Stop Land into Trust for Cayuga Indian Nation

WHEREAS, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) has released a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) supporting the proposed fee-to-trust conveyance of certain real property owned by the Cayuga Indian Nation (CIN) and located in Cayuga and Seneca Counties in the State of New York; and

WHEREAS, the DEIS acknowledges that the property in question is on "ancestral land" and therefore net en a current reservation, thus the CIN application is being treated improperly as an "on reservation" rather than an "off-reservation" application; and

WHEREAS, the DEIS concludes erroneously that there would be no signiflcant environmental impact if the approximately 125+ subject acres owned by the CIN were taken into federal trust for the use and benefit of the CIN because it fails to address, analyze and consider mitigation of significant negative impacts that will result from such action; and

WHEREAS, taking the subject land into trust weuld render it sovereign territory and therefore exempt from lecal property taxes, special district charges and other fees, thus reducing the revenue of relevant counties, tewns, villages, and schoel, fire, water, and sewer districts; and

WHEREAS, despite the fact that the stated purpose of the CIN application is to foster activities that will result in economic growth for the Nation, the DEIS nevertheless contends incredulously that the CIN has "no plans for further development .on the properties subject te the proposed action;" and

WHEREAS, the DEIS fails to take into consideration the fact that the CIN already owns same 765 additional acres in the Counties and intends to buy mere with the intent of making future trust applications, and allegedly intends to acquire up to 64,015 such acres of ancestral land that the Nation contends would thereby become eligible for trust status;