Apr 23, 2021
Donald Wellington Wanatee Sr., 88, of Tama, passed away peacefully Wednesday, April 21, 2021 at his home on the Meskwaki Settlement in rural Tama under the care of his family and UnityPoint Hospice-Grinnell.
Traditional Graveside Services will be held Friday, April 23, 2021 at 2:00 PM at the McIntosh Cemetery on the Meskwaki Settlement in rural Tama with Larry Lasley Sr. as speaker. Head Pallbearer-Wayne Pushetonequa and Pallbearers-Lucius Bear, Bryant Bear, Richard Wolf, Cordell Bear, Larnell Bear, Jarvis Bear, Trevor Mauskemo and Adonis Lasley. Head Cook- Avis Bear. A Traditional Wake will be held Thursday evening at the Eagle Clan Ceremonial Building on the Meskwaki Settlement.
The Indian Child Welfare Act still stands, with some of its key provisions weakened by a sharply divided U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals this month. The 325-page opinion has no immediate impact on child welfare cases in the Mountain West, but it s likely to be challenged in the U.S. Supreme Court.
Since 1978, ICWA has required that tribal nations have a voice in adoption, foster care and custody proceedings involving their youngest citizens. The federal law was intended to reverse a long legacy of federal and state agencies forcibly removing Indigenous children from their families and communities.
Initially filed in 2017, the lawsuit - Brackeen v. Bernhardt then, Brackeen v. Haaland now - took aim at ICWA s constitutionality, arguing that its preference for placing Indigenous children in Indigenous adoptive and foster homes violated the equal protection clause. Thirty tribal governments in the Mountain West and the states of Colorado, Utah, Montana and Idaho urged the c
What Does The ICWA Ruling Mean For The Mountain West? For Now, Not Much kunm.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from kunm.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The en banc Fifth Circuit recently refused to endorse a Texas federal judge's decision to strike down the entire Indian Child Welfare Act, but the complicated 325-page appellate opinion will likely invite U.S. Supreme Court review, attorneys say.
Thursday, April 15, 2021
AN IMPORTANT NEW OPTION FOR FINANCING AFFORDABLE HOUSING
The federal “9%” Housing Tax Credit (HTC) program, designed to finance up to 70% of qualified development costs, has for decades been the principal engine for the financing of low income housing in the United States. HTCs function like grants because the return to investors comes from the credits they take against their federal income tax liability over a ten-year period. Unfortunately, there is a limited supply of 9% HTCs and the allocation process, administered by state housing agencies, is highly competitive.
While some tribally-designated housing entities (TDHEs) have been successful in obtaining 9% HTCs, most have not. Demand for the 9% HTCs far outstrips supply and many states’ criteria give preference to urban developments, making it difficult for tribes to file successful applications. Tribes unable to access the 9% HTC program have incorrectly assumed that they have no op