Federally Recognized Tribes & Construction of Laws

Current Colorado laws do not always expressly provide whether the laws apply to the Southern Ute Indian Tribe or the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe (Tribes). The act creates a rule of construction that a law does not apply to the Tribes unless the law clearly and expressly states that the law applies to the Tribes.

The act further clarifies that if the general assembly enacts a new law or materially amends an existing law that is silent as to its application to the Tribes or to tribally controlled entities; purports to apply statewide; or grants a governmental agency or entity civil, criminal, or regulatory authority, it is presumed that the law does not apply within the exterior boundaries of the reservations to the Tribes, including the Tribes' officials and employees acting in their official capacities, to a tribally controlled entity, or to Tribal lands.

The act reinforces that these rules of construction do not:

• Preclude or limit the authority of the Tribes' governing bodies from requesting inclusion in legislation pending before the general assembly;
• Abrogate the sovereign immunity of the state or the Tribes; or
• Affect the rights of the state, the Tribes, or other persons to pursue legal remedies that may be available to contest the application of laws passed by the general assembly.
  (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)