PIERRE, South Dakota — An attorney on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation wants residents to decide whether the tribe should legalize industrial hemp, but the tribal chairman is concerned about legalizing the plant without the federal government's blessing.
Attorney Chase Iron Eyes has been collecting signatures to put the decision before voters Sept. 30. He says hemp would be a boon to the economy of the reservation that straddles North Dakota and South Dakota.
Chairman Dave Archambault says he agrees industrial hemp could benefit the tribe, but says legalization could put its sovereignty in jeopardy.
Archambault says the tribe should get a permit from federal agriculture officials before it begins to grow hemp.
Hemp advocates say a shift in the federal government's priorities on marijuana opens the door for industrial hemp on tribal lands.
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