South Dakota bill targets tribes over tobacco tax (March 1, 2006)

The South Dakota Legislature has approved a bill that would withhold liquor licenses from tribes unless they ensure the state's tobacco tax is collected. The bill requires all liquor license holders collect and submit city and state sales taxes, the...

BIA sets timetable for new gaming regulations (March 1, 2006)

Indianz.Com Listening Lounge: Senate Indian Affairs Committee Hearing on Indian Gaming, February 28, 2006. • Introduction - 2:29 - 585k Introductory remarks by Sen. John McCain. Remarks by Sen. Craig Thomas were not recorded. • Panel 1 - 7:20...

Tennessee land swap draws Native protesters (March 1, 2006)

A small group of Native activists led a protest against a land swap they say will damage sacred sites and burial grounds in Tennessee. The Tennessee Valley Authority swapped 578 acres with John Thornton, a University of Tennessee trustee...

Six tribes win grant to study renewable energy (March 1, 2006)

A consortium of six tribes California, Arizona and New Mexico have been awarded a $199,267 federal grant to study renewable energy options. The Southwest Tribal Energy Consortium represents the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, the Morongo Band of Mission...

Osage Nation wins arbitration request for tobacco tax (March 1, 2006)

A federal judge in Oklahoma sided with the Osage Nation and ordered the state into arbitration over the state's tobacco tax. The tribe is trying to stop the state from enforcing emergency rules on tribal retailers. The state contends some...

Indian Land Tenure Foundation screening in Rapid City (March 1, 2006)

The Indian Land Tenure Foundation is screening a new documentary about Indian land issues this Friday in Rapid City, South Dakota. "American Indian Homelands: Matters of Truth, Honor and Dignity — Immemorial" documents the history of Indian land policy in...

Listening Lounge: Joint hearing on Cobell v. Norton (March 1, 2006)

The Senate Indian Affairs Committee and the House Resources Committee held a joint hearing this morning on settlement of the Cobell v. Norton trust fund lawsuit. You can download MP3 files of the hearing for your iPod, computer or other...

Report: Native teen safe house riddled with problems (March 1, 2006)

A safe house for urban Native teens who are trying to escape the sex trade is plagued with management, financial and other problems, CBC News reports. The File Hills-Qu'appelle Tribal Council, which represents several First Nations in Saskatchewan, operates the...

Navajo race relations subject of Civil Rights report (March 1, 2006)

Relations between Navajos and non-Navajos in Farmington have improved in the past 30 years but challenges remain, according to a recent report from the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. The New Mexico Advisory Committee visited Farmington in April 2004, 30...

Lummi man pleads guilty to girlfriend's death (March 1, 2006)

Wesley Vernon Jefferson, a member of the Lummi Nation of Washington, has pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter for strangling his girlfriend and attempting to cover up her death. Jefferson, 22, admitted to killing Sophia Solomon, 23, in December 2004. He...

Editorial: Oglala Sioux Tribe needs police grant (March 1, 2006)

"At the very least, our reservations deserve police protection. But if a Community Oriented Policing Services grant ends with nothing to replace it, police protection on the Pine Ridge Reservation will be a shadow of what it's been. The grant...

Whiteclay liquor store won't face sanctions (March 1, 2006)

The Nebraska Liquor Control Commission voted 2-1 on Thursday against sanctions for a liquor store in Whiteclay that was accused of selling beer to two intoxicated men. The State Line Liquor store was accused of violating state laws by...

Interior playing 'hardball' with Indian Country on trust (March 1, 2006)

The Interior Department is playing "hardball" with tribes by putting tribes against the Cobell plaintiffs, a University of Montana professor said. Ray Cross, a law professor, said the Bush administration's decision to use cut the Bureau of Indian Affairs budget...

Tribes, states object to Interior's lack of audits (March 1, 2006)

An association of tribal and state auditors wrote a letter to House lawmakers last week, saying they are losing their share of oil and gas revenues because the Interior Department has cut back on audits of energy companies. The tribes...

Staffers paid by Interior but work for Rep. Pombo (March 1, 2006)

Two Interior Department employees have been working for Rep. Richard Pombo (R-California) on the House Resources Committee for more than a year in apparent violation of Congressional rules, The Hill newspaper reports. Jackson Coleman and Rick Deery are "detailees"...

Tribal provisions removed from lobbying reform bill (March 1, 2006)

Tribal provisions were removed from a lobbying reform bill that was approved by the Senate Senate Rules Committee on Tuesday but efforts to change how tribes do business aren't over. The bill was drafted by Sen. Trent Lott (R-Mississippi), the...

Group sues over Abramoff's White House visits (March 1, 2006)

Judicial Watch, a public interest group, filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Secret Service in hopes of obtaining records about disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff's visits to the White House. The group sought the records under a Freedom of Information...

Abramoff scandal a campaign issue for Sen. Burns (March 1, 2006)

Sen. Conrad Burns (R-Montana) won't let allegations that he is under investigation by the Justice Department slow down his 2006 re-election campaign. Burns and his staffers are said to face scrutiny over their ties to disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff....