A view of the Fort Hall Reservation, home to the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes. Photo from Facebook
The House approved two bills to benefit the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes of Idaho on Tuesday. By a vote of 414-0, lawmakers passed S.2040, the Blackfoot River Land Exchange Act. The bill resolves a boundary dispute that arose when the federal government conducted a realignment of the Blackfoot River in 1964. "When I grew up in Blackfoot, which was on the northern side of the Fort Hall Reservation, the Blackfoot River was the designation of the northern boundary of the Fort Hall Indian Reservation and the southern part of the city of Blackfoot," Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) said on the floor on Monday, when the bill first came up. But Simpson said the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers "changed the flow of the river, leaving some tribal land located north of the river and some non-Indian land located south of the river. For years, the tribes and affected landowners have collaborated to find a solution to this problem that works for all concerned." The Senate passed the bill on September 18. So all that's needed now is the signature of President Barack Obama for it to become law. In a separate action, the House voted 418-0 on Tuesday to pass H.R.5050, the May 31, 1918 Act Repeal Act. The bill ensures that any land that the tribe acquires within a townsite set aside under a 1918 law will be held in trust. "H.R. 5050 would repeal the 1918 Act that gives the federal government authority to unilaterally take Shoshone-Bannock tribal land out of trust and transfer it to a local government for use as a township," Rep. Doc Hastings (R-Washington) said on the floor on Monday, when the bill first came up for discussion. "This act is antiquated, and any purpose it may have served toward its stated goal of providing trading opportunities for the tribes has long since expired." The bill's Senate companion is S.2014. The Senate Indian Affairs Committee approved it last month but it still awaits action on the floor. Related Stories:
House returns to work this week to consider several tribal bills (12/1)
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