Tribes agree to $1 billion settlement with federal government

WASHINGTON, D.C. — After 22 months of negotiation, on Wednesday, April 11, senior members of the Obama Administration joined tribal leaders to announce a $1 billion settlement of lawsuits filed by more than 40 federally-recognized tribes against the federal government for mismanagement of monetary assets and natural resources.

“We’re pleased to be among the 41 tribal nations that have successfully reached a long-anticipated settlement,” said CSKT Chairman Joe Durglo. “This is a positive moment in a long and sometimes contentious history with the federal government.”

Many of the cases include claims by the tribes that go back over 100 years.

“These settlements fairly and honorably resolve historical grievances over the accounting and management of tribal trust funds, trust lands, and other non-monetary trust resources that, for far too long, have been a source of conflict between Indian tribes and the United States,” said Attorney General Holder in another press release. “Our commitment to tribes is the cornerstone of the Department of Justice’s policies and initiatives in Indian Country, and these settlements will enable the tribal community to pursue the goals and objectives they deem to be appropriate while marking another step in our shared future built upon mutual respect and strong bonds of trust between tribal governments and the United States.”

The Department of the Interior manages almost 56 million acres of trust lands for federally-recognized tribes and more than 100,000 leases on those lands for various uses, including housing, timber harvesting, farming, grazing, oil and gas extraction, business leasing, rights-of-way and easements. It also manages about 2,500 tribal trust accounts for more than 250 tribes, including leases for oil and gas and grazing rights. Dozens of tribes have filed suits in recent years claiming the accounts have been mismanaged.

According to a press release from the White House on Wednesday, the resolution of longstanding disputes is a key pillar of President Obama’s record for American Indians and Alaska Natives. In 2010, the administration settled the $760 million Keepseagle case brought by Native American farmers and ranchers who alleged discrimination by the Department of Agriculture (USDA) in its administration of loan programs. President Obama also signed into law the Claims Resolution Act of 2010, which included the Cobell settlement agreement resolving a lawsuit over the management and accounting of over 300,000 individual American Indian trust accounts. The Claims Resolution Act also included four water rights settlements, benefitting seven tribes in Arizona, Montana and New Mexico.

Most recently, in October 2011, the administration reached a $380 million settlement with the Osage Nation over the tribe’s long-standing lawsuit regarding the government’s management of trust funds and non-monetary trust resources. That settlement featured, among other things, prospective management measures designed to further improve the trust relationship between the tribe and the United States.

“[The] event will mark another key step forward in the administration’s efforts to resolve the disputes that have clouded the shared history of the United States and Indian tribes,” wrote Charlie Galbraith, an associate director in the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs.

Under the negotiated settlement agreements, litigation will end regarding the Department of the Interior’s accounting and management of the tribes’ trust accounts, trust lands and other natural resources. With monies from the congressionally-appropriated Judgment Fund, which is used to pay settlements or final judgments against the government, the United States will compensate the tribes for their breach of trust claims, and the tribes will waive, release and dismiss their claims with prejudice.

The parties have agreed to information sharing procedures that will strengthen the management of trust assets and improve communications between tribes and the Department of the Interior. The settlement agreements also include dispute resolution provisions to reduce the likelihood of future litigation.