Press Releases
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Currently showing results related to Alaska Natives & Rural Alaska
Delegation’s Landless Legislation Rectifies 50-Year Injustice
U.S. Sens. Lisa Murkowski, Dan Sullivan, and Rep. Don Young, all R-Alaska, today issued statements on new legislation they introduced to allow the Alaska Native communities of Haines, Ketchikan, Wrangell, Petersburg, and Tenakee to form urban corporations and receive land entitlements under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971 (ANCSA). The five Southeast communities were not included in ANCSA, which divided 44 million acres of land among more than 200 regional, village, and urban cor… Continue Reading
11.10.20
Murkowski Unveils Interior-Environment Bill
Today U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) released her Fiscal Year 2021 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act bill. The Committee is responsible for funding agencies that are tasked with ensuring clean water and clean air, managing public lands, meeting federal trust responsibilities for Native peoples, and funding cultural agencies and museums. As chairman of the Interior Subcommittee, Murkowski crafted a bill with funding to strengthen local economies and create safer … Continue Reading
10.10.20
Murkowski’s Bipartisan Legislation Addressing Crisis of Missing, Murdered, and Trafficked Indigenous Women Signed into Law
Today President Trump signed into law Savanna's Act and Not Invisible Act, two bills led by U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) to address the crisis of missing, murdered, and trafficked Indigenous women. Specifically, the bills work to improve the federal government's response through increased coordination, development of best practices, and creation of a joint commission on violent crime, ensuring Alaska Natives and survivors have a voice in developing method… Continue Reading
09.25.20
Alaska Delegation Criticizes Circuit Court Ruling Against Native Corporations
U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, and Congressman Don Young (all R-Alaska) today commented on a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit determining Alaska Native Corporations (ANCs) are ineligible for tribal assistance appropriated by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The ruling overturns an earlier June 26 ruling by a U.S. District Court that concluded ANCs are eligible for the aid. "We strongly disagree with the D.C. Circuit Court'… Continue Reading
09.22.20
Murkowski’s Legislation Addressing Crisis of Missing, Murdered, and Trafficked Indigenous People Advance
U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) applauded the unanimous House passage of two of her bills to address the crisis of missing, murdered, and trafficked Indigenous people. The bills, Savanna's Act and Not Invisible Act, are both led by U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) and aim to combat the epidemic by improving the federal government's response through increased coordination, development of best practices, and creation of an advisory committee on violent crime. Both … Continue Reading
09.22.20
Murkowski, Cortez Masto Legislation Addressing Crisis of Missing, Murdered, and Trafficked Indigenous People Advances
U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) applauded the unanimous House passage of two bills to address the crisis of missing, murdered, and trafficked Indigenous people (MMIP). The bills, Savanna's Act and Not Invisible Act, are both led by Senators Murkowski and Cortez Masto and aim to combat the MMIP epidemic by improving the federal government's response through increased coordination, development of best practices, and creation of an advisory committee on violent… Continue Reading
09.11.20
U.S. Senators Smith, Murkowski Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Help Tribes Combat COVID-19, Other Public Health Crises
Today U.S. Senators Tina Smith (D-Minn.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) introduced bipartisan legislation to help Tribes access public health data and address health disparities that hit American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) communities especially hard. The Tribal Health Data Improvement Act would strengthen data sharing between Tribes, Tribal Epidemiology Centers and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) so Tribes can more effectively address public health challenges. Tribes … Continue Reading
09.01.20
Alaska Delegation Urges Alaskans to Participate in the Census
As the deadline to participate in the 2020 Census rapidly approaches, U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski, Dan Sullivan, and Congressman Don Young, all (R-AK), are calling on Alaskans to do their part and participate. New data released by the Census Bureau shows Alaska's self-response rate remains ranked among the lowest in the nation, with only Puerto Rico at a lower self-response rate than Alaska. The deadline to participate in the 2020 Census questionnaire is September 30, 2020. "While we've all pu… Continue Reading
08.28.20
Alaska Delegation Applauds Opening of Cold Case Office in Anchorage
The Alaska Congressional Delegation, alongside other federal, state, tribal, and local leaders, helped kick off the opening of the Operation Lady Justice Task Force Cold Case Office in Anchorage. The office will be dedicated to solving cold cases involving missing and murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives. The Anchorage office is one of seven of its kind being established across the nation to handle such cold cases and will be staffed by law enforcement, tribal law enforcement, special ag… Continue Reading
08.28.20
Schatz, Murkowski, Spanberger, Wagner To Defense Secretary: Fight Online Child Sexual Exploitation, Protect Vulnerable Children, Punish Offenders
U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai'i) and Lisa Murkowsi (R-Alaska) and U.S. Representatives Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.) and Anne Wagner (R-Mo.) this week called for Defense Secretary Mark Esper to provide updates on how the Defense Department (DoD) is preventing and combating child sexual exploitation. Their call comes eight months after Senators Schatz and Murkowski's legislation to fight online child exploitation on the DoD's network was signed into law as Section 550D of the National Defense… Continue Reading
08.14.20
Alaska Congressional Delegation Introduces Legislation to Support Economic Development for Alaska Native Communities
The Alaska Congressional Delegation introduced landmark legislation to make tax-exempt financing more accessible for the economic development projects of American Indians and Alaska Natives. Such financing, known as Tribal Economic Development, or TED Bonds, is currently available only on a limited basis that benefits only a limited number of tribal entities. The legislation evens the playing field by changing the rules for TED Bonds in several critical ways to make this tax-exempt financing muc… Continue Reading
08.05.20
Senators Stabenow, Murkowski Team Up to Reintroduce Bipartisan Food Supply Protection Act
U.S. Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) reintroduced the Food Supply Protection Act to help protect the food supply after the COVID-19 crisis has put an unprecedented strain on farmers, workers, food banks, and families. "The COVID-19 crisis has continued to disrupt our nation's food supply chain, creating a ripple effect that's harming our families, farmers, and workers," said Senator Stabenow. "Our bipartisan bill will help strengthen our food supply by redirecti… Continue Reading
08.04.20
Murkowski on Rural Health and Telehealth Executive Order
U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) made the following statement after President Trump signed an Executive Order on Improving Rural Health and Telehealth Access: "Improving access to quality, affordable health care has always been a priority of mine. For a rural state like Alaska, telehealth has been a crucial technology utilized in helping fill that gap and deliver care. I thank the Trump administration for taking these steps aimed at expanding telehealth and finding new ways of covering the co… Continue Reading
07.31.20
ICYMI: Murkowski Joins Heinrich, Daines Legislation To Extend Deadline For Tribes To Spend CARES Act Funding
U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) joined U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-NM) and Steve Daines (R-MT) in introducing legislation that extends the coverage of Coronavirus Relief Fund payments allocated under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act to tribal governments from December 30, 2020, to December 30, 2022. The CARES Act, signed into law on March 27, 2020, allocated $8 billion for tribal governments under the Coronavirus Relief Fund. However, Indian Country did not… Continue Reading
07.31.20
Indian Affairs Committee Advances Bills Focused on Health, Safety, Energy, and Cultural Repatriation
This week the Senate Indian Affairs Committee advanced four bills led by U.S. Senator Murkowski (R-AK) - legislation to further uphold the Federal government's trust responsibilities to our nation's First Peoples, improve health care services, improve protections of Native American tangible culture heritage, and help tribal communities work with the Office of Indian Energy (OIE). The Committee advanced Murkowski's S. 2610, the Tribal Energy Reauthorization Act, legislation to reauthorize certai… Continue Reading
07.28.20
Murkowski Applauds Administration’s Actions to Address MMIW Crisis
U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) applauded the establishment of seven Cold Case Task Force offices across the nation, dedicated to solving cold cases involving missing and murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives. This week marked the opening of an office in Bloomington, Minnesota with an office scheduled to open in Anchorage, Alaska next month, on August 27. Other nationwide offices include: Rapid City, SD; Billings, MT, Albuquerque, NM, and Phoenix, AZ. Click here for more information.… Continue Reading
07.02.20
Murkowski Joins Committee Hearing on Addressing COVID-19 Impact to Native Communities
U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) took part in a Senate Committee on Indian Affairs oversight hearing focused on evaluating the response and mitigation to the COVID-19 pandemic in Native communities across the nation. This hearing is particularly relevant to Alaska, as many Native communities currently reflect on previous health emergencies that have disproportionately impacted rural Alaska, such as Tuberculosis and the 1918 flu epidemic. The hearing featured testimony from IHS Director, RADM M… Continue Reading
06.26.20
Alaska Delegation Welcomes Court Win for Alaska Native Corporations
U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan and Congressman Don Young (all R-Alaska) today welcomed the court decision deeming Alaska Native Corporations (ANCs) eligible for tribal assistance appropriated through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Today U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta ruled that Alaska Native Corporations can receive a share of the $8 billion in funding set aside for Tribal governments that Congress approved in March. "When we passed the CARES Act … Continue Reading
06.25.20
Alaska Native Vietnam War-Era Veterans Are One Step Closer To Being Able to Apply for Land Allotments
U.S. Sens. Lisa Murkowski, Dan Sullivan, and Rep. Don Young, all R-Alaska, today welcomed the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) announcement of proposed rules that will allow more than 1,000 Alaska Native Vietnam War-era veterans to apply for land allotments of up to 160 acres of land. This is a key step to fulfilling an important provision of the Dingell Act, landmark public lands legislation that Congress passed early last year. BLM also announced the specific lands available for selection. "… Continue Reading
06.25.20
Murkowski Calls to Advance Alaska Specific Legislation During Senate Indian Affairs Hearing
U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) took part in a Senate Committee on Indian Affairs legislative hearing which included two Alaska specific bills of which Senator Murkowski is the sponsor: S. 3099, the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium Land Transfer Act of 2019 and S. 3100, the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium Land Transfer Act of 2019. The hearing also addressed a bill of which Senator Murkowski is a lead cosponsor, S. 2165, the Safeguard Tribal Objects of Patrimony (STOP) Act o… Continue Reading
