House, Senate panels take up recognition bills (June 22, 2006)

Indianz.Com Listening Lounge House Resources Committee markup session, June 21, 2006. • Discussion on H.R.512 - 21:03 - 4.8MB A leading Republican clashed with Democrats on a measure to speed up the federal recognition process at a House Resources Committee...

Alaska Native contracting comes under attack (June 22, 2006)

Alaska Native corporation contracting came under heavy fire at a House Government Reform Committee hearing on Wednesday. Republicans and Democrats on the panel said Alaska Native corporations appear to be abusing special rules that allow them to obtain no-bid contracts...

Teen gets life for murders of three on reserve (June 22, 2006)

A teen from the Montreal Lake Reserve in Saskatchewan was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for the murders of three people. Isaac Ballantyne was 17 at the time of the March 2005 murders. He...

Southern Ute Tribe in dispute over motorycle rally (June 22, 2006)

The Southern Ute Tribe of Colorado says it will sue the organizers of a motorcycle rally if the event is not held on the reservation as planned. The tribe has hosted the Four Corners Rally in the Rockies for 10...

Grand Traverse Band to hold another election (June 22, 2006)

The Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians in Michigan will hold another primary election after results of the first one were tossed by the tribal court. The April 12 primary resulted in six tribal council candidates advancing to...

Senate Indian Affairs Committee agenda (June 22, 2006)

Update: S.660 was removed from the committee's agenda. The Abramoff report was released and can be found here. The Senate Indian Affairs Committee is holding a business meeting today to vote on the Jack Abramoff report and consider other pending...

U-M Indian health center to lose federal funds (June 22, 2006)

The Center of American Indian and Minority Health at the University of Minnesota is losing $1.1 million in federal funds. The center helps recruit youth Indian students into careers in medicine. Federal funds account for 83 percent of its budget....

Petition seeks to outlaw abortion at Pine Ridge (June 22, 2006)

A group called Lakota Native American Outreach is organizing a petition to outlaw abortion on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. The tribal council already voted to ban abortions after President Cecilia Fire Thunder spoke out against the state's...

Virginia tribes press for recognition measure (June 22, 2006)

A bill to extend federal recognition to six Virginia tribes went before the Senate Indian Affairs Committee on Wednesday. H.R.3349 would recognize the Chickahominy Tribe, the Chickahominy Tribe Eastern Division, the Upper Mattaponi Tribe, the Rappahannock Tribe, the Monacan Tribe...

No decision for 'racist' cartoon of Seminole leader (June 22, 2006)

The town council in Davie, Florida, postponed a decision whether to remove a zoning board member for a "racist" cartoon she circulated of Seminole leader Max Osceola. Karen Stenzel-Nowicki of the Planning and Zoning Board sent out a cartoon depicting...

Spirit Lake Nation business raided by armed agents (June 22, 2006)

A business owned by the Spirit Lake Nation in North Dakota was raided by armed federal agents on Wednesday, the Associated Press reports. About 25 to 30 agents went to the offices of Sioux Manufacturing Corp. in Fort Totten, said...

Opinion: How to tell good lobbyists from bad (June 22, 2006)

"Have you noticed how often pundits will refer to various pieces of legislation these days as the "No Lobbyist Left Behind Act"? Transportation, defense, energy, farm, and all manner of authorization and appropriations bills routinely serve as vehicles for organized...

Yakama Nation to break ground on housing project (June 22, 2006)

The Yakama Nation of Washington is breaking ground today on a housing project. The project is located on about 44 acres south of Wapato. The tribe will build 30 duplexes at the site, where about 80 other homes already exist....

Michigan tribe seeks boost in recognition struggle (June 22, 2006)

The Grand River Bands of Ottawa Indians asked the Senate Indian Affairs Committee on Wednesday to speed up its federal recognition petition. The tribe needs federal recognition to obtain $4.4 million, its share of a Congressional settlement fund. The tribe...

Media glossed over White House ties to Abramoff (June 22, 2006)

"You wouldn't know it from the coverage of David H. Safavian's conviction yesterday for lying and obstructing justice, but some of his criminal activity actually took place while he was working at the White House. Safavian managed to avoid being...

Wayne Smith fingers Griles as Abramoff 'point man' (June 22, 2006)

Former Interior Department deputy secretary J. Steven Griles was Jack Abramoff's "point man," former Bureau of Indian Affairs official Wayne Smith told CBS News in an exclusive interview. Smith said Griles regularly advocated for the interests of Abramoff's tribal...

Agua Caliente Band sponsored Congressional trip (June 22, 2006)

The Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, a former client of Jack Abramoff's, paid for Congressional staffers to visit the reservation in southern California, The Riverside Press-Enterprise reports. Staffers from the office of Rep. Tom Cole (R-Oklahoma) went to the...

Committee to release results of Abramoff investigation (June 22, 2006)

The Senate Indian Affairs Committee is releasing a report today on its Jack Abramoff investigation. The staffs of Sen. John McCain (R-Arizona), the committee chairman, and Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-North Dakota), the vice chairman, worked on the report. It summarizes...