economic development – Page 79

There are many ironies in the history of relations between the United States and its indigenous peoples, but one in particular may be a telling illustration of the distribution of power.

Flip on a light switch in any of the great cities of the Southwest, such as Los Angeles, Las Vegas or Phoenix, and much of the time the energy that creates the light will be coming from one of four massive coal-burning electrical plants located on or a few miles from Navajo Nation land in Arizona and New Mexico.

The plants are critically important employers for members of the Navajo and Hopi tribes, about 40 percent of whom live below the poverty line.

The irony is that as many as 20,000 Navajo and Hopi families, surrounded on the south, east and west by power plants that deliver electricity to brightly lit cities hundreds of miles away, don’t have access to the electricity grid themselves.

Seven decades after the Tennessee Valley Authority brought electricity to the rural South, a significant population in the U.S. – estimated at 14 percent of Indian homes on U.S. reservations – has yet to experience a crucial advantage of 20th-century life.

Ryan Dreveskracht believes that solar power may be a way to change that.

Tenth Circuit Affirms Immunity for Tribal Corporations; Reversing Lower Court

December 28, 2010Matthew L.M. Fletcher2 Comments

Here are the materials in Breakthrough Management Group v. Chukchansi Gold Casino and Resort:

Tenth Circuit opinion

Chukchansi Opening Brief

BMG Brief

Chukchansi Reply

BMG Reply

BMG v Chukchansi Lower Court Orders

Lower court briefs here.

New Mexico Court of Appeals Decision on State Worker’s Comp Jurisdiction in Indian Country

December 28, 2010December 23, 2010Matthew L.M. Fletcher1 Comment

Here is the opinion in Antonio v. Inn of the Mountain Gods Resort.

An excerpt:

Michael Antonio (Worker) appeals from an order of dismissal entered by the Workers’ Compensation Administration (WCA) for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. On appeal, Worker alleges that (1) the WCA erred in determining that Worker’s injury occurred on the Mescalero Apache Tribe reservation (Tribe) and that the Tribe was not conducting business within the State of New Mexico; and (2) the WCA had jurisdiction by default because the Tribe did not have a workers’ compensation program in effect at the time of Worker’s injury, and the compensation that was provided to Worker was not as good as the compensation required by the New Mexico Workers’ Compensation Act. We conclude that the WCA did not have jurisdiction over the Tribe because the Tribe did not expressly waive sovereign immunity and, therefore, the WCA’s order reached the right result for the wrong reasons. See Cordova v. World Fin. Corp. of N.M., 2009-NMSC-021, ¶ 18, 146 N.M. 256,208 P.3d 901 (noting that we may affirm on grounds not relied upon if those grounds do not require us to look beyond the factual allegations that were raised and considered below). Weaffirm.

Landless Cowlitz Tribe to Receive Reservation in Southwestern Washington

December 27, 2010December 27, 2010Ann Tweedy

Here’s the article from the Seattle Times: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2013768567_cowlitzcasino26m.html

Little River Band Enters into Collective Bargaining Agreement with United Steelworkers

December 21, 2010Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Here is the ratifying resolution: 10-1220-059 Ratifying Collective Bargaining Agreement

And the press release:

(December 21^st, 2010) Manistee, MI

Historic Collective Bargaining Agreement Signed under Tribal Law

The Little River Band of Ottawa Indians announced today that a collective bargaining agreement has been reached between the Little River Casino Resort and the United Steelworkers. The agreement is the first to be reached after a union election campaign and collective bargaining process governed solely by tribal law. Security guards voted last Thursday to approve the agreement. The Board of Directors of the Resort subsequently approved it on Monday, December 20^th, and the Agreement is effective upon that approval.

“This is proud moment for our Tribe,” said Stephen Parsons, Tribal Council Speaker for the Band. “We have worked hard to design a fair law to govern labor relations within our jurisdiction. This agreement shows that tribal sovereignty works.”

Tribal Ogema Larry Romanelli echoed this sentiment: “This agreement is just another progressive step for the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians as we accept responsibility for our own affairs and fairly protect the interests of all parties involved.”

The Little River Casino Resort operates pursuant to the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, a sweeping federal law enacted by Congress to enable tribes to generate revenues to support tribal government—similar to state lotteries. The Band’s law governs labor relations within its public sector.

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