Chairman’s Report
The Siletz Tribe's legislation has been
passed by the House Natural Resource
Committee and historical issues between
Siletz and Coos have not been worked out.
An amendment added by Congressman
Peter DeFazio was meant to solve the
issue agreed to by the Tribes, however, the
Coos Tribe is now not agreeable. Below
is our position on the history.
Response to Coos Tribe’s
arguments against the
Siletz legislation
Ancestral lands (Coos) versus
Reservation lands (Siletz)
The Coos Tribe's narrative tries to
equate ancestral lands with Reservation
lands. This maneuver is legally and his
torically unfounded because the Confed
erated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and
Siuslaw Indians (recognized by Congress
in 1984) never historically had a separate
reservation. This is the fundamental jus
tification for their new proposal to have
15.000 acres of federal land transferred to
their exclusive ownership. Lane County
should carefully consider that legislation
because it will remove Lane County lands
from county jurisdiction without any
opportunity to comment or appeal.
If “ancestral lands” were the legal
threshold for seeking on-reservation treat
ment in the fee-to-trust process, then the
Siletz and Grand Ronde Tribes should be
granted on-reservation status for every
acre of western Oregon, from the crest
of the Cascade Mountains to the Pacific
Ocean, because the Tribes and bands
that comprise those two Tribes are from
throughout western Oregon. The over
reach of such a proposal demonstrates
why the on-reservation process is con
fined by law and regulation to the obvious:
the boundaries of historically established
reservations. The Coos Tribe’s quest for
“fair" treatment seeks to fundamentally
alter and change law that has existed for
at least the last 75 years. In contrast, the
Siletz Tribe’s legislation merely seeks to
apply the current fee-to-trust regulations
to the unique historical circumstances of
the Siletz Tribe.
Moreover, the Siuslaw Indians liv
ing within the Siletz/Coast Reservation
became part of the Siletz Confederated
Tribe. Unfortunately the Coos Tribe has
a pattern of asserting false legal ties to
these people. For example, when the
Coos Tribe sought to have the Hatch Tract
placed into trust near Florence in 1997,
the Coos Tribe informed the Bureau of
Indian Affairs that the land “belongs to
an Indian family with long-standing ties
to the Confederated Tribes |of Coos,
Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians].”1
In reality, the property had always been
owned by individuals associated with the
Siletz Tribe.
Coos Tribe cannot have
“on-reservation” status for a
reservation that never existed
The Coos Tribe is asking the county
to support what history and the law pre
clude: to give them a right to the historic
Siletz Coast Reservation. While both the
Coos and Siletz Tribes have ancestors
who resided in the Siuslaw watershed,
those Siuslaw Indians who resided there
after 1855 became Siletz Indians.
The Siletz bill does not affect other
rights the Coos Tribe has within the area
described in the legislation (historic Siletz
Reservation). For example, on federal
and state lands the Coos Tribe will still
be consulted along with the Siletz Tribe
on cultural/historic matters such as the
discovery of human remains or items of
archaeological significance.
This differs from the Coos Tribe’s
own proposal to have Congress transfer
15,000 acres of federal land to the Tribe
for its exclusive use. If the Coos Tribe’s
own arguments of the rights to “ancestral
lands” were extended to their own pro
posal, the Siletz Tribe would have equal
claim to those lands and it should be
placed into trust equally for both Tribes.
Coos Tribe would not
be “disadvantaged” if Siletz
bill is passed
The Bureau of Indian Affairs specifi
cally responded to this argument at a hear
ing in the House Subcommittee on Indian
& Alaska Native Affairs in July 2012.
When asked if Siletz could effectively
“veto" land acquisitions by the Coos Tribe
within the area covered in the Siletz bill,
the BIA Director Mike Black stated that
“the only time that [Tribal veto] comes
into question is if another Tribe is trying
to acquire lands within the jurisdictional
boundaries of another reservation.” The
Siletz legislation does not create a juris
dictional boundary for the Siletz Tribe, it
merely directs the BIA to process Siletz’s
fee-to-trust applications in a different
manner. There is no change whatsoever
to how an application from the Coos
Tribe would be handled.
Delores Pigsley
This was further evidenced at the
same hearing when BIA Director Black
was asked “If H.R.6141 (the predecessor
to HR 931) became law, could the Coos
Tribe seek to have its claimed ancestral
land within the Coast Reservation taken
into trust?” Director Black responded. “I
believe they could, yes sir.” Even if the
Siletz bill is signed into law, the Coos
Tribe still has the ability it has now to
purchase land and seek its placement into
trust status.
As discussed above, the Coos Tribe
does not have the same historical or legal
right to on-reservation treatment in this
geographic area. It was the Siletz Tribe’s
historical reservation and the Coos Tribe
merely has an ancestral claim to part
Continued on page 3
Elders Council Meeting
|
|
•
Siletz News is free to enrolled Siletz Tribal members. For all others, a $ 12
annual subscription fee applies. Please make checks payable to CTSI and mail
to Siletz News.
Name:
1 §
Address:_______________________ ________ __ ________________________
■ |
Phone:_________________________ ____________________________________
Change of address: Tribal members - contact the Enrollment Depart-
ment at 541-444-8258; 800-922-1399, ext. 1258; or covas@ctsi.nsn.us. All
others - call the newspaper office.
Send information to:
Deadline for the October
issue is Sept. 9.
Siletz News
Submission of articles and
photos is encouraged.
Please see the Passages
Policy on page 28 when sub
mitting items for Passages.
P.O. Box 549
Siletz, OR 97380-0549
541-444-8291 or
800-922-1399, ext. 1291
Fax: 541-444-2307
Email: pias@ctsl.nsn.us
•
Siletz News
•
Member of the Native American
Journalists Association
September 2013
Sept. 21 • 1-4 p.m.
Chinook Winds Golf Resort
I
I
2
|
I
For more information, contact Dee Navarro at 800-922-1399,
ext. 1261; 541-444-8261; or deen@ctsl.nsn.us.
I
Nuu-wee-ya’ (OUr words)
Introduction to the Athabaskan language
Open to Tribal members of all ages
Eugene
Portland
Eugene Area Office
Sept. 9 - 6-8 p.m.
Oct. 7 - 6-8 p.m.
Portland Area Office
Sept. 16 - 6-8 p.m.
Oct. 14 - 6-8 p.m.
Siletz
Salem
Siletz Tribal Community Center
Sept. 11 - 6-8 p.m.
Oct. 8 - 6-8 p.m.
Salem Area Office
Sept. 17 - 6-8 p.m.
Oct. 15 - 6-8 p.m.
Classes begin with basic instruction and progress over the year. They also
are a refresher course for more-advanced students. Come and join other members
of your community and Tribe in learning to speak one of our ancient languages.
We also have equipment in the Cultural Department available for use in
grinding and drilling shell or pine nuts or other applications. If you need to use
the equipment, call the number below to set up an appointment.
For more information, contact Bud Lane at the Siletz Cultural Department
at 541-444-8320 or 800-922-1399, ext. 1320; or email budl@ctsi.nsn.us.