THE 1991 AMENDMENTS TO ANCSA.

The article focuses on the 1991 amendments to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA), addressing key issues such as the sale restrictions on Native corporation stock after 1991 and the eligibility of Alaska Natives born after ANCSA’s 1971 enactment to receive shares. The Alaska Federation of Natives (AFN) played a central role in advocating for these amendments, navigating complex legislative challenges including opposition from the U.S. Department of the Interior, which favored individual rights over group rights and proposed provisions seen as dilutive to existing shareholders. The amendments ultimately preserved Native control over corporate shares by maintaining restrictions on alienation unless shareholders voted otherwise, and allowed corporations discretion in extending shares to later-born Natives, reflecting ongoing tensions between Western legal concepts and Native communal values. The legislative process involved strategic decisions by AFN to prioritize passage of a bill without amendments in the House, with further negotiations anticipated in the Senate.