Past News Items

(CHICHILTAH, N.M.) – With the click of a mouse by Interior Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Neal A. McCaleb, the Chichiltah/Jones Ranch Community School, a Bureau of Indian Affairs facility located in Chichiltah, N.M., today officially opened its portal to the Internet. His action also successfully completed the BIA’s four-year effort to bring all of its schools online.

Indian forest land owners would for the first time have a right of appeal from Indian Bureau decisions on their timber sale contracts under a proposed revision of Federal Regulations announced today by the Department of the Interior.

The proposal include many changes. They would permit any legally interested party to appeal on sale contracts to the Secretary of the Interior. The existing regulations do not specify such an appeal procedure.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs said the revisions also include these five other major changes:

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – President Bush has proposed a $2.2 billion budget for the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Fiscal Year 2002 that includes an increase of $65.9 million over the FY2001 appropriation. The increase will strengthen the commitment to replace, maintain and operate Indian schools, reform trust management, and ensure public safety in Indian Country. In addition, the request calls for increases in spending on Indian water and land claims settlements.

Award of a $36,309 contract for construction of a new water system to serve the Indian school on the Papago Reservation at Chuichu, Arizona, was announced today by the Department of the Interior.

Chuichu School has an enrollment of 60 pupils, and the present water system includes a small pond and pump with a 3,500-gallon elevated tank. The new system to be installed under the contract will include a drilled well, pump house, new pump, water distribution system, and a 15,000-gallon elevated storage tank.

Twenty-eight Bureau of Indian Affairs schools in four states will officially become on-ramps to the information superhighway this Saturday, May 16, 1998. Access Native America Net Day will officially move Indian schools in Arizona, New Mexico, South Dakota, and Mississippi on-line and provide the students of these schools with access to the Internet through the Department of the Interior's network.

The Indian Bureau’s program for stimulating the growth of industry and industrial jobs in the vicinity of Indian reservations in line with over-all Interior Department objectives will be considerably broadened in scope during the fiscal year 1959, Commissioner Glenn L. Emmons announced today.

Ada E. Deer, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs announced that the United States Supreme Court granted the federal government's petition for writ of certiorari on October 15, 1996 (95-1956) to review a decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. The Eighth Circuit's decision entered on November 7, 1995 (69 F. 3d 878) concluded that Section 5 of the Indian Reorganization Act is an unconstitutional delegation of legislative power.

Award of a $304,785.00 contract for construction work that will nearly triple the capacity of Indian school facilities at Brad Springs, New Mexico, on the Navajo Reservation, was announced today by the Department of the Interior.

The project, which will enlarge the capacity of the Brad Springs day school from 32 to 90 pupils, will involve the construction of a new three-classroom building, a storage and maintenance building, and other related facilities.

Ada E. Deer, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs expresses her approval that the United States Supreme Court decided Monday, May 13, 1996 not to hear the Katie John case which involves subsistence fishing rights in Alaska.

"This is a great victory for American Indians and Alaska Natives," said Ms. Deer. "Many of our people still depend on subsistence fishing and hunting as a means to provide food for their families. Subsistence living is a culturally based practice and I view it as a fundamental, aboriginal right."

Award of a $291,950 contract for construction of additional school facilities at South Segment School near Holliday, North Dakota, was announced today by the Department of the Interior.

Chase Construction Company of Minot, North Dakota was the successful bidder for the contract. Five higher bids, ranging from $295,900 to $331,325, ware received.

South Segment School, operated by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, has a present enrollment of 62 day pupils. When completed the new structure will provide modern school facilities for a total of 120 pupils.