Indianz.Com Listening Lounge, Senate Indian Affairs Committee oversight hearing on Lands eligible for gaming pursuant to the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, July 27, 2005. Note: All files in MP3 format. Intro - 5:18 - 938k Vitter, Voinovich - 22:40 - 3.9MB Panel I - 35:00 - 6MB | Q&A - 20:17 - 3.5MB Panel II - 32:10 - 5.5MB | Q&A - 21:26 - 3.7MB • Witness List

Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-North Dakota), the vice chairman of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, said on Wednesday that he supported an appropriations rider that would have addressed an Oklahoma tribe's trust land bid.

Dorgan didn't detail what the rider would have done but hinted it would have given the Interior Department discretion to take land into trust for the Shawnee Tribe. Existing law mandates the acquisition of land for the tribe virtually anywhere in the state.

Dorgan said he wanted the language to be included in the 2006 Interior appropriations bill that was approved by a joint House-Senate conference committee this week [Press Release]. He said the rider was advanced by Oklahoma Sens. Jim Inhofe (R) and Tom Coburn (R), a member of the Senate committee.

Sen. John McCain (R-Arizona), the committee chairman, said the Shawnee trust language was contained in an "appropriations" bill but it was actually in a 2000 omnibus act that granted the tribe federal recognition. McCain is sponsoring an omnibus bill of his own during this Congressional session.

Get the Story:
Tribes' bids for casino sites not a problem, senators told (The Oklahoman 7/28)
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Federal Recognition Act:
The Omnibus Indian Advancement Act (H.R.5528)

Related Stories:
Downtown Oklahoma City casino debated (07/26)
Downtown Oklahoma City casino draws concerns (07/15)
Oklahoma tribe seeks Oklahoma City casino (07/11)
Another Oklahoma tribe denied out-of-state land (5/5)