Obama administration moving new tribal recognition rules

The Obama administration is on the brink of making new federal tribal recognition rules – a move that could be a boon to several Connecticut tribes — and opponents are making 11th-hour attempts to stop or slow the process. The Bureau of Indian Affairs said late Monday that its long rule-making process is nearly over. The new regulations are on their way to the Office of Management and Budget’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs for final review "after...numerous tribal consultations and as part of President Obama’s commitment to strengthen the nation-to-nation relationship with Native Americans." The “Part 83” process, named after a section in the federal code, was established in 1978 to give tribes a structured way to seek federal acknowledgement. Kevin Washburn, the Interior Department's Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, wanted to make the Part 83 process more transparent and quicker. In a draft proposal unveiled about a year ago, he proposed modifying certain requirements. For instance, current tribal recognition rules require a tribe to prove it has been a community with a continuous political authority "from historical times." Washburn’s proposal would change that to allow a petitioning tribe to demonstrate it has maintained a state reservation or a tribal authority since at least 1934. Washburn said the changes were overdue because the regulations have only been updated once since they were created...more