[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 131 (Monday, September 19, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: September 19, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
  RESTORATION OF FEDERAL RECOGNITION TO THE PASKENTA BAND OF NOMLAKI 
                         INDIANS OF CALIFORNIA

                                 ______


                             HON. VIC FAZIO

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, September 19, 1994

  Mr. FAZIO. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of restoration of Federal 
recognition of the Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians of California and 
to introduce legislation to achieve this end. I would also like to take 
this opportunity to thank my colleagues--Chairman George Miller of the 
House Committee on Natural Resources and Chairman Bill Richardson of 
the Subcommittee on Native American Affairs--as well as Tadd Johnson, 
staff director of the subcommittee, for their efforts and support on 
behalf of this legislation.
  The Paskenta Band is a small, independent tribal group within the 
larger Wintun Nation. Its homeland is in my district, in the 
mountainous area of southwestern Tehama County, CA, near the town of 
Paskenta. One of the tribe's main ties to the Paskenta area is that it 
is the home and burial place of its ancestors. These burial places are 
still maintained by members of the Paskenta Band.
  The Federal Government originally identified 53 members of the 
Paskenta Band as a distinct tribal group in a census taken around 1915. 
Lands were first acquired for the benefit of the tribe in the early 
1900's under legislation authorizing the acquisition of land for 
homeless California Indians. Today, there are approximately 150 members 
who are descendants of the Nomlaki Indians who comprised the original 
Paskenta Band identified in 1915.
  In the 1950's, Federal-tribal relationships were terminated. In 
California alone, 41 federally-recognized Indian groups, including the 
Paskenta Band, were discontinued under the California Rancheria Act of 
1958. Up until this time, federally recognized tribes received little 
more in services than unrecognized tribes did. As a result, there was 
little incentive at the time of termination for Indians to step forward 
and assert otherwise, especially if they or their parents had already 
moved off of the land because of poor conditions and lack of Bureau of 
Indian Affairs [BIA] services.
  When the Federal Indian programs were initiated in the 1970's, 
however, this changed. For purposes of program eligibility, clear 
distinctions began to be drawn between members of federally recognized 
tribes and those California Indians who were members of tribes that 
either had never been recognized or--like the Paskenta--had been 
terminated. These distinctions between recognized, unrecognized and 
terminated Indians increased during the 1980's when the BIA accelerated 
its effort to service only Indians who were members of federally 
recognized tribes.
  The Paskenta Band is one of the few remaining terminated California 
tribes. However, it still maintains tribal relations and functions as a 
self-governing Indian tribal community, despite the lack of a tribal 
land base. But, official Federal recognition is essential if the 
Paskenta are to be eligible for Federal programs and services provided 
to Indians.
  Appearing before the House Subcommittee on Native American Affairs 
earlier this year, Chairman Everett Freeman of the Paskenta Band 
testified that the struggle to reverse the termination of his tribe has 
provided a renewed sense of pride and hope within the Paskenta, 
especially among its elders, who never really understood or actively 
participated in the termination process.

       We are making this effort primarily for our children, who 
     know the old stories of the Paskenta people, but just now are 
     discovering the richness of that heritage and a pride in 
     their identity as Indian people.

  Both the board of supervisors of Tehama County and the BIA have 
indicated their support for restoring Federal recognition to the 
Paskenta. I am proud to join them by offering this long overdue 
legislation, which will return federally recognized status to the 
Paskenta.

                          ____________________