Legislature(2021 - 2022)BUTROVICH 205
03/17/2022 03:30 PM Senate STATE AFFAIRS
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB187 | |
| SB207 | |
| SB214 | |
| HB123 | |
| SB129 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | HB 187 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | SB 207 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | SB 214 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 123 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| + | SB 129 | TELECONFERENCED | |
HB 123-STATE RECOGNITION OF TRIBES
4:47:39 PM
CHAIR SHOWER announced the consideration of HOUSE BILL NO. 123
"An Act providing for state recognition of federally recognized
tribes; and providing for an effective date."
He asked Ms. Wolff to provide her testimony.
4:48:23 PM
LAURA WOLFF, Assistant Attorney General, Opinions, Appeals, and
Ethics Section, Civil Division, Department of Law, Anchorage,
Alaska, stated that DOL was asked to assess whether or not the
text of HB 123 in any way impacts the powers or authorities of
tribes or the state. The conclusion was that the bill does not
in any way change or confer new rights or authority. She offered
to answer any questions about the legal memorandum regarding HB
123 that the department sent to the committee.
4:49:45 PM
CHAIR SHOWER segued to the topic of St. Patrick's Day. He
advised that his office had contacted the President of the Irish
Senate who was now online to extend his greetings in recognition
and honor of St. Patrick's Day.
The President of the Irish Senate extended his greetings, his
appreciation that people were celebrating St. Patrick's Day, and
his hope that some Alaskans would travel to Ireland either this
year for the 100th anniversary of the Irish Senate or next year
in celebration of the Notre Dame Navy game.
SENATOR COSTELLO stated that it is an honor to be one of the
cochairs of the Friends of Ireland caucus in the Alaska
legislature. She congratulated him for establishing similar
caucuses in all 50 states.
The Irish Senate President expressed his gratitude and noted
that the Irish Parliament had two bars, both of which were busy
that day.
4:52:38 PM
CHAIR SHOWER returned attention to HB 123.
4:53:15 PM
BETTY JO MOORE, representing self, Sitka, Alaska, stated that
she is a tribal citizen testifying in opposition to HB 123. She
said paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) in Section 3 regarding
jurisdiction are all very confusing. She related that Congress
enacted Public Law (PL) 280 in 1953 and Alaska was made a
mandatory PL 280 state in 1958. That law transferred
jurisdiction over all criminal matters committed by or against
Indians in Indian Country from the federal government to the
state. In Alaska that means everywhere other than Metlakatla
Island.
MS. MOORE cited the following:
similar A May 29, 2019, Alaska Public Media report about Native
leaders finding it difficult to qualify for federal resources
because of legal confusion between federal Indian Country laws
and the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA).
similar An October 17, 2019 press release when Senator Murkowski said
the Alaska Tribal Public Safety Empowerment Act recognizes the
specific jurisdictional complexities that tribes in Alaska
face. Ms. Moore questioned what the specific jurisdictional
complexities were.
similar An August 25, 2013 Anchorage Daily News (ADN) article reported
that the State of Alaska intervened in a civil case from a
small tribal court in the Village of [Minto]. Then Attorney
General Michael Geraghty reported the state intervened on Mr.
Park's side to protect his constitutional rights.
MS. MOORE said the state attorney general ensures protection of
all Alaskans' state constitutional rights; the U.S. attorney
general ensures protection of all Alaskans' U.S. constitutional
rights; and the U.S. and state attorneys general have
jurisdiction over criminal matters in Alaska and protection of
Alaskans' constitutional rights.
MS. MOORE offered her perspective as a former tribal judge that
not all tribal citizen's U.S. constitutional rights are
protected within tribal government. She said there is no comity
between tribal courts and State of Alaska jurisdiction and her
belief is comity should be nation-to-nation before it is
sanctioned for a state.
MS. MOORE opined that HB 123 is not the answer to improving
lives for all Alaskans. She asked whether tribal governments and
tribal courts were properly funded by the federal government and
how much it would cost the state to address ongoing issues
surrounding Alaska Native people and Alaska jurisdiction, should
HB 123 pass. She urged the committee not to pass HB 123 as
written.
4:58:37 PM
JULIE KITKA, President, Alaska Federation of Natives, Anchorage,
Alaska, described the documents and information she had provided
to the committee during or after the five previous hearings on
HB 123.
similar A document about Alaska's Unique Forms of Self Determination
and Tribal Self Governance that was prepared in an effort to
provide examples of what is different in Alaska compared to
the rest of the United States.
similar A summary briefing for the Senate State Affairs Committee that
reiterates that the implication of state recognition of tribes
in Alaska is different because Alaska's tribes already have
federal recognition status. Thus, the effect of HB 123 is
primarily one of respect. It will start to build trust and
open the potential for cooperation and coordination on the
many issues affecting all Alaskans.
MS. KITKA emphasized that HB 123 does not affect the federal
trust responsibility; it does not affect federal tribal
recognition; it does not affect the sovereignty of federally
recognized tribes; it does not impact the federal recognition
process; and it will have no bearing on state taxation of Alaska
Native lands.
MS. KITKA stated that as she testified before, state recognition
is a matter of state law and it varies both in terms of the
mechanism and the scope. She noted that the memo that was sent
to the committee provided examples of the variations in state
recognition of tribes. She recapped that the three largest state
recognized tribes in the U.S. are the Lumbee Tribe of North
Carolina, the Miami Nation of Indiana, and the United Houma
Nation of Louisiana. The memo also described what a state
recognized tribe is and that it's distinct from a federally
recognized tribe.
MS. KITKA discussed the reason that some Lower 48 tribes sought
state recognition versus the federal recognition process. The
current research indicates that more than 100 applications for
federal recognition are pending in the Office for Tribal
Recognition within the U.S. Department of Interior. Very few
applications are processed every year and only one or two have
been processed in recent years. Because the federal process is
so slow, tribes in Lower 48 states have opted for recognition
through the state process.
She highlighted that Alaska is different because all tribes in
this state are already federally recognized. Now it is just a
matter of the State of Alaska recognizing what is already a
fact.
MS. KITKA concluded her testimony saying that HB 123 is not a
jurisdictional bill. Jurisdiction and recognition are not the
same. She reminded the members that the issue of Indian Country
was determined by the Venetie case and passing HB 123 would not
overturn that settled law or any other court case.
5:03:02 PM
CHAIR SHOWER asked the committee to keep the questions short in
the interest of time.
SENATOR REINBOLD asked: 1) if there really are 229 sovereign
tribes in Alaska and 2) whether a tribal member is recognized by
bloodline or if there were other ways to become a tribal member.
5:04:00 PM
MS. KITKA answered that a unique aspect of Indian law is that
decisions about tribal membership are considered an internal
domestic matter and the sole prerogative of the tribe. The
qualifications and requirements differ from tribe to tribe. Some
may have blood quantum while others may be residency based.
SENATOR REINBOLD expressed interest in seeing the specific
requirements for the tribes, even if it was just a handful.
MS. MOORE stated that ANCSA defines Native as a U.S. citizen who
is 1/4 degree or more Alaska Indian including Eskimos, Aleuts,
and Tsimshian Indians not enrolled in the Metlakatla Indian
community. She said there is no consistent definition among the
229 tribes in Alaska.
SENATOR REINBOLD asked Ms. Kitka if she agreed with the ANCSA
definition.
MS. KITKA answered no; that definition is part of the land
claims settlement to determine who qualified as a shareholder in
a Native corporation established as part of ANCSA. Tribal
membership is different than ANCSA enrolled shareholders. She
restated that federal Indian law stipulates that tribes may set
their own membership requirements. As such, some tribes have
members who are dual citizens of Alaska and Canada and some
membership is based on descendancy. Determination of membership
is a domestic issue for each tribe. There are no overarching
rules.
5:09:17 PM
SENATOR REINBOLD responded that not basing tribal membership on
blood quantum "opens a much broader issue in my mind."
CHAIR SHOWER asked members to contact Ms. Kitka or Ms. Moore
directly if they had questions. Thereafter, the committee would
hold another hearing to ensure those questions and the answers
were part of the record.
5:10:44 PM
CHAIR SHOWER held HB 123 for future consideration.