Reps. Maturen, Heise, Howrylak, LaVoy and Singh offered the following resolution:

            House Resolution No. 194.

            A resolution to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the federal recognition of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi.

            Whereas, The Potawatomi name is a derivation of Bodéwadmi, meaning a people of the fire or a people who make or maintain fire, both of which refer to the role of the Potawatomi as the keeper of the council fire in an earlier alliance with other tribes in the area; and

            Whereas, The original Potawatomi Nation encompassed lands along the southeastern shore of Lake Michigan, across to Detroit and from the Huron and Grand Rivers southward into northern Indiana, Ohio, and Illinois; and

            Whereas, The Pine Creek Reservation was established in 1845 on a 120 acre parcel of land along the Pine Creek River near Athens, Michigan with monies from the treaty annuity which Governor John Barry placed into passive trust with the State of Michigan for the tribe; and

            Whereas, With more than 1,100 Tribal members, many of whom live in southwest Michigan in the Tribe’s seven-county service area, the Pine Creek Reservation still serves as the Tribe’s primary land base with a government center, tribal court, tribal police force, community center, health complex, energy efficient housing, church, cemetery, parks, outdoor sports facilities, and pow wow grounds; and

            Whereas, Over 150 years after their attempted removal, the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi received federal acknowledgement on December 19, 1995, with formal action by the United States Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs reaffirming the tribe as a sovereign nation with a nation-to-nation relationship with the federal government and the power to determine their own form of government, define conditions for membership in the nation, regulate domestic relations of its members, and levy taxes recognized by the U.S. government; and

Whereas, In 1997 the Tribe signed a gaming compact with Governor John Engler which the legislature approved in 1998. This led to the opening of the FireKeepers Casino in 2009 featuring Las Vegas style gaming with over 2,900 slots, 81 table games, live poker room and a high-limit gaming area with VIP lounge and expanding in 2012 to include a 243 room resort style hotel; and

            Whereas, The mission of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi is to provide leadership for tribal members and serve as a model to other Native Americans in areas of self-government, self-reliance, and self-empowerment with a goal to provide its members with the best in healthcare, educational opportunities, housing, healthy environment, and economic opportunities as a sovereign Native American nation; now, therefore, be it

            Resolved by the House of Representatives, That the members of this legislative body  commemorate the 20th anniversary of federal recognition of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi; and be it further

            Resolved, That a copy of this resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi Tribal Council.