Schumer: Major Victory for Madison, Oneida and Lewis counties – Interior Department and Census Bureau to Retract Unfounded and Radically Expanded Oneida Reservation Map That Had Been Handed Down in the Dead of Night

Census Bureau Issued Map – Redrawing And Greatly Expanding Oneida Reservation Borders In Madison, Oneida, and Lewis Counties—In The Dead Of Night Without Notifying Officials

In Response To Schumer Meetings and Personal Calls, The Interior Department Has Reversed Its Opinion, And The Census Bureau Will Issue New Map Reflecting The Original Boundaries

Schumer: The Corrected Map Will Again Reflect Reality And Provide Much-Needed Clarity And Stability For Madison, Oneida, and Lewis Counties

Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer announced that he successfully pushed the Department of the Interior and the Census Bureau to retract a recently issued map that redrew Oneida reservation borders to include over 300,000 acres of new land. Without notifying local, state, or federal officials, the Census Bureau had issued a map that dramatically expanded the boundaries of the reservation, causing serious confusion and concern among county and state officials. After Schumer personally called Census Bureau director Robert Groves and met with Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, the Department of Interior has agreed to retract their decision that led to the improper map, and the Census Bureau will issue a new map reflecting the original boundaries that encompass 32 acres of land.

“This is absolutely the right decision for the people of Madison, Oneida, and Lewis counties,” said Schumer. “This shocking and misguided map was not based in reality and was handed down in the dead of night without notifying local, state, or federal officials, causing serious confusion in all three counties. I fought to restore the original map and am pleased that Secretary Salazar and Director Groves will issue the proper map reflecting the boundaries that have outlined the Oneida reservation for centuries.”

Maps put out each year by the Census Bureau describe the jurisdictional boundaries of local municipalities as well as Native American areas, including reservation land. Up through 2010, the maps of New York depicted a 32 acre reservation for the Oneida Indian Nation in New York.  For 2011, completely out of the blue, the map depicts a reservation of over 307,000 acres which covers the entire northern half of Madison County, as well as parts of Oneida and Lewis Counties.

“The 32 acres that is governmentally controlled by the Oneida nation should certainly be clearly marked on the map, but to radically expand that boundary to areas where they have no control was flat-out absurd and not based in a correct reading of law or the reality on the ground. Reversing this decision was common sense and I am pleased that Secretary Ken Salazar at Department of the Interior and the Census Bureau heard our arguments and responded correctly,” said Schumer.

In 2008, the Census Bureau put out information about the meaning of the boundaries and how they could be changed.  In a Federal Register notice, 73 FR 67470, it explained that Native American reservations, “(R)epresent geographic areas governed and administered by an American Indian tribe or tribes and held as territory over which the tribe or tribes have governmental authority.” According to the notice, “acceptance of boundary changes requires clear legal documentation supporting any and all changes, as well as the absence of any unresolved litigation involving these boundaries.”  As recently as this year, the Supreme Court agreed to consider the question of the status of the reservation.

Due to the fact that the size and status of the Oneida reservation has been the subject of litigation and debate for years, and because the changed census map causes further confusion and complication in that debate, Schumer demanded that this decision be reversed. The lack of consultation with proper officials, supporting evidence for the new boundaries, and transparency in the decision making process also led Schumer to personally press the case with Interior Department and Census Bureau officials. Today’s announcement that the Department of the Interior and the Census Bureau will reissue the original and correct map containing 32 acres of Oneida land comes after Schumer pushed the agencies to rectify their decision.

The full text of the Interior Department’s letter to the Census Bureau is below:

Mr. Tomothy F. Trainor                                               February 3, 2011
Chief, Geography Division
U.S. Census Bureau
United States Department of Commerce
Washington, D.C. 20233-0001

Dear Mr. Trainor,

I am writing to provide clarification regarding my letter to you dated October 4, 2010, and the litigation associated with the reservation boundaries of the Oneida Nation of New York. As you know, the Census Bureau’s guidance regarding the changes in boundaries for Indian lands notes that “[a]cceptance of boundary changes requires…the absence of any unresolved litigation involving these boundaries.” 73 Fed. Reg. 67,470,67,474 (November 14, 2008)(emphasis added).

I wanted to inform you of unresolved litigation in which the issue of the Oneida Indian Nation of New York’s reservation boundaries has been raised and that certain parties will continue to attempt to raise this issue.

First, there are currently five lawsuits in Federal district court challenging the Interior Department’s May 2008 decision to accept approximately 13,000 acres of land in trust for the Oneida Nation. In these cases, the plaintiffs argued that the Oneida’s reservation had been disestablished. Although this claim was rejected by the district court, it is likely that the plaintiffs will seek further court review on the reservation disestablishment issue.

A second on-going case also potentially implicated the reservation boundary issue. In that case, Madison and other counties sought to foreclose on the Oneida’s fee property for failure to pay taxes. Oneida Indian Nation of New York v. Madison County, 605 F.3d 149 (2d Cir. 2010). Relevant to this discussion, the counties petitioned for certiorari, which was granted on two issues (1) whether tribal sovereign immunity barred the foreclosure actions and (2) whether the historic reservation boundaries remain valid, or whether the Oneida reservation has been disestablished. Madison County v. Oneida Nation of New York (S. Ct. No. 10-72). Thus, as recently as last month, the Supreme Court was poised to hear the reservation boundary dispute. On January 10, 2011, the Supreme Court returned the case to the Second Circuit after the Nation waived its immunity. It is clear, however, that the reservation disestablishment issue will continue to be raised by the counties in this case.

Therefore, there is unresolved litigation in which certain parties will continue to try to challenge the Oneida Nation’s historic reservation boundaries. As this unresolved litigation was in process at the time of your August 2010 inquiry, we believe the Census Bureau should depict the Nation’s reservation as you did in the 2000 census until this litigation is resolved, consistent with your guidelines.

Please note that we stand by the position stated in our letter of October 2010, that the Oneida Reservation has not been disestablished and is intact. This position is legally binding, but may differ from the statistical depiction of the Oneida reservation in the 2010 Census. We agree with the Census Bureau that no legal inference can or should be made from the boundaries referenced in the 2010 Census map files.

Sincerely,

Scott Keep

Assistant Solicitor

Branch of Tribal Government and Alaska

Division of Indian Affairs

cc: Mr. Robert M. Groves

Director, U.S. Census Bureau