Kevin Leecy: Tribes remain a vital segment of our community

Indians pay taxes. Just like you, we pay federal and state income taxes as well as taxes on purchases. The exception is Indians who live and work on a reservation: They don’t pay state income taxes. That is a very small percentage of the Native population.

Not only do individual Indians pay taxes, so do Indian businesses. Ever noticed the abbreviation FICA on your pay stub? That stands for the Federal Insurance Contributions Act tax. It’s the amount of money you are paying into Social Security and Medicare so that you will have those funds when you retire. But you’re not the only one paying in. Your employer pays an equal amount into Social Security and Medicare for you. That means on every reservation where there is a casino, tribes are contributing to FICA for hundreds or even thousands of employees, many of whom are non-Indian.

Tribes also make payments in lieu of taxes to local governments to help fund public safety and infrastructure. For example, the Bois Forte Band has paid thousands of dollars to townships near our reservation for firefighting and ambulance services.

Tribes always have retained their lands. Virtually all of the land in the United States was acquired through treaties or agreements with Indian tribes. Sometimes treaty negotiations were conducted honorably, sometimes not. Sometimes treaties were upheld; other times they were broken.