In October of 2018, Congress passed the SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act (P.L. 115-271). The comprehensive opioid treatment law passed both chambers of Congress with large bipartisan support and tackled many aspects...more
On Tuesday, May 12, 2020, House Democrats introduced H.R. 6800 – The Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act, also known as the CARES 2.0 bill. This $3 trillion package would provide additional...more
5/14/2020
/ CARES Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Federal Funding ,
Financial Stimulus ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Relief Measures ,
State and Local Government ,
Tribal Governments ,
Unemployment Benefits ,
Unemployment Insurance
Tribal nations are governments. As such, they are responsible for the same type of governmental functions as state and local governments such as health, education, social services, infrastructure, elderly care, public safety,...more
On Thursday, August 22, the Department of the Treasury will publish a notice in the Federal Register announcing that the Treasury Tribal Advisory Committee (TTAC) will meet on Wednesday, September 18, from 9:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m....more
On Friday, August 9, 2019, in Brackeen v. Bernhardt, No. 18-11479, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit declared that the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) and its implementing federal regulations (“the Final Rule”)...more
8/14/2019
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Anti-Commandeering ,
Appeals ,
Child Custody ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Department of the Interior ,
Equal Protection ,
Final Rules ,
Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 (ICWA) ,
Native American Issues ,
Non-Delegation Doctrine ,
Reversal ,
Standing ,
Summary Judgment ,
Tenth Amendment
On Wednesday, June 5, the Treasury Department published a notice in the Federal Register announcing that the Treasury Tribal Advisory Committee (TTAC) will meet on Thursday, June 20, from 9:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time in...more
• On June 3, 2019, a federal court in New Hampshire ruled in favor of a New Hampshire state agency in concluding that “the text, context, and structure of the Wire Act” limit the Act’s applicability to sports gambling and no...more
• On January 14, 2019, the U.S. Department of Justice released a November 2, 2018, opinion from its Office of Legal Counsel reversing previously issued guidance under the Obama Administration that interpreted the Wire Act to...more
In Brackeen v. Zinke, No. 4:17-cv-868-O (N.D. Tex.), the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas declared that the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) and its implementing federal regulations (the Final Rule) are...more
All three branches of the federal government had a busy spring. The U.S. Supreme Court just completed its 2017 term in June with a full-strength bench after spending much of the previous term with only eight justices after...more
7/18/2018
/ Action to Quiet Title ,
Department of the Interior ,
Drainage ,
Drought ,
Executive Orders ,
Farm Bill ,
Federal Funding ,
General Welfare Exclusion ,
Government Reorganization ,
In Rem Jurisdiction ,
Indian General Allotment Act ,
Jurisdiction ,
Land Owners ,
Land Purchases ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Native American Issues ,
Opioid ,
Polling ,
Presidential Nominations ,
Reauthorization ,
Reclamation ,
Retirement ,
Salmon ,
SCOTUS ,
Senate Confirmation Hearings ,
Sovereign Immunity ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Treaties ,
Trump Administration ,
Upper Skagit Indiana Tribe v Lundgren ,
Vacated ,
WA Supreme Court ,
Washington v United States ,
Water ,
Water Rights ,
Water Usage ,
Women in the Law
When Congress returned after the December break, it needed to reach a spending agreement on government funding for the remainder of fiscal year 2018. Since October 2017, the government had been funded through a series of...more
4/27/2018
/ Bureau of Indian Affairs ,
Department of Agriculture ,
Farm Bill ,
Federal Funding ,
Land Use Restrictions ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Native American Issues ,
NLRA ,
Opioid ,
Patchak v Zinke ,
Presidential Appointments ,
SCOTUS ,
Separation of Powers ,
Sovereign Immunity ,
Tribal Employees ,
Trump Administration
January 2018 marked the beginning of year two of the Trump Presidency and the second session of the 115th Congress. Congress came back into session on January 3 after recessing for the December holidays. With the passage of...more
1/29/2018
/ Agricultural Sector ,
Appropriation ,
Article III ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Continuing Resolution ,
Farm Bill ,
Government Shutdown ,
Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 (ICWA) ,
Native American Issues ,
NEPA ,
Opioid ,
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ,
Tax Reform ,
Tribal Corporations ,
Tribal Lands ,
USDA
Congress returned from the Thanksgiving holiday with an intense workload that must be completed by the end of the year. Tax reform remains a focus, and the Republican-controlled Congress is still committed to getting a final...more
12/8/2017
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Coal ,
Department of the Interior ,
FERC ,
Indian Gaming ,
Indian Tribal Trusts ,
Low Income Housing ,
Native American Issues ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Oral Argument ,
SCOTUS ,
Tax Reform ,
Tax Treaty ,
Trade Relations ,
Tribal Governments ,
Tribal Lands ,
Trump Administration ,
Water