Tuesday, February 11, 2025

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The office of Gov. Greg Gianforte (R-MT) met the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes and local officials last week to settle a dispute over law enforcement funding on the Flathead Reservation.

Montana Public Radio’s Aaron Bolton has the latest.

For years, Lake County has sought state funding to cover its costs for enforcing and prosecuting felonies on the reservation.

It’s exercised that authority under a decades-old agreement with the state and the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes.

The county is once again backing legislation that would fund its law enforcement services for tribal members, but Commissioner Gale Decker says this time is different.

“The county is saying fund us until the state can retrocede and the feds can come in and take it over.”

That bill would give the county a little more than half of what it says it costs to police the reservation over the next two years.

The state intends to pull out of the law enforcement agreement, known as Public Law 280, but the timeline is unknown.

Gov. Gianforte’s office did not respond to a request for comment about whether it supports temporary funding for Lake County.

If both the county and state pull out, it will be left up to the tribes and the federal government to provide law enforcement.

The tribes have taken over more felony cases, but it’s unclear if they are able to take every case.

Federal officials have long said they do not have the resources spare for the reservation.

(Courtesy University of Oregon)

An author of a new report says institutions need to do more to close the higher education graduation gap for Native Americans.

As Isobel Charlé reports, that includes in Oregon where there are some efforts to boost higher education among Native students.

The report notes at just 25%, Native Americans have the lowest college-going rate of any racial group in the country.

Cheryl Crazy Bull with the American Indian College Fund, who helped author the report, recommends states set specific higher education goals focused on increasing Native participation.

She adds they should prioritize direct engagement with tribes and schools to provide resources, as well as expanding recruitment practices.

“Those practices can often exclude Native students who live in reservation rural areas as well as urban Native students. ”

In 2022, Oregon made public universities free for Native students enrolled in one of the state’s nine federally recognized tribes through the Oregon Tribal Stewardship Grant.

The program has been gaining steam over the years, but the graduation gap, made larger during the pandemic, has not closed.

While Crazy Bull says financial barriers play a big part in preventing Native people from accessing higher education, she adds not all issues can be solved with money.

“How do institutions create a place or a sense of belonging for students? That’s just a constant effort.”

Crazy Bull adds, even before the new administration, anti-DEI practices were harmful to Native students’ experiences.

Native students can apply for the Oregon Tribal Stewardship Grant until April, as long as funds are available.

To qualify for the grant, they must be accepted for enrollment at an Oregon college or university.

Former Interior Secretary Deb Haaland (Laguna Pueblo) is running for governor of New Mexico.

The announcement was made in a video, which was launched Tuesday.

In the video, Haaland talks about her time in Congress and at the Interior Department saying among things she worked on in the state – helping open small businesses, expanding solar power, and bringing water to rural communities.

Her platform for governor includes lowering costs for families, improving schools, and addressing crime prevention.

Haaland made history becoming one of the first Native American women to serve in Congress and the first Native person to hold the position of Secretary of the Interior.

Haaland says in the coming weeks, she’ll be traveling the state to hear directly from community members.