Bill Yellowtail

Bill Yellowtail
Member of the Montana Senate
from the 50th district
In office
January 7, 1985 (1985-01-07) – January 1994 (1994-01)
Preceded byCarroll Graham
Succeeded byRamona Howe
Personal details
Born
William Petzoldt Yellowtail Jr.

(1948-01-08) January 8, 1948 (age 76)
Wyola, Montana, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseMargarette Carlson-Yellowtail
Alma materDartmouth College (BA)

William Petzoldt Yellowtail, Jr. (born January 8, 1948) is an American politician and businessman who served as a member of the Montana Senate and as a regional administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

Early life and education

Born in Wyola, Montana, Yellowtail grew up on his family's cattle ranch on the Crow Indian Reservation in Montana.[1] He is a 1971 graduate of Dartmouth College, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Geography and Environmental Studies after a brief period of absence from the college.[2]

Career

Yellowtail served on the Montana Senate from 1985 to 1993, representing Big Horn, Rosebud and Powder River counties. He also served as a Regional Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency from 1994 to 1996, managing Region VIII.[3][4]

Later in 1996, he ran an unsuccessful campaign against Republican Rick Hill for Montana's lone seat in the U.S. House of Representatives as a Democrat.[5][6] He was defeated in a controversial campaign notorious for mudslinging efforts by himself and Hill.[7][8][9][10]

He returned to the EPA shortly thereafter to his former post, but suffered further scandal for allegedly unknowingly violating the Hatch Act in 2000.[11][12]

Yellowtail is an employee with Off the Beaten Path in Bozeman, Montana, and has served on the boards of directors for the Burton K. Wheeler Center for Public Policy in Montana, the National Audubon Society, and the Humanities Montana organization.[13][14][15][1]

He serves on the advisory committee for the One Montana nonprofit organization.[16] As a prominent Crow Indian, he recently served as the MSU Emeritus Katz Chair in Native American Studies[17] and advocated for tribal relations with the EPA during his tenure as its Region VIII Administrator.[18]

References

  1. ^ a b "Emeritus Katz Chair, Bill Yellowtail". Department of Native American Studies. University of Montana. Retrieved March 15, 2016.
  2. ^ Narula, Svati K. (November–December 2013). "Strangers in a Strange Land". Dartmouth Alumni Magazine. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  3. ^ "Sponsor List of Legislation". History and final status of bills and resolutions of the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Montana: Fifty-Third Legislature, Regular Session, January 4, 1993 to April 24, 1993. Montana Legislative Council. p. xvi. Retrieved April 30, 2015 – via Internet Archive.
  4. ^ History and final status of bills and resolutions of the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Montana: Forty-Ninth Legislature, Regular Session, January 7, 1985 to April 25, 1925. Montana Legislative Council. Retrieved April 30, 2015 – via Internet Archive.
  5. ^ Carle, Robin (November 5, 1996). "STATISTICS OF THE PRESIDENTIAL AND CONGRESSIONAL ELECTION OF NOVEMBER 5, 1996". Clerk of the House of Representatives. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  6. ^ Matthews, Mark (April 1, 1996). "Yellowtail throws in his hat". High Country News. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  7. ^ Wilkinson, Todd (June 7, 1996). ""Indian Cowboy"'s Quest for Capitol Hill". Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  8. ^ Anez, Bob (October 24, 1996). "Montana Voters To Choose Between Adulterer, Spouse Abuser". Moscow-Pullman Daily News. Associated Press. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  9. ^ Brooke, James (August 11, 1996). "Crime, Scandal and Other Yawners". New York Times. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  10. ^ Goodman, Ellen (October 25, 1996). "The candidate's three worst moments". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  11. ^ "EPA makes changes in Denver Regional Office" (Press release). April 28, 2000. Archived from the original on May 31, 2016. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  12. ^ "National News Briefs; E.P.A. Aide Steps Aside After Ethics Inquiry". New York Times. April 29, 2000. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  13. ^ "Members of the Montana Council for the Humanities/Humanities Montana, 1972-2014". Archived from the original on May 23, 2015. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  14. ^ "Off the Beaten Path Guides". Archived from the original on January 12, 2015. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  15. ^ Seideman, David (June 1, 2003). "Sacred Trust". Audubon Magazine. Archived from the original on May 1, 2015. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  16. ^ "Staff, Board, and Advisory Committee". One Montana. Archived from the original on May 7, 2015. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  17. ^ Schmidt, Carol (October 10, 2006). "Yellowtail tabbed as MSU endowed chair in Native American Studies". MSU News. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  18. ^ Browner, Carol (March 14, 1994). "EPA Indian Policy" (PDF). United States Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved April 30, 2015.[failed verification]
  • [1] Property and Environment Research Center article on Indian Sovereignty, by Yellowtail
  • [2] Interview with Yellowtail on capitalism
  • [3] Interview with Yellowtail on Native Americans

Further reading