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Social and Economic Change on American Indian Reservations Randall K.Q. Akee & Jonathan B. Taylor Social and Economic Change on American Indian Reservations Social and Economic Change on American A Databook of the US Censuses and the American Community Survey Indian Reservations 1990–2010 A Databook of the US Censuses and the American Community Survey 1990–2010 Percentage LivingNavajo in Nation Crowded Homes Percentage of Workers by Sector 49.7 Reservations Only 50% 100% 38.9 10.1 7.6 8.0 self-employed 40 7.0 6.7 6.7 75 30 19.8 54.5 54.8 52.3 20 50 private 71.0 71.5 70.8 5.7 3.1 4.7 6.5 7.0 6.5 Real10 Per Capita Income Change 1990–2000 2006–10 25 2000 Reservations Home to More than 150 Indians1990 2006–10 28.8 Total30.6 US—All Races33.3 not-for-profit 0 2000 Female Labor Force Participation Rate6.7 1990 7.2 7.7 0 Reservations Other thangovernment Navajo 15.3 Indian Areas–All Races 14.6 United States1990 2000 14.8 $40K Morongo 80% 2006–10 Soboba 1990 Indian Areas–All Races 2000 2006–10 Isabella Fort McDowell Yavapai Total US–All Races Brighton Tuscarora 20 Prairie Band of Potawatomi 60 Tonawanda Swinomish Mille Lacs 53.1 55.6 2000 48.3 56.8 Yurok 57.5 59.4 10 Lower Brule40 Real Per Capita IncomeSanto Domingo by Census Racial or Ethnic Category Crow Creek 2009 dollars $40K 5 20 20 10 $30K 5 1990 0 Asian log scale; blue marker size = 1990 Indian pop. 1990 2000 20 White 2006–10 IndianAll Races 1990 2000 2006–10 Total US—All Races Black Indians 10 Hispanic Indians on Reservations 1970 1980 Note: the roster of reservations tracked by the Census Bureau changes over 1990time. 2000 2006–10 $9.95 ISBN 978-0-9903880-0-5 50995> May 15, 2014 Randall K.Q. Akee Jonathan B. Taylor Free download at: 9 780990 388005 taylorpolicy.com/us-databook “Social and Economic Change on American Indian Reservations: A Databook of the US Censuses and the American Community Survey, 1990–2010” was made possible by a grant from the Research Center for the Sycuan Institute on Tribal Gaming (SITG). The research center, housed in the L. Robert Payne School of Hospitality and Tourism Management (HTM) and supported by the San Diego State University Research Foundation, is focused on producing and disseminating un- biased research on gaming issues in tribal government. The SITG grant program is guided by federal standards in the review of applications. An independent panel composed of distinguished researchers in the field evaluates proposals and makes the final funding decisions. The Social and Economic Change on American views expressed in this report are the authors’ own and do not neces- Indian Reservations sarily reflect those of any of the funding organizations or of the insti- tutions with which the authors are affiliated. This research project is A Databook of the US Censuses and the undertaken with the clear understanding that the investigators have American Community Survey the full right to publish any results obtained by them, without prior approval of any funding organization or individual and subject only 1990–2010 to established safeguards for the protection of privacy or confidentiali- ty. 2014 The Taylor Policy Group, Inc. Sarasota, FL This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit the Creative Commons online or send a letter to Creative Commons, 543 Howard Street, 5th Floor, San Francisco, California, 94105, USA. May 15, 2014 ISBN: 978-0-9903880-0-5 Randall K.Q. Akee Jonathan B. Taylor Contents Executive Summary ........................................................................ v! Real Per Capita Income III ............................................................ 32! Reservation Economies in the National Context ........................... 6! Variation in Real Per Capita Income Change ............................... 34! Recent Native Political Economy ................................................... 8! Projected Real Per Capita Income ................................................. 36! Self-Government 8! Real Median Household Income .................................................. 38! Economic Development 10! Social Investment 11! Family Poverty ............................................................................. 40! Native Nations Rebuilding 12! Child Poverty ............................................................................... 42! Recent Change on Indian Reservations ........................................ 12! Unemployment ............................................................................ 44! Recession and Income 12! Other Indicators of Change 15! Male and Female Labor Force Participation ................................. 46! The Outlook for Indian Country 16! Employment Sector ...................................................................... 48! Methodology ................................................................................ 18! Overcrowded Housing .................................................................. 50! Reservations Other than Navajo 18! Decennial Census vs. American Community Survey 20! Homes Lacking a Complete Kitchen ............................................ 52! Gaming vs. Non-Gaming 22! Homes Lacking Complete Plumbing ............................................ 54! Inflation-Adjusted Dollars 23! High School Degree or Equivalent ................................................ 56! Income 23! Indian 23! College Graduates or More ........................................................... 58! Average 25! Appendices ................................................................................... 60! Median 25! Online Resources 60! American Indian Population ........................................................ 26! Acknowledgments 60! Real Per Capita Income I ............................................................... 28! About the Authors 60! References 61! Real Per Capita Income II ............................................................. 30! ii Akee Taylor 2014 Akee Taylor 2014 iii Executive Summary 1. By 2010, the vast majority of American Indian tribes could be considered gaming tribes. We estimate that more than 92% of all American Indians on reservations lived on reservations with gaming operations. Gaming operations have an impact on almost every American Indian reservation given the exist- ence of revenue-sharing funds and intertribal gaming-device leasing, which transfer gaming revenues to non-gaming tribes. 2. Significant gains were made in Real Per Capita Income on American Indian reservations from 1990 to 2000. In the ten years following, however, income gains were much smaller. 3. The Median Household Income of American Indians living on reservations increased during the 1990s, but those gains did not continue into the 2000s. Nor did the large reductions in Family and Child Poverty made during the 1990s. However, neither the increases in income nor the reductions in poverty after 1990 have eroded on reservations. 4. The Unemployment rate for American Indians residing on reservations fell in the 1990s but remained constant in the 2000s. The Labor Force Participation rate remained steady over time, but Indian Female Labor Force Participation increased steadily over that period. 5. Improvements in infrastructure have continued on reserva- tions over the past 20 years. Crowded Homes and Homes Lacking Complete Plumbing have dropped significantly in number. 6. Education levels have increased over time on reservations, with more College Graduates since the 1990s, although the Indian population is far from parity with the rest of the United States on this measure. iv Akee Taylor 2014 Akee Taylor 2014 v Reservation Economies in the National Context ments indicates the power of increased Native sovereignty and eco- nomic development. The 25th anniversary of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988 (IGRA) occasions this review of living conditions on reservations. This Real Per Capita Income by Census Racial or Ethnic Category databook examines US census data over two decades, which show 2009 dollars both remarkable progress and a great gap between life on reservations and in the US generally. $30K Asian The economic fortunes of Indians on reservations continue to lag those of other racial and ethnic groups tracked by the census. The per All Races capita income of Indians on reservations is less than half the US aver- White 20 Black age and consistently falls far below that of Hispanics, African Ameri- cans, Asian Americans, and Indians living elsewhere. Indians Hispanic Even after the advent and widespread adoption of self-determination 10 Indians on Reservations policies by tribes and the federal government, the problem of low per capita income on reservations persists. Indeed, in light of IGRA—one of many recent federal laws recognizing and bolstering Native self- reliance—it is perhaps surprising that Indians living on reservations 1970 1980 1990 2000 2006–10 fare as poorly as they do. Their incomes stand in stark contrast to a Note: the roster of reservations tracked by the Census Bureau changes over time. widespread public assumption of burgeoning wealth from casino op- erations. This databook presents 13 indicators of demography, income, em- Real (that is, inflation-adjusted) Indian per capita income on reserva- ployment, education, and housing for reservations in the lower 48 tions grew by 50% during the 1970s but fell by 8% in the following states. It also begins to investigate the variations within Indian Coun- decade, just as self-determination and gaming gained traction. That try, although full examination is beyond
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