The trial court also denied the Rabangs’ motion for reconsideration, concluding
that RCW 37.12.060 separately precluded subject matter jurisdiction. Because
1 Because the Rabangs share a last name, we refer to them by their first
names to provide clarity.
Citations and pin cites are based on the Westlaw online version of the cited material.
For the current opinion, go to https://www.lexisnexis.com/clients/wareports/.
No. 83456-8-I/2
sovereign immunity denies state court jurisdiction, we affirm the decisions of the
trial court.
FACTS
Margretty and Robert Rabang have resided in Deming, Washington, for
over twenty years.2 The property is located on Nooksack trust lands outside the
Nooksack Indian Reservation. The Rabangs participated in a lease-to-own
program under the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD)
Mutual Help Occupancy Program (MHOP), which is administered by the
Nooksack Indian Housing Authority (NIHA). As part of that program, they began
making payments toward the purchase of the house in 2006. The Rabangs have
been enrolled members of the Nooksack Tribe since 1984.
In June 2016, the Tribal Council disenrolled Margretty from the tribe. On
August 19, the NIHA notified Margretty that it would be terminating her lease-to-
own program participation, effective September 2016, due to that disenrollment.
Nooksack Tribal Officer Lynda Seixas served the notice on Margretty that same
day. On October 3, by direction of Nooksack Tribal Police Chief Rory Gilliland,
Officer Devin Cooper served a notice to vacate on the Rabangs at their
residence. The Rabangs filed a complaint on October 11 with the Nooksack
Tribal Court seeking a declaratory judgment, which was “rejected” by the Tribal
Court on the same day.3