Elsie Meeks, a citizen of the Oglala Sioux Tribe and a former state director for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is serving as the chair of a trust fund whose proceeds will be use to benefit Indian farmers and ranchers. Photo: USDA

Law | National

Funds from Keepseagle settlement continue flowing to Indian Country

Monday, August 13, 2018

Leftover funds from the Keepseagle settlement over discrimination at the Department of Agriculture continue to flow to Indian Country.

A second round of checks went out to Indian farmers and ranchers in late May after all remaining legal hurdles were cleared. Those payments came to about $77 million total for the 3,600 successful claimants in the case.

Grants from the Native American Agriculture Fast Track Fund are also going out, thanks to a federal judge's decision. Recipients have included the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes ($317,545); the Bay Mills Community College ($298,503), the National Congress of American Indians ($388,941) and the Pueblo of San Felipe ($239,800), according to a July 19 court order.

In total, some $38 million from the Fast Track Fund is being distributed to tribes, non-profits and other organizations for programs that help Indian farmers and ranchers in their communities.

That leaves about $266 million for a new trust fund whose proceeds will be used to address the needs of Indian farmers and ranchers, and those who want to join the industry. The group is headed by Elsie Meeks, a citizen of the Oglala Sioux Tribe who worked for the USDA in South Dakota, The Washington Post reported.

“We have a long way to go, but this is a national fund," Meeks told the paper. "With some 560 Native American tribes, this could be a drop in a bucket — which is why we have to be really smart about how we use this money.”

George and Marilyn Keepseagle, both citizens of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, take part in a meeting about their historic lawsuit at United Tribes Technical College in Bismarck, North Dakota, in November 2010. Photo: Dennis J. Neumann / United Tribes News

The Obama administration settled the case for $760 million. Of that amount, $680 million was set aside for Indian farmers and ranchers whose requests for loans, assistance and other services at the USDA went unanswered or were handled differently due to allegations of bias at the federal agency.

On top of the payments to affected individual Indians, the settlement included an $80 million loan forgiveness fund. The money was to be used to address instances in which ranchers and farmers lost equipment, crops and other capital because they said the USDA failed to treat them in a manner similar to non-Indians.

But even though the case drew significant attention in Indian Country, only about 5,100 farmers and ranchers submitted claims, or about half of the expected number. And of those who applied, only about 3,600 qualified for the settlement, again far less than anticipated.

Even of those who qualified, not all were able to submit documentation to secure larger payments from the settlements, which was divided into two tracks, the latter of which required additional evidence to show direct harm experienced at the hands of the USDA.

So after an initial round of $300 million in payments went out, some $380 million remained in the settlement. What to do with those funds led to widespread dissatisfaction in Indian Country, with class beneficiaries often at odds with the attorneys who handled the case.

Eventually, the beneficiaries, the attorneys and the federal government agreed to a modification of the settlement to include additional payments, the grants and the creation of the trust fund. The plan was approved by a federal judge and then later upheld by the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals in May 2017.

But the funds were kept in limbo after two class members asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review the matter. The justices declined to take action in March, clearing the way for the money to benefit Indian Country.

According to the Keepseagle claims administrator, the checks were mailed May 21. But a handful of beneficiaries have told Indianz.Com in recent weeks that they have yet to receive their second payment. As of last week, one was still waiting for more assistance after being told her check was mailed, but has not yet been cashed.

A small number of other beneficiaries also told Indianz.Com they provided updated addresses to the claims administrator but had not received checks over the summer.

Read More on the Story:
New Native American farm fund to distribute $266 million in landmark civil rights settlement (The Washington Post August 13, 2018)

D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals Decision:
Keepseagle v. Perdue (May 16, 2017)