Along with three other area tribes, the Citizen Potawatomi Nation has been in a protracted tax fight with the City of Shawnee over collecting city sales tax on tangible purchases made by non-tribal citizens in tribally-owned businesses that have a Shawnee mailing address.

SHAWNEE, Okla. – Claiming that not enough owners signed off on it, the City of Shawnee has denied a de-annexation petition by the Citizen Potawatomi Nation.

In a public notice dated Oct. 4, 2014, Shawnee City Clerk Phyllis Loftin wrote that the federal government also has to sign off on the Citizen Potawatomi Nation’s petition to detach from the City of Shawnee and that the signatures of the tribe’s vice chairman, Linda Capps, and five other area voters is insufficient.

Currently, Shawnee public ordinances require the signatures from enough owners to account for three-fourths of the value of the land in question to allow for potential detachment. Of the 1,724 acres included in the petition, county records show that 1,158 acres are trust land and, in the eyes of the City Clerk’s office, officially owned by the federal government.

The ordinance is silent on how the property value is to be assessed.

In a letter anonymously forwarded to the Native Times Monday afternoon, Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs Kevin Washburn offered a different interpretation of who exactly owns land held in trust for a tribe.

“Indian tribes are the beneficial owners of land held for them in trust by the United States,” wrote the former law school professor. “As such, tribes enjoy full and exclusive possession, use and enjoyment of trust lands. Further, tribes exercise jurisdiction over trust lands and trust lands are generally exempt from the jurisdiction of local and state governments, except for where Congress has specifically authorized such jurisdiction.”

Along with three other area tribes, the Citizen Potawatomi Nation has been in a protracted tax fight with the City of Shawnee over collecting city sales tax on tangible purchases made by non-tribal citizens in tribally-owned businesses that have a Shawnee mailing address. Between the four tribes, the businesses potentially impacted by such a move include a discount grocery store, four casinos, three convenience stores and two gift shops.

As per a 1991 U.S. Supreme Court decision, tribes do not have to remit state sales taxes on purchases made by tribal citizens on tribally-owned businesses located on reservations or trust land. However, the decision does not say anything about taxes levied by county or municipal governments. The decision is also silent on how states are to collect tax revenue generated by non-tribal citizens, leading the City of Shawnee to request the tribes to remit a regular payment and essentially be the city’s tax collectors.

“Since the loss of the aboriginal land in Michigan and Indiana, the loss of the lands in Kansas obtained after the Trail of Death march, and the loss of the Oklahoma lands, we have been working diligently to re-purchase what is rightfully ours and protect it in trust with the federal government,” Citizen Potawatomi Nation Chairman John “Rocky” Barrett said. “The City of Shawnee is trying to claim jurisdiction, so we have requested a formal detachment. This way will be the easiest and least expensive path, rather than a lawsuit or special election, for the taxpayers of Shawnee, many of whom are our family members and employees.

“We will continue to seek the most amicable and efficient method to once again establish what is rightfully ours, but will not shy from litigation if it becomes necessary. The city has more to gain from working with the nation than a lawsuit.”

The Shawnee City Commission is scheduled to meet Monday night. Filed after the required posting window, the tribe’s detachment petition is not listed on the night’s agenda, but five resolutions related to the tax fight are listed.