Joint Board of Control of the Flathead, Mission & Jocko Irrigation Districts v. United States

Plaintiff/Appellant the Joint Board of Control of the Flathead, Mission and Jocko Irrigation Districts (“Joint Board”) filed an action in the district court for injunctive relief from operating procedures adopted by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (“BIA”), an agency within the Department of the Interior, to regulate instream flow and reservoir pool levels on the waters administered by the Flathead Irrigation and Power Project (“FIPP”), an agency within the BIA. Intervenor-Defendant/Appellee the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Reservation (“Tribes”) intervened claiming that the Joint Board’s complaint raises issues which affect tribal property interests and treaty rights. The Joint Board appeals from an order denying the Joint Board’s motion for preliminary injunction for failure to exhaust administrative remedies and dismissing the complaint without prejudice pending the outcome of administrative proceedings.

We agree with the district court that the Joint Board failed to exhaust its administrative remedies and affirm.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

This case concerns a continuing dispute over water supplies controlled by the FIPP and the operating strategies…