Past News Items

(LOS ANGELES) - Interior Secretary Gale Norton today commended federal and private land managers for the conservation partnerships they have forged with communities and urged them to find new ways to connect citizen stewards with landscapes and habitat.

Speaking to the opening session of Joint Ventures: Partners in Stewardship Conference, Norton said for conservation to succeed in the 21 st century, "we must involve the people who live on, work on and love the land."

(DENVER) - Interior's Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Aurene Martin announced today that Secretary Gale A. Norton approved $1,088,000 in federal Save America's Treasures grants to help protect and preserve the nation's American Indian cultural heritage. Martin made the announcement at a meeting today at a national Indian education summit in Denver, Colo. The meeting, "Learn Today, Lead Tomorrow: Accountability for Results," is sponsored by the Bureau of Indian Affairs Office of Indian Education Programs.

Extensive investigations by the Bureau of Indian ·Affairs (BIA) have exonerated Kenneth Whitehorn, former BIA agency superintendent for education on the Tohono O'odham reservation, of allegations he had prior knowledge that an employee he hired had been involved in a child abuse case in Arizona.

WASHINGTON – Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Aurene M. Martin today announced she has issued a Notice of Final Determination to decline to acknowledge as an Indian tribe a group known as the Snohomish Tribe of Indians located in and around Edmonds, Wash. The Snohomish petitioning group did not demonstrate that it met all seven mandatory criteria for Federal acknowledgment as an Indian tribe under 25 CFR Part 83, Procedures for Establishing that an American Indian Group Exists as an Indian Tribe.

(WASHINGTON) - Secretary Norton today praised the Senate's confirmation of David Anderson, a nationally recognized entrepreneur and American Indian leader, as Interior's Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs.

"Dave Anderson's inspiring vision, proven management expertise and compassion for Indian issues will help us improve our ability to support tribal governments," Secretary Norton said in commending the Senate's action. "Dave's innovative leadership and dedication to constant improvement will serve him well as assistant secretary for Indian Affairs."

WASHINGTON – Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Aurene M. Martin today announced that she has affirmed the results of the October 21, 2003 recall election and November 5, 2003 special election held by the Sac and Fox Tribe of the Mississippi in Iowa, a federally recognized tribe. The action ended a long-standing internal dispute over the tribe’s leadership, which led to the closing of the tribe’s casino and brought economic and political uncertainty to tribal members.

Washington – James E. Cason, Associate Deputy Secretary announced a series of consultation meetings to be held January 9-19, 2005 throughout Indian country. In accordance with Title V, Section 504 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and Executive Order 13175, the DOI, Office of Indian Energy and Economic Development seeks to consult on the development of proposed regulations to govern Tribal Energy Resource Agreements.

WASHINGTON – Special Agents Craig Janis and Mario Redlegs of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Office of Law Enforcement Services (OLES) were recognized today by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) for their efforts that helped lead to the eradication of a major marijuana cultivation site last year on the Yakama Nation Indian Reservation in Washington State.

Washington – Associate Deputy Secretary James E. Cason today announced that the Office of Indian Energy and Economic Development (IEED), in the Office of the Assistant Secretary Indian Affairs is a sponsor of the 20th Annual National Reservation Economic Summit & American Indian Business Trade Fair better known as RES 2006. The four day event is hosted by the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development (NCAIED), and will be held on February 6-9, 2006 at Las Vegas, Nevada.

WASHINGTON -- Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton today paid tribute to the courageous men and women from the Department of the Interior who participated in the Gulf Coast Hurricane Relief effort last year. One hundred and twenty men and women representing thirteen departments and bureaus were chosen to represent the more than six thousand DOI employees who worked tirelessly to bring relief to the devastated citizens of the Gulf Coast Region.