Congress Honors May 5 as National Day of Awareness for MMIWG
Congress marked May 5, 2026, as the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG) with both chambers introducing bipartisan resolutions. In the House, Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (NM-3) and Rep. Dan Newhouse (WA-4) introduced a resolution with cosponsors from both parties. In the Senate, Senators Steve Daines (MT) and Maria Cantwell (WA) introduced S.Res. 726 to the same effect.
May 5 commemorates the birthday of Hanna Harris, a member of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe, who was murdered in July 2013. Sen. Daines has introduced a resolution annually for several years in her memory. The resolution is backed by the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), the National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center (NIWRC), and many tribal nations and organizations. Tribal leaders supporting the resolution emphasized that while the day of awareness is meaningful, tribes still urgently need legislative action and dedicated resources for tribal law enforcement.
House Subcommittee Hears Testimony on Four Tribal Bills
On May 21, the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Indian and Insular Affairs, chaired by Rep. Jeff Hurd (CO-3), held a legislative hearing on four bills covering tribal stewardship, public safety, land transfers, and health care access in Indian Country. The bills heard were:
- The Bridging Agency Data Gaps and Ensuring Safety for Native Communities Act — known as the BADGES for Native Communities Act (H.R. 1010) — would expand coordination and data sharing between tribal, federal, state, and local law enforcement in Indian Country. FCNL has been lobbying for passage of this legislation. To learn more, read our recent blogpost!
- The Don Young Doug LaMalfa Indian Buffalo Management Act (H.R. 7954), would direct the Secretary of the Interior to support tribally-led buffalo restoration and authorize transfers of surplus federal buffalo to Indian lands. The bill was named for former Sen. Don Young and former Rep. Doug LaMalfa, both of whom championed the legislation while in Congress.
- The Barona Group of Capitan Grande Band of Mission Indians Land Transfer Act of 2025 (H.R. 8483), would place approximately 836 acres of culturally significant land into trust for the Barona Group.
- The Indian Health Service Emergency Claims Parity Act (H.R. 8658) , would extend the window for tribes to notify IHS after a member receives outside emergency care from 72 hours to 15 days, protecting Native patients from unexpected medical expenses.
Fourth Circuit: NAGPRA Applies to Carlisle Boarding School Remains
In a significant legal victory for the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled on May 14 that the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA, PL 101-601) applies to the remains of Native children buried at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School cemetery. The 2-1 decision in Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska v. Department of the Army vacated a lower court dismissal and held that the U.S. Army is obligated to inventory and, upon request, repatriate the remains of Samuel Gilbert and Edward Hensley — two Winnebago boys who died at Carlisle more than 125 years ago.
In the Fourth Circuit’s first decision interpreting NAGPRA, the court rejected the government’s argument that NAGPRA does not apply to Native children buried at the boarding school without their families’ consent. The case now returns to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. While this decision reaffirms the rights of tribes to repatriate child victims of the Indian boarding school system, it may take months or even years for tribes to have their children returned, and children who remain in unmarked graves may never be identified. Congress must immediately act to preserve existing records, testimony, and documentation related to boarding schools, so that more children can be sent home.
