Judge tosses out Bison Range funding deal

A federal judge has rescinded a controversial funding agreement that allowed the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes to assume most jobs and management duties at the National Bison Range at Moiese.

Monday’s ruling from U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly in Washington, D.C., found that the 2008 Annual Funding Agreement violated the National Environmental Policy Act.

The judge’s order rescinds the agreement and clears the way for U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employees to replace tribal employees at the refuge.

The case resulted from lawsuits filed by two groups of plaintiffs — the Blue Goose Alliance conservation group and several former U.S. Fish and Wildlife refuge employees and Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility.

The plaintiffs alleged ongoing mismanagement at the Bison Range and argued that the Annual Funding Agreement violated several federal laws.

But the ruling focused on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s failure to adequately explain its reasoning for using a “categorical exclusion” that allowed the funding agreement to proceed without an environmental assessment.

The plaintiffs maintained that an assessment was necessary to account for potential mismanagement resulting in environmental harm. A similar Annual Funding Agreement was rescinded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 2006 because of management problems.

“The agency’s failure to explain its application of a categorical exclusion in light of substantial evidence in the record of past performance problems by the CSKT is arbitrary and capricious,” the ruling states.

“We’re talking about an environmental procedural error,” said Rob McDonald, the tribes’ communications director. “This was not based on any kind of negative actions on the tribes’ part, despite what some have said.”

McDonald said federal employees arrived at the Bison Range on Tuesday morning, but the status of about 10 tribal employees at the range was unclear.

Jeff King, the Bison Range manager, could not be reached for comment.

“We’re extremely disappointed with the decision and we will be exploring our options along with the Service. If we could we would certainly want to avoid any disruptive staffing at the Bison Range,” McDonald said.

The annual Bison Range roundup is planned Oct. 5 and 6 and “that’s a big deal in this community,” McDonald said, noting that the range’s federal employees now are faced with the pressure of pulling that event off.

Paula Dinerstein, an attorney for Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, praised the ruling and said the Interior Department should go “back to the drawing rather than try to resurrect this flawed agreement.”

The Indian Self Determination Act of 1975 creates the potential for future tribal partnerships with other wildlife refuges and national parks.

“For these tribal-federal agreements we need a model agreement that protects core resources and the integrity of our national parks and refuges,” Dinerstein said in a press release. “The Bison Range experience underlines the flaws of an ad hoc approach to what requires a national strategy.”

McDonald, however, said the arrangements at the Bison Range had improved and a “good partnership” had developed with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

He said the procedural error can be corrected.

“We’re confident that the Service can do that to the court’s satisfaction and we expect to keep this partnership going forward,” said McDonald, who stressed that the ruling “did not in any way prohibit or discourage these kinds of self governance partnerships.”

Reporter Jim Mann may be reached at 758-4407 or by e-mail at jmann@dailyinterlake.com.