Senator John Thune last week joined a bipartisan group of his colleagues in sending a letter to Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad (D-ND) and Ranking Member Judd Gregg (R-NH) urging them to fully fund the tribal law enforcement and justice programs authorized as part of a foreign assistance bill... Continue Reading
The Senate Agriculture Committee today accepted Senator John Thune’s amendment to the Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010. Senator Thune’s amendment would set aside funding for research into hunger, obesity, and type 2 diabetes on Native American reservations and other tribal communities. The Agriculture Committee proceeded to pass the bill, clearing... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune today entered a statement in the Congressional Record applauding the $50 million increase in tribal public safety funding, but expressed disappointment that these additional funds were not directed into the Emergency Fund for Indian Safety and Health. The Emergency Fund for Indian Safety and Health, which was... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune yesterday joined a bipartisan group of his colleagues in sending a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, and Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius requesting an update on the status of an emergency plan to allocate the $2 billion... Continue Reading
U.S. Senator John Thune today announced the introduction of the bipartisan Tribal Law and Order Act of 2009. Senator Thune, an original cosponsor of this legislation, was a leader in the first Tribal Law and Order Act, which was first introduced in the last session of Congress. “Americans in communities... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune today introduced an amendment to the Fiscal Year 2009 Omnibus bill that would redirect $400 million from the Edward Byrne Formula Grant Program to the Emergency Fund for Indian Safety and Health. The Byrne law enforcement grants program recently received a $2 billion funding boost as part... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune, along with other Senate colleagues, yesterday sent a letter to President Bush requesting that as federal agencies prepare their budgets for Fiscal Year (FY) 2010, they should include funding authorized for tribal justice, health care, and water projects under Senator Thune’s amendment to the foreign aid bill... Continue Reading
Senator John Thune today participated in a Senate Indian Affairs Committee Field Hearing, which dealt with the progress being made by Operation Dakota Peacekeeper, a joint effort by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) to combat crime on the Standing Rock Reservation. The hearing... Continue Reading
The U.S. House of Representatives is expected to pass today S. 2731, a $50 billion foreign assistance bill, which includes Senator John Thune’s amendment directing $2 billion to address tribal issues. The Thune amendment authorizes $1 billion in authorization for law enforcement and improved health care in Indian Country and... Continue Reading
U.S. Senator John Thune today announced the introduction of the bipartisan Tribal Law and Order Act of 2008, of which he is an original cosponsor. “Everyone in America wants to live in a community where their family and loved ones are safe and secure, where law enforcement is reliable and... Continue Reading
The U.S. Senate today passed S. 2731, a $50 billion foreign assistance bill, which includes Senator John Thune’s amendment directing $2 billion to address tribal issues. The Thune amendment redirects $1 billion in funding for law enforcement and improved health care in Indian Country — as well as $1 billion... Continue Reading
The U.S. Senate today passed Senator John Thune’s amendment to S. 2731, a $50 billion foreign assistance bill. The Thune amendment redirects $1 billion in funding for law enforcement and improved health care in Indian Country as well as $1 billion for water projects on reservations across the nation. Under... Continue Reading
