule will provide for greater notice of land-into-trust decisions and clarify the mechanisms for judicial review, depending on whether the land is taken into trust by the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, or by an official of the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

This rule finalizes a proposed rule that was published on May 29, 2013, and was the subject of a Tribal consultation held earlier this summer in Reno, Nevada. In response to requests from commenters, the Department extended the 60-day public comment period, which ended September 3, 2013. In total, the Department received more than 65 comment submissions.

“This rule provides greater certainty to tribes in their ability to develop lands acquired in trust for purposes such as housing, schools and economic development,” said Assistant Secretary Washburn. “For such acquisitions, the rule will create a ‘speak now or forever hold your peace moment’ in the land-into-trust process. If parties do not appeal the decision within the administrative appeal period, tribes will have the certainty and peace of mind to begin development without fear that the decision will be later overturned.”

For the Bureau of Indian Affairs trust acquisition decisions, which are generally for non-gaming purposes and constitute the overwhelming majority of land-into-trust decisions, the final rule ensures that parties have adequate notice of the action and clarifies the requirement that exhaustion of administrative remedies within the Department is necessary to seek judicial review.

For decisions made by the Assistant Secretary, the rule clarifies that the Assistant Secretary’s decision is final and allows the Assistant Secretary to proceed with taking the land-into-trust with no waiting period. Because a simple change in ownership status itself is not an act that causes irreparable harm in many cases, it will place the burden on litigants seeking to block such action to come forth and demonstrate such harm if they wish to prevent the trust acquisition from occurring, while not affecting the right to judicial review of the basic decision.

The final rule also effectively repeals a requirement for a 30-day waiting period which was first created in 1996. The waiting period was intended to ensure that interested parties had the opportunity to seek judicial review under the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 704) before the Secretary acquired title to land in trust. See 61 FR 18082 (Apr. 24, 1996).

The legal landscape changed, however, on June 18, 2012, when the Supreme Court issued its decision in Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians v. Patchak, 132 S. Ct. 2199 (2012). In that decision, the Supreme Court held that the law does not bar Administrative Procedure Act challenges to the Department’s determination to take land in trust even after the United States acquires title to the property, unless the aggrieved party asserts an ownership interest in the land as the basis for the challenge.

Following Patchak, the 1996 procedural rule, which established a 30-day waiting period before taking land into trust to allow for Administrative Procedure Act review, is no longer needed. Unless judicial review under the Administrative Procedure Act is precluded on some other basis, such as standing, timeliness, or a failure to exhaust administrative remedies, judicial review of the Secretary’s decision is available under the Administrative Procedure Act even after the Secretary has acquired title to the property.