Gov. Polis signs two bills into law that protect Native American children and graduates

DENVER, Colo. (KRDO) -- This week, Governor Jared Polis signed two bills into law that are specifically related to Colorado's Indigenous People's population.

The first bill, SB23-211, ensures compliance with the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978. The ICWA was enacted to fight the disproportionate rate of child removal from Indigenous families.

Supports of the bill said at that time, there was a trend of Indigenous children being re-homed with non-native families for little-to-no reason.

“For decades, the Indian Child Welfare Act has been recognized as the gold standard in child welfare practice by experts,” said Majority Leader Dominick Moreno, D-Commerce City, in a press release. “Now that anti-tribal interests who want to undermine tribal sovereignty have made their way to the Supreme Court, it’s vital that we act immediately to protect Indigenous kids on a state level. This new law puts the best interests of Native American children first, and promotes the stability and security of tribes and families.” 

The law has special protections to keep Indigenous children with their families and tribes.

The bill that Polis signed officially brings Colorado standards in line with the federal standard of Native re-homing.

SB23-202, Wearing Of Native American Traditional Regalia, allows for Native American graduates to wear traditional regalia at graduation ceremonies.

This applies to both public schools and universities.

According to the bill, the graduate must be enrolled in a federally recognized tribe or have a biological parent or grandparent who is.

Colorado is home to two federally recognized Tribes; the Southern Ute Indian Tribe and the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe. According to the 2020 US Census, 74,129 Native Americans live in Colorado.