After months of needless delay in signing the Akwesasne Mohawk Land Claim Settlement Agreement from the governor, I am proud that years of efforts working with tribal, county and local leaders have been successful to sign this agreement that returns thousands of acres of land back to the Akwesasne Mohawks.

I have been deeply honored to lead the effort in Congress to secure this win and champion the ratification of this agreement through Congress. Now that we will have signatures from all parties, I will quickly move to expedite my bill to ratify this historic land agreement by congressional ratification.

This result is a significant milestone after a 43-year litigation following tireless advocacy from the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe, the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne, New York State, Franklin and St. Lawrence counties, the towns of Fort Covington and Bombay, and the New York Power Authority.

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R, NY-21)
Washington, D.C.