Deputy Attorney General Sally Q. Yates of the Department of Justice speaks at the White House Tribal Nations Conference in Washington, D.C, on September 26, 2016. Photo by Indianz.Com
Another 17 tribes have settled their trust fund lawsuits against the federal government, taking advantage of the few months left in the administration of President Barack Obama. The latest settlements total nearly $430 million. That brings the total value dollar to more than $3.3 billion since Obama came on board in January 2009. "Settling these long-standing disputes reflects the Obama administration’s continued commitment to reconciliation and empowerment for Indian Country," Interior Secretary Sally Jewell said in a press release on Monday. The Quinault Nation of Washington is among with settlements. The tribe expects to receive about $27 million, after attorney fees and other costs are addressed, to resolve its breach of trust and mismanagement claims "This is great news, and a historic moment for the Quinault Indian Nation,” said President Fawn Sharp, who led a discussion during the White House Tribal Nations Conference on Monday. “We thank the Obama administration for honoring its commitment to settle historic trust cases and right decades of injustice to the Quinault Indian Nation.” Other settlements include $6 million for the Penobscot Nation in Maine and $12.5 million for Acoma Pueblo in New Mexico. They are part of a lawsuit that the Quinault Nation originally filed in April 2013, which grew to include more tribes as plaintiffs. More than 100 tribes have gone to court to seek an accounting of their trust funds and trust assets. Most of the lawsuits were filed toward the end of the Bush administration because they faced a critical deadline to assert their claims. For years, Congress extended the deadline without much debate or controversy. But that changed when the Bush administration -- under fire for its handling of the Cobell trust fund case -- opposed further extensions. But almost all of those cases have since been settled by the Obama administration. The first round came in April 2012 and dozens more followed over the years. Other cases, some of which have toiled in the courts for decades, also have been resolved. "This is an important achievement that will end, honorably and fairly, decades of contention that not only sapped valuable resources but also strained relationships," Sally Q. Yates, the deputy attorney general at the Department of Justice, said during the White House Tribal Nations Conference. The tribal settlements are in addition to the $3.4 billion settlement for the Cobell trust fund case, which involved the trust funds and trust assets of individual Indians. The case was the largest class action in the history of the United States. Internal Revenue Service Documents:
Notice 2015-67: Per Capita Distributions of Funds Held in Trust by the Secretary of the Interior (September 2015)
Notice 2014-38: Per Capita Payments from Proceeds of Settlements of Indian Tribal Trust Cases (March 2014)
Notice 2014-17: Per Capita Distributions of Funds Held in Trust by the Secretary of the Interior (March 2014)
Notice 2012-60: Per Capita Payments from Proceeds of Settlements of Indian Tribal Trust Cases (May 2014)
Notice 2013-1: Per Capita Payments from Proceeds of Settlements of Indian Tribal Trust Cases (December 2012
Notice 2012-60: Per Capita Payments from Proceeds of Settlements of Indian Tribal Trust Cases (September 2012)
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