Past News Items

Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Kevin Gover has reaffirmed the federal trust relationship between the United States and the King Salmon Tribe and the Shoonaq’ Tribe in Alaska and the Lower Lake Rancheria in California after finding that their government-to-government relationship with the U.S. has never been severed.

The Indian Arts and Crafts Board of the Department of the Interior announced today the first set of four awards which will hereafter be made annually "in recognition of long and outstanding services in the preservation, encouragement and development of the arts and crafts of the American Indians."

The 1958 awards, consisting of certificates of appreciation, are being presented today in Gallup, New Mexico. Recipients, and the categories for which they won, include:

The Quileute Tribe of LaPush, Washington, today became the first federally recognized tribal nation to contract with the Federal Telecommunications Service to receive low rates and reliable service for voice, data, and video transmission service.

Award of two contracts totaling $59,370.47 to complete the storage tank rehabilitation and the range-water supply phases of the Indian Bureau's development program on the Papago Indian Reservation, Arizona, was announced today by the Department of the Interior.

The Devil's Lake Sioux Tribe of North Dakota has officially changed its name to SPIRIT LAKE TRIBE, Ada E. Deer, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs announced today.

According to the elders of the Tribe, who maintain the oral history of the lake for which the Tribe was named, it was always known to the Sioux as "Spirit Lake." Therefore, for members of the Tribe it has always been considered wrong to refer to the lake as "Devil's Lake."

Improved safeguards for the property interests of both individual Indians and tribes were announced today by Commissioner of Indian Affairs Glenn L. Emmons. The Department of the Interior made public his statement on the Indian Bureau's policy governing sales of individually owned Indian lands.

Ada E. Deer, Assistant Secretary - Indian Affairs, today expressed her gratitude to Vice President Al Gore for directly intervening on behalf of Americans Indians in last week's intense negotiations over the Department of the Interior's (DOI) continued funding resolution.

"Vice President Gore once again demonstrated his strong leadership and concern over the devastating effect massive budget cuts would have on American Indian programs," said Ms. Deer. "His efforts will have a decisive and immediate positive impact on the Indian Community," she says.

A $374,915.15 contract for construction of approximately 10 miles of highway on the Navajo Indian Reservation in Arizona has been awarded to Richey Construction Company of St. Johns, Arizona, the Department of the Interior announced today.

The contract involves 1.593 miles from Chinle Junction to Chinle with a 291- foot, 9-span bridge across Nazlini Wash and 8.384 miles from Chinle Junction south toward Ganado with a 33-foot precast concrete beam bridge.

Secretary of the Interior Manuel Lujan today announced the establishment of a special Indian Minerals Service Office devoted exclusively to serving Native Americans in the Four corners area of New Mexico, Utah, Colorado and Arizona.

The new office, located in Farmington, New Mexico, will be operated cooperatively by three Interior Department agencies: the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), the Minerals Management Service (MMS), and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).

Plans for further insuring the secrecy of absentee ballots in Osage Indian Tribal Council elections, and representation proportionate to each voter’s financial interest in the Osage mineral estate, were announced today by the Department of the Interior.

In a letter to the chairman of the House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs, the Department said it has submitted a notice of the proposed changes for publication in the Federal Register.