Fort Belknap Indian Community Water Rights Settlement Act of 2023

This bill establishes a final settlement of water rights for the Fort Belknap Indian Community (comprising the Gros Ventre and Assiniboine Tribes) in Montana. It ratifies a water rights compact between the tribe and the State of Montana, authorizing the Secretary of the Interior to execute the compact and implement it. The bill provides for a specific allocation of 20,000 acre-feet per year of water from Lake Elwell for the tribe's use on or off the reservation. It also includes provisions for land exchanges to transfer certain Federal and State lands into trust for the tribe, and establishes trust funds to support water rights management and infrastructure development. The settlement resolves longstanding water rights claims while providing the tribe with a secure water allocation and land management authority.