The Blue Lake Rancheria is suing the California Employment Development Department in federal court over liens against a tribal business.

The tribe shut down Mainstay Business Solutions, a temporary staffing company, after being hit with $16.4 million in liens, interest and penalties. The state claims the company violated state employment insurance laws but the tribe says it is protected by sovereign immunity.

The state's actions "unlawfully encumber tribal lands and other tribal assets, both on and off reservation … in violation of federal law," according to the lawsuit, The Sacramento Bee reported.

Mainstay provided employees to non-Indian businesses across the state. At any given point, it put 8,000 people to work, the tribe said.

Get the Story:
Humboldt tribe fights state's lien on staffing firm (The Sacramento Bee 5/5)

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