Launching Our Tribal Consultation Guidelines: Mishani Jack-Gonzalez Leads the Way

December 2, 2025

• Commission Highlights

OLYMPIA — Washington state agencies are now required to establish Tribal consultation policies under a recently signed Executive Order. As her first project in the role of Tribal Liaison, Mishani Jack-Gonzalez, an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation, developed the Commission’s official guidelines for engaging with and consulting Washington’s Tribes. As we close out Native American History Month, the Commission is honored to release these guidelines.

A New Foundation for Washington’s Governmental Relations with Sovereign Tribal Nations

Following the 2025 Centennial Accord, Governor Bob Ferguson signed Executive Order 25-10. The order, titled “A New Foundation for Washington’s Governmental Relations with Sovereign Tribal Nations,” propels the state forward by cementing Tribal consultation as a requirement for cabinet agencies. Relationships with Tribes are to be built through direct, in-person engagement, support for Native art and culture, and ongoing training, and maintained through transparent reporting of these activities.

The Executive Order highlights the importance of Indigenous Knowledge as essential to informed decision-making. As the Office of the Governor explains, “Cabinet agencies that make decisions or set standards based on ‘best available science’ must account for available and Tribally accepted Indigenous Knowledge in doing so” (News Release).

Our Tribal Liaison

Mishani Jack-Gonzalez has lived in Central Washington her entire life. She currently serves as an analyst with Washington State, working to strengthen partnerships between court systems and advance equitable outcomes, and is finishing her Master of Legal Studies (MLS) with an emphasis in Federal Indian Law.

Mishani Jack-Gonzalez has lived in Central Washington her entire life. She serves as an analyst with Washington State, working to strengthen partnerships between court systems and advance equitable outcomes. She is also completing her Master of Legal Studies with an emphasis in Federal Indian Law.

The Tribal Relations guidelines were Mishani’s first project in her new position. She developed them in collaboration with long-time Commissioner and Commission Chair Vicki Lowe. Based in Sequim, Vicki is Jamestown S’Klallam and Bella Coola First Nations and serves as the Executive Director of the American Indian Health Commission.

Mishani explains the importance of ensuring Native voices are represented in policy work, “We are knowledge keepers of unique stories that you will not find written in textbooks. And we must ensure that policies are culturally informed and address the barriers we have faced historically and still face today.

Women’s Commission Tribal Guidelines

Due to historic violence, resulting generational trauma, and continued exclusion from systems, Native people, and Native women in particular, face disproportionate barriers to health, safety, and economic well-being.

The Women’s Commission’s Tribal Relations Guidelines offer a framework to ensure consultation, transparency, and culturally responsible decision-making in all WSWC work that may affect Native women, families, and communities. The document outlines:

1. Core Principles for Government-to-Government Relations
2. Cases when the Commission will initiate consultation
3. Consultation process
4. Action following consultation 

Read our guidelines: WSWC Tribal Relations Policy.

 

Learn more about Mishani’s heritage.

​ABOUT THE WASHINGTON STATE WOMEN’S COMMISSION:

The Washington State Women’s Commission (WSWC) is an executive branch cabinet agency in the Office of Governor Bob Ferguson serving as a voice in government for Washington women and girls. Signed into law in 2018, WSWC aims to improve the well-being of women by identifying and developing policies to remove systemic barriers and address critical issues that disproportionately impact women.