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Resolution No. 14-1171
RESOLUTION UTION O THE BUTTE COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS RS REQ U S'TI G CONGRESS TO
HOLD OVERSIGHT'T INNS ON THE PROPOSED,RULE AND EXPRESSING PPOSI"TIO TO THE
PROPOSED RULE'S IMPACTS ON INPUT FROM COUNTY NMENT
WHEREAS,REAS, in response to criticisms that the existing Federalrecognition process for Indian 'Tribes is expensive,
burdensome, opaque, and inflexible,the Department of Interior(DDI) released a Proposed Rule that would fundamentally
alter the process; and.
WHEREAS, Butte County respects the rights of Indian Tribes to seek. Federal acknowledgement and understands
the importance to tribes of establishing that they have a special government-to-government relationship with the United
States of America; and
WHEREAS, federal acknowledgment offers significant benefits to Indian Tribes, including the ability to have
lands removed from local government regulatory jurisdiction and placed into trust status„ and
WHEREAS, the acknowledgement process can be a precursor to Indian Tribes taking land into trust for gaming
and other development projects, and therefore counties have an interest in the regulations governing decisions related to
federal acknowledgement; and
WHEREAS, the Proposed Pule is complex and the significant changes it would make to the long-established
rules governing tribal acknowledgment require an in-depth analysis; and.
WHEREAS, California. is home to 10federally recognized tribes and the Proposed Mule could significantly
increase the number of federally-recognized tribes, due to the 68 acknowledgment petitions from.California Indian groups
that are pending with the DOI; and
WHEREAS, the Proposed Mule would also allow previous denied petitioners, including six in California, an
opportunity to re-petition under certain circumstances; and
WHEREAS, the Proposed Rule would alter the mandatory criteria, reduce periods of evaluation, and generally
lessen the evidentiary standards for federal acknowledgement that have been in place for 36-years; and
WHEREAS, a recent report, "California Indian. Petitioners and the Proposed Revisions of the Federal
.Acknowledgement Process,"found that 34 California Indian Tribes could achieve federal recognition, which could lead to
the development of an additional 22 Indian gaming facilities throughout the state; and
WHEREAS, Butte County is opposed to the provisions in the Proposed. Rule that would greatly diminish the role
of local governments in the federal recognition process, which has historically been to provide the DOI with crucial
evidence which impacts acknowledgment decisions.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Board of Supervisors of Butte County requests Congress to
hold oversight hearings on the proposed rule to fully understand and vet the potential implications of the Proposed Rule;
and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that Butte County supports modifications to the current process to address
legitimate concerns that it is too slow, expensive, burdensome, inefficient, intrusive, obscure and unpredictable, however,
the changes must not compromise the integrity of the Bureau's decisions to recognize a group as an Indian tribe nor
should it eliminate a county's voice in the federal acknowledgement process.
PASSED AND ADOPTED by the Board of Supervisors of the County of Butte, State of California, on the 26"'
day of August, 2014 by the following votes:
AYES: Supervisors Connelly, Kirk, Lambert and Chair Teeter
NOES: Supervisor Wahl
ABSENT: None
NOT VOTING: None
.............
Doug'reetee, Chair
Board of Supervisors
ATTEST:
Paul Flahn,
Chief Administrative Officer
and the Clerk of the Board
By: