Native American Report articles from June 2005

Native American Report archives from June 2005

Read my lips.(Slants & Trends)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2005... READ MY LIPS--When critics complain about Indian casinos, Native leaders have some new ammunition to offer: last year Indian casinos contributed $6.2 billion to federal, state and local tax coffers. In addition, casinos supported more than a...

Native leaders deliver principles to Congress to resolve Cobell case.(Elouise Cobell)
June 1, 2005... In what is being billed as an "historic union," Native American leaders and lead plaintiff Elouise Cobell came together this month to announce settlement principles to resolve the longstanding trust reform case. The principles are designed...

Economic development adds jobs; housing improvements come slowly.(tribal communities)
June 1, 2005... Predictably, economic development in Indian Country is leading to more jobs. Perhaps surprisingly, however, it does not lead to better housing conditions for residents--at least not right away. Those are the findings from a new report on...

Casino revenues boost tax coffers for federal, state, local governments.(indian gaming)
June 1, 2005... Native American tribes shared $900 million in casino gambling profits last year, but paid $6.2 billion in taxes to federal, state and local governments, according to a new, comprehensive review of Indian gaming. Two-thirds of the taxes...

Pending funding bills would raise, lower Indian programs in FY06.
June 1, 2005... The Bureau of Indian Affairs would get a little less, but the Indian Health Service would get a little more next year, under funding bills now making their way through Congress. The House last month passed an Interior Department...

Housing reform bill would promote homeownership in Indian country.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2005... Native housing advocates are getting behind a pending House bill that they say could promote more mortgage lending--and therefore homeownership --in Indian Country. The bill, passed May 25 by the House Financial Services Committee, would...

Pedestrian-friendly design aims to get more tribal members walking.
June 1, 2005... Build it and they will come--and come on foot--is the philosophy behind Indian entrepreneur Lance Morgan's innovative new Nebraska development. "Ho-Chunk Village," a swath of 40 acres in the heart of the Winnebago Tribe Reservation, is...

The facts: Native American health disparities.(overweight)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2005... Obesity has become a major health problem among Native Americans and is believed to be associated with poor diet and the rapid change from active to sedentary lifestyles. Most cases of diabetes among Native Americans are type 2, the most common...

Senate bill would ban off-reservation casinos, give states more control.
June 1, 2005... Legislation to ban off-reservation casinos and give states a bigger role in how tribes open and run casinos has been introduced in the Senate. The legislation, which Sen. David Vitter (RLa.) offered June 16, mirrors a bill sponsored in the...

North Dakota objects to corps plan for transfer of land to tribal group.(Army Corps of Engineers )(Brief Article)
June 1, 2005... A plan to transfer land within the Garrison Dam project area in North Dakota to three tribes has generated strong opposition from the state's governor. Responding to a request from the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara tribes--known as the Three...

WIA employment and training.(Workforce Investment Act)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2005... WIA Employment and Training: Awards have been announced to tribes and tribal entities for the program year beginning July 1 under the Workforce Investment Act. Some $54.2 million was appropriated under the Comprehensive Services Allotments of...

NCLB.(No Child Left Behind)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2005... NCLB: The Bureau of Indian Affairs published final rules making technical changes to bring BIA education provisions in line with the 2001 No Child Left Behind Act. See the June 9 Federal Register, p. 33701. Contact: Catherine Freels, BIA, (505)...

Child welfare.(Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2005... Child Welfare: An addendum to the designated agent list of the Southern Plains Region under the Indian Child Welfare Act was published last month by BIA. The child welfare act authorizes Indian tribes to designate agents other than the tribal...

Indian rolls.(Federal Register)
June 1, 2005... Indian Rolls: Comments are due July 18 on proposed regulations for compiling Indian rolls for the Western Shoshone Identifiable Group of Indians. This will allow people to file applications to share in the tribe's judgment fund distribution, as...

ANA Program.(Administration for Native Americans)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2005... ANA Program: Policies and procedures were published last month for the Social and Economic Development Strategies project SMART NA Communities (Strengthening Marriages and Relationships in Tribal and Native American Communities) under the...

IHS reimbursement rates.(Indian Health Service)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2005... IHS Reimbursement Rates: The Indian Health Service has approved 2005 rates for inpatient and outpatient medical care for Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries. The rates, effective as of Jan. 1, 2005, are: inpatient hospital per diem, excluding...

Liquor control ordinances.(Federal Register)
June 1, 2005... Liquor Control Ordinances. Ordinances regulating and controlling the possession, sale and consumption of liquor were published for the La Posta Band of Mission Indians (June 17 Federal Register, p. 35294); Table Bluff Reservation-Wiyot Tribe...

Indian gaming.(Class III Gaming Compacts)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2005... Indian Gaming: Two notices of Class III Gaming Compacts were published this month. One is between the Iowa Tribe, Modoc Tribe, Ottawa Tribe, Delaware Nation, Sac & Fox Nation and the state of Oklahoma; the other governs gaming on the Warm...

TANF.(Temporary Assistance for Needy Families)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2005... TANF: The Health and Human Services Department is seeking comment on state guidance for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. See the May 20 Federal Register, p. 29316.

Family violence.(Funding Opportunities)
June 1, 2005... Family Violence: Applications are due July 1 for FY05 grants to tribes and tribal organizations under the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act to help establish, maintain and expand prevention programs and provide immediate shelter and...

Public housing incentives.(Funding Opportunities)
June 1, 2005... Public Housing Incentives: Applications are due July 18 for up to $10 million under the Public Housing Graduation Incentive Bonus Program for FY05. Awards will range from $12,275 to $207,209, based upon Public Housing Authority low-rent size...

Self-governance.(Funding Opportunities)
June 1, 2005... Self-Governance: Applications are due July 8 for cooperative agreements providing planning resources to tribes wanting to participate in the Tribal Self-Governance Program of the Indian Health Service. IHS anticipates making about a dozen...

Healthy marriages.(Funding Opportunities)
June 1, 2005... Healthy Marriages: Applications are due July 8 for Administration for Native Americans grants to improve child well-being by fostering healthy marriages within Native communities. The FY05 funds are to finance projects to remove barriers to...

Environmental mitigation.(Funding Opportunities)
June 1, 2005... Environmental Mitigation: Applications are due July 8 for grants to mitigate environmental impacts on Indian lands from Defense Department activities on old DOD sites. See the June 7 Federal Register, p. 33165.

Child care.(Funding Opportunities)
June 1, 2005... Child Care: The Child Care Bureau has issued FY 2006 Tribal Application Plan Procedures for CCDF Grantees. See www.acf.hhs.gov/ programs/ccb.

Calendar.(Calendar)
June 1, 2005... * July 12: The National Indian Gaming Association will hold a Legislative Summit in Washington, D.C., to address issues affecting tribes in the next few months. Contact: NIGA, (202) 546-7711, www.indiangaming.org. * July 27-28: NIGA is...

Tribal-State Staff Training.(Tribal-State Relations Project)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2005... TRIBAL-STATE STAFF TRAINING: In a unique partnership, a Tribal-State Relations Project this month launched the first-ever Tribal-State Staff Training Institute. The June 20-23 workshop was to bring together tribal government leaders and state...

Housing group offers free seminars on detecting, preventing meth labs.(National American Indian Housing Council, methamphetamine)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2005... Indian housing officials are being offered free training to deal with what is considered a growing problem of methamphetamine production on reservations. The training is being made available to Regional Indian Housing Association members...

School-readiness in Hawaii.(kindergarten)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2005... School-Readiness in Hawaii: More than a third of Hawaii youngsters are not prepared for kindergarten, new data show. Children scored a 3.5 on a 5.0 scale used to assess kindergarten readiness, meaning that up to 40 percent of children in Hawaii...

Awards bestowed.(Seventh Annual Leadership Awards)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2005... Awards Bestowed: The National Congress of American Indians has awarded its Seventh Annual Leadership Awards to Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), Bank of America Senior Vice President Dan Lewis and Richard West, executive director of the new National...

'Gangbusters' legislation.(penalties for gang-related offenses)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2005... 'Gangbusters' Legislation: Legislation has passed the House to raise penalties for gang-related offenses. The bill, H.R. 1279, would allow juveniles to be tried as adults if they are 16 at the time of the crime. The House approved the bill May...

Community development aid.(Department of Agriculture)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2005... Community Development Aid: The U.S. Agriculture Department has announced more than $6.5 million in technical assistance grants to 35 community-based development organizations, low-income communities and Indian tribes to help develop rural...