Picente: “It’s because they’re suing us”
An agreement made last year by the state of New York, Oneida and Madison counties and the Oneida Nation to set aside thousands of acres of land into trust for the Indians did not sit well with some in the towns of Verona and Vernon, New York, which are suing to block it. Most of the more than 13,000 acres of land are located in the two towns.
Now Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente Jr. has come up with a creative way to punish the two towns: according to the Rome Sentinel, Oneida County is not offering snowplowing agreements to Vernon and Verona for the upcoming winter. The towns’ contracts with the county expired at the end of last winter, and a proposed new contract for plowing and salting services was sent to just 24 of 26 towns in Oneida County. Vernon and Verona were left out.
Picente said he wants to “protect the integrity and benefit of the revenue we’re receiving.”
Last month Ray Halbritter of the Oneida Nation signed off on deeds that placed the land into trust with the U.S. Department of the Interior. It’s the largest piece of land granted to the Oneidas since 1824, according to Indian Country Today. “We have reached an agreement where our sovereignty is being recognized and our land is being returned to us in the form of trust lands,” Halbritter said during the signing ceremony on August 21.
The 2013 agreement settled a number of outstanding lawsuits and also guaranteed that the Oneidas would pay a portion of revenues from their Turning Stone Casino in Verona to the state, which in turn will share it with the counties. The agreement also set aside a 10-county area of exclusivity for gaming for the tribe. That part of the deal was later amended to set aside one county for the Cayuga Indians.
Oneida County Minority Leader Frank D. Tallarino is appalled by Picente’s actions. “There’s no reason for that,” he said. “I want that on the record. We’re worried about the people who live in the towns.”
“Public safety will not be compromised,” agreed Brian D. Miller, chairman of Public Works. “Public safety shouldn’t be a discussion point.”
“We are not denying them anything they are entitled to,” huffed Picente. He later said, “It is because they are suing us. They’re suing us directly.”
The settlement says the state and the counties “will not directly or indirectly fund any challenge to the Secretary of the Interior’s May 20, 2008 decision to accept Nation Land into trust.” Picente fears the challenge from Vernon and Verona could jeopardize the financial agreement, which is based on 25 percent of slot revenues at Turning Stone.
