Press Statement Regarding the Court Decision Requiring Interior to Take the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe’s Land Out of Trust

The following press statement is issued from the Office of the Secretary’s Office of Communications regarding the U.S Court of Appeals for the First Circuit decision requiring the Department of the Interior to rescind their decision to take the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe’s land into trust:

“The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe remains a federally recognized Tribe. In the Fall of 2015, Interior issued a decision approving a trust acquisition for the Tribe. Subsequently, both a federal district court and a federal circuit court panel comprised of former Supreme Court Justice David Souter, former Chief Judge Sandra Lynch, and Senior Judge Kermit Lipez, found there to be no statutory authority for this decision. The Tribe did not petition for a panel rehearing or a rehearing en banc. On March 19th, the court of appeals issued its mandate, which requires Interior to rescind its earlier decision. This decision does not affect the federal recognition status of the Tribe, only Interior’s statutory authority to accept the land in trust. Rescission of the decision will return ownership of the property to the Tribe. Although a rare occurrence, the United States has previously been required to take land out of trust, most recently in April 2019, pursuant to a federal district court decision in California.” – DOI Spokesperson

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A copy of the letter from Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt to the Bureau of Indian Affairs has been posted online.