https://alaskapublic.org/2024/06/27/federal-judge-says-alaska-tribes-may-put-land-into-trust-a-step-toward-indian-country-here/
Federal judge says Alaska tribes may put
land into trust, a step toward ‘Indian
country’ here
Alaska Beacon, by James Brooks
Posted By: sunset, 6/28/2024 4:48:56 AM
A federal judge in Anchorage has ruled that the Department of the Interior may take land into trust on behalf of Alaska Native tribes, a decision that could allow tribes to create “Indian country,” which had been mostly eliminated here by the 53-year-old Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act. In a 39-page summary judgment order, Judge Sharon Gleason ruled mostly but not entirely against the state of Alaska, which sued the Interior Department in 2023 to challenge a legal memo stating that the department believes it has the power to take land into trust on behalf of the state’s 228 federally recognized tribes. At issue was the Biden Interior Department's