Indianz.Com > News > Jodi Rave: Interior can't find owners of $73M

Jodi Rave: Interior can't find owners of $73M
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Filed Under: Cobell

"The Interior Department owes tens of millions of dollars to tens of thousands of Native people - but it doesn't know where to send the checks.

Nearly $73 million sits in a U.S. Treasury account waiting to be claimed by nearly 85,000 Native people, whose whereabouts are unknown.

Nearly four years ago, the department's Office of Special Trustee created its Trust Beneficiary Call Center in Albuquerque, N.M., to field calls and find people who have an Individual Indian Money account.

Money is deposited into an IIM for lease and royalty payments, and tribal citizens will likely have an account if they own land, said said Debby Pafel, an special trustee spokeswoman.

But many people don't know they own land, which is why there are so many unclaimed accounts, Pafel said.

They likely share a fraction of an undivided interest on a parcel owned by hundreds of others."

Get the Story:
Jodi Rave: Natives aren't getting checks because Interior doesn't have listing (The Missoulian 8/10)

Related Stories:
Jodi Rave: Cobell to appeal $455.6M decision (8/11)
Cobell final ruling of $455.6M disappoints (8/8)
Judge issues final ruling in Cobell trust case (8/7)
Judge to issue final ruling in Cobell case in August (06/26)
Judge to hear final arguments in landmark Cobell trial (06/25)
Washington law firm invests millions in Cobell case (6/23)
Final ruling in Cobell case expected by mid-July (6/20)
En Francais: Elouise Cobell ready for battle (6/19)
Osage Nation seeks to intervene in Cobell case (6/19)
Cobell judge won't rule early on final trial (6/18)
Cobell to appear on NPR program 'Tell Me More' (6/16)
Jodi Rave: Testimony continues in historic Cobell trial (6/16)
Letter: Indians kept poor by federal government (6/16)
Osage trust funds at issue in Cobell lawsuit (6/13)
Editorial: $58B trust payout more than fair (6/13)
Editorial: Indians short-changed by trustee (6/13)
Cobell plaintiffs rest case in trust fund trial (6/12)
Cobell plaintiffs focus on $58B claim at trial (6/11)
Trial seeks to resolve Indian trust fund lawsuit (6/11)
Judge opens landmark trial in Cobell trust fund case (6/10)
Jodi Rave: Cobell happy with opening day of trial (6/10)
Jodi Rave: Cobell trial begins in Washington DC (6/9)
Cobell trust fund case set for final trial (6/3)
After six-plus years, BIA website finally online (05/27)
BIA to be fully online in a couple of months (5/21)
Interior heads back online after disconnect (5/15)
Judge issues pre-trial order in Cobell trust case (5/13)
Bush administration responds to Cobell $58B claim (04/11)
'Rough justice' seen in resolving Cobell case (4/7)
House panel threatens Cobell accounting cut (4/4)
Letter: A small spark of justice in Cobell case (3/31)
Cobell plaintiffs say $58B owed for Indian trust (3/21)
Cobell case set for resolution in court (3/6)
Judge sets June 9 trial to resolve Cobell case (3/5)
Judge to hold Cobell hearing this Wednesday (3/3)
Next hearing in Cobell case set for March 5 (02/21)
Resolution appears near in Cobell trust case (2/19)
Editorial: Settle 'botched' Indian trust fund (02/06)
Editorial: Settle the Indian trust fund lawsuit (2/4)
Kempthorne reiterates $7B Indian trust offer (2/1)
Editorial: A remedy for 'neglect' of Indian trust (2/1)
Cobell: 'Great day in Indian Country' (1/31)
Judge: Cobell historical accounting 'impossible' (1/30)
Cobell statement on historical accounting decision (1/30)
Jim Cason: Historical accounting facts (01/18)