United South and Eastern Tribes preparing for Impact Week

Friday, February 10, 2012  

The United South and Eastern Tribes are on their way to the nation's capitol for their 2012 Impact Week meeting.

Tribal leaders from Maine to Florida are due to hear from Obama administration officials and members of Congress at the meeting, which takes place in suburban Washington, D.C. Topics on the agenda include Native youth, economic development, federal government contracting and taxation.

Among those scheduled to speak are former Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-North Dakota); Charles Galbraith of the White House, Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska) and Rep. Jay Inslee (D-Washington), who is running for governor of Washington.

However, Assistant Secretary Larry Echo Hawk, the head of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, doesn't appear on the agenda, although his schedule might change early next week, a spokesperson said. The director of the BIA's Eastern Region also doesn't appear on the agenda.