December 21, 2023 10:30 a.m. 

On Tuesday, 4th District Congresswoman Val Hoyle’s bill that she says will restore fairness to the Confederated Tribes of the Siletz Indians, passed in the U.S. Senate with Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley as the lead,

After earlier passing in the House, H.R. 2839 will now be presented to President Biden, who is expected to sign it into law. Hoyle’s release said the legislation will provide a pathway for the Siletz and the State of Oregon to change what she believes has been a discriminatory policy that has severely limited the hunting, fishing, trapping, and gathering abilities of the Siletz.

Hoyle said, “I am grateful that H.R. 2839, my first standalone bill to pass the House and now the Senate, will become law”. Hoyle said, “This law will restore their hunting and fishing rights on their ancestral lands. The Siletz Tribe never should have been forced to give up their sovereign rights and we have a responsibility to right this historic wrong and ensure the Siletz are treated as other Tribes are”.

The release said the legislation will allow the Siletz Tribe to return to federal court to request the termination or modification of the consent degree from 1980 that forced the Siletz to give up their traditional hunting and fishing activities as a condition for having their land restored. While the Oregon Fish & Wildlife Commission recently approved a historic new hunting and fishing agreement with the Siletz Tribe, the legislation is necessary to invalidate the consent decree.

The Confederated Tribes of the Siletz Indians have over 5,000 enrolled members and are headquartered on Oregon’s coast.