"When Virginia Rep. Jim Moran, D-8th, introduced legislation to give Virginia’s Indian tribes recognition by the federal government in 1999, he knew it would be an uphill fight. But he had no idea that nine years later, the measure would still be up for debate.

Through perseverance, however, he is getting closer. Moran’s bill to give six tribes federal recognition reached further than it ever has last month when the Senate Indian Affairs Committee heard testimony on the measure. He and other supporters of the legislation, including Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., knew time was running out in the current Congress, but they were able to take some comfort in the fact that success is near for the bill they have been lobbying for since 1999.

Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., chairman of the Indian Affairs Committee, said Virginia tribes could see favorable action within six months on the bill. As reported by Media General News Service from Washington, Dorgan called the treatment of Virginia’s American Indian tribes “criminal by today’s standards.”"

Get the Story:
Editorial: The Final Step for Recognition of State’s Tribes (The Lynchburg News & Advance 10/7)

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