California Stimulus Check
By Ryan Buuck, LMU Loyola Law School, J.D./M.B.A. Dual Degree Candidate Last week, Governor Gavin Newsom announced a new economic recovery package that will include $12 billion of direct payments to residents of the State of California. These payments will be like the three stimulus checks sent by the federal government during the CoVID-19 Pandemic. […]
AB 1869 – Eliminating Criminal Adminstrative Fees
This bill repeals the authority to collect many of these fees, among others. The bill makes the unpaid balance of these court-imposed costs unenforceable and uncollectible and requires any portion of a judgment imposing those costs to be vacated. If you qualify or have questions contact any CILS office nearest to you.
Native American Ancestry: Family Lore, Oral Swabs, and Enrollment Cards
By Mark Vezzola, CILS Escondido office Directing Attorney Have you ever heard someone claim their great-grandmother was a Cherokee princess? Or that their ancestors include the Lakota holy man Sitting Bull? Until recently, most of what people knew about their family history came from older relatives, maybe even old photos and letters. Today, anyone […]
CILS Brackeen News Flash
On April 6, 2021, an en banc panel of the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal decided Brackeen v. Haaland, a case challenging the constitutionality of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA). Read the full decision here. The good news is (1) this decision does not apply in California nor in any state in the […]
TRIBAL ALERT – Tribes Disqualified from ARP Public Safety and Justice Funding
To All Tribal Leaders; The BIA is proposing to set aside $772.5 million dollars of the American Rescue Plan (ARP) appropriation for “public safety and justice (PSJ)”. This set aside will be distributed “based on the existing allocation of base (reoccurring annual) funding level for OJS-funded, tribally operated, programs.” This means the funding will be […]
When Does the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) Apply?
By Kia Murdoch, CILS Sacramento office Staff Attorney ICWA provides protections for Indian children in State Court “Child Custody Proceedings.” The ICWA is a federal law that provides procedures to protect “the best interests of Indian children and promote the stability and security of Indian tribes and families” in certain child custody proceedings.[i] Protecting children’s […]
