More than 100 federally recognized tribes are located in California, and it has the largest Native American population in the country. The latter is due to the 1950s federal policy of relocating Native American families to major cities like Los Angeles and San Francisco in an attempt at assimilating them into the dominant society. As a result, many of the children and grandchildren of those who relocated continue to reside in this state. Because of the diversity and richness of California's Native population, CILS considers the welfare of Indian children to be a top priority.

As part of our commitment to Indian children, CILS helped push for revisions to state law to comport with federal protections already in existence. In August of 2006, the Legislature passed Senate Bill (SB) 678, which codified into state law the provisions of the federal Indian Child Welfare Act. CILS, along with the Pala Band of Mission Indians, and Senator Denise Moreno Ducheny, spearheaded the initiative to protect California's Indian families.

What is the Indian Child Welfare Act? The Act, often abbreviated as ICWA, is a law enacted by Congress in 1978 to establish minimum standards to apply in Indian child custody proceedings where the parent or Indian custodian cannot have their child returned on demand. The ICWA provides the child's tribe with certain rights, including notice of the proceedings, to intervene at any time, to transfer the matter to tribal court, and to ensure that the tribe's social and cultural standards are applied when meeting the ICWA's placement preferences. The ICWA is the baseline for standards to keep Indian families intact; states may pass their own heightened protections.

SB 678 added to and amended numerous sections of the Welfare and Institutions Code, Probate Code, Family Code, and Rules of Court dealing with children. It codified into state law not only various provisions of the ICWA, but also the Bureau of Indian Affairs Guidelines for State Courts. Prior to its enactment, the ICWA was applied inconsistently if at all on the state level. For example, state courts often favored adoption over guardianship as the permanent plan for Indian children, even though it required the termination of parental rights. Many tribes oppose state adoptions on this ground, fearing they will sever a child's tribal ties and identity.

Get your FREE copy of the ICWA Bench- guide here: http://www.calindian.org/icwa-benchguide/113-judges-benchguide-2012

Even though CILS and its partners succeeded in changing state law, uniform compliance remains elusive. Some social workers and even attorneys and judges lack complete understanding of this area of law. CILS is committed to increasing understanding of the law and ensuring adherence to its requirements. Our work towards those goals includes representing tribes in court proceedings, training people in the field, participating in statewide and countywide meetings, roundtable discussions, and educating family members and Indian custodians through self-help materials and our intake system. In 1998 CILS published the "California Judges Benchguide" as a resource for state court judges who preside over cases involving Indian children, with revisions published in 2000, 2010, and 2012. Our efforts, along with your support, will one day make compliance and understanding about Indian child welfare the norm rather than the exception.

CILS ' summer volunteer Kaitlyn Sever

June 26th, 2015, marked CILS's 48th Anniversary! It was on that very day in 1967 that George Duke, Richard Collins, Alan Galbraith & Neil Levy formally incorporated CILS as its own organization to address Native American issues in legal services.

CILS remains at the fore-front of assisting tribes in developing courts and law enforcement agencies by providing trainings, drafting codes and orchestrating statewide conferences. CILS remains attuned to the changing needs of Native communities in California. Our four offices- Bishop, Escondido, Eureka and Sacramento-serve all 58 counties in California.

We were here 48 years ago, we are here today and we will be here for decades to come providing legal services to California Indian country.