Tribal Telecom: Telecommunications Regulation in Indian Country;Note

Journal of Legislation, Feb 2015

By Daniel J. Adam, Published on 02/27/15

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Tribal Telecom: Telecommunications Regulation in Indian Country;Note

" Journal of Legislation: Vol. 27: Iss. 1 Tribal Telecom: Telecommunications Regulation in Indian Countr y;Note Daniel J. Adam Recommended Citation Tribal Telecom: Telecommunications Indian Country Regulation in I. INTRODUCTION Native American communities across the country suffer from considerable economic depression. Native American reservations are home to the highest unemployment and poverty rates in the nation.' There is a tremendous need for creative economic development on tribal lands, but successful development in these regions must seek to balance the interests of making a profit and preserving Native American values. Native American communities may be able to achieve this dual goal by investing in technology industries. Native American lands can potentially provide a number of attractive incentives for hi-tech businesses. Hi-tech entrepreneurs who locate their businesses on tribal lands may be able to take advantage of restrictions on the government's regulatory power over these industries. Tribes themselves may be able to run and regulate their own hi-tech businesses on tribal lands. Such hi-tech industries could include local or long-distance telephone service, wireless services, cable service, satellite service, internet access, distance learning technology and telemedicine services. Hi-tech businesses could potentially provide a lucrative and sustainable economic resource for tribes. This note will explore the legal implications inherent in the development of telecommunications ventures both on Native American lands, and by Native American businesses. Part II of this note will consider the economic potential of hi-tech ventures on tribal lands. Part III will focus on the telecommunications opportunities that may be currently available to tribes. Part IV will consider federal regulatory authority over tribal telecommunications, and Part V will focus on state regulatory authority. Part VI of this note will discuss potential tribal regulatory authority over non-Indian telecommunications businesses on tribal lands. Part VII will highlight the latest legal developments relating to Native American communications, and Part VIII of this note will suggest the steps necessary to promote Native American telecommunications in the future. II. ECONOMIC POTENTIAL Depressed economies and a lack of jobs are serious problems to most Native American communities in the United States. On many Native American reservations, poverty rates exceed 50 percent.2 By contrast, the overall poverty rate in the U.S. is only about 13 percent. 3 Most of the jobs that do exist on reservations are government-related, and private sector job creation on reservations has been limited to a relatively few reservations and villages.4 The Native American communities that have been able to attract private industry have primarily only been those with either marketable natural resources, or those with large and accessible tourist attractions. The multi-billion dollar hi-tech industry could potentially provide many economic opportunities for tribal nations. Native American communities could create jobs and stimulate local economic development by starting Native-owned and operated hi-tech companies or by attracting outside hi-tech companies onto tribally owned lands. Although there are currently only a few hi-tech companies that are owned and operated by Native Americans, the potential for considerable growth exists. Tribes have already started telephone companies, cable companies, and radio stations. Some tribes are also considering investing in television stations, wireless services, geographic positioning services, telemedicine, and distance-learning services. Given the lucrative potential of these hi-tech industries, many tribes could greatly improve their economic situation by developing these types of hi-tech economies. In smaller markets, nearby Native communities could join together to create a market large enough to sustain hi-tech tribal enterprises. Correctly applied, hi-tech industries could bring significant advances to tribal economic, political, and social welfare. For example, the development of hi-tech tribal companies would facilitate the education and training of a skilled, marketable workforce in Native American communities. In turn, this education and training would attract other business and investment to Native American reservations. A hi-tech tribal economy would also help create the technology infrastructure that would allow businesses to participate in needed telecommuting, remote computer applications, and electronic data interchange. As a result, hi-tech tribal economies would likely encourage many types of 2001] TribalTelecom businesses to create jobs on or near tribal lands. Hi-tech tribal industries could also expand outside markets for Native American products and services through inter-tribal, regional, national, and international marketing.5 III. TELECOMMUNICATIONS OPPORTUNITIES FOR TRIBES (...truncated)


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Daniel J. Adam. Tribal Telecom: Telecommunications Regulation in Indian Country;Note, Journal of Legislation, 2015, Volume 27, Issue 1,