Great Plains tribal leaders press BIA on massive probate backlog and staffing crisis

RAPID CITY – The U.S. Department of Interior (DOI) has begun tackling the backlog of probate cases in Indian Country and in May distributed twenty-eight million dollars to tribal beneficiaries as part of a large ongoing federal push to get release of those estate funds.

In April, leaders from across the Great Plains met in Rapid City for a special meeting to sharply question federal officials over a mounting probate backlog they say is denying tribal citizens their inheritance rights and deepening mistrust of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA).

The session convened by the Great Plains Tribal Chairmen’s Association, focused largely on the Interior Department’s handling of Indian probate cases, staffing shortages at local BIA agencies, and decisions being made in Washington, D.C., without meaningful tribal consultation. Regional Director for the Great Plains Region for the BIA Olivia Steve (Dine) told tribal leaders that probate has become a “secretary’s priority” with national visibility. She said the BIA now estimates 54,000– 55,000 outstanding probate cases nationwide, higher than previous public figures of about 45,000.

The DOI has created a mobile Indian Affairs Probate Strike Team to handle the backlog. Steve said the team had piloted a “surge” or intense effort at the Fort Berthold Agency where a regional strike team has been working since January to reduce the backlog in the Great Plains. She reported her office closed 335 probate cases in roughly three months, with the largest numbers at Pine Ridge and Cheyenne River. “I think the way you actually get after this is if we partner together and get after it together as partners,” Steve told tribal leaders, adding that her office is exploring one-time grant funding so tribes can hire local staff to help gather probate documents and support data entry.

Tribal leaders repeatedly pointed out a disconnect: federal buyouts and downsizing programs continue, even as probate and social service caseloads soar. “The bottom line is it’s kind of crazy,” said Harold Frazier, former Cheyenne River Sioux Tribal Chairman. “On one hand the government is asking to downsize the number of employees, meanwhile, there’s a huge shortage of staffing.” At Pine Ridge, he said, only three staff members had been assigned to more than 1,500 probate cases in backlog. His research suggested a single staff member can complete about three probate packages per week—or 12 a month— meaning the agency can process only 36 cases a month against a backlog in the thousands.

“If the tribes are going to assist the BIA, we need more data,” Frazier said, arguing that technology alone “is not the only answer” when many families lack transportation, phone access, or up-to-date contact information. He urged Interior to hire local staff and hold hearings at the agency level, closer to where families live. “If it’s going to be people friendly, a lot of our people do not have the means to drive. You gotta get them services down to the local level.”

As the discussion turned to record keeping, leaders raised alarms over digitization of probate records and the fate of original documents. Oglala Sioux Tribal Councilman Norman Standing Soldier asked what will happen to original files once they are scanned. Steve replied that “we can’t just outright destroy documents,” citing federal records requirements, and promised to follow-up with details, while stressing that tribes would be informed of any decisions.

Beyond numbers, one tribal citizen described how the probate crisis is reshaping his life. James White, who is from Standing Rock, said his mother died three years ago and left a will directing that the family land be passed to him. Despite that, he said, his case has been tied up for years, with relatives contesting the inheritance and hearings held far from home. “What is the use of writing a will and denying the wishes of your loved ones?” White asked. His family’s land could support a horse-boarding business and help his children, but he has been forced to lease land elsewhere while awaiting a decision. He recently lost his own homesite when heirs of another family chose not to renew his lease. Required to travel from Standing Rock to Billings, Montana, for a hearing, he asked, “If it’s a will, how come this can’t be done locally?”

Access to BIA offices surfaced as another barrier. Frazier said that when he tried to contact the Cheyenne River BIA Agency, multiple published phone numbers were disconnected.

A local telephone company employee told him many BIA lines had been terminated. “Any movement like that, there should have been consultation,” Frazier said, noting that many elders rely on limited phone plans provided by the tribe that do not allow long-distance calls. Steve said the BIA had recently transitioned to “soft phones,” that numbers were updated in recent weeks, and that superintendents had been told to notify tribal leaders. She promised to investigate any remaining problems.

Leaders from Pine Ridge, Yankton, and other Great Plains tribes welcomed Steve’s proposal for onetime grants but warned that such funding would be temporary by design. Sonia Little-Hawk Weston, an Oglala Sioux Tribe council member, said Pine Ridge’s backlog is decades in the making. “I would like to look at something more permanent down the road,” she said, recalling when local BIA staff handled probates and stored wills on site. Now, she said, families struggle to locate wills that were once kept at the agency.

The conversation widened to budget and policy decisions in Washington. Tribal representatives flagged proposed cuts to Indian child welfare and BIA social services, warning that reductions could undermine new tribal-run foster care and kinship placement programs. Steve said she did not yet have an explanation from central office for those proposed cuts but promised to seek information and share it with leaders at upcoming Tribal/Interior Budget Council (TIBC) meetings.

Several speakers criticized national organizations and budget forums—such as the National Congress of American Indians and TIBC—for failing to reflect the needs of large, treaty-based tribes in the Great Plains, prompting some leaders to withdraw and advocate tribe by tribe instead. One tribal chair argued that Great Plains tribes with large land bases and extensive trust responsibilities cannot be treated the same as small, casino-funded tribes with fewer federal programs.

As the meeting closed, Steve thanked leaders for what she called a “candid discussion” and pledged to carry their concerns up the chain of command. Tribal chairs, for their part, made clear that they intend to keep pressing for permanent staffing and meaningful consultation. The probate breakdown is one of the most chronic administrative failures in Indian Country, according to both federal leadership and tribal organizations.

(Contact Marnie Cook at cookm875@gmail.com)

The post Great Plains tribal leaders press BIA on massive probate backlog and staffing crisis first appeared on Native Sun News Today.

Visit Original Source