Can States Tax Gas Stations on Tribal Lands?

Governing: The Yakama Nation and Washington state have been fighting over governance issues ever since the tribe signed its 1855 treaty with the federal government. Recently, those fights have involved fees on cigarettes and rules for logging trucks. But the biggest dispute over the years has been about fuel taxes. And now the U.S. Supreme Court is stepping in.

Washington state lawmakers have tried repeatedly to impose fuel taxes on Indian tribes, and the tribes have repeatedly fought back. The Yakama have been especially adamant in their resistance, arguing that the fuel taxes violate a provision of their treaty that guarantees them the right to travel freely on public highways.

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