A lease by any other name is still a lease.  That’s the lesson of Naegele Outdoor Advertising Co vs the Bureau of Indian Affairs.  Here are the facts.

• In 1979 and 1981, Diana and Lucille Bow, two members of the Calliente Band of the Cahuilla Indians entered into two “operating agreements” with Naegele Outdoor.  The agreements allowed Naegele to construct, manage and and maintain billboards on their property in exchange for monthly rent over a period of 20 years.  The agreements required Naegele to buy the billboards for $1 on termination of the agreements and to remove the billboards within 60 days of the termination.
• The agreements were not submitted to the BIA for approval as required by federal law.
• In October 1991 the Palm Springs office of the BIA declared the agreements void because they had not been approved by the BIA.
• Naegele countered that the document was a management contract so did not have to be submitted to the BIA for approval.
• In 1993 an Administrative Judge for the BIA ruled against Naegele because the agreements were leases in all but name:  “Bow contributed nothing the the venture except land, and received nothing except rent.  Appellant was responsible for all aspects of the construction, development and management of the business…Although the agreement recites that Bow wants to develop an outdoor advertising business on her property and that she owns the billboards, it is clear that the life of her “business” is conterminous with that of the agreements…Whatever such an agreement may be called by the parties, it is a lease within both the letter and spirit of section 415.”

Billboard Insider’s take:  You can’t change a lease to something else simply by calling it something else.  This case also highlights the importance of making sure your lease complies with BIA requirements for leases on tribal land.  See Billboard Leases on Tribal land.

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