OPA

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.

“I want to thank the public and the tribes for their patience during the time we have been offline,” Skibine said. “Internet connectivity will enable Indian Affairs employees to use web technologies to improve business processes and customer interactions for better and more efficient communications with those we serve.”

On December 5, 2001, the federal judge in a class action lawsuit, Cobell, et al., v. Secretary of the Interior, et al., entered a temporary restraining order requiring the Department to disconnect from the Internet all information technology systems that housed or provided access to individual Indian trust data on the basis of perceived risks to that data. On December 17, 2001, a Consent Order was entered that continued the prohibition and established a process for the Department to obtain permission from the court to reconnect affected bureaus on a case-by-case basis.

Parts of the Department were permitted to reconnect in 2002. However, the five offices that work closely with Indian trust data remained off the Internet. On May 14, 2008, U.S. District Judge James Robertson, the presiding judge in the case, vacated the Consent Order thus allowing those offices to reconnect. On May 23, 2008, BIA offices in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area were connected followed by offices in Albuquerque, N.M., on June 24, 2008. As of July 28, all BIA regional offices, agencies, and field offices still off-line were connected.

“I am extremely proud of how the Indian Affairs organization effectively collaborated to accomplish this historic milestone in record time through proven program management and information technology best practices,” said Indian Affairs CIO Sanjeev Bhagowalia. “We must continue to follow the policies and procedures that have been established as we use the Internet to better serve and communicate with Indian Country. We have instituted policies and mandatory training so that everyone is aware of each employee’s role in ensuring the security of Indian Affairs’ systems.”

Indian Affairs is responsible for fulfilling the Interior Department’s trust responsibilities to individual Indian and tribal trust beneficiaries, as well as promoting tribal self-determination, self-governance and economic development for the nation’s 562 federally recognized American Indian and Alaska Native tribes and their 1.9 million members.

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BISMARK, N.D. – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today announced that the Department will fund $500 million in new school and housing construction, road and bridge improvements, and workforce development projects for federally recognized tribes across the nation. Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the Department’s Indian Affairs office will also offer federally guaranteed loans for American Indian-owned businesses. These investments will significantly improve the quality of life in tribal communities nationwide. Overall, Interior will invest more than $3 billion through President Obama’s economic recovery plan.

Salazar, joined by U.S. Senators Byron L. Dorgan (D-ND) and Kent Conrad (D-ND), U.S. Representative Earl Pomeroy (D-ND) and North Dakota Gov. John Hoeven, made the announcement from the campus of the United Tribes Technical College, where they met with leaders from the state’s five federally recognized tribes. The Secretary is visiting North Dakota for a series of events concerning the tribes, energy development on public lands, and communities affected by spring flooding.

Later today, he will visit the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation to tour the Department’s “one-stop shop” that streamlines oil and gas leasing for the Three Affiliated Tribes and individual landowners. The Tribes are to receive Recovery Act funds to build 10 homes using renewable energy technology through the Bureau of Indian Affairs’ Housing Improvement Program and to provide green employment training for tribal youth and adults.

“These and similar projects across Indian Country are investments in America,” Salazar said. “They will help us fulfill the goals President Obama and this Department have established to empower Native American communities, create jobs, and build our nation’s new energy future.”

Indian Affairs programs funded through Interior’s ARRA investments include:

• School Improvement and Repairs - $143.1 million
• Road Maintenance - $142.5 million
• School Replacement Construction - $134.6 million
• Housing Improvement Program (HIP) - $19 million
• Construction Workforce On-the-Job Training in Maintenance - $13.3 million
• Workforce Training - $5.7 million
• Detention Center Maintenance and Repairs – $7.3 million
• Indian Guaranteed Loan Program - $9.5 million

Overall, up to $19.6 million of Recovery Act funding will go to North Dakota tribes for:

• New home construction;
• School maintenance, repairs, and improvement;
• Road and bridge maintenance, repairs, and improvement;
• Improvement of one tribal detention facility;
• Workforce training associated with these projects.

The group of Housing Improvement Program (HIP) homes slated to be built on the Fort Berthold Reservation is just one of several tribal projects in North Dakota that will receive Indian Affairs Recovery Act funding. The tribes that also will receive funds are the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate of the Lake Traverse Reservation, the Spirit Lake Tribe, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe of North and South Dakota, and the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians of North Dakota.

“These investments will stimulate job creation by bringing much-needed attention to repairing and rebuilding Indian Country’s fraying infrastructure and by providing capital to American Indian-owned businesses,” Salazar said. “We can bridge the gap between making short-term repairs to creating lasting improvements in tribal communities by utilizing green design and renewable energy technology for new and existing homes and schools, correcting health and safety deficiencies in tribal detention facilities, training tribal youth and unskilled workers for lifetime employment, and expanding economic opportunity through loans to Indian businesses.”

An additional $25 million for administrative costs associated with the contracting, awarding, tracking, monitoring, reporting, and oversight of fund expenditures will be placed in a separate account from project funding to maintain transparency and control of such costs. The Indian Affairs projects were selected in a rigorous merit-based process based on the longstanding priorities of the agency, as will all projects included in the Department’s Recovery Act funding.

Secretary Salazar has pledged unprecedented levels of transparency and accountability in the implementation of the Department of the Interior’s economic recovery projects. The public will be able to follow the progress of each project on www.recovery.gov and on www.interior.gov/recovery. Secretary Salazar has appointed a Senior Advisor for Economic Recovery, Chris Henderson, and an Interior Economic Recovery Task Force. Henderson and the Task Force will work closely with the Department of the Interior’s Inspector General to ensure that the recovery program is meeting the high standards for accountability, responsibility, and transparency that President Obama has set.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - President Obama’s proposed $12 billion budget for the Department of the Interior in FY2010 will allow the nation’s largest land manager to play a central role in carrying out the President’s vision for addressing the challenges of our times, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar said today. “Interior is uniquely positioned to be a leader in responsibly developing America’s new energy frontier, tackling climate impacts, restoring and preserving America’s treasured landscapes, creating a 21st Century Youth Conservation Corps, and investing in strong tribal communities,” Salazar said in announcing the agency’s proposed budget for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1, 2009. “The President’s stimulus funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 has provided Interior $3 billion to lay a foundation for this work and his 2010 budget will build on that with targeted increases in key areas.”

The 2010 budget for Interior makes investments critical to the Nation’s economic future including:

• $183 million in increases for a clean energy and mitigation of climate impacts, including:
  • $50.1 million for the Clean Energy Future Initiative to facilitate responsible development of Interior-managed lands and offshore areas with the highest renewable energy potential, including wind, solar, geothermal and biomass; and
  • $133 million for a Climate Impact Initiative to support integrated activities to assess and respond to the effects of climate change on Interior-managed landscapes, water and wildlife;
• $100 million for National Park Service operations to restore and protect America’s treasured landscapes;
• $95.2 million in the Land and Water Conservation Fund for Interior to protect critical landscapes and endangered species habitat and enhance recreational opportunities; and
• a $75 million contingency reserve fund for wildland fire suppression to minimize the need for the transfer of funds from non-fire programs when the budgeted ten-year average for suppression is exhausted;
• $102 million in to strengthen American Indian and Native Alaskan communities through expanded education programs, putting more officers on the streets and enhanced law enforcement training; and
• $50 million for a 21st Century Youth Conservation Corps to engage more youth in the outdoors through environmental stewardship education, career development, and a new fishing, hunting and wildlife management educational program.

“The budget makes hard budget choices while making wise investments in a clean energy economy, making investments in education that will allow student to compete in the 21st century economy, and confronting other challenges,” Secretary Salazar noted. “These proposed initiative increases include more than $100 million in grants to states and tribal communities, our partners in solving the economic and resource challenges facing the Nation.”

Interior manages roughly 20 percent of all U.S. lands, along with the 1.7 billion acres of the Outer Continental Shelf. Almost one-third of the nation’s domestic energy production is generated from Interior-managed lands and waters. Interior also fulfills federal responsibilities for American Indian and Native Alaskan tribes.

Creating a New Energy Frontier: The Budget includes $50.1 million to spur renewable energy projects on Federal lands, facilitate the siting of new transmission facilities, assess alternative energy resources, and ensure adequate environmental protections.

As part of the nation’s clean energy future, the Minerals Management Service would receive increases of $24 million for the development of a robust renewable energy leasing program on the Outer Continental Shelf that will return revenues to the American people. The Bureau of Land Management would receive an increase of $16.1 million for permitting and leasing renewable energy resources and developing transmission facilities, including planning, environmental assessments and analyses. The BLM will use $11 million of that increase to establish four renewable Energy Coordination offices to increase permitting processing capacity and accelerate the delivery of renewable energy to customers.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs would receive $5 million to support renewable energy development on tribal and BIA managed lands, which will lead to improved economic development. About $3 million would be used for the USGS to develop scientific information that will inform renewable energy development. The Fish and Wildlife Service would receive $3 million to ensure the protection of fish and wildlife throughout the development process.

Tackling Climate Impacts: Because Interior has direct responsibility for more than 20 percent of the U.S. land, including American Indian and Native Alaska trust natural resources, wildlife and coastal areas and is the largest provider of water in the West, the Department has a significant role to play in the nation’s response to climate change, including an expanded role in assessment and adaptation in order to protect these resources for future generations.

The initiative includes targeted increases of $22 million for the U.S. Geological Survey to develop a cohesive monitoring strategy to determine impacts on Interior-managed lands, water and wildlife resources and assist land and water managers in devising strategies to address actual and anticipated changes. This includes an increase of $7 million for the USGS to assess potential carbon capture (sequestration) resources, including geologic formations and additional forestation and vegetation projects. An additional $40 million goes to land management bureaus to develop specific tools to address the effects of climate change. The States will also receive $40 million in grants to develop adaptation plans and implement strategies. These funds will allow States to plan for and develop adaptation strategies.

In addition, the Bureau of Reclamation budget includes $46 million to accelerate water conservation measures through grants, studies and water reuse and recycling programs, including an increase of $26 million for water challenge conservation grants. These water conservation strategies will assist Western communities in the management of precious water resources.

Empowering American Indian and Native Alaska Communities: Because education is critical for ensuring a stable, viable and prosperous future for tribal communities, the 2010 budget fulfills the Department’s ongoing commitment to advancing American Indian and Native Alaska education with an increase of $72 million to promote gains in student achievement and assist Indian students in attaining post-secondary education. The budget includes an increase of $10 million for Indian School Equalization Program (ISEP) Formula Funds, the primary source for the Bureau of Education’s 169 elementary and secondary schools and 14 dorms that serve about 42,000 students and residents. The total 2010 request of $391.7 million for ISEP formula funds also includes increases of $6.7 million in fixed costs for teachers pay. Tribal colleges and universities are receiving a $55 million increase in 2010, including a one-time increase of $50 million that will forward-fund the tribal colleges to provide them greater financial security to plan for an entire academic year. The budget also includes increased funding for BIA law enforcement of more than $30 million to help Native Americans protect their communities by strengthening police programs and detention centers.

Protecting Treasured Landscapes: The proposed 2010 budget demonstrates the President’s commitment to preserving America’s treasured landscapes for future generations. The budget makes investments for the future in national parks with a $100 million program increase in National Park Service operations funding and $25 million in park partnership matching funds to leverage private donations in preparation for the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service in 2016. The NPS matching funds will result in a combined benefit to NPS of more than $50 million for signature projects and programs, thus doubling the Federal investment.

Land and Water Conservation Fund: The 2010 budget takes a measured approach to fulfill the commitment for fully funding the Land and Water Conservation Fund. It includes $420 million (including $120 million for U.S. Forest Service), putting the Administration on track to attain full funding of LWCF at $900 million by 2014. Interior’s 2010 funding includes $158 million – an increase of $57 million over 2009 – for protecting and preserving park, refuge, and other Federal lands through 17 projects in nine states. The department also will distribute $30 million – an increase of $10 million above the 2009 enacted level -- for State, tribal and local governments to create and protect park land, open space and wildlife habitat.

Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund: $100 million – an increase of $24.5 million -- for grants to States to support conservation of threatened and endangered species. Through a cost effective program, funds are leveraged by States, who can in turn, can distribute this funding to tribes, municipalities and private landowners.

Creating a 21st Century Youth Conservation Corps: The budget includes $50 million to develop new ways to engage youth in nature in order to build an ethic for environmental protection. It makes an investment in the future and builds on existing efforts in the bureaus to instill a life-long commitment to protecting, preserving and enjoying our treasured lands and places. About $30 million will educate young hunters and anglers and wildlife managers through expanded U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service programs, with a special emphasis on emerging constituencies that have not had access to outdoor activities. A $20 million component will expand existing partnerships with organizations, such as the Student Conservation Association, to inspire a new generation of nature lovers and stewards of our natural resources.

Total proposed funding by bureau is as follows:

Bureau of Indian Affairs $2.5 billion

National Park Service $2.7 billion

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service $1.6 billion

Bureau of Reclamation $1.0 billion

Central Utah Project Completion $42 million

Bureau of Land Management $1.1 billion

Minerals Management Service $181 million

U.S. Geological Survey $1.1 billion

Office of Surface Mining $159 million

Office of Insular Affairs $86 million

Office of Special Trustee for American Indians $186 million

Department wide Programs $1.1 billion

Departmental Management $119 million

Permanent funding that becomes available as a result of existing legislation without further action by Congress will provide an additional $6.1 billion, for a total FY 2010 Interior budget of $18.2 billion. In FY 2010, Interior will collect an estimated $14 billion in revenue for the U.S. Treasury.

More detailed information is in the FY2008 Interior Budget in Brief which is available online at: http://www.doi.gov/budget/2010/10Hilites/toc.html.

WASHINGTON - Deputy Director, Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), Office of Justice Services, Pat Ragsdale, announced today that Sergeant Louis Troy Poitra, a police officer training instructor from the Indian Police Academy in Artesia, New Mexico, is recuperating from a bullet wound in his leg. The investigation of the incident by BIA and FBI authorities is on going.

Sergeant Poitra was on duty as a squad leader with the Operation Dakota Peacekeeper mission, serving on his second 30-day detail on the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation. This mission entails the BIA sending additional personnel to the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation to help combat the high rate of crime and to utilize community-policing tactics to carry out the mission of the deployment and objectives of the operation.

In the early morning hours of September 10, he responded to a call for law enforcement assistance regarding a domestic disturbance in the Little Eagle Community on the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in South Dakota. Upon Sgt. Poitra’s arrival at the scene, an assailant fired rifle shots which struck his police vehicle and wounded Poitra. Nonetheless, Sergeant Poitra secured the suspected assailant, the suspected assailant’s weapon and remained at the scene until the arrival of a National Park Service Police Officer and a Cherokee Nation Marshal. Both officers who responded to the scene to assist Poitra are detailed to the Dakota Peacekeeper mission. The officer and the suspected assailant, who was also injured by a gunshot, were transported to a hospital in Bismarck, North Dakota.

“I am very proud of Sergeant Poitra and everyone associated with this mission. This reminds us all of the dedication, bravery and sacrifice of police officers that serve Indian country and our communities all over America,” said Ragsdale. BIA’s Regional Special Agent in Charge, Elmer Four Dance, echoed Ragsdale’s comments and said, “We are so fortunate to have this caliber of individuals serving Indian communities.”

Sergeant Poitra is 27 years of age, has worked for the BIA for the past 6 years; is a member of the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe, is married, and has two children.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today lauded the Senate’s approval of Larry Echo Hawk, a law professor and former Idaho Attorney General and state legislator, as Interior’s Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs. The President had nominated Echo Hawk on April 20, 2009.

“Larry Echo Hawk has spent his life working on behalf of American Indian communities,” Secretary Salazar said. “He is a dedicated public servant with excellent leadership abilities and the legal expertise and legislative experience to help us carry out President Obama’s commitment to build stronger Indian economies and safer Indian communities. Together we will work cooperatively with the federally-recognized tribes to empower American Indian and Alaska Native people, restore the integrity of the government-to-government relationship and fulfill the United States’ trust responsibilities.”

Echo Hawk, currently a professor of law at Brigham Young University's J. Reuben Clark Law School, began his career as a legal services attorney, working for impoverished Indian people in California, then opened a private law office in Salt Lake City. In 1977, he was hired as tribal attorney for the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes at the Fort Hall Indian Reservation in Idaho, a position he held for more than eight years. He became special counsel to the tribe in 1998. He is admitted to the bar in Idaho, Utah, and California.

A member of the Pawnee Nation, Echo Hawk has served on the American Indian Services National Advisory Board and Board of Trustees, the Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, the Indian Alcoholism Counseling and Recovery House Program and the American Indian Community Resource Center Board. A former U. S. Marine, Echo Hawk was elected Attorney General of Idaho in 1990, the first American Indian in U.S. history elected as a state attorney general. He had served as the Bannock County Prosecuting Attorney since 1986. Before that, he served two consecutive terms in the Idaho House of Representatives, from 1982 to 1986.

Echo Hawk received his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Utah in 1973 and attended Stanford Graduate School of Business’s MBA Program, 1974-1975. He has received numerous awards and honors, including Distinguished Alumnus Awards from both Brigham Young University (1992) and the University of Utah (2003). In 1991, he was awarded George Washington University’s Martin Luther King medal for his contributions to human rights, and was honored as a speaker at the Democratic National Convention. As Idaho’s delegation Chair, he was the first American Indian to lead a state delegation to a national political convention. Echo Hawk received his Bachelor of Science degree from Brigham Young University in 1970, where he studied on an NCAA football scholarship and was named to the Western Athletic Conference All-Academic Football Team in 1969. He also earned Academic All-Conference First Team honors as a senior. Echo Hawk was honored in 1995 as the first BYU graduate to ever receive the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s prestigious Silver Anniversary Award, given to a select few prominent athletes who have completed their collegiate athletic eligibility 25 years ago, and have distinguished themselves in their careers and personal lives.

Echo Hawk, 60, and his wife Terry have six children: Jennifer, Paul, Mark, Matthew, Emily and Michael; and 22 grandchildren.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today praised the U.S. Senate’s confirmation of Larry Echo Hawk, an enrolled member of the Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma and the first American Indian in U.S. history elected as a state attorney general, to serve as the Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs.

“I want to thank the Senate for expeditiously approving Larry Echo Hawk’s confirmation,” Salazar said, “He is a seasoned executive with an extensive background in government, Indian law and public policy. As Interior’s Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, he will help the Department meet its goals of empowering American Indian and Alaska Native communities and supporting the nation’s economic recovery.”

Echo Hawk was elected Attorney General of Idaho in 1990. He had served as the Bannock Country Prosecuting Attorney since 1986. Before that, he served two consecutive terms in the Idaho House of Representatives, from 1982 to 1986. Echo Hawk began his legal career as a legal services attorney working for impoverished Indian people in California, then opened a private law office in Salt Lake City. In 1977, he was hired as tribal attorney for the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes at the Fort Hall Indian Reservation in Idaho, a position he held for more than eight years. He became special counsel to the tribes in 1998. He is admitted to the bar in Idaho, Utah and California.

Echo Hawk has served on the American Indian Services National Advisory Board and Board of Trustees. He was appointed by President Clinton to the Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, which is responsible for coordinating the federal government’s efforts to combat juvenile delinquency in the United States. He also has served on the Indian Alcoholism Counseling and Recovery Housing Program and the American Indian Community Resource Center Board.

A former U.S. Marine, Echo Hawk is a professor of law at Brigham Young University’s J. Reuben Clark Law School, teaching federal Indian law, criminal law, criminal procedure, evidence and criminal trial practice, and has published several scholarly papers.

Echo Hawk received his Bachelor of Science degree from Brigham Young University in 1970, where he studied on an NCAA football scholarship and was named to the Western Athletic Conference All-Academic Football Team in 1969. He was a member of the varsity football team at BYU from 1967 to 1969, playing in every game during his career. He started at safety as a junior and senior, leading the team and ranking fourth in the Western Athletic Conference with five interceptions as a junior in 1968. He earned Academic All-Conference First Team honors as a senior.

Echo Hawk received his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Utah in 1973, and attended Stanford Graduate School of Business’s MBA Program from 1974 to 1975. He has received numerous awards and honors, including Distinguished Alumnus Awards from both Brigham Young University (1992) and the University of Utah (2003). In 1991, Echo Hawk was awarded George Washington University’s prestigious Martin Luther King medal for his contributions to human rights, and was honored as a speaker at the Democratic National Convention. As Idaho’s delegation Chair, he became the first American Indian to lead a state delegation to a national political convention.

Professor Echo Hawk was honored in 1995 as the first BYU graduate ever to receive the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s prestigious Silver Anniversary Award, which is given to a select few prominent athletes who completed their collegiate athletic eligibility 25 years ago and have distinguished themselves in their careers and personal lives.

Echo Hawk, 60, and his wife Terry have six children and 22 grandchildren.