CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) - A federal judge has blocked the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs from giving funds intended to benefit the Northern Arapaho Tribe to the Shoshone Business Council.
The Northern Arapaho Tribe and the Eastern Shoshone Tribe share the Wind River Indian Reservation in central Wyoming. The tribes had managed business matters under a joint business council for decades before the Northern Arapaho pulled out two years ago.
Monday’s temporary order by Judge Brian Morris of Montana comes in response to a lawsuit the Northern Arapaho Tribe is pressing against BIA officials. The suit claims the BIA has given money for programs intended to benefit both tribes to the Shoshone Business Council as if it were the former joint business council.
The judge’s order requires the approval of both tribes on contracts.
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