Madison, Wis. ~ On Tuesday, April 3 Senate Bill 488, which allows the use of tribal identification cards for a variety of purposes, was signed into law by Governor Walker. This bill came in response to discussions during the Special Committee on State-Tribal Relations and is authored by Senator Jerry Petrowski (R-Marathon) and Representative Jeffrey Mursau (R- Crivitz).
“Tribal ID’s look and feel just like a Wisconsin driver’s license and often require higher security to obtain,” said Senator Petrowski. “This bill removes arbitrary barriers to tribal members by finally recognizing their identification cards for basic everyday activities.”
Senate Bill 488 allows the use of tribal identification cards for picking up prescription medications, purchasing alcohol, purchasing cigarettes or tobacco products, selling scrap, selling antiques, and selling secondhand articles to a pawnbroker. The Federal Government already accepts a tribal identification card as an acceptable form of ID for passports and proof of identification for voting.
“As Chair of the State-Tribal relations committee, I’ve been working on this issue for a couple of sessions,” expressed Mursau. “Allowing the use of a Tribal ID is especially important for our elder tribal members who carry it as their only means of identification. I’m thankful to all the tribes who provided feedback and traveled to Madison over the years and advocated for these necessary changes to our state laws.”
Also signed into law that was 2017 Wisconsin Act 222 which protects Indian mounds in Wisconsin as well as Native American burial sites.
