Tribal land expansion

Dear Supervisors Farr, Carbajal, Gray, Wolf and Lavagnino: As you are aware, our community has repeatedly objected to tribal land and/or gambling expansion. A number of months ago, Supervisor Farr notified our community that the Santa Ynez Band was in communications with Congressman Elton Gallegly to request that Congressman Gallegly write legislation to put their 1,400 acres, in the heart of Santa Ynez, into federal trust.

Supervisor Doreen Farr wrote Congressman Gallegly, voicing her objections to this potential legislation. In addition, four Santa Ynez Valley community groups and two Santa Barbara community groups wrote Congressman Gallegly outlining the negative impacts of land in federal trust, and objecting to any such legislation.

Later, after a conversation with Congressman Gallegly’s D.C. staff, we became very concerned that a supervisor was in the process of contacting the county CEO regarding negotiations on the 1,400 acres.

Following a Freedom of Information Request, on June 1 the CEO’s Office stated that the CEO had no communications with anyone regarding the 1,400 acres (see attached). However, just days ago, we heard rumor that the 1,400 acres, and the 6.9 acres, would be going into trust shortly.

We are writing to update you on a very recent Supreme Court decision that will have significant bearing on federal Indian law and fee to trust decisions. Our legal counsel has advised us that Jicarilla v. United States is going to cause more changes to federal Indian policy by limiting the Indian trust relationship than the Supreme Court’s Sherrill Decision did in 2005.

In addition, the Jicarilla decision integrates with other very recent Supreme Court Decisions reaffirming state sovereignty that will greatly impact fee to trust decision-making. For the reasons outlined over the last 6 years, and the recent and upcoming Supreme Court decisions, we respectfully request that Santa Barbara County not consider any negotiations on fee to trust for any land in the Santa Ynez Valley.

If we can be of assistance to you, please contact us.

Sincerely,

Kathy Cleary, Board President

Preservation of Los Olivos, P.O.L.O.

(805) 693-5090, info@polosyv.org

cc: Congressman Elton Gallegly


Return to sender

The most obvious and most wanting in the reduction of federal-government spending is the U.S. Post Office. Staring you right in the face in every branch of the post offices are the bins that contain the junk mail-people don’t want.

During the years from 1950-to present is the abundance of big corporations’ free ride on advertising through the U.S. Post Office. Prior to 1950 during the depression of the 1930s, this so-called junk mail was a stabilizing service product of our free enterprising system. Junk mail was big business then, with private folks being the distributor of ads and employing thousands of people and helping the economy. Junk mail belongs to the private section and should be returned there and thereby cutting fed-gov expenses and building jobs for the nation. Also, magazines and newspapers belong to the private section and should be returned to that section.

Should you people demand this return to the people, then once again we will have two deliveries a day. Amen.

Joe Piliero

Orcutt


By the book

The Friends of the Library of the Santa Ynez Valley thanks the Valley Journal for its coverage of our Centennial Celebration on June 11. We had a packed house for the program, and young and older folks enjoyed ice cream floats.

We also wish to thank the City of Solvang to stepping up their support for the Library budget this year. In a time of tight belts everywhere, they found an additional $6,000 to provide a total of $60,000 for library funding.

Sadly, with the 15% decrease in county funding and the decline in state funding, the library will still be forced to close for several hours per week.

Currently the Friends provides nearly all of the funding for Children’s and Youth Programming, except for staff time, through grants from the Valley Foundation, membership dues, and donation income. A continuation of our Early Learning for Families Program, bilingual sessions for parents and preschoolers, will resume June 16, due to a grant from the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians Foundation.

We also recently commissioned a new computer table that holds all of our free Internet computers, the Friends provided for the towers for the Centennial displays, also contribute about a third of the collections budget for new materials.

The Friends views our role at the library as one of support, information, education and service to the community. We do not see ourselves as a main base of support in supplying operating funds to the keep the doors open. However, the Friends has stepped forward in the last quarter of our fiscal year to increase our funding for staff time and our volunteer coordinator. Our additional contribution will preserve 4 of the 13.5 hours that have been cut, and the new city money will buy some additional time. As our former librarians pointed out, funding problems for the library are as old as our recent memory and our 100 years of history. This community uses our library and supports its programs. We need a stable source of revenue to keep it open.

Carolyn Lawrence

President, Friends of the Library of Santa Ynez Valley

Santa Ynez


Out with Obama

I guess President Obama feels he is securely positioned as president and feels he will be re-elected again. Habits are hard to break, and he obviously feels that using empty words as he did the last time that got him elected will work again for him to be re-elected.

He does not know how to solve problems, all of his promises, everything, he has unraveled by himself due to his lack of leadership, favoritism of bringing his corrupt friends into his administration, lies and corruption. I have seen no growth while his thoughts were only centered on himself and corrupt friends. I have not in my years seen a president make fun of others the way he does because he does not agree with them or they have exposed him. I have not seen such favoritism by ringing in so many self-serving friends into his administration and such a high rate of them deserting him and leaving his administration. They, like him, have no leadership abilities and realize he is going down with his empty promises and words and are getting out while they can and still be able to go back to the jobs they had before they joined his administration.

So now he is campaigning out of the country, trying to get votes here in America to be elected again. The problems that he inherited from Bush he has made worse. He does not realize how his lack of leadership and chain of empty words have been exposed. I never believed Obama with his self-serving character of promises and change, but he should be congratulated for having a fabulous vocabulary.

Charlene Abundis

Santa Ynez