In Historic Vote, House Committee Passes Blackfeet Water Compact

Press Release

Today the House Natural Resources Committee passed Congressman Zinke's bill, H.R. 5633 the "Blackfeet Water Rights Settlement Act." The bill would authorize and implement the water rights compact among the Blackfeet Tribe of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation, the State of Montana, and the United States. The compact passed by a unanimous vote.

"This is a giant step forward, truly historic. The Blackfeet have waited the longest and given up the most," said Congressman Ryan Zinke. "A compact is a difficult journey as there are a number of requirements on it in order to pass various legislative bodies. But overall, this is a big tax savings, over a billion dollars. It will be enormously helpful for jobs and infrastructure. This is huge for the Blackfeet Nation and I'm proud to be a part of it."

Blackfeet Business Council member Roland Kemnerly was in Washington, D.C., for the vote today and said, "The water compact benefits Montana and the Tribe because of economic development for our members and also for use for people downstream like farmers and ranchers. It will promote a lot of jobs for our members. It's a great day for the Blackfeet. It has been a long process for many, many years; my father worked on it throughout the years and we are joyful we got it through the markup. I see it moving on, our champion Mr. Zinke has been a big pusher for us. He is doing an outstanding job and is representing us well. I believe we are going to get the water compact through so we can get it back to our members for a vote."

Earlier this year, Zinke and Blackfeet Chairman Harry Barnes held the first ever Congressional hearing in the House of Representatives on the Compact. Securing a legislative hearing was one of Zinke's top priorities since he was sworn into office on January 6, 2015. Zinke voted for the compact in 2009 as a member of the Montana State Senate. In addition to introducing the bill, Zinke also wrote to the Department of Interior and Department of Justice to expedite their role in advancing the compact.

Among other provisions, the Blackfeet Water Rights Settlement Act of 2016 would:

Establish the tribe's water rights in all six drainages within the reservation, including St. Mary River, Milk River, Cut Bank Creek, Two Medicine River, Badger Creek and Birch Creek.

Give the Blackfeet Tribe the ability to use, lease, contract, or exchange water on tribal land, and protect the tribe's water rights from development by others.

Rehabilitate and upgrade the aging Four Horns Dam and long-neglected 100-year-old Blackfeet Irrigation Project.

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