NEWS RELEASE
December 20, 2023
Media Contact
Anca Matica, Press Secretary to Governor Kotek
anca.matica@oregon.gov
Governor Kotek Issues Statement on Siletz Consent Decree Passage
Salem, OR — Today, Governor Tina Kotek made the following statement after it was announced that, earlier this week, the United States Senate passed the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians (Siletz) Consent Decree. The legislation gives the Siletz and the State of Oregon the legal ability to change a discriminatory legal clause, restoring the Siletz Tribe’s right to gather, hunt, and fish on their ancestral lands. The United States House passed H.R. 2839 on December 11.
“Each Oregon Tribe deserves their sovereign right to hunt, fish, and gather on their ancestral land. This legislation passed by the United States Congress rightly counters a 1980 decree that forced the Siletz to lose those rights in exchange for getting their status and land restored. No Tribe should have to choose between restoration or the right to hunt and gather on their land. I am appreciative of Congresswoman Val Hoyle and Senator Jeff Merkley for their advocacy to set history straight for the Siletz, and I strongly encourage President Biden to sign this legislation into law.”
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