Letter to Mr. Rob Fairweather, Acting Director of the Office of Management and Budget - Crapo Joins Call to Stop Sale of Seattle Archives Facility

Letter

Dear Mr. Fairweather:
We strongly support the decision made by the United States District Court for the
Western District of Washington to temporarily stop the sale of the National Archives and
Records Administration (NARA) Federal Archives and Records Center in Seattle, Washington.
We ask that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) acknowledge the Court's ruling and
support the plaintiff's position that the Seattle NARA facility cannot be sold and these vital
records must remain in the Pacific Northwest. The process leading to the proposed sale of the
facility under the Federal Assets and Transfer Act (FASTA) was legally flawed and importantly,
OMB failed to consult with Tribal governments and organizations in violation of its own Tribal
consultation policies.
On January 24, 2020, the Members of the Congressional delegations for Alaska,
Washington, Oregon, and Idaho sent the enclosed letter to your predecessor, Russell Vought,
urging that he reject the Public Buildings Reform Board (PBRB) recommended list of properties
to be sold pursuant to FASTA due to a number of concerns related to the proposed sale of
NARA's Seattle facility. A top concern was the failure by the PBRB to consult with Tribal
representatives.
We are not aware of any effort by OMB, the PBRB, NARA or the General Services
Administration (GSA) to consult with Tribal representatives at any stage of the process. It was
only after OMB's decision to approve the PBRB's list of facilities proposed for sale that Tribes
and Tribal organizations were notified of the sale and NARA offered the opportunity discuss its
future plans with them. This is not an acceptable degree of Tribal consultation, and clearly, the
sale of this facility greatly impacts Native Americans and Alaska Natives in our states. Under
Executive Order 13175 (Consultation and Coordination With Indian Tribal Governments), all
federal agencies are required to engage "in regular, meaningful, and robust consultation with
Tribal officials in the development of Federal policies that have Tribal implications." This
Executive Order was re-affirmed by President Biden in his Memorandum on Tribal Consultation
and Strengthening Nation-to-Nations Relationships, which also charged OMB with the
responsibility to review Tribal consultation policies and actions throughout the federal
government. As a result, OMB must recognize and remedy its failure to enforce Tribal
consultation policies in the FASTA process and its own lack of Tribal consultation in its decision
to approval to sale of the Seattle NARA facility.
On January 4, 2021, the States of Washington and Oregon and 35 Tribal governments
and Native organizations in four states filed suit in the United States District Court for the
Western District of Washington asking the Court to declare that NARA's Seattle facility is
ineligible for sale under FASTA and that the lack of Tribal consultation made the PBRB's
actions "illegal, arbitrary, and capricious, and abuses of discretion." On January 7, the plaintiffs
sought a preliminary injunction to block the sale of the facility. On February 16, 2021, the Court
enjoined the sale of the Seattle NARA facility (Washington v Fairweather, No. 21-00002).
Judge Coughenour held that the plaintiffs had established a likelihood of success on their claim
that section 3 of FASTA exempts the Seattle archives facility from disposition by the PBRB.
Judge Coughenour also held that the plaintiff States and Tribes had established a likelihood of
success on their claims that OMB had unlawfully failed to follow the mandatory procedures
Congress established in section 11 of FASTA. We agree with Judge Coughenour's conclusions,
which mirror many of the concerns expressed in our earlier letter.
The NARA facility in Seattle contains irreplaceable records that are critical to the Tribes
in our states, as well as to state agencies, universities, teachers, students, and researchers. The
removal of the records from the region would make it nearly impossible for our constituents to
access them. OMB's previous failure to adhere to FASTA's requirements and ensure that
stakeholder and Tribal consultation requirements prioritized by this and prior Administrations
occurred throughout the FASTA process, must be remedied. We therefore respectfully ask that
you take immediate action to reverse OMB's prior approval of the sale of this facility by
supporting the plaintiffs' position.
Sincerely,