October 21,2025
City Council
DATE: October 21, 2025
TO: Mayor Martinez and Members of the City Council
FROM:
Councilmember Soheila Bana
Subject: Support of Federal Recognition for the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe
FINANCIAL IMPACT: There is no direct fiscal impact on receiving this item.
PREVIOUS COUNCIL
ACTION:
None.
STATEMENT OF THE
ISSUE:
Adopting a resolution that urges the federal government to officially recognize the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe as a
federally recognized tribe. This recognition is crucial for rectifying historical injustice and for supporting the Tribe’s cultural, social, and political rights.
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
ADOPT a resolution urging the United States Congress,
the Department of the Interior, and the Bureau of Indian Affairs to officially recognize the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe as a federally recognized tribe; DIRECT the City
Manager to draft a letter transmitting this resolution to Bay Area congressional delegation, the Secretary of the Department of the Interior, with instructions that all
actions be taken to support and ensure the immediate
recognition of Muwekma Ohlone Tribe’s federal status,
and include them with the federal registry of recognized tribes under the Bureau of Indian Affairs -
Councilmember Soheila Bana (510-672-3490).
AGENDA
REPORT
October 21,2025
DISCUSSION:
The Muwekma Ohlone have a presence in the San Francisco Bay Area since time immemorial and the direct ancestors of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe were missionized into the three Bay Area Missions: Santa Clara, San Jose, and San Francisco during the expansion of the Spanish Empire into Alta California from 1769 to secularization in 1836.
The United States Government maintained a “trust” relationship with the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe, historically identified by agents and superintendents from the Bureau of Indian Affairs as the Verona Band, from 1906-1927.
The Muwekma Ohlone Tribe have never been legally or illegally terminated by an act of Congress. The Tribe were effectively removed from the list of landless tribes and bands identified and eligible for land/homesites purchase via the Congressional Appropriation Acts of 1906, 1908, and without any due process in 1927, despite its “trust’ relationship and its previous status as a federally recognized tribe.
The Muwekma Ohlone Tribe enrolled with and was approved by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), Secretary of Interior, and Federal Courts under the 1928 California Jurisdictional Act and later Acts. The Tribe have consistently organized themselves under the 1934 Indian Reorganization Act and also attended Indian Boarding Schools in the 1930s and 40s and still must obtain reaffirmation by the Secretary of the Interior or U. S. Congress. There are over 614 BIA documented enrolled members of the Verona Band/Muwekma Ohlone Tribe in the San Francisco Bay Area.
The Muwekma men and women have served overseas with honor in all branches of the United States Armed Forces in all major campaigns (e.g., WWI, WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm, Iraq) and are still serving today. Justice and equal treatment under the law demands that the Department of the Interior and the federal government officially recognize the historical, social, military and political history of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe through its efforts to regain federal recognition.
The Muwekma Ohlone Tribe has provided compelling evidence of its historical, cultural, and social continuity, as well as its ongoing political structure and sovereignty. The Tribe’s legal case, as affirmed by the U.S. District Court in Muwekma Ohlone Tribe v.
Kempthorne (2006), confirmed that federal recognition was never formally withdrawn and the Tribe's continued sovereignty should be upheld.
Additionally, legal experts and experts from the field of Native American studies have confirmed that the Tribe’s claim to federal recognition is grounded in federal law, judicial precedents, and the United States’ trust responsibility to Indigenous peoples.
The Muwekma Ohlone people, is the only BIA documented and historic Ohlone Tribe from the San Francisco Bay Area, who have maintained their distinct culture, social and political identity for the past 230 years despite genocide and political erasure.
October 21,2025
The Muwekma Ohlone Tribe's recognition would not only correct an historical injustice but also fulfill the federal government’s trust obligations and provide the Tribe with access to federal resources and benefits that have been unjustly denied.
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
Attachment 1 – Resolution on Federal Recognition for the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe Attachment 2 – Briefing Document Reaffirming the Federal Status of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe