USDA to host second sacred sites listening session on February 14 (February 2, 2011)

The Department of Agriculture will host its second listening session on sacred sites on Monday, February 14. The session will help the USDA and the Forest Service develop policies to protect sacred sites on national forest land. It follows a...

County sheriff to increase traffic patrol near Grand Canyon Skywalk (February 2, 2011)

The Mohave County Sheriff's Office is boosting traffic patrols on roads leading to the Hualapai Reservation in Arizona. The sheriff says accidents have increased ever since the Hualapai Tribe opened the Grand Canyon Skywalk. There have been 100 crashes in...

Blog: Bureaucracy holds back renewable energy in Indian Country (February 2, 2011)

"Imagine, for a moment, that wind power installations went up on tribal lands all across the U.S. And that those green machines supplied 14-percent of the national energy consumption annually. Says a report released by the Department of Energy, this...

New York budget cuts assistance to counties for Oneida Nation land (February 2, 2011)

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) proposed a budget that eliminates assistance associated with the Oneida Nation. Madison County and Oneida County used to receive $1.96 million to offset property and sales tax revenues on land owned by the tribe....

Column: Domestic abuse an unfortunate part of life in rural Alaska (February 2, 2011)

"Given my background of working with abused and neglected kids and their (usually) highly dysfunctional families, the issues raised by Gov. Parnell concerning domestic violence in Alaska are near and dear to my heart. I've dealt with too many children...

Native Sun News: Altercation disrupts Oglala Sioux council meeting (February 2, 2011)

The following story was written and reported by Ernestine Chasing Hawk. All content © Native Sun News. PINE RIDGE, SOUTH DAKOTA — A brawl between Oglala District Representative Deb Rooks-Cook and Eagle Nest District Representative Ruth Brown broke out during...

Chief of First Nations organization pleads guilty to impaired driving (February 2, 2011)

Guy Lonechild, the chief of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations, pleaded guilty in connection with an impaired driving incident in September 2009. Lonechild, 37, admitted he had been drinking before the incident. He said he disclosed the charge...

Authorities investigating homicide of First Nations teenage girl, 17 (February 2, 2011)

Authorities are treating the death of a 17-year-old girl on the Cheslatta Carrier Nation as a homicide. The girl was found dead in a home on the reserve last Wednesday. The cause of death hasn't been released. The Province said...

Johnny Alfred, Code Talker from Navajo Nation, passes away at 91 (February 2, 2011)

Johnny Alfred, one of the Navajo Code Talker, passed away on Saturday. He was 91. Alfred enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in 1942. He helped transmit messages in the Navajo language during World War II. Navajo Nation President Ben...

Saginaw Chippewa Tribe helps county unemployment rate stay low (February 2, 2011)

Unemployment in Isabella County is among the lowest in Michigan, thanks in part to the Saginaw Chippewa Tribe. The tribe employs 3,268 people in the county and is always looking for new hires. “There isn’t a day that there isn’t...

County settles federal recognition suit with Mishewal Wappo Tribe (February 2, 2011)

Lake County in California has withdrawn from the federal recognition lawsuit of the Mishewal Wappo Tribe of California. The county agreed to drop out after the tribe said it wouldn't seek land in the county for at least 10 years...

Column: Putting Native youth in Native homes doesn't always work (February 2, 2011)

"About five years ago, the province, under pressure from aboriginal leaders, decided that, all things being equal, it was best to put aboriginal children taken from their parents into the care of relatives or someone else in their community. While...

Lobbying firm that works for California tribes agrees to a $30K fine (February 2, 2011)

A lobbying firm that has worked with tribes in southern California has agreed to pay a $30,000 fine. Frank J. Molina and Strategic Solutions Advisors failed to file lobbying reports, the Fair Political Practices Commission said. Molina has represented the...

Sen. Inouye won't accept earmarks in appropriations for two years (February 2, 2011)

Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii), the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, has agreed to enforce a two-year ban on earmarks. Inouye has long been a defender of earmarks. But he said the "handwriting is clearly on the wall" on the...

US Attorney in Minnesota adds resources to fight reservation crime (February 2, 2011)

The U.S. Attorney's Office in Minnesota is dedicating more resources to crime in Indian Country. Clifford Wardlaw, an assistant prosecutor, has been working on cases from the Red Lake Nation for the past couple of years. He's getting some help...

Cobell attorneys detail request for $223M fees for 14 years of work (February 2, 2011)

The attorneys in the Indian trust fund lawsuit say they are entitled to $223 million in fees for more than 14 years of work. The attorneys began working on the case in 1995. The lawsuit was filed in June 1996...

Cobell team holding meetings across Indian Country for settlement (February 2, 2011)

The plaintiffs in the Indian trust fund lawsuit are holding meetings across Indian Country to explain the $3.4 billion settlement that was signed into law last year. The schedule for this week follows: February 2, 9:00 a.m. Morongo Band of...