The 1854 Treaty Authority is an inter-tribal, co-management agency committed to the implementation of off-reservation treaty

Treaty

A treaty is an express agreement under international law entered into by actors in international law, namely sovereign states and international organizations. A treaty may also be known as an agreement, protocol, covenant, convention or exchange of letters, among other terms...

 rights on behalf of its two-member Ojibwa

Ojibwa

The Ojibwe or Chippewa are among the largest groups of Native Americans–First Nations north of Mexico. They are divided between Canada and the United States. In Canada, they are the third-largest population among First Nations, surpassed only by Cree and Inuit...

 tribes.

Governance

Based out of Duluth, Minnesota

Duluth, Minnesota

Duluth is a port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and is the county seat of Saint Louis County. The fourth largest city in Minnesota, Duluth had a total population of 86,265 in the 2010 census. Duluth is also the second largest city that is located on Lake Superior after Thunder Bay, Ontario,...

, 1854 Treaty Authority's policy is set by the Board of Commissioners composed of the tribal chairperson from each member tribe or a designee. 1854 Treaty Authority has three divisions including Administration, Conservation Enforcement and Resource Management.

History

In 1985, The Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa filed suit in U.S. District Court seeking a declaratory judgment that the 1854 Treaty of La Pointe

Treaty of La Pointe

The Treaty of La Pointe may refer to either of two treaties made and signed in La Pointe, Wisconsin between the United States and the Ojibwe Native American peoples...

 reserved the Band's right to hunt and fish in the 1854 Treaty-Ceded Territory free of state regulation. The other Bands that signed the treaty and resided in the territory (Fond du Lac, Bois Forte) subsequently joined the lawsuit. By 1988, an out of court agreement was negotiated and ultimately ratified by the Minnesota State Legislature:

• crux of the agreement was the band would exercise limited treaty rights in exchange for a yearly monetary payment.
• the agreement outlines what band members can and can't do off-reservation. Basic crux is no commercialization (spearing, netting, etc.)

In 1988, the Tri-Band Authority was established to implement the agreement and was governed by a Board of Directors, which consisted of the duly elected officials of each of the Grand Portage, Bois Forte, and the Fond du Lac Bands. However, in 1989, Fond du Lac (who is now a party to the Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission) withdrew from the agreement. The Tri-Band Authority then became the 1854 Authority and subsequently changed their name in 2006 to the 1854 Treaty Authority and continued to implement the agreement for the Grand Portage and Bois Forte Bands.

Coverage areas

• Grand Portage Fishing Zone of Minnesota's portion of the 1842 Treaty of La Pointe-ceded Territory
• 1854 Treaty of La Pointe-ceded Territory —Co-managed with the Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission
  Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission
  The Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission is an inter-tribal, co-management agency committed to the implementation of off-reservation treaty rights on behalf of its eleven-member Ojibwa tribes...
  
  
• 1866 Treaty of Washington (Bois Forte band of Chippewa Indians)-ceded territory —No hunting, fishing or gathering, but cultural resources are reviewed and enforced.

Member tribes

• Bois Forte Band of Chippewa
• Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa
  Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa
  Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa is an Anishinaabe band located near Cloquet, Minnesota. Their land-base is the Fond du Lac Indian Reservation , located mainly in Carlton and St...
  
   (former member)
• Grand Portage Band of Chippewa