Alaska Native Lands and the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA): Overview and Selected Issues for Congress

Alaska Native Lands and the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA): Overview and Selected Issues for Congress

Updated 12/22/2021: At the time of its passage in 1971, the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA; P.L. 92-203) was the largest land claims settlement in U.S. history. ANCSA extinguished claims by Alaska Natives to over 360 million acres of land and settled their claims to the aboriginal lands on which they lived for generations. Under provisions of the settlement, Alaska Natives received approximately 45 million acres, the majority of which were divided among more than 200 village corporations and 12 regional corporations established by the legislation. ANCSA also established a 13th regional corporation, composed of Alaska Natives who were nonpermanent residents of Alaska, which did not receive land under the settlement. The 12 regional corporations, together with the 13th regional corporation, shared in a settlement payment of approximately $962.5 million. Prior to ANCSA’s passage, the aboriginal land claims had been unresolved for the more than 100 years since the United States purchased Alaska from Russia in 1867. Various federal actions over this time, such as executive orders and acts of Congress, noted Alaska Natives’ use and occupancy of the land, but the aboriginal land claim remained uncertain. The influence of oil companies in the area and the statehood of Alaska were among the factors that prompted the resolution of Alaska Natives’ land claims through ANCSA. ANCSA sought to create a land entitlement system different from the reservation system for the tribes in the lower 48 states. For instance, ANCSA created village and regional corporations, sometimes generally referred to as Alaska Native corporations (ANCs), not only to receive land under the settlement but also to aid in the disbursement of the settlement payment and boost the Alaskan economy. Unlike tribal governments, ANCs are business entities organized under the laws of Alaska. Once an ANC receives title to land under ANCSA, the land is considered private property, a key difference between ANC lands and tribal lands in the lower 48 states. ANCSA contained several provisions addressing land entitlements for village and regional corporations. Such provisions included withdrawing federal public lands from appropriation and creating a complex system for the selection of lands. ANCSA also addressed the status of various land holdings from prior legislative and executive actions. For example, ANCSA repealed prior acts of Congress authorizing individual Alaska Natives to hold up to 160 acres of land and terminated all Indian reservations in Alaska, except one—the Annette Island Reserve of the Metlakatla Indian Community. In addition, ANCSA authorized land exchanges between ANCs, the federal government, and the State of Alaska. Through its land entitlement structure, ANCSA created split estates—estates where one entity owns the surface estate and another owns all or part of the subsurface estate. For example, under ANCSA, village corporations primarily obtained fee title to lands’ surface estates, whereas regional corporations obtained fee title to the subsurface estates of these same lands. In other instances, ANCSA created estates split between the federal government and ANCs. For instance, ANCSA provided village corporations the option to choose lands from within certain federal public lands, such as national wildlife refuges and national forests. ANCSA’s creation of split estates generated land and natural resource management considerations for ANCs and the federal government. The federal government has various ANCSA-related lands programs. The Department of the Interior’s (DOI’s) Bureau of Land Management has several programs related to the selection, withdrawal, and conveyance of lands to ANCs. DOI’s Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) also has programs to provide technical assistance for allottee applications seeking a native allotment and certifications of title to regional corporations’ claims to historical places.R46997