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Oklahoma Tribal Leaders Sound Off On Water Rights

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - The leaders of two Oklahoma-based American Indian tribes that sued the state and the city of Oklahoma City over water rights in southeastern Oklahoma say the legal case was born out of frustration.

Choctaw Nation Chief Greg Pyle and Chickasaw Nation Gov. Bill Anoatubby are speaking publicly about what led them to file the federal lawsuit. Both say state officials have ignored them while developing plans to transfer water out of their historic homelands.

Pyle says the tribes tried for more than a decade to establish government-to-government dialogue with the state on water issues. Pyle says they were never able to get the state to meaningfully engage.

Anoatubby says the tribes want a seat at the table when the state is making plans for water use in southeastern Oklahoma.