Placeholder while article actions load
WASHINGTON — Mohegan Chief Marilynn “Lynn” Malerba, the nation’s first Native American U.S. treasurer, comes from a line of chiefs who instilled in her the need to keep her tribe healthy and to survive.
“It’s our job to leave footprints on the path for those who come behind us — so they may find their way easily,” she said in an interview Wednesday with The Associated Press.
Now Malerba, 68, will bring that mindset to two new jobs in Washington: Last week President Joe Biden appointed her U.S. treasurer and overseer of a new Office of Tribal and Native Affairs at the Treasury Department.
As part of the first role, her name will appear on all new U.S. currency. “I hope to sign the currency either Chief Lynn Malerba or Chief Many Hearts Lynn Malerba,” she said, referencing the meaning of her name within her tribe, “Mutáwi Mutáhash.”
In the latter role, she will be thinking of new ways to help tribes develop their economies to overcome challenges that are unique to tribal lands.
“Tribes cannot offer tax incentives on their reservations” in the same way that states and local municipalities would tax economic development, she said. She added that tribes haven’t been able to offer tax-exempt bonds for things like concert halls and golf courses like municipalities can.
Helping tribes develop plans to economically prosper will have benefits for the rest of the country, she said, adding: “When tribes succeed, everyone succeeds.”
The Mohegan tribe has seen success with various enterprises, including casinos and resorts on the reservation and in places like Atlantic City, the Las Vegas Strip and the international airport in South Korea. The WNBA team, the Connecticut Sun, also is part of the tribe’s portfolio.
As treasurer, Malerba’s duties will include oversight of the U.S. Mint, serving as a liaison…
New Kids On The Block members, from left, Danny Wood, Jordan Knight, Donnie Wahlberg, Joey McIntyre and Jonathan Knight pose with fans at an 80’s style roller rink party to celebrate their new single, at South Amboy Arena Rollermagic, on Thursday, March 3, 2022, in New Jersey. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP) 
