FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 1, 2002 
Contact: Philip Smith (202-661-6350) 

COURT MONITOR FINDS MANY QUESTIONS UNANSWERED ABOUT FUTURE OF TRUST REFORM 
UNDER NORTON 

Two New Reports Survey Past Wreckage; Elephant in the Living Room Is Why 
Anyone Would Believe Senior BIA Officials Can Reorganize Trust Functions 

WASHINGTON, D.C.  Court Monitor Joseph S. Kieffer III issued two new 
reports today, underscoring a 1999 court order to the Interior Department 
to conduct an historical accounting of all funds deposited in the 
Individual Indian Monies (IIM) trust, no matter the cost, and raising 
numerous questions about the future of trust reform under Secretary Gale 
Norton. 

Kieffer’s reports to U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth already form 
the basis for contempt charges against Norton and BIA head Neal McCaleb, 
now being heard by Lamberth. Kieffer today described Interior’s claims 
that trust reform was underway as a chimera. A cynical observer would go 
so far as to say it [trust reform] never left dry dock; rotting there. 

Kieffer’s latest effort (posted at www.indiantrust.com) is a broad survey 
of hot button issues. Among the highlights: 

Historical Accounting. There is no doubt the Office of Historical Trust 
Accounting has made more progress in six months than the past 
administration did in six years. However, that process is not much further 
along than the plaintiffs’ description of it as ‘a plan for a plan.’ The 
Court Monitor cannot evaluate the Comprehensive Plan because, four months 
before its planned submission to Congress, there still is no plan.

Citing signs that Interior may try to limit the scope of the accounting  
despite Lamberth’s order to account for all funds, whenever deposited 
Kieffer urged that Interior submit its plan to the judge before asking 
Congress to fund it. 

BITAM. Norton’s proposed reorganization of trust functions into a new 
Bureau of Indian Trust Asset Management is a major question mark. There 
is no BITAM except in concept and words. There is no team of experienced 
trust officials and no staff.

The elephant in the living room of BITAM, Kieffer said, is why would 
anyone believe that this solution to trust reform will have any more 
success than earlier failed plans, when the executive level officials in 
DOI who have been responsible for this debacle are still in positions of 
leadership, prepared to continue to ‘oversee’ but not be accountable for 
trust reform operations.

Norton’s 8th Quarterly Report to the Court. Kieffer said the 8th Quarterly 
Report was better than its predecessors, but serious shortcomings remain. 

The Special trustee does not believe the 8th Quarterly Report is complete 
or that Defendants [Norton] can even determine where it is not. The Court 
Monitor agrees. The report is an amalgam of conflicting statements and 
counter-statements. It contains no organized plan of action or even a 
baseline or timelines for this Court to determine the extent of the effort 
necessary to bring trust reform to reality. The 8th Quarterly Report leaves 
it to this Court to decide how bad things really are. In that regard alone, 
the Report is complete and accurate things are really bad.

TAAMS and BIA Data Clean-up. The 8th Quarterly Report confirms that TAAMS 
and BIA data clean-up will require total reorganization and that TAAMS is 
most likely unsalvageable. 

What is not provided [in Norton’s 8th Quarterly Report] is any idea of 
when the IIM account holders can expect to have a system that works and an 
historical accounting that will ensure that the Indian trust system can 
provide them the Congressionally and Court mandated fiduciary trust 
accountings to which they are entitled as beneficiaries of the Indian 
trust.

Kieffer’s final conclusion: 

One of the three branches of the federal government must manage the 
creation of a new fiduciary trust organization whose experienced trust 
officials must select, organize and train a nationwide trust staff and 
move forward as rapidly as possible at building a new trust management 
system  not tinkering with a resurrected crew and vessel  to properly 
house, maintain and protect the Indian trust beneficiaries’ land, 
resources and assets.

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