Opinion ID: 431988
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: trust responsibilities

Text: 56 If the Secretary is obligated to act as a fiduciary to the Tribe in his administration of the Tribe's oil and gas reserves, and in his determination of what royalties the Tribe is due, then his actions must not merely meet the minimal requirements of administrative law, but must also pass scrutiny under the more stringent standards demanded of a fiduciary. Therefore, the need to determine whether the Secretary owes any duty of trust to the Tribe is unavoidable. 57 The notion that the Secretary, as a representative of the federal government, stands in a special relationship in general to the Indian tribes is not a novel proposition and needs neither extensive discussion nor citation. See, e.g., United States v. Kagama, 118 U.S. 375, 383-84, 6 S.Ct. 1109, 1113-14, 30 L.Ed. 228 (1886); Cherokee Nation v. Georgia, 30 U.S. (5 Pet.) 1, 17, 8 L.Ed. 25 (1831). The Supreme Court has continually recognized the distinctive obligation of trust incumbent upon the Government, Seminole Nation v. United States, 316 U.S. 286, 296, 62 S.Ct. 1049, 1054, 86 L.Ed. 1480 (1942), in its dealings with the Indian tribes. 1 See, e.g., United States v. Mitchell (Mitchell II), --- U.S. ----, 103 S.Ct. 2961, 2972, 77 L.Ed.2d 580 (1983). Because of this trust relationship the Government, in both its executive and legislative branches, is held to a high standard of conduct, one consonant with its moral obligations of the highest obligation and trust. Seminole Nation v. United States, 316 U.S. at 297, 62 S.Ct. at 1054. For the same reason, whenever doubt or ambiguity exists in federal statutes or regulations, such doubt is resolved in favor of the tribes. See, e.g., Bryan v. Itasca County, 426 U.S. 373, 392, 96 S.Ct. 2102, 2112, 48 L.Ed.2d 710 (1976). 58 In addition to the all-pervasive general trust relationship between the United States and the Indian people ... [that] has long dominated the Government's dealings with Indians, Mitchell II, 103 S.Ct. at 2972, the Supreme Court has declared that other, context-specific trust relationships of varying depth and responsibility exist. Id.; compare United States v. Mitchell (Mitchell I), 445 U.S. 535, 542, 546, 100 S.Ct. 1349, 1353, 1355, 63 L.Ed.2d 607 (1980) (General Allotment Act creates a limited trust relationship, not a fiduciary responsibility for management of allotted forest lands) with Mitchell II, 103 S.Ct. at 2972 (other federal statutes and regulations establish a full fiduciary relationship in management of allotted forest lands). 59 Both the Supreme Court and this circuit have recently set out the test for determining a trust relationship. In Whiskers v. United States, 600 F.2d 1332 (10th Cir.1979), cert. denied, 444 U.S. 1078, 100 S.Ct. 1028, 62 L.Ed.2d 761 (1980), we made it clear that no particular words or phrases are critical to the finding of a trust relationship. [T]he use of the word 'trustee' is not absolutely essential to the finding of a trust relationship when it is otherwise clear that Congress intended a trust relationship to exist. Id. at 1338. Rather, the test is whether the relevant statutory and regulatory provisions [contain] an enumeration of duties which would justify a conclusion that Congress intended the Secretary to be a trustee. Id. In Mitchell II, the Court reviewed the statutes and regulations establishing the particular relationship between the government and the Indians to determine whether they give the Federal Government full responsibility to manage Indian resources and land for the benefit of the Indians. 103 S.Ct. at 2972. Finding that they did so, the Court concluded, [t]hey thereby establish a fiduciary relationship and define the contours of the United States' fiduciary responsibilities. Id. 60 In Mitchell II, the Supreme Court determined that the Secretary owed Indian tribes a duty of trust in administering the sale of timber on Indian lands. Because the statutory and regulatory scheme in Mitchell II parallels that involved here, I believe Mitchell II governs the resolution of this issue. 61 In finding a trust relationship in Mitchell II, the Court noted that the Secretary plays a pervasive role in sales of timber from Indian lands. 103 S.Ct. at 2969. The Court then carefully examined the statutes dealing with sales of timber on reservation land, the legislative history underlying the statutes, and the regulations explicating them, finding it significant that [t]he Department of the Interior ... 'exercises literally daily supervision over the harvesting and management of tribal timber.' ... Virtually every stage of the process is under federal control. Id. 103 S.Ct. at 2971 (quoting White Mountain Apache Tribe v. Bracker, 448 U.S. 136, 147, 100 S.Ct. 2578, 2585, 65 L.Ed.2d 665 (1980)) (footnote omitted). The Court found that the Government has 'expressed a firm desire that the Tribe should retain the benefits derived from the harvesting and sale of reservation timber,'  id. 103 S.Ct. at 2972 (quoting White Mountain Apache Tribe v. Bracker, 448 U.S. at 149, 100 S.Ct. at 2586). Accordingly, it held that a fiduciary relationship was established. 62 In addition to finding a trust duty expressed in the statutes and regulations, the Court declared that 63 a fiduciary relationship necessarily arises when the Government assumes such elaborate control over forests and property belonging to Indians. All of the necessary elements of a common-law trust are present: a trustee (the United States), a beneficiary (the Indian allottees), and a trust corpus (Indian timber, lands, and funds). '[W]here the Federal Government takes on or has control or supervision over tribal monies or properties, the fiduciary relationship normally exists with respect to such monies or properties (unless Congress has provided otherwise) even though nothing is said expressly in the authorizing or underlying statute (or other fundamental document) about a trust fund or a trust or fiduciary connection.' Navajo Tribe of Indians v. United States, 224 Ct.Cl. 171, 183, 624 F.2d 981, 987 (1980). 64 Id. (footnote omitted) (emphasis added). 65 Leasing of minerals located on Indian reservations is also a creature of federal statute. As in timber harvesting, the federal government's role in mineral leasing is pervasive and its responsibilities comprehensive. The Indian Mineral Leasing Act of 1938, 25 U.S.C. Secs. 396a-396g (1976), requires the Secretary to: set the terms and conditions for leasing, id. Sec. 396b; approve leases, id. Sec. 396a; establish lease sale procedures, id. Sec. 396b; reject unsatisfactory bids, id.; require satisfactory performance bonds of lessees, id. Sec. 396c; promulgate rules and regulations governing all operations under leases, id. Sec. 396d; and approve leases for subsurface storage when necessary to avoid waste, or to promote conservation of resources, or to protect tribal welfare, id. Sec. 396g. The evident purpose of the statute is to ensure that Indian tribes receive the maximum benefit from mineral deposits on their lands through leasing. 66 This interpretation is supported by the Act's legislative history. When the Act was proposed, the Secretary of the Interior urged that the legislation be enacted because it is not believed that the present law is adequate to give the Indians the greatest return from their property. Senate Report No. 985 at 2 (1937); House Report No. 1872 at 2 (1938). Congress responded to the need to ensure that the Indians' welfare be protected and their natural resources be managed to the tribes' maximum benefit by emphasizing the Secretary's fiduciary obligations, directing the Secretary to approve lease sales only when they are in the interest of the Indians. Id. 67 Interior has promulgated extensive regulations for managing leases under the Act. See 25 C.F.R. pt. 211 (1982). The regulations stress that the Secretary must act in the best interests of the tribes. See, e.g., id. Secs. 211.3(b), .6(a), .9(b)(1), .12(a), .19, .21(a), .22, .27. Additional regulations, published in 30 C.F.R. Part 221, require the government to maintain comprehensive records of price and production, and to determine royalties. 30 C.F.R. Sec. 221.12. These regulations detail in exhausting thoroughness the government's management and regulatory responsibilities. See id. pt. 221. 68 Because the statutes and regulations contain such an explicit and detailed enumeration of duties, in my view Mitchell II compels the conclusion that Congress intended the Secretary to be a trustee. 2 See 103 S.Ct. at 2971-72.