Breaking News
Fast-moving policy, legislative and legal developments affecting California Indian tribes.
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Padilla and Schiff objected when regulators moved to weaken tribal consultation. They haven’t said how they’ll vote on a Senate bill that would narrow it by law.
The Senate takes its first vote on the permitting bill S. 5653 on Nov. 9. Its Title III would rewrite Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, and tribal leaders meeting…
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California’s new tribal contracting law opens a door for tribes. It stops at the federal list.
AB 2187, signed Sept. 25 and passed without a single no vote, lets state agencies hire tribes directly for consulting and stewardship work without competitive bidding. The core exemptions name only “federally…
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California says tribes without federal recognition are sovereign too. Its stewardship tools still sort them by status.
On Wednesday the California Natural Resources Agency briefs the state Water Commission on its tribal consultation policy, which covers tribes without federal recognition “as appropriate.” The agency’s own documents show where that…
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Shasta elders want a say in Salmon River restoration. California’s fast track for restoration projects doesn’t require anyone to ask them.
Shasta Konomihu elders in Siskiyou County have asked to be consulted under AB 52 on Salmon River restoration work. Their request runs into a gap that reaches all the way to Ohlone…
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California’s Native heritage commission is rewriting the rules for sacred sites. Tribes without federal recognition would have to prove themselves first.
The Native American Heritage Commission has released draft rules for its confidential Sacred Lands File that would let only tribes on its contact list submit sites on their own, and would re-review…
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Washington is rewriting Section 106. Tribes without federal recognition, already consulted only by invitation, could lose even that.
A bipartisan Senate permitting bill would rewrite the National Historic Preservation Act’s review process, and the Senate’s first vote is set for Nov. 9. Separately, the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation has…
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Prop. 45 would write tribes like the Muwekma Ohlone out of California’s environmental review. Voters decide Nov. 3.
Proposition 45, a builder-backed rewrite of the California Environmental Quality Act, would let “essential” projects consult only with federally recognized tribes. In parts of the Ohlone homeland, that could leave no tribe…
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The federal paper trail of California’s Indian people is being boxed up for Colorado. California has sued to stop it.
The National Archives plans to close its San Bruno facility, on Ramaytush Ohlone land, and ship its Bureau of Indian Affairs records to Denver. On Oct. 14 California sued to block the…
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Region briefs: Clear Lake tribes win a co-management pact, the cardroom war heads to appeal, and the fine print leaves unrecognized tribes out
Seven Pomo and Lake Miwok tribes signed California’s first watershed co-management agreement under a 2024 law. A second cultural burn agreement is coming. And the fight between gaming tribes and cardrooms, including…
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Shutdown clock resets to Dec. 11. What the stopgap means for Indian health, the BIA, and tribes Washington won’t recognize
A continuing resolution signed Sept. 2 keeps the federal government open through Dec. 11. Indian Health Service clinics are shielded by advance funding, but construction, sanitation and the diabetes program face deadlines.…
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Newsom signs an apology to California Indians, then vetoes three bills they fought for
On Sept. 25 Gov. Gavin Newsom signed ten tribal bills, including a formal state apology, a Native American Day holiday and a permanent Office of Tribal Affairs. Within days he vetoed bills…
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