Past News Items

WASHINGTON, D.C. – As part of the Obama Administration’s commitment to strengthen the government-to-government relationship with tribal nations and fulfill federal trust obligations, on Friday, September 26, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Kevin Washburn and Acting Assistant Attorney General Sam Hirsch of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division will join Navajo Nation tribal leaders and members to announce a major tribal trust accounting settlement.

Secretary of the Interior Douglas McKay has extended through June 30, 1954, the terms of office of three principal chiefs of Oklahoma Indian tribes - William W. Keeler, Cherokee, Harry J. W. Belvin, Choctaw and Marcy Cully, Seminole. Mr. Keeler’s present term expired on November 30, while the terms of the other two would expire December 31.

Regulations governing Interior Department recognition of assignments by Regional Corporations of future interests in the Alaska Native Fund are being published in the Federal Register, Interior Assistant Secretary Forrest Gerard announced today.

The regulations will implement Section 31 of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, as amended November 15, 1977, which gives the Secretary of the Interior the authority to recognize validly executed assignments made by Regional Corporations of their rights to receive payments from the Alaska Native Fund.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Tuesday, July 30, Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell will sign an historic agreement at the Department of the Interior that will guarantee water rights for the White Mountain Apache Tribe of Arizona and provide water security for the City of Phoenix and other downstream water users. The ceremony will be live-streamed to the public.

Secretary Jewell will be joined by White Mountain Apache Chairman Ronnie Lupe, Former Senator John Kyl, U.S. Representative Ann Kirkpatrick and other federal, tribal and state dignitaries.

Dr. James Raymond Shaw has been assigned from the United States Public Health Service to serve as chief of the Branch of Health of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Secretary of the Interior Douglas McKay announced today.

Dr. Shaw comes to his new assignment from the position of Chief of the Division of Hospitals, Bureau of Medical Services in the PHS. In this position, which he has held for the past year, he has been responsible for the supervision and management of the entire system of PHS hospitals and outpatient clinics.

Interior's Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Forrest J. Gerard said today he was disappointed by the United States Supreme Court ruling March 6 that Indian tribes do not have criminal jurisdiction over non Indians on reservations. He said that he thought the decision would inhibit the development of tribal self-government and the maintenance of criminal justice systems on the reservations.

WASHINGTON – Because of a high level of interest, the Bureau of Indian Affairs Office of Justice Services (OJS) is providing legal training it successfully held last year to new groups of tribal court prosecutors, defenders and judges to improve their trial advocacy skills. The training focuses on cases involving the trafficking of illegal narcotics, domestic violence and sexual assault on adults and children.

Three career employees have been selected by the Bureau of Indian Affairs for management training under the executive development agreement recently negotiated between the Department of the Interior and the Civil Service Commission, Secretary Douglas McKay announced today. They are: Carl J. Cornelius, relocation officer, Consolidated Chippewa Agency, Cass Lake, Minn.; Grover C. Gardner, supervising loan examiner, Anadarko Area Office, Anadarko, Okla.; and Richard D. Butts, superintendent, Red Lake Agency, Red Lake, Minn.

A plan for the distribution of more than $1.5 million awarded to the Yakima Indian Tribe by the Indian Claims Commission is being published in the Federal Register, Commissioner of Indian Affairs Morris Thompson announced today.

The award is additional compensation for land ceded by the Yakima Nation in 1859.

According to the plan, approved by Congress and made effective May 13, 1976, the funds will be distributed on a per capita basis to the enrolled members of the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakima Indian Nation.

WASHINGTON — On Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2013, the Department of the Interior will hold the second of three tribal consultation sessions on its Initial Implementation Plan outlining how Interior will carry out the land consolidation component of the historic Cobell Settlement. The meeting will take place in Rapid City, S.D., with the remaining session to be held Feb. 14 in Seattle, Wash. The first consultation meeting was held in Prior Lake, Minn., on Jan. 31.