Wow! Thanks for bringing this to my attention. II am still processing this information and searching for a response. I believe that it is time for al of us non-tribal, members of the United States, to remove our heads from the darkness and stop apologizing for something we had no part in. On the local level, we must start reeducating our elected officials to treat all of us as one community. I apologize for the many years of non-involvement in local affairs and vow to be more involved in oue community.
Thank you Kathy and Jeff for another eye-opener. I copied and pasted Sally Kincaid's comment from the Spit article July 7, as she nailed it... "The fact that the tribe will take over ‘management’ of the wildlife refuge is new information to me.
It appears that the tribe is taking back Sequim and Clallam County one business, one organization, one housing development at a time."
This should be front page news in the Peninsula Daily News and Sequim Gazette. I don’t think most folks are aware of the behind the scenes creeping tribal ownership of various property and what it means to our taxes!
Robin, I have a question for you: How can a people who DIDN'T believe in land ownership have it taken from them??????
Here is a quote from the JKT's Home page:
"the S’Klallam people living in the Dungeness area decided that in order to survive, they had to adopt a new value system that included property ownership."
I understand why some may be supportive of giving a tribal corporation advantages because of historic disadvantages. Jamestown (the corporation, not the tribal members) generates over $100,000,000 in revenue annually. They have about 500 tribal members. That's at least $200,000 per tribal member each year. My question is, when will this debt be paid?
Ron Allen, CEO Jamestown Skallam Tribe, do not support their tribal members, stipend, because he says he doesn’t want to just give money to them he wants them to work for it. SO WHY DOES RON ALLEN EXPECT MONEY TO BE HANDED TO HIM BY US THE TAXPAYERS? Allen has been handed millions of tax payer money, he didn’t earn it, much through grant monies, yet he expects it to be different to support his tribal members. I thought giving taxpayer money to tribes was to benefit ALL members. Allen does what suits his pocketbook and his pocketbook is overflowing and it needs to stop! We are all paying for all of it, yet Ron Allen is void of it all and people like Ozias who takes money to stay in his Commissioner seat is bought and paid for and might as well be on the tribe payroll securing their interests.
Linda, I have a question for you also: How can a people who DIDN'T believe in land ownership have it taken from them??????
Here is a quote from the JKT's Home page:
"the S’Klallam people living in the Dungeness area decided that in order to survive, they had to adopt a new value system that included property ownership."
I was assigned to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota when I was an officer in the US Public Health Service. That land was given to the natives in a treaty and they were a "sovereign" nation. They had their own law enforcement, and Tribal Council that governed the reservation. Under the treaty the US government provided and co-managed the health services. What is going on in Clallam County is totally different. If Jamestown tribe wants to put purchased land in a trust and be sovereign, then they should provide all their own services rather than having acess to services that others support through taxes. Thats what "sovereign" nations do. Sounds like a big loophole needs to be closed.
I would have no problem with the Tribe running businesses, but for every property they buy, WE, THE AMERICAN TAX-PAYING PEOPLE-- those of us who are NOT "Sovereign"-- have to pick up the difference, because the Tribe pays no taxes and you know darned well that the County will not do with less money. So, assuming this property paid $20K/yr in taxes, each property tax on the Olympic Peninsula would go up about $1. One dollar? No big deal, right? Well, a dollar here, a dollar there, it keeps building. And, the Tribes will not pay tax on their income. Oops, another dollar. Maybe the Tribes will decide to make the land around it a "nature preserve" and block access, as they are trying to do with Towne Road.
I know this makes me seem like anti-Tribe or a racist, which I am not. But, I STRONGLY believe in fairness and while I have no problem with the Tribes doing as they wish on their own land, when it impacts my travel routes, or costs me money, I take exception.
Just want to point out here, We are also supposed to be sovereign. The problem doesn't so much lie in another sovereignty but, our own, and how we govern / don't govern it.
😉 To be more specific, none of this would be in question, if we weren't selling, of course, when you look at it that way, a lot really comes to light quickly.
I'm on the fence. I don't mind seeing a tribe become successful for themselves. They are one of the most successful on the Penninsula. I can give kudos for their hard work to become what they are today. I can understand that they want what was once theirs. I have family property that will one day be mine & I'm very proud & love that land. I get it. I understand that treaties are important to uphold as well. I get all that. I can be idealisticly in support of the tribe & it's gains.
Now for the other side of that fence.... Our county is one of the most poor in this state. Not paying the taxes (which on one hand I get because I would love to have that option as well) is going to slowly kill our county even more. I love that the tribe supports local events, orginizations & youth activities but is that only a drop in the bucket? The taxes being missed far outweighs any contributions they gift the community. It's already hard to etch a living out in this county. Especially if you're on a fixed income. The taxes piled onto homeowners because of levies, higher property "values" & the loss of millions of dollars of tax base (throughout the county as a whole) is creeping up to the point of completely breaking the backs of every day locals.
Obviously, the right thing to do would be to pay taxes. I don't even care if they pick & choose which ones to pay at this point. I believe the morally right thing to do is any land off of reservations (or in Jamestown's case, the hub of their property where the tribal center/outer buildings/casino/longhouse/hotel are) should have taxes paid in order to help the county & residents as a whole. I don't personally care if they want their own rez. There is plenty of land around the hub of Jamestown that they can develop if they so choose. They have the right to develop what they want on their land. What I don't or wouldn't agree with is the buying up of taxable land or communities already established away from the hub to build a reservation just for the fact of the loss of more of the tax base.
It's a hard one for me because I support tribal rights & the ability to build up through capitalism, which Jamestown most certainly has. What I don't agree with is people losing their homes when the tribe is buying up land within communities (we had family members go through this specifically with a rent to buy small home) and not paying any forms of taxes from these lands within these communities that once were used as part of the tax base. Taking county tax base away & making it tax free is my biggest complaint. As a local of this county on a fixed income, we can't handle much more being piled on our backs. We've had to discuss weather moving from our home to another state, where our dollars can go so much farther, is what we have (not want) to do. This county (and state) is making it harder for every day people to stay where they grew up. It's frustrating to say the least.
Its one thing to be successful but another to seek reparations, reckonings and control. Its inexcusable to dangle their cash to our governmental machinery, worse for our people to take it.
When the Jamestown tribe joined the ICLEI, agreed to build and serve them, without going thru the DOI/BIA and U.S. Government, they created an illegal and separate foreign status. As that "foreign status" out from under the federal umbrella they are legally confined to, it becomes an illegal campaign contribution. They owe massive amounts of fines for illegal campaign contributions. So..there is something wrong with dangling international tribal cash.
Maybe, I don't know... But the point is mute, for the county's part... If the cash isn't taken, which is what I was driving at. All this animosity, toward the tribe, I think is misplaced... It belongs on our "side of the line" we (our governing body) are the ones selling, we are the ones catering, we are allowing and or propitiating.
Its hard to blame someone for taking a good deal, when you are the one offering it...
To a point. I am 60 and lived here when most of the Elwha tribe lived in the projects before the lower Elwha housing was built and way before the Jamestown boom. I had no animosity until recently when I saw the reparations/reckoning rant by Fawn Sharp and others. At that point animosity is justified because they sold their souls to foreign governments to achieve revenge. Compound that with the NODC/Ecosystems recovery network documents and you see a communist kick back scheme to hurt American industry. Yes closing the mill and taking out Dungeness farming helps our enemies and other countries. The tribe has 13 different policy positions from Elwha and Jimmeycomelately to the Dungeness River. So they basically lied to flood the Dungeness river valley on purpose...while they protected their own river valleys. I have a right to have animosity for breaking a treaty. the Point No Point Treaty of 1855. Which paid the Jamestown Tribe money for the land they have now taken over by joining an international organization and an external international and tribal governing body. In short, the tribes do not have clean hands here. Their hands have Democrat party and communist elite dirt on them/
I hear you, and you won't get an argument from me. Especially now that you've given me more rabbit holes 🤣 what I am saying though, is it couldn't happen without our governing body allowing it, whether with purpose or passively, and that is where our energy should be focused.
Except it's not 'we' that's offering...it's the criminals we thought we elected to serve our best interests...self interested traitors. We currently have no will to take back our gov't...just a lot of upset, disbelief and anger.
Our own u.s. gov't (small case intentional) is a foreign owned corporation...nothing is as it seems...nothing is what we've been told it is...for centuries we have been blind and ignorant and it's painful to become aware of how things really are...still we soldier on as best we can.
BINGO! If they competed fairly, abided by the same laws that you and I have to follow, and paid their share of taxes, I would cheer their success, but this is akin to Welfare recipients running business that make them wealthy, while still receiving Welfare. It ain't right.
In Fall, 2022 there was a special council meeting with Ron Allen and his son Joe talking about some of their plans for Sequim (it's a long list). They also talked about trust properties , to which councilor Ferrell said their "investment in the community" overrides losing the tax base. Here's a PDN article about the meeting, if you don't have a subscription and haven't recently opened articles, you should be able to view it. Also note at that time they had received no money for the psychiatric hospital, but they recently received a grant of $13 million.
So bit by bit Washington state in their grandiose ability to oversee the populace is losing land and monies. Our county is losing the tax base which will in turn lose people and through poor governance have poor schools lack of work poor infrastructure schools hospitals clinics firehouses policemen park maintenance road maintenance winter road maintenance… but the tribe will be making money with no investment to the so called land…. But hey they will have a reservation that they maintain like the casino… pissy police that have NO authority to do anything, drugs that will continue to be sealed in the casino, and pandered to by the S’kllalm tribe mafia! What a set up… state run graf woopie… makes me what to puke…
Indeed, Paula. It's like Black people demanding "reparations". That ship has sailed. None of us alive had anything to do with slavery and similarly, none of us alive have had anything to do with forcing native Americans off their land, as settlers did 200 years ago. That ship has sailed too. It's time for Tribes to abide by the same laws as the rest of us and pay their fair share of taxes. It's not like it would break them!
If we were to do a risks vs benefits analysis on Jamestown S'klallam involvement in the County wouldn't you want to compare the tax base loss vs the benefits from other Tribal investments in County infrastructure etc? In a 2 second Google look it far outweighs a $25000 annual loss. I realize that it may not be coming out of the tribes coffers and is the result of effective grant writing, Federal funding etc but its still a win using my rudimentary math skills. Is this really about control, or the money? Definitely appreciate the information on CCWD but to be balanced here we need all the information to make rational decisions. I.E. Tribal contributions that benefit all of the County residents. Just my 2 cents.
A cost-benefit analysis would be great. Remember, the one property discussed hasn't been transferred to tribal trust, but it may be possible in the future (several of their 300+ properties have been transferred to the trust). When doing the analysis, we should factor in the massive cost overruns the County has paid during the Towne Road relocation -- much of this was caused by the Tribe's deliberate early breach of the dike, and continued delay of the project that still drags on today. Then there is the uncalculatable cost of the fire department not reaching a burning home in time to prevent a family from being homeless (the road closure contributed greatly to their loss). It's more than 2 seconds on Google, it's much more complicated.
The bigger picture are the plans of the u.n., the w.e.f., i.c.l.e.i., n.o.d.c. which are going to curtail our rights and freedoms into oblivion. The sneaky property consolidations are not going to make you very happy when you find out what the long term plan is.
If the Tribe buys land and doesn’t have to pay taxes on it, it is exactly the same as church property. If you want taxes to be paid, buy the land yourself and pay taxes on it. There is nothing wrong with JST legally buying land.
Just buy the land myself and pay taxes on it? I'd need to cough up $8 million to buy that RV park... yikes! And since the Tribe makes offers on land and buys under an alias (not "Jamestown Tribe"), I'd have to buy every property that is ever listed to make sure the taxes keep getting paid. My savings account doesn't have enough money to make that a realistic option.
Like I said, now do churches. There’s a heck of a lot of non-tax-paying church property in Clallam County. Every piece of land that is held by any church, and the buildings residing on it, pay nothing in taxes. They use the streets, the water, all the public utilities that are funded by taxes, yet pay nothing.
So is the irony lost here? The Tribe is LEGALLY purchasing land BACK that was historically theirs to begin with - and then, people want the Tribe to pay taxes to the people that stole their land in the first place?!?! No. No. No. The tribe has every right - legally and ethically to do this. They are taking care of their people, something local and federal governments have failed to do. I understand people may be upset that this raises their taxes, but if you don’t like it - you then you should sale your house and leave the area. I might know an interested buyer 😉
You have what you have because of eminent domain by the gov't, i.e. you would not be able to own your private property anywhere in this country if the gov't hadn't made it possible for emigrants to claim this land in the past. Don't be a hypocrite. Hand yours over to the tribe maybe?
"people want the Tribe to pay taxes to the people that stole their land in the first place?!?!"
From the Point No Point Treaty:
ARTICLE 1. The said tribes and bands of Indians hereby cede, relinquish, and convey to the United States all their right, title, and interest in and to the lands and country occupied by them
ARTICLE 5. In consideration of the above cession the United States agree to pay to the said tribes and bands the sum of sixty thousand dollars,
That's a pretty good deal for a people who didn't believe in land ownership.
Here is a quote from the JKT's Home page:
"the S’Klallam people living in the Dungeness area decided that in order to survive, they had to adopt a new value system that included property ownership."
I'll bet you do! And their cash flow is not all so legal. The irony is we are paying ozias $100,000 to liaison for the disposal of our public property to a non-taxpaying entity with no due process.
I understand that the tribe signed a treaty selling land and they were given renumeration.
I understand the tribe kept land on which they lived and for which they were not obligated to pay taxes due to federal law.
What I do not understand or didn't know is that a tribe can buy more land and add it to the original parcel/deal and not have to pay taxes on it? That seems to be what is happening, but is that legal federally?
I don’t think the tribe will pay taxes out of the goodness of their hearts. Why should they?
The average home owner will be burdened by previous actions no one living today, had any input or participation in. This is sweet for the tribe, but a game changer for retired people. Where’s our break?
Wow! Thanks for bringing this to my attention. II am still processing this information and searching for a response. I believe that it is time for al of us non-tribal, members of the United States, to remove our heads from the darkness and stop apologizing for something we had no part in. On the local level, we must start reeducating our elected officials to treat all of us as one community. I apologize for the many years of non-involvement in local affairs and vow to be more involved in oue community.
You're welcome, Eric. And thank YOU for your weekly engagement at the Commissioner meetings.
Eric...absolutely perfectly said...thank you!
Thank you Kathy and Jeff for another eye-opener. I copied and pasted Sally Kincaid's comment from the Spit article July 7, as she nailed it... "The fact that the tribe will take over ‘management’ of the wildlife refuge is new information to me.
It appears that the tribe is taking back Sequim and Clallam County one business, one organization, one housing development at a time."
You're so welcome! You've been along since day one... when are we getting off this crazy ride?!?
Well Jeff... maybe it ends with the tribe taking over all of jamestown beach.............sigh!!!!
My landlady is NOT going to like that!
This should be front page news in the Peninsula Daily News and Sequim Gazette. I don’t think most folks are aware of the behind the scenes creeping tribal ownership of various property and what it means to our taxes!
I agree - the residents of Clallam County likely have no awareness of the impact the tribe's land grab has on their taxes (reverse colonialism??)
Land grab?? Who grabbed land first? It all belonged to the tribe originally
Robin, I have a question for you: How can a people who DIDN'T believe in land ownership have it taken from them??????
Here is a quote from the JKT's Home page:
"the S’Klallam people living in the Dungeness area decided that in order to survive, they had to adopt a new value system that included property ownership."
PDN would hide this sort of thing from the public, given some of their past reporting and lackof...
“creeping tribal ownership of various properties “
Sounds a bit like what happened to their property (yes, they were the original owners) in the first place.
I understand why some may be supportive of giving a tribal corporation advantages because of historic disadvantages. Jamestown (the corporation, not the tribal members) generates over $100,000,000 in revenue annually. They have about 500 tribal members. That's at least $200,000 per tribal member each year. My question is, when will this debt be paid?
Great question and indeed it's time to revisit it. If we ever get conservative leadership elected, perhaps that might be an option.
I said it before and I’ll say it again:
Ron Allen, CEO Jamestown Skallam Tribe, do not support their tribal members, stipend, because he says he doesn’t want to just give money to them he wants them to work for it. SO WHY DOES RON ALLEN EXPECT MONEY TO BE HANDED TO HIM BY US THE TAXPAYERS? Allen has been handed millions of tax payer money, he didn’t earn it, much through grant monies, yet he expects it to be different to support his tribal members. I thought giving taxpayer money to tribes was to benefit ALL members. Allen does what suits his pocketbook and his pocketbook is overflowing and it needs to stop! We are all paying for all of it, yet Ron Allen is void of it all and people like Ozias who takes money to stay in his Commissioner seat is bought and paid for and might as well be on the tribe payroll securing their interests.
Linda, I have a question for you also: How can a people who DIDN'T believe in land ownership have it taken from them??????
Here is a quote from the JKT's Home page:
"the S’Klallam people living in the Dungeness area decided that in order to survive, they had to adopt a new value system that included property ownership."
I was assigned to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota when I was an officer in the US Public Health Service. That land was given to the natives in a treaty and they were a "sovereign" nation. They had their own law enforcement, and Tribal Council that governed the reservation. Under the treaty the US government provided and co-managed the health services. What is going on in Clallam County is totally different. If Jamestown tribe wants to put purchased land in a trust and be sovereign, then they should provide all their own services rather than having acess to services that others support through taxes. Thats what "sovereign" nations do. Sounds like a big loophole needs to be closed.
Thanks for sharing your unique perspective.
Thank you for keeping us informed. All I can say is VOTE
You're welcome, Kathy. That is the best advice one can give!
I would have no problem with the Tribe running businesses, but for every property they buy, WE, THE AMERICAN TAX-PAYING PEOPLE-- those of us who are NOT "Sovereign"-- have to pick up the difference, because the Tribe pays no taxes and you know darned well that the County will not do with less money. So, assuming this property paid $20K/yr in taxes, each property tax on the Olympic Peninsula would go up about $1. One dollar? No big deal, right? Well, a dollar here, a dollar there, it keeps building. And, the Tribes will not pay tax on their income. Oops, another dollar. Maybe the Tribes will decide to make the land around it a "nature preserve" and block access, as they are trying to do with Towne Road.
I know this makes me seem like anti-Tribe or a racist, which I am not. But, I STRONGLY believe in fairness and while I have no problem with the Tribes doing as they wish on their own land, when it impacts my travel routes, or costs me money, I take exception.
Just want to point out here, We are also supposed to be sovereign. The problem doesn't so much lie in another sovereignty but, our own, and how we govern / don't govern it.
😉 To be more specific, none of this would be in question, if we weren't selling, of course, when you look at it that way, a lot really comes to light quickly.
I'm on the fence. I don't mind seeing a tribe become successful for themselves. They are one of the most successful on the Penninsula. I can give kudos for their hard work to become what they are today. I can understand that they want what was once theirs. I have family property that will one day be mine & I'm very proud & love that land. I get it. I understand that treaties are important to uphold as well. I get all that. I can be idealisticly in support of the tribe & it's gains.
Now for the other side of that fence.... Our county is one of the most poor in this state. Not paying the taxes (which on one hand I get because I would love to have that option as well) is going to slowly kill our county even more. I love that the tribe supports local events, orginizations & youth activities but is that only a drop in the bucket? The taxes being missed far outweighs any contributions they gift the community. It's already hard to etch a living out in this county. Especially if you're on a fixed income. The taxes piled onto homeowners because of levies, higher property "values" & the loss of millions of dollars of tax base (throughout the county as a whole) is creeping up to the point of completely breaking the backs of every day locals.
Obviously, the right thing to do would be to pay taxes. I don't even care if they pick & choose which ones to pay at this point. I believe the morally right thing to do is any land off of reservations (or in Jamestown's case, the hub of their property where the tribal center/outer buildings/casino/longhouse/hotel are) should have taxes paid in order to help the county & residents as a whole. I don't personally care if they want their own rez. There is plenty of land around the hub of Jamestown that they can develop if they so choose. They have the right to develop what they want on their land. What I don't or wouldn't agree with is the buying up of taxable land or communities already established away from the hub to build a reservation just for the fact of the loss of more of the tax base.
It's a hard one for me because I support tribal rights & the ability to build up through capitalism, which Jamestown most certainly has. What I don't agree with is people losing their homes when the tribe is buying up land within communities (we had family members go through this specifically with a rent to buy small home) and not paying any forms of taxes from these lands within these communities that once were used as part of the tax base. Taking county tax base away & making it tax free is my biggest complaint. As a local of this county on a fixed income, we can't handle much more being piled on our backs. We've had to discuss weather moving from our home to another state, where our dollars can go so much farther, is what we have (not want) to do. This county (and state) is making it harder for every day people to stay where they grew up. It's frustrating to say the least.
Nina, I've read this three times. Thanks for sharing this with us.
Its one thing to be successful but another to seek reparations, reckonings and control. Its inexcusable to dangle their cash to our governmental machinery, worse for our people to take it.
Nothing wrong with dangling cash, if you don't ask, the answer is always no. Yes, dumb to take it though.
Like splitting the farmlands... Then the mass exodus...
When the Jamestown tribe joined the ICLEI, agreed to build and serve them, without going thru the DOI/BIA and U.S. Government, they created an illegal and separate foreign status. As that "foreign status" out from under the federal umbrella they are legally confined to, it becomes an illegal campaign contribution. They owe massive amounts of fines for illegal campaign contributions. So..there is something wrong with dangling international tribal cash.
Maybe, I don't know... But the point is mute, for the county's part... If the cash isn't taken, which is what I was driving at. All this animosity, toward the tribe, I think is misplaced... It belongs on our "side of the line" we (our governing body) are the ones selling, we are the ones catering, we are allowing and or propitiating.
Its hard to blame someone for taking a good deal, when you are the one offering it...
To a point. I am 60 and lived here when most of the Elwha tribe lived in the projects before the lower Elwha housing was built and way before the Jamestown boom. I had no animosity until recently when I saw the reparations/reckoning rant by Fawn Sharp and others. At that point animosity is justified because they sold their souls to foreign governments to achieve revenge. Compound that with the NODC/Ecosystems recovery network documents and you see a communist kick back scheme to hurt American industry. Yes closing the mill and taking out Dungeness farming helps our enemies and other countries. The tribe has 13 different policy positions from Elwha and Jimmeycomelately to the Dungeness River. So they basically lied to flood the Dungeness river valley on purpose...while they protected their own river valleys. I have a right to have animosity for breaking a treaty. the Point No Point Treaty of 1855. Which paid the Jamestown Tribe money for the land they have now taken over by joining an international organization and an external international and tribal governing body. In short, the tribes do not have clean hands here. Their hands have Democrat party and communist elite dirt on them/
Yes.
I hear you, and you won't get an argument from me. Especially now that you've given me more rabbit holes 🤣 what I am saying though, is it couldn't happen without our governing body allowing it, whether with purpose or passively, and that is where our energy should be focused.
Except it's not 'we' that's offering...it's the criminals we thought we elected to serve our best interests...self interested traitors. We currently have no will to take back our gov't...just a lot of upset, disbelief and anger.
Our own u.s. gov't (small case intentional) is a foreign owned corporation...nothing is as it seems...nothing is what we've been told it is...for centuries we have been blind and ignorant and it's painful to become aware of how things really are...still we soldier on as best we can.
BINGO! If they competed fairly, abided by the same laws that you and I have to follow, and paid their share of taxes, I would cheer their success, but this is akin to Welfare recipients running business that make them wealthy, while still receiving Welfare. It ain't right.
Its that tax free money that ends up buying the Democratic party.
And there's Ozias playing like he cares... It'll all be OK, I'm here to help... Useful idiot
In Fall, 2022 there was a special council meeting with Ron Allen and his son Joe talking about some of their plans for Sequim (it's a long list). They also talked about trust properties , to which councilor Ferrell said their "investment in the community" overrides losing the tax base. Here's a PDN article about the meeting, if you don't have a subscription and haven't recently opened articles, you should be able to view it. Also note at that time they had received no money for the psychiatric hospital, but they recently received a grant of $13 million.
https://www.peninsuladailynews.com/news/jamestowns-chairman-shares-sequim-building-plans/
So bit by bit Washington state in their grandiose ability to oversee the populace is losing land and monies. Our county is losing the tax base which will in turn lose people and through poor governance have poor schools lack of work poor infrastructure schools hospitals clinics firehouses policemen park maintenance road maintenance winter road maintenance… but the tribe will be making money with no investment to the so called land…. But hey they will have a reservation that they maintain like the casino… pissy police that have NO authority to do anything, drugs that will continue to be sealed in the casino, and pandered to by the S’kllalm tribe mafia! What a set up… state run graf woopie… makes me what to puke…
My apologies to the community for the rant… but this is a bad movie
Thinking, feeling people get it too. No worries.
Indeed, Paula. It's like Black people demanding "reparations". That ship has sailed. None of us alive had anything to do with slavery and similarly, none of us alive have had anything to do with forcing native Americans off their land, as settlers did 200 years ago. That ship has sailed too. It's time for Tribes to abide by the same laws as the rest of us and pay their fair share of taxes. It's not like it would break them!
Empire in decline is a sad thing indeed.
If we were to do a risks vs benefits analysis on Jamestown S'klallam involvement in the County wouldn't you want to compare the tax base loss vs the benefits from other Tribal investments in County infrastructure etc? In a 2 second Google look it far outweighs a $25000 annual loss. I realize that it may not be coming out of the tribes coffers and is the result of effective grant writing, Federal funding etc but its still a win using my rudimentary math skills. Is this really about control, or the money? Definitely appreciate the information on CCWD but to be balanced here we need all the information to make rational decisions. I.E. Tribal contributions that benefit all of the County residents. Just my 2 cents.
A cost-benefit analysis would be great. Remember, the one property discussed hasn't been transferred to tribal trust, but it may be possible in the future (several of their 300+ properties have been transferred to the trust). When doing the analysis, we should factor in the massive cost overruns the County has paid during the Towne Road relocation -- much of this was caused by the Tribe's deliberate early breach of the dike, and continued delay of the project that still drags on today. Then there is the uncalculatable cost of the fire department not reaching a burning home in time to prevent a family from being homeless (the road closure contributed greatly to their loss). It's more than 2 seconds on Google, it's much more complicated.
The bigger picture are the plans of the u.n., the w.e.f., i.c.l.e.i., n.o.d.c. which are going to curtail our rights and freedoms into oblivion. The sneaky property consolidations are not going to make you very happy when you find out what the long term plan is.
Cool, now do churches.
If the Tribe buys land and doesn’t have to pay taxes on it, it is exactly the same as church property. If you want taxes to be paid, buy the land yourself and pay taxes on it. There is nothing wrong with JST legally buying land.
Just buy the land myself and pay taxes on it? I'd need to cough up $8 million to buy that RV park... yikes! And since the Tribe makes offers on land and buys under an alias (not "Jamestown Tribe"), I'd have to buy every property that is ever listed to make sure the taxes keep getting paid. My savings account doesn't have enough money to make that a realistic option.
Like I said, now do churches. There’s a heck of a lot of non-tax-paying church property in Clallam County. Every piece of land that is held by any church, and the buildings residing on it, pay nothing in taxes. They use the streets, the water, all the public utilities that are funded by taxes, yet pay nothing.
Lynne, Apples and Oranges!!!!
Churches are "Non-Profit Organizations"
Churches have to obey City and County Zoning Regulations.
Churches have to obey City, County, and State Enviromental Regulations.
Churches have to pay all other applicable City, County, and State Taxes.
Churches have to allow Local and State Law Enforcement to enforce Local and State Laws on their property.
Sovereign Land, None of the above.
It's all a scam.
Agreed.
There may be something wrong with us not being a bit more critical in who we sell to or how we stipulate a sale though.
Well at least we are hearing from the people who understand part of the picture.
So is the irony lost here? The Tribe is LEGALLY purchasing land BACK that was historically theirs to begin with - and then, people want the Tribe to pay taxes to the people that stole their land in the first place?!?! No. No. No. The tribe has every right - legally and ethically to do this. They are taking care of their people, something local and federal governments have failed to do. I understand people may be upset that this raises their taxes, but if you don’t like it - you then you should sale your house and leave the area. I might know an interested buyer 😉
I certainly didn't steal anyone's land. If you did, I encourage you to give it back.
No... Finders keepers 😁😅
You have what you have because of eminent domain by the gov't, i.e. you would not be able to own your private property anywhere in this country if the gov't hadn't made it possible for emigrants to claim this land in the past. Don't be a hypocrite. Hand yours over to the tribe maybe?
You can have my house for $750k. Cash only. It overlooks Old Crabby.
Mel, I have to take issue with this statement:
"people want the Tribe to pay taxes to the people that stole their land in the first place?!?!"
From the Point No Point Treaty:
ARTICLE 1. The said tribes and bands of Indians hereby cede, relinquish, and convey to the United States all their right, title, and interest in and to the lands and country occupied by them
ARTICLE 5. In consideration of the above cession the United States agree to pay to the said tribes and bands the sum of sixty thousand dollars,
That's a pretty good deal for a people who didn't believe in land ownership.
Here is a quote from the JKT's Home page:
"the S’Klallam people living in the Dungeness area decided that in order to survive, they had to adopt a new value system that included property ownership."
I'll bet you do! And their cash flow is not all so legal. The irony is we are paying ozias $100,000 to liaison for the disposal of our public property to a non-taxpaying entity with no due process.
HB2230 would amend tribal property tax exemption
https://www.valleyrecord.com/news/house-bill-2230-passes-the-state-legislature/
https://dor.wa.gov/sites/default/files/2021-11/sn_20_TribalProperty.pdf
And yes, it's legal
Great research, LMS.
I am trying to understand :)
I understand that the tribe signed a treaty selling land and they were given renumeration.
I understand the tribe kept land on which they lived and for which they were not obligated to pay taxes due to federal law.
What I do not understand or didn't know is that a tribe can buy more land and add it to the original parcel/deal and not have to pay taxes on it? That seems to be what is happening, but is that legal federally?
I don’t think the tribe will pay taxes out of the goodness of their hearts. Why should they?
The average home owner will be burdened by previous actions no one living today, had any input or participation in. This is sweet for the tribe, but a game changer for retired people. Where’s our break?