ELR Citation: 53 ELR 20039
No(s). 1:18-cv-02035 (TNM) (D.D.C. Mar 6, 2023) (McFadden, J.)

A district court granted summary judgment for DOI in a federally recognized tribe's challenge to the agency's refusal to take land into trust for a casino. The tribe argued DOI misinterpreted the Michigan Indian Land Claims Settlement Act (Michigan Act), and that its refusal violated the APA. The court held DOI's decision—refusing to take the land into trust because the tribe had not satisfied the terms of the Michigan Act, which requires purchases to be "social welfare" or the "enhancement of tribal lands"—respected the natural, ordinary meaning of the Act, and that the agency both engaged in reasoned decisionmaking and adequately explained the basis for its refusal. It granted summary judgment for DOI.