Native Nation Economic Development via the Implementation of Solar Projects: How to Make It Work Ryan David Dreveskracht* Table of Contents I. Introduction .................................................................................... 28 II. Economic Development ................................................................. 32 A. Indian Gaming ......................................................................... 32 B. Practical Sovereignty ............................................................... 37 C. Capable Institutions ................................................................. 38 D. Cultural Match......................................................................... 43 III. Solar Energy ................................................................................... 48 A. General Benefits ...................................................................... 48 1. Rural Areas Without Electricity ....................................... 48 2. Environmental Protection ................................................. 50 3. Security of Investment ...................................................... 51 4. Economic Advantages ...................................................... 57 5. Sustainable Development ................................................. 70 B. Practical Sovereignty ............................................................... 71 1. Tribal Implementation ...................................................... 73 2. Legislative Implementation .............................................. 81 C. Capable Institutions ................................................................. 92 * Judicial Law Clerk, Judge Kathleen Kay, United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana; L.L.M. in Sustainable International Development, University of Washington School of Law, 2010; J.D., University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law, 2009. Thanks to Robert Hershey and the faculty of the Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy Program at the University of Arizona for planting the seeds of inspiration for this work; Sandra Begay-Campbell at Sandia National Laboratories; Darryl Francois at the Division of Indian Energy Policy Development, Bureau of Indian Affairs; Andrew Moore, Project Director for the T’Sou-ke Nation; Jack Muse at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Office of External Affairs; Roger Taylor, Principal Project Manager at the Integrated Applications Office—Tribal Energy Program, National Renewable Energy Laboratory; Roy Prosterman, William Rogers, and Jane Winn. Special thanks to Gemma N. Zanowski. Ryan Dreveskracht can be reached at [email protected]. 27 28 68 WASH. & LEE L. REV. 27 (2011) 1. Tribal Implementation ...................................................... 93 2. Legislative Implementation ............................................ 102 D. Cultural Match....................................................................... 104 1. Tribal Implementation .................................................... 106 2. Legislative Implementation ............................................ 107 IV. Conclusion .................................................................................... 110 I. Introduction The Obama Administration has repeatedly stated a commitment to sustainable energy "that can serve as a pillar of [economic] recovery."1 It seems that Barack Obama’s commitment to sustainable energy is more than mere lip service. Recently, the Administration introduced legislation, approved by Congress in September 2009, which allocates billions toward expanding and accelerating development, deployment, and use of geothermal and solar energy throughout the United States.2 Currently, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is conducting a Solar Energy Development Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement in order to identify and prioritize specific locations best suited for large-scale production of solar energy.3 Most importantly, the American people are on board—a recent poll shows that the majority of "Americans approve of the way President Obama is handling energy issues and support efforts by him and Democrats in Congress to overhaul energy policy."4 Even Major 1. Dean Suagee, Op-Ed., Tribal Sovereignty and the Green Energy Revolution, INDIAN COUNTRY TODAY (May 4, 2009), http://www.indiancountrytoday.com/opinion/4458 5422.html (last visited Feb. 16, 2011) (on file with the Washington and Lee Law Review); see also Press Release, Obama for America, Barack Obama and Joe Biden: New Energy for America, available at http://www.barackobama.com/pdf/factsheet_energy_speech_ 080308.pdf. 2. See American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, Pub. L. No. 111-5, 123 Stat. 115 (codified as amended in scattered sections of 6 U.S.C., 19 U.S.C., 26 U.S.C., 42 U.S.C., and 47 U.S.C.) (providing for supplemental appropriations for job preservation and creation). 3. This was done in response to Secretary of the Interior, Order No. 3285, Renewable Energy Development by the Department of the Interior (Mar. 11, 2009), available at http://solareis.anl.gov/documents/docs/SOenergy.pdf. 4. Steven Mufson & Jennifer Agiesta, On Energy, Obama Finds Broad Support: Poll Shows Backing for Reform Efforts, but Cap-and-Trade Bill Is Harder Sell, WASH. POST, Aug. 28, 2009, at A21, available at http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/ 2009/08/27/AR2009082703823_pf.html. NATIVE NATION ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 29 League Baseball is going green.5 It seems that the "green energy revolution" has finally arrived.6 The Obama Administration has also made its commitment to Native American economic development well known.7 Here, too, the Administration has followed through with many of its promises. For example, in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), the Administration fought to earmark over $40 billion dollars to Indian tribes;8 the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) has seen a general 5. See Ben Platt, Baseball Makes Pitch to Go Green, MLB.COM (Mar. 11, 2008, 10:00:00 AM), http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080310&content_id=2418 305&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb (last visited Feb. 16, 2011) (noting that the Minnesota Twins have been the first to build a "sustainable stadium") (on file with the Washington and Lee Law Review); Dylan Thomas, More Than the Grass is Green in This Ballpark, DOWNTOWN J. (Apr. 12, 2010), http://www.downtownjournal.com/index.php? publication=downtown&searchPubs=downtown&currentIssue=7870&action=searchArchive &dateFrom=&dateTo=&searchString=grass+%2B+%22dylan+thomas%22&page=65&story =15252&fromArchives=fromArchives&archivePage=27 (last visited Feb. 16, 2011) (noting the strategies employed by the Minnesota Twins to make Target Field the greenest stadium in Major League Baseball) (on file with the Washington and Lee Law Review). 6. See Robert Moore, White House Officials to Discuss Energy Economy in Northern Colorado, LOVELAND CONNECTION (Aug. 26, 2009), http://pqasb.pqarchiver. com/coloradoan/access/1853166351.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Aug+26%2C +2009&author=ROBERT+MOORE&pub=Fort+Collins+Coloradoan&edition=&startpage= A.3&desc=White+House+officials+to+discuss+energy+economy+in+Northern+Colorado (last visited Feb. 16, 2011) (stating that Obama’s energy policies invite "a new century of innovation, creativity and entrepreneurial vigor," comparable to the "industrial revolution" (quoting Colorado Governor Bill Ritter)) (on file with the Washington and Lee Law Review); Obama Urges Green Energy Revolution, EURONEWS (Apr. 23, 2009, 7:38 CET), http://www.euronews.net/2009/04/23/obama-urges-us-green-energy-revolution (last visited Feb. 16, 2011) (noting the Obama Administration’s commitment to renewable energy) (on file with the Washington and Lee Law Review). 7. See, e.g., Barack on the Issues, FIRST AMERICANS FOR OBAMA, http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/firstamsecondev (last visited Feb. 16, 2011) (discussing issues of importance to American Indians) (on file with the Washington and Lee Law Review); Victor Merina, Natives Won’t Be ‘Left Out of the Tent,’ Obama Designate Says, REZNET (Jan. 19, 2009), http://www.standupca.org/news/natives-wont-be-left-out-of- the-tent-obama-designate-says (last visited Feb. 16, 2011) (noting that "Salazar promised that he and his boss, President-elect Barack Obama, would pay close attention to Indian Country") (on file with the Washington and Lee Law Review). See generally Ledyard King, White House Summit Could Turn New Leaf for Tribes: Native American Leaders Convene in Washington, GREEN BAY PRESS-GAZETTE (Nov. 3, 2009), http://www.niea.org/media /news_detail.php?id=764&catid= (last visited Feb. 16, 2011) (on file with the Washington and Lee Law Review). 8. RON WYDEN & JEFF MERKLEY, OREGON RESOURCE GUIDE TO THE AMERICAN RECOVERY AND REINVESTMENT ACT OF 2009 (2009). Under the Act, the following amounts will be provided: $40 million for Indian Workforce and Housing. American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, Pub. L. No. 111-5, 123 Stat. 115, 168. $450 million for Indian Reservation Construction Projects. Id. $10 million for Indian Guaranteed Loans. Id. $85 30 68 WASH. & LEE L. REV. 27 (2011) increase in grant money since the Administration took office;9 and Obama’s proposed FY2010 budget plan increased the Department of the Interior’s budget to $12 billion, including $5 billion to improve economic development on BIA-managed lands and $30 million to help Native Americans protect their communities by strengthening police programs and detention centers.10 For tribes that seize the opportunity,