Local officials in New York are urging the state to sue the Interior Department for agreeing to take 13,000 acres in trust for the Oneida Nation

The state so far hasn't said what it will do. Recently installed Gov. David Paterson (D) says the decision is still under review.

Officials in Madison and Oneida counties are upset with the decision. The counties benefited the most from the illegal theft of the tribe's original 250,000-acre reservation but they say they will be hurt once the land is in trust.

The tribe says it is willing to negotiate a limit to future land acquisitions and settle its long-running land claim, which goes before the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals on June 3.

Get the Story:
Local officials prepare for lawsuits on land decision (The Utica Observer-Dispatch 5/22)
Decision: Counties won't miss taxes they never got (The Utica Observer-Dispatch 5/22)
Opponents lining up to challenge Oneida land trust decision (AP 5/22)
Legislators upset by land into trust decision (News 10 Now 5/21)