Holder, Salazar: Don’t change Cobell settlement

The Associated Press
Wednesday, June 9, 2010; 7:40 PM

Attorney General Eric Holder and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar wrote letters to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell asking the Senate to pass the settlement without amendments, saying any changes could nullify the deal.

“We hope to turn the page on an unfortunate chapter in our history, usher in a new era of reform, and bring renewed attention to the needs of our First Americans,” Holder and Salazar’s letter read.

The Senate faces a June 15 deadline to vote on the settlement mandated by a federal court. The House approved the settlement last month as part of a package of tax cuts and benefit extensions, and the parties agreed then to extend an earlier deadline to allow the Senate time to vote.

The proposed agreement calls for the Interior Department to distribute $1.4 billion to the plaintiffs, some 300,000 to 500,000 Indians with land held in trust by the federal government.

The settlement also requires the government to spend $2 billion to buy back and consolidate tribal land broken up in previous generations, and create a $60 million Indian Education Scholarship fund.

The vice chairman of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee has said he believes some revisions are needed and has proposed several amendments, including capping attorney fees at $50 million.

Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., also has suggested limiting any incentive awards to the lawsuit’s named plaintiffs to unreimbursed expenses and setting aside $50 million of the settlement money for certain lawsuit participants who receive “insufficient or unfair” amounts under the settlement’s payment formula, among other changes.

Holder and Salazar say such amendments would be a material change which, under the settlement agreement, would make the deal null and void.

“Due to the difficulty and complexity of the negotiations, we believe that the proposed changes will negate the agreement, and thus, the resolution of 14 years of acrimonious litigation,” their letter read.

Reid spokesman Jim Manley acknowledged his office had received the letter but said he had no comment on it. The Senate is working to get the bill done as soon as possible, Manley said.

Barrasso’s and McConnell’s offices did not return calls for comment on Wednesday.

The lead plaintiff in the case, Browning, Mont.-native Elouise Cobell, has said that any changes in the carefully negotiated agreement could mean the collapse of the deal and the onset of more costly litigation. Her spokesman, Bill McAllister, said the administration has reinforced that position with its message to the Senate leaders.

“These letters forcefully state what the plaintiffs have said: any material change to the agreement will void it,” McAllister said.