All you could possibly want to know about ANCSA

Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act Network

The Regional Corporations

The regional corporations were set up as for-profit businesses very different from the "typical " reservation system seen in the lower 48 states. Both the Alaska Natives and Federal Goverment saw the failings of the reservation system and agreed that Alaska needed something different.

Some have dubbed the Corporations and ANCSA as a "Social Experiment"

This establishment of for-profit corporations was a big jump for a people who were not used to the politics and proceedings of the corporate world. One of the big issues was that all of a sudden there were these corporations that needed to be run with no one trained or educated to do so.

Regardless, it was a much better arrangement than the peoples to the South had been awarded.

The original ANCSA is definitely not without its shortfalls.

• unfamiliar corporate world
• idea of for profit corporations came from dominant culture
• Extinguished the Native rights to any and all lands not addressed in the Claim
• allowed potential for Natives to possible lose their land
• Excluded Natives born after 1971 form becoming shareholders
• No special benefits for elders as all shareholders had to be treated equally
• If a person missed the original enrollment period they could not be admitted late.

To address these issues amendments were made in 1991. Amendments

The big thing for the Native groups was that ANCSA created the 13 corporations, all of which would be entirely Native controlled as well as title to the lands that they had been awarded.

The 13 Regional Corporations. View

1. Arctic Slope Regional Corp
2. Aleut Corp
3. Ahtna Inc.
4. Bering Straits Native Corp
5. Bristol Bay Native Corp
6. Calista Corp
7. Cook Inlet Regional Inc
8. Chugach Alaska Corp
9. Doyon Ltd
10. Konaig Inc
11. Nana Regional Corp
12. Sea Alaska Corp
13. The 13th Regional Corp

Why the Natives of Alaska Have a Land Claim"

Speech by William L. Hensley (Ak House Rep.). November 1969

Historical Events

Alaska: Rough Timeline and Points of Interest Leading up to Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act

1741 – 1^st contact

1867 – Treaty of Cession

Ø Purchase from The Russians for 7.2 million dollars

Ø NO consultation with Native groups

1884 – Organic Act

Ø Est. Territorial Govt.

Ø Provided for Native residency but not citizenship

Ø Prospectors and missionaries allowed land claims/holdings (citizens)

1912 – Alaska Native Brotherhood established

Ø Goal was to fight for the implementation of civil rights and citizenship for Alaska Natives

1924 – Citizenship Act

Ø Voting rights established for all Native Alaskans

1941 – 45 –WWII

Ø The war brings construction and development to the State

Ø 1942 – ALCAN highway construction

1959 – Alaska Statehood Act

Ø Congress approves 1/3 of land (approx. 104 million acres) to be selected for state land.

Ø State could either develop or sell for income

Ø Natives still have no title to land

1964 – Dot Lake land sale

Ø Village land dived and sold to highest bidder

Ø Advertised as “Wilderness Sites” at New York, Worlds’ Fair.

1968 – OIL (Prudhoe Bay)

Ø Discovery of large deposits of oil on the North Slope

Ø Precedent for ANSCA

Ø Land claims must be settled before construction and production of drill sites and pipeline.

**Questions in the courts:

Ø What would be allotted out of the total 367.7 million acres that is AK?

Ø What was traditionally used by the Native Groups?

Ø Proof?

o Had to define land claim boundaries.

Dec. 17, 1971 – Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA)

Ø 11% (44 million acres) - Alaska Natives

o $962.5 million awarded for land that wasn’t received.

Ø 60% - United States Government

Ø 28% - State of Alaska

* **STUDY GUIDE** *