In a recent turn of events, there is a push to separate the Cobell settlement from the Pigford II settlement when Congress meets again during the lame-duck session after the elections. The Pigford case calls for an award to black farmers who faced discrimination. The two cases are unrelated. Read on from a press release sent by Bill McAllister:
WASHINGTON — U.S. District Judge Thomas Hogan on Friday, Oct. 15 urged Congress to quickly approve the settlement of the Individual Indian Trust Case known as Cobell vs. Salazar “on its own merits.”
Judge Hogan’s remarks came as he announced both the government and Cobell plaintiffs had agreed, at his urging, to extend the deadline for Congressional action to Jan. 7, 2011.
The new extension will give the lame-duck session of Congress “one last chance” to give a final approval to the settlement, which was announced in December.
The agreement has been twice approved by the House but has stalled in the Senate.
“I can only urge the responsible parities to take this up early in the lame-duck session,” the judge said.
Otherwise, he said both the government and the Indian plaintiffs will have to return to the District Court for what will be “very expensive litigation” for both sides, the judge said.
Judge Hogan reviewed the history of the 14-year-old class action lawsuit, brought by Elouise Cobell of Browning, Montana, in 1996.
He said the settlement was a fair one, especially considering the rulings in the case showing the long history of government mismanagement of individual Indian money accounts and trust lands.
“The merits are very clear,” the judge said.
Judge Hogan said he would urge Congress “in the strongest terms” to approve the settlement “as soon as possible.”
The judge repeatedly urged lawmakers to approve the Cobell agreement “on its own merits.” He did not mention the separate issue of payments to Black farmers for discrimination in agriculture programs, which has been linked in legislation to the Cobell payment.
The judge stressed he believed Congress should approve the Cobell settlement “separate and apart from other issues.”
Jodi Rave