(KNSI) — Representative Isaac Schultz of Elmdale Township is trying to force the state to pick up Mille Lacs County’s legal tab regarding a court fight over a former Indian reservation.
Schultz says the $7.8 million bill is currently being funded through property taxes, which greatly burdens residents. Governor Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison in 2021 broke with the state’s traditional position on a reservation established for the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe. It has long been contended that the 61,000 acre boundary was reduced after it was initially agreed to in 1855. The state now says the reservation should be restored in full.
The county says that could affect non-native residents in three townships. One concern is access to the southern shore of Mille Lacs Lake, a bountiful walleye source. Tribal leaders say there will be no changes for people they now consider neighbors and friends. They say it carries great meaning among the band itself, though.
Schultz’s legislation would force the Attorney General’s Office to be responsible for the Mille Lacs County legal costs. Schultz says, “These high costs for property taxpayers are a direct result of actions by Attorney General Keith Ellison and his budget should bear the consequence of his actions, not the taxpaying citizens of Mille Lacs County.”
Schultz was joined by GOP representatives Ron Kresha and Kurt Daudt when he introduced House File 1979.
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