Little Shell Chippewa land bill advances in Montana

A bill to provide the Little Shell Chippewa Tribe with land passed its first vote in the Montana House on Wednesday.

Under the blll, the tribe would manage the Morony Dam townsite for 10 years. After that time, the tribe would be able to take control of the site.

The landless tribe is still in the federal recognition process. The Bureau of Indian Affairs issued a favorable preliminary determination in May 2000 but a final decision hasn't been made.

Rep. Denny Rehberg (R-Montana) has introduced a bill to finalize the tribe's status.

Get the Story:
Little Shell tribe gets yes vote for townsite (The Great Falls Tribune 3/8)

Relevant Links:
Little Shell Tribe - http://www.littleshelltribe.com

Related Stories:
Editorial: Little Shell Chippewa deserve recognition (3/5)
Little Shell Chippewa Tribe could get state land (02/14)
City backs Little Shell Chippewa Tribe's recognition (11/06)
Bill introduced to recognize Little Shell Tribe (07/14)
County may lease land to Little Shell Chippewa Tribe (12/12)
County backs Little Shell Chippewa Tribe (11/09)
Little Shell Tribe seeks support for recognition bid (11/2)
Little Shell Tribe seeks federal recognition through bill (07/04)
Little Shell Tribe seeks support for recognition bid (07/07)
Little Shell Tribe sees delay in recognition (05/27)
Mont. court recognizes tribe through common law (05/01)
Little Shell case could help federal recognition (05/01)
Little Shell finding a departure (08/16)
Decisions put Gover in the middle (08/16)