Tribes near landmark win to protect sacred lands

LEGISLATURE: Bill sent to governor requiring governments to consult over development.

11:43 PM PDT on Thursday, August 19, 2004

By JIM MILLER / Sacramento Bureau
On the Web

Read the bill: SB18, at www.senate.ca.gov

After three years of trying, supporters of legislation to protect sacred Indian sites from development are on the verge of success.

Thursday, the Legislature sent Gov. Schwarzenegger a bill that would require cities and counties to consult with tribes before they approve or change their general plans. Schwarzenegger has not yet taken a position, a spokesman said.

Supporters called Thursday's events historic. If Schwarzenegger signs the bill, California would become the first state in the country with specific rules to protect tribal sacred sites. Federal law already includes such safeguards for projects on federal land.

"You finally have, on the state level, recognition of tribal culture, recognition of our sacred sites. That would be akin to the state finally recognizing the Catholic Church," Anthony Miranda, a member of the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians near Temecula, said after the Senate approved the bill 30-4.

State Sen. Denise Moreno Ducheney, D-San Diego, said the law allows tribal leaders and government officials to settle any disagreements early.

"It gives you the opportunity on the front end to plan for mitigation, to avoid development that may cause harm to culturally sensitive sites," she said.

The Inland area is home to a number of such locations, such as rock paintings, the Hemet Maze Stone and the Great Oak Ranch on the Pechanga reservation.

The bill also would allow tribes to acquire conservation easements - land protected from development. Currently, only cities and nonprofit organizations such as the Nature Conservancy can acquire the easements.

Yet the legislation marks a significant step back from earlier attempts to protect tribal sacred sites.

Previous bills would have given tribes a say over projects near sacred sites. Builders would have had to consult with tribes to resolve possible conflicts.

Those measures drew heavy opposition from groups such as local governments and builders, who considered the bills' provisions too onerous. Former Gov. Gray Davis vetoed the first bill, in 2002, while the second attempt was blocked in the Assembly last September.

DeAnn Baker, a legislative representative for the California State Association of Counties, said the earlier versions would have imposed a burdensome process on local governments.

"We were sympathetic to the issues raised by the tribal governments all along, even under the previous bill," Baker said.

This time, those opponents either backed the latest bill or were neutral. It passed the Legislature overwhelmingly.

Former San Bernardino lawmaker Bill Leonard, the author of the first bill, came to the Senate Thursday to witness the third bill's approval. He called the measure "a nice first step."

"A lot of tribes already have good consultation with local governments but others don't," said Leonard, who sits on the Board of Equalization. "I think this will work, but if it doesn't there are legislative remedies."

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

Reach Jim Miller at (916) 445-9973 or jmiller@pe.com

Online at: http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_sacred20.f4da.html