Tribes and States Working Together: A Guide to Tribal-State Child Care Coordination
Table of Contents (This document is also available in PDF and Word format.)
Understanding Tribal Sovereignty and the Government-to-Government Relationship
| "Building trust, identifying benefits and respecting individual differences is key to establishing effective Tribal/State collaboration ...keeping in mind that relationship building takes time, and the process will not happen overnight ." |
The foundation for successful collaboration between States and Tribes is an understanding of and appreciation for Tribal sovereignty. American Indian and Alaska Native Tribes are recognized as governments in the U.S. Constitution, with hundreds of treaties, Federal laws, and court cases affirming that Tribes retain the inherent powers to govern themselves as nations. Presidential Executive Order 13175, Consultation and Coordination with Indian Tribal Governments (November 6, 2000); and, Presidential Memorandum, Government-to-Government Relationship with Tribal Governments (September 23, 2004) further reaffirm the sovereign status of Indian Tribes. The Federal Government works with Tribes in a government-to-government relationship.
State-Tribal coordination can flourish when States fully embrace Tribal sovereignty. In fact, over the past few years as an increasing number of Federal programs—such as the CCDF—have devolved to States and Tribes, new partnerships have been forged on a wide range of issues that affect Tribal and State citizens (Note: Tribal citizens are also citizens of the States where they reside). In an effort to address these issues, the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) and the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) are collaborating to improve State-Tribal relations in policy-making and service delivery. Through this partnership Tribal leaders and State legislators are sponsoring educational forums, developing materials, and sharing models of collaboration. In their joint publication Government to Government—Understanding State and Tribal Governments (June 2002), NCAI and NCSL offer a description of Tribal nations in the United States.
More than 558 federally recognized “Indian tribes” (variously called tribes, nations, bands, pueblos, communities and native villages) exist in the United States. About 226 of these are located in Alaska; the rest are located in 34 other states. Tribes are ethnically, culturally and linguistically diverse.
"My involvement has been real positive at the State level. They have not only heard me, but have truly listened when I've kept saying culture, culture, culture!" |
Put in the context of Tribal sovereignty, the government-to-government relationship, and the uniqueness of each Tribal nation, the need for CCDF Administrators—both State and Tribal—to develop and sustain strong partnerships becomes even more apparent. Further, this understanding helps both States and Tribes understand the Tribal-specific provisions of the CCDF legislation and regulations.
<< Previous Page | Table of Contents | A Comparison of State and Tribal CCDF Programs >>