REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
August 20, 2024
FROM
LUTHER SNOKE, Chief Executive Officer, County Administrative Office
SUBJECT
Title
Resolution Supporting San Manuel Band of Mission Indians’ Fee-to-Trust Application
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
1. Adopt Resolution supporting San Manuel Band of Mission Indians’ request to transfer the Chapman Property (APN 049324119) in San Bernardino County into a federal trust for non-gaming purposes.
2. Approve all five Board members signing a letter to support San Manual Band of Mission Indians efforts to place the property into a federal trust. (Five votes required).
(Presenter: Leia Fletes, Director of Government Relations, 387-4280)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Pursue County Goals and Objectives by Working with Other Agencies and Stakeholders.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this Resolution will not result in the use of Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost).
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
San Manuel Band of Mission Indians (San Manuel) has acquired a variety of properties within its ancestral territory that hold significant cultural and historical importance. Among those properties is the Chapman Property, APN 049324119, (Property), which San Manuel has owned since 1986. The Property consists of 20 acres of heavily wooded undeveloped land located outside of Bartow.
As authorized by federal law, San Manuel is seeking to place the Property into trust by a federal trust for non-gaming purposes. If the Property is accepted into federal trust, San Manuel will be better able to protect significant cultural sites and resources located on the Property under federal laws including the National Historic Protection Act and the Native America Graves Protection and Repatriation Act.
San Manuel’s cultural and economic contributions are a key component of the Southern California region. San Manuel’s economic contributions assist in providing jobs, supporting law enforcement and fire protection agencies, and help address socio-economic challenges by working with many non-profit organizations through philanthropic endeavors.
The proposed Resolution referenced in Recommendation No. 1, would declare support for San Manuel’s application to place the Property into a federal trust and Recommendation No. 2 would approve all five members of the Board of Supervisors signing a support letter for San Manuel.
PROCUREMENT
Not applicable.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Julie Surber, Principal Assistant County Counsel, 387-5455) on August 1, 2024; Finance (Erika Rodarte, Administrative Analyst, 387-4919) on August 1, 2024; and County Finance and Administration (Robert Saldana, Deputy Executive Officer, 387-5423) on August 6, 2024.