SYRACUSE - A federal judge on Friday rejected Oneida County's efforts to foreclose on Oneida Indian Nation land.

U.S. District Court Judge David Hurd said state and federal laws prohibit the county from taking the land.

Hurd's ruling was similar to one he made last year that prevented Madison County from taking tribal land.

Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling forcing the Oneida nation to pay property taxes.

That decision doesn't entitle the county to foreclose on Oneida land, however, and the county must find other means to obtain any taxes owed, Hurd said.

In a separate decision, Hurd also denied Madison County's attempts to decrease the size of the Oneida Indian reservation.