Congress sends two more Indian Country bills to Trump

Wednesday, November 28, 2018  

By Acee Agoyo

The Republican-controlled Congress continues to play catch-up when it comes to Indian Country's agenda in the Trump era.

But as the clock winds down on the 115th session, lawmakers are getting additional pro-tribal bills across the finish line. Two more cleared their final hurdles on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, inching President Donald Trump closer to the record set by his Democratic predecessor.

The new measures were approved by the Senate by voice votes, a sign of their non-controversial nature. Both previously passed the House by unanimous consent, so there were no objections in that chamber either.

And both bills correct decisions that were made during more paternalistic eras of federal-tribal relations. H.R.5317, the Repeal of Prohibition on Certain Alcohol Manufacturing on Indian Lands Act, eliminates a nearly 200-year-old ban on distilleries in Indian Country.

“This legislation repeals an outdated law that is not compatible with a modern policy of promoting tribal self-determination,” said Sen. John Hoeven (R-North Dakota), the chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs.

.@SenJohnHoeven Announces Senate Passage Of Two Important Indian Bills; Legislation Is Now Headed to @realDonaldTrump . More: https://t.co/rgGlIZMTfM

— Senate Indian Affairs Committee (@IndianCommittee) November 28, 2018

H.R.1074 also addresses an old issue. The bill repeals a termination era law that authorized the state of Iowa to prosecute citizens of the Meskwaki Nation for crimes on their settlement.

“H.R. 1074 will bring clarity and finality to the jurisdictional confusion affecting the Sac and Fox Indian Reservation,” said Hoeven.

What's Left? Bills awaiting action in House [14] | Bills awaiting action in Senate [7]

Assuming Trump embraces both H.R.5317 and H.R.1074, he will have signed nine stand-alone Indian bills into law since taking office in January 2017. The period coincides with Republican control of the House and the Senate in the 115th Congress.

The record, however, pales in comparison that of former president Barack Obama. By the end of the 114th Congress, he had signed 22 Indian bills into law, according to the senior-most Republican aide on the Hoeven's committee.

My tribal-fairness bill is about to become law: last night, the Senate passed their version of my House-passed bill to repeal an old law preventing tribes from building a distillery on their land. Thrilled we removed this economic hurdle for SW WA tribes: https://t.co/BNcQbpJ4Fx

— JaimeHerreraBeutler (@HerreraBeutler) November 28, 2018

But Republicans in the legislative and executive branches still have time to get close to that goal, GOP staff director Mike Andrews told tribal leaders last month. The final weeks of Congress following a mid-term election are ripe grounds for "horse trading," he said.

"We'll be able to move a lot of these bills that are ready to go," Andrews said at the 75th annual convention of the National Congress of American Indians in Denver, Colorado, last month.

H.R.5317, the Repeal of Prohibition on Certain Alcohol Manufacturing on Indian Lands Act, was among those that were ready to go. The bill moved quickly on Capitol Hill this year thanks to strong support from Republicans and Democrats alike. They pitched it as a boost to economic development efforts in Indian Country.

“There’s no place for laws that discriminate against our Native American communities and limit their economic opportunities,” said Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Washington), a former chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs who sponsored the Senate version of the bill.

“Getting this outdated law off the books is a crucial step to support entrepreneurship, economic development, and tribal self-determination throughout Indian Country," she said.

Today, the U.S. Senate passed bipartisan legislation I introduced with @PattyMurray to repeal an outdated 1834 law that prohibits Native American Tribes from building & operating distilleries on their Tribal lands. It now heads to President Trump to be signed into law.

— Sen. Maria Cantwell (@SenatorCantwell) November 27, 2018

So far, only the Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation have publicly announced plans to open a distillery on their lands. But Chairman Harry Pickernell, Sr. said H.R.5317 will help others in Indian Country, should they choose to do the same.

"Tribes around the country will now have the ability to move forward with projects to build and operate distilleries on their own lands," Pickernell said. "This is a great victory for the Chehalis Tribe and tribes nationwide that seek to expand economic development opportunities on their own land."

The ban on distilleries became law in 1834. That was when officials in Washington were attempting to dictate many aspects of life in Indian Country, even trying to destroy tribal nations during the forced removal period.

“For nearly 200 years this archaic law has been a barrier for tribal nations pursing economic freedom, and today’s vote brings us one step closer to finally sweeping it into the dustbin of history,” said Sen. Patty Murray (D-Washington), who was a co-sponsor of S.3060.

H.R.1074, the jurisdiction bill, addresses another intrusion on tribal sovereignty. In 1948, the federal government subjected the Meskwaki Nation's settlement to state jurisdiction even though the tribe had "largely policed itself," Rep. Doug Blum (R-Iowa) said during consideration of the measure in the House.

"The 1948 Act was passed at a time when the federal government was attempting to shift its responsibility and obligations from tribes to the respective states," Blum, the sponsor of the jurisdiction bill, said last November.

Despite the slight, the tribe has been building and expanding its judicial, public safety and law enforcement programs. And the state of Iowa has already relinquished its jurisdiction on the settlement in anticipation of final action on H.R.1074.

“Both the state of Iowa and the Sac and Fox Tribe of the Mississippi in Iowa agree that this legislation is necessary to ensure that jurisdictional matters will no longer detract from their ultimate goal of preventing crime and holding criminals accountable for their actions," Hoeven said on Tuesday after H.R.1074 passed the Senate.

Once the bill is signed into law, Indians will no longer face the threat of being prosecuted twice -- by the state and by the tribe -- for crimes on the reservation. The state will continue to exercise jurisdiction over non-Indians so there will be no change there.

The 115th Congress is expected to conclude sometime in December. Any bills that do not pass both chambers must be reintroduced in the next session.

The 116th Congress convenes on January 3, 2019. When that happens, the House will be under Democratic control for the first time since the session that took place between 2009 and 2011.

Additionally, two Native women will serving in the House for first time in history. Deb Haaland, who hails from the Pueblo of Laguna, will be representing New Mexico's 1st Congressional District. Sharice Davids, who is a citizen of the Ho-Chunk Nation, will be representing the 3rd Congressional District in Kansas.

The following is a non-exhaustive list of the Indian Country bills that have already passed the Senate and await further action in the House.

• S.245, the Indian Tribal Energy Development and Self-Determination Act Amendments.

• S.254, the Esther Martinez Native American Languages Preservation Act.

• S.269, a bill to provide for the conveyance of certain property to the Tanana Tribal Council located in Tanana, Alaska, and to the Bristol Bay Areal Health Corporation located in Dillingham, Alaska,

• S.302, the John Smith Act, or the Tribal Infrastructure and Roads Enhancement and Safety Act (TIRES Act).

• S.343, the Repealing Existing Substandard Provisions Encouraging Conciliation with Tribes Act, also known as the RESPECT Act.

• S.607, the Native American Business Incubators Program Act.

• S.669, the Columbia River In-Lieu and Treaty Fishing Access Sites Improvement Act.

• S.825, the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium Land Transfer Act

• S.943, the Johnson-O’Malley Supplemental Indian Education Program Modernization Act.

• S.995, the Spokane Tribe of Indians of the Spokane Reservation Equitable Compensation Act.

• S.1116, the Indian Community Economic Enhancement Act.

• S.1223, the Klamath Tribe Judgment Fund Repeal Act.

• S.1333, the Tribal HUD-VASH Act.

• S.2515, the Practical Reforms and Other Goals To Reinforce the Effectiveness of Self-Governance and Self-Determination for Indian Tribes Act, otherwise known as the PROGRESS for Indian Tribes Act.

The following is a non-exhaustive list of the Indian Country bills that have already passed the House and await further action in the Senate.

• H.R.146, the Eastern Band Cherokee Historic Lands Reacquisition Act.

• H.R.597, the Lytton Rancheria Homelands Act.

• H.R.1491, the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians Land Affirmation Act.

• H.R.1532, the Poarch Band of Creek Indians Land Reaffirmation Act.

• H.R.2606, the Stigler Act Amendments.

• H.R.4032, the Gila River Indian Community Federal Rights-of-Way, Easements and Boundary Clarification Act.

• H.R.3764, the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians Restoration Act.

Since the start of the 115th Congress, lawmakers have sent seven tribal-specific bills to President Donald Trump. He has signed all of them into law:

• H.R.228, the Indian Employment, Training and Related Services Consolidation Act. The new law makes an Indian Country job program permanent. It was signed on December 18, 2017.

• H.R.1306, the Western Oregon Tribal Fairness Act. The new law helps the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians, the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians and the Coquille Tribe with issues affecting their homelands. It was signed on January 8, 2018.

• H.R.984, the Thomasina E. Jordan Indian Tribes of Virginia Federal Recognition Act. The new law extends federal recognition to the Chickahominy Tribe, the Chickahominy Tribe - Eastern Division, the Monacan Nation, the Nansemond Tribe, the Rappahannock Tribe and the Upper Mattaponi Tribe. It was signed on January 29.

• S.772, the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act. The new law makes tribes eligible for AMBER Alert grants for the first time. It was signed on April 13.

• S.1285, the Oregon Tribal Economic Development Act. The bill helps the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians, the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde, the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs and the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians improve their economies by resolving land and leasing issues. It was signed on June 1.

• S.2850, a bill to help the White Mountain Apache Tribe with a critical drinking water project in Arizona and two Pueblo tribes with economic development efforts in New Mexico. It was signed on August 1.

• H.R.6124, the Tribal Social Security Fairness Act. The new law authorizes the Social Security Administration to enter into government-to-government agreements with tribes so that tribal officials have the option of paying into and receiving Social Security benefits -- a privilege already extended to state and local governments. It was signed on September 20.

Senate Committee on Indian Affairs set to advance more bills (November 26, 2018)
Indian Country legislative agenda falls behind in the Trump era (November 19, 2018)