Chairwoman Lavina Washines, the first woman to run the tribe, questioned the tobacco tax compact after she was elected. Along with a separate agreement for gasoline taxes, she said they were signed without proper approval of the tribal council. "It's an everyday fight to protect our rights, even this day in 2007," Washines told The Yakima Herald-Republic of efforts to impose state laws on the tribe.

"This is a great day for the Yakamas -- to get the land returned back for access to our fishing right areas. The younger generation will continue to exercise their Creator-given right to our very important salmon. The U.S. government promised us with their honorable word to uphold their trust responsibility. All Yakamas will benefit with this accomplishment by the current Tribal Council officials."

Lavina Washines, Yakama Nation chairwoman, said in a statement that recovery of those costs is absolutely essential in a case this size. "These injury studies are so expensive that a government must know at the onset it can recover them from the polluter," she said. "Now we will be able to do the studies necessary to understand the full extent of the harm done by Hanford."〔

"We have to go out and fish -- that’s our life -- it’ll always be our life ... we want to be able to go to the water and get our salmon like our creator directs us through our songs."