WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp today announced that the president signed into law the bipartisan bill she supported to build economic and cultural opportunities in Indian Country by improving tourism across tribal lands. Just two weeks ago, the legislation unanimously passed in the U.S. House of Representatives. In April, the bill passed unanimously in the U.S. Senate.

The Native American Tourism and Improving Visitor Experience (NATIVE) Act, which Heitkamp cosponsored, will work to improve job growth and promote economic development in Native communities and tribal reservations – as the Sitting Bull Visitor Center on the Standing Rock Sioux reservation, and cultural events like the annual United Tribes Technical College’s International Powwow aim to do. By supporting infrastructure development and increased coordination with tribes, the bill will work to enrich and expand opportunities for cultural tourism across the country.

While North Dakota has the lowest unemployment rate in the country at 3.1 percent, the unemployment rate at Standing Rock was nearly 60 percent in 2014, reinforcing the need to support tribal economic development that creates jobs and grows businesses. In addition, according to the most recent U.S. Census Bureau data provided by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), those living in North Dakotan’s tribal communities live in poverty at 2.7 times the rate of the rest of the country.

“It’s a good day when our federal lawmakers stand united in support for lasting economic growth and job creation across Indian Country,” said Heitkamp. “With the president’s signature on the bipartisan bill I supported to help Native communities build the infrastructure they need to boost tourism on their lands, we can raise cultural awareness of their rich history while promoting long-term economic opportunity on tribal lands in North Dakota and across the country.”

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