Two groups say the Bureau of Indian Affairs wants to determine whether the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians of California were "under federal jurisdiction" in 1934.

Preservation of Los Olivos (POLO) and Preservation of Santa Ynez (POSY) are fighting the tribe's land-into-trust application. As part of a case before the Interior Board of Indian Appeals, they say the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Carcieri v. Salazar restricts the land-into-trust process to tribes that were "under federal jurisdiction" when the Indian Reorganization Act was passed in 1934.

According to some reports, the Chumash Band didn't appear on the list of recognized tribes until 1979. The BIA is requesting time to study the issue, according to the groups.

The tribe plans to use 6.9 acres for a retail building, a cultural center, a museum and a commemorative park. The property sits across the street from the tribe's casino.

Get the Story:
Response overturns Chumash expansion (The Santa Maria Times 3/27)

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Groups file first brief over Chumash land-into-trust (02/22)
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California a battleground after land-into-trust ruling (3/6)