$93 billion is the difference between the $7 billion the Department of Interior has offered to pay holders of Native American tribal and individual land trust accounts and the $100+ billion those account holders claim they are owed. Tribal land accounts date back to 1820 when the U.S. government initially authorized each Native American to receive 160 acres of land to be held in trust by the U.S. government. The land trusts originally totaled 146 million acres of land, of which the U.S. government then sold 90 million acres to non-Indians, leaving 56 million acres in trust. Beginning in 1887 the federal government, through the Department of Interior Bureau of Indian Affairs, became trustees for individual Indian accounts. The Historical Accounting Project for Individual Indian Money (IIM) Accounts is the first comprehensive attempt to ascertain exactly who is owed how much. The project began in 1999 and will continue into 2011, unless Congress determines the project is not yet completed, a good possibility. 40 million pieces of documentation have been coded thus far and included in a database, at a cost of $274 million.
The end of this project is nowhere in sight. The Bureau of Indian Affairs can only reconcile tribal, not individual, accounts from 1972 to the present. A century of paperwork is missing, not counting the 162 cartons of documents dating back to 1900 the government "accidentally" destroyed when the project began as a result of a lawsuit filed by Blackfeet Nation member Elouise Cobell (Cobell vs. Kempthorne). There are an estimated 320,000 individual trust accounts involving more than 4 million payers who made more than 100 million transactions. Neither side in the lawsuit can reliably estimate the number of possible beneficiaries involved in the case.
The previous presiding judge, Judge Royce Lamberth, termed the Department of Interior "the morally and culturally oblivious hand-me-down of a disgracefully racist and imperialist government." He has since been removed from the case. The Department of Interior last month flat out refused to abide by another federal judge's order to turn over electronic records to Cobell defendants. Small wonder that Native Americans believe the accounting project is merely one more attempt by the federal government to shirk its fiduciary duties and limit its liability.
Closing Bell: Dubai sends jitters throughout the market (S, BBY)
Heinz looking good after the second quarter?
Why isn't Bank of America updating its shareholders on CEO situation?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
10-13-2007 @ 11:19AM
Doddi said...
its to bad Indians shared with the goverment and now look what happened?
10-13-2007 @ 1:07PM
Lissa said...
As a country ...we stole America, and just like African AMericans will never get money from the lame 40 acres and a mule deal, the poor natives will gill comparatively bupkis, nada, nothing , zilch. America was built on stealing, lying, cheating, elitist, racist, classist, imperialist, Bull crap. The fact of the matter is we simply can not afford to pay native tribes what we owe them. I have been to 3 reservations and they all seem to have gotten a bum deal. The lost of culture, language, history, and beautiful ethnic groups can never be made up for. The best we can do is to own up to our errors and try to find some middle ground instead of bs'ing for another 100 years.
As someone of african slave, european slave owner, and native american descent - I wish we could get issues like this behind us as a country. However, my knowing that money, power, and greed being the root of alot of evil.... I don't expect it to.
10-29-2007 @ 9:50PM
Sean said...
Native American land disputes have been swept under the carpet for too long. These issues started at the Federal level long ago. The U.S. needs to redress these issues so we can move on from our dark past.
It would only be fair considering that European Jews received their reparations from WWII Germany et.al.
10-13-2007 @ 9:47PM
James said...
If you two think so little of America, leave. "I wish we could get issues like this behind us as a country". Hey, it's far behind me. I DID NOT DO IT! I am so tired of you bleeding hearts trying to give MY money to every Tom, Dick and Chief Harry Bull that comes to the media with a sob story."we stole America"???? I didn't steal anything. You want the guilty to pay, DIG THEM UP AND SEARCH THIER POCKETS!"America was built on stealing, lying, cheating, elitist, racist, classist, imperialist, Bull crap". Are you high? What county are you from, Cuba? You sound like a child,or a lib college kid. The great men that built this country would laugh at your pothetic socialist spew.You can thank them for your right to be an idiot. In other countries, you would be shot.
10-14-2007 @ 9:40AM
Yon said...
Lissa, honestly, how many countries in existence today were not at least partially built upon "stealing, lying, cheating, elitist, racist, classist, imperialist, Bull crap."
It might be time to break out a history book; You act as if all other countries were birthed fully formed and populated at the dawn of the universe.
10-15-2007 @ 3:33PM
Bull said...
James ... you really have your head up your behind, don't you? What world are you living in, anyway?
The land you currently call home was once owned by someone else. Your government, our government, made promises to the Indians long ago that are not being held. The "sob story" you refer to from "Chief Harry Bull" is a TRUE story, not BS. Open your eyes, James, and do some research. Indians are among the poorest populas in the US and, if you're any kind of American, you would be ashamed of the handling of Indian monies by a government that would rather sweep accounting of monies owed under the carpert than admit their wrong doing.
We're talking about people here ... who cares about the color of their skin? I have a feeling you do. Which white castle are you living in? What upscale suburb in America? Have you ever set foot on a reservation in your life? My guess is no seeing as how you can so easily deem the true plight of Indians current state of living a "sob story".
Answer this ... when the US is the supposed richest country in the world, why can our goverment not figure out how to manage accounts for its own people? Indians are Americans too ... as a matter of fact, they're the first Americans. They deserve the same respect you do. I would say even more than you since you evidently don't give a rat's ass about anyone but yourself.
You're tired of the government giving "your money" away? Why don't you go live in another country then? Why don't you stop paying taxes then? Why don't you just dig a hole and crawl in to it? America needs less people like you in it ... you bigot. We'd all be better off if you and people who think like you simply went away.
10-23-2007 @ 6:18PM
Kathleen said...
Ignorance about Native America is too vast to discuss and address here. However, terms like Redskins, The Tribe, sovereignty, indigenous nudity, and casino gold are all examples of what most non-Natives don't know a thing about. IIM accounts can be included. So unless you are an IIM account holder, you really have no purposeful say in what the federal government should or should not do to resolve their mismanagement. No one is telling you what to do with your trust funds, giving you bank statements that are missing $100,000 here and there that you wouldn't report or fight for. Historical oppression created by policies made by Anglo politicians forced on Indian people is enough for the courts to determine the trust should be paid at any amount for the next 500 years. If there are alternatives then I think IIM account holders would be glad to exchange the U.S. debt to Indians for the land back.. Starting with Manhattan, then Las Vegas, and the District of Columbia, they haven't changed its tribal architecture much, they just added stone buildings to hold their money and western European ideologies.