North Dakota has taken steps to protect the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) by passing its own legislation as it waits for the U.S. Supreme Court to issue a ruling on the matter. The state's House Bill 1536 has been passed, making ICWA a part of North Dakota state law. If any changes are made to the federal law by the Supreme Court, they will not apply to North Dakota unless the state's legislature decides to amend HB 1536 in a future session.
The Indian Child Welfare Act was enacted by Congress in 1978 in response to the practice of removing American Indian children from their families and placing them with non-Native families. The law requires caseworkers to make active efforts to keep Native children with their biological family or within their tribe if they are recognized or enrolled by a tribe. If the child cannot be placed within the family, caseworkers must give preference to placing Native children in other Native American or American Indian homes.
Representative Jayme Davis, an enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, introduced HB 1536 in January. She stated that ICWA, as it is currently written, upholds tribal sovereignty and protects Indigenous children, their lineage, and culture. The passage of HB 1536 will ensure that American Indian and Alaskan Native children can be placed with their family members or tribe in their best interests. The potential repeal or significant changes to ICWA by the Supreme Court could have negative effects on the placement of Native children.
