The Western Shoshone Distribution Bill (S 618/HR 884) was passed in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives this week after being delayed over a tax technicality. The bill approves a forced payment of $145 million to the Western Shoshone for 27 million acres of their traditional homelands, the title of which is currently in dispute. Many fear the payment will eliminate the possibility for return of the lands, now classified as public, but which many Western Shoshone feel were taken illegally in violation of the 1863 Treaty of Ruby Valley. The lands will be subject to privatization for gold mining, groundwater mining, nuclear waste storage, and geothermal energy production. Many Western Shoshone and thousands of supporters expressed opposition to the bill, and the National Congress of American Indians voted for an emergency resolution to oppose it just before it was passed. The Distribution Bill will become law after President Bush’s signature.
