OPA

Washington, D.C. – The Navajo Nation and Cherokee Nation are eligible to conduct gaming activities on newly acquired trust lands under decisions approved by the Department of the Interior today.

Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk announced the approval of the acquisition of 405 acres of land in trust for the Navajo Nation in Coconino County, Arizona. The newly-acquired lands are contiguous to the boundaries of the Navajo Nation’s existing reservation, which is the largest Indian reservation in the United States. The Department was required to acquire the parcels in trust under two laws enacted by Congress – the Navajo-Hopi Settlement Act of 1974 and the Hopi Indian Relocation Amendments Act of 1980.

Echo Hawk also announced the approval of the acquisition of 17 acres of land into trust for the Cherokee Nation in Cherokee County, Oklahoma. This parcel is located within the Cherokee Nation’s former reservation in Oklahoma.

“We know that these projects represent an important economic development opportunity for the Navajo and Cherokee Nations, and will generate more than a thousand construction and permanent jobs in a time of great need,” Echo Hawk said. “We are committed to processing Indian gaming applications in a transparent manner, consistent with the law.”

The Department also determined the Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma does not qualify for gaming under one of the equal footing exceptions to the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) for property located in Oklahoma City, Okla.

The Department also took action on four additional applications related to tribal gaming. Gaming applications for the Greenville Rancheria of Maidu Indians of California and the San Juan Southern Paiute Tribe of Arizona were returned to the respective tribes because they had not provided information required by law to allow the Department to proceed with its review.

Assistant Secretary Echo Hawk approved the acquisition of land into trust for two tribes in Washington - the Puyallup Indian Tribe and the Suquamish Indian Tribe. These lands will be used for purposes related to the respective tribes’ existing gaming facilities, and neither tribe sought approval of gaming activities to be conducted on these newly acquired lands.

Both the Navajo Nation and Cherokee Nation intend to conduct Class III gaming on the newly acquired lands, pursuant to IGRA. IGRA requires the Tribes to enter into tribal-state gaming compacts authorizing Class III gaming on these respective sites, prior to conducting Class III gaming activities.

The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act prohibits Indian gaming on lands acquired in trust after its enactment in 1988, unless one of three explicitly crafted exceptions applies. The first, known as the “reservation exception,” allows tribes to conduct gaming on new lands if they are contiguous to an Indian reservation that existed in 1988, or if they are within the Tribe’s former reservation in Oklahoma. The two applications approved today meet these criteria.

“We worked very closely with our attorneys in the Office of the Solicitor on the Navajo and Cherokee applications, and determined that they clearly satisfied the law,” Echo Hawk said. “We will continue our work to process other pending applications.”

The second exception, known as the “equal footing exception,” was intended to ensure that a number of tribes had an equal opportunity to pursue Indian gaming on their own lands as those tribes that had lands eligible for gaming in 1988.

Officials from the Department’s Office of Indian Gaming are working to complete a consultation process with tribal leaders on developing the Department’s policy for implementing the third category of exceptions under IGRA: the so-called “off-reservation” exception. A June 18, 2010 memorandum from Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar to Assistant Secretary Echo Hawk directed the Department to engage Indian tribes to develop principled and transparent criteria to implement this policy. The tribal consultation process will conclude on December 18, 2010. For more information see: http://www.indianaffairs.gov/WhoWeAre/AS-IA/OIG/index.htm

The Indian Health Service and the Department of the Interior will hold ten tribal listening sessions across Indian Country to seek input on how the agencies can most effectively work within American Indian and Alaska Native communities to prevent suicide. American Indians and Alaska Natives have a suicide rate 72 percent higher than the general U.S. population.

“We are very concerned by the ongoing tragedy of suicide in Indian Country,” said IHS Director Yvette Roubideaux, M.D., M.P.H. “We know the consequences of suicide are devastating to our families and tribal communities.”

“We have heard the pleas of tribal leaders for coordinated prevention and intervention efforts to address these tragic events, particularly among our youth,” said DOI Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk.

“These listening sessions will help us better support tribal communities working to enhance the way young people feel connected to community and family and strengthening their ability to accept the challenges and gifts that life has to offer,” said SAMHSA Administrator Pamela S. Hyde.

The tribal listening sessions (see list below) are being held in conjunction with a national comprehensive suicide prevention conference planned for early next year. The conference will provide an opportunity for the Department of the Interior, Department of Health and Human Services, and tribal leaders to develop strategies and best practices for suicide prevention and intervention in Indian Country. The listening sessions will help the agencies gather first-hand information on suicide prevention needs, concerns, programs, and practices from the residents of American Indian and Alaska Native communities. This input will shape the agenda and goals for the conference.

Tribal collaboration is a vital part of efforts to reduce health disparities and raise the health status of American Indian and Alaska Native people. Listening sessions are an important part of the open and continuous dialogue that promotes and strengthens tribal-federal partnerships.

Suicide Prevention Listening Sessions – to be held at 1 - 5 pm local time

Navajo Region - November 15, 2010

Navajo Nation Museum Highway 264 and Loop Road Window Rock, AZ 86515

Midwest Region - November 19, 2010

Mystic Lake Casino Hotel Wabasha Meeting Room 2400 Mystic Lake Blvd. Prior Lake, MN 55372

Rocky Mountain Region - November 23, 2010

Hampton Inn and Suites 3550 Ember Lane Billings, MT 59102

Alaska Region November 30, 2010

Egan Convention Center 555 West 5th Avenue Anchorage, Alaska 99501

Great Plains Region December 2, 2010

Best Western Ramkota Hotel & Convention Center 2111 N. LaCrosse Street Rapid City, SD 57701

Southern Plains/Eastern Oklahoma Regions - December 13, 2010

Embassy Suites – Meridian Eastern Oklahoma 1815 South Meridian Oklahoma City, OK 73108

Pacific Region December 21, 2010

Federal Building -- Cottage Conference Room 2800 Cottage Way Sacramento, CA 95825

Southwest Region January 10, 2011

National Indian Programs Training Center (NIPTC) 1011 Indian School Road, NW Albuquerque, NM 87104

Northwest Region January 12, 2011

Bureau of Indian Affairs 911 Federal Building – Auditorium 911 NE 11th Avenue Portland, OR 97232

Eastern Region February 10, 2011

USET Conference Marriott Crystal Gateway 1700 Jefferson Davis Highway Arlington, VA 22202

NOTICE TO EDITORS: For additional information on this subject, please contact the IHS public affairs office at 301-443-3593. Additional information about the IHS is available on the IHS website at http://www.ihs.gov

ALBUQUERQUE, NM – In a speech this morning to the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar described the progress being made in a comprehensive agenda to reform, restructure and rebuild federal relations with Indian Country.

Secretary Salazar outlined a broad range of efforts underway to restore integrity in U.S. government relations with American Indian and Alaska Native leaders, fulfill trust responsibilities to tribal members, and to work cooperatively to build stronger economies and safer tribal communities.

“The President firmly believes that consultation with tribal nations must focus on engagement and results – solutions that help build safer, stronger, healthier, and more prosperous Indian communities,” Salazar told members of NCAI. “Our role, then, is to help you fulfill your vision for your nations; to help your communities achieve their promise; to help your cultures flourish.”

In his remarks, Secretary Salazar also announced that the Administration today issued a letter of support for the White Mountain Apache Tribe water settlement in Arizona. The centerpiece of the settlement is the construction of the White Mountain Apache Tribe Rural water system which will greatly expand the current water delivery system to meet the very critical needs of the reservation.

The White Mountain Apache Tribe water settlement is the fourth Indian water rights negotiated settlement to be fully supported by the Obama Administration and reflects the commitment of the Administration to resolving long-standing disputes over water use in the West. With this support letter, the Obama Administration has supported nearly $1 billion of Indian water settlements that will secure for a number of tribes and their members not just a permanent water supply but also economic security and the resolution of long-standing conflicts with neighboring communities.

“The message from this Administration is clear,” said Salazar. “We want to settle Indian water rights disputes and we will support good Indian water settlements that result from negotiations with all stakeholders including the Federal government, and that come with a reasonable federal price tag and good cost share contributions from states and other benefiting parties.

The Secretary’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, are below.

Remarks to the National Congress of American Indians
Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar
Albuquerque, NM
Monday, November 15, 2010

Good morning.

Thank you, Larry Echo Hawk, for that kind introduction. And thank you for your work on behalf of the Department of the Interior as Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs.

I am proud to have you and your team here with me today. Del Laverdure, Paul Tsosie, Wizi Garriott, Mike Black, Sequoyah Simermeyer and Keith Moore are making a difference for Indian country every day.

It is an honor to be here with you this morning and to address the National Congress of American Indians. I am grateful for the important work you do to serve the broad interests of tribal governments and to protect tribal sovereignty.

You are in good hands with Jefferson Keel at the helm. President Keel has done an excellent job in his first year in office serving as the NCAI President as well as the Lieutenant Governor of the Chickasaw Nation. Thank you, President Keel, for your leadership.

It has been almost two years since President Obama took office and a year since the President brought together more than 400 representatives of federally recognized tribes for the historic White House Tribal Nations’ Conference.

At that Conference, President Obama pledged that we would work together, hand in hand, to ensure that American Indians, the First Americans, get the opportunities they deserve.

President Obama directed me, along with the other cabinet secretaries, to empower tribal governments to bring real and lasting change on issues from health care to education to law enforcement.

And from the beginning, it has been one of my top priorities as Secretary of the Interior to partner with Native Americans to address these challenges.

In close consultation with leaders here and across Indian Country since then, we have developed a comprehensive agenda to reform, restructure and rebuild federal relations with Indian Country.

We have pledged to restore integrity in government relations with American Indian and Alaska Native leaders, to fulfill our trust responsibilities to tribal members and to work cooperatively to build stronger economies and safer tribal communities.

Like me, President Obama respects the inherent sovereignty of Indian nations and believes the federal government must honor its commitments to your communities. This Administration is working to uphold not just a government-to-government relationship with tribes, but a nation-to-nation relationship.

The President firmly believes that consultation with tribal nations must focus on engagement and results – solutions that help build safer, stronger, healthier, and more prosperous Indian communities. Our role, then, is to help you fulfill your vision for your nations; to help your communities achieve their promise; to help your cultures flourish.

American Indians and Alaska Natives must have a strong voice in shaping the policies that affect their communities. We are lucky to have Larry Echo Hawk serving as a strong advocate in his role as Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs. And I am proud that Hilary Tompkins is Solicitor General for the Department of the Interior. In the White House, Kimberly Teehee and Jodi Gillette are important voices and we all work closely together.

With their help, and with the help of many people in this room, I believe we have begun to build a comprehensive strategy for empowerment – a strategy that is helping Indian nations build a future of their choosing.

I’d like to share some thoughts on how we are doing that.

First, the President’s national economic recovery plan laid the foundation for our agenda. Thanks to the $500 million investment in the Bureau of Indian Affairs through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, thousands of men and women are now at work fixing and building roads, repairing and constructing schools, and improving security at detention centers. Another $40 million was provided for housing improvements and workforce training.

In addition, the funding for Indian Affairs in the President’s budget request has dramatically increased from years past. With the 2009 and 2010 budgets, President Obama has increased funding for critical Indian programs at the Interior Department by 14 percent.

This includes approximately $190 million over two years in Bureau of Indian Affairs loans to spur Indian economies where we know unemployment far exceeds the national average.

In these two budgets, there was an increase of $85 million or 35 percent in the Public Safety and Justice programs to put more law enforcement officers in Indian communities, improve training and equipment, fund tribal courts, and staff detention centers.

For education programs, these two budgets added $110 million, an increase of 16 percent for K12 operations, tribal colleges, and scholarships. And in 2010 we began to forward fund tribal colleges, which will improve their ability to operate.

Another major initiative where we are seeing progress is in law enforcement.

We know that safer Indian communities mean stronger Indian communities. But for too long, the government has neglected law enforcement needs on tribal lands, where residents suffer violent crime at far greater rates than other Americans.

This is unacceptable.

It was a significant step in the right direction when President Obama signed into law the Tribal Law and Order Act. The Act contains important measures and resources to strengthen law enforcement that will help combat violence and lawlessness and ensure that more crimes are prosecuted on reservations.

The law authorizes the appointment of Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys to prosecute crimes in tribal communities in federal court; provides tribal courts tougher sentencing powers; and allows some tribal police officers to enforce federal laws on Indian lands.

The Act also increases Bureau of Indian Affairs’ recruitment and retention efforts for the tough and honorable jobs of tribal law officers. We will work closely with the Department of Justice to fully implement this law.

At Interior, I have established a senior-level working group to tackle the challenges of law enforcement needs on tribal lands. This year we launched a targeted, intense community policing pilot program on four reservations where we are working to reduce violent crime by more than 5 percent by year-end 2011.

All of Interior’s law enforcement bureaus pitched in to help on this important priority. We are seeing good preliminary results and hope to expand the program in the near future.

The group also spearheaded the development of a fully revamped recruiting process for Bureau of Indian Affairs law officers. As a result, we increased by 500 percent - 500 percent - the number of applicants for those positions, and the hiring of more than 70 new officers in the first half of 2010. That is the largest hiring increase in BIA’s history.

Violent crime in Indian Country must be aggressively confronted and we will continue to work with Tribes and the Department of Justice to address this pressing issue.

Equally important to the fabric of healthy communities is education. Improving Indian education programs is a special priority for me. I grew up in a small town in Colorado without electricity or running water. My parents were not wealthy people but they generously shared with me and my seven siblings a love of learning. My parents taught us that education was the key to our future, and, as a result, all eight of their children are first generation college graduates.

I am proud to announce that, with Recovery Act funding and regular appropriations, this year Indian Affairs completed 14 major school projects, including six replacement schools, five replacement facilities, and three facilities improvement projects. The new and improved facilities will better serve nearly 3,800 Indian students in six states.

This past year I have met twice with Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, and national experts in Indian education to begin developing a national Indian education reform agenda. We are also working to develop the Indian portion of the Administration’s blueprint for reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.

We look forward to working with the next Congress to pass this important legislation, and we will continue to ensure that Indian country’s interests are represented.

I am proud that, for the first time in many years, we have stable leadership at the Bureau of Indian Education in Director Keith Moore. He and his staff are hard at work: reforming BIE management practices to ensure quality of delivery of services to Indian country’s children; taking steps to run the 59 BIE schools as a system; developing strategies to aid tribal nations in improving their own BIE-funded contract and grant schools; and bringing stability to our two tribal colleges, Haskell and SIPI.

We are also taking steps to bring Native languages and cultures back into the Indian education framework. One measure that is already under way is the expansion of the Family and Child Education program across 10 states. FACE is a family literacy program serving families and children from prenatal to 5 years of age by integrating the language and culture of the community it serves.

We are also working across the Federal Family with Health and Human Services, USDA, and the First Lady’s office to address the high levels of childhood obesity and diabetes among Native Youth because we know that healthy children lead to healthy communities.

Another issue which remains at the forefront of all of our minds is the settlement of the long-running Cobell litigation. I believe that last December’s settlement regarding the U.S. trust obligations is both fair and forward-looking. Most importantly, it will enable us to turn the page, help to right a historic wrong, and advance the on-going cause of trust reform.

With the approval of the settlement, a fund totaling $1.5 billion will be distributed to class members to compensate them for their historical accounting claims and to resolve potential claims that prior U.S. officials mismanaged the administration of trust assets.

The settlement also establishes a $1.9 billion fund for the voluntary buy-back and consolidation of fractionated land interests. The land consolidation program will provide individual Indians with an opportunity to obtain cash payments for divided land interests and free up the land for the benefit of tribal communities.

To provide owners with additional incentive to sell their fractionated interests, the settlement authorizes the Interior Department to set aside up to 5 percent of the value of the interests into a college and vocational school scholarship fund, as much as $60 million dollars, for American Indian students.

The injection of several billion dollars into Indian country through the Cobell settlement has the potential to profoundly change – and improve – the administration of trusts and the unlocking of fractionated lands that currently are legally frozen out of effective use by tribal communities. I am assuring you – today – that as long as I am the Secretary of the Department of the Interior, we will implement the $2 billion dollar land consolidation program through close and meaningful government-to-government consultation with the tribes. We want to – and need to – work closely with individual Indian landowners and affected tribes, to prioritize those heavily fractionated lands that should be targeted for acquisition by tribal governments.

Also, it is important to remember that once Congress approves the Cobell settlement, the Secretarial Order that I signed last year, setting up a Secretarial Commission on Indian Trust Administration and Reform will become effective. I am eager to establish this Commission because Cobell is only the start of true trust reform. The new Commission, which I will set up in consultation with you, will undertake a forward-looking, comprehensive evaluation of how Interior manages and administers our trust responsibilities. We need to be more transparent and customer-friendly. The status quo is not acceptable.

Before we move off the subject of our trust responsibilities, I want to recognize Interior’s Solicitor, Hilary Tompkins – the first American Indian to serve as the Department’s top lawyer – for her leadership in these activities. Hilary worked closely with Deputy Secretary David Hayes to break through the 13 years of gridlock and reach the historic settlement. She works tirelessly, every day, on your behalf.

Also, and particularly since I am in New Mexico, I want to thank Senator Jeff Bingaman for his tireless support in pushing for Congressional approval of the $3.4 billion dollar Cobell settlement. Jeff has been a real champion for this cause.

Restoring Indian Country’s land base is another way in which we are working to provide the resources needed for the sustained economic development of tribal communities. Working with Congress, we have made substantial progress in meeting our obligations to acquire land into trust for tribes.

Some months ago I called in Mike Black and his Regional Directors and told them to fix the logjam on trust land applications – and they are delivering for you.

In 2007 and 2008, the Interior Department acquired only 15,000 acres in trust on behalf of tribes. Today, I am proud to report that in 2009 and the first three quarters of 2010, the department has acquired more than 34,000 acres of land in trust on behalf of tribal nations – a 225 percent increase from the last administration’s record.

Once land is in trust, Indian country deserves responsive and responsible business practices from Interior that will help to manage the land and comply with the obligations of a trustee. Therefore we are working to overhaul the Department’s regulations governing leasing on Indian lands. The new regulations will streamline the process and restore greater tribal control over land use.

These changes will mark the most substantial changes to leasing on tribal lands in 50 years.

We are also working with many of you to push forward renewable energy development on tribal lands. We know that Tribal lands hold a great capacity for solar, wind and geothermal projects, and we are committed to helping you unlock that potential.

I understand that land and water are among the most sacred of interests to Indian Country. The Obama Administration has re-energized the Federal Government’s commitment to addressing the water needs of Native American communities through Indian water rights settlements.

The President signed into law two settlements in March 2009 and, in sharp contrast to the previous administration’s opposition to numerous Indian water settlement bills, we have supported several pending settlement bills. The Administration’s 2011 budget requests funding that not only supports implementing approved settlements, but also includes increases to the Bureau of Indian Affairs and Bureau of Reclamation programs that support tribal and Departmental participation in pending negotiations.

Most recently, the Administration has engaged in successful negotiations that have led to letters of Administration support for three Indian water settlement bills for the Crow Tribe, Taos Pueblo, and the Aamodt case involving the Pueblos of Pojoaque, Tesuque, San Ildefonso, and Nambe.

And, I’m pleased to announce today that we are now issuing a fourth letter of support for the White Mountain Apache Tribe water settlement in Arizona.

The centerpiece of this settlement is the construction of the White Mountain Apache Tribe Rural water system which will greatly expand the current water delivery system to meet the very critical needs of the reservation.

This is great news for the White Mountain Apache Tribe community.

With this fourth letter of support, the Administration has, in the past few months, supported nearly $1 billion of Indian water projects that will secure not only a reliable water supply, but also economic security.

The message from this Administration is clear: We want to settle Indian water rights disputes and we will support good Indian water settlements that result from negotiations with all stakeholders including the Federal government, and that come with a reasonable federal price tag and good cost share contributions from states and other benefiting parties.

In closing, I’d like to describe our progress in an area that underlies everything we are doing and attempting to do in collaboration with tribal leaders. And that is the quality of the federal consultation process.

From the outset, my goal has been to establish a comprehensive, department-wide tribal consultation policy and process upon which tribes can rely.

On Nov. 5, 2009 at the White House Tribal Nations’ Conference, President Obama issued his executive memorandum supporting tribal consultation as “a critical ingredient of a sound and productive Federal-tribal relationship” and called on all federal agencies to develop “plans of action” to establish tribal consultation policy.

For the Department, holding tribal consultation meetings was the key to developing these important plans. We held meetings in seven cities with 300 tribal representatives and more than 250 federal officials.

With the input gained in these meetings, I established a Tribal Consultation Team to draft a new, comprehensive consultation policy. Soon, the Consultation Team will submit the draft policy to the tribes and tribal organizations for review and comment, and I expect to put our new policy in place this spring.

Everyone in my Department will be directed to comply with the consultation policy. The new policy will help tribal leaders be more engaged in policy development and will result in a process that is more transparent, comprehensive and effective.

There is no doubt that much work remains to be done – by all of us. Native Americans must be full partners in our nation’s economy, thrive in safe communities, and have equal access to quality education, healthcare and benefits. We will continue to work toward this goal as we fulfill our federal trust responsibility to support tribal communities and respect tribal sovereignty.

Thank you.

WASHINGTON - On Thursday, December 16, 2010, President Obama will host the White House Tribal Nations Conference. As part of President Obama's ongoing outreach to the American people, this conference will provide leaders from the 565 federally recognized tribes the opportunity to interact directly with the President and representatives from the highest levels of his Administration. Each federally recognized tribe will be invited to send one representative to the conference. This will be the second White House Tribal Nations Conference for the Obama Administration, and continues to build upon the President's commitment to strengthen the nation to nation relationship with Indian Country.

WASHINGTON – Acting Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs George T. Skibine has issued a proposed finding not to acknowledge the petitioner known as the Tolowa Nation (TN), Petitioner #85, located in Fort Dick, Calif., as an Indian tribe under the regulations governing the federal acknowledgment process at 25 CFR Part 83. The evidence in the record is insufficient to demonstrate that Petitioner #85 meets the criterion 83.7(b), one of the seven mandatory criteria of the regulations for a determination that the petitioning group is an Indian tribe. In accordance with the regulations, the failure to meet all seven criteria requires a determination that the petitioning group is not an Indian tribe within the meaning of federal law. Therefore, the Interior Department proposes to decline to acknowledge Petitioner #85 as an Indian tribe.

The petitioner has approximately 88 members. The evidence shows the petitioner is a voluntary association formed in 1982 of individuals who claim descent from the Tolowa, an Athabascan speaking group of Indians residing in Del Norte County, Calif.

The petitioner maintains that its membership and its ancestors existed continuously as a tribe of Indians known as “Tolowa” from first sustained contact in 1853 to 2010. The petitioner also maintains that they are descended from those Indians who were not enrolled at the Smith River Rancheria and the Elk Valley Rancheria, established in 1906 and 1908, respectively. To meet criterion 83.7(b), the petitioner must demonstrate that a predominant portion of its group comprises a distinct community and has existed as a community from historical times until the present.

The Indian Affairs Office of Federal Acknowledgment reviewed Petitioner #85’s claims and documentation, and examined federal census records from 1860 to 1930, Bureau of Indian Affairs enrollment records for the Elk Valley and Smith River rancherias from 1918 to 1937, BIA enrollments conducted by Special Field Agent Henry Roe Cloud in 1939, BIA correspondence, recollections gathered from interviews during its site visit in 2010, and meeting minutes from the petitioner and from the Del Norte Indian Welfare Association (DNIWA), claimed by the petitioner as its precursor known to have existed from 1941 to 1968.

The Department will publish a notice of the proposed finding in the Federal Register. The regulations provide that the petitioner or any interested party will have 180 days after the publication of the notice to submit comments to rebut or support the proposed finding. After the comment period, the petitioner will have an additional 60 days to respond to comments from third parties for additional consideration by the Department.

The Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs has responsibility for carrying out the Secretary of the Interior’s trust responsibilities to the nation’s 565 federally recognized American Indian and Alaska Native tribes and individual Indian trust beneficiaries, as well as supporting tribal self-determination. In addition to the BIA and the Bureau of Indian Education, the Assistant Secretary also oversees the OFA, which administers the federal acknowledgment process.

The proposed finding and Federal Register notice will be posted on the Indian Affairs website at http://www.indianaffairs.gov/WhoWeAre/AS-IA/OFA/RecentCases/index.htm.

Washington, D.C. - Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today lauded Senate approval of legislation to authorize implementation of the Cobell Settlement, a $3.4 billion agreement that will resolve the long-running and highly contentious class action lawsuit regarding the U.S. government's trust management and accounting of individual American Indian trust accounts.

Salazar also commended the Senate for approving four major water rights settlements – totaling more than $1 billion - for American Indian tribes that will help deliver clean drinking water to Indian communities and provide certainty to water users across the West. The settlements were included in an omnibus package that cleared the Senate today.

“With the Senate’s approval of the Cobell settlement and the four Indian water rights settlements, this is a day that will be etched in our memories and our history books,” said Secretary Salazar. “The Cobell settlement honorably and responsibly addresses long-standing injustices and is a major step forward in President Obama’s agenda of reconciliation and empowerment for Indian nations. I am also deeply proud of the passage of the four water rights settlements that will deliver clean drinking water to Indian communities, end decades of controversy and contention among neighboring communities, and provide certainty to water users across the West. The progress we have made over the last two years in reaching critical Indian country settlements is unprecedented and I am hopeful that the House will soon act to pass these settlements as well.”

“The water settlements that passed today are nothing short of historic for Indian nations,” said Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk. “The parties to these settlements are to be commended for their willingness to work together rather than stay locked in an endless cycle of litigation. These settlements will meet the needs of tribes as well as neighboring communities through provisions for sharing shortages and investing in critical infrastructure needs.”

Background on the Cobell Settlement

Over the past 14 years, the class action litigation, filed by Elouise Cobell in 1996, included hundreds of motions, seven full trials, 22 motions and dozens of rulings and appeals. Under the negotiated agreement announced on Dec. 8, 2009, litigation would end regarding the federal government’s performance of an historical accounting for trust accounts maintained by the
United States on behalf of more than 300,000 individual Indians. A fund of $1.4 billion would be distributed to class members to compensate them for their historical accounting claims, and to resolve potential claims that prior U.S. officials mismanaged the administration of trust assets.

In addition, to address the continued proliferation of thousands of new trust accounts caused by the "fractionation" of land interests through succeeding generations, the settlement establishes a $2 billion fund for the voluntary buy-back and consolidation of fractionated land interests. The land consolidation program will provide individual American Indians with an opportunity to obtain cash payments for divided land interests and free up the land for the benefit of tribal communities.

Additional Information is available at the following sites:
www.cobellsettlement.com. The Department of the Interior website: www.doi.gov. The Office of the Special Trustee website: www.doi.gov/ost

Background on the Four Indian Water Rights Settlements that Passed Today

Federal law provides that Tribes have a right to water to meet the needs of their reservations. These rights can be quantified through either litigation or settlement. The Obama Administration has re-energized the federal government’s commitment to addressing the water needs of Native American communities through Indian water rights settlements. Following negotiations
involving States, Tribes, and other stakeholders, all four of the settlements approved today were supported in letters sent by the Administration. This level of Administration support for Indian water rights settlements in a single Congress is unprecedented.

The four settlements contained in the legislation approved by Congress today include:

White Mountain Apache Tribe in Arizona: The centerpiece of the settlement is the construction of the White Mountain Apache Tribe rural water system, which will greatly expand the current water delivery system to meet the very critical needs of the reservation.

Crow Tribe in Montana: This settlement will ensure safe drinking water for the reservation as well as provide for the rehabilitation of the Crow Irrigation Project, which is in a dire state of disrepair. The existing drinking water system on the Crow reservation has significant deficiencies in capacity and water quality that have resulted in health problems.

Aamodt in New Mexico: The Aamodt settlement ends one of the longest running water rights cases in the federal court system, with nearly 43 years of litigation yielding little in the way of results. The settlement provides for the construction of a regional water system to serve the Pueblos of Tesuque, Nambe, Pojoaque, and San Ildefonso as well as surrounding communities in northern New Mexico, with a non-federal cost share of 40 percent.

Pueblo of Taos in New Mexico: The Taos settlement solidifies and makes permanent water sharing arrangements between the Pueblo of Taos and neighboring communities. The settlement also protects and restores the Pueblo of Taos’s Buffalo Pasture, a culturally sensitive and sacred wetland.

Following action in the Senate, the House is expected to take up the omnibus package after the Thanksgiving recess. The Department of the Interior would begin implementation of settlements once they are signed into law by the President.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Bureau of Indian Affairs Director Michael S. Black today announced that he has named Amy L. Dutschke as Regional Director of the BIA’s Pacific Regional Office in Sacramento, Calif. Dutschke, an enrolled member of the Ione Band of Miwok Indians in California, had been serving as the Office’s Deputy Regional Director for Trust Services since June of 2000. The Pacific Regional Office oversees four agencies serving 103 federally recognized tribes located within the state of California. Her appointment became effective on October 10, 2010.

“Amy Dutschke’s extensive experience in federal budget, administration and program management, combined with her strong background in federal-tribal relations, makes her a solid addition to my regional management team,” Black said.

“I want to thank BIA Director Mike Black and Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk for their confidence in giving me this opportunity,” Dutschke said. “I am looking forward to working with them and with all of the tribes in the Pacific Region to improve the delivery of BIA services.”

As the Deputy Regional Director, Dutschke was responsible for the day-to-day management of the BIA’s trust programs including real estate services, natural resource management, water rights, range management, land titles and records, probate, fire management, forestry and endangered species. She also represented the Interior Department on the team for the San Luis Rey Water Settlement, an agreement between the federal government and five tribes resolving their water rights issues.

Prior to becoming the Deputy Regional Director, Dutschke had worked in the BIA’s Sacramento Area Office (now the Pacific Regional Office) and at its headquarters in Washington, D.C.

From February 1996 to May 1999 she served as the Area Self-Determination Officer and was the lead negotiator for tribal self-governance compacts region-wide.

In May 1998, Dutschke began a stint as Deputy to the Director of the BIA’s Office of Management and Administration in D.C. As the Deputy Director she was responsible for developing policy and guidance for BIA managers on administrative matters. Following the completion of her assignment, Dutschke returned to the Sacramento Area Office, where she was promoted in May 1999 to Area Administrative Officer.

As the Area Administrative Officer she served as the principal advisor to the Area Director on administrative matters, and was responsible for the oversight and supervision of budgets, contracts, property, finance, records and safety. Her duties included meeting with tribes annually to develop budget requirements for submission to the Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs.

Dutschke began her federal career with the BIA in December 1975 and served in a variety of positions within the Sacramento Area Office including Tribal Operations Clerk, Tribal Operations Specialist and Self-Determination Specialist.

In June 1985, Dutschke was appointed as the Tribal Operations Officer with the Bureau’s Northern California Agency in Redding. In March 1989, she was named the Agency’s permanent Administrative Officer, a position she held until April 1991. In addition to her budget, personnel, procurement and other administrative responsibilities, Dutschke also served as the person responsible for coordinating activities involved with preparing the settlement roll required by the Hoopa-Yurok Settlement Act of 1988 (P.L. 100-580).

From July to December 1990, she also served as the Acting Assistant Area Director for Administration in the Sacramento Area Office, where she was responsible for the day-to-day management of the office’s administrative functions, including oversight of contracts, budgets, property, records, information resources management, self-determination and finance.

In April 1991, Dutschke was named the Sacramento Area Office’s Assistant Area Director for Administration, where, in addition to her other duties and responsibilities, she was an advisor to the Area Director on policy formulation and program development. She held the Assistant Area Director post until February 1996.

Dutschke has received numerous awards and recognition throughout her career including recognition from the California State office of the Bureau of Land Management and the Bureau of Reclamation for her role in the development of a consolidated human resources office.

She also has been recognized for her work in the development and support of the California Indian Forest and Fire Management Council, which serves in an advisory capacity to the Pacific Regional Office on forestry- and fire-related matters.

In addition, Dutschke was instrumental in the development of the California Trust Reform Consortium and the California Fee to Trust Consortium, which are models of the BIA and tribes working cooperatively to identify issues and develop processes to accomplish mutual goals.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The joint Indian Affairs, Indian Health Service (IHS) and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) listening sessions for tribes on suicide prevention that began this month will continue through December and into early February of 2011. The sessions seek input from tribal leaders on how the agencies can effectively work within their communities to prevent suicide, and will lead up to a national conference on the topic early next year.

“American Indians and Alaska Natives have a suicide rate that is 72 percent higher than the general U.S. population,” said Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk. “We need to better understand the causes of suicide and find ways to turn the tide on this terrible tragedy within Indian Country. I want to thank IHS and SAMHSA for working with us in this effort, and to encourage tribal leaders to attend these very important listening sessions.”

A joint letter from Echo Hawk, IHS Director Yvette Roubideaux and SAMHSA Administrator Pamela Hyde was sent in mid-November to tribal leaders announcing the listening sessions and the national conference.

The listening sessions, which are being held in each Indian Affairs region, will help the agencies gather first-hand information on suicide prevention needs, concerns, programs and practices from community members. Input from the sessions will shape the agenda and goals for a national conference on suicide prevention in Indian Country, which will provide an opportunity for the Interior Department, DHHS and tribal leaders to develop strategies and best practices for suicide prevention and intervention in American Indian and Alaska Native tribal communities.

Sessions have already been held in the following locations: Navajo Region, Window Rock, Ariz. (Nov. 15); Midwest Region, Prior Lake, Minn. (Nov. 19) and Rocky Mountain Region, Billings, Mont. (Nov. 23).

Listed below is the schedule of the remaining sessions (all times are local time):

Alaska Region

Date: Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Times: 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Location: Egan Convention Center, 555 West 5th Ave., Anchorage, Alaska 99501

Great Plains Region

Date: Thursday, December 2, 2010

Times: 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Location: Best Western Ramkota Hotel and Convention Center, 2111 N. LaCrosse St., Rapid City, D.C. 57701

Eastern Oklahoma and Southern Plains Regions

Date: Monday, December 13, 2010 Times: 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Location: Embassy Suites – Meridian, 1815 South Meridian, Oklahoma City, Okla. 73108

Pacific Region

Date: Tuesday, December 21, 2010 Times: 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Location: Federal Building, Cottage Conference Rm., 2800 Cottage Way, Sacramento, Calif. 95825

Southwest Region

Date: Monday, January 10, 2011

Times: 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Location: National Indian Programs Training Center (NIPTC), 1011 Indian School Rd., N.W., Albuquerque, N.M. 87104

Northwest Region

Date: Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Times: 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Location: Bureau of Indian Affairs, Northwest Regional Office, 911 Federal Building Auditorium, 911 N.E. 11th Ave., Portland, Ore. 97232

Eastern Region

Date: Thursday, February 10, 2011

Times: 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Location: United South and Eastern Tribes (USET) Conference, Marriott Crystal Gateway, 1700 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, Va. 22202

To view the November 12, 2010, letter to tribal leaders visit the Indian Affairs website at http://www.indianaffairs.gov/WhoWeAre/AS-IA/Consultation/index.htm.

Washington, D.C. - Today, the Departments of Justice, Interior and Agriculture applauded the bipartisan House passage of the Claims Settlement Act. The Act, which recently passed the Senate, will provide long-awaited funding for the agreements reached in the Pigford II lawsuit, brought by African American farmers; the Cobell lawsuit, brought by Native Americans over the management of Indian trust accounts and resources; and four separate water rights suits made by Native American tribes. President Obama has said that he will sign the legislation into law.

“These are truly historic settlements that do not only resolve litigation, but also offer a new relationship between many deserving Americans and the federal agencies that play an important role in their lives,” said Attorney General Eric Holder. “Bringing this litigation to a close has been a priority for this Administration, and today’s vote in Congress is a significant, historic achievement. These cases provide fair deals for the plaintiffs and for the American taxpayers.”

“Congress’ approval of the Cobell settlement and the four Indian water rights settlements is nothing short of historic for Indian nations,” Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar said. “The settlements honorably and responsibly address long-standing injustices and represent a major step forward in President Obama’s agenda to empower tribal governments, fulfill our trust responsibilities to tribal members and help tribal leaders build safer, stronger, healthier and more prosperous communities.”

“President Obama and I made a firm commitment not only to treat all farmers fairly and equally, but to right the wrongs in USDA's past,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “I applaud those who took this historic step to ensure black farmers who faced discrimination by their government finally receive justice. And I commend those who led this fight in the U.S. Congress and I am thankful for their unwavering determination. Today’s vote will help the Department of Agriculture move beyond this sad chapter in history. The bill that passed the Senate and House includes strong protections against waste, fraud, and abuse to ensure integrity of the claims process. In the months and years ahead, we will not stop working to move the Department into a new era as a model employer and premier service provider. We also must continue the good work we started to resolve all remaining administrative claims.”

WASHINGTON – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today praised President Obama’s signing of five major settlements for Indian Country, calling the agreements a milestone in empowerment and reconciliation for the Nation’s First Americans.

The Claims Resolution Act of 2010 signed into law today includes the $3.4 billion Cobell settlement regarding the U.S. government's trust management and accounting of Native American trust accounts and resources; and four water rights agreements, totaling more than $1 billion, that will deliver clean drinking water to tribes in New Mexico, Arizona and Montana and end decades of water allocation controversy among neighboring communities.

"Today the President has taken another giant step toward fulfilling this Administration’s pledge to meet our trust responsibilities, empower tribal governments and help build safer, stronger and more prosperous tribal communities," Secretary Salazar said. "These historic settlements mark a new chapter in our work to strengthen the nation to nation relationship with Indian Country.”

"This Administration’s support for four water rights settlements in a single Congress is unprecedented," said Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk. “The agreements reflect the commitment of a wide range of stakeholders, including states, tribes and local communities, to work together constructively with the Administration rather than stay locked in an endless cycle of litigation. Step by step we are making steady progress in empowering Indian Country."

The Cobell agreement resolves the 14-year, highly contentious class action lawsuit regarding the U.S. government's trust management and accounting of individual Native American trust accounts and resources. The settlement honorably and responsibly addresses long-standing injustices and demonstrates President Obama’s commitment to reconciliation and empowerment for Indian nations.

Under the settlement, $1.5 billion will be distributed to class members in compensation for their historical accounting claims and to resolve potential claims that the United States mismanaged the administration of trust assets. The agreement also establishes a $1.9 billion fund for the voluntary buy-back and consolidation of fractionated land interests to address the continued proliferation of thousands of new trust accounts caused by the division of land interests through succeeding generations.

The land consolidation program will provide individual Indians with an opportunity to consolidate and transfer divided ownership interests to their tribal governments, where they will remain in trust for the benefit of tribal communities. Individual Indians will receive cash payments for these transfers and, as an additional incentive, transfers will trigger government payments into a $60 million dollar Indian scholarship fund.

The Cobell settlement is the beginning of true trust reform, noted Salazar, who is establishing a Secretarial Commission on Indian Trust Administration and Reform in consultation with tribes. This Commission will undertake a forward-looking, comprehensive evaluation of how the Interior Department manages and administers its trust responsibilities. “We need to be more transparent and customer-friendly,” the Secretary said. “The status quo is not acceptable.”

The four Indian water rights settlements contained in the legislation will provide permanent water supplies and offer economic security for the Taos Pueblo and Aamodt case pueblos, including the Pojoaque, Tesuque, San Ildefonso, and Nambe pueblos in New Mexico; as well as the Crow Tribe of Montana and the White Mountain Apache Tribe in Arizona. The agreements will build and improve reservation water systems, rehabilitate irrigation projects, construct a regional multi-pueblo water system, and codify water-sharing arrangements between Indian and neighboring communities.

Additional Information is available at www.cobellsettlement.com. The Department of the Interior website: www.doi.gov. And the Office of the Special Trustee website: www.doi.gov/ost.