In the same week that Santa Barbara County supervisors directed county counsel to pursue appeals and litigation opposing the potential Bureau of Indian Affairs decisions regarding a 1,400-acre property owned by the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians, a judge dismissed a lawsuit against Tribal Chairman Vincent Armenta that had to do with the same piece of land.
“I can’t count on two hands the number of lawsuits that have been filed against me and the tribe by the county and individuals over the last 10 years,” Armenta told the Sun. “When’s enough enough?”
On Nov. 6, Santa Barbara County Superior Court Judge Timothy Staffel issued a ruling that essentially threw out a lawsuit filed by Save the Valley LLC, which alleged that Armenta and the tribe’s government affairs and legal officer Sam Cohen violated the Williamson Act with regard to Camp 4—a 1,400-acre property in the Santa Ynez Valley. At the moment, Camp 4 is under Williamson Act contract, which is a compact with the state that designates the land as usable only for agricultural purposes. In return, the property’s tax rate is reduced.
When the tribe bought the land from Fess Parker in 2010, it assumed the land contract’s restrictions. Save the Valley filed the lawsuit based on language added to the contract, approved by the Board of Supervisors and signed by Armenta, that said if the land were taken into trust by the federal government, nothing in the Williamson Act contract could waive or limit the tribe’s sovereign immunity.
So some people may find it more than a little ironic that the judge dismissed the lawsuit based on the tribe’s sovereign immunity extending to tribal officials as long as they’re acting in their capacity as tribal leaders. The judge went so far as to say that it would be beneficial to Save the Valley to include Santa Barbara County in a future lawsuit, should one be filed.
“In any subsequent action relating to the referenced Williamson Act contract and assumption agreement, the county of Santa Barbara may well be deemed to be a necessary party because complete relieve cannot be accorded unless the county is named as a party to the action,” the ruling states.
The Sun’s calls to Save the Valley LLC’s lawyer, Mathew Clarke, weren’t returned before press time.
Armenta said it wasn’t a surprise that the lawsuit got thrown out, just as it wasn’t a surprise the lawsuit was filed in the first place.
“It’s harassment that we’re used to,” he explained.
The county’s closed session decision on Nov. 4 to pursue an appeal and potential litigation with the bureau over a decision that has yet to be finalized and a decision that hasn’t been made yet isn’t surprising to Armenta either, but he believes the move is a bit premature. On Oct. 22, the bureau released a finding of no significant impact on the tribe’s development plans for Camp 4 should the land be placed in fee-to-trust with the federal government. The decision won’t be finalized until the end of November. The second half of the county’s decision has to do with the eventual fee-to-trust status of the property, which the bureau hasn’t decided on one way or the other.
Last fall, the tribe filed an application with the bureau to place Camp 4 into federal trust with the government. An approval would mean the 1,400 acres would become fee-to-trust, or reservation, land.
An email sent from 3rd District Supervisor Doreen Farr to her constituents quoted County Counsel Michael Ghizzoni, who reported what was decided in closed session on Nov. 4.
“In response to that finding of no significant impact—and given the board’s meeting schedule during the short timeframes in which the Department of the Interior might decide to approve this fee-to-trust application—the Board of Supervisors directed county counsel to initiate appropriate appeals and litigation to challenge both that finding of no significant impact and if the federal government also decides to approve the fee-to-trust application,” Ghizzoni said.
The vote on that decision was 3-2, with 1st District Supervisor Salud Carbajal and 5th District Supervisor Steve Lavagnino dissenting. Armenta said the county’s history shows a continual pattern of taking positions against the tribe.
“You know, the county had a chance to work with us and now they’re throwing it out the window,” Armenta said. “And I am pretty confident I’m—we’re—going to win, otherwise I wouldn’t be wasting my time.”
This article appears in Nov 13-20, 2014.