Sometimes it’s the dog that doesn’t bark that’s most arresting. For example, not a single member of the public showed to comment about the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians’ application to place a 365-acre chunk of land by the intersection of Highways 154 and 246 into “federal trust” at this Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors hearing on the subject.
“Fee to trust” is a legal action by which the 365 acres in question are proposed to be placed in federal trust on behalf of the Santa Ynez Band, allowing tribal leadership to do with the land as they see fit unfettered by county land use restrictions, property taxes, or the need to submit proposed development to environmental review.
Ten years ago, County Supervisor Steve Lavagnino noted, a similar move involving a significantly bigger parcel of land then just purchased by the Santa Ynez Chumash known as Camp 4 triggered knock-down, drag-out fights between tribal leaders and valley residents for what seemed like several years.
Since that perpetual imbroglio was resolved, federal laws have changed significantly, and what limited legal authority the county supervisors might ever have wielded was dramatically reduced. As a result, this Tuesday the supervisors agreed they lacked even a pretense of a legal position from which to sue the tribe.
