Tag: Indian Affairs

Daines, Zinke Announce Legislation to Protect Tribes from Costly Obamacare Employer Mandate

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Senator Steve Daines (R-MT) and Representative Ryan Zinke (R-MT) today announced the introduction of legislation to protect Native American tribes from Obamacare’s costly employer mandate. The Tribal Employment and Jobs Protection Act, which was introduced today in the Senate and House, will exempt tribes and tribal employers from Obamacare’s employer mandate. The bills prevent massive fines that tribal employers would incur under Obamacare’s employer mandate. “Tribes should not be forced to pay severe fines due to duplicative federal mandates in the President’s flawed health care law,” Daines stated. “These unreasonable fines have the potential to kill jobs

PHOTO: Daines Presents Montanan of the Week to Son of Crow Code Talker

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Senator Steve Daines presented his Montanan of the Week award to Judge Not Afraid, son of Crow Code Talker, Cyril Not Afraid. Cyril Not Afraid was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal for serving in the armed forces as a “code talker,” speaking his native Apsaalooké (Crow) language during wartime in order to transmit and receive military intelligence and successfully avoid disclosing information to enemy forces. Click here to download the photo of Daines and Judge Not Afraid.  “I am proud to honor the memory of Cyril Not Afraid for his brave and selfless service on behalf of

Daines Honors Montanans of the Week: Crow Tribe Code Talkers

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Steve Daines today honored Samson Birdinground, Cyril Not Afraid, Barney Old Coyote and Henry Old Coyote of the Crow Indian Nation for their exceptional service to our country during World War II. These four men were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal for serving in our armed forces as “code talkers,” speaking their native Apsaalooké (Crow) language during wartime in order to transmit and receive military intelligence and successfully avoid disclosing information to enemy forces. Through his “Montanan of the Week” initiative, Daines each week will highlight a Montanan by submitting a statement of recognition in the official

Senators Call on Commerce, Ag Secretaries to Prioritize Broadband Access for Rural Americans

Daines, Manchin, King lead bipartisan effort to ensure high-speed broadband for rural communities WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senators Steve Daines (R-MT), Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Angus King (I-ME) today led a bipartisan effort to ensure the federal government prioritizes high-speed broadband access for rural Americans. In a bipartisan letter signed by more than a dozen Senators, the Senators pressed Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, Co-Chairs of the Broadband Opportunity Council, for a detailed analysis of the various federal broadband initiatives that can be coordinated across agencies to bridge the digital divide and bring rural America into the

Montana Senators Introduce Bill to Make Indian Coal Production Tax Credit Permanent

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Montana Senators Steve Daines and Jon Tester today introduced legislation to permanently extend the Indian Coal Production Tax Credit (ICPTC). The ICPTC provides a crucial tax incentive to level the playing field for future development of the tribal coal resources that are currently subject to more regulatory requirements than comparable development on private, state or federal lands. The credit protects the economic viability of existing tribal coal mining projects, which support much-needed tribal jobs and provide a major source of non-Federal revenue for coal-producing tribes. “The Indian Coal Production Tax Credit is an essential tool in Montana

Tester, Daines introduce bill to improve Montana’s rural water infrastructure

Senators’ bill will invest in tribal and rural water needs (U.S. Senate) – Senators Jon Tester and Steve Daines today announced they will introduce a bipartisan bill to guarantee critical investments to improve and update Montana’s aging rural water systems. The Authorized Rural Water Projects Completion Act will establish a guaranteed annual investment of $80 million from the Reclamation Fund to upgrade eligible rural water systems for 20 years. Montana has two rural water systems that would have access to these funds: the Fort Peck-Dry Prairie Rural Water System and Rocky Boy’s-North Central Montana Rural Water System. Additionally, if authorized

Daines Introduces Bill to Roll Back EPA Regs

“A War on Coal is a War on the Crow People” WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Steve Daines today joined a bipartisan group of Senators to introduce legislation that ensures Montanans have access to affordable energy and protects good-paying coal jobs. Daines is an original cosponsor of The Affordable Reliable Energy Now Act (ARENA), which holds the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) accountable and protects states’ rights by requiring the EPA to demonstrate how their proposed regulations could impact each state. This legislation preempts the EPA’s proposed Clean Power Plan, set to be released this summer, which could shutter Montana’s coal-fired power

Daines Slams EPA Administrator on Job-Killing Coal Plan

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Steve Daines today slammed Environment Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Gina McCarthy for pushing forward new EPA carbon regulations without fully consulting affected states and tribes or addressing the plan’s detrimental impacts on coal production and jobs in Montana. During today’s Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee hearing, Daines emphasized Montanans’ concerns that the EPA’s proposed “Clean Power Plan”  could shutter the state’s coal-fired power plants and hinder Montana tribes’ and the state’s abilities to develop their coal resources. Daines also pressed McCarthy on the EPA’s failure to take into account how allowing State Implementation Plans under

Tester, Daines introduce Blackfeet Water Rights Settlement Act

(U.S. Senate) – Senators Jon Tester and Steve Daines introduced legislation to finalize a decades-old water rights settlement for the Blackfeet tribe. The Blackfeet Water Rights Settlement Act will resolve all claims to water rights on the Blackfeet Reservation and ensure access to reliable and clean water for the communities within the Reservation, as well as farms, ranches, and businesses in the surrounding area. “Folks in Montana came together, worked out their differences, and built this agreement that has earned bipartisan support,” Tester said, Vice Chairman of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee.  “The Blackfeet Tribe has waited too long.  It’s time for Congress to honor