DENVER — For the first time in state history, leaders of Colorado's Ute Mountain Ute Tribe and Southern Ute Indian Tribe gathered at the state Capitol on Wednesday to present their needs to the legislature.
The occasion marks the inaugural address from Colorado's two federally recognized tribes to the state House and Senate, as mandated by Senate Bill 105. The bill requires legislative leaders to invite representatives from the tribes to the Capitol each year to improve communication between tribal governments and the state legislature.
Colorado is the first state in the nation to mandate an annual legislative address from tribal leaders, according to former Sen. Kerry Donovan, D-Vail, who sponsored the bill.
"We as the Ute people have lost a lot over time up to present day," said Manuel Heart, chairman of the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe. "We all claim these lands as our homeland, but let us look at the past history and what has been taken away. All those lost opportunities we shall address, and we shall address them today while looking toward future opportunities."
The Ute Mountain Ute Tribe is a sovereign nation with over 2,000 members, headquartered in Towaoc in Montezuma County in southwest Colorado. The Southern Ute Indian Tribe is also sovereign, located in Ignacio in La Plata County with around 1,400 members.
Read the full article at Colorado Politics.
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