AKWESASNE — (Tsiothohrkó:wa/January 30, 2025) The Saint Regis Mohawk Tribal Council provides an update on the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe’s (the “Tribe”) Land Into Trust (LIT: also referred to as fee-to-trust) Applications to the United States Department of Interior (the “Interior”) – Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA).
Since 2016, the Tribe has filed seven (7) applications with the Interior to take lands into trust while continuing its land claim negotiations with New York State, Franklin and St. Lawrence counties. Fee to trust land acquisition applications are evaluated by the Secretary of the Interior according to criteria published in the Code of Federal Regulations (25 CFR 151). The Tribe is committed to providing consistent and transparent updates on land into trust applications by way of community notices that date back to March 6, 2017, March 6, 2018, and February 11, 2021.
The Tribe has received final approval from the BIA for five (5) of the applications. After resolving pending appeals the following parcels have been recorded in the respective Counties (step 15 of 16 in the process):
- Factory Road (15 +/- acres);
- Planning & Infrastructure building and property (140.43 acres);
- Croke Road (63.50 acres);
- Tribally-licensed business (2.68 acres); and
- Tribally-licensed business (20 +/- acres).
Placing these lands in trust allows the Tribe to reacquire lands that are part of the original Saint Regis Mohawk Reservation and exercise uncontested jurisdiction over those lands for the betterment of the community. The LIT process also helps the Tribe to expand its land base in its ancestral territory outside of the 1796 Treaty boundaries, such as with the Factory Road and Croke Road parcels.
There are two pending applications remaining for 76.02 acres located on Route 37 (future housing development), and 149.533 acres located on Route 37, referred to as the reacquired 1796 Treaty lands.
“We have used the fee-to-trust application process to regain jurisdiction over 240 acres, thus far. We look forward to the conclusion of the pending applications, which would add over another 225 acres to our land base. We continue to use all avenues possible to reacquire our lands and ensure a land base for future generations. These lands will allow us to continue to assert our self-determination, tax exemption status, and create more opportunities for community development,” stated the Tribal Council.
If tribal members are interested in applying for Land into Trust for owned lands, please contact the Office of General Counsel at (518) 358-2272 extension 2415 for more information and to verify eligibility.
The Tribal Council encourages membership to review information provided by the BIA on Fee-to-Trust Lands at www.bia.gov and the Tribe’s “Land Into Trust Frequently Asked Questions” by visiting www.srmt-nsn.gov.