Cowlitz Tribe still waiting on decision on land-into-trust application

Friday, July 30, 2010  

It's been over two years since the Bureau of Indian Affairs published a final environmental impact statement in favor of the proposed Cowlitz Tribe casino in Washington.

The tribe filed its land-into-trust application shortly after gaining federal recognition in 2000. But the Bush administration never made a final decision on it despite issuing the EIS.

Then came the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Carcieri v. Salazar, which restricts the land-into-trust process to tribes that were "under federal jurisdiction" in 1934. The tribe's application has been in limbo ever since.

“The Cowlitz tribe has a right” to have that land placed into trust, Lynn Malerba, the chairwoman of the Mohegan Tribe of Connecticut, said on a conference call, The Coumbian reported. She said the BIA is “dragging its feet” on the application.

The Mohegans are financing the Cowlitz casino. Mohegan officials said they are still committed to the project despite facing tough economic times in Connecticut.

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