PC: Fox 11 Online
ONEIDA, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — The Department of Government Efficiency is continuing their efforts to find waste and fraud within the federal government.
Now, DOGE is directing the General Services Administration to terminate the leases of Bureau of Indian Affairs offices throughout the U.S., including one in Ashland, Wisconsin.
Uncertainty is mounting as the office lease for the BIA office in Ashland is set to be terminated at the end of August. It’s a regional hub for all 11 federally recognized Wisconsin Indian tribes, and provides services like land to trust applications, real estate management and law enforcement support, among other things.
The Oneida Nation said there are a lot of unknowns right now, especially with the 40 workers in the BIA office.
“What happens with the functionality of those positions and their roles? Not necessarily the termination lease, but what happens to the employees that do the work that were needed as a tribe?” Oneida Nation Vice Chairman Brandon Yellowbird-Stevens said.
Yellowbird-Stevens said the tribe works with the BIA for mainly real estate purposes. He said the closure will make it hard for the tribe to know what to do in those instances.
Oneida Nation would prefer to self-govern and have local control of real estate transactions. They just want to be in the know of what’s going on.
“We’re always planning ahead and we want to have those functions within the tribe to be able to do these things internally. Just the transition is non-existent,” Yellowbird-Stevens said.
A BIA forestry office lease in Shawano is also being terminated. As tribes navigate through the uncertainty, they’re working with political leaders to ensure the government is still fulfilling federal treaty obligations, despite BIA closures.
Rep. Tony Wied, R-8th District, said in a statement:
My office and I have been in communication with Tribal representatives regarding this issue. It appears that the Shawano office has been closed for some time now and the lease cancellation [in Ashland] is not expected to have a negative impact on WI-08 tribal communities. We will continue to monitor the situation and work with our tribal leaders to address any issues that may arise.
According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the annual lease at the Ashland office is about $649,000 per year.
The site’s lease was set to expire in 2028, saving over $1.5 million. The Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council also works closely with Ashland’s BIA.
“What it potentially could do is it could force our tribal members to travel significant distances to just access those services,” Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohican Indians President Shannon Holsey said.
Holsey said there are 200 BIA offices closing nationwide, and the closures could create economic instability for tribal members. She’s fighting to keep the Ashland hub open, ensuring trust and treaty obligations continue.
“It would eliminate a vital point of contact between tribal nations and the trust relationship we have with the federal government,” Holsey said.
Right now, Holsey is trying to get more clarification from the Department of the Interior on what the future may look like.
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