BOISE, Idaho — The U.S. Senate voted unanimously on a bill to pay the Duck Valley Reservation over $5M in owed interest on water rights.
On Tuesday, Dec. 19, the legislation will allow the Shoshone-Paiute Tribe of Duck Valley to receive interest owed to them from the 2009 water rights settlement with the tribe. The reservation is split between the Idaho and Nevada border.
According to a news release, the 2009 water settlement inadvertently left out interest payments for the tribe, and the legislation aims to correct the error.
Both Idaho senators backed the legislation and provided statements.
“The Senate’s unanimous support for this much-needed fix takes the next step in upholding the federal government’s full interest terms of the 2009 settlement with the Duck Valley Reservation,” Senator Crapo (R) said. “I urge the House of Representatives to quickly take up the measure and send it to the President to be signed into law. This error must be corrected expeditiously.”
“The Shoshone-Paiute Tribes’ water rights settlement mistakenly excluded interest payments, which unfairly cut these communities short,” Senator Risch (R) said. “The passage of our legislation is a good step in correcting this error and provides the Tribes the proper interest they are owed.”
The legislation was first proposed on March 22, 2023, by Nevada Senator Cortez Mastro (D) and later cosponsored by Nevada Senator Jacky Rosen (R).
For the legislation to become law, it must pass the House of Representatives and then be signed by President Joe Biden.
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