A view of the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation. Photo from Standing Rock Sioux Tribe

The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe is reaching out to landowners who might want to participate in the Land Buy-Back Program for Tribal Nations.

The tribe signed a cooperative agreement with the Interior Department to facilitate sales for the program. The effort could benefit the second-most highly fractionated reservation in the nation.

“There are a lot of people who don’t realize they have land," Michelle LeBeau, the tribe's representative for the program, told The Aberdeen News. “There are also people who are non-enrolled members who own land. What we’re trying to do is to combat fractionation, which is a big issue in tribal communities.”

The $3.4 billion Cobell settlement provided $1.9 billion for Indian landowners who want to sell their fractionated interests. DOI will pay "fair market value" as required by the Indian Land Consolidation Act.

Participation is entirely voluntary. Any land that is acquired will be returned to tribes.

As of March 13, DOI has extended $892 million in offers to nearly 48,000 owners. Some $351 million in transactions have been accepted so far, according to a chart posted on the program's website.

Deputy secretary Michael Connor is on the Gila River Indian Community in Arizona today to host a listening session on the program.

Get the Story:
Standing Rock tribe hoping to buy reservation lands (The Aberdeen News 3/19)

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