The Department of Justice, in a Dear Tribal Leader Letter of July 22, 2014, announced the dates for consultation with tribes on whether the Department should recommend legislation to Congress that would require election administrators whose territory includes tribal lands to place at least one polling place in a location chosen by the tribe. Attorney General Holder brought forth this idea in his radio address of June 9, 2014, and the same day Associate Attorney General Tony West addressed the National Congress of American Indians conference in Anchorage on the idea of tribally-designated polling places (see our General Memorandum 14-041 of June 13, 2014).
We attach the Dear Tribal Leader Letter which contains detailed information about the consultation sessions. Included with the letter is a Department of Justice framing paper which provides background information and poses questions for your consideration.
One in-person consultation session will be held August 26 in Flagstaff, AZ, and telephone consultations will be held September 3 and 4, 2014. Written comments are due September 12, 2014.
Please let us know if we may provide additional information or assistance regarding the Department of Justice proposal regarding tribally-designated polling places.
