Research – Page 31 – Turtle Talk

Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians v. Haaland Cert Petition [all cert stage briefs]

December 11, 2024April 10, 2025Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here:

Questions presented:

The Michigan Indian Land Claims Settlement Act (“MILCSA”) established a Self-Sufficiency Fund for the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians to receive judgment funds that settled claims against the United States for the unconscionable taking of tribal lands. The statute, which codified a negotiated agreement between the Tribe and the United States, gave the Tribe’s Board of Directors exclusive authority over the Self-Sufficiency Fund, including determinations about the proper use of Fund capital and interest. The broad purposes for which the Tribe may expend Fund interest under MILCSA include the “enhancement of tribal lands.” §108(c)(5). And MILCSA requires the Secretary of the Interior to hold in trust “[a]ny lands” acquired with Fund interest. §108(f). The questions presented are:

Whether Congress delegated to the Department of the Interior under MILCSA the authority to reject a mandatory trust submission based on the agency’s own view about whether the purchase of land satisfied §108(c), notwithstanding the statutory command that “[a]ny lands acquired using amounts from interest or other income of the [Tribe’s] Self-Sufficiency Fund shall be held in trust by the Secretary [of the Interior] for the benefit of the tribe.” §108(f).
Whether “enhancement of tribal lands” in §108(c)(5) of MILCSA includes a land acquisition that adds to or augments the size of the Tribe’s total landholdings.

Lower court materials here.

Additional briefs:

cert_opposition

Tenth Circuit Holds Thlopthlocco Tribal Town v. Wiley is Moot

December 10, 2024Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the unpublished opinion.

Briefs here.

Brookings Report: “The impact of fentanyl on American Indian and Alaskan Native communities”

December 10, 2024Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here. PDF.

FP-20241127-fentanyl-native-communities-kebec.pdf Download

Oil and Gas Company Sues BLM over Wind River Lease

December 10, 2024Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the complaint in Pioneer Oil and Gas v. Haaland (D. Wyo.):

1 Complaint.pdf Download

Ho-Chunk Inc. Cert Petition in Tax Dispute with Nebraska

December 9, 2024April 21, 2025Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the petition in HCI Distribution Inc. v. Hilgers:

Cert Petition.pdf Download

Questions presented:

I. Under this Court’s decision in California v. Cabazon Band of Mission Indians, 480 U.S. 202 (1987), may a state directly regulate commerce between tribal economic development entities on the tribe’s own reservation lands without a showing of exceptional circumstances?

II. In conducting the balancing test under White Mountain Apache Tribe v. Bracker, 448 U.S. 136 (1980), may a court discount a tribe’s interests in self-determination and self-sufficiency based upon the court’s view of the significance of the tribe’s economic development activities?

III. Did the Eighth Circuit’s modification of the District Court’s injunction effectively rewrite Nebraska’s escrow and bond statutes, substituting the court’s decision for that of the state legislature, in violation of the standards set forth in Ayotte v. Planned Parenthood of New England, 546 U.S. 320 (2006) and other precedents of this Court?

Lower court materials here.