President Joe Biden nominates 1st Native American US treasurer

A Native American has been nominated to be US treasurer, a historic first.

President Joe Biden’s nomination Tuesday of Marilynn “Lynn” Malerba comes as his administration establishes an Office of Tribal and Native Affairs on the Treasury Department, which will likely be overseen by the US treasurer.

The treasurer’s duties embody oversight of the US Mint, serving as a liaison with the Federal Reserve, and overseeing the Treasury’s Office of Consumer Policy.

The treasurer’s signature seems on US forex.

Malerba, who’s the lifetime chief of the Mohegan Indian Tribe, beforehand labored as a registered nurse, in response to the tribe’s web site, and has served in numerous tribal authorities roles.

The tribe’s reservation is situated on the Thames River in Uncasville, Connecticut.

“For the first time in history, a Tribal leader and Native woman’s name will be the signature on our currency,” Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen mentioned in remarks ready forward of the announcement.

“Chief Malerba will expand our unique relationship with Tribal nations, continuing our joint efforts to support the development of Tribal economies and economic opportunities for Tribal citizens,” Yellen mentioned.

Yellen was set to go to the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota on Tuesday, the primary time a Treasury secretary has visited a tribal nation.

She is anticipated to deal with how the American Rescue Plan has affected tribal communities.

The aid bundle allotted greater than $30 billion to Tribal governments, a few of which oversee the poorest communities within the nation.

For occasion, 59% of Rosebud Sioux Tribal households dwell in poverty, in response to US authorities estimates.

Native communities have additionally suffered the brunt of waves of COVID-19-related deaths and drug overdoses.

Biden, a Democrat, has taken a number of steps to reveal his dedication to tribal nations, together with naming Deb Haaland as the primary Native American to guide the Interior Department.

Haaland is main a reckoning with the US authorities’s function in Native American boarding colleges, which stripped youngsters of their cultures and identities.

On Wednesday, the Senate Indian Affairs Committee will maintain a listening to on the Interior Department’s report on its investigation into the federal authorities’s previous oversight of Native American boarding colleges.

Biden additionally issued the primary presidential proclamation of Indigenous Peoples’ Day, with the intent of refocusing the federal vacation beforehand devoted to explorer Christopher Columbus towards an appreciation of Native individuals.

“It is especially important that our Native voices are respected,” Malerba mentioned in a press release. “This appointment underscores this Administration’s commitment to doing just that. I am excited to serve our communities as Treasurer and for the work ahead.”