Land exchange bill set to become law

A bill authored by U.S. Sens. Al Franken, D-Minn., Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and Rep. Rick Nolan, D-Minn., to give the go-ahead on a land exchange between the Fond du Lac Band and Carlton County is set to become law after clearing both the Senate and the House.

The legislative fix, passed in the Senate late on Thursday and expected to be signed into law in the near future, will let the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and Carlton County perform a key land swap. The exchange, according to the Democratic lawmakers, is beneficial to both the band and the county, letting them manage their lands more effectively.

This land transfer is important to both the Fond du Lac Band and to Carlton County the band supports this, the county supports it, and the Department of Interior supports it, said Sen. Franken.

This long-awaited agreement is the right thing to do for both the Fond du Lac Band and Carlton County, Klobuchar said in a news release.

This long-awaited exchange helps rectify the broken 1854 treaty between the Fond du Lac Band and the federal government by returning original land to the Band to construct much needed housing, Nolan said in a news release. In return, Carlton County will receive non-reservation land now owned by the Band, opening up valuable new timber and forestry resources.

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Land exchange bill set to become law