{"id":33919,"date":"2023-11-28T12:56:32","date_gmt":"2023-11-28T17:56:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/?p=33919"},"modified":"2023-11-28T13:13:21","modified_gmt":"2023-11-28T18:13:21","slug":"montana-free-press-county-withdraws-from-tribal-law-enforcement-agreement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2023\/11\/28\/montana-free-press-county-withdraws-from-tribal-law-enforcement-agreement\/","title":{"rendered":"Montana Free Press: County withdraws from tribal law enforcement agreement"},"content":{"rendered":"<a href=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2020\/12\/03\/montana-free-press-reservation-county-deals-with-surge-in-covid-19-cases\/flatheadreservation\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-5328\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" data-attachment-id=\"5328\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2020\/12\/03\/montana-free-press-reservation-county-deals-with-surge-in-covid-19-cases\/flatheadreservation\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/flatheadreservation-scaled.jpg\" data-orig-size=\"2560,1707\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;6.3&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;Canon EOS 7D&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1273788519&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;35&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;100&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.002&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Flathead Reservation\" data-image-description=\"&lt;p&gt;Flathead Reservation&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;A sign on the Flathead Reservation in Montana, home to the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. Photo: &lt;a href=https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/jstephenconn\/5309455781\/&gt;J. Stephen Conn&lt;\/a&gt;&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/flatheadreservation-1024x683.jpg\" src=\"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/flatheadreservation-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"Flathead Reservation\"  class=\"size-full wp-image-5328\" \/><\/a> <figcaption class=\"figure-caption\">A sign on the Flathead Reservation in Montana, home to the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. Photo: <a href=https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/jstephenconn\/5309455781\/>J. Stephen Conn<\/a><\/figcaption>\r\n<div class=\"h3-responsive font-weight-bold\">Judge sides with state in ongoing dispute over tribal law enforcement in Lake County<\/div>\r\n<div class=\"h5-responsive sub\">Lake County to pull out of a decades-old agreement after saying it can no longer afford the costs of law enforcement on the Flathead Reservation.<\/div>\r\n<div class=\"date\">Tuesday, November 28, 2023<\/div>\r\n<div class=\"byline\">By Justin Franz<\/div>\r\n<DIV class=\"source\">Montana Free Press<\/DIV>\r\n<DIV class=\"source-website\"><A \r\nhref=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/\">montanafreepress.org<\/A><\/DIV>\r\n<p><\/p>\r\nA District Court judge has sided with the state government in an ongoing dispute between Lake County and Montana over how to <a href=https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2017\/03\/01\/montana-county-complains-about-costs-of.asp>pay for law enforcement<\/a> on the Flathead Indian Reservation.<P><\/P>\r\n\r\nBut while Judge Amy Eddy sided with the state in her ruling on November 9, she was also critical of its decision to only offer Lake County $1 to help cover a bill that often exceeds millions of dollars each year \u2014 a sum she called \u201cpatently absurd.\u201d<P><\/P>\r\n\r\nSince the 1960s, law enforcement on the northwest Montana reservation has been handled locally, rather than by federal officers, in a unique agreement between the state and tribe under what is called <a href=\"https:\/\/nij.ojp.gov\/topics\/articles\/tribal-crime-and-justice-public-law-280\">Public Law 280<\/a>. The Flathead is the only reservation in the state under this agreement. About two-thirds of the reservation is located within the boundaries of Lake County. The agreement has been lauded as a success for decades, as it allows local officers and local prosecutors to handle local crimes, rather than federal agents from far away. (Since the 1990s, misdemeanor crimes have been handled by the tribal court system).<P><\/P>\r\n\r\nBut for the last few years officials in Lake County have said law enforcement duties have been wreaking havoc on its budget. According to the county, the agreement is costing local taxpayers more than $4 million annually.<P><\/P>\r\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/plugins\/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Flakecountymt%2Fposts%2Fpfbid0yqfER68E8qaDoQzCbGiLwVCjFR7RgbKsxVUQ8C3KdCzRGfNwhE82LvPU2oZrfyHWl&#038;show_text=true&#038;width=500\" width=\"500\" height=\"497\" style=\"border:none;overflow:hidden\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; web-share\"><\/iframe>\r\n<p><\/p>\r\nIn years past, <a href=\"https:\/\/flatheadbeacon.com\/2017\/03\/02\/amid-declining-tax-revenues-lake-county-reconsiders-reservation-authority\/\">county officials said the bill was easier to pay thanks to taxes generated by the Kerr Dam<\/a> (now called the S\u00e9li\u0161 Ksanka Q\u00cdisp\u00e9 Dam), but once the dam was sold to the <a href=\"https:\/\/csktribes.org\">Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes<\/a>, that revenue dried up. There was also no way for Lake County to pull out of the agreement; only the state or tribe could. <P><\/P>\r\n\r\nBecause the state has entered into the agreement with the tribe, Lake County officials have said it is the state\u2019s responsibility to cover the associated costs.<P><\/P>\r\n\r\nSince 2017, there have been multiple attempts in the Legislature to get the state to help foot the bill. In 2021, one of those bills finally passed, but then the state only appropriated $1 to the cause. But during that session, the state also gave Lake County the ability to withdraw from the agreement if it wanted. However, Lake County has been hesitant to do so over concerns about public safety.<P><\/P>\r\n\r\nDuring the 2023 session, House Bill 479 passed both chambers and authorized the state to pay Lake County $2.5 million annually for two years to cover law enforcement costs. But then in May, <a href=\"https:\/\/flatheadbeacon.com\/2023\/06\/16\/footing-the-bill-for-lake-countys-unfunded-mandate\/\">Gov. Greg Gianforte vetoed the bill<\/a>. In his veto letter, the governor said Lake County \u201cwants all of the benefits of exercising jurisdiction under Public Law 280 while shifting all financial responsibility to the state,\u201d adding that the bill was a \u201cslippery slope\u201d that could open the door to other counties asking for money.<P><\/P>\r\n\r\n\r\nYet even before Gianforte vetoed the bill, Lake County was looking for alternatives to force the state to pay, including filing a lawsuit against it last year. In that suit, the county alleged that the agreement between the state and the tribe was an \u201cunfunded mandate.\u201d<P><\/P>\r\n<div class=\"mt-1 mb-1\"><ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block; text-align:center;\" data-ad-layout=\"in-article\" data-ad-format=\"fluid\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-8411603009680747\" data-ad-slot=\"6394965691\"><\/ins><script>(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});<\/script><\/div><p><\/p>\r\nBut in her ruling, Judge Eddy said that while it was unfair for the state to withhold funds (particularly \u201cduring a legislative session noteworthy for its unprecedented budget surplus\u201d), there was nothing in state law that required it to appropriate a \u201cparticular dollar amount\u201d to the county.<P><\/P>\r\n\r\n\u201cThe plain language of the statute obligates the State to reimburse only \u2018to the extent\u2019 the Legislature sees fit to appropriate funds,\u201d Eddy wrote. \u201cGiven this reality, coupled with the ability of Lake County to withdraw consent, this Court lacks the authority to grant the relief Lake County seeks. If the financial burden Lake County bears is unacceptable, which by all accounts it appears to be, its remedy is to withdraw.\u201d<P><\/P>\r\n\r\nThis week, the county did just that and informed the governor\u2019s office of its intent to withdraw from law enforcement duties as they pertain to tribal members. The governor has six months to sign a proclamation releasing the county of its duties. The county also plans to appeal Eddy\u2019s decision to the Montana Supreme Court.<P><\/P>\r\n\r\n<strong>Note: This story originally <a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2023\/11\/22\/judge-sides-with-state-in-ongoing-dispute-over-tribal-law-enforcement-in-lake-county\/\">appeared on Montana Free Press<\/a>. It is published under a <a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-nd\/3.0\/us\/\">Creative Commons license<\/a>.<\/strong>\r\n<P><\/p>\r\n<HR><EM>\r\n<a href=https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/author\/justin-franz\/>Justin Franz<\/a> is a freelance writer, photographer and editor based in Whitefish. Originally from Maine, he is a graduate of the University of Montana&#8217;s School of Journalism and worked for the Flathead Beacon for nine years. His work has appeared in the Washington Post, Seattle Times and New York Times. Find him at <a href=https:\/\/justinfranz.com>justinfranz.com<\/a> or <a href=https:\/\/twitter.com\/jfranz88?lang=en>follow him on Twitter<\/a>.\r\n<\/em><HR>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A Montana county is pulling out of a decades-old agreement after saying it can no longer afford the costs of law enforcement on the Flathead Reservation.","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5328,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_vp_format_video_url":"","_vp_image_focal_point":[],"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,1,14],"tags":[430,763,72,397,511,249,194,1681,220],"class_list":["post-33919","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-law","category-national","category-politics","tag-cskt","tag-greg-gianforte","tag-judiciary","tag-jurisdiction","tag-law-enforcement","tag-montana","tag-montana-free-press","tag-pl280","tag-sovereignty","no-wpautop"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/flatheadreservation-scaled.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pcoJ7g-8P5","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33919","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33919"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33919\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33926,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33919\/revisions\/33926"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5328"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33919"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33919"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33919"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}