{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.fischer.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news?ID=159D3F35-9120-49E6-833A-71850F8885BC", "Fischer Introduces Bill to Return Improperly Seized Army Corps of Engineers Land Back to Nebraska\u2019s Winnebago Tribe", "2023-11-07", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "Senate", "NE", "Deb Fischer", "F000463", "www.fischer.senate.gov", "fischer", "https://www.fischer.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u00ad\u2013 This week, U.S. Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) led the introduction of the Winnebago Land Transfer Act. The legislation would transfer approximately 1,600 acres of land back to the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska that were illegally seized in the 1970s by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for a proposed recreation project that was never started.\n\nIn addition to Senator Fischer, the legislation is cosponsored by U.S. Senators Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), and Joni Ernst (R-Iowa).\n\n\u201cThe U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was wrong to seize this land through eminent domain in the 1970s. After decades of inaction, it\u2019s time for us to make this right. My legislation will return this land to the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska, and I look forward to getting this bill to the President\u2019s desk,\u201d said Senator Fischer.\n\n\u201cThe Army Corps of Engineers\u2019 decision to condemn and seize land from the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska was a classic case of government overreach. My colleagues in the Nebraska and Iowa delegations and I want to see this wrong corrected, and the land returned to the Winnebago people,\u201d said Senator Ricketts.\n\n\u201cThe introduction of the Winnebago Land Transfer Act by Senators Fischer, Ricketts, Grassley, and Ernst is a historic and beautiful moment for the Winnebago people. We have been waiting for this wrong to be made right, and we are grateful for the leadership demonstrated by our congressional delegation. We look forward to the passage of this important legislation,\u201d said Winnebago Tribal Chairwoman Victoria Kitcheyan.\n\nClick here to read the text of the bill.\n\nBackground:\n\nThe Treaty of 1865 established the Winnebago Reservation in northeastern Nebraska along the Missouri River. Due to westward shifts in the river, portions of the reservation are now in Iowa.\n\nIn 1970, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) was performing stabilization efforts on the Missouri River\u2019s banks and condemned land on both the Nebraska and Iowa sides of the river for a proposed recreation project. The condemned land included tracts of reservation land in Iowa. The Corps filed eminent domain proceedings to acquire the land, triggering years of legal challenges.\n\nUltimately, the Nebraska tract of land was returned to the Tribe. However, both tracts of land in Iowa that were illegally taken remain under the Corps\u2019 jurisdiction today and are maintained by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Neither the Iowa DNR nor the Corps has objection to the Tribe regaining control of the land. The latest renewal agreement of the license between the Iowa DNR and the Corps includes a provision that anticipates the return of the land to the Tribe.\n\nSenator Fischer\u2019s Winnebago Land Transfer Act would transfer administrative jurisdiction of the approximately 1,600 acres from the Army Corps of Engineers to the Bureau of Indian Affairs to hold in trust for the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska.\n\nU.S. Representative Randy Feenstra (R-Iowa) introduced the House version of this legislation in February. In addition to Congressman Feenstra, the legislation is cosponsored by U.S. Representatives Mike Flood (R-Neb.), Adrian Smith (R-Neb.), Don Bacon (R-Neb.), Zachary Nunn (R-Iowa), Sharice Davids (D-Kan.), Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa), and Ashley Hinson (R-Iowa).", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:49:58Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.fischer.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news?ID=159D3F35-9120-49E6-833A-71850F8885BC"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8840849623084068, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}