Tribal chairman still dissatisfied with state

FORT HALL, Idaho – Coeur d’Alene Tribal Chairman Ernie Stensgar is continuing his attack on the state’s commitment to cooperative relations with the tribes.

After accusing Gov. Dirk Kempthorne’s environmental managers of breaking the state’s promise for a joint Lake Coeur d’Alene management plan with the tribe, Stensgar accused legislative leaders of ignoring the council they created to deal with state-Indian issues.

“The Indian Affairs Committee hasn’t been respected by the Legislature,” Stensgar declared during this week’s committee meeting. “I ask the Indian Affairs Committee to demand respect.”

The snub at the top of Stensgar’s list – and the lists of other tribal leaders – was the directive from the Legislature’s governing council last month to Attorney General Lawrence Wasden to look into challenging the constitutionality of the 2002 Indian gambling initiative.

Stensgar pointed out that the directive was issued without consulting the Idaho Council on Indian Affairs, created by law in 1999 to monitor state policies and advise state officials on matters critical to their relationship with the tribes as sovereign nations.

Earlier this week, Wasden rejected the legislative leadership’s directive, saying his duty was to defend state laws, not challenge them.

Some lawmakers claim the initiative attempts to legalize electronic gambling machines that have made reservation casinos so lucrative when they are nothing more than slot machines banned by the state constitution.

The tribes contend the machines are just electronic versions of state lottery games and legal under federal law, and Wasden’s staff pointed out that the Idaho Constitution says that “Indian lands shall remain under the absolute jurisdiction and control of the Congress.”