National Indian Gaming Association Hosts First-Of-Its-Kind Virtual Summer Legislative Summit Washington, D.C – July 16, 2020 – The National Indian Gaming Association hosted its first Virtual Summer Legislative Summit on July 13, 2020. The one day, two session, legislative summit was designed for Tribal Leaders from around the country to come together online to discuss today’s myriad of issues central to tribal communities and governments. Chairman Ernie Stevens Jr. welcomed the leadership: "This Virtual Summer Legislative Summit is part of our new normal across Indian Country. This is one of the first-of-its-kind gatherings for tribal leadership at the National Indian Gaming Association. It allows us to continue to conduct our dialogue with the leadership at the Nation's Capital, and more importantly, it is another opportunity to assist our tribal community in combatting the effects of this global pandemic." Chairman Stevens added, "With the pandemic and political climate that Indian Country currently faces, and the upcoming 2020 elections, we must always be ready to deal with our issues head-on, and that means using all means necessary to educate, coordinate, meet and hold our ground with dignity and respect in protecting tribal sovereignty. No matter what comes before us, we are better off confronting this pandemic together." Summary of Virtual Legislative Summit: Presenter Materials Attached Tribal leaders received updates from a panel moderated by Jason Giles, Executive Director of the National Indian Gaming Association. Joining Mr. Giles were John Harte, Partner at Mapetsi Consulting, Aurene Martin, Managing Partner at Spirit Rock Consulting. All materials presented are attached at the end of this document for Tribal Nation use. All speakers urged Indian Country to accomplish as much as possible prior to the August Congressional break. The last two weeks in July may very well be the last chance for COVID Relief Funding in 2020. In the fall, both parties will start to focus on their respective conventions and the November elections. Another important panel brought together the Census Bureau and the mobilization against racism in Indian Country. Continuing the discussion on the Cares Act and PPP information, Jessica Imotichey from the Census Bureau noted that all these COVID relief programs are based upon the Census Bureau counts for Native Americans. It is imperative that Tribal Nations participate in the 2020 Census in order to ensure they are receiving their fair share of federal dollars. With the 2020 elections approaching, the National Indian Gaming Association has been working with other sister organization and tribes with the "My Vote Will Count," campaign. Chairman Stevens and Jacqueline De Leon from NARF, stressed the importance of voter registration outreach, including the efforts by all States to implement voting by-mail this fall. Tribal Leaders are urged to undertake a strong voter registration initiative to ensure our Tribal Citizens are registered and ready to vote in November.
1
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs