POLICY DISCUSSION PAPER TRIBAL SOVEREIGN NATIONS AND PLANNING IN A REGIONAL LANDSCAPE April 2014 Direct questions and comments to: Jane Clough, Ph.D., SANDAG, [email protected]; (619) 699-1909 Claudine Montes, Ph.D., SCTCA, [email protected]; (760) 560-8594 Table of Contents INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................ 4 San Diego Forward: The Regional Plan ............................................................................................... 4 SETTING THE STAGE ..................................................................................................................................... 6 Tribal Nations in San Diego .................................................................................................................. 6 Current Conditions ................................................................................................................................ 8 A REGIONAL GOVERNMENT-TO-GOVERNMENT FRAMEWORK ............................................................. 11 Regional Partners ................................................................................................................................ 11 Public Agencies ............................................................................................................................. 12 Intertribal Organizations.............................................................................................................. 12 Policy Level ........................................................................................................................................... 13 Periodic Summits ........................................................................................................................... 13 SCTCA Representation on SANDAG ............................................................................................ 13 Mutual Exchange of Policy Level Information ............................................................................ 14 Technical Level..................................................................................................................................... 14 Working Group on Tribal Transportation Issues ........................................................................ 14 SANDAG-RTA Partnership for Tribal Transportation Planning ................................................. 15 COLLABORATIVE POLICY AREA: TRIBAL TRANSPORTATION ................................................................. 15 Transportation Infrastructure ............................................................................................................. 16 Transit/Mobility Planning ................................................................................................................... 18 Transportation Funding ...................................................................................................................... 19 Information Sharing/Technology Assistance ..................................................................................... 21 COLLABORATIVE EMERGING POLICY AREAS ........................................................................................... 22 Cultural Resources ............................................................................................................................... 22 Economic Development ...................................................................................................................... 23 Energy .................................................................................................................................................. 25 Environmental Conservation .............................................................................................................. 26 Emergency Preparedness/Management ............................................................................................ 28 2014 SAN DIEGO REGIONAL TRIBAL SUMMIT ......................................................................................... 30 2 Attachments Attachment A – Tribal Lands in San Diego Region Map ......................................................................... 32 Attachment B – Tribal Consultation Plan ................................................................................................. 33 Attachment C – California Native American Trust Lands ........................................................................ 35 Attachment D – Kumeyaay Historical Map .............................................................................................. 36 Attachment E – Square Footage of Gaming Facilities for Trip Generation Estimates .......................... 37 Attachment F – RTA Intertribal Service Area ........................................................................................... 38 Attachment G – Tribal Working Group Charter ...................................................................................... 39 Attachment H – Current Membership Roster .......................................................................................... 41 Attachment I – Milestones in Cooperative Tribal Transportation .......................................................... 42 Attachment J – Northern Tribal Transportation Corridor ....................................................................... 43 Attachment K – Southern Tribal Transportation Corridor ...................................................................... 44 Attachment L – 388/389 Flyer.................................................................................................................... 45 Attachment M – Transportation Strategies for Consideration ............................................................... 46 Attachment N – Regional Policy Strategies for Consideration ............................................................... 47 3 INTRODUCTION The United States Constitution and treaties recognize Native American communities as separate and independent sovereign nations within the territorial boundaries of the United States. In the San Diego region, there are 17 federally recognized tribal governments with jurisdiction over 18 reservations — the most in any county in the United States (Attachment A – Tribal Lands in San Diego Region Map). Federal legislation requires that federally recognized tribal governments be consulted in the development of Regional Transportation Plans (RTP) and programs (23 U.S.C. 450.312). In particular, the current federal transportation authorization, the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21) reinforces federal emphasis on tribal government participation. President Obama in his November 5, 2009, Memorandum on Tribal Consultation (Federal Register, Vol. 74, No. 215, 11/9/09) reiterated the directive for public agencies to incorporate tribal consultation into their plans and programs in a timely and meaningful manner. At the state level, Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr.’s administration emphasized the importance of tribal-state relations through the creation of the Office of the Tribal Advisor (Executive Order B-10-11) in 2010. The Tribal Advisor's charge is to serve as a direct link between the tribes in California and the Governor; facilitate communication and consultations between tribes and state agencies; and review state legislation and regulations affecting tribes and provide recommendations. At the regional level, there are minimal guidelines for consultation. How consultation should occur is left to the Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) and the tribal governments. Over the last ten years, the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), as an MPO, has forged a working relationship with the tribal nations in the region, based on a diplomatic framework of communication, coordination, and collaboration in the regional transportation planning process. With each cycle of the RTP process, strategies and actions have been pursued collaboratively. This paper is a collaborative effort between SANDAG and the Southern California Tribal Chairmen’s Association (SCTCA) to discuss policy issues of mutual interest in a regional context. The purpose of this paper is to provide background that will inform the discussion between SANDAG and the SCTCA at the 2014 San Diego Regional Tribal Summit. San Diego Forward: The Regional Plan San Diego Forward: The Regional Plan, led by the SANDAG, is a planning effort that will combine an overall vision for the region’s future with an implementation program to make the vision a reality. As the San Diego region’s MPO, SANDAG is responsible for developing a RTP every four years. Each cycle of the RTP is an iterative process in which the region’s long-term transportation goals and project priorities are revisited and discussed through a public involvement process among diverse stakeholders. The most recent RTP, the 2050 RTP/Sustainable Communities Strategy (SCS), was approved by the SANDAG Board of Directors in October of 2011. An innovation in this cycle is that SANDAG is combining the Regional Comprehensive Plan (RCP) with the update of the RTP. The SANDAG Board of Directors has approved the following vision and goals to guide San Diego Forward: The Regional Plan. 4 As sovereign nations within the boundaries of the San Diego region, it is important that the region’s tribes engage in shaping San Diego Forward: The Regional Plan. Using the government-to-government