PINE RIDGE INDIAN RESERVATION, S.D. (AP) – The deadline is approaching for owners of parcels on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation to accept land buyback offers from the federal government.

The U.S. Department of Interior says owners of fractional interests have until April 20 to accept the purchase offer. Thousands of offers were sent to owners.

Land buy-back programs aim to help Native American tribes buy parcels of reservation land that have accumulated multiple owners.

The parcels that get sold will be consolidated and held in trust for the Oglala Sioux Tribe of the Pine Ridge Reservation.

The purchases are part of a settlement over government mismanagement of Indian land royalties.

Allotting reservation land to individual tribal members, who passed it to heirs, was once a government method for assimilating American Indians. Some parcels have several owners.