Department of the Interior

Offi ce of the Special Trustee 

for American Indians

Volume 11, Issue 3

Summer 2011

TRUST MATTERS

 Table of Contents

$100K Probate Account 1 

Estate Planning 2

Tribal Consultation Policy 2

OASIS 3

Ray Joseph 3

Records Management 4 

$100,000 Plus Probate Account

An account holder with a balance of more than $100,000 had not 

maintained a current address with the Offi ce of the Special Trustee 

for American Indians (OST), therefore, she became a Whereabouts Unknown (WAU) account holder. She was last known to live 

somewhere in the Northwest area.

Some detective work by OST staff members resulted in discovering the 

account holder’s current name and last known city of residence. Aft er it 

was determined the WAU account holder had passed on, 

an eff ort began to fi nd an obituary or the cemetery where 

the late account holder was interred. A valuable lead from 

an online grave search led OST to the cemetery where the 

account holder had been laid to rest. Th e cemetery was not 

only able to provide a copy of the obituary but also a death 

certifi cate, which made it possible for OST to run a system 

report that located heirs of the estate.

Th e moral of this story is two-fold. 

Without the dedication of OST personnel, those funds would probably 

still be sitting unused. It’s only through everyday eff orts by OST accounting technicians and other front line workers that these funds were able to 

be provided to the rightful heirs. 

It’s also a cautionary tale for account holders to keep their address 

information up-to-date. Know who you want to inherit your account and 

do some estate planning, which may simply mean having a will prepared 

or making a gift deed to your loved ones. You decide who is entitled to 

your funds and make it possible for your heirs to inherit without any 

delays.

To update any personal information about your account, call the Trust 

Benefi ciary Call Center. Th e toll free number is 1-888-678-6836. Th e 

center is open Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday 

from 8 a.m. to noon, Mountain time.

To get help with estate planning or for information 

about your account, contact your Fiduciary Trust 

Offi cer (FTO). You can locate your FTO online at 

www.doi.gov/ft o.

Did you know? On average, OST 

produces almost 8,000 

oil and gas checks each month.

News Flash! Th e White House 

 has published a new website 

 for Native American 

communities:

 www.whitehouse.gov/

 nativeamericans
2 TRUST MATTERS

Tribal Consultation Policy

The Offi ce of the Special Trustee for American Indians (OST) continues to play a role with the Department of the 

Interior to take signifi cant steps to implement President Obama’s November 5, 2009, executive memorandum 

on tribal consultation. The Department’s goal is to create a policy that replicates the best consultation practices, 

responds to the needs and constraints of tribal leaders participating in future consultations and promotes more 

responsible policy development for Indian country.

A joint tribal-federal team collaborated to write the Department’s draft consultation policy, which was provided to 

tribal leaders with a 60-day period to comment. Subsequently, on May 17, 2011, the policy was published in the 

Federal Register for public comments through July 18, 2011. At the conclusion of the public comment period, the 

tribal and federal co-chairs and Department leadership assessed the public comments and prepared the policy for 

Secretary Salazar’s consideration. 

OST team members include Patricia Gerard and Lee Frazier, with OST’s Offi ce of External Aff airs. Ethel Abeita, 

Director of OST’s Offi ce of Trust Records, was an active initial member.

Can your adopted child inherit your trust 

property? Will the American Indian Probate 

Reform Act (AIPRA) impact inheritance of 

your trust lands? Is gift deeding is a good 

option for you? 

When you have assets, trust or non-trust, you should 

be the one to make decisions about those assets. Th ose 

decisions range from knowing if your trust land is 

leased to deciding who will inherit your property. 

As benefi cial owner, you have the opportunity to 

manage your trust lands. But remember, decisions 

you don’t make about your property leave others the 

opportunity to make decisions for you.

As of June 20, 2006, federal law (AIPRA) not state 

inheritance law controls who inherits your trust assets. 

Without a will, your spouse will inherit a life estate 

and the property may revert to your children or the 

tribe upon the spouse’s death. Th ink about what that 

means to the spouse. Is that what you want? If your 

trust interest is less than fi ve percent, only one person 

will inherit that interest. Do you want the operation of 

AIPRA to decide who inherits those interests? 

Remember, good Indian estate planning covers more 

than just trust property. It also provides for your nontrust assets.

A will is a great way to record your estate planning 

decisions. Remember, you will die, with or without a 

will. However, without a will, you won’t be the one to 

decide what happens to your property. 

Don’t let decisions happen by default! 

Contact your Fiduciary Trust Offi cer (FTO) to fi nd 

out how your estate may be aff ected by AIPRA and 

how you can make the most of owner management 

opportunities for your trust property. Locate your 

FTO online at www.doi.gov/ost/ft o. 

If you have a specifi c 

question about your 

account or trust 

property, please 

contact the Trust 

Benefi ciary Call 

Center, toll free, at 

1-888-678-6836. Its 

operating hours are 

Monday to Friday, 

7 a.m.to 6 p.m. and 

Saturday from 8 a.m. 

until noon, Mountain 

time.

Owner Management Opportunities: Estate Planning and Your Trust Land Ownership

Did you know? Dean Webb, Great 

Plains Region, was OST’s fi rst 

Fiduciary Trust Offi cer.

Did you know? 16 tribes have 

access to their tribal accounts 

online via StrataWeb.

According to a 

March 2011 survey, 

57 percent 

of all American 

adults do not 

have a will.
VOLUME 11, ISSUE 3 3

Ray Joseph Meets Tribal Leaders

Principal Deputy Special Trustee (PDST) Ray Joseph 

has taken the opportunity to meet as many tribal leaders as possible since he joined the Offi ce of the Special 

Trustee for American Indians (OST) in January 2011. 

Each meeting has broadened eff ective communications 

and provided an opportunity to voice OST’s goals of 

supporting collaboration, consultation and cooperation. 

In addition to a phone conversation with Confederated 

Salish and Kootenai Tribes Chairman Moran in March, 

a meeting with InterTribal Monitoring Association 

leaders in April, and Tribal/Interior Budget Council 

meetings in March and May, the PDST also took the 

opportunity to attend the South Dakota Indian 

Business Conference in May. At that conference, he 

was joined in local media interviews by Tanya 

Fiddler, a board member of the conference’s sponsoring organization (South Dakota Indian Business 

Alliance), and JR LaPlante, the fi rst Secretary of Tribal 

Relations for South Dakota. He held discussions 

throughout the day with entrepreneurs attending the 

conference and talked with fi nancial leaders during 

breakout sessions and workshops. When not in 

sessions, Mr. Joseph met with tribal leaders and 

discussed the importance of fi eld offi ces and Fiduciary 

Trust Offi cers assisting the tribes.

PDST Joseph plans to attend tribal and government 

events throughout the summer and fall. Perhaps he 

will see you at one of those venues. If so, please say 

hello and bring to his attention any issues that aff ect 

the fi duciary trust. To reach him at his offi ce, call 

202-208-4866.

Did you know? OST has printed 

several checks for over a million 

dollars for IIM benefi ciaries.

Did you know? OST has 

decreased its budget request 

each year for the past 6 years.

Offi ce of Appraisal Services 

Information System (OASIS)

Early this year, work began on an electronic 

application to manage the volume of 

appraisals being requested from the Offi ce 

of the Special Trustee for American Indians 

Offi ce of Appraisal Services (OAS). That 

application is named Offi ce of Appraisal 

Services Information System (OASIS). It is 

being written and designed using the latest 

software technologies.

OASIS will make it possible for clients to 

electronically input appraisal service 

requests as well as upload supporting 

documentation. Requests advance to OAS 

Regional Supervisory Appraisers (RSAs) 

for acceptance. Clients will be able to track 

requests as they make their way through the 

appraisal/review process. 

This system will give RSAs the ability to 

determine resources needed to meet work 

load requirements. They will be able to 

evaluate types of appraisal services being 

requested, appraisal staff requirements and 

contractor performance. OASIS will give 

management a real-time overview of work 

being performed in the fi eld.

OASIS is being phrased into production. 

Phase one includes writing the initial application and then testing input of appraisal 

service requests at OAS regional offi ces. This 

testing is scheduled for late summer in 2011. 

In the future, after full implementation of 

phase one, phase two will be developed to 

address reports needed by management. 

Phase three will tackle appraisal reporting 

capabilities.

For more information about 

OASIS and appraisal requests, 

call 505-816-1318.
4 TRUST MATTERS

Record Number of Tribal Government Employees Attend 

Records Management Conference 

The Offi ce of the Special Trustee for American Indians 4th annual 

records management conference was a terrifi c success, with a 

signifi cant increase in the number of attendees. Th is year’s conference 

saw the largest increase in the number of tribal attendees — 66 

compared to 36 last year. Th e increase was due largely to the Offi ce of 

Trust Record’s (OTR) decision to structure conference workshops in 

line with tribal records management needs. Th e conference was held 

June 6-9, 2011, at the National Indian Programs Training Center in 

Albuquerque, New Mexico. 

Th e conference provided 82 workshops in three course tracks. 

Th is year, OTR provided records information training in workshop 

settings rather than in-depth training in fewer subjects. Seventy-two 

percent of attendees who participated in the records 

management program for tribes responded to the 

evaluation survey as strongly agreeing that the session 

increased their knowledge and/or skills and they were 

likely to use some or all of the information provided at 

their workplace.

Tribes represented at the conference included the 

Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, Colorado River Indian 

Tribe, Confederated Salish & Kootenai Tribes, 

Flandreau Santee Sioux, Hopi Tribe, Mescalero 

Apache, Navajo, Northern 

Cheyenne Tribe, Oglala Sioux, 

Omaha Tribe of Nebraska, 

Oneida Tribe of Indians of 

Wisconsin, Pine Ridge, Pueblo 

of Zuni, Quil Ceda Village of 

Washington, San Carlos Apache, 

Santa Clara Pueblo, Shingle 

Springs Rancheria, ShoshoneBannock Tribes, Susanville 

Indian Rancheria, Winnebago 

and others that were not 

identifi ed by their tribal representatives. A few participants travelled from 

as far away as Alaska.

For more information about the conference or records management 

training for your offi ce, call 505-816-1620.

Did you know? The American 

Indian Records Repository 

is approximately 

90 feet underground.

Did you know? 2,016 cubic feet 

of space is reserved at AIRR for 

contracting and compacting tribes 

to store their trust documents.

OTR employees staff the registration table

Conference attendees receive certifi cates for 

completing training at the conference

Associate Principal Deputy Special Trustee 

Donna Erwin addressed attendees