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South Dakota state lawmaker Troy Heinert talks about creating Native community-based schools.
South Dakota Senate lawmakers are passing a bill that creates and funds community-based schools centered on Native American cultural curriculum. A similar proposal passed the chamber two years ago but failed in the House. Supporters hope this year is different. South Dakota Public Broadcasting’s Lee Strubinger reports.
A bill in the Alaska State Legislature to provide for state recognition of federally recognized tribes was heard in the Senate State Affairs committee Thursday. House Bill 123 was read for the first time in January and referred to committees. It would not give tribes new power, since they’re sovereign. It aims to have the state acknowledge that sovereignty. The state of Alaska and tribes already work together in a government-to-government capacity through tribal compacts. The state has a compact in child welfare. The state recognition initiative gained more than the needed 36 thousand signatures to be put on this year’s ballot. According to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, there are 229 federally recognized tribes in Alaska. Listen To The Hearing | Follow The Bill
A tribal regalia bill in the Utah Legislature recently passed in the Senate. It had already passed the House. The bill ensures Native students can wear traditional dress, a feather, beaded attired, or moccasins during high school graduation ceremonies across the state. The bill now awaits the signature of Gov. Spencer Cox.
The state of New York is dropping requirements for face coverings indoors, but not the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe, which announced Wednesday it will continue its mask requirements in all public places on the reservation.
