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WASHINGTON - In a letter sent to the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission, Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Neal McCaleb expressed the Department of the Interior's deep regret over the International Whaling Commission's (IWC) decision not to renew the aboriginal subsistence whale quota for the 2003 - 2007 period. He also offered his agency's support to ensure that the subsistence needs of Alaska Natives are met, and that their whaling traditions continue.

"I don't understand, how the IWC could vote to deprive the Alaska Eskimos of eighty percent of their food supply causing them undue hardship and threatening their way of life," Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Neal McCaleb said. "However, I can assure you that my office will continue to advocate forcefully for the continuation of aboriginal subsistence hunts."

A vote on the joint bowhead whale quota requested by the United States and Russian Federation at the 54th Annual Meeting of the IWC in Shimonoseki, Japan failed, by one vote, to garner the three-fourth majority to renew it, totally ignoring the cultural, nutritional, and subsistence needs of the Alaska and Chukotkan Natives. The IWC voted against the 2003 - 2007 block quota despite the fact that it was identical to the 1998 - 2002 quota. There was no conservation reason, or challenge to the legitimate aboriginal subsistence traditions given. And, it disregarded an IWC Scientific Committee assessment that the annual take of up to 102 bowheads does not jeopardize the stock.

But, the conditions created by the vote may affect the subsistence of the Alaska and Chukotkan Natives that have hunted bowhead whales for thousands of years. Whaling underlies the entire way of life of the Inupiat and Siberian Yupik Eskimos of northern and western Alaska. Each whale harvested is an essential source of nutrition for the Natives, providing thousands of pounds of meat and maktak. Without this source of food, Natives in remote areas will have few alternatives to meet their nutrition and dietary requirements.

The Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs has formed a workgroup made up of departmental staff to develop an action plan to assist the Alaska Natives with the ramifications of the IWC's action.

The Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission is located in Barrow, Alaska, and was created in 1977 to preserve and enhance the bowhead resource, including its habitat, to protect Eskimo subsistence whaling and associated traditions, and to participate in the research and management of the stock.

Established in 1824, the BIA provides services to and carries out the federal government's trust responsibility for the 559 federally recognized Tribal governments and approximately 1.4 million American Indians and Alaska Natives nationwide. The BIA manages approximately 56 million acres of land held in trust for individual Indians and tribes in the lower 48 states and Alaska.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Acting Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Aurene M. Martin today approved gaming compacts between the State of Arizona and 17 of the state’s 22 Federally recognized tribes. “I congratulate the tribes and the State of Arizona for successfully completing the compacting process, and wish them much success in their economic venture,” Martin said. The compacts will take effect when notice of the BIA’s approval is published in the Federal Register. The compacts supersede and replace any existing compacts between the State and the tribes.

The compacts require the tribes to contribute a limited percentage of their Class III Net Win, defined as “gross gaming revenue, which is the difference between gaming wins and losses, before deducting costs and expenses,” to the State based on a sliding scale, in exchange for substantial exclusive rights to operate Class III gaming devices and other Class III gaming activities. The compacts also authorize the tribes to operate a variety of Class III gaming activities including blackjack, keno and pari-mutuel wagering on horse and dog racing.

The tribes whose compacts were approved are: Ak-Chin Indian Community, Cocopah Tribe, Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation, Fort Mojave Indian Tribe, Gila River Indian Community, Havasupai Tribe, Hualapai Indian Tribe, Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians, Navajo Nation, Pascua Yaqui Tribe, Quechan Tribe, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, San Carlos Apache Tribe, Tohono O’odham Nation, Tonto Apache Tribe, White Mountain Apache Tribe and Yavapai-Apache Nation.

The BIA’s review of the compacts concluded that they do not violate the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988 (IGRA), federal law or its trust obligation to Indians.

The Assistant Secretary - Indian Affairs has responsibility for fulfilling the Department’s trust responsibility to American Indian and Alaska Native tribes and individuals, as well as promoting tribal self-determination and economic development. The Assistant Secretary also oversees the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which is responsible for providing services to approximately 1.4 million American Indians and Alaska Natives from the nation’s 562 Federally recognized tribes.

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WASHINGTON – Acting Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Aurene M. Martin will visit New Mexico on Tuesday, February 4, 2003, to inspect two Bureau of Indian Affairs-operated schools – Wingate High School in Ft. Wingate, N.M., and Baca Community School in Prewitt, N.M. – that are on the Bureau’s list of schools slated for replacement within the next few years.

The first stop on Assistant Secretary Martin’s tour will be Wingate High School, one of four boarding schools directly operated by the BIA and one of seven schools in the Bureau’s FY2004 budget request scheduled for replacement. Her next visit will be to Baca Community School, a BIA-operated K-4 day school, whose new facility is already under construction. She will personally inspect conditions at both sites and meet with the schools’ students, parents, faculty and tribal officials.

The Assistant Secretary oversees the BIA’s school system, which comprised of 185 elementary and secondary day and boarding schools on 63 reservations in 23 states serving 47,909 students.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – President Bush has proposed a $2.31 billion budget for the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) for Fiscal Year 2004, an increase of $62.0 million over the FY2003 request, to improve the Interior Department’s management of individual Indian and tribal trust assets, to operate new tribally-operated detention centers and to develop tribal economies. The request also maintains the President’s commitment to eliminate the school maintenance backlog and provide tribes with greater opportunities to directly operate BIA schools. Payments for Indian water and land claims settlements also continue.

“With this budget request, the President makes clear his firm commitment to improving the lives of Indian people through trust reform, education and economic development,” said acting Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Aurene M. Martin. “The Bureau will be prepared to meet these goals with Congress’ support.”

The FY2004 budget request provides new funding to support the Department’s plan to reform management of its fiduciary obligations to the Federally recognized tribes and individual Indians. The request includes increases of $32.0 million to modernize information technology systems and security to support trust and non-trust programs; $13.0 million to expand a pilot program to reduce the fractionalization of individual Indian land ownership interests into a nationwide effort and $7.6 million for enhanced resource management programs related to trust assets.

The BIA oversees a 185-school system comprised of elementary and secondary day and boarding schools serving almost 48,000 students. The FY2004 budget request for school construction and repair is $292.6 million, including $131.4 million to replace at least seven BIA funded schools including Enemy Swim Day School, Waubay, S.D.; Isleta Elementary School, Isleta, N.M.; Mescalero Apache School, Mescalero, N.M.; Navajo Preparatory School, Farmington, N.M.; Pueblo Pintado Community School, Cuba, N.M.; Turtle Mountain High School, Belcourt, N.D., and Wingate High School, Ft. Wingate, N.M.

Under the Bureau’s FY2004 $528.5 million school operations budget request, an increase of $3.0 million in administrative cost grants is sought to encourage more tribes to exercise their authority to operate BIA-funded schools by providing full funding for start-up costs for the first year of tribal operation of a BIA school. In the School Year 2001-2002, the BIA directly operated one-third of elementary and secondary schools, including four of seven off-reservation boarding schools. The remaining two-thirds of the schools are operated by tribes under BIA contract or grant.

To enhance economic development in Indian Country, the FY2004 budget request seeks $1.0 million in increased funding to expand the BIA’s Indian Loan Guaranty Program to assist tribes with financing for business operations. The increased funding will leverage $20 million in additional guaranteed and insured loans.

To meet Federal requirements for authorized settlements resolving long-standing tribal claims in New Mexico and Oklahoma, the FY2004 budget request includes funding increases to complete the Santo Domingo Pueblo settlement ($6.7 million) and for the first payment on the recent Cherokee, Choctaw and Chickasaw settlement ($10.0 million). The budget also maintains funding at current levels for five additional settlements and reflects decreases due to the completion of two settlements.

Furthermore, funding is requested to continue support for the BIA’s Law Enforcement Program to improve public safety and justice in Indian Country. The FY2004 budget request seeks an increase of $10.0 million for the operation of new detention centers.

BIA continues to make progress in the President’s management agenda for improving management and performance of the Federal government by practicing the Secretary’s vision for citizen-centered management excellence. The 2004 budget for BIA supports the Department’s outcome goals to fulfill Indian trust responsibilities and advance quality communities for Tribes. BIA has worked extensively to integrate the budget with the performance goals in the Department’s new unified strategic plan.

The School Operations, School Construction and Indian Land Consolidation programs were assessed using the Administration’s Program Assessment Rating Tool. The PART process identified actions needed to clarify program purpose and design, and provided recommendations to improve strategic planning, program management and program results. BIA has begun to work on improvements recommended as a result of the assessment.

The Assistant Secretary - Indian Affairs has responsibility for fulfilling the Department’s trust responsibility to American Indian and Alaska Native tribes and individuals, as well as promoting tribal self-determination, education and economic development. The Assistant Secretary also oversees the BIA, which is responsible for providing services to approximately 1.5 million American Indians and Alaska Natives from the nation’s 562 Federally recognized tribes.

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(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – The Joint Tribal Leaders/DOI Task Force on Trust Reform will hold its next meeting on June 13-15, 2002 in Bismarck, N.D. The Task Force was established in February of 2002 to review and propose plans for improving the Department’s management of individual Indian and tribal trust assets.

On June 5, 2002, task force members presented a progress report to Secretary Gale Norton on their efforts to review and evaluate proposals for improving the Department’s management of Indian trust funds and assets. The report identifies five options for trust management improvement by the Department along with comments and recommendations on each; proposes specific “cross cutting” principles that the five options should address; explores changes needed at low, mid- and upper management levels within the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and the Interior Department; and recommends “key” criteria with which to evaluate the options. The report has been sent to tribal leaders throughout Indian Country for review and comment as part of the Department’s on-going tribal consultation process on trust reform.

Last November, Secretary Norton announced her proposal to transfer and consolidate Indian trust asset management functions currently administered by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and other Interior agencies within a new Bureau of Indian Trust Assets Management (BITAM). She also announced the establishment of an Assistant Secretary for Indian Trust Assets Management to oversee BITAM and a new Office of Indian Trust Transition (OITT) to implement her transfer and consolidation plan. After consulting with tribal leaders, Secretary Norton supported their request to establish a task force to review her proposal and alternative plans submitted by tribes themselves.

The Joint Tribal Leaders/DOI Task Force is composed of Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Neal A. McCaleb, Deputy Secretary J. Steven Griles, Associate Deputy Secretary James E. Cason, Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs Director David L. Bernhardt, Office of Communications Director Eric Ruff, the Special Trustee for American Indians Thomas J. Slonaker, Indian Trust Transition Director Ross O. Swimmer and Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Aurene Martin along with 24 tribal leaders and 16 alternates from the BIA’s twelve regions. Co-chairing the task force are Griles, McCaleb, Tex Hall, Chairman of the Three Affiliated Tribes of North Dakota and Sue Masten, Chairwoman of the Yurok Tribe of Indians of California.

The task force held its first meeting in Shepherdstown, W.Va., on February 1-4, 2002. Subsequent meetings have taken place in Phoenix, Ariz., in March; San Diego, Calif., in April and Minneapolis, Minn., in May. Additional meetings will be held over the next six months to allow the task force to continue its work.

Note to Editors: A 2-page list of task force members accompanies this release.

Washington DC – Department of the Interior’s Acting Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Aurene Martin applauds the American Indian firefighting crews that were dispatched to assist with the recovery of the space shuttle Columbia, and its crew. The Shuttle broke apart during re-entry February 1, 2003, and is spread over a 500 square-mile area, much of it heavily wooded.

“During times of national tragedies or natural disasters, American Indians are always willing to help our Nation by providing manpower, financial assistance or spiritual comfort to those in need,” Acting Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Aurene Martin said. “We are very proud of the firefighters and other American Indians who are helping with this critical effort.”

Alerted to the fact that they were being dispatched to the area on Tuesday morning, seventeen members of the Cherokee Firedancers, fifteen from the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma and two from the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma along with fire crews from the Muskogee (Creek) Nation, the Iowa Tribe and Pawnee Tribe were ready to roll by Wednesday.

The request for assistance came from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the crews were mobilized as part of a four-crew module that was dispatched by the AOICC (Arkansas-Oklahoma Interagency Coordination Center) located in Hot Springs, Arkansas, which handles crew mobilization efforts for both the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Indian Affairs sponsored tribal crews from the state of Oklahoma. The Muskogee (Creek) Nation fire crew is sponsored by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the other three fire crews are under contract with the U.S. Forest Service to spend the summer fighting fires across the United States. This is the first time they have been called on to help with a national disaster. The fire crews traveled to Nacogdoches County, Texas where they will setup camp in the 179 acre Angelina National Forest and work the next 14 days searching for metal debris.

The Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs has responsibility for fulfilling the Department’s trust responsibility to American Indian and Alaska Native tribes and individuals as well as promoting tribal self-determination, education and economic development. The Assistant Secretary also oversees the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which is responsible for providing services to approximately 1.4 million American Indians and Alaska Natives.

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Washington – The National Indian Country Telecommunications Infrastructure Consortium (NICTIC) will hold a meeting on February 27, 2003, at the Wyndham Washington Hotel, 1400 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20005, starting at 2:30 p.m. in the Ash Lawn North room.

The NICTIC was created to support the President’s National Strategy for Homeland Security by coordinating an effort to build and improve the telecommunications infrastructure throughout Indian Country. “This national organization can serve as an engine to improve the telecommunications infrastructure throughout Indian Country,” said Brian Burns, Chief Information Officer-Indian Affairs.

An initial meeting of the NICTIC was held on September 18, 2002 in Phoenix, AZ that was jointly hosted by the Department of the Interior’s Indian Affairs and the General Services Administration (GSA). At that meeting the concept of establishing the Consortium was discussed with tribes, private organizations and government agencies. During a second meeting that was held on October 17, 2002 in Las Vegas, NV, a list of goals and objectives was developed outlining what the Consortium would achieve. A third meeting was held on December 11, 2002 in Albuquerque, NM, where a draft of the Consortium’s Vision Statement and expansion of the goals and objectives was accomplished. At the meeting on February 27, 2003, Cal Ramos from NASA will present a presentation on NASA Wireless Satellite Technology. The finalization of the Vision Statement, discussions on funding strategies, grant writing seminars for tribal representatives, the development of an inventory and where to initiate a pilot project will be discussed.

The goals of the Consortium are to: 1) develop an Indian Country telecommunications resource inventory; 2) establish an Indian Country telecommunications network architecture; 3) establish an Indian Country telecommunications integration model; and 4) assist Tribes in their effort to pay for the cost of telecommunications infrastructure by providing technical assistance in securing millions of dollars of Federal grant funds available each year from Federal agencies.

Note to Editors: Agenda of NICTIC meeting can be downloaded at DOI web site.

WASHINGTON – Acting Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Aurene M. Martin today announced the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) is part of a three-year Department of the Interior (DOI) agreement with one of the nation’s leading producers of high-tech geographic mapping software that will expand the usage of geographic information system (GIS) technology throughout Indian Country.

Martin says the Department has successfully negotiated an amendment to its blanket licensing agreement for mapping software with ESRI of Redlands, California. The agreement will broaden the use of the software in BIA offices and provides software licenses for tribal governments.

“The economic development blueprint for Indian Country includes full use of the tools of the modern, high-tech world,” Martin said today. “This new software agreement will not only increase the use of this modern mapping technology at BIA offices nationwide but it will facilitate the expanded use of GIS by tribal governments. This technology is the latest tool in the field of spatial data mapping. Land and resource managers, as well as tribal governments across Indian Country, will continue to benefit from the use of this modern software and they will acquire it and technical support at the lowest cost possible.”

ESRI produces GIS software that is currently in use by federal, state and local governments across the nation. Currently, ESRI software is used throughout BIA and Indian Country. After implementation, the agreement will have generated even more use of GIS technology with the addition of new software licenses. BIA will continue to provide software training to its employees and tribal members.

[Editors Note: ESRI spokesman John Steffenson may be contacted to discuss the mapping software at (303) 449-7779 (extension 8237). The Coeur D’Alene Tribe GIS Department actively utilizes the ESRI product. Contact Frank Roberts of the Coeur D’Alene Tribe to discuss the practical applications of the software in Indian Country at (208) 686-5307 or visit www.cdatribe.org/gis .]

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Improving Indian student academic achievement through Native language and culture in Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) schools will be the focus of the upcoming Office of Indian Education Programs (OIEP) Journeying Home: Language and Culture Preservation Conference. The event, with the theme “Creating Our Future From Our Past,” will be held March 3-6 in Minneapolis, Minn., at the Hilton Minneapolis and Towers hotel. Experts from the field of Indian education will present information and insights on how using Native language and culture in the classroom can help Indian students improve their academic proficiency.

In his introduction to the conference program, OIEP Director William Mehojah, Jr., noted “Native languages and cultures are not only a means to achieving higher academic achievement, but also a means to better connect Native students to their own past and to help prepare them for a future in which education and learning are more important than ever. We know that individuals who are strongly rooted in their past…are often best equipped to face the future.”

Conference attendees will be presented with a wide range of cultural, linguistic, social and education perspectives through speakers and workshops specifically designed to aid Indian educators in the development of curricula and teaching materials, and improving teaching skills, that incorporate Native language and culture.

A special feature of the conference will be the cultural “Knowledge Bowl,” an academic competition between 11 BIA schools that will take place March 4-5. The Knowledge Bowl will pit schools from Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin against one another to answer questions about American Indian history, culture and language in a quiz bowl format. Participating schools are: Bug-O-Nay-Ge-Shig School, Cass Lake, Minn.; Circle of Life School, White Earth, Minn.; Crazy Horse School, Wanblee, S.D.; Flandreau Indian School, Flandreau, S.D.; Fond du Lac Ojibwe School, Hayward, Wisc.; Nay-Ah-Shing School, Onamia, Minn.; St. Francis Indian School, St. Francis, S.D.; Standing Rock High School, Ft. Yates, N.D.; Takini School, Howes, S.D., and Tiospaye Topa School, Ridgeview, S.D.

OIEP designed Journeying Home as a series of four conferences that would further the use and understanding of Native language and culture to improve student academic achievement. The 2002 Journeying Home conference, held in Portland, Ore., focused on language acquisition. This year’s event is intended to strengthen BIA funded schools in the areas of language and cultural preservation and revitalization.

The mission of the Office of Indian Education Programs is to provide Indian students with quality educational opportunities from early childhood through life in accordance with tribal needs for cultural and economic well-being and in keeping with the wide diversity of Indian tribes and Alaska Native villages as distinct cultural and governmental entities, as well as to consider each student’s spiritual, mental, physical and cultural aspects within the context of his or her family and tribe or village.

Note to Editors: The agenda for the 2003 Journeying Home: Language and Culture Preservation Conference may be viewed via the Department’s web site at www.doi.gov.

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WASHINGTON - Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton will participate in a swearing-in ceremony this week at the inaugural board meeting of an independent foundation chartered by Congress to accept financial and other contributions for Indian students attending Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) schools.

The board of directors of the Foundation for the Advancement of American Indian Education (FAAIE) will be welcomed on Thursday, March 6 by Secretary Norton, acting Assistant Director - Indian Affairs Aurene M. Martin, and FAAIE Founding Director Lorraine P. Edmo.

CREDENTIALS: Admittance to the Main Interior Building will be through the C Street entrance, limited to media representatives and crews holding sanctioned media credentials. The Rachel Carson Room is on the building's basement level, adjoining the building's cafeteria. A multi-box will be available and you are advised to be in place by 1 :50 p.m. with the brief program beginning at 2. Newly seated board members will be available for individual interviews following the prepared program.

Secretary Norton and Assistant Secretary Martin will serve as ex-officio members of the board alongside these founding board members:

• Dave Anderson of Edina, Minnesota, a member of the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Ojibwa and Founder and President of Famous Dave's Barbecue Restaurants franchise. Anderson was awarded the Bush Leadership Fellowship in 1985 and received a Masters Degree from Harvard University in 1986.
• Dr. David Beaulieu of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, an enrolled member of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe - White Earth Reservation and the first Electa Quinney professor of American Indian education at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee's School of Education. He served as Director of the Department of Education's Office of Indian Education from 1997 to 2001.
• Sharon K. Darling of Louisville, Kentucky, Founder and President of the National Center for Family Literacy (NCFL) and an internationally recognized leader in the field of family literacy. She is an active member of several boards and serves on the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy.
• John Guevremont, a member of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribe of Connecticut and Director of the Tribe's National Government Affairs Office located in Washington, D.C. He has held several positions within Mashantucket Pequot tribal government and is a retired major of the U.S. Marine Corps (1975 to 1995).
• Daniel Lewis of Phoenix, Arizona, a member of the Navajo Nation and Senior Vice President and Director of the Office of Native American Financial Services for Bank of America. Lewis is currently chairman of the National Native American Advisory Committee of the Boys and Girls Clubs of America.
• Nick Lowery of Tempe, Arizona, President of the Nick Lowery Foundation and Co-Founder of "Nation Building for Native Youth." A former professional football player with the Kansas City Chiefs and the New York Jets, Lowery has worked for President Bush in the first Office of National Service.
• Joanne Stately of St. Paul, Minnesota, a member of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe and Senior Program Officer of the St. Paul Foundation. She was recently elected President of Native Americans in Philanthropy, a national non-profit association of American Indian and Alaska Native fundraisers.
• Dr. Linda Sue Warner of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, a member of the Comanche Tribe of Oklahoma is Research Associate Professor, Truman Center for Public Policy, University of Missouri - Columbia and recently served as CEO for the Indian Community School of Milwaukee, Inc. Dr. Warner has extensive teaching experience in public and BIA schools.
• Della Warrior of Santa Fe, New Mexico, a member of the Otoe-Missouria Tribe of Oklahoma and President of the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) where she also served as Interim President and, prior to becoming president, as Development Director. She has a Masters Degree in Education from Harvard University.

FAAIE founding director Lorraine Edmo, a member of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes of Fort Hall, Idaho, previously served in the U.S. Department of Education's Office of lndian Education (OIE). From 1993 to 1999, she served as executive director of the National Indian Education Association (NIEA), the country's oldest and largest non-profit Indian education organization. From 1983 to 1992, she served as Executive Director of the American Indian Graduate Center (AIGC) in Albuquerque, N.M., a non-profit scholarship organization for American Indian and Alaska Native graduate students. Edmo has a Bachelors Degree from the University of Montana and a Masters Degree in Public Administration from the University of New Mexico.

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