STATE CAPITOL, PHOENIX
– The governor signed
a Senate bill identical to the one sponsored by Rep. Albert Hale, D-St. Michaels
(District 7), which will codify recent action by the Arizona Department of
Health Services to make it easier for Native Americans to obtain a delayed birth
certificate in the state.
“This is a
very important issue to all Native American communities in Arizona. I am
grateful that the governor and my legislative colleagues made correcting this
hardship a priority,” Hale said.
The law
makes permanent the Arizona Department of Health Services policy that
streamlined the process for Native Americans to receive delayed birth
certificates. Previously, getting a delayed birth certificate required producing
multiple forms of verification that a person was born at a specific time and
place. Many Native Americans are born at home and do not get a birth
certificate issued at the time of birth, and securing the necessary
documentation is often difficult. A birth certificate is important documentation
for receiving social security and other benefits.
Hale
recognized the efforts of Coconino County Supervisor Lena Fowler in crafting the
legislation.
“Without
her efforts, this change would not have been possible,” Hale said.
Fowler
highlighted the difficulties people face trying to collect the documentation
currently needed.
“This
legislation will improve the quality of life for Native Americans in all 22
tribes in Arizona, and it will allow many people to prove their citizenship and
their eligibility for services.”
The law
will go into effect on July 3, 2015.
Rep. Hale is an
enrolled member of the Navajo Nation. He was born in Ganado and raised in
Klagetoh, Arizona. He is Ashiihi (Salt), born for Todichiini (Bitter Water). His
maternal grandparents are Hanaghani (Walk About clan). His paternal grandparents
are Kiyanii (Tall House clan). He is a 1969 graduate of Fort Wingate High
School, a Bureau of Indian Affairs boarding school located east of Gallup, New
Mexico. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Arizona State University,
Tempe, Arizona (1973), and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of New
Mexico School of Law, Albuquerque, New Mexico (1977), and an honorary Juris
Doctor degree from Phoenix School of Law (2012). He is the former President of
the Navajo Nation
