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Trust
Editorial: Congress should settle trust fund


"America's inspiring history also has its list of shameful events, and topping it is certainly the country's inexcusable and despicable treatment of American Indians.

The nation now has a chance to fix one of those wrongs - the abused federal Indian Trust Fund, from which hundreds of millions of dollars have been misappropriated, stolen or are otherwise missing.

Congress should rectify this bungled accounting, by appropriating a reasonable - even generous - settlement. The first proposed amount was advanced this week, in the sum of $27.5 billion.

It's a lot of money. But the abuses have gone on for decades, and a lawsuit seeking restitution and correct distribution of the funds has languished in the federal courts for nearly a decade."

Get the Story:
Editorial: U.S. should quickly fix Indian Trust Fund (The Albuquerque Tribune 6/23)

Relevant Documents:
Trust Reform and Cobell Settlement Workgroup Principles for Legislation (June 2005)

Relevant Links:
National Congress of American Indians - http://www.ncai.org
Intertribal Trust Fund Monitoring Association - http://www.itmatrustfunds.org
Indian Trust: Cobell v. Norton - http://www.indiantrust.com
Cobell v. Norton, Department of Justice - http://www.usdoj.gov/civil/cases/cobell/index.htm
Senate Indian Affairs Committee - http://indian.senate.gov

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