"President Obama and I are committed to empowering American Indian people, restoring the integrity of a nation-to-nation relationship with tribes, fulfilling the United States' trust responsibilities and working cooperatively to build stronger economies and safer Indian communities." Secretary Ken Salazar, April 2009
One of the President's first official actions was to issue an Executive Order directing federal agencies under the control of his cabinet secretaries to develop tribal consultation policies. Regardless of whether these agencies moved at an acceptable pace or in an acceptable manner, the fact that this was on the assignment board for all secretaries was monumental. Two and a half years into his administration, Tribes have had more opportunities than ever before to identify problems, propose solutions, and advance their priorities to the highest level of American government.
Almost every national tribal association has spoken about tribal economies, economic development, sustainability, and land use issues (all under the cover of sovereignty). This is critical point when considering one primary point of contention for me during my tenure with the Seminole Tribe of Florida, as an executive officer charged with the responsibility of the protection and preservation of our Tribe's historic resources, the THPO was one of my departments. Not a day would pass when we weren't reminded of how our issues never made it to the table even though our Tribal Chairman and Council, represented by legal counsel, put the BIA on notice.
The National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), in addition to its layers of regulations protecting historic and cultural resources, also authorizes Tribal Historic Preservation Offices (THPO). Not to go into great detail, the NHPA requires cultural resource surveys whenever a federal action is initiated. This is critical because any development of any reservation is pretty much a federal action because of ground disturbing activity or funding sources, at the very least. I know - your eyes are glazing over - but stay with me here... Who performs cultural resource surveys? For our Tribe, the BIA Eastern Regional Office has to review and approve all actions. So...a cultural resource survey, performed according to the Secretary of Interior's standards, must be reviewed by the BIA's Regional Archaeologist. Did I mention that for all Tribes east of the Mississippi there is one archaeologist? One. Now, let's say the Tribe pays for the survey because the federal agency charged with the trust responsibility never did any environmental or cultural surveys on their own. The data collected by the Tribe or their consultant belongs to the Tribe. So,when the report goes to the BIA Archaeologist to review and approve, what information do they have to base their opinion? Wait, it gets more complicated because after the BIA approves, they send it to the SHPO or THPO for concurrence. Yep... the THPO!
Sooooo... to save everyone time and money, why bring sovereignty into it, can we either amend the regs or legislation to bypass the BIA when a Tribe has a THPO? The Seminole Tribe of Florida has its own site file, archaeologists, and archaeological collection inventoried and stored with the nation's first and only tribally-governed museum to earn accreditation. Capacity and ability are not an issue for the Tribe because they invest in the protection or preservation of its historic resources. This is Seminole. There are Tribes who do not have the funding to make historic preservation or its requirements a priority because they have people to feed, educate and shelter.
To expand on this issue yet again, do you know how much a cultural resource survey costs? Thousands of dollars per acre! This is not an inexpensive federal requirement for Tribes who wish to use the land held in trust by the federal government! Fences, wells, houses, government buildings, schools, clinics, utility lines, sheds, chickees, you name it - you dig a hole or disturb the ground and/or use one penny of federal funding, NHPA kicks in.
USET's tribal leaders (United South and Eastern Tribes) passed two resolutions (2010 and 2011) calling for the Secretary of Indian Affairs to add cultural resources to the matrix of budget priorities.
So for all who are preaching the importance of building tribal economies good luck with that until someone, anyone, is willing to discuss this in the daylight!
Tina, you are right; I think that I am even have trouble following it here, so I will read it again in a moment.
ReplyDeleteI think the Seminole Tribe has done a magnificent job and really led the way with the TPHO and the Museum accreditation. I commend you for the years you had directing them.
The state of Florida has likewise led the way with the archaeological site file office with over 180,000 cultural and historical sites listed. But it doesn't seem like that will still ensure their preservation. The problem is that the mission of the site file office is not often appreciated by every governor, and was almost eliminated under Gov. Bush. I don't see much support for it under the current climate that seems anti-preservationist of our historic and cultural sites.