And now:Ish <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Date: Sat, 5 Jun 1999 16:12:44 EDT http://www.heraldonline.com/localnews/story/0,1321,84073,00.html Catawba Indians owe more than $280,000, school officials say By Allison Bruce The Herald (Published June 1, 1999) The Rock Hill school board claims the Catawba Indian Nation owes the district more than $280,000 for educating students who live on the reservation. Last week, the board instructed Phil McDaniel, Rock Hill schools superintendent, to take the "necessary steps" to collect the tuition fees, which could mean anything from filing a lawsuit to negotiating a settlement. School board members say it is important to try to collect the money now, when faced with a possible six-mill tax increase to support next year's budget. A mill is about $227,500, or a $24 increase in property taxes for the owner of a $100,000 home. "Based on our current circumstances, we feel the need to get something resolved about this," said board member Dale Dove. "This is money that our school district needs." The fees have gone unpaid from 1994 to 1998 for educating between 48 and 62 students living on the reservation, said Phil Kelly, assistant superintendent for business and finance. School board member Britt Blackwell said he cannot understand why the amount has not been paid already. "It's hard to believe that that body (the Catawba Indian Nation) would not want to pay for the education of their children," he said. In a letter he sent out to other school board members in April, Blackwell said it would "be unethical in my mind and disrespectful to the taxpayer for us to be considering raising their taxes once again when we continue to ignore the debt the Catawba Indian Nation has." The out-of-district fee in lieu of school taxes is levied as part of an agreement with the state in 1993 that settled the Catawba Indian Nation's lawsuit against local, state and federal governments. The tribe had staked a claim on 144,000 acres in York, Chester and Lancaster. The fee was $1,404 per student last year, not including the state subsidy for students, Kelly said. The original settlement did not include the fee requirement, which was added by then Gov. Carroll Campbell before the document received state support. The Catawbas accepted the language of the final agreement with the state. Wanda George-Warren, executive director of the Catawba Indian Nation, said the Catawbas want to find a compromise with the school district, but declined to comment on what options have been considered. But she maintains the district's decision to demand the money sends the wrong message. "People in this area don't want to make a statement that every child has a right to a free education unless you happen to be a Catawba child," she said. "This has isolated Catawba children as not worthy of getting an education equal to that of other students." The state agreement would most likely be superseded by the federal agreement if the case were brought to court, George-Warren said. "If you look at the settlement agreement, you will see it in the state act, but you will not see it in the federal act," she said of the fees. "The federal law is the dominant law." She said children living on military bases or in government-subsidized housing attend school without paying tuition even though they do not pay direct property taxes. The same applies to children on reservations. To board member Gary Williams, the issue is contractual. "They owe the money and agreed previously to pay it ... They signed with the state of South Carolina that they would pay as part of this agreement," he said. Williams said the board needs to act now if there is a statute of limitations on collecting the fees. He said the school board owes it to the taxpayers. "We are obligated to try it," he said. U. S. Rep. John Spratt, D-S.C., who worked on the original settlement, said there are several arguments on the Catawba side. "They pay sales taxes, state income taxes, their employers pay taxes, and they pay personal property taxes," he said. "So this (not paying property taxes) is a more limited exemption than it may first appear." Kaye Vann, tribal relations specialist with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, said these issues are often resolved through negotiations. "The bottom line is, Indians are citizens of the states where they live," she said. "That school district is educating people who do not pay property taxes, and it cannot refuse to educate Indian kids who do not pay property taxes." ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Copyright © 1999 The Herald. Rock Hill, South Carolina Reprinted under the fair use http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html doctrine of international copyright law. &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&& Tsonkwadiyonrat (We are ONE Spirit) Unenh onhwa' Awayaton http://www.tdi.net/ishgooda/ &&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
