Cover letter Lawrence Solomon TTAC

WRITTEN TESTIMONY SUBMITTED TO THE 

TREASURY TRIBAL TAX ADVISORY COMMITTEE- FOR THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON 

TRIBAL GENERAL WELFARE EXCLUSIONS ACT OF 2014

of

Lawrence Solomon, Secretary

Lummi Indian Nation

State of Washington

TTAC Members:

My name is Lawrence Solomon. I am the Secretary of the Lummi Indian Business Council. We 

are the governing branch of tribal government, as empowered by the Lummi Constitution. I am 

the Supervising Officer that guides and directs the Lummi Sovereignty & Treaty Protection 

Office. The attachments, herewith, are the work products of my staff, over the years of 

involvement with the question of federal taxation inside the boundaries of the Lummi Indian 

Reservation, State of Washington. 

Please find, attached, our testimony on concerns about the Treasury Tribal Advisory 

Committee, Subcommittee on the Tribal General Welfare Exclusions Act process and 

acceptance of testimonials from tribes and tribal Indians impacted by federal taxation that is 

otherwise exempted or excluded by law. We understand the TTAC is still in the process of 

organizing their operations and developing their processes for input and review of questions 

about or ambiguities in the GWE Act of 2014. But, we understand that the TTAC has a much 

larger role in identification of tax problems of Indian Country. This is why our attached 

document is fairly large. The fact is that there are a lot of legal and historical fictions that have 

damaged, and continue to damage tribal nations and people. We surmise the taxation of Indian 

Country is schizophrenic is anything.

We are generally concerned about 1099 reports that flag “gross income” that may or may not 

have been reported by tribal Indians (as citizens) on their 1040 forms. We are concerned about 

the Tribal General Welfare Exclusions Act issues. But, we, also, are concerned about other 

activities that become flagged by 1099s. We have IRC Section 7871 on the Tribal Governmental 

Tax Status Act and especially non-profit activities. We have Section IRC Section 7873 on Indian 

Fishing Rights Exemptions. We have IRC Section 139D on Medical Exemptions. We have IRC 

Section 139E (General Welfare and Ceremonial Activity Exclusions). Without clarification, any 
Cover letter Lawrence Solomon TTAC

and all of these can result in a 1099 form being sent in and the “income” flag for “tax evasion” 

due to not being reconciled on the 1040. 

Consequently, we believe the “1099” problem needs to be addressed via consultations and 

negotiations between the IRS/Treasury and Indian Nations. This task is not impossible if we 

have a working environment that encourages dialogue and cooperation. For example, those 

1099s that should not be filed with the IRS due to any of the mentioned sections (defined and 

scoped out) should be sent to the respective tribe (that the individual is enrolled in or a 

descendant of) for entering into a 1099 Tribal Registry that documents the transaction. This 

would require the tribes and the IRS to agree to an IRS Guidance Document that is explanatory 

of the process, authorizes the system, and informs all entities that would otherwise fill out and 

mail in the 1099 that it gets sent to the respective tribal registry. This would require access to a 

government website that explains the reasons, the law, and the process. It would be aligned 

with the Federally Recognize Tribes listing on file with the IRS.

Finally, you will find our position, herewith, on “Ceremonial Activity.” Neither the tribes or the 

IRS has this scoped out and thoroughly defined. In the meanwhile, tribal “ceremonialists” are 

being identified on 1099 forms and face IRS challenges due to their 1040 filings. We attached, 

herewith, a paper entitled “Lummi Nation Concerns About Prevention of Federal Taxation of 

Ceremonial Activity.” Then, we attached, our explanation via “Chart on IRS Taxation of Indian 

Country” (chart attached as a pdf file). Then, we have a “Message of Concern and 

Explanations” that is associated with explaining why we need to develop a “Booklet on 

Ceremonial Activity.” This latter is intended to help scope out what is tax exempt ceremonial 

activity. Then, we attached, a sample draft code (Lummi version pending completion) for tribes 

to take into consideration in the development of a tribal code of laws to implement the Tribal 

General Welfare Exclusions Act of 2014.

We recognize that the TTAC members are extremely busy, but committed to Indian Country. 

Therefore, we feel it appropriate to provide as much information about our position as 

possible. 

Please accept this draft position for your future considerations and debates.