Ken Calvert: “I have the privilege of representing a district that covers a large portion of the reservation that is home to the…”

“I have the privilege of representing a district that covers a large portion of the reservation that is home to the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians. From my meetings and visits with members of the Pechanga tribe, as well as with Native Americans from across the country, I know that there is perhaps no greater priority than protecting tribal sovereignty. In 2004, the National Labor Relations Board issued a ruling that, I believe, inappropriately applied the National Labor Relations Act to tribally owned businesses on tribal lands. That ruling was contrary to previous court-established precedents because it clearly conflicts with the Constitution's recognition of tribes as sovereign governments. That's exactly why in 2011, a U.S. District Court in Oklahoma ruled in Chickasaw Nation v. National Labor Relations Board that tribal businesses on tribal land do not fall under the jurisdiction of the Board on grounds of tribal sovereignty. Since that ruling, the National Labor Relations Board has filed an appeal and similar legal conflicts have arisen with other tribes across the country. Rather than allow these lawsuits and legal proceedings to carry on indefinitely, Congress should step in and reaffirm Native American tribal sovereignty by clarifying that the National Labor Relations Act does not apply to tribally owned businesses.…”