Fond Du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Non-Intercourse Act of 2013

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. Speaker, I thank my distinguished colleague from Arizona, Congressman Grijalva, for his leadership on this committee and his management of this bill here, in particular.

And thanks to all those who have worked together in a bipartisan manner to bring this important legislation to the floor of the House here today. In particular, I want to thank Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings; former ranking member and now United States Senator Ed Markey; current Ranking Member Peter DeFazio; as well as my old friend Chairman Don Young, the chairman of the Natural Resources Subcommittee on Indian and Alaska Native Affairs; Ranking Member Colleen Hanabusa; and, of course, a thank you to Senator Al Franken of Minnesota, who shepherded the companion bill in the Senate.

I also want to thank Karen Diver, the chairwoman of the Fond Du Lac Band, her colleagues on the Reservation Business Committee, as well as their natural resources management team of Reggie DeFoe, Steve Olson, and Jack Bassett. And, finally, a thank you to Gregory Bernu, the Carlton County land commissioner, and the entire Carlton County Board of Commissioners and their staff for their diligence and good faith in negotiating the agreement we are prepared to ratify today. And, of course, last, but not least, I thank my legislative staff assistant Will Mitchell.

Mr. Speaker, this bill, H.R. 2650, provides the legally required approval by the Congress for an exchange of land between the Fond Du Lac Band and Carlton County in the Eighth Congressional District of Minnesota.

By way of a brief background, Federal land allotment policies in the early 20th century played havoc with an 1854 treaty that set aside 101,000 acres of reservation land exclusively for the Fond Du Lac Band.

I would like to point out to my colleagues that as they enter the Chamber over here from the west front, there is a bust of Chief Buffalo, the great Chippewa chief from the Minnesota Territory who negotiated this treaty in 1854. He and fellow Band members got in a canoe; and they canoed, starting in Lake Superior, all the way through the Great Lakes out to New York City, and then took a train from there down to Washington to negotiate this treaty. And then, of course, they took the train back to New York and canoed all the way back through the St. Lawrence Seaway, the Great Lakes, and then back to the Chippewa Nation in the Minnesota Territory.

As I enter this Chamber myself each day, I am reminded sometimes of the long, hard travel that is required to do the right thing representing our people, as I know all the Members of this Congress are committed to doing. So each day when I enter this Chamber, I say ``hi'' to Buffalo, and I recommend that each of my colleagues do the same.

And I am not sure, but when I walked by Chief Buffalo today, I thought I saw a pleasant look of approval, if not a little nod, that the Congress was going to work here today to take care of this legislation, because, unfortunately, after that treaty was negotiated, homesteaders and others were wrongly permitted to settle on this tribal land, much of which was later forfeited to the county for nonpayment of taxes. The result today is a checkerboard of ownership that significantly limits both the Fond Du Lac Band and the county's ability to effectively use these lands that they control.

Under this agreement, which meets all requirements of Minnesota law, the Fond Du Lac Band will transfer 1,451 acres of land they own outside the Fond du Lac reservation to Carlton County. In return, Carlton County will transfer approximately 3,200 acres of land of equal value, I must point out, that they now administer within the boundaries of the Fond du Lac reservation back to the Fond Du Lac Band.

It is a sensible agreement that provides space for the Band to construct much-needed housing for its 6,700 members, as well as provide more area for hunting, gathering, and native activities. Additionally, the agreement provides Carlton County with valuable new timber and forestry resources.

Lastly, Mr. Speaker, I would point out that H.R. 2650 is modeled on statutes that were passed in this body in 2000 and 2004, allowing the Lower Sioux Indian community in Minnesota and the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux community in Minnesota to accomplish similar transactions. It is also my understanding that passage of this bill will greatly help facilitate possible similar transactions between the Fond Du Lac Band and Carlton County in the future.

Mr. Speaker, I respectfully ask my colleagues to approve this legislation; and, again, I thank all those who have worked to pass this legislation in a bipartisan effort.

Source