The federal government will pay North Dakota nearly $28 million to settle a lawsuit over the costs of policing massive protests against the Dakota Access oil pipeline, state Attorney General Drew Wrigley announced Thursday. The settlement ends a legal dispute that began after thousands of demonstrators camped on federal land near the pipeline's Missouri River crossing for months in 2016 and 2017.
U.S. District Judge Daniel Traynor had determined last year, after trial, that the federal government owed approximately $27.8 million to cover state policing expenses during the protests. The settlement matches that figure. North Dakota sued the federal government in 2019 seeking $38 million for costs associated with law enforcement response to the demonstrations.
What the Right Is Saying
Wrigley, a Republican, said the settlement includes a statement from the Justice Department recognizing that 'the people of North Dakota, including, centrally, our law enforcement officers, endured repeated acts of intimidation, violence, property destruction' during the protests. 'We deeply appreciate those acknowledgments. They are a long time coming,' Wrigley told reporters.
Republican Gov. Kelly Armstrong called the settlement 'long overdue' and thanked Wrigley's office for reaching an agreement that 'removes the financial burden from North Dakota taxpayers and places it on the shoulders of the federal government where it belongs.'
State attorneys argued the protests prompted a seven-month law enforcement response involving 178 agencies, resulting in 761 arrests. Cleanup of the protest camp required four days to remove millions of pounds of trash, according to court filings. Energy Transfer, the pipeline company, donated $15 million in 2017 to help cover response costs.
What the Left Is Saying
Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Chairman Steve Sitting Bull said the tribe will consider its options to uphold treaty rights, ensure safe water supplies, and hold the government and corporations accountable. The tribe has long opposed the pipeline over concerns about risks to its water supply and cultural sites near the Missouri River crossing upstream of the reservation.
Environmental advocates who supported the protests note that the demonstrations centered on legitimate concerns about fossil fuel infrastructure impacting Indigenous communities and water resources. The Justice Department statement acknowledged that under the Obama administration, 'the federal government could have done more to reduce the impacts to the people of North Dakota' from the protests, which included 'unlawfulness and confrontational violence at times.'
Supporters of the original demonstrations argue that tribal sovereignty concerns were substantively valid and that the environmental review process for the pipeline was inadequate. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers only gave final approval for the Missouri River crossing near the reservation in May, six years after a federal judge ordered a more rigorous environmental review.
What the Numbers Show
The settlement amount: approximately $27.8 million to $28 million, matching Judge Traynor's trial determination.
State's original claim: $38 million when North Dakota sued in 2019.
Pipeline capacity: transports approximately 540,000 barrels of oil per day, representing about 4% of U.S. daily oil production.
Federal funding already received before settlement: $10 million Justice Department grant (2017) plus $15 million Energy Transfer donation.
Protest impact statistics: 761 arrests over seven months; 178 law enforcement agencies involved; four days required for camp cleanup; millions of pounds of trash removed.
Timeline milestones: Pipeline protests occurred November 2016 through February 2017; pipeline began operating June 2017; state filed lawsuit in December 2019; Judge Traynor ruled on liability in 2025; settlement finalized as both sides requested the judge vacate previous orders including his 2025 ruling to allow for negotiated resolution.
The Bottom Line
The settlement closes a chapter on one of the largest civil unrest responses in recent U.S. history without requiring North Dakota taxpayers to cover costs deemed the federal government's responsibility. Judge Traynor had found the federal government liable for negligence, gross negligence, civil trespass, and public nuisance.
While financial terms are resolved, tribal opposition to the pipeline continues. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe has indicated it will explore legal options regarding treaty rights and water protection despite the Army Corps' recent approval of the Missouri River crossing. The pipeline's continued operation remains contested in some Indigenous communities that argue federal environmental review requirements were not adequately fulfilled.
What to watch: Whether tribal legal challenges to the pipeline's permitting process gain traction, and whether similar cost-sharing disputes emerge from other states that hosted large-scale fossil fuel protests.