Tulalip News

Double-Dip Hell: NCAI Demands Illegally Taxed Native Veterans Get Paid

Megan Baker, Indian Country Today Media Network

The National Congress of American Indians passed a resolution recently urging Congress to recompense eligible Native American service members and veterans who were illegally taxed by the state in which their reservation was domiciled during their active service.

According to federal law, service members with active duty status who legally claim to live on federal reservations are not subject to income taxation by the state in which the reservation is domiciled.

This new resolution argues that 26 states have taxed service members for as long as 24 years.

Nine years ago, an attempt was made in Washington D.C. to address this issue.

The American Indian Veterans Pay Restoration Act of 2004, sponsored by New Mexico Representative Tom Udall, sought to provide remittance to certain Indian veterans of amounts withheld from military basic pay for state income tax purposes while those veterans were in active service and were domiciled in Indian Country.

In his introduction speech, Udall decried the illegal taxation of service members that claimed the reservation as their home. The legislation failed due to a lack of support in the House Armed Services Committee.

In December 2009, the state of New Mexico began to refund any state income tax that was withheld from service members legally domiciled on reservation land while serving.

The fund expired on January 1, 2013. Other states have yet to follow suit.

During the 2013 Midyear Session of the NCAI held in Reno, Nevada from June 24 through 27, the General Assembly called upon the federal government to fulfill its obligations to American Indians, citing its moral and legal federal trust responsibility.

This new resolution will be a policy of the NCAI until it is withdrawn or modified by subsequent resolution.

Every Forest Once a Food Forest

By Billy Frank Jr., Chairman, Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission

OLYMPIA – Folks up in Seattle are developing a “food forest” on Beacon Hill. Right there, near the heart of the city, a place where anyone can come along and pick fruit, vegetables, herbs, berries and more. The first harvests from the forest are expected this fall.

It’s a great idea. Sharing food and community are two things that I care a lot about. Most of my life has been centered on food and the rights of tribes to be able to harvest their own food.

For us Indian people, all of western Washington was once a food forest.

The trouble is that it’s getting harder and harder for these forests, rivers and beaches to provide us with much food because they’ve been treated so poorly. For us, the U.S. v. Washington ruling that upheld our treaty fishing, hunting and gathering rights came too late.

Since almost the first day that Judge George Boldt’s decision became law, we’ve had to cut back on our fishing because of declining runs. This ongoing decline is being driven by habitat loss and damage, and it isn’t getting better.

Shellfish was always a dependable source of food for Indian people. But pollution from stormwater runoff, failing septic systems and agricultural impacts threaten that vital food source

Wildlife habitat in our forests continues to shrink. More and more animals are being forced into smaller and smaller areas.

We’re losing our mountain huckleberries to busloads of commercial harvesters who come in with rakes and other tools to strip the bushes clean, often causing damage to the plants and reducing future yields.

Salmon, shellfish, wildlife and huckleberries are all important, traditional and treaty-protected foods. Our ancestors knew their importance. That’s why they reserved the right to access and harvest them in treaties with the U.S. government.

Projects like the edible food forest in Seattle are important. I hope they make an effort to include native forest plants that were once up on Beacon Hill before the city came along.

We need to bring our rivers back to life, clean up and protect our beaches, and bring food back to the forests all around us.

Judge blocks planned horse slaughter at 2 plants

Associated Press, source: Washington Times

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A federal judge on Friday temporarily halted plans by companies in New Mexico and Iowa to start slaughtering horses next week.

U.S. District Judge Christina Armijo issued a restraining order in a lawsuit brought by The Humane Society of the United States and other groups in case that has sparked an emotional national debate about how best to deal with the tens of thousands of unwanted and abandoned horses across the country.

Armijo issued a restraining order and scheduled another hearing for Monday in a lawsuit by The Humane Society of the United States and other groups that are strongly opposed to the idea of resuming horse slaughter for the first time in seven years in the U.S.

The groups contend the Department of Agriculture failed to do the proper environmental studies before issuing permits that allowed companies in Iowa and New Mexico to open horse slaughterhouses. The companies had said they wanted to open as soon as Monday.

The horse meat would be exported for human consumption and for use as zoo and other animal food.

Valley Meat Co. of Roswell, N.M., has been at the fore of the fight, pushing for more than a year for permission to convert its cattle plant into a horse slaughterhouse. Its plans ignited a divisive debate over whether horses are livestock or domestic companions, and how best to deal with all the neglected and often-starving horses.

After more than a year of delays and a lawsuit by Valley Meat, the Department of Agriculture in June gave the company the go-ahead to begin slaughtering horses. USDA officials said they were legally obligated to issue the permits, even though the Obama administration opposes horse slaughter and is seeking to reinstate a congressional ban that was lifted in 2011.

Another permit was approved a few days later for Responsible Transportation in Sigourney, Iowa.

The move has divided horse rescue and animal welfare groups, ranchers, politicians and Indian tribes about what is the most humane way to deal with the country’s horse overpopulation.

Some Native American tribes, including the Navajo and Yakama nations, are among those who are pushing to let the companies open. They say the exploding horse populations on their reservations are trampling and overgrazing rangelands, decimating forage resources for cattle and causing widespread environmental damage. The Navajo Nation, the nation’s largest Indian reservation, estimates there are 75,000 horses on its land, many of which are dehydrated and starving after years of drought.

On the other side, actor Robert Redford, former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, current Gov. Susana Martinez and Attorney General Gary King are among those who strongly oppose a return to domestic horse slaughter, citing the animals’ iconic role as companion animals in the West.

“Horse slaughter has no place in our culture,” Redford said in a statement last week in announcing formation of a foundation that has joined the fight. “It is cruel, inhumane, and perpetuates abuse and neglect of these beloved animals. We must oppose it with all of our might.”

Supporters of domestic slaughter point to a June 2011 report from the federal Government Accountability Office that shows cases of horse abuse and abandonment on a steady rise since Congress effectively banned horse slaughter by cutting funding for USDA inspection programs in 2006.

They also cite USDA statistics compiled by the Equine Welfare Alliance that shows the number of U.S. horses sent to other countries for slaughter has nearly tripled since domestic horse slaughter ceased, with many of those being shipped thousands of miles to points south of the border to be slaughtered in unregulated and inhumane facilities.

They said it is better to slaughter the horses in regulated and humane domestic facilities than to let them starve or be shipped to Mexico.

John Kitzhaber set to veto bill allowing Native American mascots in Oregon

Molalla High School is one of the schools that still has a Native American mascot. Under Senate Bill 215, the school would be able to keep the mascot if a local tribe approved it. But Gov. John Kitzhaber is expected to veto the bill. (Beth Nakamura/The Oregonian)

Christian Gaston, The Oregonian

Gov. John Kitzhaber intends to issue a rare veto over a culturally sensitive bill passed by his fellow Democrats amid split testimony from Native Americans.

Senate Bill 215 installs a loophole in a ban implemented by Kitzhaber’s Board of Education, which decided last year to eliminate the use of all tribal mascots at high schools, such as the Banks Braves or Molalla Indians. The mascots, the board found, negatively impact Native American students.

Kitzhaber said he was willing to support a bill allowing schools to adopt the names of tribes, similar to college sports rules, but the bill the Legislature delivered offered too broad an exemption, letting schools keep generic names if a local tribe approved.

“We worked hard to let them know our concerns and the governor doesn’t think the bill gets there,” said Kitzhaber spokesman Tim Raphael.

While a trio of Republicans introduced the mascot legislation, the bill attracted many Democratic votes, passing the House and the Senate by broad enough margins to override a veto.

Even so, Sen. Jeff Kruse, R-Roseburg, said he doesn’t think the Legislature would beat back Kitzhaber’s veto. Instead, he’s hoping the governor will reconsider, and is preparing for the next session.

“I’m just hoping at this point, I don’t know what else I can do,” said Kruse, a chief sponsor of the bill. “The reality of a veto override is non-existent, I know that. So we’d just do another bill.”

The renewed debate over Native American mascots in Oregon this year kicked up at the same time as the owners of the Cleveland Indians rebuffed fresh calls to dump the team’s mascot — the grinning, red-faced “Chief Wahoo.”

In 2012, the Oregon Board of Education established a strict statewide ban giving 15 schools until 2017 to change their mascots or lose state funding.

Many of Oregon’s nine federally recognized tribes didn’t formally weigh into the debate. Those that did were split.

The Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians supported the mascot ban. Two tribes, The Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians and the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde both sought the modified policy encompassed in the legislation: let mascots remain only if a local tribe approved. The Coquille Indian Tribe supported the board’s ban, but changed its position, supporting SB 215 during the Legislative session.

Sen. Mark Hass, D-Beaverton, who chairs the Senate Education and Workforce Development Committee, said lawmakers relied on input from local tribes. “It’s emotional on both sides for the tribes and the Oregon tribes wanted this bill, so we passed the bill that they said they supported,” Hass said.

Kitzhaber said it went too far. He wanted the bill modeled after National Collegiate Athletic Association rules, which banned the use of Native American mascots during tournaments in 2005.

NCAA rules let Florida State University keep the Seminoles name for its sports teams after reaching an agreement with the Seminole Nation of Florida.

Brenda Frank, who chaired the Oregon Board of Education when it adopted the ban, said any Native American mascot could hurt a Native American child’s self esteem.

“I still go back to how offensive is that? How is that fair to other tribal people who find that offensive?” said Frank, a member of the Klamath Tribe. “I just don’t think that there is anything that can justify racism.”

Frank said the board took into consideration the concerns of school administrators when it passed the ban, including the cost of replacing uniforms and other materials.

“As uniforms cycle down, they would eventually all be replaced and that’s a cost that districts would pay for anyway,” Frank said.

Kruse still worries about the cost of change at Roseburg High School, which he attended. The school long ago modified its logo in deference to the local tribe, the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians.

“In the case of the Roseburg Indians and the Cow Creek Band, everybody’s happy with it,” he told The Oregonian in February.

But it wasn’t that the tribe had asked for the change, and its response illustrates the different ways tribes feel about this issue.

Susan Ferris, a spokeswoman for the Cow Creek Band said students from Roseburg approached the tribe roughly 15 years ago and asked whether the mascot, then a Native American warrior, should be changed. Ferris said tribal leaders told the students to do what they thought was right. The district adopted a new mascot: a feather.

The Cow Creek Band kept out of the mascot debate in Salem this year.

“The Cow Creek stance, historically, seems to be ‘do what you think is right regardless of us.'” Ferris said.

Hot August Car Show supports local food banks Aug. 10

Kirk Boxleitner, Marysville Globe

LAKEWOOD — The Faith Lutheran Church of Lakewood started the Hot August Car Show nine years ago to help support two local food banks, and while its numbers of entrants have declined over the years, the event’s organizers still see the spirit of community giving as strong as ever among those who show off their cars and those who come by to check them out.

This year’s Hot August Car Show runs from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 10, at 11424 172nd St. NE, one mile west of I-5 Exit 206 and right next to Lakewood High School, and event organizer Jane Hogland hopes to see at least as many cars as last year.

“Last year was probably our smallest turnout,” Hogland said. “We had about 20 cars entered, few enough that we were able to give everyone who entered a ribbon or a trophy. We started quite strong nine years ago, with about 50 or 60, but a number of other car shows have popped up in the area in the meantime. We’ve got a number of people who keep coming back, though.”

Hogland explained that the Hot August Car Show was intended not only to raise awareness of the Faith Lutheran Church of Lakewood, but also to demonstrate its commitment to supporting its surrounding community. Each year’s proceeds are split between the Arlington Community Food Bank and the Stillaguamish Senior Center Food Bank.

“One of our church members was a librarian in Arlington, and she was well aware of the need facing that community,” Hogland said. “With the Stillaguamish Senior Center, those are people who are living on limited incomes, so again, we’re helping those who need it.”

Hogland estimated that the Hot August Car Show has raised a total of approximately $8,000 since its inception, thanks in part to donations of $400 each year from Thrivent Financial for Lutherans.

“Everything is donated and everyone volunteers their efforts, so there’s no profit anywhere,” Hogland said. “One gentleman who comes back year after year to show off his cars has donated a lot of the money for our prizes and other materials, and a lot of our church members bring baskets that they make for the prizes. Karen Hart makes the most incredible cinnamon rolls for us,” she laughed.

According to Hogland, each year’s entrants are just as committed to continuing the car show as they are to contributing to its charitable causes.

“We’ll open the car show at 9 a.m., but they’ll be there at 7 a.m.,” Hogland said. “One couple has brought two or three different cars over in a trailer from Wenatchee. One of them was a stainless steel Model A, which I’d never seen before. Car shows are just so family friendly, because everyone there has worked really hard on their cars just to get to where they could show them off. I enjoy meeting people in such an easygoing, low-key setting.”

For more information, call Hogland at 425-501-9414 or the Faith Lutheran Church of Lakewood at 360-652-9545, or log onto www.smokeypointlutheranchurch.org.

Taste of Tulalip – The Culinary Festival of the Year

5th Anniversary Highlights Include Extraordinary Epicurean Events, Celebrity Chefs & Sommelier Superstars

Tulalip, Washington – Tulalip Resort Casino is gearing up for a weekend of revelry to celebrate the 5th anniversary of Taste of Tulalip, its coveted award-winning food and wine aficionado event. Scheduled for November 8 and 9, 2013, this year’s line-up of top talent, to be announced within the next month, will include many familiar names as well as some stars on the rise. Past culinary celeb appearances have included ABC TV’s “The Chew” host Carla Hall, Bravo’s Top Chef Master and author Marcus Samuelsson, wine legend Marc Mondavi, “Thirsty Girl” Leslie Sbrocco and others. Executive Chef Perry Mascitti and Sommelier Tommy Thompson are putting together a dazzling roster of food, wine and tradition show-stoppers that have been a year in the planning. Taste 2013 will feature honorary winemaker Bob Betz of Betz Family Winery. Taste of Tulalip tickets have just gone on sale at Ticketmaster, with Friday night Celebration dinner tickets soon to follow.

The two-day gathering, with a focus on food, wine and tradition, begins with a Friday night wine and passed hors d’oeuvres reception, followed by the aptly named Celebration Dinner. The multi-course repast will focus on Native American and traditional recipe inspired dishes, paired with a global offering of rare, top wines. It is priced at $175. Tickets are limited and this event is always a sell-out.

On Saturday “All Access” pass holders ($295) will enjoy early entrance to the unforgettable Grand Taste; a VIP seminar featuring a celebrity cooking demo, table talk and Q & A session on the Viking Kitchen Stage; a private Magnum Party where they’ll be treated to a high level wine and indigenous food pairings; and a special bonus this year – two in-depth Reserve Tasting forums.

The weekend’s highlight is always the Grand Taste, spanning four hours and featuring lavish food stations as well as over 100 wines from Washington State, California and Oregon, and craft beer. It is priced at $95 and includes a Rock –n- Roll Cooking Challenge done “Iron Chef” style with celebrity judges looking for the best from both regional and Tulalip chefs, and sommelier teams. Special guest Emilio Lopez of El Salvador (a sixth generation specialty coffee producer), will be appearing at the Dillanos Coffee Roasters espresso bar, where guests will be able to sample a special TOT 5th Anniversary Blend.

All of the weekend’s wine offerings will be available in limited quantities for purchase in the Taste of Tulalip retail wine shop. There will also be book and bottle signings for those looking to personalize their purchases.

For tickets, go to www.tasteoftulalip.com or www.ticketmaster.com

The first rule of fracking is: Don’t talk about fracking

By Claire Thompson, Grist

The Hallowich children were just 7 and 10 years old when their family received a $750,000 settlement to relocate away from their home in Mount Pleasant, Penn., which was next door to a shale-gas drilling site. By the time they’re grown up, they may not remember much about what it was like to live there — the burning eyes, sore throats, headaches, and earaches they experienced thanks to contaminated air and water. And maybe it’s better if they don’t remember, since they’re prohibited from talking about the experience for the rest of their lives.

The terms of Stephanie and Chris Hallowich’s settlement with Range Resources included, like most such settlements do, a non-disclosure agreement preventing them from discussing their case or gas drilling and fracking in general. But the agreement’s extension to their children is unprecedented; one assistant law professor at the University of Pittsburgh called it “over-the-top.”

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports:

According to the transcript [of the settlement hearing], the Hallowichs’ attorney, Peter Villari, said that in 30 years of practicing law he never had seen a nondisclosure agreement that included minor children.

And, although he advised the Hallowichs to accept the settlement, he questioned if the children’s First Amendment rights could be restricted by such an agreement.

According to Villari, the settlement wouldn’t have gone forward unless the couple also signed a document stating their health was not affected by drilling operations. So all the record will show, as a spokesperson for Range Resources put it, is that “clearly the Hallowichs were not in an ideal situation in terms of their lifestyle. They had an unusual amount of activity around them. We didn’t want them in that situation.” Man, if you could get $750,000 just for having an “unusual amount of activity” near your home — say, the construction of some microapartments — development-related NIMBYism would cease to exist.

For people whose property values, health, and quality of life have suffered thanks to fracking, settlements like these can be a bitter pill to swallow. In exchange for much-needed compensation for damages, they’re barred from speaking up about their experiences, which slows the spread of awareness about fracking’s potential risks and helps the cycle of exploitation continue. ClimateProgress explains:

The Hallowich family’s gag order is only the most extreme example of a tactic that critics say effectively silences anyone hurt by fracking. It’s a choice between receiving compensation for damage done to one’s health and property, or publicizing the abuses that caused the harm. Virtually no one can forgo compensation, so their stories go untold.

Bruce Baizel, Energy Program Director at Earthworks, an environmental group focusing on mineral and energy development, said in a phone interview that the companies’ motives are clear. “The refrain in the industry is, this is a safe process. There’s no record of contamination. That whole claim would be undermined if these things were public.” There have been attempts to measure the number of settlements with non-disclosure agreements, Baizel said, but to no avail. “They don’t have to be registered, they don’t have to be filed. It’s kind of a black hole.” …

Sharon Wilson, an organizer with Earthworks, said … “These gag orders are the reason [drillers] can give testimony to Congress and say there are no documented cases of contamination. And then elected officials can repeat that.” She makes it clear she doesn’t blame the families who take the settlements. “They do what they have to do to protect themselves and their children.”

The Range Resources spokesperson said the company doesn’t believe this settlement should apply to the children. But according to the hearing transcript, Range Resources’ attorney asserted not only that the order does indeed apply to the younger Hallowichs, but that the company “would certainly enforce it.”

If Range Resources ever gets its official position straight, the Hallowich kids could be released from the gag order. Until then, they better watch what they say on the playground.

Transcanada to build tar sands pipeline to Atlantic

By John Queally, August 2, 2013. Source: Common Dreams

With the passage of the Keystone XL pipeline uncertain and under financial pressure to find export terminals so to justify expansion of vast tar sands operations in Alberta, the Canadian pipeline company—with backing from the Harper government— announced on Thursday that it will seek to build an enormous eastward pipeline so it can bring what critics call “the world’s dirtiest fuel” to market.

Called the “East Energy Pipeline,” the $12 billion project would connect with existing pipeline networks in Quebec province and will be able to move up to 1.1 million barrels of tar sands oil a day up and over the northeastern United States to the coast of New Brunswick.

The new project, according to TransCanada’s CEO Russ Girling, is not intended to signal that the company has given up on building Keystone but shows it is willing (and able) to push for multiple pipelines at any given time.

“What we know in North America is production is continuing to grow,” Mr. Girling said at a news conference in Calgary. “The marketplace needs both of these pipelines and probably more.”

Joe Oliver, Canada’s natural resources minister, welcomed the TransCanada announcement and said the Canadian government would offer its full support.

“Our government welcomes the prospect of transporting Canadian crude oil from Western Canada to consumers and refineries in Eastern Canada and ultimately to new markets abroad,” Oliver said in a statement.

Critics, however, were unimpressed and vowed to fight the pipeline with the same energy and intensity that Keystone XL has faced.

“TransCanada is desperate to show that tar sands are viable, ” said Michael Marx, the ‘beyond oil’ campaign director for Sierra Club. “The truth is they are not. This announcement of an eastern Canada pipeline is a fantasy. It’ll face the same opposition dirty, dangerous pipelines to the west or south through the United States face, if not more. Tar sands is the dirtiest source of oil on Earth and running it through Montreal, Quebec and the Bay of Fundy is like running Keystone XL through Manhattan and the Grand Canyon. It’s not going to happen.”

As the New York Times adds:

TransCanada’s new plan involves converting 1,864 miles of a natural gas pipeline to carry oil, and the construction of 870 miles of new pipeline, mainly in Quebec and New Brunswick. It has long-term contracts to carry about 900,000 barrels of oil a day along the route, Mr. Girling said.

“They’re in for a fight,” John Bennett, the executive director of the Sierra Club of Canada, said shortly after the announcement. Mr. Bennett said he was particularly concerned about the possibility of oil spills in the Bay of Fundy in New Brunswick and about harm to whales in the area from tanker traffic. In a statement, Environmental Defence said the plan was “yet another misguided scheme that puts Canadians in harm’s way for the benefit of the oil industry’s bottom line.”

Nebraska trial could delay Keystone XL pipeline

By Lenny Bernstein, August 4, 2013. Source: Washington Post

While environmentalists, energy executives and elected officials across North America await the State Department’s critical decision on the Keystone XL pipeline, a little-noticed trial scheduled for next month in Nebraska could spell problems for the $5.3 billion project.

Despite two attempts by Nebraska’s attorney general to have the case thrown out, Lancaster County District Court Judge Stephanie Stacy has set a Sept. 27 trial date for arguments in a lawsuit that contends the state legislature unconstitutionally gave Gov. Dave Heineman (R) authority to approve the pipeline route.

A win for the plaintiffs — three Nebraska landowners who oppose the pipeline — would force TransCanada, the company that wants to build the 1,179-mile northern leg of the project, to go through the entire siting process again. Even supporters do not believe that would permanently block the project, but it could add years to the timeline. Appeals through the Nebraska court system could have a similar effect.

“I don’t think [people] realize how Nebraska is a big monkey wrench in all this,” said Brian Jorde, attorney for the three landowners.

The State Department must sign off on the pipeline because it would cross a U.S. border, bringing as much as 830,000 barrels a day of diluted bitumen crude from oil sands in Alberta, Canada, to U.S. refineries in the Gulf of Mexico. A State Department official said the agency’s review of the pipeline is continuing and would not be affected by the Nebraska litigation.

But route decisions are left to the states along the way, which gives Nebraska jurisdiction over nearly 200 miles of the proposed project. That might not have been a problem for TransCanada until the state legislature, acting in the final hours of its 2012 session, took authority over review and approval of the route away from the five elected members of the Public Service Commission and instead gave it to Heineman and the state’s Department of Environmental Quality. The bill, LB 1161, passed by an overwhelming majority.

It also authorized the governor to give TransCanada the power of eminent domain over landholders, a valuable weapon as the company seeks easements from farmers and ranchers to run the pipeline through Nebraska.

“By all appearances, that bill was written by TransCanada. . . . I think at some point in time, ordinary citizens can’t tolerate that kind of behavior,” said Randy Thompson, a small farmer and one of the plaintiffs.

Shawn Howard, a spokesman for TransCanada, said in an e-mail that the company believes the Nebraska law “is constitutional and should be upheld.” The company will continue to plan the pipeline and seek easements, even with the threat of a new route review looming, Howard said.

The plaintiffs argue that, under the Nebraska constitution, the legislature had no authority to transfer route-approval powers from the commission to the governor or to give him the ability to delegate the power of eminent domain to TransCanada. The law also does not provide for judicial review of the governor’s decision, they contend, and is essentially “special legislation” designed to benefit the pipeline company only.

“The suit claims that the PSC has the exclusive jurisdiction” to review the pipeline and set its route, “and the legislature can’t take that power . . . and transfer the right to one person, a partisan person, the governor, to become the trigger for eminent domain,” Jorde said.

A spokeswoman for Attorney General Jon Bruning declined to comment on the case, but Deputy Attorney General Katherine J. Spohn argued in her brief that the legislature had acted lawfully. Spohn said lawmakers had the legal ability to give Heineman the power to delegate eminent domain authority to TransCanada.

Stacy, the district court judge, has scheduled an hour of arguments in her courtroom and subsequently could take months to rule on the issues, Jorde said. The losing side is expected to appeal as far as the state’s Supreme Court before the issue is finally decided, he said.

“When our legislature steps over the line,” Thompson said, “I think it’s important that ordinary citizens take them to task.”

Night Out gatherings target crime

Rikki King, The Herald

EVERETT — In Granite Falls, they’ll have a Humvee.

In downtown Lake Stevens, a DJ will play. In Snohomish, neighbors will throw block parties.

A number of Snohomish County cities and neighborhoods plan family fairs on Tuesday as part of National Night Out, an annual event that promotes meeting the neighbors and preventing crime. Some communities also plan neighborhood block parties.

The Granite Falls event is a partnership between police, the local IGA and community groups, police officer Don Lauer said

“It’s going to be a great time for the kids,” he said. “They’re going to have a lot of fun. There are a lot of giveaways.”

Like many of the Night Out events, Granite Falls will have police, fire and military vehicles for kids to check out, free food, and a bouncy house.

“It’s a great opportunity for the parents to find out about services that are available in the community and talk with not only community organizations, but with community leaders as well,” Lauer said.

As fall approaches, National Night Out is a chance for families to talk about safety, Mukilteo police officer Cheol Kang said. Kids heading back to school can have fun, eat food and win prizes. The events bring people together, Kang said.

“It’s just good to have that reminder about what’s available as resources and crime prevention,” he said.

Lake Stevens plans two kinds of music downtown along Main Street during National Night Out, said Kirsten Mueller, program coordinator at the Lake Stevens Family Center.

There will be a DJ in one spot playing family-friendly music and karaoke, she said. In another spot, a live band will play pop hits from the 1980s.

Activities include laser tag, face-painting and a race car display from the Evergreen Speedway, Mueller said. About 30 booths are planned, along with free hot dogs, nachos and popcorn.

“A lot of what we’re promoting is a chance to come together as a community and let people know that these people in your community are here,” she said. “We want to meet you. We want to get to know you. And as we collaborate as a community, it instills a sense of pride.”

Mountlake Terrace plans a martial arts demonstration and square dancing. More than 1,000 people attended the city’s event last year.

For more information about specific events, contact your local police department.

Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com.

Arlington: Block parties.

Bothell: Block parties.

Brier: 6 p.m., Brier Park

Edmonds: Was held July 30.

Everett: Block parties.

Gold Bar: Parade starts at 6:30 p.m. at 10th Street and Lewis Avenue, then ends at Gold Bar Elementary. Event ends at 9 p.m.

Granite Falls: 5 to 8 p.m. in the field between Alfy’s Pizza and the IGA.

Lake Stevens: 5 to 8:30 p.m. at North Cove Park and Main Street.

Lynnwood: Block parties.

Marysville: 6 to 8:30 p.m., Comeford Park, 514 Delta Ave.

Mill Creek: Shared with the county.

Monroe: 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., Lake Tye Park.

Mountlake Terrace: 6 to 9 p.m., Evergreen Playfield, 22205 56th Ave West.

Mukilteo: 4 to 7 p.m., Mukilteo YMCA, 10601 47th Place W.), and block parties. More info: http://tinyurl.com/mukNNO2013

Tulalip: Shared with Marysville.

Snohomish: Block parties.

Stanwood: 6 to 9 p.m., former Thrifty Foods parking lot, 27225 90th Ave. NW.

Sultan: Shared with Gold Bar.

Snohomish County: 5 to 8 p.m., Willis Tucker Park, 6705 Puget Park Drive.