Tribal leaders meet on cig tax issue

Indian leaders and representatives from around the state met in Rochester last week and again this week to discuss New York State’s plan to enforce tax collection on tobacco sales at on-reservation stores. Previous administrations had opted not to enforce the law, but the state is now looking to address its deficit issues in part by planning to collect millions of dollars in cigarette sales tax at reservation stores. The state plans to enforce the law at the wholesale level, and any major brand tobacco products in Akwesasne after Sept. 1 will be considered contraband by the state and subject to seizure.

Tribal leaders and business owners have argued that the law defies long-standing treaties and undermines each tribe’s sovereignty.

St. Regis Mohawk Tribal Chief Monica Jacobs, Sub-Chief Stacy Adams and Sub-Chief Pamela Brown were among those who attended a tribal leadership meeting at the Rochester Institute of Technology on Aug. 17. They returned this week for a follow-up meeting and the leaders plan to meet weekly.

As a result of discussions at the initial meeting, the group issued the following statement: “Our nations came together to reaffirm the ancient unity of the Haudenosaunee and with the common goal of defending our treaty-protected sovereign right to the free use and enjoyment of our land, free from intrusion and interference by foreign governments. This meeting is in response to the latest attack on our sovereignty and our rights by New York in its most recent attempt to illegally impose its taxation on our territories. This is merely the latest attack on our rights. The state is acting in violation of our treaties from the two-row wampum treaty of 1613 to the 1794 treaty of Canandaigua and in violation of the United Nations declaration on the rights of indigenous peoples and the U.S. Constitution.

Our leadership has agreed to meet again to unify and to stand against New York’s latest effort to erode our sovereignty and is committed to work towards a pro-active plan to address this latest attempt to infringe on our historic right to trade and our right to control our own economies.”

In past discussions with the state of New York, the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe has argued that Akwesasne is unique and that the SRMT relies on cigarette sales in order to be self-sufficient. For each carton of cigarettes sold, a fee is paid to the SRMT which is then used to pay for a number of tribal programs and medical services.

The sales tax does not apply to Native-made tobacco. Akwesasne has several cigarette factories and produces a number of Native brands. According to business owners, Akwesasne stores are currently selling more Native-made brands than major brands.

The SRMT has vowed to explore all avenues to fight Gov. David Paterson’s plan to enforce sales tax on Indian land. On Aug. 17 the Seneca Nation filed a lawsuit against the governor and acting tax commissioner in an attempt to block state officials from enforcing the tax law.