Alaska Native Regional Corporations

Alaska Native regional corporations (ANRCs) are private, for-profit companies owned by shareholding Native Alaskans. These corporations were created with the passage of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) of 1971, an agreement that settled Alaska Natives’ longstanding land and financial claims. Under the original terms of the ANCSA, the state of Alaska was divided into twelve geographic regions led by separate Native associations representing the various Indigenous peoples within each region. These associations are responsible for managing the land they control in the best interests of their shareholders. A thirteenth corporation representing Alaska Natives who no longer live in Alaska was added later. In total, the ANRCs hold the title to almost twenty-seven million acres of Alaskan land and are owned by approximately 140,000 Alaska Native shareholders. The ANRCs generate hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue annually and employ thousands of people in Alaska and elsewhere.

Background

The creation of the ANRCs through the ANCSA in 1971 was the culmination of Alaska Natives’ long fight for recognition of their traditional land claims. The road to the ANCSA began with the United States’ acquisition of Alaska from Russia in 1867. For approximately one hundred years before this, Russia claimed dominion over the sprawling landmass now known as Alaska. By the 1860s, however, it was clear that Russia lacked both the financial resources and military presence to maintain control of the region. As a result, the Russians were eventually forced to sell Alaska to the United States for $7.2 million. With this purchase, Alaska officially became an American territory.

From the outset, Alaskan Natives had a difficult relationship with the US government. In addition to enduring several violent military attacks from American forces over control of their lands, Alaskan Natives were long denied American citizenship and voting rights. Over time, organizations like the Alaska Native Brotherhood were formed to fight for Alaska Natives’ civil rights. In 1958, Congress passed the Alaska Statehood Act. While the Statehood Act officially made Alaska the forty-ninth state, it did not adequately address Alaska Natives’ land claims in the region. This led many Alaska Native leaders to form various groups representing their distinct regions as they worked toward winning government recognition of their land claims. In 1966, the Alaska Federation of Natives (AFN) was formed to consolidate these efforts as a statewide organization fighting for Alaska Native land rights. Later that decade, large oil deposits were discovered on Alaska’s North Slope. To benefit from this discovery, oil companies needed to build a pipeline system that would have to travel through lands claimed by Alaska Native groups. This led to renewed interest in addressing the question of Alaska Native land claims. The resulting negotiations ultimately yielded the ANCSA in 1971. Unlike other federal government Native American policies, the ANCSA established a for-profit model that provided various Alaska Native groups with the title to their lands under corporate ownership. Under this landmark agreement, the Alaska Native peoples finally gained control of their traditional lands.

Overview

ANCSA divided Alaska into twelve separate regions based on the shared heritage and interests of the Alaska Natives living within their geographic boundaries. In each of these areas, a distinct regional corporation is responsible for serving the needs of the local peoples and communities. The twelve ANCRs are Ahtna, Inc.; the Aleut Corporation; the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation (ASRC); the Bering Strait Native Corporation (BSNC); the Bristol Bay Native Corporation (BBNC); the Calista Corporation; the Chugach Alaska Corporation; Cook Inlet Region, Inc.; Doyon, Ltd.; Koniag.; the NANA Regional Corporation; and the Sealaska Corporation. In addition, another ANCR, called the Thirteenth Regional Corporation, works from its headquarters in Seattle, Washington, on behalf of Alaska Natives who no longer live in Alaska.

• Ahtna, Inc.’s jurisdiction covers about twenty-eight million acres of Alaska’s Southcentral Interior region and around 1.5 million acres in the Copper River Basin. It directly oversees about 1.5 million acres of that land. Ahtna, Inc. primarily serves the Ahtna Athabascan Alaska Native cultural group.
• The Aleut Corporation’s region stretches over two million acres of land in the Aleutian Island chain and other nearby islands. It directly controls about 1.5 million acres. The Aleuts are the corporation’s main Alaska Native cultural group.

• The ASRC spans approximately 55 to 60 million acres in Alaska’s North Slope region and controls about five million acres of that land. The ASRC’s primary Alaska Native cultural group is the Inupiat. In the 2020s, the ASRC was the largest Alaskan-owned and operated company.
• The BSNC covers about seventeen million acres in the Seward Peninsula and the coastal areas of eastern Norton Sound. Of that, it controls around 2.1 million acres. The BSNC serves the Inupiaq, Central Yupik, and Siberian Yupik.
• The BBNC’s region includes about forty million acres in the Bristol Bay area. It directly controls about three million acres. The BBNC serves the Yupik, Denaina, and Alutiiq.
• Calista Corporation covers approximately sixty-two million acres in the Yukon-Kuskoskwim River Delta and the Kuskokwim Mountains. It controls about 6.5 million acres of that land. Calista Corporation serves the Yupik, Cupik, and Athabaskan cultural groups.
• Chugach Alaska Corporation spans about ten million acres on the Kenai Peninsula and the Prince William Sound coastal area. It controls around 928,000 acres of that land. The Chugach Alaska Corporation serves the Alutiiq (Sugpiaq), Eyak (Athabascan), and Tlingit cultural groups.
• Cook Inlet Region, Inc. stretches over about twenty-nine million acres in Alaska’s Southcentral region and controls around 1.6 million acres of that land. Cook Inlet Region, Inc. primarily serves the Athabascan, Southeast Indian, Inupiat, Yupik, Alutiiq (Sugpiaq) and Aleut (Unangax) cultural groups.
• Doyon, Ltd.’s region includes about 172 million acres in the Alaskan interior. It controls around 12.5 million acres of that land. Doyon mainly serves the Athabascan cultural group.
• Koniag, Inc.’s region covers about three million acres in the Kodiak Archipelago. It controls about one million acres of that land. Koniag primarily serves the Sugpiaq (Alutiiq) cultural group.
• NANA Regional Corporation spans twenty-three million acres in northwest Alaska. Of this, it controls about 2.2 million acres. The NANA Regional Corporation mainly serves the Inupiaq cultural group.
• Sealaska Corporation covers more than twenty-four million acres in southeast Alaska. It controls around 360,000 acres of that land. Sealaska Corporation serves the Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, and Aleut cultural groups.

Bibliography

“About the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act.” ANCSA Regional Association, 2022, ancsaregional.com/about-ancsa. Accessed 20 Nov. 2024.

“Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) 1971.” University of Alaska Fairbanks, www.uaf.edu/tribal/academics/112/unit-3/alaskanativeclaimssettlementactancsa1971.php. Accessed 20 Nov. 2024.

“Alaska Regional Corporations.” Alaskan Natives, www.alaskan-natives.com/alaska-regional-corporations. Accessed 20 Nov. 2024.

“Alaska Regional Corporations.” Resource Development Council, www.akrdc.org/alaska-native-corporations. Accessed 20 Nov. 2024.

“The Big Twelve: Alaska Native Regional Corporations.” Alaska Business, 6 Sept. 2022, www.akbizmag.com/magazine/the-big-twelve-alaska-native-regional-corporations. Accessed 20 Nov. 2024.

Native Affairs Practice Group at Van Ness Feldman. “A Reflection on ANCSA at 50.” National Law Review, 8 Dec. 2021, www.natlawreview.com/article/reflection-ancsa-50. Accessed 20 Nov. 2024.

Sullivan, Meghan. “Cheat Sheet: Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act 101.” Alaska Public Media, 14 Oct. 2021, www.alaskapublic.org/2021/10/14/cheat-sheet-alaska-native-claims-settlement-act-101. Accessed 20 Nov. 2024.

“The Twelve Regions.” ANCSA Regional Association, ancsaregional.com/the-twelve-regions. Accessed 20 Nov. 2024.