Councillors

USET Semi Annual Meeting

United Southern and Eastern Tribes’

On July 19 and 20, Seneca Nation leaders participated in the United Southern and Eastern Tribes’ (USET) Semi-Annual Meeting & USET-IHS-BIA Partnership Meeting in Nashville, TN. Among the focuses of the conference were Healthcare and the Opioid Crisis. Nation leaders were able to speak directly with IHS and USET officials to learn more about these topics and express the Nation’s experiences with keeping Senecas safe and healthy.

President Pagels was asked to speak at the Conference’s USET SPF Policy, Legislation and Litigation Update, where he spoke about New York State’s aggressive actions to seize the Nation’s bank accounts.

Following his speech, Paula Hart, the Director of Indian Gaming – Bureau of Indian Affairs, asked President Pagels to join her on a panel at Wednesday’s Gaming Breakout Session. At this breakout session, President Pagels and Director Hart discussed the Department of the Interior’s proposed Part 293 Regulations, which control the Department’s review process for Tribal Gaming Compacts.

President Pagels stressed the importance of regulations that help restore the balance to the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, recognizing that these regulations, if put into place, will govern the Department’s review of any potential new compact between the Nation and the State of New York.

As with previous conferences, President Pagels received the support of tribes from around the country, as he spreads the #standwithseneca message.