July 28, 2021

Indian Law Bulletins Updated 7/28

The Native American Rights Fund Boulder office is hiring for the open positions of water rights attorney and paralegal. Learn more about the vacancies at https://www.narf.org/contact-us/join-team/
NARF also invites current law clerks and recent law school graduates with a strong background in federal Indian law and public service to apply for a two-year fellowship to focus on voting rights and environmental issues. Blaustein Fellowship deadline is August 13, 2021.

Federal Courts Bulletin
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/federal/2021.html

  • Bedford v. Nowlin (Quiet Title Act; Trusts; Land Grants)
  • Fort McDermitt Paiute and Shoshone Tribe v. Becerra (Trust Relationship; Health Care)
  • Williams v. Hansen (Religious Freedom; Free Exercise Clause)

State Courts Bulletin
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/state/2021.html

  • Scudero v. State of Alaska (Fishing Rights)
  • The People of the State of South Dakota in the Interest of C.R.W. (Indian Child Welfare Act)
  • Charles P., Starlene M. v. Department of Child Safety (Indian Child Welfare Act)
  • Haynes v. Lujan (Jurisdiction)

Tribal Courts Bulletin
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/tribal/2021.html

  • In the Matter of the Estate of Howard Berner, Deceased. (Estates; Jurisdiction)

U.S. Legislation - 117th Congress Bulletin
https://narf.org/nill/bulletins/legislation/117_uslegislation.html

  • H.R.4614 - To expedite under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 and improve forest management activities on National Forest System lands, on public lands under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management, and on Tribal lands to return resilience to overgrown, fire-prone forested lands, and for other purposes.
  • H.R.4637 - To sever United States Government relations with the Creek Nation of Oklahoma until such time as the Creek Nation of Oklahoma restores full Tribal citizenship to the Creek Freedmen disenfranchised in the October 6, 1979, Creek Nation vote and fulfills all its treaty obligations with the Government of the United States, and for other purposes.
  • H.R.4656 - To direct the Federal Communications Commission to establish a new Tribal priority window for the 2.5 gigahertz band, and for other purposes.
  • H.R.4676 - To provide financial assistance to States and Indian Tribes for the development, implementation, improvement, or expansion of a flex-tech energy program to enhance manufacturing competitiveness, and for other purposes.
  • H.R.4715 - To authorize appropriations to the Secretary of the Interior to make payments to certain members of the Quapaw Tribe of Oklahoma in accordance with the recommendation of the United States Court of Federal Claims.
  • H.R.4733 - To deem certain voyages transporting passengers between ports or places within the United States in compliance with certain requirements upon calling on a port owned by an Indian Tribe, and for other purposes.

Law Review & Bar Journal Bulletin (contact us if you need help finding a copy of an article)
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/lawreviews/2021.html

  • Trust betrayed: The reluctance to recognize judicially enforceable trust obligations under the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (IHCIA).
  • A familiar crossroads: McGirt v. Oklahoma and the future of federal Indian law canon.

News Bulletin
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/news/currentnews.html
This week, in brief:

  • Montana is failing its constitutional promise to teach Native American history
  • Interior Department to consult with community leaders on major changes to NAGPRA
  • Montana water court decided tribal water rights in first-of-its-kind decision
  • WATCH: Harris hosts voting rights conversation with Native American leaders, Secretary Haaland
  • Tribal nations are essential to ‘Build Back Better’
  • Lawsuit over Oakland community sweat lodge leads to pushback from Native elders group
  • The fight over a 5,000-year-old burial site in California
  • An Indigenous firefighter explains how to better manage wildfires
  • Chef Sean Sherman's new restaurant is an homage to Indigenous food

July 21, 2021

Indian Law Bulletins Updated 7/21

The Native American Rights Fund Boulder office is hiring for the open positions of water rights attorney and paralegal. 

NARF also invites current law clerks and recent law school graduates with a strong background in federal Indian law and public service to apply for a two-year fellowship to focus on voting rights and environmental issues. Blaustein Fellowship deadline is August 13, 2021. 

Learn more about the vacancies at https://www.narf.org/contact-us/join-team/

Federal Courts Bulletin
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/federal/2021.html
Spirit Lake Tribe v. Jaeger (Attorney Fees; Voting Rights)
Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians v. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan (Health Insurance; Medicare-Like Rates; Employee Welfare)

State Courts Bulletin
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/state/2021.html
Matter of White v. Tax Appeals Tribunal (Indian Taxation)
Ronald H. v. Department of Health & Social Services, Office of Children's Services (Indian Child Welfare Act)
The People of the State of South Dakota in the Interest of C.H. (Indian Child Welfare Act)

U.S. Legislation - 117th Congress Bulletin
https://narf.org/nill/bulletins/legislation/117_uslegislation.html

  • S.2369 - A bill to provide access to reliable, clean, and drinkable water on Tribal lands, and for other purposes.
  • H.R.4478 - To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to treat certain payments made by Indian tribal governments as earned income for purposes of the kiddie tax.
  • H.R.4504 - To establish a biochar demonstration project for federally recognized Indian Tribes and Alaska Native corporations to support the development and commercialization of biochar.

Law Review & Bar Journal Bulletin (contact us if you need help finding a copy of an article)
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/lawreviews/2021.html

  • Legal barriers to tribal jurisdiction over violence against women in Maine: Developments and paths forward.
  • How federal Indian law prevents business development in Indian Country.

News Bulletin
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/news/currentnews.html
This week, in brief:

  • North Dakota must pay attorney fees, expenses in tribal voter ID lawsuits
  • Wildfires threaten Indigenous lands in desiccated Northwest: ‘It’s hard to watch the devastation’
  • Yurok Tribe opposes sweetheart settlement for Sackler family, Purdue Pharma
  • Maine mining project CEO's comments about Indigenous rights stir controversy
  • Yurok Tribal Court, Sovereign Bodies Institute release progress report on MMIWG2 project
  • Native activists begin cross-country tour to highlight at-risk sacred sites
  • Sovereignty, STEM, and the future
  • Native in the arts spotlight: Visual artist Andrea Carlson talks about her Chicago "You are on Potawatomi Land" mural
  • Lakota youth return home after more than a century away at Indian boarding school

July 14, 2021

Indian Law Bulletins Updated 7/14

The National Indian Law Library has developed a new tribal law digital publishing platform in partnership with the Open Law Library, the University of Wisconsin Law Library, and the Great Lakes Indigenous Law Center. Find out more about this project and the importance of access to tribal law.

We have scoured the web. Here are some of the latest materials related to Indian Law. Find all of the latest updates at https://narf.org/nill/bulletins/

Federal Courts Bulletin
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/federal/2021.html

  • Penobscot Nation v. Frey (Treaty Rights)
  • Keweenaw Bay Indian Community v. Khouri (Indian Taxation; Sovereign Immunity)
  • United States v. Medicine Horse (American Indian Religious Freedom Act; Native American Church - Religious Ceremonies)

State Courts Bulletin
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/state/2021.html

  • The People of the State of Colorado in the Interest of D.M.F.D. and concerning M.L.D. (Indian Child Welfare Act)

U.S. Legislation - 117th Congress Bulletin
https://narf.org/nill/bulletins/legislation/117_uslegislation.html

  • S.Res.297 - A resolution recognizing the commemorating Native Hawaiian Delegate Jonah Kuhio Kalaniana'ole's lifelong advocacy on behalf of Hawai'i and the Native Hawaiian people on the 100th anniversary of his paramount congressional achievement-the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920.
  • S.2326 - A bill to amend the Indian Child Protection and Family Violence Prevention Act to reauthorize programs under that Act, and for other purposes.
  • H.R.4386 - To amend the Federal Assets Sale and Transfer Act of 2016 to ensure that federally recognized Indian Tribes are consulted before the sale or transfer of certain Federal civilian real properties, and for other purposes.

News Bulletin
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/news/currentnews.html
This week, in brief:

  • Tribes and tribal citizens accuse South Dakota of violating voting laws
  • Ending food insecurity in Native communities means restoring land rights, handing back control
  • Rounds, colleagues introduce bipartisan bill to reauthorize Native housing funding
  • Arizona hospitals collaborate to fight maternal mortality
  • Paradigm shift: Tribe is now an owner of the power grid
  • New prison reform initiative aims to create restorative culture, uplift Indigenous voices and practices
  • National Council of Urban Indian Health Vice President to testify at Senate Committee on Indian Affairs on urban Indian organizations facilities bill
  • Utah's Lake Powell pipeline yet another way to prevent tribal water development
  • Patricia Marroquin Norby is bringing a Native perspective to the Met

July 9, 2021

 New Tribal Law Digital Publishing Platform 

One significant initiative of the National Indian Law Library (NILL) is its Access to Tribal Law Project.  The project’s mission is to provide tribal leaders, legal practitioners, and the public with convenient access to current and accurate copies of tribal law, including tribal codes and constitutions, intergovernmental agreements, and tribal court opinions. Public access to these materials enhances the power of tribal courts and strengthens tribal sovereignty. To that end, NILL recently implemented an innovative digital tool that will make it easier for tribes to share their codes and updates.


Digital Publishing Project


Last summer, NILL—along with its project partners Open Law Library, the University of Wisconsin Law Library and the Great Lakes Indigenous Law Center—received grant funding through the Institute of Museum and Library Services for a Digital Publication of Tribal Laws Pilot Project (IMLS grant number LG-246285-OLS-20) . Over the last year, the project has been developing a digital platform to publish tribal laws on library websites. The platform allows libraries to offer an online collection of tribal laws, while tribes maintain full control over the digital copies of their laws. 

The project reached a milestone in April, when NILL published on its website the official laws of Stockbridge Munsee Community, Wisconsin. Much like the days when libraries held official print copies of codes on our shelves, we can now hold an official digital copy of a tribe’s laws on our website while the tribe retains control over the content. You can see the Stockbridge Munsee Community's laws at the NILL website here.

Tribes interested in publishing their laws through the Open Law Platform can contact NILL at TribalLaw@narf.org for more information.

The Importance of Access 

The right to know the laws by which we are governed is a fundamental right. Libraries are keenly aware of the importance of access to legal information, but few are able to pay commercial legal databases’ high fees. Our hope is that this affordable digital publishing technology will allow other libraries—especially university libraries, public libraries, tribal college libraries, and tribal community libraries—to make tribal laws more accessible.

The project’s ultimate goal is to increase public access to the laws of Native nations. Tribal members and leaders will benefit from ready access to their laws, which is essential for good governance and ensuring due process and equal protection. Meanwhile, broader public access to tribal law will facilitate inter-governmental collaboration, encourage economic partnerships, and foster greater understanding of tribal sovereignty and perspectives.


Tribal Law Projects at NILL


The Access to Tribal Law Project and the Tribal Law Gateway are high priorities for the National Indian Law Library.  Our goal is for the Gateway to provide access to accurate tribal law information for all of the 574 federally recognized tribes, regardless of how they choose to make their laws available. You can support this work with a donation today.

July 7, 2021

Indian Law Bulletins Updated 7/7

The Native American Rights Fund Boulder office is hiring. Learn more about the vacancies at https://www.narf.org/contact-us/join-team/

Federal Courts Bulletin
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/federal/2021.html
Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation v. Department of the Interior (Indian Gaming Regulatory Act)
Ak-Chin Indian Community v. Maricopa-Stanfield Irrigation & Drainage District (Tribal Sovereign Immunity; Water Rights)
Fredericks v. Department of the Interior (American Indian Probate Reform Act)
The Crow Tribe of Indians v. Repsis (Treaty Rights; Tribal Hunting Rights)

State Courts Bulletin
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/state/2021.html
In re K.S. (Indian Child Welfare Act)

U.S. Legislation - 117th Congress Bulletin
https://narf.org/nill/bulletins/legislation/117_uslegislation.html

  • H.R.4308 - To remove Federal barriers regarding the offering of mobile wagers on Indian lands when the applicable State and Indian Tribe have reached an agreement, and for other purposes.
  • H.R.4316 - To provide a set-aside of funds for Indian populations under the health profession opportunity grant program under section 2008 of the Social Security Act, and for other purposes.
  • H.R.4348 - To remove administrative barriers to participation of Indian tribes in Federal child welfare programs, and increase Federal funding for tribal child welfare programs, and for other purposes.
  • H.R.4352 - To amend the Act of June 18, 1934, to reaffirm the authority of the Secretary of the Interior to take land into trust for Indian Tribes, and for other purposes.

Law Review & Bar Journal Bulletin (contact us if you need help finding a copy of an article)
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/lawreviews/2021.html

  • Toward tribal sovereignty: Environmental regulation in Oklahoma after McGirt.

News Bulletin
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/news/currentnews.html
This week, in brief:

  • A quest for Alaska oil sparks a fight over tribal sovereignty
  • Navajo leaders discuss Navajo Indian Irrigation Project and Chaco Canyon issues with U.S. Senator Ben Ray Luján
  • How G.O.P.-backed laws in Montana could hurt Native American voting
  • If you don’t know treaties and sovereignty, you don’t know history
  • National investigation of Native American boarding schools hits home in Michigan
  • First Indigenous woman appointed to Calif. commission advocating for women and girls
  • Diné College breaks ground for STEM building
  • NYU Law and Yale University launch joint initiative on American Indian sovereignty
  • Native Americans in Arizona brace for more electoral challenges in light of Supreme Court decision

July 1, 2021

Indian Law Bulletins Updated 7/1

The Native American Rights Fund Boulder office is hiring. Learn more about the vacancies at https://www.narf.org/contact-us/join-team/

U.S. Supreme Court Bulletin
http://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/sct/2020-2021update.html
Two petitions for certiorari were denied on 6/28/21:

  • Phillips, et al. v. Oneida Indian Nation (Jurisdiction; Indian Taxation)
  • Pierson v. Hudson Insurance Company (Insurance; Tort Law)
One case was decided on 6/25/21:
  • Yellen v. Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation (CARES Act; Alaska Native Corporations)

Federal Courts Bulletin
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/federal/2021.html

  • Deschutes River Alliance v. Portland General Electric Company (Tribal Sovereign Immunity; Clean Water Act)
  • Butler v. Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe (Tribal Sovereign Immunity; Wrongful Termination)
  • Lundy v. Balaam (ICRA Habeas Petition)

State Courts Bulletin
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/state/2021.html

  • In the Matter of the Dependency of G.J.A. (Indian Child Welfare Act)
  • In re A.C. (Indian Child Welfare Act)

U.S. Legislation - 117th Congress Bulletin
https://narf.org/nill/bulletins/legislation/117_uslegislation.html

  • S.2226 - A bill to amend the Indian Health Care Improvement Act to authorize a special behavioral health program for Indians, and for other purposes.
  • S.2264 - A bill to reauthorize the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996.
  • H.R.4093 - To amend title 23, United States Code, to modify the distribution of funds under the tribal transportation program, and for other purposes.
  • H.R.4228 - To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act with respect to members of a federally recognized Indian Tribe in the United States or Canada.
  • H.R.4251 - To amend the Indian Health Care Improvement Act to authorize a special behavioral health program for Indians, and for other purposes.
  • H.R.4283 - To amend the Public Health Service Act to improve the public health system in tribal communities and increase the number of American Indians and Alaska Natives pursuing health careers, and for other purposes.

Law Review & Bar Journal Bulletin (contact us if you need help finding a copy of an article)
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/lawreviews/2021.html

  • Reclaiming the past for Mauna A Wākea's future: The battle over collective memory and Hawai'i's most sacred mountain.
  • Unenforced promises: Treaty rights as a mechanism to address the impact of energy projects near tribal lands.
  • An Oklahoma tribal employer's guide to conducting business in the Tenth Circuit.
  • Bridges to a new era: A report on the past, present, and potential future of tribal co-management on federal public lands.
  • The past may be prologue, but it does not dictate our future: This is the Muscogee (Creek) Nation's table.

News Bulletin
https://www.narf.org/nill/bulletins/news/currentnews.html
This week, in brief:

  • Supreme Court has decided Alaska Native Corporations qualify for CARES Act funding
  • Cherokee Nation becomes first tribe to self-govern tribal transportation
  • Training the next generation of Indigenous data scientists
  • Sex trafficking sting nets 2 more Enbridge workers
  • Colorado public universities will give Native American students in-state tuition
  • Statement from Indigenous linguists and language scholars on boarding and residential Schools
  • Tribal oil boom versus Joe Biden's climate push
  • Little Shell Tribe announces program to provide healthy food for tribal members
  • Native Hawaiian health care systems, Papa Ola Lōkahi set to receive $18 million
  • An apology to federal employees and tribal nations
  • Not one without the other: Reparations for African-Americans and Indigenous peoples