State Property Taxation of Tribal Fee Lands Located Within Reservation Boundaries: Reconsidering County of Yakima v. Confederated Tribes & Bands of the Yakima Indian Nation and Leech Lake Band of Chippewa Indians v. Cass County

Although once the owners of the North American continent, native peoples and the governments that represent them now own only a small percentage of the land within the current United States. Many tribes are interested in reacquiring lands that once belonged to them. Tribes, as governments and as legal entities, have the power to acquire lands through purchase. When tribes buy lands from private owners, the tax status of the lands becomes an immediate issue.

All of the fifty states levy an annual ad valorem real property tax. States, constantly vigilant in protecting their tax revenue, readily attempt to tax lands newly acquired by tribes. Tribes, understandably, are interested in minimizing the cost of purchasing and holding lands. Moreover, tribes view state taxation of their lands as an affront to tribal sovereignty.

As a result, conflicts over state taxation inevitably arise.