SCOTUS Considering Effect of Covid Funds Fight on Alaska Natives

U.S. Supreme Court justices signaled Monday that they are weighing the long-term impacts on Alaska Natives in a dispute over pandemic relief funds.

The for-profit, state-chartered corporations are challenging an appeals court ruling that they can’t get a portion of the $8 billion designated for tribal governments through the CARES Act (Public Law 116-136). Whether the corporations are eligible depends on whether they qualify as an “Indian tribe” under a previous law, the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act of 1975 (ISDA).

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit held in September that only ...