The signatory tribes ceded their land to the United States in return for the guarantee of their rights, including that of the reservation and self-government.

[3] Contemporary maps show the western boundary of the reservation as being a north-south line between Similk and Fidalgo bays.

The United States Supreme Court has repeatedly ruled that only Congress can reduce the size of reservations, not a sitting president.

The Swinomish Tribe has called this act an "unlawful attempt to take a portion of the reservation" and a violation of the Treaty of Point Elliott.

[1] In 1889, the Seattle and Northern Railroad Company illegally constructed a rail line on Swinomish lands, crossing sensitive marine ecosystems.

Although the Swinomish Tribe never approved the change in cargo, BNSF continued transporting 100-car trains of crude oil through the reservation.