Land-into-trust fix remains in limbo as end of year approaches

Tuesday, December 4, 2012  

A fix to the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Carcieri v. Salazar faces a tough road as the 112th Congress winds down.

Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nevada), the majority leader in the Senate, wanted to bring up S.676 last week. But that didn't happen and time is running out to take action.

“All of Indian country would like to see a clean bill pass. But the chances are very small and worse than last week,” lobbyist Wilson Pipestem told Indian Country Today.

The Carcieri decision restricts the land-into-trust process to tribes that were "under federal jurisdiction" as of 1934. S.676 ensures that all tribes can benefit, regardless of the date of their formal federal recognition.

Get the Story:
Carcieri Fix: Still Time to Pass the Bill (Indian Country Today 12/3)

Related Stories:
Sen. Reid cites continuing negotiations for a land-into-trust fix (11/27)
Land-into-trust fix could come up for consideration in Senate (11/26)
NCAI optimistic on a land-into-trust fix, VAWA during lame-duck (11/09)
Aide to Sen. Akaka confident on support for a land-into-trust fix (10/25)
Sen. Akaka to push land-into-trust fix after November election (10/12)