Past News Items

Washington, D.C. – Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk today announced that on December 21 the Bureau of Indian Affairs began its 2009 drunk-driving prevention campaign, “Don’t Shatter the Dream,” which is being conducted by BIA and tribal law enforcement in Indian Country through January 3, 2010.

A contract amounting to nearly $1.4 million has been awarded to Burgraff Construction Company of Idaho Falls, Idaho, to pave, drain, and surface slightly more than 16 miles of road and build two reinforced concrete bridges on the Duck Valley Indian Reservation in the village of Owyhee, Nevada Commissioner of Indian Affairs Morris Thompson announced today.

In line with a commitment made three years ago by Commissioner of Indian Affairs Glenn L. Emmons, Clinton O. Talley, superintendent of the Fort Peck Indian Agency at Poplar, Montana, will transfer March 10 to the comparable position at Mescalero, New Mexico, the Department of the Interior announced today.

WASHINGTON – On Thursday, November 5th, 2009, President Obama will host the White House Tribal Nations Conference. As part of President Obama’s sustained outreach to the American people, this conference will provide leaders from the 564 federally recognized tribes the opportunity to interact directly with the President and representatives from the highest levels of his Administration. Each federally recognized tribe will be invited to send one representative to the conference.

Assistant to the Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs Marvin L. Franklin announced today the award of a $2.4 million contract with Burgess Construction Company of Phoenix, Ariz., for the bituminous surfacing of 12.768 miles of Navajo India n Reservation road extending from Ganado, Ariz.; to the Nazlini - Sawmill Road Junction. Included in the contract is a 200-foot bridge to be built over Ganado Wash near Ganado Lake.

A public meeting will be held in the Eisenhower College Athletic Center, Seneca Falls, New York, September 11 to discuss the proposed Cayuga Indian Land Claim Settlement announced on August 20.

The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. The time is a half hour earlier than originally announced and the place has been changed from the Delavan Little Theatre to allow ample room and time for all who wish to comment on the proposed settlement.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Responding to a call for greater transparency throughout government, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today said the Department will provide regular status updates to the American public on the financial health and ongoing reforms of the American Indian trusts, which consists of $3.5 billion in Indian trust funds.

Secretary of the Interior Rogers C. B. Morton today announced two decisions resolving long standing controversies over Indian rights.

In a controversy between the Fort Mohave Indian Tribe and the Bureau of Land Management over the ownership of 3,500 acres of land near the Colorado River in California, the Solicitor has determined that the Tribe is legally entitled to equitable ownership of the land and the Secretary has signed an order directing the Bureau of Land Management to take prompt action to carry out the decision.

Interior Secretary Cecil D. Andrus and Edward E. Hopson, Sr., President of the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation in Alaska, today signed an agreement conveying land to the Arctic Slope Eskimos mandated by the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971.

"In addition to resolving major land issues, this agreement "is the first in the history of the Native Claims Settlement Act in which private lands are placed under the Endangered Species Act," Andrus noted

Features of the pact include:

WASHINGTON - Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and Economic Development - Indian Affairs George T. Skibine today announced that the Office of Indian Affairs and the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) have been fully reconnected to the Internet. The Office of the Chief Information Officer – Indian Affairs (OCIO-IA) has successfully reconnected 5,000 computer users in 148 Indian Affairs locations across the country. This accomplishment occurred one month ahead of schedule.