Native News Weekly (June 25, 2023): D.C. Briefs
WASHINGTON — The most significan news coming out of the nation's capital this week was the U.S. Supreme Court's 5-4 decision in the Navajo Nation v. Arizona that was released on Thursday. The decision ruled against the Navajo Nation.
In addition to articles already covered by Native News Online, here is a roundup of other news released from Washington, D.C. that impacts Indian Country this month.
Rep. Grijalva Calls Supreme Court's Navajo Decision Dangerous
House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today issued the following statement on the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Arizona v. Navajo Nation. The court ruled that the U.S. government’s treaty promise of providing a permanent homeland to the Navajo Nation doesn’t require the U.S. government to take modest steps to secure water supplies needed for a viable homeland.
“This is a dangerous decision that moves us backward to our shameful past in which treaties were promises not worth the paper they were written on,” Ranking Member Grijalva said. “Forcibly removing Indigenous Peoples from their full homelands is a violence we can never reverse. Today, the Court’s majority states that when a treaty establishes a ‘permanent home’ for a tribal nation, the U.S. government doesn’t have to take the most basic steps to ensure the delivery of water needed for a livable home — let alone a permanent home.
Rep. Sharice Davids Reintroduces Legislation to Increase Access to Birth Control and Reproductive Health Care
On Friday, Rep. Sharice Davids (D-KS0, who is a tribal citizen of the Ho-Chunk Nation, along with Rep. Judy Chu (D-CA) and Rep. Dina Titus (D-NV), reintroduced legislation to increase access to birth control and reproductive health care services. The Expanding Access to Family Planning Actwould fund the Title X Family Planning program, which provides comprehensive, confidential family planning and preventive health services, often to low-income or minority populations. Currently, there are three Title X clinics in Kansas’ Third District. Senators Tina Smith (D-MN), a member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, and Patty Murray (D-WA) introduced companion legislation in the Senate.
The Expanding Access to Family Planning Act would:
Provide $512 million annually for 10 years for Title X services, as the program is subjected to an unpredictable funding stream that is insufficient to meet the national needs.
Deliver $50 million in mandatory funding for clinic construction, renovation, and related infrastructure enhancements for each of the next 10 fiscal years.
Reinstate regulations prohibiting discrimination of providers who deliver Title X services.
Require that pregnancy counseling include information about prenatal care and delivery, infant care, foster care, adoption, and pregnancy termination, unless a patient does not have any interest in receiving information about an option.
Treasury Department to Hold Tribal Consultation on Elective Payment of Applicable Credits
The Department of Treasury announced on June 14, 2023 it will host a Tribal Consultation on the Elective Payment of Applicable Credits under the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA), codified as Section 6417 of the Internal Revenue Code (Section 6417). This consultation will be held virtually on Monday, July 17, 2023, 1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. EDT. Register here.
View Dear Tribal Leader Letter here.
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