"According to Vincent Armenta, Chumash tribal chairman, "Fee-to-trust returns lost land to the tribe and returns it to the local control of the lone local government that's been in place long before the county government or any nearby city government existed."

The power brokers - politicians and others of influence - have engineered a system using Native Americans to form tribal governments to operate in secret, outside the U.S. Constitution and local and state jurisdiction.

This system fueled by power via their hundreds of millions of dollars from untaxed casino profits also includes massive federal subsidy - money out of your pockets, and impacts public health and safety and your property values.

Chairman Armenta has stated the Chumash tribe is no different than any other city or municipality.

That is laughable. The power brokers have successfully designed them to be closed. They have no legal accountability to the public."

Get the Story:
Kathy Cleary: Tribal sovereignty warrants big debate (The Solvang Valley News 2/23)