Past News Items

WASHINGTON -- Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today announced $1,483,632 in grants to assist American Indian tribes, Alaska native villages, and museums with implementation of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). Of this amount, $1,422,515 is going to 19 recipients for consultation/documentation projects, and $61,117 is going to five repatriation projects.

WASHINGTON –– The White House hosted its first ever lacrosse clinic today on the South Lawn featuring some of the nation’s best lacrosse players showcasing the health benefits of the nation’s fastest growing sport to 100 youth as part of the First Lady’s Let’s Move! in Indian Country (LMIC) initiative.

WASHINGTON – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today announced $4.4 million in grants from the Historic Preservation Fund to 117 American Indian tribes to assist with the preservation of important historic and cultural sites and to promote education and interpretation programs.

WASHINGTON – Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk today took action on two tribal gaming applications from tribes in Michigan and New York.

The Assistant Secretary approved a proposed gaming facility in Marquette County, Mich., determining it would be in the best interest of the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community and would not be detrimental to the surrounding community.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Secretary Ken Salazar today announced that the Department of the Interior has moved to the next stage in its plan of actions to develop a department-wide tribal nations consultation policy by constituting a Tribal Consultation Team. The Team will consist of 12 tribal officials and alternates representing federally recognized tribes in each Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) region along with representatives from each DOI Bureau or Office. Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk notified tribal leaders by letter on March 23 and requested nominations.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today announced that the Office of Indian Energy and Economic Development has awarded $3.7 million to tribes that are developing renewable energy resources for their communities. Access to these resources will allow these communities to develop jobs and additional economic opportunities on their reservations, while decreasing their reliance on fossil fuels.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk will give the luncheon keynote address at the U.S. Department of Justice’s National Symposium on Child Protection in Indian Country being held March 9-11, 2010, at the Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort at the Santa Ana Pueblo in New Mexico. He will speak on Tuesday, March 9, from 12:30 to 1:45 p.m. (MST).

WASHINGTON – Bureau of Indian Affairs Director Jerold L. “Jerry” Gidner today announced that he has named Diane K. Rosen as Regional Director of the Bureau of Indian Affairs’ Midwest Regional Office in Ft. Snelling, Minn. Rosen, who has ancestry from two federally recognized tribes in Wisconsin, the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians where she is enrolled and the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians, had been serving as the acting regional director since October 25, 2009.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Secretary Ken Salazar today announced the Interior Department’s plan of actions, as directed by President Obama in his memorandum dated November 5, 2009, to implement Executive Order 13175, Consultation and Coordination With Indian Tribal Governments, which directs Executive Branch departments and agencies to develop policies on tribal consultation and cooperation.

WASHINGTON – Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk today announced that the Deputy Assistant Secretary − Indian Affairs Del Laverdure will be the Featured Speaker in Las Vegas, Nev., at the 24th Annual Reservation Economic Summit (RES 2010). The event runs from February 21-24, 2010. Laverdure will speak to the many accomplishments and projects being undertaken by the Office of the Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs.