First elected as a councilman for the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians in 1992, Mark Macarro has served the band in the capacity of tribal chairman since 2002. Additionally, Mark Macarro holds board positions with multiple Native American organizations, including the Native American Rights Fund (NARF).
This past October, the Supreme Court declined to review a decision made by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit that provided protections against mining in the Grand Canyon region. The issue became contentious in 2012 when mining companies, following a decision by Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar to withdraw nearly one million acres from mining in the region, filed a lawsuit that challenged the withdrawal on the grounds that it infringed upon the Establishment Clause. In response NARF, on behalf of the Morningstar Institute, Indian Peaks Band of Paiutes, and the San Juan Southern Paiute, filed an amici curiae brief that addressed arguments raised by the plaintiffs.
After the mining companies claim was thrown out by the district court, they appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in 2015, following which NARF filed another amici curiae brief on behalf of the aforementioned tribes as well as the Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians, Northwestern Band of the Shoshone Nation, Hualapai Tribe of the Hualapai Reservation, and the National Congress of American Indians. The Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court's ruling in 2017 to allow for more time to study the effects of uranium mining in the region.
This past October, the Supreme Court declined to review a decision made by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit that provided protections against mining in the Grand Canyon region. The issue became contentious in 2012 when mining companies, following a decision by Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar to withdraw nearly one million acres from mining in the region, filed a lawsuit that challenged the withdrawal on the grounds that it infringed upon the Establishment Clause. In response NARF, on behalf of the Morningstar Institute, Indian Peaks Band of Paiutes, and the San Juan Southern Paiute, filed an amici curiae brief that addressed arguments raised by the plaintiffs.
After the mining companies claim was thrown out by the district court, they appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in 2015, following which NARF filed another amici curiae brief on behalf of the aforementioned tribes as well as the Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians, Northwestern Band of the Shoshone Nation, Hualapai Tribe of the Hualapai Reservation, and the National Congress of American Indians. The Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court's ruling in 2017 to allow for more time to study the effects of uranium mining in the region.
