The 13th Regional Corp.: nonprofit arm entrusted with records.

• Author: Stricker, Julie
• Position: NATIVE BUSINESS - Conference news

It's been a quiet year for The 13th Regional Corp.

Too quiet, say shareholders who want to hear how the Alaska Native regional corporation is doing. Or if it still exists.

The 13th has not had a shareholder meeting since 2006. Its staff has been laid off; it was evicted from its headquarters in Tukwila, Wash.; and most of its subsidiaries have been dissolved. Its Web site has gone dark, and the domain name now belongs to a Japanese group. The only tracks are a long string of tax liens and lawsuits against the corporation.

LAWSUITS SILENCE BOARD

The lawsuits are behind the silence, says Elmer Makua, director of The 13th Regional Heritage Foundation, the nonprofit arm of The 13th Regional. "The lawyers are saying 'don't say anything.'"

Makua, also a shareholder, says the corporation is pursuing lawsuits against past officers. The corporation is broke, its subsidiaries largely shut down. He is in contact with the directors who are trying to organize an annual meeting, but it requires money "and their coffers are dry."

Makua acknowledges communication problems, and recently set up a Web site, http://the13thregional heritage.com/, to help answer shareholder questions. The site notes that The 13th "has been badly damaged and will be in recovery for some time." Shareholder records have been entrusted to the nonprofit and are secure.

UNRESPONSIVE BOARD

Director Mike Rawley did not return calls for comment in early December. Jacqueline Rashleger noted that her term had expired in May 2009. Calls left with other directors were not returned.

The 13th is still listed as active in Alaska, but has been dissolved in Washington.

The corporation was created under the 1971 Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, which established 12 Alaska-based regional and more than 200 village corporations to settle aboriginal land claims. Under the settlement, the corporations divided nearly $9(i3 million and 44 million acres of land.

In 1975, The 13th Regional Corp. was created for the benefit of Alaska Natives living outside the state and seeded with $54 million, but was not given any land, nor was it allowed to receive 7(i) revenue generated by' resource development shared among the 12 Alaska-based corporations.

The 13th Regional also was required to...