The Oneida Nation wants to resolve land-into-trust and taxation issues in an agreement with the state of New York and two counties.

According to a copy of the 79-page agreement that was posted by The Syracuse Post-Standard, the tribe will cap its land-into-trust applications to approximately 25,370 acres. In exchange, the state and Madison and Oneida counties won't fight the acquisitions.

The two counties also agreed to withdraw litigation regarding taxation of the tribe's land in federal and state court. One of those cases is Madison County v. Oneida Indian Nation, which is pending before the U.S. Supreme Court.

The agreement essentially settles a slew of litigation that arose in the wake of the Supreme Court's 2005 decision in Sherrill v. Oneida Nation. In that case, the court ruled that the tribe cannot assert sovereignty on its properties without going through the land-into-trust process.

The tribe responded by submitting a land-into-trust application for approximately 17,000 acres. The Bush administration, in May 2008, agreed to acquire about 13,000 acres, spawning another lawsuit.

The agreement would allow the tribe to pursue trust status for the remaining acreage that was in the original application. Another 8,000 acres is also included, bringing the total to about 25,370 acres.

"For the avoidance of any doubt, the nation shall not submit an application to have reacquired lands taken into trust, above the 25,370 acres," the agreement states.

While the application was pending, litigation arose over the two counties' ability to foreclose on the tribe for non-payment of property taxes. The agreement puts that case to rest.

The agreement would also resolve another issue that sprung up in the wake of the Supreme Court's 2009 decision in Carcieri v. Salazar. Even though the interior Department issued a record of decision on the tribe's land-into-trust application months before the ruling, a federal judge ordered the Obama administration to determine whether the tribe was "under federal jurisdiction" as of 1934.

According to the agreement, the state and the two counties will not "directly or indirectly" fund litigation against DOI's land-into-trust decision, including any matters, such as Carcieri, that arose in connection with the litigation.

Get the Story:
Oneida Nation land won't be taxed (The Syracuse Post-Standard 5/21)

Sherrill v. Oneida Nation Supreme Court Decision:
Syllabus | Opinion [Ginsburg] | Concurrence [Souter] | Dissent [Stevens]

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Oneida Nation didn't feel threatened by governor on gaming (5/20)