Assistant Secretary Kevin Washburn discusses the Indian Child Welfare Act at a public meeting on the reservation of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community in Minnesota. Photo by Mark Fiddler / Twitter

The Bureau of Indian Affairs plans to finalize a new Indian Child Welfare Act regulation by the end of the year, Assistant Secretary Kevin Washburn said.

Congress passed ICWA in 1978 to stop Indian children from being removed from their tribal communities at alarming rates. But implementation has been uneven so the new rule seeks to ensure compliance by state courts and child welfare agencies.

“Guidelines are great,” Washburn said at a public meeting on the reservation of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community in Minnesota on Thursday, The Minneapolis Star Tribune reported. “We need things that are legally enforceable.”

Native Americans represent just 1.3 percent of the population in Minnesota, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. But data cited by the paper shows that Indian children are extremely overrepresented in the state's foster care system.

“Native adoptive souls have been stolen,” said Gio Cerise, who was adopted by a non-Indian family when she was just two weeks old, the paper reported. “Our souls cry.”

The BIA proposed the rule in March. Public meetings and tribal consultations have been held in Oregon, South Dakota, New Mexico and Minnesota.

Two final rounds of meetings and consultations will be held next week. One takes place in Oklahoma and the other via teleconference.

Written comments must be submitted by May 19. The National Indian Child Welfare Association is urging strong support to help get the rule finalized.

Get the Story:
American Indians want fewer children put in foster care (The Minneapolis Star Tribune 5/8)

Federal Register Notices:
Regulations for State Courts and Agencies in Indian Child Custody Proceedings (March 30, 2015)
Guidelines for State Courts and Agencies in Indian Child Custody Proceedings (February 25, 2015)

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