White House official also hopeful for tribal trust settlements

Tuesday, March 6, 2012  

The Obama administration remains optimistic about reaching more Indian trust management settlements, a senior White House official said today.

Since President Barack Obama took office, the federal government settled the Cobell trust fund lawsuit for $3.4 billion and the Osage Nation trust fund lawsuit for $380 million. Two more deals were recently announced -- $193 million for the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation in Washington and $75 million for the Fort Peck Tribes of Montana.

Echoing comments made by Interior Secretary Salazar last week, Kim Teehee, the senior policy advisor for Native American Affairs at the White House, said more settlements are on the way.

"The Department of Justice has also commenced intense negotiations with 75 Indian tribes to resolve lawsuits relating to the management of their trust funds and trust resources Teehee said at the 2012 executive council winter session of the National Congress of American Indians.

"Hopefully we'll have some good news on that end shortly," added Teehee, a member of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma.

In addition to the trust cases, Teehee also noted that the Obama administration reached a $760 million settlement to the Keepseagle case affecting Indian farmers and ranchers who experienced discrimination at the Department of Agriculture.

Related Stories:
Expect more announcements of tribal trust fund settlements (3/1)
Fort Peck Tribes reach $75M trust management settlement (2/28)
Colville Tribes reach $193M trust management settlement (2/27)