Townsend asks Pataki to delay land-claim bill
Feb 8, 2005

KRISTA J. KARCH
Observer-Dispatch

A local Republican assemblyman warned the governor Monday of "potentially disastrous legal consequences" were the state to go through with newly proposed legislation settling multiple Indian land claims.

State Assemblyman David Townsend, R-Kirkland, a longtime opponent of the New York Oneidas' property tax exemptions, said it would be wise for the state to wait until the pending U.S. Supreme Court decision in the city of Sherrill's case against the Oneidas.

In that case, argued last month in Washington, Sherrill seeks payment of property tax on Indian businesses within the city limits.

In a letter delivered to Gov. George Pataki Monday, Townsend said if the nation's high court were to rule in favor of Sherrill, Pataki's legislation could "expose the State to potentially millions or even billions of dollars in liability from citizens whose rights have been violated by illegal compacts."

A Supreme Court decision is expected in May or June.

Pataki released legislation last week that would affirm land-claim settlement agreements reached with five different Indian tribes.

The settlements, negotiated separately between Pataki and the tribes, would award the right to own and operate Catskills-region casinos to Oklahoma's Seneca-Cayuga tribe, the Cayuga Indian Nation of New York, Wisconsin-based Oneidas, the Stockbridge-Munsee Community and the Akwesasne Mohawks.

If approved by state and federal legislators, the settlements would end each tribe's legal battle for New York land. The claims total more than 300,000 acres.

In agreements reached in December, Pataki also awarded the Stockbridge-Munsee Community 333 acres in the town of Thompson and the Wisconsin-based Oneidas 1,000 acres at a site yet to be determined.

The Oneida Indian Nation of New York state was not awarded land or a Catskills casino, but was offered ratification of its gaming compact for Turning Stone Casino, which was ruled invalid by a state Supreme Court judge three years ago. The Nation continues to operate its Turning Stone Resort and Casino under the terms of the invalidated compact.

But the New York Oneidas reject Pataki's proposal.

"Just because the governor portrays this legislation as resolving land claims does not make it so," Oneida Nation spokesman David Hollis said in a prepared statement. "This legislation only helps out-of-state tribes and their development partners get richer."

New York's Oneida Nation claims about 250,000 acres in Central New York.

Oneidas based in Ontario, Canada, who also claim land in Central New York, were not included in the settlement as well.

In his statement last week, Pataki said the legislation would permanently resolve the major land claims and damages within the state, and end decades of uncertainty for landowners by clearing land titles in multiple Upstate New York counties, including Oneida and Madison counties.

The bill would give an annual award of $5 million each to Madison and Oneida counties, and the counties would be protected from potential future losses in property taxes resulting from land becoming Indian country as a result of the land-claim settlements. The counties also would be protected from losses in sales or taxes resulting "from a price or tax parity or trade agreement that the State enters into with a tribal government."

"The most effective way to resolve retail pricing and sales tax issues is in a spirit of cooperation, not confrontation," Pataki said in last week's release.

The possible tax parity agreement has Townsend concerned.

"If that language is in there, that's the number one flag that I wouldn't support that," he said.

Assemblywoman RoAnn Destito, D-Rome, called for public hearings.

"It is understood that we want the land claims settled because we want the area to be defined for their reservation and land to be finitely defined," she said.

The issue is important enough to spend adequate time making sure all the questions are asked, said state Sen. Raymond Meier, R-Western.

"I have some questions about price parity as opposed to actual collection of taxes," he said. "I need more information on how we define price parity and how we enforce it."

U.S. Rep. Sherwood Boehlert, R-New Hartford, said he was reviewing the legislation.

"I have long supported the settlement of New York land claims because litigation is lengthy, costly and uncertain," he said in a statement released Monday.

Contact Krista J. Karch at kkarch@utica.gannett.com