New cutoff in land-into-trust litigation is 1983
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Filed Under:
Law
|
Trust
The
U.S. Supreme Court
decision in
Carcieri
v. Salazar brought about a cutoff date for land-into-trust applications: 1934, the year the
Indian
Reorganization Act passed.
Tribes that weren't "under federal jurisdiction" in 1934 can't follow the land-into-trust process, according to the decision.
A lawsuit affecting the
Oneida Nation of New York could bring about another cutoff: 1983. That's the year the
Indian Land Consolidation Act was passed.
The Oneidas apparently acknowledge they aren't covered by the IRA. But they say a provision in ILCA affirms their right to follow the land-into-trust process.
The state of New York believes otherwise. According to The Syracuse Post-Standard, the dispute centers on the placement of a comma in ILCA.
The ILCA provision states that the federal government can acquire lands in trust for any "Indian tribe, band, group, pueblo, or community, for which, or for the members of which, the United States holds lands in trust."
The state says the comma after "community" can't save the Oneidas because the government has never held land in trust for the tribe.
Get the Story:
Arguments in Oneida Indian land trust case focus on comma in 1983 federal law
(The Syracuse Post-Standard 6/25)
Federal judge weighs legality of trust land for Oneida Indian Nation (The Oneida Dispatch 6/25)
Related Stories:
Court hearing for Oneida Nation land-into-trust
(6/23)
Deal with Oneida Nation dies
amid opposition (5/22)
Opinion: Oneida
Nation threatens Congressman Arcuri (5/20)
Opinion: Better deal needed for Oneida
land-into-trust (5/19)
Opinion: Oneida
Nation deal a step backward (5/13)
Oneida Nation land-into-trust deal needs state
action (5/12)
Deal proposed over Oneida
Nation land-into-trust (5/11)
Oneida
Nation and county near land-into-trust deal (5/8)
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