Should tribes be allowed in Joint Powers Agreements? 9/25/2008, Capitol Weekly
Several groups in Santa Barbara County are urging Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to veto a water bill due to sections dealing with a local gaming tribe. Of particular issue to opponents was a request from the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians that they be allowed to participate in joint powers agreements (JPAs), something sponsors say never made it into the final bill. But the effort raises a question-how should local governments deal with tribes? According to a 1996 opinion from the Attorney General's office, tribes are not eligible to participate in JPAs, according to their interpretation of California's 1947 Joint Exercise of Powers Act. Of course, in 1947, most tribes in California were so impoverished that this was a moot point. These days, casino tribes are building new businesses that have an affect on the communities around them. Several legislators have carried bills in recent years that would allow certain tribes to participate in particular JPAs. They've argued that JPAs are a good way to bring tribes into some kind of intergovernmental structure that would define their rights and responsibilities when it came to dealings with local governments.

House of cards

9/25/2008, Santa Ynez Valley Journal
Ever wonder why Preservation of Los Olivos has battled so long and so hard over a little plot of land in the middle of town? Or what the objections to renaming Highway 154 the Chumash Highway were all about? Or the recent vocal objections to AB 2686, a seemingly benign legislative bill to rename a local water company? These objections are in response to the major power play that has been in the works since 1995 and is being fueled solely by a name. A name that is crucial for a local Indian tribe to secure as their identity for future territorial expansion and expanded water rights. Chumash. The key to unlocking seven thousand miles of aboriginal territory.

Casino Expansion

Quechan casino a half-way point
9/25/2008, Yuma Sun
Even as a work in progress, the nearly 300,000-square-foot Quechan Casino Resort rising out of the desert west of Yuma is impressive. The public got its first look during a media tour Thursday afternoon of the resort, now about 65 percent completed. The Quechan Nation broke ground in June 2007. Since then, nearly 1 million cubic yards of dirt have been turned, more than 110,000 manhours have been spent and millions of dollars in revenue have been pumped into Yuma's economy through the use of local subcontractors, vendors and suppliers whenever possible, said Steve Jones, senior project manager. When completed, the resort will introduce a new level of entertainment for the region, said Mike Jackson Sr., tribal president.

Law Enforcement

Wanted Soboba tribe member, 18, found armed, wearing bulletproof vest 9/25/2008, The Press Enterprise
Riverside County sheriff's deputies arrested an 18-year-old man Wednesday they say has eluded them for several weeks in connection with a stolen-car incident. Whitecloud Robert Trujillo was wanted following a police pursuit Sept. 7 in a stolen vehicle, sheriff's officials said. Deputies on that day found the stolen car with ammunition inside it at a residence on the Soboba Indian Reservation. Last weekend, Trujillo, a member of the tribe, was found at a San Jacinto home in the 1800 block of Cognac Court. Police at the time were investigating a separate drive-by shooting in Valle Vista, according to a sheriff's report. Police also arrested Janei Clara Sanchez, 21, of the Soboba tribe.

Indian Water Rights vs. Community Rights

9/25/2008, Indian Country Today
Two congressional bills - one passed in 1919 and the other in 1932 - granted the city of San Diego certain lands within the Cleveland National Forest and the Capitan Grande Indian Reservation for a reservoir and water storage system. Between the two bills, nearly 2,900 acres of the Capitan Grande Indian Reservation were taken over by the city and most of it flooded by waters from the San Diego River for the Capitan Grande Dam and reservoir system.

Class II Gaming

9/25/2008, Indianz.com
The National Indian Gaming Commission on Wednesday completed the withdrawal of controversial regulations that would have cost tribes more than a $1 billion in revenues. The agency spent more than two years developing the rules in hopes of resolving an issue that has lingered since the start of the Bush administration. But tribes vehemently objected out of fear their $28 billion industry would suffer.

 

Land Disputes
Tribe will operate historic golf course 9/24/2008, Indian Country Today PALM SPRINGS, Calif. - A southern California tribe is taking the reins of Palm Springs' first golf course after the operator folded. The Palm Springs National Golf Club, formerly the Canyon Country Club, has experienced a significant drop in membership and plans to surrender the 18-hole course to the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, which owns all of the land where the course is located. "Basically [the operators] called up and said 'Hey, guess what? We are not going to be able to pay the rent anymore,'" said Fred Razzar, executive director of the Agua Caliente Development Authority. The lease payment has not gone up in 30 years, said Agua Caliente spokeswoman Nancy Conrad.

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