WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) today announced that her new Commission on Native Children – created by her bill that became law last October – will be funded in the congressional spending deal to keep the federal government running. Additionally, Dr. Tami DeCoteau of Bismarck became the first appointee by a member of Congress to serve on the Commission.

Yesterday evening, Congress reached a deal on a compromise congressional spending bill which will enable Heitkamp’s Commission on Native Children to get the federal funding needed to get the Commission up and running.

Additionally, Dr. DeCoteau was appointed by U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) to serve on the Commission, helping fill the Commission with members dedicated to improving the lives of Native children. The Commission will address the challenges facing Native children – including poverty, substance abuse, and domestic violence – and offer real solutions to address them. Dr. DeCoteau will join Russ McDonald of Bismarck’s United Tribes Technical College and Anita Fineday of the Casey Family Programs’ Indian Child Welfare Program who were appointed by then-President Obama in January to serve on the 11-member Commission. The Commission will be comprised of individuals specializing in juvenile justice, social work, as well as mental and physical health.

An enrolled member of Mandan, Hidatsa & Arikara Nation and a descendant of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, Dr. DeCoteau has spent more than a decade specializing in the treatment of traumatic disorders as a clinical psychologist in Bismarck. 

“We have taken two important steps forward to get the Commission on Native Children up and running,” said Heitkamp. “The Commission will soon receive the federal funding it needs to operate, and we have another devoted member on the Commission, Dr. DeCoteau, who has dedicated her life’s work to healing of the deep generational and systemic wounds Native children and families carry. I’m thrilled to have pushed for her and that she will join this Commission. Dr. DeCoteu understands to her core the mission of this Commission – which is to recognize and tackle the full scope of diverse challenges Native young people face, and to make sure they have the support and opportunity they need to thrive. Too often the cries for help of Native children go unheard by the federal government, and I’m proud that Dr. Decoteau will be able to give voice to their struggles. Now that this Commission will have the funding it needs to begin its crucial work, we need to get the rest of the members of the Commission on board so they can get started on providing lasting solutions designed to improve outcomes for Native children.”

“When a Native child is able to walk into a classroom or a foster home and be understood, it can mean the world of difference on what they are able to achieve,” said Dr. DeCoteau. “Senator Heitkamp’s Commission on Native Children would work to comprehensively address the complex challenges Native young people face – like experiencing something traumatic like abuse, extreme poverty or crime – and making sure they are supported by the trauma-informed care, and appropriate resources they need to succeed. I’m honored that Senator Heitkamp nominated me to serve on the Commission, and that Senate Minority Leader Schumer heeded her call. Through my service on the Commission, I look forward to working with experts and leaders that understand such challenges, so together we can pave a brighter path for our Native young people.”

To get the Commission up and running, the president must appoint three members to the Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on Native Children, and the U.S. Senate Majority Leader and Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives must also appoint three members. The Senate and House Minority Leaders get to appoint one member each to the Commission. The Commission will also be advised by a Native Advisory Committee and a subcommittee made up of Native young people from each Bureau of Indian Affairs service area.

In March, Heitkamp and bipartisan members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives called on President Trump, members of his Administration’s Cabinet, and U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to quickly appoint members to the Commission.

The Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on Native Children, named for the former Chairwoman of Mandan, Hidatsa & Arikara Nation in North Dakota, and Alaska Native Elder and statesman, respectively, has been widely praised by a cross-section of tribal leaders and organizations from North Dakota, Alaska, and around the country. It has also been lauded by former Chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs Byron Dorgan, the National Congress of American Indians, and the National Indian Education Association, among others.

Background:

Conditions for young people in Indian Country are tragic. For example:

• More than one in three American Indian and Alaska Native children live in poverty.
• Suicide rates for Native children ages 15-24 years old are 2.5 times the national average and is the second-leading cause of death in that age group.
• While the overall rate of child mortality in the U.S. has decreased since 2000, the rate for Native children has increased 15 percent.
• At 67 percent, American Indian and Alaska Native students had the lowest four year high school graduation rate of any racial or ethnic group in the 2011-2012 school year.
• 60 percent of American Indian schools do not have adequate high-speed internet or digital technology to meet the requirements of college and career ready standards.

Tribal governments face numerous obstacles in responding to the needs of Native children. Existing programmatic rules and the volume of resources required to access grant opportunities stymie efforts of tribes to tackle these issues. At the same time, federal agencies lack clear guidance about the direction that should be taken to best address the needs of Native children to fulfill our trust responsibility to tribal nations.

To help reverse these impacts, the Commission on Native Children will conduct a comprehensive study on the programs, grants, and supports available for Native children, both at government agencies and on the ground in Native communities, with the goal of developing a sustainable system that delivers wrap-around services to Native children. Then, the 11-member Commission will issue a report to address a series of challenges currently facing Native children.

For a summary of the bill, click here. For quotations from the five Native American tribes in North Dakota, as well as Senator Byron Dorgan, strongly supporting the bill click here, and for quotations from national supporters, click here.

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