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Goldwater Institute challenges Indian Child Welfare Act

Suzette Brewer, Indian Country Today Media Network

PHOENIX, Ariz. – On July 7, the Phoenix, Arizona-based Goldwater Institute announced the filing of A.D. v. Washburn in the United States District Court for the District of Arizona, a class-action lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) based on its contention that the federal legislation “discriminates against Native children.”

Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Indian Affairs Kevin Washburn, and Gregory McKay, director of the Arizona Department of Child Safety (DCS) were named as defendants in the case.

The suit is being filed on behalf of “all off-reservation Arizona-resident children with Indian ancestry in child custody proceedings and the foster, pre-adoptive or prospective adoptive parents of these children,” according to the organization’s press release. “This case will not impact current or future cases that involve children or parents living on a reservation where a tribal court has jurisdiction; it will change the law so that state courts and agencies cannot discriminate against Native American children.”

Washburn marks the third major legal challenge to the 38-year-old federal law since the Bureau of Indian Affairs published new ICWA guidelines in the Federal Registry in February of this year, followed by the agency’s declared intention to seek a federal rule, which would make the statute more enforceable on state courts and social service agencies.

“While we have not yet reviewed the filing, we understand that a lawsuit challenging ICWA was filed yesterday. In matters in litigation, we will speak primarily through our briefs in court, but I want to assure the public that we will defend the Indian Child Welfare Act,” said BIA assistant secretary Washburn in a written statement. “Nearly 40 years ago, Congress determined that Indian children were being treated unfairly in the context of foster care and adoption. Congress determined that ‘an alarmingly high percentage of [Indian] children’ were subjected to ‘unwarranted’ removal from their homes and that a federal law was needed to protect Indian children. This law has been an important feature of the legal landscape for many years now and we firmly believe that the protection of the best interests of Indian children continues to be important today.”

According to the suit, the plaintiffs are seeking declaratory and injunctive relief against “certain provisions of ICWA and the accompanying BIA guidelines” on behalf of “A.D.,” a 10-month-old baby girl who is an enrolled member of the Gila River Indian Community. Another child plaintiff is a 4-year-old boy who is a member or eligible for membership in the Navajo Nation. The birth parents of both children have had their parental rights terminated by the state and both children reside off-reservation in Arizona. The Navajo Nation, as outlined in the brief, has repeatedly attempted to find ICWA-compliant homes for the boy – all of which were rejected by the state as “inappropriate” placements. If not for the Indian Child Welfare Act, according to the brief, the boy would already be in a permanent home under “race-neutral” Arizona law.

“When an abused child is removed from his home and placed in foster care or made available for adoption, judges are required to make a decision about where he will live based on his best interest. Except for Native American children. Courts are bound by federal law to disregard a Native American child’s best interest and place him in a home with other Native Americans, even if it is not in his best interest,” said Darcy Olsen, president of the Goldwater Institute in the organization’s press release. “We want federal and state laws to be changed to give abused, neglected or abandoned Native American children the same protections that are given to all other American children – the right to be placed in a safe home based on their best interests, not based on their race.”

But the original author of the Indian Child Welfare Act, retired South Dakota Sen. James Abourezk, took the Goldwater Institute to task for its attempt to overturn one of his signature legislative achievements during his time in the United States Senate. Ironically, Abourezk’s late friend and colleague Sen. Barry Goldwater actually voted in favor of ICWA when it was approved by the Senate in 1977.

“I knew Barry Goldwater – he was my friend and often came to me for advice on most tribal matters,” said Abourezk from his home in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. “I wish he were alive to see this travesty because he would never approve of it and you can quote me on that and make sure you emphasize the word ‘never.'”

Tribal leaders, their legal teams and ICWA advocates across the country seem universally opposed to the litigation. They view with skepticism adoption practices in the United States, and the economic factors and profits at play.

“The Native American Rights Fund is closely following the lawsuits filed in Virginia, Minnesota, and now Arizona,” said NARF staff attorney Matthew Newman. “What is abundantly clear is that these lawsuits are part of a coordinated, well-financed attack on the rights of tribal nations to protect their children. It is open season on the Indian Child Welfare Act.”

“At this point it is pretty clear that anti-ICWA advocates, who primarily represent adoption interests, have started a coordinated attack on ICWA,” said Kate Fort, staff attorney and adjunct professor for the Indigenous Law and Policy Center at Michigan State University College of Law. “They are looking for cases of opportunity in courts across the country by inserting themselves and trying to make the same constitutional arguments against ICWA. But this lawsuit will absolutely hurt vulnerable children and families in our state child welfare systems. Their claims that ICWA’s protections are substandard is simply not true. ICWA’s standards are considered the gold standard of child welfare practice. To say these lawsuits to dismantle ICWA are in the best interest of the child is really contrary to what is considered best practices by child welfare professionals.”

Stephen Pevar, senior counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union, says the whole point of enacting ICWA was to end decades of unnecessary removals of Indian children from their homes and communities.

“Congress held years of hearings [before enacting ICWA] and many Indians who were victims of state foster care cases testified,” Pevar said. “Based on that testimony and other research, Congress found that it is in the best interests of Indian children to be raised in an Indian home except in extraordinary circumstances. Therefore, the Goldwater Institute is wrong in saying that Congress overlooked the ‘best interest’ standard. Instead, Congress accepted that standard and concluded that there’s a presumption that it’s in the best interest of Indian children to be raised in an Indian home. In addition, the Supreme Court has already rejected the notion that ICWA creates racial discrimination when it imposes minimum federal standards on state courts in their handling of Indian child custody cases.”

But ICWA has come under assault in courts all over the country in the last several months, say legal experts, in states unwilling to deviate from the “business-as-usual” approach, in which an average adoption can bring anywhere from $40,000 to 100,000 in fees and costs for private adoptions, depending on various factors, including living expenses for the birth mother.

In May, for example, Washington, D.C.-based attorneys Lori McGill and her husband, Matthew McGill, filed suit in federal court in Virginia seeking to challenge the new BIA guidelines which they believe impose “federalism” on state courts regarding the adoption of Indian children. Mrs. McGill, who played a key role in Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl in 2013, told the National Law Journal in May that she gets emails on a weekly basis “from lawyers and adoptive parents telling me how ICWA is ripping their families apart.”

That same month, the Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals openly dismissed the new BIA guidelines in a case involving a 4-year-old Cherokee girl who had been placed in a non-Indian foster home during emergency proceedings in 2013. At the time, an ICWA-compliant home was not available, though a year later the tribe filed a motion to transfer the girl to a Cherokee family that the tribe had located. In ordering the girl to stay with her foster parents over the tribe’s objection, the court’s contempt for the new guidelines was palpable.

“The BIA guidelines’ intentional disregard of these factors results in a one-size-fits-all approach to the placement of children with any tribal affiliation,” the judges wrote. “That result may bear little resemblance to what is really in the child’s best interests, despite the self-serving pronouncements of the BIA guidelines.”

In June, adoption attorneys representing tribal parents in Minnesota filed another suit, Doe v. Jesson, in which they argued the Minnesota Indian Family Protection Act (MIFPA) violates constitutional due process in requiring notice of adoptions to the tribe. However, the Minnesota District Court denied a preliminary injunction based on state law requiring notice to tribes. The Court ruled that the MIFPA posed no threat of irreparable harm to the two tribal plaintiffs in complying with notice requirements. The tribe in the case, the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, have declined to intervene.

But the litigation, said observers, strikes at the heart of not only of the Indian Child Welfare Act, but also the keystone of tribal sovereignty as a whole – the right of Indian tribes to determine their own membership and raise their children in their home communities.

“Using tragic stories to try to destroy the constitutionality of ICWA is not appropriate. As we know from Morton v. Mancari, Native status is a political identity not racial or ethnic, so laws that give any type of Indian preference or preferential treatment are not in violation of the equal protection clause,” said Victoria Sweet, a program attorney for the Reno, Nevada-based National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges. “It’s ironic that [the Goldwater Institute] would argue that Native children get less protections when they actually get more and it is disingenuous to suggest otherwise when the reality is clearly the opposite. We are not yet at a point where the initial purpose of ICWA has disappeared. We still need this law. It still protects Native children.”

“It’s 38 years later and I still get mail from Indian people who tell me how important this legislation is,” Abourezk said. “The tribes need to mount a unified attack against this lawsuit because it’s good law and what they’re doing is wrong. It would be an enormous tragedy to see them overturn it.”

Pamunkey nation looks to future after gaining federal recognition

After a 30-year struggle, the Pamunkey Indian tribe is first in Virginia to earn federal status

By Jackson McMillan, Tidewater Review

Acting Chief of the Pamunkey Indian tribe Robert Gray said the tribe has its work cut out navigating the new opportunities and programs the Pamunkey people are eligible for now that they are among the more than 500 tribal nations recognized by the federal government.

“The real challenge now is figuring out what our options are,” Gray said during a phone interview. “There are so many agencies and programs it’s like a smorgasbord of programs.”

On July 2, the federal government extended recognition to the Pamunkey Indian tribe, making it the first Virginia tribe to achieve such recognition.

In the wake of the announcement, former Pamunkey Indian Chief Kevin Brown, who has helped the tribe in its 30-year quest for such recognition, tendered his resignation as chief.

“It’s been a long hard road in getting the federal recognition, and I’m passing the torch to another member,” he said, adding that it is time for someone else to take up their own cause to advance the tribe.

Under Pamunkey law, Assistant Chief Gray will take over as acting chief and perform all of the duties of the chief. Gray said the Pamunkey will elect a new chief Aug. 6.

The tribe, which has 203 members, has proven that it meets seven mandatory criteria for federal recognition and will join the 566 other federally recognized tribal nations across the country. The process included collecting historical governing documents, tracing the lineage of tribe members and proving the tribe has lived as a distinct community with its own political influence since 1900, according to the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

“This work reflects the most solemn responsibilities of the United States,” said Kevin Washburn, assistant secretary of the Bureau of Indian Affairs in announcing the decision. “Our professional historians, anthropologists, and genealogists spent thousands of hours of staff time researching and applying our rigorous acknowledgment criteria to these petitions.”

Overcoming obstacles

The Pamunkey first applied for full federal recognition in 1982, Brown said.

Washburn’s decision was a defeat for numerous groups that had opposed the petition, including the Congressional Black Caucus as well as gaming and anti-gaming interests worried about the potential for the tribe to construct a gambling complex on the 1,200-acre Pamunkey reservation.

In January, several members of the Congressional Black Caucus voiced their opposition to federal recognition of the Pamunkey, asking Department of the Interior Secretary Sally Jewell and then-U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to postpone the decision until the Justice Department investigated claims of discriminatory practices by the tribe.

The point of contention was in regard to an old tribal law that stated, “No member of the Pamunkey Indian Tribe shall intermarry with any (sic) Nation except White or Indian under penalty of forfeiting their rights in Town.”

Brown said the tribe repealed the law in 2012. “We hadn’t enforced that law in generations and did away with it before it got out.” According to Brown, the common rationale for the ban is that it was rooted in Virginia’s culture of racism, which, at the time, used racial intermixture as a means to deprive Native Americans of their ancestral lands.

The Association of American Convenience Stores also expressed fears that federally acknowledged tribes will result in competition for stores already located near reservations if a tribe decided to open a similar business on tribal lands, the reason being tribes would not have to charge taxes and a store could undercut prices.

Support for a historic tribe

But many historians and ethnologists have long argued that the descendants of the most powerful tribe to confront Capt. John Smith and the first English settlers at Jamestown deserved official federal status.

“The Pamunkey retained their original lands — their ancestral lands from the time before the English arrived — and they were the only group to do so. They’ve maintained their treaties with the government — treaties that go all the way back to the English and the 1600s,” said Buck Woodard, head of the American Indian Initiative at Colonial Williamsburg.

“If you want to know how important the Pamunkey and its leaders were — just look at how the English referred to them: They called them ‘The House of Pamunkey.’ And they’re still a special group today.”

Retired Virginia Department of Historic Resources archaeologist E. Randolph Turner II makes many of the same arguments, citing the tribe’s links to such historical figures as Powhatan, Opechancanough and Pocahontas.

Brown said Gov. Terry McAuliffe called him July 2 to personally congratulate the Pamunkey on their historic achievement.

In a statement issued by the Office of the Governor, McAuliffe lauded the decision.

“I want to congratulate members of the Pamunkey tribe on their tireless efforts to ensure that they receive the federal recognition that they deserve.” The governor’s statement also said he has supported federal recognition of the Pamunkey and recently sent a letter to the Bureau of Indian Affair backing their efforts.

McAuliffe said he hopes the Pamunkey tribe’s achievement will help enact the Thomasina E. Jordan Indian Tribes of Virginia Federal Recognition Act, a bipartisan bill that would grant federal recognition to the Chickahominy, Eastern Chickahominy, Upper Mattaponi — also located in King William County — Rappahannock, Monacan, and Nansemond Indian tribes. These tribes have been recognized by the state, but not the federal government.

In a joint statement, Virginia’s U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine hailed the announcement by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. They are also cooperating on the Thomasina E. Jordan Indian Tribes of Virginia Federal Recognition Act.

“I congratulate the Pamunkey Indian Tribe on finally receiving this long-overdue federal recognition,” Warner said. “This historic milestone also reminds us of the work that remains before us to correct the injustices committed against Virginia Indian tribes. Senator Kaine and I will keep urging our colleagues in the Senate to pass our legislation to ensure that the Chickahominy Indian Tribe, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe-Eastern Division, the Upper Mattaponi Tribe, the Rappahannock Tribe, the Monacan Indian Nation, and the Nansemond Indian Tribe also get the federal recognition that they deserve.”

Members of the King William County Board of Supervisors also commended the Pamunkey on their recognition.

“I think it’s a great victory for the tribe, which made the first contact with British settlers 400 years ago, to finally have federal recognition,” said District 2 Supervisor Travis Moskalski.

Full federal recognition now allows Pamunkey tribal members to apply for a variety of programs, such as health and housing services, as well as educational and higher-learning opportunities.

Plans for the future

Brown said there is a 90-day waiting period before tribal members can begin benefiting from such programs, and it may be years before the Pamunkey are able to construct buildings they’re provided funding for, such as a health clinic. However, Brown said the Pamunkey are eligible to use facilities and services at the reservations of other federally recognized tribes.

Brown also quelled suspicions by many that the Pamunkey were planning to build a casino, which is permitted under full recognition.

“Look around,” Brown said gesturing to the line of trees and rows of crops that make up a sizable portion of land on the reservation. “There’s no place for a casino here.” Brown also said the Pamunkey hired a consultant to examine whether or not the reservation’s thoroughfares could handle the traffic a casino would undoubtedly bring. It was determined the investment from reconstructing roads and building a casino would not be feasible.

Gray said as much, saying the Pamunkey lack the infrastructure for a casino.

“We want to modernize, yes, but we’re country people and we like it that way,” Gray said. “For the long term we’re looking for options that benefit the tribe and allow us to be an independent sovereign nation. There’s a multitude of paths we can take but a casino is not one of them.”

“More than anything being recognized is historic vindication,” Brown said.

“Virginia tried to write us out, and this decision vindicates not only the Pamunkey, but every tribe that made up the Powhatan Confederacy. It gives our people legitimacy and it will benefit them down the road.”

When asked about the relevance of the decision coinciding with Independence Day, Brown chuckled.

“I hadn’t thought about that,” he said. “I guess maybe there’s a little bit of poetic justice there.”

McMillan can be reached by phone at 757-298-4136.

Pamunkey’s

30-year struggle

•1982: The Pamunkey Indian tribe applies for full federal recognition.

•2009: The Pamunkey file a letter of intent to petition the Bureau of Indian Affairs for federal recognition.

•August 2012: The BIA issues the Pamunkey “active consideration” for full recognition.

•January 2014: The Pamunkey earn preliminary federal recognition.

•January 2015: The Congressional Black Caucus asks the BIA to delay the decision and investigate the Pamunkey for discriminatory practices.

•March 2015: The BIA extends its deadline for a final determination on federal recognition of the Pamunkey.

•July 2, 2015: The Pamunkey become the first federally recognized tribe in the commonwealth of Virginia.

– See more at: http://www.tidewaterreview.com/news/va-tr-kw-pamunkey-0708-20150707-22,0,923109,full.story#sthash.Lsp8Jnwa.dpuf

Department of the Interior Announces Final Federal Recognition Process to Acknowledge Indian Tribes

Date: June 29, 2015
Contacts: Jessica Kershaw (DOI), Interior_Press@ios.doi.gov
Nedra Darling (ASIA), 202-219-4152

Initiative Reforms a Process Long Criticized as “Broken,” Increases Transparency in Important Review of Tribal Recognition Status

WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Kevin K. Washburn today released a final rule to reform the regulatory process by which the Department of the Interior officially recognizes Indian tribes. The updated rule promotes a more transparent, timely and consistent process that is flexible enough to account for the unique histories of tribal communities, while maintaining the rigor and integrity of the criteria that have been in place for nearly 40 years.

“Since the beginning of President Obama’s Administration, the Department has worked with tribal and government leaders on improving the federal acknowledgment process, which has been criticized as inconsistent, slow and expensive,” Secretary Jewell said. “This Administration takes very seriously its important trust and treaty responsibilities to Native Americans and Alaska Natives. This updated process for important tribal recognition makes good on a promise to clarify, expedite and honor a meaningful process for federal acknowledgement to our First Americans.”

“This updated rule is the product of extraordinary input from tribal leaders, states, local governments and the public,” said Assistant Secretary Washburn. “We have a responsibility to recognize those tribes that have maintained their identity and self-governance despite previous federal policies expressly aimed at destroying tribes. This new process remains rigorous, but it promotes timely decision-making through expedited processes and increases transparency by posting all publically available petition materials online so that stakeholders are well-informed at each stage of the process. Many of these improvements came from public comments by stakeholders and we are grateful for their guidance.”

To maintain the substantive rigor and integrity of the current regulatory process (described in Part 83, Title 25 – Code of Federal Regulations), the final rule carries forward the current standard of proof and seven mandatory criteria that petitioners must meet to substantiate their claim to tribal identification, community and political authority. To promote fairness and consistent implementation, the new process provides that prior decisions, which found evidence or methodology sufficient to satisfy a particular criterion for a previous petitioner, are sufficient to satisfy that criterion for a present petitioner. The final rule further promotes consistent application by establishing a uniform evaluation period of more than a century, from 1900 to the present, to satisfy the seven mandatory criteria.

Key features of the final rule promote transparency by:

Increasing public access to petition documents for Federal Acknowledgment;
Expanding distribution of notices of petitions to include local governments; and
Increasing due process by providing for an administrative judge to conduct a comprehensive hearing and issue a recommended decision for proposed negative findings.

In a separate action, Assistant Secretary Washburn issued a policy statement explaining that the Department intends to rely on the newly reformed Part 83 process as the sole administrative avenue for acknowledgment as a tribe as long as the new rule is in effect and being implemented.

To build public trust in the Federal Acknowledgement process, the Department has been working to reform the Part 83 process since the beginning of the Obama Administration. At that time in 2009, Interior initiated its own review. In 2012, the Department identified guiding principles of the reform effort. In recognition of the high level of interest, the Department used a transparent rulemaking approach and significant outreach effort. Before beginning the formal rulemaking initiative, Interior issued a discussion draft in 2013 to facilitate public input on how to improve the process.

Through the discussion draft and ensuing tribal consultations and public meetings, the Department obtained substantial feedback. In total, more than 2,800 commenters provided input on the discussion draft. The Department issued a proposed rule in May of 2014 and extended the public comment period on that proposal in response to requests from tribes, state and local governments, members of Congress and the public. In total, more than 330 unique comments were submitted on the proposed rule. The final rule reflects substantial changes to the discussion draft and the proposed rule in response to public comments.

Federal acknowledgment establishes the U.S. Government as the trustee for Tribal lands and resources and makes Tribal members and governments eligible for federal budget assistance and program services. Since 1978, of the 566 federally recognized tribes, 17 have been recognized through the Part 83 process under Title 25 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Procedures for Establishing that an American Indian Group Exists as an Indian Tribe. The Department has denied acknowledgment to 34 other petitioning groups.

Though far more tribes have been recognized through Executive or Congressional action, the Part 83 process is an important mechanism because it allows deliberative consideration of petitions by a staff of federal experts in anthropology, genealogy and history and ultimately allows for a decision by the Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs. When petitioning groups that meet the criteria are officially “acknowledged” as Indian tribes, the U.S. Government accepts trusteeship of Tribal lands and natural resources. Tribal governments and members then become eligible to receive federal health, education, housing and other program and technical assistance.

The final rule and other information is online here.

Indian Congress, Pearl Jam join Blackfeet in fight against leases

John Murray, Chief Earl Old Person and Tyson Running Wolf announced Wednesday a national campaign to cancel oil and gas leases in the Badger-Two Medicine area.(Photo: Courtesy photo)

By Karl Puckett, Great Falls Tribune

The Blackfeet Tribe and National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) announced a campaign Wednesday to cancel the remaining oil and gas leases within the Badger-Two Medicine area.

The rock band Pearl Jam and member Jeff Ament, who originally is from Big Sandy, will be reaching out to their supporters to encourage them to join the campaign, it was announced during a news conference.

The 165,588-acre area is almost entirely within roads and features mountains, ridges, river valleys and wetlands along the Rocky Mountain Front.

The area has 47 oil and gas leases that the Blackfeet and NCAI contend were illegally granted more than 30 years ago without tribal consultation. Today, 18 leases remain. In 2013, Solonex LLC filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government to begin drilling in the area.

The Blackfeet announced a campaign to urge Congress, President Barack Obama and federal agencies to cancel all remaining leases in the Badger-Two Medicine, which is located at the intersection of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation, Glacier National Park and the Bob Marshall Wilderness.

Tyson Running Wolf, secretary of the Blackfeet Tribal Business Council, said drilling in the lands that are at the heart of the tribe’s creation story with so much cultural significance is not an option. The tribe will be putting the full weight of a growing alliance behind efforts to stop drilling, he said.

“The Badger-Two Medicine is a sacred place where the Blackfeet people gather food and medicine,” Running Wolf said.

The fight against the oil and gas leases was announced during a news conference conducted in Browning by Running Wolf; Blackfeet Chief Earl Old Person; John Murray, Blackfeet tribal historic preservation officer; Jacqueline Johnson Pata, executive director of the NCAI.

Old Person led the announcement with a prayer.

Tribal members have been struggling with the possibility of development in the Badger-Two Medicine for awhile, he said. Past leaders of the tribe said wars of the future would not only be with bows and arrows, he said.

Running Wolf said the Blackfeet Nation has been fighting to protect the area for more than 30 years. Under the Reagan administration, 47 oil and gas leases were illegally issued without consulting the tribe, he said. With the announcement, the full weight of the tribe and a growing alliance is behind the effort.

“We will never let this happen,” Running Wolf said.

Murray said the campaign will include billboards and a website, badger-twomedicine.org. There also is a petition on change.org asking Interior Secretary Sally Jewell and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack to cancel the leases.

The tribe also is reaching out to faith and business communities and national environmental organizations to bring their voices to millions of people around the nation.

Ament, of Pearl Jam, will be helping out as well on social media.

“We’re going to be mobilizing his resources to get the message out about the Badger-Two Medicine,” he said.

Ament, bass player for Seattle-based Pearl Jam, issued a statement through the tribe.

“The Blackfeet Nation sits on the front range of the Rocky Mountains of Glacier National Park, one of the most spiritual and beautiful spots in Montana,” Ament said. “Drilling for oil and gas has no place in the Badger-Two Medicine. Clean water and clean air are precious resources that hold the key to the future of the Blackfeet people and all Montanans. Please cancel the leases in the Badger-Two Medicine.”

On its Facebook page, Pearl Jam urged its followers to join the Blackfeet Nation to protect Badger-Two Medicine region that included a picture of Ament and U.S.Sen Jon Tester, D-Mont.

Johnson Pata, executive director of the NCAI, said Indian access to sacred places is critical responsibility to federal agencies.

“NCAI has requested that the Department of the Interior consult with the tribe on the Badger-Two Medicine, and we are hopeful that the agency will move to cancel all remaining oil and gas leases that threaten the area’s preservation,” she said.

The Blackfeet also announced partnerships with 18 Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, and Canadian Native tribes and nations, The Wilderness Society, National Parks and Conservation Association, the Montana Wilderness Association and the Glacier-Two Medicine Alliance.

Interior Department to Announce $8 Million for Tribal Climate Change Adaptation and Planning Projects

Adaptation Funding to Help Strengthen Resilience for Communities
on the Front Lines of a Changing Climate

Source: U.S. Dept of the Interior

WASHINGTON, D.C. – As part of the Obama Administration’s effort to prepare communities nationwide for the impacts of a changing climate, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell today announced that the Interior Department will make available $8 million to fund projects that promote tribal climate change adaptation and ocean and coastal management planning through its Tribal Climate Resilience Program.

“Sea level rise, coastal erosion, drought and more frequent and severe weather events are impacting Alaska Native villages and American Indian tribal communities across the nation,” said Secretary Jewell. “As governments at all levels work on these challenges, we are committed to partnering with American Indians and Alaska Natives to build more resilient and sustainable communities and economies. This funding can help tribes prepare and plan for climate-related events and build capacity to address these evolving challenges.”

“No one is impacted by climate change more than Native communities in Alaska, but we have also seen serious problems developing for tribal communities across the West and on both coasts. We must act to help protect these communities,” said Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Kevin Washburn. “The cultural and economic needs of tribes are tied to the land and protecting that land is a critical component of advancing tribal sovereignty and self-determination.”

Of the $8 million, $4 million will be available for Climate Adaptation Planning and another $4 million for Ocean/Coastal Management Planning. Funding will support tribal climate adaptation planning, training, and participation in technical workshops and forums. In addition, funding will support coastal tribes in addressing the challenges of coastal erosion and development, rising sea levels, ocean acidification, and emergency management.

The $8 million in tribal climate resilience funds will build on the nearly $2.3 million previously awarded last December to more than 40 federally recognized tribes and tribally chartered organizations to support tribal climate preparedness and resilience activities. The awards included more than $100,000 to benefit 22 Alaska Native villages, tribes and cooperative associations. The full list of awardees is available here.

As part of Executive Order 13653 of November 1, 2013, all federal departments and agencies are expanding efforts to help tribes, states, cities and localities prepare for the impacts of climate change. To comply with this Executive Order, the Secretary of the Interior’s Tribal Climate Resilience Program responds to the Recommendations and Supplemental Recommendations of the President’s State, Local, and Tribal Leaders Task Force on Climate Preparedness and Resilience and helps to implement President Obama’s Climate Action Plan. A key part of the Climate Action Plan is to build more resilient communities, and strengthen defenses for community’s already on the front lines of a changing climate.

Furthermore, the President’s proposed budget for FY 2016 includes $137 million to prepare communities and ecosystems for the challenges of a changing climate. Included in this request is $50 million to support competitive resilience projects in coastal areas. The budget also proposes to expand the Bureau of Indian Affairs’ Tribal Climate Resilience Program to specifically address the changing Arctic landscape and offer support to Alaska Native Villages and other critically vulnerable communities in evaluating options for the long-term resilience of their communities. Additional funding is requested in the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to increase understanding of the Changing Arctic and the linkages between climate, glaciers and impacts to the people who live there.

A Request for Proposal (RFP) will be available in the coming days and requests for the application can be sent to climate.funding@bia.gov or to the attention of Helen Riggs, Deputy Bureau Director, Office of Trust Services, Bureau of Indian Affairs, 1849 C St., N.W., MS-4620-MIB, and Washington, D.C. 20240.

The Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs oversees the BIA, which is headed by a director who is responsible for managing day-to-day operations through four offices – Indian Services, Justice Services, Trust Services and Field Operations. These offices directly administer or funds tribally based infrastructure, law enforcement, social services, tribal governance, natural and energy resources, and trust lands and resources management programs for the nation’s federally recognized American Indian and Alaska Native tribes and villages through 12 regional offices and 81 agencies.

Secretary Jewell to Kick Off Native Youth Listening Tour

Obama Administration Officials to meet with young people across Indian Country to better understand and act on unique challenges facing Native Youth

WASHINGTON, D.C. – As part of President Obama’s Generation Indigenous (“Gen-I”) initiative to remove barriers standing between Native youth and their opportunity to succeed, U.S. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell will kick off the Obama Administration Native Youth Listening Tour tomorrow, Tuesday, February 10, in the Phoenix, Arizona area with tribal visits and student discussions at Salt River Elementary and Gila River Crossing Community Schools.

During the sixth White House Tribal Nations Conference, President Obama announced that members of his Cabinet would visit Indian Country to hear directly from Native youth on how to bolster federal policies to help improve the lives and opportunities for the next generation of Indian Country. Over the coming year, Obama Administration Cabinet Secretaries will hold listening sessions with native youth across the country.

As part of her visit with the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, Secretary Jewell will learn about the tribe’s Family Advocacy Center which follows a ‘co-location’ model for social services, such as counseling, law enforcement and other professional social services. The Center serves as a national model for taking a ‘whole-of-child’ approach to youth and social services.

At the Gila River Crossing Community School, Secretary Jewell will meet with students who are part of Akimel O’odham/Pee-Posh Youth Council, an active and well-established youth council that has served to provide an avenue for empowerment and mutual support for native youth within the community.

According to a recent White House report, nearly half of Native American people (42 percent) are under the age of 24; more than one-third of Native children live in poverty; and Native youth have the lowest high school graduation rate of students across all schools.

Secretary Jewell Celebrates Agreement with Seminole Tribe of Florida to Help Spur Investment, Commercial Development

Tribal leasing regulations foster economic development, represent another step furthering tribal self-determination

Source: U.S. Department of the Interior

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. – As part of President Obama’s commitment to empowering American Indian and Alaska Native tribal nations and strengthening their economies, Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and Bureau of Indian Affairs Director Michael Black today joined Seminole Tribal Chairman James E. Billie to formally approve tribal leasing regulations that will help spur investment and commercial development on the Seminole Tribe’s reservations.

Upon approval of the tribal regulations by the Department of the Interior, tribes may approve land leases without Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) approval, fostering tribal self-governance in the approval of leases for homes and small businesses in Indian Country.

“The Seminole Tribe of Florida will now decide for itself how it wants to do business on its lands – from making it easier for families to buy and build houses to opening businesses in the communities where they have lived for generations,” said Secretary Jewell, who also serves as chair of the White House Council on Native American Affairs. “Today’s agreement will encourage economic development and help create jobs while strengthening tribal sovereignty and self-determination by putting these decisions back in the hands of the tribe.”

Today’s signing ceremony comes on the heels of the White House Tribal Nations Conference held in December 2014, when leaders from all 566 federally recognized tribes were invited to Washington, D.C. to interact directly with the President and senior cabinet and administration officials. The conference – the sixth for the Obama Administration – continues to build on the President’s commitment to strengthen the government-to-government relationship with Indian Country.

“This is an important day for the Seminole Tribe, which will be able to process residential and business leases without the need for BIA approval,” said Chairman Billie. “This authority will allow the Tribe to better serve its members and create new opportunities for economic development on the Tribe’s reservations. We appreciate the Department’s assistance in working with the Tribe through the approval process.”

“Tribal self-determination means the tribe will now decide how its lands may be used for the good of its members and how it wants to do business on its lands,” said BIA Director Black. “The Seminole Tribe’s endeavors contribute to the local, state and regional economies and the tribe’s leasing initiative will further that economic vitality and contribution.”

Tribal council members and several tribal government officials joined Secretary Jewell, Director Black and Chairman Billie during a signing ceremony this morning at Seminole Tribal Headquarters in Hollywood, Florida.

The Seminole Tribe of Florida resides in communities located on six component reservations: Big Cypress, Brighton, Fort Pierce, Hollywood, Immokalee and Tampa. The Tribe expects to use its new authority for business, residential and biomass energy development, as well as for cultural, educational, recreational, spiritual, and other purposes.

Under the Helping Expedite and Advance Responsible Tribal Homeownership Act (HEARTH Act), signed by President Obama in July 2012, federally recognized tribes may develop and implement their own laws governing leasing of federal tribal trust lands for residential, business, renewable energy and other purposes. The law provides that such tribes may lease their lands without federal approval, promoting greater investment in tribal communities and job creation, both of which support tribal self-determination.

The Secretary’s action today brings to 15 the number of federally recognized tribes with leasing regulations approved under the HEARTH Act. An additional 14 tribes have HEARTH Act applications under current review or modification. A full list of approved regulations and additional information about the HEART Act is available HERE.

The HEARTH Act complements a parallel effort Interior undertook to overhaul the BIA regulations that govern its process for approving surface leases on lands the federal government holds in trust for Indian tribes and individuals. As trustee, Interior manages about 56 million surface acres in Indian Country.

The new regulations were finalized in December 2012 and represent the most comprehensive reform of the BIA’s antiquated leasing process. The new regulations fundamentally change the way the BIA does business, providing clarity by identifying specific processes – with enforceable timelines – through which the BIA must review leases. The regulation also establishes separate, simplified processes for residential, business, and renewable energy development, rather than using a “one-size fits all” approach that treats a lease for a single family home the same as a lease for a large wind energy project.

Secretary Jewell Stresses Self-Governance, Empowerment as Foundation for Successful, Culturally Vibrant Tribal Nations

Delivers Opening Remarks at White House Tribal Nations Conference; Highlights Trust Responsibilities, Educational Reform, Climate Adaptation

Press Release, U.S. Department of the Interior

WASHINGTON, DC – Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell today delivered opening remarks at the sixth White House Tribal Nation’s Conference, where she emphasized the Obama Administration’s commitment to Indian Country, including self-determination and self-governance initiatives that are helping tribal nations to build a foundation for a successful and culturally vibrant future.

“All of the work we are undertaking in partnership with tribes – whether on education, tackling climate change, or upholding trust reforms and treaty obligations – is with an eye toward the health and prosperity of the next generation,” said Secretary Jewell, who will also participate in panel discussions with tribal leaders on education and native youth, and climate change. “The White House Tribal Nations Conference is one piece of President Obama’s commitment to make meaningful and lasting progress in support of American Indians’ and Alaska Natives’ vision for a strong and successful future.”

The conference provides leaders from the 566 federally recognized tribes the opportunity to interact directly with President Obama, members of his Cabinet and other federal policy-level officials, building on the President’s commitment to strengthen our government-to-government relationship with Indian Country and to improve the livelihood of Native Americans. President Obama held the first-ever conference and has ensured that it will be an enduring, annual conference by Executive Order.

During this year’s conference, Jewell will discuss some of the progress made by the White House Council on Native American Affairs in advancing initiatives on educational reform, energy and economic development and climate change.

The Council, which is chaired by Secretary Jewell and includes the heads of more than 20 federal departments and agencies, has convened four times since its inception in June 2013 and works to improve interagency coordination and expand efforts to leverage federal programs and resources available to tribal communities.

Under a Council initiative, Secretary Jewell and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, after consultation with tribal leaders, issued a Blueprint for Reform in June 2014 to redesign the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE). Building on the Blueprint’s recommendations, Jewell issued a Secretarial Order to begin restructuring BIE from solely a provider of education to a capacity-builder and education service-provider to tribes. The goal of this transformation is to give tribes the ability themselves to provide an academically rigorous and culturally appropriate education to their students, according to their needs.

“The heart of the matter is that no one cares more, or knows more about what’s right for young people, than their parents and their community,” said Jewell, who noted that the BIE recently awarded $1.2 million to tribes to promote tribal control of BIE-funded schools on their reservations.

Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Kevin K. Washburn also participated in today’s Tribal Nation’s Conference where he joined panel sessions and reaffirmed the Obama Administration’s sacred duty to uphold federal trust responsibilities and help restore tribal homelands.

“Each of the Administration’s successes is progress for tribes because tribal self-determination and self-governance animate each of our programs,” said Assistant Secretary Washburn. “Our programs cannot fully succeed unless Indian tribal governments also succeed.”

He noted Jewell’s second Secretarial Order focused on Indian Country and the Department’s tribal trust responsibilities – underscoring Interior’s commitment to a new chapter in government-to-government relations. The Order reaffirmed the Department’s unique, historic responsibilities and provided guidance for each of Interior agencies to carry out trust obligations to tribes and individual Indian beneficiaries.

Assistant Secretary Washburn also discussed the status of proposed changes to the Department’s federal acknowledgment regulations to improve efficiency and fairness in that process.

Jewell underscored historic settlements and progress in restoring tribal homelands through land-into-trust and the Land Buy-Back Program for Tribal Nations. In addition to the historic $3.4 billion Cobell settlement, the Administration has resolved more than 80 individual tribal trust management lawsuits for a total of $2.5 billion. The most recent settlement was announced in September and provided $554 million in settlement of long-standing trust disputes with the Navajo Nation, with some claims dating back more than 50 years.

“Resolution of historic tribal trust cases and the Cobell litigation has allowed the Department to work with Indian country on rebuilding the trust relationship in a collaborative manner, outside the adversarial atmosphere of litigation,” noted Interior Solicitor Hilary Tompkins, who also participated in the conference.

In ongoing efforts to help restore tribal homelands, Interior has completed 282 cases so far this year, taking 40,339 acres into trust for Tribes. Since 2009, more than 280,408 acres have been taken into trust on behalf of tribes, more than half way toward the Department’s goal of 500,000 acres before the end of the President’s term. Indian Affairs has also been working on regulations that would allow the Department to take land into trust in Alaska.

In addition, Interior has been carrying out the Land Buy-Back Program for Tribal Nations a program designed to buy highly fractionated land interests from willing American Indian sellers at fair market value and transfer consolidated titles to tribal governments for the beneficial use of their communities. In the last 12 months, the Program has made $754 million in offers to more than 44,000 individual landowners and restored the equivalent of more than 475,000 acres to tribes. The Department recently announced 21 additional locations where the Program will begin implementation, bringing the total number of locations actively engaged in the Buy-Back Program to 42. That total represents 83 percent of all outstanding fractionated ownership interests.

Since assuming her role at Interior, Secretary Jewell has visited more than 20 tribal communities and half a dozen Bureau of Indian Education schools. Jewell also joined President Obama and the First lady on their historic visit to Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Nation earlier this year.

Klamath tribal members protest “celebratory” signing of agreement

April 21, 2014. Source: Warrior Publications

U.S. Department of Interior Secretary Sally Jewell, State of Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber, State of California Governor Jerry Brown, Oregon Senator Ron Wyden, Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley, Klamath Tribes elected officials and Klamath Basin irrigators held a “celebratory” signing of the Upper Klamath Basin Comprehensive Agreement last Friday at Collier Park, 4 miles north of Chiloquin. With strong support from Senator Wyden, he stated “I am going to introduce in the first few days of May, legislation in partnership with Senator Merkley to make this agreement law.”
But the “celebration” was not held without opposition. Members and descendants of the Klamath, Modoc and Yahooskin tribes came together to object to the UKBCA stating that tribal membership had less than a month to review the 93 page document. Tribal Council only allowed 19 days from the mailing of the ballots by the election company to the deadline for return.

Although their addresses are current and updated, a large portion of membership either did not receive a ballot or did not did receive a ballot in time to cast a vote before the deadline. Therefore, membership feels proper voting procedure was not implemented and they did not have adequate time to make an informed decision in the referendum vote, which had a deadline of April 9th 2014 postmarked by 9 am.

“To me this is a violation of the code of ethics that the Tribal Council signed at the beginning of their term. They showed no moral principal with this act. I hope they can live with themselves after they have ignored their membership.” – Anonymous Klamath Tribal member

Tribal members also stated that this agreement does not reflect the cultural values that they would like to see included in any agreement that brings their Treaty rights into discussion. Tribal membership did not have any direct involvement in the negotiation process and feel that Klamath tribal elected officials do not retain the sovereign authority to make decisions on behalf of the entire tribal membership.

Those in opposition to the agreement held signs stating *“water is life”, *“no more KBRA lies” and “my council does not speak for me.”

As signatories took their place to sign the agreement, tribal members moved to the front of the crowd to deliver a written testimony and to publically state why they were not in agreement with the proposed piece of legislation.

While the signing took place, a Klamath Tribes descendant burned a copy of the UKBCA to symbolize tribal membership’s disdain for the agreement. Tribal members were not given adequate time to make an informed decision and less than one third of eligible voting membership cast a ballot to grant signatory authority to Klamath Chairman Don Gentry. Many believe as a result, the outcome of the referendum is not reflective of overall enrolled members’ opinions, and therefore is inconclusive.

A statement released by the Hupa Tribe from Northern California criticizes the agreement stating it “surrenders their tribal rights for water and fishing.” Commissioners from Klamath and Siskiyou County were not in attendance, though they will be impacted by any agreement on the Klamath River. They say they consider this a “surrender” or a “sell-out.”

Obama Proposes $33.6M for Indian Country in FY 2015 Budget

Vincent Schilling, Indian Country Today Media Network

On Tuesday Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell announced President Obama’s Fiscal Year 2015 budget request of $11.9 billion dollars for the Department of the interior. The 2015 budget request represents an increase of 2.4 percent from 2014 or $33.6 million dollars to support Indian country initiatives such as land and water conservation, strengthening tribal nation relations, renewable energy development and expanding employment opportunities for Native youth.

“The President’s balanced and responsible budget strategy supports the pivotal role this Department plays as a driver of jobs and economic activity in communities across the country,” said Jewell in a DOI release.

“The budget enables the Interior to carry out its important missions and contains key proposals to uphold our trust responsibilities to American Indians and Alaska Natives, provide a new approach for responsibly budgeting for wild land-fire-suppression needs, invest in climate resilience, and bolster our national parks and public lands in advance of the National Park Service’s 100th anniversary in 2016,” she said.

Jewell also stated that President Obama will continue to support full, permanent funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which she said was “one of the Nation’s most effective tools for expanding access for hunting and fishing, creating ball fields and other places for children to play and learn, and protecting Civil War battlefields.”

“We are very pleased to see the administration’s continuing commitment to Indian country in a time of tight budgetary constraints, said Bill Anoatubby, Governor of the Chickasaw Nation in an email to ICTMN. “We are hopeful that the proposed budget will have a positive impact on the lives of Native Americans.”

According to the DOI, funding from the U.S. Government to Indian country is not one-sided. The Interior’s programs and activities contributed an estimated $371 billion to the economy in 2012 and supported another estimated 2.3 million jobs in the U.S.

The DOI also stated that the Interiors programs continue to generate an excess of revenue for the American people monetarily above their annual appropriation. In 2015, the DOI estimates receipts of nearly copy4.9 billion. A portion of these funds will be shared with State and local governments for school funding, infrastructure improvements and water-conservation projects.

In the confines of the 2015 budget, the DOI also proposes revenue and savings legislation that is estimated to generate over $2.6 billion in the next 10 years.

Specific initiatives in the budget geared toward strengthening tribal nations include a $34 million dollar increase from 2014. These monies provide support to fund social services, economic development, sustainable stewardship of natural resources and community safety in Indian country.

The budget also includes directives to improve educational outcomes in Indian country by providing $79 million for elementary, secondary and post-secondary education programs. The increases are $46 million in 2015 to support the Bureau of Indian Education and its associated programs.

Improving and increasing access to health care in communities includes $4.6 billion for Indian Health Service (IHS) with an additional Opportunity, Growth and Security Initiative that includes an additional $200 million for the construction of IHS health care facilities.

There will also be a $5.23 billion budget over the next 10 years to support the training of 13,000 new residents in a medical education program that incentivizes physician training; $3.95 billion will be budgeted over the next six years to scale up the National Health Services Corps to place 15,000 health care providers annually in the areas that need them most.

Additional budgeted monies include non-specified resources to support the Affordable Health Care act, $650 million for the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Native American Housing Block Grant program, $395 million for Department of Justice (DOJ) public safety initiatives in Indian country and $352 million for Public Safety and Justice programs funded by the BIA.

Kevin Brown, who is chief of the Pamunkey Tribe in Virginia and stands on a promising threshold to become federally recognized by 2015, said he is encouraged by the budget increase as a recognition as to the importance of the viability of Indian country.

“All of this sounds promising as well as encouraging,” Brown said. “If I am not mistaken, I also believe there are line items in the BIA’s budget which allows for the allocation of funds of newly federally recognized tribes. I’d like to be able to secure some of that funding.

“All of my time has been volunteered, my assistant chief volunteers as well as my secretary. I’d like to get broadband, and have a computer for the tribal office to get connected to the world.”