The Bureau of Indian Affairs on Monday opened a public comment period on the Oneida Nation's application to have 17,000 acres placed in trust.

The BIA is seeking the input of local officials in two counties for their views. At least one official plans to ask for a delay in the process while a county attorney says the application will be "vigorously" challenged, The Syracuse Post-Standard reported.

The tribe filed the application in response to the U.S. Supreme Court's March 29, 2005, decision in Sherrill v. Oneida Nation. The court, by an 8-1 vote, held that the tribe couldn't "unilaterally" reassert its sovereignty over ancestral land without going through the land-into-trust process.

Get the Story:
Agency seeks opinions on Oneida land trust (The Syracuse Post-Standard 9/27)

Relevant Links:
Oneida Nation - http://www.oneida-nation.net

Oneida Nation Decision:
Syllabus | Opinion [Ginsburg] | Concurrence [Souter] | Dissent [Stevens]

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