Arlan Melendez: Nevada’s native American leader who transformed his community dies at 76

By Brittany Sheehan 

Nevada News and Views

The recent passing of Arlan Melendez tells a story that every conservative should know. For 32 years, this Marine veteran led the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony. His life shows what happens when people get to govern themselves without big government getting in the way.

Think about it this way. Melendez took a small tribe with just one tobacco shop and turned it into a thriving community with 15,000 acres and their own Walmart. How? By fighting for the right to make their own decisions.

What Made This Leader Special

Chairman Arlan Melendez passed away on June 17, 2025, after decades of service.

Arlan Melendez lived on the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony with his wife Joyce and their children. He is survived by his wife, Joyce, four grown children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, lifelong friends, neighbors, colleagues, and admirers.

He was first elected to the Tribal Council in 1987 as Tribal Council Treasurer, in 1990 Melendez was elected as Vice-Chairman, and in 1991 elected as Chairman.

This wasn’t just any politician. Melendez served in the United States Marine Corp during the Vietnam era. After coming home, he saw his community struggling. He looked around the colony and saw few opportunities for economic development.

The problem wasn’t lack of talent or drive. It was government red tape. The 2 acres occupied by the smoke shop was the colony’s only commercial property. They needed more land but faced endless bureaucracy.

Fighting Federal Bureaucracy

Melendez spent 10 years fighting Washington to get more land for his people. Think about that. A decade just to get permission to use land that should have been theirs to begin with.

Eventually the tribe bought the claim and in the waning days of the Obama administration the Nevada Tribes Land Bill was passed and signed. The Reno-Sparks Indian Colony was owner of 15,000 acres.

This is exactly what conservatives have been saying for years. Local people know what’s best for their communities. Not some bureaucrat in Washington.

Building Without Big Government

Once Melendez got government out of the way, amazing things happened. The RSIC has taken advantage of its location within an urban area to create a viable economic tax base which has allowed the tribe to purchase land and attract business development to the reservation.

They built a $20 million health center. They brought in major retailers. The community is supported by tribally owned businesses and by sales taxes collected from commercial tenants including Walmart.

Here’s the key part. They did this by governing themselves. During his time in office, Melendez and the tribal council significantly expanded the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony’s land, made strides in tribal health care and created a unique tax system that is known across Indian Country as the “Nevada system.”

Why This Matters to Conservatives

Tribal sovereignty is really about the same thing conservatives want everywhere. Local control. Limited federal government. People making their own decisions about their own communities.

Native Americans who called for less government oversight on reservations and greater tribal sovereignty spoke at the Conservative Political Action Conference.

“A lot of this stuff is kind of the basis of what conservatism is all about,” said Brandon Ashley, a Navajo who serves as a senior policy adviser for Sen. John Hoeven, R-North Dakota. “Being self-reliant … less government regulations”.

One speaker explained it perfectly. “A lot of people at CPAC don’t fully understand that tribal sovereignty and private property rights are two sides of the same conservative coin,” said Gavin Clarkson, who has a doctorate from Harvard Business School and served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs in the Trump administration.

The Problems Still Remain

But there are still huge problems. “Paperwork on paperwork on paperwork” that Sen. Mullin said gets in the way of what could otherwise be an economic engine driven by natural resources in Indian Country.

Tribes face other government challenges, like businesses having to pay both federal and tribal taxes. “For example, there’s not Walmart on the Navajo Nation,” Clarkson said after the CPAC discussion. “The dual taxation and the oppressive federation regulation makes it impossible to do business on the reservation relative to doing it off the reservation”.

What Critics Say

Some people worry that tribal sovereignty goes too far. They think it creates confusion about who has authority where. Recent Supreme Court cases have created additional complexities for Tribal governments and Native victims as they seek to determine who is responsible for ensuring public safety on Tribal lands.

Others argue that tribes get special treatment that other communities don’t get. They point to federal funding and special legal status as unfair advantages.

The Bigger Picture

But Arlan Melendez’s success story shows what’s possible when people get to run their own affairs. Since colonization, the restoration of tribal self-governance in Indian Country is shown to be the only policy to produce positive economic outcomes for Native people.

The numbers don’t lie. Widespread implementation of self-determination policy in the late 1980s saw per capita income on self-governing reservations grow three and a half times faster than the US as a whole, and poverty cut almost in half.

What Conservatives Can Learn

Arlan Melendez proved that people don’t need big government to solve their problems. They need big government to get out of their way.

Tribal governments that provide municipal services and infrastructure and diversify their economies often become economic drivers of their regions. This isn’t charity. It’s good business.

Looking Forward

The federal government recognizes 574 federally-recognized American Indian and Alaska Native nations in the U.S.. Each one could be a laboratory for conservative principles. Local control. Economic freedom. Limited federal interference.

Conservatives should support tribal sovereignty for the same reasons we support states’ rights. Because people closest to the problems are best at solving them.

What You Can Do

Contact your representatives. Tell them to support bills that give tribes more control over their own affairs. Fight federal regulations that make it hard for tribal businesses to succeed.

Support conservative Native American candidates. They understand both traditional values and the power of limited government.

Most importantly, learn from leaders like Arlan D. Melendez. He showed us that conservative principles work. Whether you’re running a tribe or a town, the formula is the same. Trust people. Limit government. Watch communities thrive.

“Our hearts are heavy as we share the news of Chairman Arlan Melendez’s passing today, June 17, 2025. To us, he was a jokester; a selfless, family and God loving man,” the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony said in an official statement.

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Brittany Sheehan is a Las Vegas-based mother, policy advocate and grassroots leader. She is active in local politics, successful in campaign work and passionate about liberty.