OPA

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell will hold a news media conference call with reporters to discuss President Obama’s establishment of the White House Council on Native American Affairs. Members of the media may participate in the call by dialing 1-888-810-6756 and providing the access code INTERIOR.

The press call will immediately follow Secretary Jewell’s remarks at the closing session of the National Congress of American Indians Mid Year Conference in Reno, Nevada. Secretary Jewell will discuss Interior’s ongoing work to uphold President Obama’s commitment to strengthen the government-to-government relationship with Tribal Nations.

Established in 1944, the National Congress of American Indians is the oldest and largest association of tribal governments in the United States. Secretary Jewell’s remarks will begin at 9:30 am Pacific Time in the Grand Ballroom at the Atlantis Casino Resort.

Albuquerque, N.M. -- Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute (SIPI) will undergo a comprehensive evaluation visit October 7-9, 2013 by a team representing The Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. The public is being invited to submit comments on the school until September 9, 2013. SIPI is currently in “candidacy” status and is a candidate for initial accreditation by the Commission.

The Higher Learning Commission is one of six accrediting agencies in the United States that provide institutional accreditation on a regional basis. Accreditation is the primary means for assuring accountability; it certifies institutional quality and protects the institution’s academic freedom. Institutional accreditation evaluates an entire institution and accredits it as a whole. Accreditation is voluntary. The Commission is recognized by the U.S Department of Education.

For the past three and half years, SIPI has been engaged in a process of self-study, addressing the Commissions requirements and criteria for accreditation. The evaluation team will review SIPI’s ability to meet the Commission’s Criteria for Accreditation. The team will make a recommendation to the Commission; following a review process, the Commission itself will take the final action.

Comments should be sent to:

Third Party Comment on Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute

The Higher Learning Commission

230 South LaSalle Street, Suite 7-500

Chicago, Ill. 60604-1411

The public may also submit comments on the Commission’s website at http://www.aihec.org/

Comments must address substantive matters related to the quality of SIPI or its academic programs. Comments must be in writing. Written, signed comments must be received by September 9, 2013.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Kevin K. Washburn today issued the following statement on the passing of former Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe Chief Executive Marge Anderson:

“Marge Anderson was a remarkable individual who will be forever remembered by her people and Indian Country as a trailblazer, a visionary and an undaunted defender of her tribe’s treaty rights. She was a formidable political leader who was elected twice to lead the Mille Lacs Band, and her courage and tenacity helped the Mille Lacs people regain, preserve and use their treaty rights.

“As the first female chief executive of any Minnesota tribe, Marge Anderson knew the importance of economic development in supporting and building Ojibwe families. Because she was not afraid to go the distance to bring job-creating businesses to her community, the Mille Lacs Band has been the beneficiary of her pursuit of long-term prosperity for her people.

“Marge Anderson was and will remain one of Indian Country’s most important tribal leaders of recent memory. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Anderson family and the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe community.”

-DOI-

WASHINGTON – The Bureau of Indian Affairs Office of Justice Services will offer the next in its series of training sessions for tribal court personnel on July 22-25, 2013, in Reno, Nev., with cases focusing on illegal narcotics. Because of a high level of interest, the Office of Justice Services (OJS) is continuing to provide legal training it successfully held in 2012 to new groups of tribal court prosecutors, defenders and judges to improve their trial advocacy skills. The training focuses on cases involving the trafficking of illegal narcotics, domestic violence and sexual assault on children and adults. The first two sessions in the 2013 Tribal Court Trial Advocacy Training Program series took place May 14-16 in Missoula, Mont., with a focus on domestic violence cases, and June 17-20 in Grand Forks, N.D., with cases concerning sexual assaults on children. Remaining training sessions and topics in the 2013 series are: August 6-9 in Philadelphia, Miss. (domestic violence) and December 2-5 in Oklahoma City (sexual assault on adults). All of the sessions include a roundtable discussion on the Violence Against Women Act. Tribal court trial advocacy training is mandated by the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010 and is being conducted under the Tribal Court Trial Advocacy Training Program – a joint effort of the Department of the Interior and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) that furthers the mandate of the Act to strengthen tribal sovereignty over criminal justice matters on federal Indian lands by sharpening the skills of those who practice within the tribal court system. The program is the result of a collaborative effort by the OJS and the DOJ’s Access to Justice Initiative to offer trial advocacy training with courses designed specifically for tribal courts and

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free training to the judges, public defenders and prosecutors who work in them. Training will be conducted by working law professionals using instructional materials prepared by experts knowledgeable about tribal court issues. The program is unique for its public defenders training. President Obama signed the Violence Against Women Act on March 7, 2013. It includes important provisions for federally recognized tribes to combat violence against Native women such as homicide, rape, assault and battery in the home, workplace and on school campuses throughout Indian Country.

CREDENTIALS: This invitation is extended to credentialed media representatives, who must display sanctioned media credentials for admittance to the event.

-DOI-

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell today convened the inaugural meeting of the White House Council on Native American Affairs, launching President Obama’s national policy initiative to make federal agencies work more collaboratively and effectively with federally recognized tribes to advance their vital economic and social priorities. “Today’s meeting underscores President Obama’s commitment to build effective partnerships with American Indian and Alaska Native communities and make the federal government work more efficiently to find solutions to the challenges facing Indian Country,” said Jewell. “I am honored to play a role in the President’s initiative to maximize federal efforts to support the tribes as they tackle pressing issues, such as educational achievement and economic development. The federal government’s unique trust relationship with tribes as well as the Nation’s legal and treaty obligations call for a priority effort to promote prosperous and resilient communities.” Today’s discussions focused on initial efforts to implement President Obama’s executive order that established the White House Council on Native American Affairs. Joining Secretary Jewell at the White House meeting were Senior Advisor to the President Valerie Jarrett, White House Domestic Policy Director Cecilia Muñoz, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, Labor Secretary Thomas Perez, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx, and Education Secretary Arne Duncan. The Council, which includes more than 30 federal departments and agencies, coordinates the Administration’s engagement with tribal governments and works across executive departments, agencies and offices to develop policy recommendations and expand efforts to leverage federal programs and resources available to tribal communities.

The Council, which will meet at least three times a year, will focus its efforts on advancing five priorities that mirror the issues tribal leaders have raised during previous White House Tribal Nations Conferences:

1. Promoting sustainable economic development;
2. Supporting greater access to and control over healthcare;
3. Improving the effectiveness and efficiency of tribal justice systems;
4. Expanding and improving educational opportunities for Native American youth; and
5. Protecting and supporting the sustainable management of Native lands, environments, and natural resources.

The Executive Order that established the Council also institutionalized the White House Tribal Nation Conference as an annual event. Held each year since the President came into office, the conferences have brought together leaders from all federally recognized tribes with Cabinet members and senior Administration officials. President Obama has hosted the conference four times since 2009. The President’s national policy initiative advances his Administration’s concerted efforts to restore and heal relations with Native Americans and strengthen the nation-to-nation relationship between the United States and tribal governments, bolstering the federal policies of self-determination and self-governance that will help American Indian and Alaska Native leaders build and sustain their own communities. Pictures from today’s meeting are available here.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – As part of President Obama’s commitment to empower tribal nations, Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, on behalf of the United States, today signed an historic agreement at the Department of the Interior guaranteeing water rights for the White Mountain Apache Tribe of Arizona. The agreement will also provide funding for infrastructure to deliver clean drinking water to the Reservation, as well as water security for the City of Phoenix and other downstream water users.

Joining Secretary Jewell were White Mountain Apache Chairman Ronnie Lupe and officials from the Tribe and the State of Arizona, including Representative Ann Kirkpatrick and former Senator Jon Kyl. The Secretary’s signature provides final Federal approval of the White Mountain Apache Tribe Water Rights Quantification Agreement, first authorized as part of the Claims Resolution Act of 2010.

The signing ceremony comes on the heels of the first meeting of the President’s new White House Council on Native American Affairs, chaired by Secretary Jewell yesterday and attended by other Cabinet members and senior Administration officials.

“Today we are taking a key step in fulfilling the Administration’s commitment to resolving water rights in a manner that benefits Indian tribes and provides certainty to water users,” said Secretary Jewell. “Perhaps most importantly, the agreement paves the way to ensuring that the White Mountain Apache Tribe will have clean drinking water in communities across the Reservation for the next 100 years.”

“On behalf of the White Mountain Apache Tribe, we thank Secretary Jewell, the Federal Negotiation Team, Governor Brewer, Salt River Project officials, the Phoenix Valley cities and irrigation districts, the Central Arizona Water Conservation District, Show Low, and our water rights team and attorney – with special thanks to former Senator Jon Kyl and Congresswoman Ann Kirkpatrick for helping us achieve a dignified and honorable quantification of our water rights,” said Chairman Lupe, who signed the agreement on behalf of the Tribe.

The White Mountain Apache Reservation includes more than 1.6 million acres in the headwaters of the Salt River basin in Arizona. The agreement resolves the White Mountain Apache Tribe’s claims to both the Gila and the Little Colorado Rivers in Arizona. The authorizing legislation includes substantial benefits for the Tribe, including funding of more than $200 million for the planning, design, construction, and operation and maintenance of the WMAT Rural Water System and an additional authorization for $78.5 million for a Settlement Fund for fish production, rehabilitation of recreational lakes, and other projects that will benefit the Tribe.

The rural drinking water system will extend from the town of Whiteriver in the east to the town of Cibecue on the west side of the Reservation. In addition, the agreement acknowledges the Tribe’s interest in and management of other valuable water and water-dependent resources on the Reservation such as lakes, springs and water- dependent fish and wildlife. This agreement establishes a firm foundation for improved irrigation water delivery on Reservation lands.

Today’s agreement is significant to the City of Phoenix and surrounding municipalities because the Salt River Water Project is dependent on the Tribe’s senior claims to the water.

“Reaching an agreement of this historic magnitude can only be accomplished through the collective and collaborative efforts of the state, tribe and local communities,” said Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Kevin Washburn. “I applaud the tribe’s commitment to resolving this issue and I look forward to the tangible benefits it will deliver to the White Mountain Apache Nation, both in terms of health and the economy.”

The agreement executed today is one of six Indian water agreements authorized since 2009 in legislation signed by President Obama, and one of four authorized in the Claims Resolution Act signed by President Obama on December 8, 2010.

The other three agreements authorized in the Claims Resolutions Act have been executed:

• On April 27, 2012, former Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar executed the Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement in a signing ceremony at the Department of the Interior with Crow Chairman Cedric Black Eagle and Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer. This compact settles all of the Crow Tribe’s claims to water in the State of Montana and provides funding for design and construction of a rural water system on the Crow Reservation and for rehabilitation and improvement of the Crow Irrigation Project, while also providing for administration and current and future use of water by all Indian and non-Indian water users on the Reservation.

• On July 11, 2012, Salazar executed three water contracts as part of implementation of the Taos Pueblo Indian Water Rights Settlement, which includes the Taos Pueblo, the State of New Mexico, the Town Of Taos, various non-Indian water users and the United States. Provisions relating to this settlement in the 2010 law resolve water rights disputes in the Rio Pueblo de Taos and Rio Hondo stream systems in New Mexico.

• On March 14, 2013, Salazar executed the Aamodt Water Rights Settlement provisions related to the Rio Pojoaque Basin north of Santa Fe, New Mexico which is the homeland of the Tesuque, Nambe, Pojoaque and San Ildefonso Pueblos. Secretary Salazar and Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Kevin Washburn joined leaders of the four tribes and New Mexico Governor Susanna Martinez at the Santa Fe Indian School to execute and celebrate the agreement. It provided finality to the Pueblos’ water rights and certainty for non-Indian water rights in north central New Mexico.

Pictures from today’s signing ceremony are available here.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Tuesday, July 30, Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell will sign an historic agreement at the Department of the Interior that will guarantee water rights for the White Mountain Apache Tribe of Arizona and provide water security for the City of Phoenix and other downstream water users. The ceremony will be live-streamed to the public.

Secretary Jewell will be joined by White Mountain Apache Chairman Ronnie Lupe, Former Senator John Kyl, U.S. Representative Ann Kirkpatrick and other federal, tribal and state dignitaries.

The White Mountain Apache Reservation includes more than 1.6 million acres in the headwaters of the Salt River basin in Arizona. The agreement to be signed on Tuesday will provide funding for design and construction of a rural water delivery system on the Reservation and secure water flow for the city of Phoenix which depends on the same river basin for basic water needs. The agreement is one of four Indian water agreements authorized in the Claims Resolution Act signed by President Obama on December 8, 2010.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – As part of President Obama’s commitment to empower tribal nations, Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, on behalf of the United States, today signed an historic agreement at the Department of the Interior guaranteeing water rights for the White Mountain Apache Tribe of Arizona. The agreement will also provide funding for infrastructure to deliver clean drinking water to the Reservation, as well as water security for the City of Phoenix and other downstream water users.

Joining Secretary Jewell were White Mountain Apache Chairman Ronnie Lupe and officials from the Tribe and the State of Arizona, including Representative Ann Kirkpatrick and former Senator Jon Kyl. The Secretary’s signature provides final Federal approval of the White Mountain Apache Tribe Water Rights Quantification Agreement, first authorized as part of the Claims Resolution Act of 2010.

The signing ceremony comes on the heels of the first meeting of the President’s new White House Council on Native American Affairs, chaired by Secretary Jewell yesterday and attended by other Cabinet members and senior Administration officials.

“Today we are taking a key step in fulfilling the Administration’s commitment to resolving water rights in a manner that benefits Indian tribes and provides certainty to water users,” said Secretary Jewell. “Perhaps most importantly, the agreement paves the way to ensuring that the White Mountain Apache Tribe will have clean drinking water in communities across the Reservation for the next 100 years.”

“On behalf of the White Mountain Apache Tribe, we thank Secretary Jewell, the Federal Negotiation Team, Governor Brewer, Salt River Project officials, the Phoenix Valley cities and irrigation districts, the Central Arizona Water Conservation District, Show Low, and our water rights team and attorney – with special thanks to former Senator Jon Kyl and Congresswoman Ann Kirkpatrick for helping us achieve a dignified and honorable quantification of our water rights,” said Chairman Lupe, who signed the agreement on behalf of the Tribe.

The White Mountain Apache Reservation includes more than 1.6 million acres in the headwaters of the Salt River basin in Arizona. The agreement resolves the White Mountain Apache Tribe’s claims to both the Gila and the Little Colorado Rivers in Arizona. The authorizing legislation includes substantial benefits for the Tribe, including funding of more than $200 million for the planning, design, construction, and operation and maintenance of the WMAT Rural Water System and an additional authorization for $78.5 million for a Settlement Fund for fish production, rehabilitation of recreational lakes, and other projects that will benefit the Tribe.

The rural drinking water system will extend from the town of Whiteriver in the east to the town of Cibecue on the west side of the Reservation. In addition, the agreement acknowledges the Tribe’s interest in and management of other valuable water and water-dependent resources on the Reservation such as lakes, springs and water- dependent fish and wildlife. This agreement establishes a firm foundation for improved irrigation water delivery on Reservation lands.

Today’s agreement is significant to the City of Phoenix and surrounding municipalities because the Salt River Water Project is dependent on the Tribe’s senior claims to the water.

“Reaching an agreement of this historic magnitude can only be accomplished through the collective and collaborative efforts of the state, tribe and local communities,” said Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Kevin Washburn. “I applaud the tribe’s commitment to resolving this issue and I look forward to the tangible benefits it will deliver to the White Mountain Apache Nation, both in terms of health and the economy.”

The agreement executed today is one of six Indian water agreements authorized since 2009 in legislation signed by President Obama, and one of four authorized in the Claims Resolution Act signed by President Obama on December 8, 2010.

The other three agreements authorized in the Claims Resolutions Act have been executed:

• On April 27, 2012, former Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar executed the Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement in a signing ceremony at the Department of the Interior with Crow Chairman Cedric Black Eagle and Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer. This compact settles all of the Crow Tribe’s claims to water in the State of Montana and provides funding for design and construction of a rural water system on the Crow Reservation and for rehabilitation and improvement of the Crow Irrigation Project, while also providing for administration and current and future use of water by all Indian and non-Indian water users on the Reservation.

• On July 11, 2012, Salazar executed three water contracts as part of implementation of the Taos Pueblo Indian Water Rights Settlement, which includes the Taos Pueblo, the State of New Mexico, the Town Of Taos, various non-Indian water users and the United States. Provisions relating to this settlement in the 2010 law resolve water rights disputes in the Rio Pueblo de Taos and Rio Hondo stream systems in New Mexico.

• On March 14, 2013, Salazar executed the Aamodt Water Rights Settlement provisions related to the Rio Pojoaque Basin north of Santa Fe, New Mexico which is the homeland of the Tesuque, Nambe, Pojoaque and San Ildefonso Pueblos. Secretary Salazar and Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Kevin Washburn joined leaders of the four tribes and New Mexico Governor Susanna Martinez at the Santa Fe Indian School to execute and celebrate the agreement. It provided finality to the Pueblos’ water rights and certainty for non-Indian water rights in north central New Mexico.

Pictures from today’s signing ceremony are available here.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Kevin K. Washburn today issued the following statement on the passing of Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana Chairman Earl J. Barbry Sr.:

"Having given a lifetime of dedication and distinguished service to the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana, Chairman Barbry will long be remembered as one of the great visionary and courageous leaders Indian Country has produced throughout history. He was a quiet and respectful man full of action who willingly shouldered the weight of responsible leadership, and worked tirelessly over the years to improve the lives of his people.

“As one of Indian Country’s longest serving elected tribal leaders, he successfully represented the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe at the highest levels of national American Indian discourse and policymaking, but did not forget the importance of family and tradition. His strong, faithful advocacy for tribal sovereignty and self-determination was reflected in his fight for and winning of federal recognition status for the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe.

“Thanks to his strong drive to build the future of the Tunica-Biloxi people, Chairman Barbry has left as his legacy a strong community that can be proud of its accomplishments and progress. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Barbry Family and the Tunica-Biloxi community.”

-DOI-

WASHINGTON – The Bureau of Indian Affairs Office of Justice Services will offer the next in its series of training sessions for tribal court personnel on Aug. 6-9, 2013, in Philadelphia, Miss., with presentations that focus on domestic violence.

Because of a high level of interest, the Office of Justice Services (OJS) has continued to provide legal training it successfully held in 2012 to new groups of tribal court prosecutors, defenders and judges to improve their trial advocacy skills. The training focuses on cases involving the trafficking of illegal narcotics, domestic violence and sexual assault on children and adults.

The 2013 Tribal Court Trial Advocacy Training Program sessions already held took place on May 14-16 in Missoula, Mont., with a focus on domestic violence cases; June 17-20 in Grand Forks, N.D., with cases concerning sexual assaults on children; and July 22-25 in Reno, Nev., with cases concerning illegal narcotics. The last session in the 2013 series will take place Dec. 2-5 in Oklahoma City and focus on cases concerning sexual assaults on adults. All of the sessions include a roundtable discussion on the Violence Against Women Act.

Tribal court trial advocacy training is mandated by the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010 and is being conducted under the Tribal Court Trial Advocacy Training Program – a joint effort of the Department of the Interior and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) that furthers the mandate of the Act to strengthen tribal sovereignty over criminal justice matters on federal Indian lands by sharpening the skills of those who practice within the tribal court system.

The program is the result of a collaborative effort by the OJS and the DOJ’s Access to Justice Initiative to offer trial advocacy training with courses designed specifically for tribal courts and

-Continued-

Tribal Courts Training MA – Page 2

free training to the judges, public defenders and prosecutors who work in them. Training is being conducted by working law professionals using instructional materials prepared by experts knowledgeable about tribal court issues. The program is unique for its public defenders training.

President Obama signed the Violence Against Women Act on March 7, 2013. It includes important provisions for federally recognized tribes to combat violence against Native women such as homicide, rape, assault and battery in the home, workplace and on school campuses throughout Indian Country.

CREDENTIALS: This invitation is extended to credentialed media representatives, who must display sanctioned media credentials for admittance to the event.

-DOI-