The Chippewa Cree Tribe of the Rocky Boy's Reservation and the State of Montana, through the Reserved Water Rights Commission, negotiated a settlement of the Tribe's Water Rights Claims. The Compact, ratified by the 1997 Montana Legislature and signed by President Clinton in December of 1999, provided a water allocation of 10,000 acre feet to the Tribe from Lake Elwell (Tiber Reservoir), south of Chester, Montana. In addition to providing a water supply for the Tribe, the project was also expanded to provide water service to residents of Chouteau, Hill, Liberty, Pondera, Teton, Glacier and Toole counties in Montana. On December 12, 2002, President Bush signed S.2017, the Rocky Boy's⁄North Central Montana Regional Water System (NCMRWS) Act of 2002 (PL 107-331, 116 Stat. 2859) as the final step in the federal approval process and the beginning of a project to improve the quality of life for the Tribe and residents of north central Montana.