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| Emil Notti | |
|---|---|
 Notti in 1969 | |
| 1st President of the Alaska Federation of Natives | |
| In office 1967–2016? | |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Julie Kitka |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Emil Reynold Notti (1933-03-11) March 11, 1933 (age 91) Koyukuk, Alaska, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Education | Northrop University (BS) |
| Occupation |
|
Emil Reynold Notti (born March 11, 1933) is an American engineer, Indigenous activist, businessman, government employee, and political candidate of Koyukon Athabaskan heritage.
Early life and education
Born in Koyukuk, Alaska, Notti earned a Bachelor of Science degree in aeronautical and electrical engineering from the now-defunct Northrop University in Inglewood, California. He holds honorary doctorate degrees from both Alaska Pacific University and the University of Alaska Anchorage. Notti served in the United States Navy during the Korean War.
Career
Notti aided in developing the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) signed into law by President Richard Nixon on December 18, 1971, constituting at the time the largest land claims settlement in United States history. ANCSA was intended to resolve long-standing issues surrounding aboriginal land claims in Alaska and could, perhaps, be considered an ending of more than a century of endeavor by the Native people of the state to secure their land, as well as to stimulate economic development throughout Alaska. Notti was the first President of the Alaska Federation of Natives and Doyon's third President, a regional corporation that owns 12.5 million acres (51,000 km). Notti worked for Autonetics, a division of North American Aviation, on the LGM-30 Minuteman during the Cold War. Later, he served under several Alaska Governors as Deputy Commissioner of Health and Social Services, Commissioner of Community and Regional Affairs and Commissioner of Commerce, Community and Economic Development. Notti served under Bill Sheffield, and Sarah Palin. Notti served on numerous boards, including the National Bank of Alaska (acquired by Wells Fargo), the Alaska Railroad, a two time Board of Trustees for APFC (the United States' largest Sovereign Wealth Fund with $75 billion under management), and Cook Inlet Regional, Inc.
Notti was the Democratic nominee for the 1973 Alaska's at-large congressional district special election, losing narrowly to Don Young.
AFN and ANCSA
In 1966, Notti called for a Statewide meeting inviting numerous leaders around Alaska to gather and create the first meeting of a committee. The meeting was held October 18, 1966—on the 99th anniversary of the transfer of Alaska from Russia. Notti presided over the three-day conference as it discussed matters of land recommendations, claims committees, and political challenges the act would have getting through Congress.The growing presence and political importance of Natives were evidenced when association leaders were elected to the legislature. Members of the association gathered and were able to gain seven of the sixty seats in the legislature. When the group met a second time early in 1967, it emerged with a new name, The Alaska Federation of Natives, and a new full-time President, Notti.
Before ANCSA, the Native population had gone through numerous hardships over the last century from European expansion. In the mid-1700s Alaska's population (according to James Mooney) was home to an estimated 74,000 Eskimos, Indians, and Aleuts.
After the purchase of Alaska by the United States in 1867, Alaska remained classified as a territory. "Thus, without further ceremony," wrote historian Bancroft, "this vast area of land, belonging by right to neither, was transferred from one European race to the offshoot of another." Negotiations regarding the purchase of the land were conducted with such speed that the treaty itself was hastily drawn and failed to define clearly the status of Natives, their rights, or matters of land ownership. Only one paragraph (part of Article III) was devoted to the inhabitants of Russia-America. It was not until 1959 that Alaska would officially be incorporated as a state.
At hearings held in Fairbanks and Anchorage the October 17 and 18, 1969 prior to the passage of ANCSA, Notti commented pushing that the money in the bill was not enough "The $500 million provision of our bill may seem like a lot of money, but after looking at the conditions in our villages, $500 million will only give our Native people a chance to operate on a standard of living of what we consider basic minimums, I think, for the rest of the United States." In its final bill, ANCSA granted the Native people of Alaska over $900 million.
The ANCSA included of 44 million acres (180,000 km) and $962.5 million patented and titles transferred to twelve Alaska Native regional corporations and over 200 local village corporations. The surface rights to the patented land were granted to the village corporations and the subsurface right to the land was granted to the regional corporation, creating a split estate pursuant to section 14(f). Notti also cast the tie-breaking vote to enter Sealaska and Tlingit and Haida into the Alaska Federation of Natives. His tie-breaking vote brought $7.2 million and 290,000 acres (1,200 km) of land to Native Corporations in Southeast Alaska. The twelve regional Native corporations and several village corporations today employ around 58,000 people creating thousands of jobs for Native and non-Native Alaskans.
Later life
After the passage of ANCSA, Notti continued his career with AFN, eventually becoming the CEO of Doyon, Limited, Commissioner of Commerce & Economic Development, and Commissioner of Community & Regional Affairs of Alaska.
In March 2022, Notti announced he would contest the special election called in Alaska's at-large congressional district, triggered by Don Young's death. Notti lost the nonpartisan blanket primary election, held on June 11, 2022; he endorsed eventual victor Mary Peltola in the runoff election.
References
- Atwood, Evangeline; DeArmond, Robert N. (1977). Who's Who in Alaskan Politics. Portland: Binford & Mort for the Alaska Historical Commission. p. 73. ISBN 0-8323-0287-2.
- "Emil Notti". Alaskool.org. Retrieved January 4, 2019.
- "Sullivan, Secretary Zinke Meet with Alaska Native Veterans | U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan of Alaska". www.sullivan.senate.gov. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
- https://www.doyon.com/shareholder-spotlight-emil-notti/
- "Emil Notti".
- "Emil Notti speaks on Alaska native claims settlement act of 1971".
- Resource Development Council for Alaska
- "LitSite Alaska | ANCSA at 30 > Interviews > Emil Notti".
- Alaska Native Land Claims by Robert D. Arnold (1976)
- "North Dakota Historical Population". Ndsu.edu. Retrieved January 4, 2019.
- "U.S. Population, 1790-2000: Always Growing". U-s-history.com. Retrieved January 4, 2019.
- "ANCSA 2017 Economic Report" (PDF). Ancsaregional.com. Retrieved January 4, 2019.
- Samuels, Iris (March 30, 2022). "Alaska's U.S. House candidate field expands as Friday deadline nears". Anchorage Daily News. Retrieved April 11, 2022.
- Brooks, James (June 17, 2022). "As democrats drop out of race, Peltola gains supporters". KYUK. Retrieved May 1, 2023.
- Koyukon people
- 1933 births
- 20th-century American engineers
- Alaska Democrats
- Alaska Native activists
- American electronics engineers
- Candidates in the 1973 United States elections
- Candidates in the 2022 United States House of Representatives elections
- Living people
- Military personnel from Alaska
- State cabinet secretaries of Alaska
- United States Navy sailors