Navajo Nation

One of the last remaining Navajo Code Talkers has died. Samuel Sandoval's wife, Malula, says he died late Friday at a hospital in Shiprock, New Mexico. He was 98.

The ban has been in place for almost 20 years. This new legislation would recognize all marriages, and impacts spousal property rights and employee benefits.

The Supreme Court has ruled that Native Americans prosecuted in certain tribal courts can also be prosecuted based on the same incident in federal court. That can result in longer sentences.

The Navajo Nation lies within Arizona, Utah and New Mexico and is the largest tribal nation by both population and land mass. It's now considering a bill that would repeal its 2005 ban on same-sex marriage.

The Navajo Nation’s Vice President, Myron Lizer, recently announced he’s joining the race to represent much of northeastern Arizona in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Nearly half of tribal homes across the country don’t have steady access to clean water. Many in the Southwest rely on aging wells with polluted water, or truck in bottles from far away. In To'hajiilee, New Mexico, a Navajo community hopes a new pipeline from Albuquerque will remedy decades of struggle to get clean water.

States around the Mountain West are seeing an uptick in COVID-19 cases, and it’s started to affect some tribes, too. The Navajo Nation’s increase in cases is modest compared to surges in states like Arizona, though.

As tourism booms and crowds grow, the Navajo Nation considers reopening its parks and some states charge non-residents more for entry.

As of June 2, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 6,585 American Indians and Alaska Natives have died from COVID-19 - the highest rate of any ethnic group in the United States. That estimate likely falls far short of the actual death toll.

Tribal members and policy experts are pushing Congress to pass funding for water infrastructure in Indian Country.