[Senate Hearing 115-404]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
S. Hrg. 115-404
OVERCROWDED HOUSING AND THE IMPACTS ON AMERICAN INDIANS AND ALASKA
NATIVES
=======================================================================
FIELD HEARING
BEFORE THE
COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED FIFTEENTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
__________
AUGUST 25, 2018
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Indian Affairs
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COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS
JOHN HOEVEN, North Dakota, Chairman
TOM UDALL, New Mexico, Vice Chairman
JOHN BARRASSO, Wyoming MARIA CANTWELL, Washington
LISA MURKOWSKI, Alaska JON TESTER, Montana,
JAMES LANKFORD, Oklahoma BRIAN SCHATZ, Hawaii
STEVE DAINES, Montana HEIDI HEITKAMP, North Dakota
MIKE CRAPO, Idaho CATHERINE CORTEZ MASTO, Nevada
JERRY MORAN, Kansas TINA SMITH, Minnesota
JON KYL, Arizona
T. Michael Andrews, Majority Staff Director and Chief Counsel
Jennifer Romero, Minority Staff Director and Chief Counsel
C O N T E N T S
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Page
Field hearing held on August 25, 2018............................ 1
Statement of Senator Murkowski................................... 1
Prepared statement........................................... 5
Witnesses
Brancaleone III, Gaetano, Principal, Hogarth Kingeekuk Sr.
Memorial School................................................ 19
Prepared statement........................................... 21
Gologergen, Brianne P., Clinic Manager, Norton Sound Health
Corporation.................................................... 22
Prepared statement........................................... 24
Iya, Jacob, Student, Hogarth Kingeekuk Sr. Memorial School....... 21
Kolerok, Christopher, President/CEO, Bering Straits Regional
Housing Authority.............................................. 13
Prepared statement........................................... 15
Pungowiyi, Hon. Delbert, President, Native Village of Savoonga... 10
Prepared statement........................................... 12
Stuckey, Greg, Administrator, Alaska Office of Native American
Programs, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Develompent..... 7
Prepared statement........................................... 8
Appendix
David, Mary, Acting President, Kawerak Inc., prepared statement.. 35
Norton Sound Health Corporation, prepared statement.............. 37
OVERCROWDED HOUSING AND THE IMPACTS ON AMERICAN INDIANS AND ALASKA
NATIVES
----------
SATURDAY, AUGUST 25, 2018
U.S. Senate,
Committee on Indian Affairs,
Savoonga, AK.
The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 10:56 a.m.
Hogarth Kingeekuk Sr. Memorial School, Savoonga, Alaska, Hon.
Lisa Murkowski presiding.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. LISA MURKOWSKI,
U.S. SENATOR FROM ALASKA
Senator Murkowski. Good morning. Before we begin the
hearing of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, I would like to
ask Barbara Kogassagoon to come and provide us with an
invocation and a blessing. So Barbara, if you would share with
us.
Ms. Kogassagoon. [Invocation and remarks off microphone].
Senator Murkowski. Barbara, thank you. It is so good to
have our esteemed elder begin this hearing with words of
welcome and words of prayer. Thank you.
With that, the Committee will come to order. We are here
this morning in Savoonga to listen and to focus on over-crowded
housing and the impacts on American Indians and Alaska Natives.
I think that this is probably, perhaps most certainly, the very
first ever Congressional hearing that has been held in
Savoonga, Alaska. Pretty sure that that is accurate.
So I'm very pleased today to be able chair this field
hearing for the Senate Indian Affairs Committee. I want to
thanking those of you who have helped us make this possible
this morning, so many of your community leaders. To the
community of Savoonga for hosting, not only myself and those
who are traveling with me, but those who have come from around
Alaska and around Washington, D.C.
So I thank the Native Village of Savoonga, the City of
Savoonga, the Bering Straits School District, Kawerak, the
Norton Sound Health Corporation, the Bering Straits Housing
Authority, and the Association of Alaska Housing Authorities
for working with us to make this hearing possible.
I also want to acknowledge and thank one of my former staff
people and a good friend of mine, Megan Alvanna-Stimpfle, for
her help. She is truly one of this generation's upcoming
leaders. Her support and guidance not only here in Savoonga but
throughout the region is just greatly appreciated. So Megan, it
was wonderful to be welcomed by you when we got off the plane.
So here we are, back in Savoonga. I was here last year when
we had the ribbon-cutting for the clinic. It was at that time
that I was with Barbara and she once again started the day's
festivities and formalities off with a blessing. That was an
important milestone, last year. To be here today, to talk about
the issue of housing, is again an important milestone.
My very fist trip to Savoonga, some of you may remember.
This was in, either 2003 or 2004, and I had asked the Secretary
of Education, Secretary Rodney Paige, to come with me to Alaska
to see and understand some of the educational issues that we
face here in this State. Because he wasn't very enthusiastic
about allowing Alaskans to have a waiver with No Child Left
Behind, you'll remember that was when the rules required that
if your school didn't perform well then you had to be allowed
to attend a school that was your next closest school.
So in other words, if the school here in Savoonga did not
meet adequately yearly progress, your students, Jacob, you
would have been attending Nome High School every day. Because
that was what the law was going to require if this school
failed to meet adequately yearly progress.
So we brought the Secretary over here to understand that
maybe in Alaska, things are a little different. And he saw
that. But the other thing that that Secretary saw when he
visited with the teachers and the principals, he realized that
housing is a huge issue. The principal at the time, I don't
recall his name, was from Kansas. He said his wife was back in
Kansas. I said, why is your wife in Kansas? He said, well, I
don't have a place to live here. I said, where do you live? He
opened up a door there in the school. It was an old broom
closet, and that was where the principal lived.
Now, I've just met your principal, I've just Gaetano, I
think the fourth. I can't imagine you and your young family
living in the broom closet here at the school. And yet I
visited with the elementary school teacher, the second grade
teacher at the time, I said, where do you live? She pulled out
a gym mat that she slept on at night in her classroom.
That really struck the Secretary. He said, how can we
educate our kids if our teachers don't have a place to live? It
was at that time that we embarked on a very aggressive effort
to build out teacher housing around the State. We've made some
good headway working with our partners, but we know that still
have a way to go there.
So I share that story with you because I think it's
important that that interaction that I had about 10 or 11 years
ago here in Savoonga has left an impression on me with regard
to the need to address housing in Alaska, housing in rural
Alaska, housing in our Native villages. Because if we can't
provide safe, affordable housing that is acceptable, then it is
going to be very difficult to keep the professionals and keep
your families here.
So we have a very significant panel of individuals to speak
to us this morning, to testify. Before I introduce them, I
would like to recognize the staff of the Indian Affairs
Committee that have joined us here in Savoonga. We have Mike
Andrews, behind me, who is the Majority Staff Director and
Chief Counsel for the Committee. He has had an opportunity to
be in many Alaskan communities, but this is his first visit out
here to St. Lawrence Island.
He is joined by Jacqueline Bisille. She is Policy Advisor
for the Committee. We have Jennifer Romero, who is the Minority
Staff Director and Chief Counsel for the Committee. She is from
Santa Clara Pueblo, from New Mexico. She is joined by Anthony
Sedillo, also from New Mexico. He is a Senior Policy Advisor
for the Committee. And then I have my two staff people who help
me on the Indian Affairs Committee, Ben Mellotte, is Tlingit
from Yakutat, and Eric Reamers, Yupik, from Iliamna. They have
been strong advisors for me on my Indian Affairs Committee. I'm
thankful that they are here as well.
I also want to take a moment and introduce my Rural Affairs
Director-Coordinator, Deborah Vo. Deborah is from St. Marys.
She has had an opportunity to be with me on many different
occasions. Hannah Rae is down here in front with the camera.
I'd also like to recognize Senator Sullivan's staff, Kate
Wildermuth. Kate is know to many of you and has been doing
great work for Senator Sullivan.
So today we have an opportunity again to take testimony on
overcrowding. Our witnesses will lay out the issues, the
problems, the statistics, and hopefully some solutions. We know
that there's a great deal of work to be done in this area, and
what you can share with us is so important.
So let's start with a few statistics, very quickly. At the
beginning of this year, there was an Alaska Statewide Housing
Assessment. It really pinpoints the extent of the problem in
rural Alaska, particularly in our Alaska Native villages. The
report states that in rural Alaska, we have nearly 50 percent
of all households in some areas that are experiencing
overcrowding. From a national perspective, overcrowding
affected 16 percent of American Indian and Alaska Native
households in tribal areas and 10 percent in urban areas. When
you compare this with the rest of U.S. households, only 2
percent of all U.S. households are overcrowded.
Here in this region, in the Bering Straits region, one of
the highest overcrowding rates in the State. It is estimated 27
percent of households are overcrowded or severely overcrowded.
The rate in the Bering Strait region is more than 4.3 times the
statewide average and more than 8.3 times the national average.
I think it is important for us to recognize that what we
will hear today is what you live with. But it is not the norm
throughout the State, and certainly not throughout the Country.
I think it is also important that when we look to these
definitions of how do you define overcrowding that oftentimes,
it is an expression of what is actually homelessness, with
families taking in relatives or community members who otherwise
could not find affordable housing options. I just had a
conversation with about a half dozen people as we were coming
in. And that is just what happens here, even though you are an
adult and you have your own family, you are living with your
parents, you are living with aunts and uncles, you are living
with multiple generations.
I hope this morning we will also hear about the high cost
of housing. The report, the housing assessment, shows what we
all know, that costs are too high, nearly 80,000 cost-burdened
families who are spending over 30 percent of their income on
housing alone throughout the State. In addition, our stock of
housing is deteriorating. We are not keeping pace with expected
population growth.
So again, statistics that you all know, but within our
State, 18 percent of all Alaska Native households lack
plumbing, 15 percent lack kitchen facilities. An estimated 465
homes in the Bering Strait region do not have access to running
water or sewer. We have five communities within the region,
Stebbins, Teller, Wales, Diomede, and Shishmaref, completely
underserved.
Again, we know that these figures are not exclusive to
Alaska. All across Indian Country, we see problems with access
to quality and affordable housing. Again, the opportunity to
put this information on the record, so that not only the
community hears this, the members of the Indian Affairs staff
hear this, but remember what happens when a written record is
created. That means it is then available for the entire Senate,
for all of Congress. It is a public record that we are creating
here.
So the process this morning is, I will introduce each of
our witnesses. They will have an opportunity to provide their
testimony. We have asked them to try to keep their oral
comments to about five minutes. But their entire written
statement will be included as part of the record, as mine will
be.
So hopefully, this is an opportunity for you not to feel
scripted and stick to your written words, but speak to us about
the extent of the issues, the reality of what it means to be in
a community and a village and a region where overcrowding is so
pervasive. For those who have joined us in the audience, this
is not going to be an opportunity for you to share your stories
through an open mic, but directly after the hearing, we are
going to have a community lunch, and there will be an
opportunity to engage in dialogue not only with myself and the
staff, but the staff from HUD. So hopefully this exchange will
continue.
After each of the witnesses have given their testimony, I
will proceed with a series of questions, so that we have good
discussion to place on the record. So at this time, we will
proceed with introductions and then testimony. Because we are
operating without the benefit of a mic, we will have the
recorder being passed down and around, so we can get the
comments on the record. I would ask each of you to try to speak
as loudly as you can, so that all can hear.
We are going to lead the testimony off this morning with
Mr. Greg Stucky. Greg is the Administrator for the Office of
Native American Programs, with the Department of Housing and
Urban Development (HUD), based out of Anchorage. Of course you
all know our friend and the honorable President of the Native
village of Savoonga, Mr. Delbert Pungowiyi. Delbert has been a
friend and very helpful with us as we have set up this hearing.
We had hoped that we would have Myron Kingeekuk, the Mayor
of Savoonga. Myron is on travel. We all understand what that
means, so he won't be able to participate today. But we have
Christopher Kolerok, known to so many of us. Christopher is the
President and CEO of the Bering Straits Regional Housing
Authority. Following Chris will we have your principal here at
Hogarth Kingeekuk Memorial School here in Savoonga, Mr. Gaetano
Brancaleone. It's wonderful to have you here. We appreciate
your leadership at the school.
Following Gaetano, we will have Brianne Gologergen, who is
the Savoonga Clinic Manager, with Norton Sound Health
Corporation. Wonderful to have you here.
Following Gaetano's testimony, we are going to have a
special voice from the young people, a student who was selected
to speak today. So Jacob Iya, we will welcome your comments as
well. So we have a good panel here this morning. I would ask
you, Mr. Stuckey, if you want to begin. I am going to be less
formal in this hearing and call people by their first names, so
hopefully you don't take offense at my informality. I feel this
is certainly a place that we should have good discussion while
we place this important information on the record.
So Greg, if you would like to lead the Committee off.
Again, thank you for being here.
[The prepared statement of Senator Murkowski follows:]
Prepared Statement of Hon. Lisa Murkowski, U.S. Senator From Alaska
Good morning. The Committee will come to order, as we begin our
field hearing on ``Overcrowded Housing and the Impacts on American
Indians and Alaska Natives.''
I believe this is the first-ever congressional field hearing held
in Savoonga. I'm very glad to be here today to chair it, and very glad
you all could be here today for it.
I want to start by thanking all who helped make this one-of-a-kind
hearing possible. I thank the community of Savoonga for being such
great hosts and welcoming us into your homes and school. I want to
thank the Native Village of Savoonga, the City of Savoonga, the Bering
Straits School District, Kawerak, the Norton Sound Health Corporation,
the Bering Straits Housing Authority, and the Association of Alaska
Housing Authorities for working with us to make this hearing possible.
I also want to thank one of my former staff members, Megan Alvanna-
Stimpfle, for her help. She is part of the next generation of Alaska
Native leaders and I couldn't be more proud of her.
It's great to be back here in Savoonga. I'll never forget the first
time I visited here. It was 2009 and I flew out here with Education
Secretary Arne Duncan. This was just after he released his proposed
reform of the No Child Left Behind Act and I took him out here to show
him that his one-size-fits-all approach wasn't going to work in Alaska.
I also visited your beautiful Island last year, when I was here for the
opening of your new health clinic. The Norton Sound Health Corporation,
along with local community members, worked so hard to secure funding
for new clinics both here in Savoonga and for your neighboring village
of Gambell. I was honored to be a part of the opening ceremony because
I know that the new clinics will provide invaluable improvements in
providing high quality, modern healthcare. Again, I appreciate the work
of the community leaders in providing such a crucial service for their
members.
We have a very significant panel of individuals who will testify
this morning. But, before we begin, I would like to recognize the staff
of the Indian Affairs Committee that have joined us here in Savoonga.
We have Mike Andrews, who is the Majority Staff Director and Chief
Counsel for the Committee. He is joined by Jacqueline Bisille, who is a
Policy Advisor for the Committee. We also have Jennifer Romero, who is
the Minority Staff Director and Chief Counsel for the Committee. She is
joined by Anthony Sedillo, who is a Senior Policy Advisor for the
Committee. I'm happy they could make the trip and I hope this will be
an opportunity to better understand some of the challenges we face in
Alaska.
So today, we have an opportunity to take testimony on overcrowding
and the impact it has our indigenous population. Our witnesses will lay
out the issues, the problems, the statistics, and hopefully the
solutions to these problems. We have many dedicated and qualified
people working to improve the housing conditions and lives of American
Indians and Alaska Natives. However, there is still a lot of work to be
done.
Earlier this year I reviewed the 2018 Alaska Statewide Housing
Assessment. It illustrates how much work there is to be done,
particularly in rural Alaska, where the population is predominantly
Alaska Native. The report states that in rural Alaska, we still have a
huge issue with overcrowding--with nearly 50 percent of all households
in some areas experiencing overcrowding.
Overcrowding affected 16 percent of American Indian and Alaska
Native households in tribal areas and 10 percent in urban areas. In
comparison, only two percent of all U.S. households experienced
overcrowding.
The overcrowding rate here in the Bering Strait region is one of
the highest in the state, with an estimated 27 percent of households
being classified as overcrowded or severely overcrowded. The rate of
overcrowding in the Bering Strait region is more than 4.3 times the
statewide average and more than 8.3 times the national average.
I think it is important to point out that overcrowding in Indian
Country is often the expression of what is actually homelessness, with
families taking in relatives or community members who otherwise could
not find affordable housing options. It is not uncommon for a household
in rural Alaska to have multiple generations or multiple families
living in them.
The report also showed that costs are still too high--with nearly
80,000 cost-burdened families who are spending over 30 percent of their
income on housing alone. In addition, our stock of housing is
deteriorating and we are not keeping pace with expected population
growth.
The statistics for housing quality are particularity daunting for
Alaska, with 18 percent of all Alaska Native households lacking
plumbing and 15 percent lacking kitchen facilities. An estimated 465
homes in the Bering Strait region do not have access to running water
or sewer, with five communities-Stebbins, Teller, Wales, Diomede, and
Shishmaref-remaining completely underserved.
I am aware these figures are not exclusive to Alaska. All across
Indian Country we are seeing the problem with access to quality and
affordable housing. That is why housing in rural and Native American
communities must be part of the discussion in the 115th Congress.
What we will do this morning is hear from each of the witnesses to
add to this discussion. I urge the witnesses to try to keep your
opening testimony to about five minutes each. But, we're not going to
cut you off, either, since this is important testimony that will be
entered into the congressional record.
For those who are joining us in the audience, we won't have an open
mic, but directly following the hearing, you will have an opportunity
to engage in dialogue with myself, the staff of Indian Affairs, and the
staff from HUD. So if you have any questions to ask us, feel free to
ask them at the community meeting directly following this hearing.
After each of our witnesses have given their testimony, I will
proceed with a series of questions, to facilitate a good constructive
discussion going back and forth.
So with that, I'll introduce each of the witnesses--
MR. GREG STUCKEY, Administrator, Office of Native American
Programs, Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD),
Anchorage, AK
MR. DELBERT PUNGOWIYI, President, the Native Village of
Savoonga, Savoonga, AK
THE HONORABLE MYRON KINGEEKUK, Mayor, City of Savoonga,
Savoonga, AK
MS. BRIANNE P. GOLOGERGEN, Savoonga Clinic Manager, Norton
Sound Health Corporation, Savoonga, AK
MR. GAETANO BRANCALEONE III, Principal, Hogarth Kingeekuk
Sr. Memorial School, Savoonga, AK
MR. CHRISTOPHER KOLEROK, President/CEO, the Bering Straits
Regional Housing Authority, Nome, AK
I want to remind the witnesses that your full written testimony
will be made a part of the official hearing record.
STATEMENT OF GREG STUCKEY, ADMINISTRATOR, ALASKA OFFICE OF
NATIVE AMERICAN PROGRAMS, U.S.
DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOMPENT
Mr. Stuckey. Thank you, Senator Murkowski, for this
opportunity to discuss overcrowded housing and the impacts on
American Indian and Alaska Natives and the programs
administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
Development, specifically authorized by the Native American
Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996, referred
to as NAHASDA.
As the Administrator for HUD's Alaska Office of Native
American Programs and formerly the Administrator-Advisor for
AONAP, I have had the opportunity to visit and work with
communities to learn first-hand about the issues and challenges
that tribes face, and to hear directly from tribal leaders what
we need to do to strengthen and improve HUD's policies and
programs for Alaska Natives.
I also had the pleasure and honor to work as a tribal
administrator for my children's tribe at Chilkoot Indian
Association in Haines, Alaska, Southeast Alaska, for almost six
years.
Far too many families live in unacceptable circumstances,
as we heard from Senator Murkowski's testimony just moments
ago, and face a future that lacks access to educational and
economic opportunity. To put this into greater perspective, in
2006 to 2010, AIAN people in large tribal areas were more than
seven times as likely to live in housing that was considered
overcrowded. As we heard from those statistics, here in the
Bering Straits region, it's almost nine times the national
average.
I was just provided some information from Kawerak that here
in Savoonga it is 20 times the national average. So the impact
of overcrowding in Alaska is certainly more severe than in
other places.
HUD is aware of the housing assessment by Alaska Housing
Finance Corp. And in that assessment, it talks about, in order
to eradicate overcrowding and match the population growth of
our communities by 2025, we need to increase the production of
new units by 90 percent. In order for HUD to put more resources
on the table, the Office of Native American Programs is hard at
work crafting two notices of funding availabilities. The first
one that is going to come out is called Indian Community
Development Block Grant. We expect that to be published in the
fall of 2018. I think September or October.
Then our new program, the competitive $100,000 for Indian
Housing Block Grant Funding, we are working hard to have that
notice crafted in the winter of 2018, which is more like
December, January 2019. While the HUD Reform Act precludes me
from giving the details of that NOFA prior to its publication,
we will, it will reflect the Congressional directives in that
Act, namely that in making awards, HUD will one, consider need
and administrative capacity, and two, give priority to projects
that will spur construction and rehabilitation. HUD will also
give the maximum time to our tribal partners to respond to
those notices.
One other project is happening in ONAP that I have
awareness of but not a deep understanding. It is a project to
increase the amount of funding available through our Title VI
loan guarantee program. So we are working on a project that
will, one, allow those resources to be used sooner in the
Federal fiscal year, and approximately add 40 percent more
funding to that pot of funds with no more appropriations. So
that project is something else that HUD is working on to try to
bring more resources to deal with the overcrowding issue that
we are dealing with here in Alaska.
I am going to stop my comments, because I want to spend
more time having a discussion, as, Senator Murkowski, you
suggest. I will conclude my testimony.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Stuckey follows:]
Prepared Statement of Greg Stuckey, Administrator, Alaska Office of
Native American Programs, U.S. Department of Housing and
Urban Develompent
Introduction
Thank you Chairman Hoeven, Senator Murkowski and Members of the
Committee for this opportunity to discuss overcrowded housing and the
impacts on American Indian and Alaska Natives (AIAN) and the programs
administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
(HUD), authorized by the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-
Determination Act of 1996 (NAHASDA).
As the Administrator for HUD's Alaska Office of Native American
Programs (AONAP) and formerly as the Administrator Advisor for AONAP, I
have had the opportunity to visit and work with AIAN communities to
learn first-hand about the issues and challenges the tribes face, and
to hear directly from tribal leaders what we need to do to strengthen
and improve HUD's policies and programs for Alaska Natives. Far too
many AIAN communities struggle with overcrowded housing, shortages of
affordable housing, substandard living conditions, and significant
barriers to economic opportunity.
Today, one out of four Native Americans lives in poverty--including
more than one-third of all Native American children. Far too many
families live in unacceptable circumstances and face a future that
lacks access to educational and economic opportunity.
To put this into greater perspective, in 2006-2010, AIAN people
living in tribal areas had a poverty rate and an unemployment rate that
were approximately twice as high as the national averages. During this
same period, AIAN people in large tribal areas were more than seven
times as likely to live in housing that was overcrowded and more than
four times as likely to live in housing that did not have adequate
plumbing facilities and/or kitchens than the national average.
In 2017, HUD published Housing Needs of American Indians and Alaska
Natives in Tribal Areas, the product of a congressionally mandated,
multi-year study of housing needs and conditions in Indian Country. The
study concluded that 68,000 units were needed to address overcrowding
of the AIAN population in tribal areas (33,000 new units and 35,000
units to replace ones that were severely physically inadequate). The
study also estimated, during the same period, between 42,000 and 85,000
people in tribal areas were staying with friends or relatives only
because they had no other housing option.
HUD Native American Programs
In my capacity as the Administrator, I work closely with HUD senior
leadership to oversee Federal programs that support Native American
communities: the Indian Community Development Block Grant (ICDBG)
program; the Indian Housing Loan Guarantee (Section 184) program; the
Indian Housing Block Grant (IHBG) formula program; the Tribal Housing
Activities Loan Guarantee (Title VI) program; the Tribal HUD-VASH
demonstration program; and the soon to be announced IHBG Competitive
program.
ICDBG Program. In 1977, the Housing and Community Development Act
of 1974 was amended to set aside competitively awarded funding for
American Indian tribes within the Community Development Block Grants
(CDBG) program. It is a competitive, flexible program that funds myriad
local community investments--including, affordable housing
infrastructure in Indian Country, such as water, sewer, and community
facilities. Congress also typically appropriates funding under this
program to address imminent threats to health and safety and has
provided specific funding for mold remediation.
During the last five years (2013-2017), ICDBG has funded the
construction of 144 community buildings and the substantial
rehabilitation of almost 3,300 affordable housing units. In FY 2017,
ICDBG funded the construction of 20 community buildings and the
rehabilitation of 555 affordable housing units. In Alaska, it funded
the rehabilitation of 79 housing units, construction of nine new
housing units, construction of a multi-purpose community building,
rehabilitation of a senior center, and rehabilitation of a family
violence shelter.
Section 184 Program. The Section 184 program was authorized by the
Housing and Community Development Act of 1992, as amended. Since its
inception, the program has guaranteed more than 41,000 mortgage loans
totaling more than $7 billion. The program is the primary vehicle to
access mortgage capital in Indian communities by providing access to
market-rate, private mortgage capital to qualified Native American
families. In addition to individual home loans, tribes and tribally
designated housing entities (TDHE) are eligible borrowers. As
borrowers, tribes and TDHEs can finance and develop new rental housing
or create homeownership opportunities for tribal members through lease
purchase programs.
NAHASDA Programs. NAHASDA is the statute that authorizes the Indian
Housing Block Grant (IHBG) program and the Title VI loan guarantee
program.
NAHASDA supports the government-to-government relationship between
the Federal Government and tribal governments, established by long-
standing treaties, court decisions, statutes, Executive Orders, and the
United States Constitution. NAHASDA recognizes the importance of tribal
sovereignty and is designed to provide flexibility and local control,
so that each tribe can decide how best to address its unique housing
needs and economic priorities.
The IHBG program is the single largest source of Federal funding
for housing in Indian Country. IHBG funds are distributed annually, by
formula, to eligible tribes or their TDHEs, to provide a range of
affordable housing activities that primarily benefit low-income Indian
families living on Indian reservations or in other Indian areas.
In FY 2017, tribes built or acquired 851 affordable housing units
using IHBG funds, and about 4,629 units were substantially
rehabilitated. In addition, tribes operated, maintained, and renovated
about 41,000 units of housing developed under the U.S. Housing Act of
1937. Since the program's first year of funding in 1998 through
September 2017, recipients have built or acquired more than 40,000
units of affordable housing and rehabilitated about 92,000 units. This
represents some of the most important and consistent uses of program
funds, but it does not reflect the entire scope of program activity.
For example, since 2013, tribes have used IHBG funds to purchase around
1,359 acres of land to develop affordable housing and have provided
down payment or closing cost assistance to more than 4,269 families.
The Title VI Loan Guarantee Program (Title VI) promotes affordable
housing opportunities by leveraging IHBG funds with private capital.
Under Title VI, a tribe or TDHE can use IHBG funds to leverage private
financing to fund affordable housing activities, so that it can
undertake larger affordable housing projects. HUD guarantees 95 percent
of the principal and interest on the loan, and tribes pledge a portion
of their annual IHBG grant as payment and security for the loan. Title
VI projects often use multiple sources of funding, span several years,
and include infrastructure development. From the inception of the Title
VI program in 2000 through June 30, 2018, HUD has guaranteed a total of
100 loans, for a total of $243.1 million. Approximately 3,276
affordable units are associated with these loans.
According to the Housing Needs of American Indians and Alaska
Natives in Tribal Areas, ``. . .tribes have demonstrated the capacity
to construct and rehabilitate housing for low-income families at
substantial levels under the NAHASDA framework.'' Since 1998, under
NAHASDA, tribes have not only produced more housing units per year, but
they have produced better housing--housing that is tailored for local
conditions, customs, and climates. Tribes also use the flexible block
grant in many different and innovative ways to address unique local
needs, such as assisting college students with housing, counseling
prospective homeowners, providing self-sufficiency training to
residents, and maintaining critical community infrastructure.
New ONAP Programs. Two new ONAP efforts, the Tribal HUD-VASH
demonstration program and the recently appropriated funds for new IHBG
competitive grants, are aimed at addressing the issues of homelessness,
overcrowding, and lack of decent affordable housing in Indian County.
The Tribal HUD-VASH program is a partnership with the U.S.
Department of Veterans Affairs to provide case management services and
housing to veterans who are homeless or at-risk of homelessness. Tribal
HUD-VASH is modeled after the standard HUD-VASH program, which has been
successful in many communities across the country but was unable to
reach eligible Native American veterans living on tribal lands, largely
because tribes and TDHEs were not eligible to administer the program.
Currently, 300 Native American veteran families are being housed by
the program. Here in Alaska, two of the three Tribal HUD-VASH grantees
in the state, Cook Inlet Regional Housing Authority and Tlingit and
Haida Regional Housing Authority, are close to fully utilizing their
grant funding, housing 34 veterans (17 each) out of a possible 40
veterans. Nationwide, HUD and VA are working together to support full
utilization of the 500 Tribal HUD-VASH vouchers funded to date.
The FY 2018 Consolidated Appropriations Act authorized $100 million
for new IHBG competitive grants to address housing needs in Indian
Country. HUD is currently setting up the framework and developing a
Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) for this new program. Funds will
be awarded based on need and capacity, and new construction and
rehabilitation projects will be prioritized. HUD anticipates publishing
a NOFA this winter and awarding the funding the spring of 2019--after
allowing the tribes 90 days to submit an application for this new
program.
In conclusion, HUD's Indian Housing programs, including IHBG,
ICDBG, Section 184, and Tribal HUD-VASH, are examples of Federal
programs that are addressing overcrowding in Native American and Alaska
Native communities by providing local choice, streamlining Federal
requirements, and leveraging private market investment while respecting
tribal self-governance.
ONAP will continue to work together, at both the local and
headquarters levels, with tribes and with HUD senior leadership to
finds ways to address overcrowding and leverage the limited housing
resources in Indian Country.
Thank you again for this opportunity to appear before you today. I
would be happy to answer any questions you may have.
Senator Murkowski. Thank you, Greg. Again, your full
statement will be incorporated as part of the record. We do
appreciate it, that is good information you provided. We will
follow up with questions.
Delbert? Welcome. Thank you for welcoming us to your
community.
STATEMENT OF HON. DELBERT PUNGOWIYI, PRESIDENT, NATIVE VILLAGE
OF SAVOONGA
Mr. Pungowiyi. The Honorable Lisa Murkowski, I thank you
for coming out here and I thank you for hearing our people's
voice. I thank you for coming out here heavy. So I start my
testimony.
My name is Delbert Pungowiyi. I serve as President for the
Native Village of Savoonga. Our tribe serves over 900 tribal
members, with our population continuing to grow with each
generation. I was born in 1959, the same year Alaska
established statehood with the United States. There was no
electricity back then, and people still used dog teams. I was
raised by my grandparents, who instilled in me our ancestral
ways.
A year and a half ago, Sue Steinacher and Brian Wilson, who
was the Housing President for the Coalition for Alaska, Chris
Kolerok and I were invited to the Fairbanks Housing Coalition
meeting. I was invited to sit on the rural panel and had a
chance to speak before the Governor's Council. I am very proud
of that. I believe that was a moment that we got heard from
Washington. And I thank you for hearing our crisis out here.
At that meeting, I spoke of the housing crisis we have in
Savoonga. That was several years back, when they did the
overcrowdedness. There were 75 families within families and
growing. The last housing that was built here in our community
was 11 years ago. Eleven years later, now we have six units
here. The cost of shipping, Chris will hit on that, to get the
material out here is very expensive. The high cost of living on
our island here is, in my opinion, astronomical because of our
remoteness. I have said this before, we are so remote out here,
our nearest neighbor is Russia, only less than 40 miles away.
I spoke of the living conditions, there were some health
inspectors who, in fixing some of these homes, would be
condemned for living in, for health issues. The trauma that was
asked about the children in overcrowded homes and the living
conditions, it is not just the children that are going through
trauma. It is the adults as well. I articulated into this, the
social issues of our communities in the State. And I speak on
behalf of all of rural Alaska on this, with our brothers and
sisters in Gambell, as well.
The social issues that come with the housing crisis is all
tied with our economic situation. We all know that Alaska has
the highest rate of suicide in the Nation, Alaska Natives have
the highest rate of suicide in the Nation. That is from, we
have high-schoolers graduating, but they have nothing to look
forward to. The depression, being deprived, and hopelessness,
which many turn to alcohol and drug abuse. Ultimately, the sad
one is the suicide. They ultimately give up their lives.
We have the highest rate of suicide in the Nation, and yet
we are the minority, 16 percent Alaska Natives. Mike Dugan, who
did a story on the research on suicide prevention in Alaska, in
Anchorage Daily News, the State was being hit hard with suicide
at that time. And he researched 20 years back, his report was
that for the 20 years the Federal Government, and the State of
Alaska, spent millions of dollars in suicide prevention, and
the numbers have not changed. Something different needs to be
done. That's why I articulated our housing crisis and our
economic crisis that we are in. In all our social issues in our
communities, we are in a crisis.
And so with that being said, I think I would like to ask
the Senator and Tribal Affairs, my heart goes out to all the
region in the State. But I do believe that Savoonga and Gambell
deserve special attention. As you will hear in our military
grievance, the sacrifice we have given to our Nation, that this
is long overdue. We believe that we deserve special attention,
especially for the high cost of living out here, being so
remote.
So with that being said, I will end my comment there. I
thank you. You have a beautiful heart. You heard us and you are
here. I thank you.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Pungowiyi follows:]
Prepared Statement of Hon. Delbert Pungowiyi, President, Native Village
of Savoonga
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Senator Murkowski. Delbert, thank you. I appreciate your
raising so many issues. We all know that housing is more than
just a structure, and how it impacts the social issues and the
well-being of our families is important. I look forward to
questions.
Chris, thank you for being here and for your leadership.
STATEMENT OF CHRISTOPHER KOLEROK, PRESIDENT/CEO, BERING STRAITS
REGIONAL HOUSING AUTHORITY
Mr. Kolerok. Thank you. I would like to thank Chairman
Hoeven, Vice Chairman Udall, Senator Murkowski and the
honorable members of the Committee for the opportunity to share
with you today.
I will summarize my written testimony in the interest of
time. I am the President and CEO of the Bering Straits Regional
Housing Authority, the legislative chair of the Association of
Alaska Housing Authorities and a board member for the Alaska
Coalition on Housing and Homelessness.
All of this has given me the experience to tell you that
housing is the nexus of a healthy and economically fulfilled
life. Performing well in school, holding down a good job, even
our physical health, are all connected to a safe and sanitary
and affordable home.
Overcrowded housing is how homelessness is manifest in our
villages. Unsheltered homelessness in our villages likely means
death here for 8 out of the 12 months of the year. Rather than
let someone die, the generous and kind people in our villages
double, triple or quadruple up in homes, living in severely
overcrowded conditions. So too is living in substandard
housing, how our homelessness is displayed. People in
Anchorage, Denver or Miami would choose unsheltered
homelessness rather than the extremely substandard conditions
some of our people face here.
For some national context, HUD's assessment of American
Indian and Alaska Native housing estimates that we need 60,000
to 80,000 houses now to alleviate overcrowding. In the Bering
Straits outside of Nome, the overcrowding rate is 37 percent.
Nineteen percent of that are homes being classified as severely
overcrowded. And that term is woefully inadequate.
HUD defines severely overcrowded as 1.5 persons per room.
In all of our villages, I have heard stories of families that
have multiple generations and multiple families sharing a house
due to the lack of available housing. During community
meetings, we have been confronted with the heartbreaking
stories of 21 people sharing a small three-bedroom home. That's
21 people in a space that most Alaskans and most Americans
might call a starter home.
We know from studies in the circumpolar north that children
in overcrowded homes perform worse in school, are more likely
to be held back in grades, experience respiratory and skin
infections at a higher rate than children in homes that are not
overcrowded. Our children are literally physically harmed by
the overcrowded conditions in which they live.
When 21 people share a home, the occupants must sleep in
shifts. Out of a great love for their children and belief that
education may help them build a future, adults in a home like
this will stay up all night while the children sleep in
whatever beds, couches or even on the floor, so that they can
go to school the next day. For these people who sleep the day
shift, there is no chance for them to hold a regular job, which
then creates its own self-reinforcing economic cycle.
When someone in a 21-person home experiences substance
abuse, 21 other people experience substance abuse. Substance
abuse induced violence, theft or emotional abuse will affect
every other person in that home.
So too is the overcrowding affecting housing shortages and
homelessness in our regional and urban centers. People in
villages such as Savoonga are pushed out of their villages due
to the lack of housing. They are pulled to Nome or Anchorage by
simple economics. The GDP per capita in the 2010 census in
Savoonga was $7,000, versus $37,000 in Anchorage.
There is a migratory link between village regional hub and
urban centers that people regularly traverse, moving from
Gambell to Nome to Anchorage and back. People with nowhere to
live will attempt to move to Nome for the jobs. There they will
run into high rental prices and reduced social safety nets.
After working full time and barely affording their rent, they
may then try to move to Anchorage in search of more affordable
housing, and again, decreasing their social safety net. In
Anchorage, with fewer family members, their distance from
homelessness may be just $50 on their rent payment.
Housing development is handicapped by stagnant funds and
rising costs. The Indian Housing Block Grant this year was
approximately 28 percent lower than in 1997, when we adjust for
inflation. An inflation-depleted Indian Housing Block Grant
would be a tragedy in its own right, but construction costs are
increasing. I have construction data for housing units built
here in 1997 and costs have nearly tripled, versus the official
inflation factor that the Bureau of Labor Statistics calculates
as 58 percent.
Compounding this, there are fewer contractors responding to
RFPs now than there were in 2015. We do have some success,
however, owing to the great power of the central idea of
NAHASDA, which is self-determination rather than Washington
determination. My construction manager who works for me full
time is building to my standards and his standards. Our homes
we are now building are 50-year homes. We have deliberately
made the decision to build these homes to out-perform the older
series of homes built, whether by drilling down to bedrock to
drive our piles or utilizing structurally insulated panels.
These homes, right out here, are built using Alaskan-sourced
materials. The panel manufacturer is located in Wasilla.
In October of 2017, these homes were burning five gallons
of stove oil every other week. We estimate that those homes
will burn about 220 gallons per year on an annual basis, versus
our old homes that can sometimes burn 100 gallons per month.
Senator Murkowski, thank you for being here. Thank you for
this opportunity. But I need to tell you that we desperately
need the Indian Housing Block Grant to be adequately funded.
That funding needs to account for the inflation that's taken
place over the last 20 years.
Thank you very much for being here.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Kolerok follows:]
Prepared Statement of Christopher Kolerok, President/CEO, Bering
Straits Regional Housing Authority
Good morning Chairman Hoeven, Vice-Chairman Udall, and
distinguished members of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. Thank
you for the opportunity to appear today as the Committee hears
testimony on Overcrowded Housing and the Impacts on American Indians
and Alaska Natives.
My name is Chris Kolerok, and I have the privilege to serve as the
President and CEO of the Bering Straits Regional Housing Authority
(BSRHA). I am also Cup'ik Eskimo, a tribal member of the Native Village
of Mekoryuk. BSRHA is the regional housing authority in western Alaska
and the Tribally Designated Housing Entity for 17 tribes. The Bering
Straits region is approximately the size of Maryland, with 17 villages,
accessible only by air year-round and by barge during the Summer
months.
This field hearing is taking place in a prescient location,
overcrowded housing, and severely overcrowded housing, are prevalent in
Savoonga, and all of the villages in the Bering Straits. Overcrowded
housing is not limited to the Bering Straits region, but is common
across Alaska and throughout Indian Country.
Overcrowded Housing in the Bering Straits, Alaska and the United States
For American Indians and Alaska Natives, overcrowded housing is a
manifestation of what would be unsheltered homelessness in other parts
of the country. The Department of Housing and Urban Development's
report Housing Needs of American Indians and Alaska Natives in Tribal
Areas published in January 2017 estimated between 42,000 and 85,000
Native Americans were doubled up, a term to describe a person living
with friends or family to avoid homelessness because they have no
residence. To alleviate overcrowding and replace substandard units in
Indian country, the report estimated 68,000 housing units were needed
in tribal areas.
On a statewide level, the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation, the
State's housing finance agency, published a housing assessment of
statewide and regional housing needs in January 2018 titled 2018 Alaska
Housing Assessment. The assessment found that some Alaskans regions
experience overcrowding at 12 times that of the national average. AHFC
estimated that 16,107 housing units would need to be constructed to
accommodate the existing population in overcrowded housing.
In Savoonga, unsheltered homelessness would lead to death during
the fierce winter weather. Rooted in a close-knit culture and deep
familial links, many families prefer to house people in need, and live
in severe overcrowding, rather than let individuals risk certain death
if they are unsheltered.
The terms overcrowded and severely overcrowded are inadequate to
address the situation in rural Alaska. HUD defines overcrowded as 1.5
people per room in a housing unit. During informational meeting, I have
heard anecdotes in more than one of our communities of 3-bedroom homes
that were housing 21 people. These 3-bedroom homes are often in the
range of 1,100 to 1,300 square feet. These conditions are extremely
overcrowded, and represent a detriment to health and economic well-
being of those who are forced to live in such conditions.
The scale of overcrowded housing is largest in the areas that are
in the most need, the non-hub communities, which are villages that do
not serve as transportation and commercial centers supporting smaller
or surrounding villages. In the Bering Straits, overcrowded and
severely overcrowded housing rates are approximately 37 percent, well
above the approximately 3 percent overcrowded rate of the national
average.
[GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Impacts of Overcrowded and Substandard Housing on American Indians and
Alaska Natives
The Institute of Social and Economic Research prepared a report for
the Association of Alaska Housing Authorities titled ``Developing
Social Outcomes of Inadequate Housing in Alaska'' identified many
impacts to overcrowded housing. The report identified several areas
where overcrowding negatively impacted occupants. What is particularly
troubling is how much of the available research was able to show
negative effects on the most vulnerable of our population: children. By
way of summary, the areas are outlined below:
Health impacts: multiple studies confirmed that overcrowding
and poor quality of housing in the Canadian arctic is related
to increased respiratory and skin infections in children.
Educational impacts: children in overcrowded homes display
more behavioral problems in school and have more conflict with
their parents. One study found that children in overcrowded
homes achieve lower educational attainment. Another study found
that even controlling for family size, the overcrowding of a
home led to higher rates of being held back in school. In
subject specific studies, overcrowding decreased reading and
math scores.
These studies conducted in the Canadian arctic and across the globe
present serious challenges we must confront if we are to provide
children in rural villages a chance at a healthy and productive life.
Overcrowded housing and the lack of housing are interchangeable
conditions in rural Alaska. The lack of safe, sanitary and affordable
housing threatens the survival of Native cultures and the villages and
towns many Alaska Natives call home. Tribal communities that lack
decent housing often have difficulty or an outright inability to
attract essential professionals to live in their communities. Health
care providers, law enforcement officer and educators need safe,
sanitary and affordable housing to assume their jobs, and without that
housing those professionals will not move to a community. A community
without adequate health care, law enforcement and education cannot
survive, much less thrive.
The Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium conducted a study on
home ventilation improvements. Though overcrowding was not a data set
collected in the study, we know that having a more people living in a
home contributes to increased moisture and can reduce the indoor air
quality, which is what the study measured. There were 63 homes with 214
children in eight villages, located in Southwest Alaska that had home
modifications. One year after the modifications were completed, the
results were astounding: a decrease in hospitalization went from 10
cases to 0; clinic visits decreased from 36 to 12; and, school absences
decreased from 18 to 3. These numbers are a testament to how the
quality of housing directly affects the educational attainment and
health quality of our children, elders and community members.
Housing instability also impacts the health of our communities.
Housing instability can be defined as homelessness, overcrowding,
transiency, and high cost burden that many families' bear such as the
cost of energy. Housing instability has health consequences, including:
reduced access to care, mental distress, difficulty sleeping, and
depression. In children, housing instability puts them at a higher risk
for: developmental delays, low weight, and poor health overall. For
youth, the consequences result in: behavioral and emotional problems,
increased teenage pregnancy, increased drug use, increased rates of
depression, and increased probability of using emergency rooms for
routine care.
Children who live in affordable housing, when compared to children
whose families are of comparable means but who do not have access to
affordable housing: are 35 percent more likely to be classified as a
``well'' child; have a 28 percent lower risk of being seriously
underweight; and are 19 percent less likely to be food insecure.
NAHASDA and the Indian Housing Block Grant
In 1996 Congress enacted the Native American Housing and Self
Determination Act (NAHASDA), and established the Indian Housing Block
Grant (IHBG) as part of that act. This act acknowledged the Federal
government's trust obligation to American Indians and Alaska Natives.
NAHASDA also recognized the distinct affordable housing needs of
American Indians and Alaska Natives, authorizing tribes to address
their specific housing needs in the most effective ways. Prior to this,
housing strategies were mandated by Federal officials sitting in
offices thousands of miles away from the lands on which the homes were
built.
As an example, homes in Savoonga and Gambell are built to withstand
120 mph wind gusts. Our winter storms require a different building
standard and may not be needed in all of Alaska or other areas of the
United States. These wind gusts may cause evacuations in other areas of
the United States, however, evacuation due to extreme weather is not an
option for the residents of Savoonga and Gambell. They must shelter in
place and endure, as they have done for millennia.
The IHBG has been a powerful and positive tool for housing
construction in tribal areas. However, the potential positive impact
has been eroded by inflation since NAHASDA's enactment in 1996. HUD's
own study on native American housing needs states:
``The tribes have demonstrated the capacity to construct and
rehabilitate housing for low-income families at substantial
levels under the NAHASDA framework.''
[GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
The report also points out a major impediment to that work: the
decline in purchasing power of the IHBG by approximately 1/3 by the
year 2014. Without consistent and inflation-proofed appropriations, the
IHBG will not allow tribes and Tribally Designated Housing Entities to
develop housing that will keep pace with existing housing stock. Due to
increased development costs, the amount of housing developed will
likely decrease in the future. Construction costs are one area that
outpace the overall inflation rate. While inflation included items and
services that have declined in cost over time, the cost of construction
has only increased. Actual costs of construction have nearly trebled,
using data pulled from Bering Straits Regional Housing Authority's own
construction records of housing developed in Savoonga in 1997 and 2017.
Addressing Overcrowded Housing
In order to address overcrowded housing, the largest single tool
available to tribes and Tribally Designated Housing Entities is the
Indian Housing Block Grant. Fully funding the IHBG with inflation
proofed appropriations will allow more housing to be developed and help
alleviate overcrowding in our communities. Though the IHBG and its
flexibility is the most effective tool to allow tribes to design
housing that meets their needs, there are other programs and public
policy issues that can increase the amount of safe, sanitary and
affordable housing for American Indians and Alaska Natives.
The Tribal HUD-VASH program is another tool that shows the great
potential of agency collaboration to house Alaska Native veterans,
which are among the largest per capita population that serve in
America's armed forces. In Alaska, three (3) entities were selected to
participate in the Tribal HUD-VASH pilot program in Alaska, AVCP
Regional Housing Authority, serving the Yukon-Kuskokwim region of
Southwest Alaska, Cool Inlet Housing Authority in Southcentral Alaska,
and Tlingit Haida Regional Housing Authority in Southeast Alaska. The
Tribal HUD-VASH pilot program allowed Alaska Native veterans who were
homeless or at risk of being homeless to be served along with their
families, rather than the stricter HUD VASH program requiring veterans
be chronically homeless. This allowed veterans to receive housing
assistance with their family members, increasing the population served
and keeping family units together. The program is still a demonstration
project which means it has some barriers that must be worked out with
different entities involved in its implementation. Making this program
permanent, and flexible for Alaska, will help the Federal government
meet two of its most important obligations: taking care of its veterans
after their service to our country, and its trust responsibility to
Alaska Natives and American Indians.
Another issue that has the potential to impact housing Alaska is
the accuracy of the decennial census count is of absolute importance
for the Bering Straits, Alaska and all tribal areas in America. Tribal
areas are often harder to count than urban, suburban or even the
typical rural American census tract. Nowhere is this more true than
Alaska. We have some of the most remote communities in the nation that
have limited Internet accessibility. If Internet services are
available, it is prohibitively expensive for most families and has very
slow download speed to effectively complete an Internet-based census
count. Additionally, many villages in Alaska are accessible only by air
while the census count is happening, in the Bering Straits there is
only 1 village connected to the regional transportation hub by road.
However, this road is not guaranteed to be open during the winter.
These topics should on the radar of the Census Bureau and sample counts
should continue to occur in Alaska and across Indian Country. With
Federal funding tied to population, an accurate count is of utmost
importance to ensure hard to count census areas receive the formula
funding to which they have access.
Finally, Federal regulators and officials should be paying
attention to the needs of tribal areas and incorporating feedback when
formulating policy. HUD's decision to update regulations on the Section
184 home loan guarantee program provides a case study for improvement
to tribal consultation. HUD began its update by holding listening
sessions, which it billed as tribal consultation. However, the
listening sessions were not consultative. These sessions did not
include information on what features of the Section 184 program had
driven the need for update, or on what potential updates were proposed.
Tribes were told the regulations would be pushed out through the
Federal Register with an open comment period. This does not suggest
that comments will be taken into consideration and certainly does not
suggest a consultative and collaborative approach.
Conclusion
NAHASDA and the IHBG provide tribes a powerful tool to provide
housing that is appropriate to their local conditions. It is the
largest single tool tribal housing providers have to provide housing
and alleviate overcrowded living conditions that hurt the education and
health of American Indians and Alaska Natives. A fully funded IHBG is
needed, now more than ever, to address the challenge of overcrowded
housing in which too many American Indians and Alaska Natives are
living.
Thank you to the Chairman, Vice-Chairman and the members of the
Committee for the opportunity to appear before you today.
Senator Murkowski. Thank you, Chris. I appreciate very much
the outlook on what has happened with increasing costs while at
the same time, funds remain unfortunately at levels that are
not sufficient. So thank you for raising that.
Gaetano, thank you for your leadership at the school.
STATEMENT OF GAETANO BRANCALEONE III, PRINCIPAL, HOGARTH
KINGEEKUK SR. MEMORIAL SCHOOL
Mr. Brancaleone. Good morning, Senator Murkowski. Whanga
aatqa Qawaagpaq. My name is Qawaagpaq, or Gaetano David
Brancaleone, III. I am the principal of Hogarth Kingeekuk Sr.
Memorial School in the Bering Straits school district. It is my
fifth year working here as an administrator and my eighth year
serving the community of Savoonga as a educator.
I appreciate this opportunity to testify before you today
about overcrowded housing and specifically the impacts that it
has on our students in the Bering Straits School
District.Overcrowded housing can have a direct impact on the
education of our students. It can deprive them of basic needs
such as sleep, and can lead to concerns with sanitation,
health, and basic quality of life.
When the basic needs of our students are not met, that can
affect their overall well-being, as some have touched on
already today, and their ability to focus on being successful
at school. In our schools, that impact is reflected in low
attendance rates, exhausted and sleeping students in class,
emotional distress, and frequent illness and health-related
absences.
In speaking with these students and families, trying to
find ways to support them, some of the challenges that often
come up in conversation are those about large numbers of people
in one home, sleeping in shifts, as was mentioned before, the
difficulty of sleeping when it is your shift because when it is
your shift to sleep, it is someone else's turn to be awake.
Sleeping in corners, sleeping on the bare floor, or sleeping on
a pile of clothes, those are some of the challenges and
obstacles that the families and students are dealing with that
are difficult for the school to support. When students and
families have to navigate the hardships of overcrowded housing
on a daily basis, their ability to succeed at school is greatly
hindered.
Housing is one of the fundamental needs of every family. As
you noted before, and as has also been noted by some other
witnesses, the lack of that housing is disproportionately felt
in Native communities in bush Alaska. I think one of the major
reasons for that is that in those rural locations, the cost of
materials and the scarcity of trained tradesmen serve as an
obstacle to building and maintaining safe, quality, and
affordable housing. I urge the Committee to continue supporting
any funding streams that sustain the building of new homes or
the repair, weatherization and maintenance of existing
structures.
I would strongly ask the Committee to develop or promote
programs that support the training and certification of local
tradesmen. I think building that capacity locally could greatly
reduce the costs of constructing and maintaining adequate
housing in rural locations, and could have a direct and lasting
impact on the quality of life for rural populations, not only
in regard to overcrowded housing, but just in regard to hope
and purpose for the future.
The issue of overcrowded housing is one piece of the
puzzle. We touched a little bit on some social issues and how
different things play into that. I really encourage us to
think, as we are dealing with symptoms, that we focus on long-
term solutions that actually look at the source of some of
these issues. So building local capacity and local healing I
think are very important to consider when we are thinking about
the steps we are going to be taking to address them.
I want to thank the Committee for taking the issue of
overcrowded housing concerns seriously, and for coming out to
Sivungaq to hear the needs of the people. I hope that your
visit is an informative one that leads to action. Your actions
on these matters, or lack thereof, have the potential to change
lives forever. I trust you will not take that responsibility
lightly. Igamsiqayugviikamsi. Thank you.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Brancaleone follows:]
Prepared Statement of Gaetano Brancaleone III, Principal, Hogarth
Kingeekuk Sr. Memorial School
Good morning Senator Murkowski. Whanga aatqa Qawaagpaq (Gaetano
Brancaleone III) and I am the Principal of Hogarth Kingeekuk Sr.
Memorial School, within the Bering Strait School District in Western
Alaska. It is my fifth year working as an administrator, and my eighth
year serving the community of Savoonga as an educator. I appreciate
this opportunity to testify before you today about Overcrowded Housing
and the impacts that it has on our students in the Bering Strait School
District.
Overcrowded housing has a direct impact on the education of our
students. It can deprive them of basic needs such as sleep, and can
lead to concerns with sanitation, health, and basic quality of life. In
our schools, that impact is reflected in low attendance rates,
exhausted and sleeping students in class, emotional distress, and
frequent illness/health related absences. In speaking with these
students and families, conversations about large numbers of people in
one home, sleeping in shifts, the difficulty of sleeping when it is
your shift because it is someone else's ``turn'' to be awake, sleeping
in corners, sleeping on the bare floor, or sleeping on a pile of
clothes are not uncommon. When students and families have to navigate
the hardships of overcrowded housing on a daily basis, their ability to
succeed at school is greatly hindered.
Housing is one of the fundamental needs of every family, and the
lack of that housing is disproportionately felt in Native communities
in bush Alaska. In these rural locations, the cost of materials and the
scarcity of trained tradesmen serve as obstacles to building safe,
quality, and affordable housing. I urge the Committee to continue
supporting any funding streams that sustain the building of new homes
or the repair and weatherization of existing structures. I would also
ask the Committee to develop or promote programs that support the
training and certification of local tradesmen. Building this capacity
locally could greatly reduce the costs of constructing adequate housing
in rural locations, and have a direct and lasting impact on the quality
of life for rural populations.
I want to thank the Committee for taking the issue of overcrowded
housing concerns seriously and for coming out to Sivungaq to hear the
needs of the people. I hope that your visit is an informative one that
leads to action. Your actions on these matters, or lack there of, have
the potential to change lives forever. I trust you will not take that
responsibility lightly. Igamsiqayugviikamsi.
Mr. Brancaleone. Is now when Jacob is going to speak?
Senator Murkowski. If you would like to introduce him.
Mr. Brancaleone. Yes. This is Jacob Iya. He is a young
leader in the village. He has done some pretty amazing things
and has a great voice that he wants to share with you today.
STATEMENT OF JACOB IYA, STUDENT, HOGARTH KINGEEKUK SR. MEMORIAL
SCHOOL
Mr. Iya. Welcome, ladies and gentlemen. The Native Village
of Savoonga honors your visit to hear our voice.
As we all know, the future of this island is held within
the hands of the children. Their development is beyond
important for them to grow and become successful members within
the community.
However, there are a variety of factors that hinder the
children's chances of success, such as overcrowded and old
houses, insufficient resources and illnesses that affect the
overall health of the children. Some of these houses are so
overcrowded that diseases, such as a cold, the flu and whooping
coughs, can easily creep its way into the entire village if
left untreated. When children become sick, they cannot go to
school, thus less likely to become successful within the
community.
Our shortage of housing is a harsh reality that we, as a
village, deal with on a yearly basis. There are families that
seriously need a new house, but are extremely humble, staying
in a house with more than ten people with a house that was
meant for five.
As Savoonga's population is increasing, more housing and
jobs are needed. With said issues, our culture, language and
way of life is at risk. I see more and more children being
deprived of learning our language every year. Traditions and
moral values have nearly vanished. But for the years to come,
we have learned to live with what we have, as our ancestors did
before us.
Loss of culture and language is slowly becoming a reality.
But with the assistance of the tribal community and the school,
we can get our language back. We are an ever-growing people
that do not know the luxury of having a new house to our own
for more than a decade, maybe longer. As we all look to the
path ahead of us, we shall look, not with negativity or
frustration, but with hope and happiness.
[Phrase in Native tongue.] Thank you for hearing our voice.
Senator Murkowski. Thank you, Jacob, and thank you for
ensuring that we do have the voice of the young people. You are
really the future. Thank you for expressing that. We are very
thankful for that.
Next, let's go to Brianne. It is wonderful to have you here
and speak from the perspective of health.
STAETMENT OF BRIANNE P. GOLOGERGEN, CLINIC MANAGER, NORTON
SOUND HEALTH CORPORATION
Ms. Gologergen. Senator Murkowski, members of the Senate
Committee on Indian Affairs, it is an honor to testify before
you today. Igamsiqayugvikamsi, thank you for being here and
welcome to my home town.
Convening an Indian Affairs hearing in Savoonga is a
historic moment. We appreciate your commitment to addressing
the impacts of overcrowded housing in American Indian and
Alaska Native communities.
I was raised by Aaron and Eleanor Gologergen of Savoonga.
We are blessed to continue to live our way of life and practice
our traditional lifestyle. We are Siberian Yupik. When I look
back at how I was raised and the traditional values I was
taught, I come to the sense that we are a very close-knit
society. It is in our tradition to care for one another and
live off our land. Our men climb our beach cliffs, we journey
the Bering Sea and we roam our tundra. When a member of our
community loses a loved one, we come together to help the
grieving family, be it bringing food, cleaning the home, taking
care of the kids and seeking donations for services. When
people say, ``It takes a community to raise a child,'' Savoonga
is part of that living proof.
I serve as the manager of our local clinic. I am also a
community health practitioner and have been for the last eight
years. The clinic delivers acute, chronic and emergent care,
and is staffed by four health aides: Mary Ann Seppilu, Chantal
Miklahook, Danielle Reynolds, and Dorothy Kava, along with six
new hires. The health aides work within the guidelines of the
Alaska Community Health Aide Practitioner Manual, also known as
the CHAM, in assessing and referring members of our community
who seek medical care and consultation.
Our health aides work under the supervision of a physician
located in Nome, Dr. Steven Daniel. Our health aides and clinic
staff are the front lines of health care delivery in our
community, often experiencing and taking on the impacts of the
housing crisis in our community.
Shedding light on the lack of housing, overcrowding in our
homes and the impacts on our families is not always easy. But
we recognize it is necessary to improve the lives of those
living in our community. The health impacts of a lack of
housing are real and pervasive, impacting entire families. It
is simply a stressful situation. We must establish a pathway
for our growing community.
At a fundamental level, if you don't have your own room or
a quiet place to sleep, maintaining a regular sleep schedule
becomes near impossible. When a person experiences a lack of
sleep, like anyone, they can become irritable. In an
overcrowded living situation, the entire mood and atmosphere of
the home can become hostile.
Now, the stress of one individual due to a packed house has
impacted everyone in the home. In some situations, it can cause
violence within the home. When stress is released with
resentment or physically, we at the clinic experience the
impact of overcrowding in our community.
I am going to use general statistics for our region on
domestic violence, out of respect for our community. In 2015,
the Justice Center at the University of Alaska Anchorage
surveyed our region's communities and reported that 51 percent
of women in our region have experienced intimate partner
violence, sexual violence, or both during their lifetimes. That
means roughly one in two women in our region have experienced
violence. The question remains, with the lack of housing, where
does one go?
The health impacts of the housing crisis seen at the clinic
are generally after hours. We treat and respond to lacerations
after violence, intoxicated individuals, those who are
experiencing suicidal ideation, and sometimes fall victim to
medication overdose or attempted suicide. Unfortunately, these
situations are common in to many of our Native communities. We
see the impacts and the stress of the housing situation in our
mothers and fathers.
For any scheduled visit, we ask, what are you here for
today, what can we help you with? Oftentimes our patients are
very stressed out, due to circumstances at home. It is common
for our providers to offload that stress in order to provide
adequate care. Our patients express tremendous amounts of
stress from the difficulty of providing for the needs of their
families, including groceries, beds to sleep on, dressers to
store clothing or a broken freezer that prevents adequate food
storage.
We have experienced patients worried because they fear the
electricity shutting down. During well child visits, parents
express their gratitude for the Women, Infants and Children
nutrition program, as it helps feed their kids.
When the basic needs of housing and food are not met, the
impacts are carrying much weight on the health of the
individual. In overcrowded living conditions, the risk of
spreading illness, such as the common cold or influenza, have
real impacts on our families. When we have one sick kid,
everyone else in the house gets sick.
For those that are on a high-blood pressure medication, we
ask them to stay away from stressful situations. However, that
is impossible without adequate housing. We recently experienced
a recent bedbug incident. However, we found our community ill-
equipped to respond, with nowhere to wash clothes or hot-dry
belongings.
In the most recent years, we have had an increasing amount
of new tuberculosis outbreaks. Larger groups of people living
in close proximity results in a higher number of patients that
are at risk of getting tuberculosis.
In closing, I look forward to hearing the outcomes of this
hearing. It is imperative we establish pathways for young
families. I recognize it is going to take all of us working
together as a community, as a region. With your commitment and
partnership, I believe we can improve the lives of those living
here in Savoonga. Thank you.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Gologergen follows:]
Prepared Statement of Brianne P. Gologergen, Clinic Manager, Norton
Sound Health Corporation
Senator Murkowski, members of the Senate Committee on Indian
Affairs, it is an honor to testify before you today.
Igamsiqayugvikamsi, thank you, for being here and welcome to my
hometown. Convening an Indian Affairs hearing in Savoonga is a historic
moment. We appreciate your commitment to addressing the impacts of
overcrowded housing in American Indian and Alaska Native communities.
I was raised by Aaron & Eleanor Gologergen of Savoonga. We are
blessed to continue to live our way of life and practice our
traditional lifestyle. We are Siberian Yupik. When I look back at how I
was raised and the traditional values I was taught, I come to the sense
that we are a very close knit society. It is in our tradition to care
for one another and live off of our land. Our men climb our beach
cliffs, we-- journey the Bering Sea, and we roam our tundra. When a
member of our community loses a loved one, we come together to help the
grieving family; be it bringing food, cleaning the home, taking care of
the kids, & seeking donation for services. When people say ``it takes a
community to raise a child'', Savoonga is part of that living proof.
I serve as the manager of our local clinic. I am also a Community
Health Practitioner. The clinic delivers acute, chronic and emergent
care and is staffed by 4 health aides: Mary Ann Seppilu, Chantal
Miklahook, Danielle Reynolds, and Dorothy Kava, along with six new
hires. 'The health aides work within the guidelines of the Alaska
Community Health Aide Practitioner Manual (also known as the CHAM) in
assessing and referring members of our community who seek medical care
and consultation. Our health aides work under the supervision of a
physician located in Nome, Dr. Steven Daniel. Our health aides and
clinic staff are the front lines of health care delivery in our
community, often experiencing and taking on the impacts of the housing
crisis in our community.
Shedding light on the lack of housing, overcrowding in our homes
and the impacts on our families is not always easy, but we recognize it
is necessary to improve the lives of those living in our community. The
health impacts of a lack of housing are real and pervasive, impacting
entire families. It is simply a stressful situation. We must establish
a pathway for our growing community.
At a fundamental level, if you don't have your own room or a quiet
place to sleep, maintaining a regular sleep schedule becomes near
impossible. ``When a person experiences a lack of sleep, like anyone,
they can become irritable. In an overcrowded living situation, the
entire mood and atmosphere of the home can become hostile. Now, the
stress of one individual, due to a packed house, has impacted everyone
in the home. In some situations, it can cause violence within the home.
When stress is released with resentment or physically, we at the clinic
experience the impacts of overcrowding in our community.
I am going to use general statistics for our region on domestic
violence, out of respect for our community. In 2015, the Justice Center
at the University of Alaska Anchorage surveyed our region's communities
and reported that 51 percent of women in our region have experienced
intimate partner violence, sexual violence, or both during their
lifetimes. That means roughly 1 in 2 women in our region have
experienced violence. The question remains, with a lack of housing,
where does one go?
The health impacts of the housing crisis seen at the clinic are
generally after-hours. We treat and respond to lacerations after
violence, intoxicated individuals, those who are experiencing suicidal
ideation and sometimes fall victim to medication overdose or attempted
suicide. Unfortunately, these situations are common in too many of our
Native communities. We see the impacts and the stress of the housing
situation in our mothers and fathers.
For any scheduled visit, we ask ``What are you here for today? What
can we help you with?'' Often times our patients are very stressed out
due to circumstances at home and it is common our providers offload
that stress in order to provide adequate care. Our patients express
tremendous amounts of stress from the difficulty of providing the needs
of their families, including: groceries, beds to sleep on, dressers to
store clothing, or a broken freezer that prevents adequate food
storage. We have experienced patients worried because they fear their
electricity shutting down During well child visits, patents express
their gratitude for the Women, Infants, and Children nutrition program,
as it helps feed their kids.
When the basic needs of housing and food are not met, the impacts
are carrying much weight on the health of the individuaL In overcrowded
living conditions, the risks of spreading illness such as a common cold
or influenza have real impacts on our families. When we have one sick
kid. everyone else in the house gets sick. For those that are on a high
blood pressure medication we-- ask them to stay away from stressful
situations; however that is impossible without adequate housing. We
experienced a recent bed bug incident; however we found our community
ill equipped to respond with nowhere to wash clothes or hot dry
belongings. In the most recent years, we've had an increasing amount of
new Tuberculosis outbreaks; larger groups of people living in close
proximity results in a higher number of patients that are at risk of
getting tuberculosis.
In closing, I look forward to hearing the outcomes of this hearing.
It is imperative we establish pathways for young families. I recognize
it is going to take all of us working together, as a community, as a
region, and with your commitment and partnership I believe we can
improve the lives of those living here in Savoonga.
Senator Murkowski. Thank you. Thank you to all of you for
your words and for helping to educate others about the issues
of overcrowding and inadequate housing. I think it is important
that we recognize that the lack of a physical structure or the
lack of an adequate, safe, sanitary physical structure has such
an extraordinary ripple effect. Whether its impact on stress
levels that lead to domestic violence, whether it is impact on
a child who is not able to get adequate sleep, so therefore
cannot really function during the school day, so it impacts the
health, the education, the safety. It is extraordinary in its
breadth and scope when you think about the significance of
crowded conditions and what they mean to a family and to a
community. So I appreciate all that you have shared with us.
I want to start out my questions with focus first on just
the number of housing units. Chris, maybe you can help us with
that. I think you had indicated that here in the State, we
would need 60,000 to 80,000 homes to alleviate the situation. I
don't know whether, Greg, you mentioned it in your testimony,
either. I think you said we would need to increase production
of housing stock by some 90 percent to meet the needs.
So can you share with me what is happening on the ground
right now to bring on additional housing stock? As we walked up
from the airport, there are six new units that are being built.
I understand that there is an additional five or six that are
being built in Gambell right now. But how will that help to
alleviate the immediate crisis? And what is the plan to do more
on this island for the immediate hosing needs?
Mr. Kolerok. Senator, I am Chris Kolerok, with Bering
Straits Regional Housing Authority. Thank you for that
question. In Indian Country, we need 60,000 to 80,000 units
across Indian Country. In Alaska, we need 16,000 units,
according to a 2018 housing assessment by HFC. That is actually
up 1,000 units from its last housing assessment in 2015.
So the housing situation is actually not getting better
over time. And nowhere is that truer than here in Savoonga.
Your overall question of what are we going to do and how
are we going to address inadequate housing is important. I want
to make sure you are understanding, I am not trying to be flip,
but we are trying to figure that out ourselves right now. One
of the things that we need to keep in mind is that these
housing units that we build with our own work, we self project
manage, using force account labor, those housing units actually
cost about 35 percent less than when we had put them out to bid
to a contractor.
Senator Murkowski. What will the full cost of these units
be?
Mr. Kolerok. These units will be just under the total
development cost for HUD's guidelines. In total, we are
expecting about $4.5 million for those six units, which,
anywhere else in the Country, that amount of money would
purchase a mansion.
Senator Murkowski. How much of building cost is directly
attributable to transportation costs?
Mr. Kolerok. Transportation is an incredibly large part of
that figure. The labor and the timing are expensive, the
materials are expensive, because here, we need to build to a
120-mile an hour gust wind. We need very robust material, we
need very good insulative material. And that is slightly more
expensive than the average material.
But what makes everything more expensive is getting it
here. When you think about how we have to get everything out
here, including a hammer and a nail, that is either coming on a
boat, or it is coming on an airplane. Just for reference, our
tickets here were $575.00. On a certain day of the week, we
could purchase tickets from Seattle to Hong Kong for $575.00.
Senator Murkowski. That is an important part of the
reality. This is not just here in Savoonga, but throughout the
State of Alaska. The transportation costs, the high cost of
living within the area contribute to the reality that has made
it very difficult to do more than bring on one or two units at
a time, because of the cost.
In terms of barriers to development, developing additional
stock, it is transportation cost, are there regulatory, well,
forget the regulatory, how much of an issue is the ability to
get a sufficient number of lots that you need? I heard that as
we walked in as well, that you are limited. You have a big
island here. Delbert, you told me it is 100 miles long and----
Mr. Pungowiyi. One point two million acres.
Senator Murkowski. One point two million acres. So people
would say, you have all this land, why don't you just build
houses everywhere. And the answer to that, for the record,
Chris?
Mr. Kolerok. Senator, the available land that we have is
what is made available to us by the village corporation. And
that is true in all of our villages that we operate. We are
here, we may be close to running out of available lots to
build. In places like Shaktoolik, there are essentially ten
lots left in the village to build. So for the foreseeable
short-term future, we can develop some housing there. But after
a decade or so, Shaktoolik will essentially be out of places to
build.
For us here in Savoonga, our biggest barrier for
construction has actually be infrastructure. As Delbert
mentioned, we had taken about a decade for us to return to
build new homes. As we were in the planning stages, we were
told by the sewer and water regulator that the sewer and water
system were at capacity, and that we would not be able to hook
up our homes unless we built out that system.
That cost an entire extra home. We had budgeted an
additional home here. That is not going to be a unique thing to
Savoonga. We are expending resources to shore up infrastructure
in Gambell. We will surely do so in Wales and Teller as well.
On the positive side, with some local partners and people
taking initiative, like Megan, we are beginning the process of
working together and sharing information earlier in our
construction cycle so that we can start solving these problems
and thinking about them earlier. But at the point where we were
told it would cost an extra home to build a house, we had been
waiting a decade and I could not in good conscience wait
another year for that. So we ate that cost.
Senator Murkowski. I think it is significant, talking about
the construction challenges. I know from a regulatory
perspective, and Greg, I would like your comment son this, that
we have within the IHS system and the HUD system almost
inherent barriers. I am not asking you to solve that problem.
That is actually something that we have to address back in
Washington, D.C.
But there are four States, including Alaska, where we have
a restriction on IHS' ability to serve new homes that were
built using grants from HUD housing. And this means that new
homes that are built using grants from HUD are not eligible to
be served by IHS sanitation construction programs, because they
have a prohibited use of IHS funds on projects that have
previously gotten HUD funding.
If that sounds like gibberish, it should be. It is
basically how Washington works through different accounts. But
what it does then is it limits your ability to ensure that when
you have a home built, it is a whole home, that you can tie in
to the water and sewer systems. So this is something that we
have to address.
Greg, I would like your input in terms of those regulatory
barriers that are limiting us. I would also like your comment,
I believe it was stated by you, Chris, that the Indian Housing
Block Grant provision, which has been so helpful to us, this is
28 percent down, costs have gone up, but we have not seen
subsequent increases. Explain to me how that has impacted HUD's
ability here to do more in the State.
Mr. Kolerok. Thank you, Senator. I would agree that the
prohibition for spending those dollars on unfunded projects is
an issue that needs to be solved. Just from some of the
information in Kawerak, it talks about hookup charges of
$40,000 to $60,000.
Senator Murkowski. That is just for the hookup?
Mr. Kolerok. Yes. That assumes that the infrastructure is
on the lot line. So it is an extremely large expense. We see
that in all of our remote locations. Same with logistics, just
to echo what you were saying, I have seen that double the cost
of materials, just to get the materials to the site. That is
not talking about the heavy equipment and gravel and other
resources that are necessary. So logistics is extremely, is a
barrier to building affordable housing in remote Alaska
communities.
We have seen, in the data from the use of NAHSADA funds, a
decline in new units and an uptick on repairing existing homes.
Our data shows that quite clearly over the last, I would say
four or five years, there has really been a switch where tribes
and their designated housing entities are taking on repair work
instead of new construction. The data doesn't explain it. But I
would assume it has to do with the cost of construction.
Senator Murkowski. So let me ask on that, Greg, because it
is my understanding that a lot of resources from HUD can only
be used for new construction and not the renovation or the
upkeep. You are saying that it has been much of the NAHASDA
dollars that can go toward whether it is maintenance, upkeep or
efficiency upgrades?
Mr. Stuckey. Right. So NAHASDA has sort of a menu of
options that tribes and their housing entities can use. And new
construction and repair and energy upgrades, all the things you
just named, are all eligible activities under NAHASDA. That is
correct.
Senator Murkowski. Thank you. And then are we seeing HUD
dollars that are then going to help with some of the energy
efficiency aspects of it as well, to deal with some of the high
costs?
Mr. Stuckey. In the data, it only shows rehabilitation. So
I couldn't describe that HUD-wide. But here in Alaska,
certainly we see our housing entities and the tribes performing
weatherization projects. I think that is important to hear what
Chris said, that in that when he builds new homes, the
materials are expensive because of how he is building them, so
they can be energy efficient. But then when he talks about how
much fuel they are using, the savings to the family, because
the family is the one that pays that oil bill, is humongous. So
those numbers, 100 gallons a month versus 20 gallons a month,
at $6 or $8 a gallon, is a very large number.
Senator Murkowski. When you think about what new housing
brings in terms of lower costs, because of just better build
and efficiency, dealing with the overcrowding, dealing with the
disease aspect of it, because I think we recognize, when you
don't have a house that is efficient and can circulate the air,
you can have health conditions that are exacerbated because of
that. I think that is something we see throughout the State,
the levels of mold when you don't have adequate ventilation.
But also, you spoke a little bit, Chris, about the jobs,
and the fact that you face that you utilized force account. So
you got local folks. In fact, when I came in, I think they must
have just left here to go back to work. But part of the crew
that is out there building these units now that are all local
men. So we are actually creating jobs. You said that you are
using Alaska-sourced materials that are built to better
withstand. So there is economic benefit to the region as well.
Mr. Kolerok. Yes, Senator, that is right. Our crews that
worked on this project, the majority of the labor was done,
hired locally. Our heavy equipment that was utilized for moving
the earth was leased from the tribe and the city. We
intentionally did as much spending here as possible, because
that is part of the envisioning of NAHASDA, that housing
development dollars would benefit the regions in which they are
happening.
That is something that we are committed to, one of the side
benefits of having people who, when we train a local workforce
up in labor or carpentry, we know that we have a workforce that
will be able to work for us repairing homes when something
happens. We also know that we will have one or two people that,
if they prove themselves technically and with dependability,
that we will be able to put them on a different crew
replicating the home.
We have intentions of repeating use of this home. And we
are getting faster at building them. But we are also
identifying people that will be on the next construction
project who we think will have the dependability to come with
us.
So even after the development in this village and in
Gambell, there is the opportunity for some of those people to
be earning a wage in constructing in a different village.
Senator Murkowski. Gaetano, you had mentioned training for
local tradesmen. Do we have any programs within the school that
might be considered vocational education, actually helping to
build put this workforce?
Mr. Brancaleone. Yes, absolutely. We were just able to
construct an additional shop, additional shops here. So we have
a wood shop, we also have a welding shop and a small engine job
that are kind of geared toward that CTE, careers and technical
education. We also partner with NACTEC in Nome. They have some
pretty great programs that kids go out and participate in.
I just really believe in the importance of building that
local capacity and training even in the programs of things that
are within our reach. So we talk about material costs, and
those things will always be a challenge or a barrier to
overcome.
So what can we do outside of that? So building that local
capacity, not just for constructing completely new units, but
if you have 50 guys in town who are really good at analyzing a
building for its energy efficiency or how to repair that and
how to work on those, just with what they can pick up off the
ground, I mean, the skills and ingenuity of people I have met
out here is amazing. So if you guide that toward what can we do
now without having to wait on outside help, I think that can
not only help alleviate some of the immediate problems that we
have, but also just instill value in people in a sense of, you
can feel good about what you are doing and the change you are
having in your village.
Senator Murkowski. I would like to ask, both you, Gaetano,
and then Brianne, you are a young professional in education,
Brianne, you are a young professional in health care. What does
it mean for purposes of your ability to bring in new teachers
and have them feel good about staying in this community? You
have been here for eight years. I met some of the teachers as I
came in. It sounds like you are doing a good job out here in
not only recruiting but retaining teachers. But I know that
housing is always an issue.
Also on the health care side, as you seek to bring in
people who may wish to work here in Savoonga, at the clinic,
but they don't have a family here, so they can't just move in
with their parents or an auntie. How does the housing issue
impact your ability to bring in people from the outside to come
and call Savoonga home?
Mr. Brancaleone. Thank you, Senator. As you spoke about in
your opening statement, talking about the principal living in
the closet, I am very thankful that I do not have that
situation today. There definitely have been great gains and
progress in regard to providing housing for teachers.
That being said, we do still have a wide variety in the
quality of our housing units for teachers. And there are
housing issues that have been cited by teachers who have left
in regard to their desire or willingness to stay out here. So
there are challenges, again, with materials getting out here
and the ability to repair when things go down and the sewer
system.
So it is definitely something that is still a challenge in
regard to retention. We still actually have three positions
open this year that we are hoping to fill, and we start on
Tuesday. So there has been a lot of progress made, but it is
still a challenge in regard to people being comfortable living
here.
Senator Murkowski. Brianne, how about on the health care
side?
Ms. Gologergen. It is hard. It costs a lot of money to get
out here. For me to get out is $600 round-trip. And I have, for
just three of us, me, my boyfriend and my daughter, it is
$1,200 just to take a vacation. That is not including prices to
Anchorage.
So it would be a challenge, to bring your entire family, to
move out here. And a lot of the problems I have heard from
providers moving out here is the isolation. But that too, the
lack of housing, we have our PA, Troy Wiles is here until
November, he is a traveling provider. He has been helping out
here. But we still have a vacant for position for a mid-level
provider to move out here, relocate here.
And they are building a duplex for PA housing right now, so
that way we can better invite somebody to move out here and
they would have a place to stay.
Senator Murkowski. So, Delbert, as President of the Native
Village of Savoonga, do you have people that are coming into
the community, whether it is to look at some of the
contaminated lands issues, or to maintain the wind turbines
that you have out there, or just inspect them, it is expensive,
yes, we recognize, to get out here. But then if people need to
stay out here or want to stay out here for a period of time, is
it fair to say that there no options for them to find a place
to live?
Mr. Pungowiyi. With the severe housing crisis we have, that
is a big obstacle, I believe. We are trying to do some self-
generating entities, we have put up that. But it is like a
snack and lodge for guests coming out here. But I do believe
that having a place for them is a big problem.
Senator Murkowski. Let me ask, as a community leader, you
are responsible for the health and well-being of members of the
community. How does overcrowding impact emergency preparedness?
For instance, if the community had to be evacuated during a
storm, is there a place to shelter in place? Obviously you have
the school here. But with the housing that you have, is that a
worry for you as a community leader?
Mr. Pungowiyi. Yes. I will give you an example. I don't
recollect what year it was, but we had an electrical disaster
from the ice not coming in like it is normally supposed to, the
north wind sprayed lots of salt water on the power lines. So we
had a power outage within several hours. Gaetano knows, he was
here. Over 400 families, 400 people in the high school. The
homes got shut down, the water and sewer froze up.
Within a few hours, the store was wiped out. So this is the
only shelter for any disaster. That is why we are so concerned
about tsunami shelters, evacuation roads and shelters.
According to the State of Alaska's coordinator for the tsunami
warning and urging everyone along the cost, grants for tsunami
shelters, evacuation roads, it is not a question of if Alaska
will get struck with tsunami, it is a question of when. That
really is scary to all those of us that live along the coast.
At any moment, tsunami can strike.
So those are really issues that we feel, we believe that is
in desperate need of action, so that we can have, at least an
evacuation road, even if we could get just a road and the
foundation for it, at least we would have somewhere to evacuate
to, to higher ground. We have nowhere else to go for higher
ground than up toward the mountains.
Senator Murkowski. Let me ask just a couple more questions
before we quit. I know there is a lunch planned.
As I was visiting with people before coming in, I was
asking about the units that will soon be finished up and the
process for being selected to receive one of those houses, and
housing application process. We just had a hearing in Indian
Affairs last week that was focused on Native languages and the
opportunity to utilize grants. One of the things we heard very
clearly was that the process to gain these grants is very
complicated. It is difficult to navigate.
So I would ask you, Delbert, or any of you who may have had
or who can share the experience in applying for housing
assistance, how difficult is it? The one gentleman I was
speaking with said that he had been on the list for years and
years and years and years. And that the process was one that
was lengthy and not easy. If someone can speak to that, that
would be helpful.
Mr. Kolerok. Senator, the process for applying for a home
itself is--it is a bureaucratic paperwork, and that is what it
is. The disheartening thing about it is, our last development
was over a decade ago. So as people are applying for housing,
in order to keep their date of application, they must annually
recertify. And if there has been no new housing development for
a decade, it is maddening for a person to recertify, not
knowing if there is new housing even available. But doing so
just to keep their spot in line.
What is even more difficult, we utilize a preference point
system for selection. The preference points take into account
factors such as an applicant's living in a substandard home, or
if they are disabled or an elder. It is a little bit glib, but
the worse a person's housing situation, the higher they are as
a priority. And what is frustrating is when someone has been on
a waiting list for ten years waiting for a home and someone, a
different person applies for a house and they have multiple
factors that put them in a higher priority.
It is not easy. But we have adopted that system because we
are, families are small, this region is small. So we have tried
to put in place a system that is as black and white as
possible, to make sure that we are as far as possible when
considering the need for homes.
Senator Murkowski. That is a hard reality, I agree. Jacob,
you are a young man, going to be graduating this next year.
Congratulations. As you think of your future here in Savoonga,
we hear of the high costs, we hear of the long waiting list for
housing, there will come a point when you will want to start
your family, have your opportunities in front of you.
Because of the housing issues that you have grown up, that
you live with, do you see this as a limiting factor for your
future, if you don't have a place for your family in the
future? Do you think that this might push you out of the
village that you've grown up in, out to Nome or Anchorage or to
other places? How does the overcrowding impact how you view
your future in Savoonga?
Mr. Iya. It will be [inaudible] my grandmother pay the
bills, and she struggles to put food on the table. Growing up,
we were taught our morals and values, to live with one another.
But as I see now, as I look to the future, I look not with
temptation but with peace and happiness. I want to start my
family as soon as I get out of college, when I have enough
money to support a family. I will move out of this village and
hope for a better life. But this village can still undergo
certain changes that will help make its future brighter.
As I look to the future, more and more, there is a heavy
pressure being weighed on our shoulders, the children of this
community. I hope to alleviate that pressure in the future.
Thank you, Senator Murkowski.
Senator Murkowski. Thank you, Jacob. You have articulated
in a strong, beautiful way why we need to continue to work
together to address these very basic issues. Because housing is
a basic need. And when our future leaders don't feel that the
place that they call home is one that is going to be part of
their future, that makes it a very difficult reality for those
who are living here today.
You have summed up in a strong and beautiful way why these
issues are so important.
We haven't gone into some of the detail about the social
aspects, although I think Brianne and Gaetano and Delbert, you
have each addressed, again, this ripple effect. When you don't
have the structure over your head, when you have too many human
beings in too small a space, the stress that comes with it
manifests itself in different ways, whether it is substance
abuse, whether it is outbursts of violence or assault, whether
it is just the inability to concentrate on your school or your
work because of inadequate sleep, the outcome from health
consequences, as disease and germs are spread, the inability to
wash your family's clothes, to have basic hygiene, the impact
on education and graduation rates.
I look at all that so many of you are trying to do. But
sometimes these issues are beyond your control. The principal
cannot go out and build more homes, so that his students can
get a good night's sleep on a daily basis. Those who run our
clinics can't go out and build new homes so that the spread of
disease is arrested. So we have an obligation, a responsibility
to be working on these issues that again, surround a very
basic, basic need.
There is so much more that we have to share. We will have
an opportunity to do a little bit of walk-around this afternoon
and visit, not only some of the new housing stock, but
hopefully some of the existing homes that are experiencing the
extreme overcrowding. That will be important.
We will also have an opportunity to engage further with the
community. So I would ask that in a more informal setting, you
share your stories, not just with me, but again, with members
of the Indian Affairs Committee staff and those who have come
to Savoonga today.
I mentioned to somebody this morning, yesterday I woke up
in Washington, D.C. I spent the night in Nome. Three thousand,
nine hundred and forty-seven miles. So coming here this
morning, I think I am over 4,000 miles. But Delbert, you
reminded me, we are 40 miles from Russia. I need to make sure
that the people who are in Washington, D.C., some 4,000 miles
from here, and four time zones, can see and hear and feel why
these issues are so important.
You may be 4,000 miles away from our Nation's capital, but
you are part of the United States of America. As Americans, you
deserve to have safe and sanitary living conditions. So this is
what we are going to keep working on. Thank you for helping us
create the record with the Indian Affairs Committee today.
I want to thank you. I will note that if there are
questions that Committee members may want to submit for the
record, the hearing record will be kept open for two weeks. I
want to thank, again, the witnesses for their time.
With that, the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs stands
adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 12:28 p.m., the hearing was concluded.]
A P P E N D I X
Prepared Statement of Mary David, Acting President, Kawerak Inc.
Chairman Hoeven, Vice Chairman Udall, Senator Murkowski, members of
the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, it is an honor to welcome you
to the Bering Strait region. The lack of access to affordable,
efficient and safe housing impacts the health of our families and the
education of our children. For too many generations, the lack of
adequate housing has remained a silent crisis. Our tribal leaders
recognize that we must change the paradigm to improve opportunities for
the next generation and invest in the sustainability of our
communities. Addressing the housing crisis remains our top priority.
Kawerak Inc. represents and serves the 20 tribal governments of the
Bering Strait region, operating a tribal self-governance consortium of
federal and state agencies. The Bering Strait region is home to Yupik,
St. Lawrence Island Yupik and Inupiaq communities that have remained
over millennia. Roughly 10,000 residents are located in 16 communities
that continue to be sustained by the wealth of our location. The
spirituality, well-being and health of our families and extended
families is directly tied to our ability to hunt, fish, and gather. One
of the largest migrations of birds and marine mammals including whales,
walrus, and seals pass through the Bering Strait between the Pacific to
the Arctic oceans. Our way of life can be defined by our natural
resource rich environment, and what we harvest and gather during each
season of the year.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development estimates a
shortage of 1,386 homes in the Bering Strait region. According to a
2014 study conducted by the Association of Alaska Housing Authorities
(AAHA), over 20 percent of homes in the region are overcrowded, with
multiple generations or multiple families living under one roof. The
community of Savoonga faces the highest overcrowding rate of any census
area at 61 percent. Our population of 10,000 in the region continues to
grow at roughly 10-20 percent every decade, according to U.S. Census
data, and new housing construction has not kept up with our population
growth.
Leaders of the Bering Strait region have recognized the need to
address the housing crisis from a holistic approach including community
planning, reducing the cost of construction, the state of sanitation
and energy infrastructure, as well as improving access to basic
government and financial services. The AAHA survey also highlights that
the Bering Strait region has the least energy efficient homes in the
State. The American Community Survey by the U.S. Census estimates
approximately 24 percent of households in the region spend 30 percent
or more of total income on housing costs including rent, water and
sewer, and energy costs.
The lack of public infrastructure provides additional challenges to
addressing the housing crisis. The cost of building a home in our
communities runs between $500,000 and $600,000, depending on the
existence of public infrastructure. Connecting homes to sewer and water
adds roughly $40,000 to $60,000. An estimated 465 homes in the Bering
Strait region do not have access to running water and sewer, with five
communities remaining un-piped and unconnected to sanitation services
(Stebbins, Teller, Wales, Diomede, and Shishmaref).
The pathway to service established by federal and state partners is
complex and underfunded. Under the present allocation system, our
leaders are contending with the reality that our unconnected
communities will remain unserved over the next decade, unless swift
action is taken. In partnership with Norton Sound Health Corporation,
Kawerak continues to ensure federal and statewide agencies are
responsive to the sanitation needs in our Bering Strait region
communities.
Understanding the housing crisis from a statistical standpoint
provides insight on the magnitude of need and required investment, yet
the gravity of our reality must be understood through the context of
our history. The health of our communities is defined by our ability to
live our way of life on our lands and waters. Alaska's early history of
the colonization of Alaska Natives people has had intergenerational
impacts on the cultural health of entire communities, including
disease, language loss and relocation. The increasing regulation of
complex state, federal and international jurisdictions has burdened our
ability to hunt and fish on our homelands. Alcohol continues to impact
families of the region in debilitating ways. The economic costs to our
society are real with increased high school drop outs, the high rate of
suicide (four times the national average) and lost productivity. The
cornerstone of building a healthy and a strong economy is the ability
to live our way of life on our homelands.
Bering Strait Region Housing Strategy
Our tribal leaders recognize that addressing the magnitude of
challenges before us will require a strong commitment to partnership.
Our tribal leaders have begun dialogues in understanding the role of
our tribal governments, city governments, native corporations, and our
regional tribal consortia in the planning and investment of
infrastructure needs in our communities. Living our way of life on our
lands and waters has sustained our wealth as a people. It is with that
in mind we envision the sustainable development of our communities with
culturally relevant infrastructure. In partnership with regional
organizations, Kawerak Inc. has undertaken the development of a Bering
Strait Region Housing Strategy to evaluate and establish pathways to
homeownership in our communities.
The Bering Strait Region Housing Strategy will explore the
following themes:
Community Preparedness for Development
Reducing jurisdictional complexities in community governance
to streamline infrastructure development and improve operations
and maintenance of existing systems.
Improving Access to Finance & Government Services
Energy Efficiency & Utility Planning
Research & Development for Arctic Engineering and Design
Culturally relevant infrastructure development
In order to ensure our communities are development ready, leaders
recognize we must understand inherent jurisdictional complexities that
are the reality of rural Alaska today. Identifying land for development
and platting lots, planning for roads, sewer and water, and energy
infrastructure requires involvement and decisionmaking among multiple
community and regional leaders. Understanding the roles of our Alaska
Native corporations as land owners, city governments as utility owners,
as well as tribal governments and their associated regional tribal
organizations as service providers delivering investment in housing,
sewer and water, and roads. Kawerak has convened dialogues with tribal,
city, and corporation leaders to empower leaders with the knowledge and
tools to change the paradigm for the planning and development of
communities.
With the goal of improving economies of scale and reducing the cost
of construction in our communities, Kawerak has embarked on the
creation of Long Range Infrastructure Plans in partnership with
communities to allow for coordination if not cooperation in the
planning and investment of public infrastructure. With dialogue at both
the community and regional level our work has just begun. Business
managers of regional tribal organizations have begun to understand our
collective assets from a regional strategic perspective to reduce
labor, equipment, material, and transportation costs in our
communities.
Much work remains to improve the affordability of new home
construction, establish access to financial services, as well as
improve the general economic conditions of our communities. In closing
we appreciate the commitment and partnership of Senator Murkowski,
Senator Sullivan, Congressman Young, the Senate Committee on Indian
Affairs, and the United States Department of Housing and Urban
Development.
Kawerak encourages the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs &
Congress to:
Reauthorize the Native American Housing Assistance and Self
Determination Act and support the increase appropriations for
the Indian Housing Block Grant to $700 million.
Request the GAO to work with tribal leaders to conduct a
regulatory review of the market barriers to home ownership and
identify barriers to expanding financing options in remote and
rural economies.
Establish an interagency task force to develop a pathway to
homeownership in Native communities, including the creation of
a single intake form for all federal housing programs (USDA,
BIA, HUD, VA).
Support the research and development to improve construction
design & engineering in Arctic communities.
Explore options for a tribally driven lending instrument
with the Department of Treasury.
Support the creation of tax incentives for housing
construction in rural communities by Alaska Native
corporations.
Improve the collection of U.S. Census and American Community
Survey data. Provide the financial resources to tribes, so
accurate data can be obtained at the local level.
Reform the Denali Commission to assist communities with pre-
development operations (planning, plating) to encourage public
infrastructure investment in communities.
Encourage the BIA Division of Economic Development to invest
and support village corporation and tribal business in the home
construction and manufacturing industry.
The United States provides humanitarian efforts to other countries;
often times spending millions of dollars in aid. We are in a
humanitarian situation due to the severe overcrowding and lack of
adequate and affordable housing. Physical requirements for human
survival and to function properly is shelter. We live in the most
developed country in the world, but still struggle and face challenges
in many areas. Thank you for allowing testimony on this important
issue.
______
Prepared Statement of Norton Sound Health Corporation
Overcrowding Negatively Impacts Health
The World Health Organization defines overcrowding as more than 1.5
persons per habitable room (rooms other than bathroom and kitchen).
Health: Studies have definitely linked overcrowding to higher risks
of tuberculosis, meningitis, acute and chronic respiratory illnesses,
SIDS, and child mortality. As patients age, the risk of H. Pylori, the
bacteria responsible for stomach ulcers and stomach cancer, is highly
correlated to overcrowding.
Respiratory: A human sneeze carries water droplets (and the
viruses/bacteria in them) up to 15 feet from the source. In crowded
homes coughing and sneezing quickly spreads respiratory infections to
an entire home with ``no where to hide''. This leads to rapid spread of
colds, flu's and pneumonia throughout communities. Research shows that
overcrowded homes vastly increase the spread of tuberculosis (TB).
Air Pollution: Crowded indoor spaces amplify the effects of air
pollutants, especially in Alaskan homes with poor ventilation. Tobacco
smoke, carbon monoxide (from furnaces and wood stoves, fine particulate
air particles (like dust/dander) increases and/or concentrate. This has
been shown to directly correlate to childhood asthma and COPD an
emphysema in adults.
Gastrointestinal: Crowded homes make sanitation much more
difficult, which increases the transmission of communicable diseases
like gastrointestinal infections, H. Pylori infection (linked to
stomach ulcers and stomach cancer), as well as risk for fecal/oral
transmission of infections like Noro virus, Hepatitis A, and Shigella.
Skin infections: Increased crowding in homes directly correlates to
increased incidence of diseases like scabies and lice. Also, higher
rates of cellulitis, impetigo, eczema, and allergies are seen in
crowded homes especially where limited sanitation options are
availability.
Mental Health: In a British study, researchers found that 86
percent of overcrowded households stated that depression, anxiety and
stress resulted from cramped living conditions; further 75 percent
reported that overcrowding negatively affected children's health. (Full
house? How overcrowded housing affects families). Research shows that
increased population density in homes is correlated with increased
aggression, less stable families, decreased maternal/child interaction,
and higher rates of illness.
Mortality: The World Health Organization has linked overcrowding to
risk of sudden infant death syndrome, child mortality, poor maternal/
fetal outcomes, and overall decreased life expectancy.
Educational Outcomes: Children who lack comfortable, quiet space
have increased difficulty with studying and reading affecting school
performance. Further, when space is more scarce, different sleeping
schedules held by household members may disturb children's sleep,
leading to difficulty concentrating during the day, negatively
affecting mood, behavioral and school performance. In-addition,
children in crowded housing have a higher probability of contracting
illnesses, which further interfere with routines and increase school
absenteeism. (Solari, et al. Soc Sci Res. 2012 Mar; 41(2): 464-476.))
Long term: These educational, behavioral, and physical health
disadvantages continue v..with children throughout their lives
decreasing their chances to access higher education-and socioeconomic
attainment. Ultimately, this often results in children finding
themselves in similar situations as their parents, contributing to
intergenerational transmission of social inequality. (Leventhal and
Newman 2010)
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