2016: State and Federal
- HR 3764: Author Rob Bishop - Federal Recognition of a Tribal Government
- Tribal Recognition Act of 2015 This bill replaces the process for federal recognition of Indian tribes. Indian groups may only be recognized as an Indian tribe by Congress. Groups that are not federally recognized may submit a petition for federal recognition to the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and may file a letter of intent in advance. Groups may not be factions of recognized Indian tribes and may not have been denied federal recognition. The BIA must publish guidelines for the preparation of petitions and provide petitioners with suggestions and advice. The bill specifies criteria for a group to be considered an Indian tribe, including that the group has been identified as an Indian entity on a substantially continuous basis since 1900, comprises a distinct community, and consists of individuals who descend from a historical Indian tribe. Previous federal recognition is acceptable evidence of the tribal character of a group to the date of the last such recognition. The BIA must: (1) notify the group, the state in which the group is located, any tribes or petitioning groups that are related to or have a potential interest in the group, and the public of the receipt of a letter of intent or a petition; (2) conduct a preliminary review of a petition and notify the group of obvious deficiencies or significant omissions and provide the group with an opportunity to revise the petition; and (3) review each petition and may initiate additional research before reporting on the petition to Congress.
- June 2016: Tentative Recommendations for the Tribal Court Civil Money Judgement Act by the California Law Commission
- In 2014, the State Legislature enacted Senate Bill 406 establishing the Tribal Court Civil Money Judgment Act and directed the California Law Commission to study the standards for recognition of a tribal court or a foreign court judgment, under the Tribal Court Civil Money Judgement Act. The attached file is the tentative recommendations of the Commission.
- July 8, 2016: Chairman Rob Bishop to Rules Committee
- Blocking Congressman Cole Amendment for a Carcieri Fix
- June 16, 2016: Carcieri Fix - Congressman Cole Amendment
- A long overdue fix to the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Carcieri v. Salazar re-emerged on Capitol Hill on Wednesday. But the language in the bill that funds the Interior Department is not the complete solution that Indian Country has been seeking. Tribes have been asking Congress since February 2009 to confirm that everyone can follow the land-into-trust process, regardless of the date of federal recognition. The amendment instead ensures that tribal land-into-trust acquisitions between June 18, 1934, and February 24, 2009, cannot be challenged in court. It does not address any applications going forward or any approvals since the Supreme Court issued its disastrous ruling more than seven years ago. Rep. Tom Cole (R-Oklahoma), a member of the Chickasaw Nation, acknowledged that his amendment represents only a "partial" response to the decision. But he said it represented a compromise that has the support of key Republicans. READ THIS LINK: http://www.indianz.com/News/2016/06/16/a-partial-landintotrust-fix-added-to-int.asp
- AB 2470 Municipal water districts: water service: Indian tribes.
- AB 2470, as amended, Gonzalez. 1. Purpose of the bill . The original Sycuan reservation is currently served by a single well that is vulnerable to upstream contamination and could be threatened by an earthquake due to the geology of the area. But time-consuming and expensive local processes stand in the way of shoring up supplies for the reservation, even though there are two water districts that border the tribe's land and water lines have already been laid. AB 2470 cuts through the red tape of these processes by requiring a nearby district to serve the original reservation. It provides the Sycuan tribe with the independence that is warranted by its sovereign nation status and lets the tribe deal with the Legislature on equal footing instead of subjecting itself to local processes-the outcome of which is far from guaranteed. AB 2470 paves the way for quickly addressing the public safety risks currently faced by the tribe, while ensuring that it pays its fair share for water service.
- H.R. 5079: Author Congressman LaMalfa Tribal State Compact Protection Act
- Rep. Doug LaMalfa, R-Calif., introduced H.R. 5079, the California Compact Protection Act, which states that the Department of the Interior may not approve a tribal gaming compact that has been rejected by state voters or not ratified by the state Legislature. “The California Compact Protection Act was sponsored by a bipartisan coalition of Californian lawmakers to preserve the tribal-state compact process authorized by the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act and ensure that all tribes are on a level playing field,” LaMalfa said in a statement sent to Law360 Thursday. The legislation is in reaction to two recent California federal court decisions, Kevin Eastman, LaMalfa's legislative director, told Law360 Thursday.
- AB 2470: Sycuan - Municipal water districts: water service: Indian tribes.
- Authored by Assemblywoman Gonzales
- AB 1395: Money Laundering Criminal Activity Lotterys and Gaming
- AB 1437: Protection of Daily Fantasy Sports
- Legislative legalization of sports betting and percentage games beyond the Legislatures constitutional authority. This requires a vote of the public.
- AB 2863 - Online Poker - Author Adam Gray
- This bill, which would be known as the Internet Poker Consumer Protection Act of 2016, would establish a framework to authorize intrastate Internet poker, as specified. The bill would authorize eligible entities to apply for a 7-year license to operate an authorized poker Web site offering the play of authorized Internet poker games to registered players within California, as specified. The bill would require that the license be automatically renewed every 7 years upon application, as specified
- H.R. 3079: Taking Certian Federal Land for the Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk
- To take certain Federal land located in Tuolumne County, California, into trust for the benefit of the Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians, and for other purposes.
- H. R. 2538: Lytton Homeland Act
- To take lands in Sonoma County, California, into trust as part of the reservation of the Lytton Rancheria of California, and for other purposes. Amendment in related items.
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