[Senate Hearing 117-530]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
S. Hrg. 117-530
S. 4104, S. 4439, AND H.R. 5221
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HEARING
before the
COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
__________
JULY 20, 2022
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Indian Affairs
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
50-110PDF WASHINGTON : 2022
COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS
BRIAN SCHATZ, Hawaii, Chairman
LISA MURKOWSKI, Alaska, Vice Chairman
MARIA CANTWELL, Washington JOHN HOEVEN, North Dakota
JON TESTER, Montana JAMES LANKFORD, Oklahoma
CATHERINE CORTEZ MASTO, Nevada STEVE DAINES, Montana
TINA SMITH, Minnesota MIKE ROUNDS, South Dakota
BEN RAY LUJAN, New Mexico JERRY MORAN, Kansas
Jennifer Romero, Majority Staff Director and Chief Counsel
Lucy Murfitt, Minority Staff Director and Chief Counsel
C O N T E N T S
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Page
Hearing held on July 20, 2022.................................... 1
Statement of Senator Hoeven...................................... 29
Statement of Senator Lankford.................................... 5
Statement of Senator Murkowski................................... 1
Statement of Senator Padilla..................................... 3
Statement of Senator Schatz...................................... 1
Statement of Senator Sinema...................................... 2
Statement of Senator Smith....................................... 4
Witnesses
Attebery, Hon. Russell, Chairman, Karuk Tribe.................... 18
Prepared statement........................................... 19
Clarke, Hon. Damon, Chairman, Hualapai Tribe..................... 13
Prepared statement........................................... 15
Freihage, Jason, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Management, U.S.
Department of the Interior..................................... 5
Prepared statement........................................... 7
Rock, Dr. Patrick, CEO, Indian Health Board...................... 20
Prepared statement........................................... 22
Smith, Benjamin, Deputy Director, Indian Health Service, U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services........................ 11
Prepared statement........................................... 12
Appendix
Cooke, Theodore C., General Manager, Central Arizona Water
Conservation District, prepared statement...................... 31
Letters submitted for the record submitted by:
Sandy Fabritz, Director, Water Strategy, Freeport-McMoRan.... 34
Scott Harding, Stewardship Associate and Theresa L. Lorejo-
Simsiman, California Stewardship Director, American
Whitewater................................................. 35
Hon. Joseph L. James, Chairman, Yurok Tribe.................. 33
Brian J. Johnson, California Director, Trout Unlimited....... 33
Lisa Ronald, National Coordinator, Wild and Scenic Rivers
Coalition.................................................. 32
Response to written questions submitted by Hon. Brian Schatz to:
Hon. Russell Attebery........................................ 37
Hon. Damon Clarke............................................ 38
Jason Freihage............................................... 41
Dr. Patrick Rock............................................. 36
Benjamin Smith............................................... 40
Response to written questions submitted by Hon. Tina Smith to
Benjamin Smith................................................. 40
U.S. Department of Agriculture, prepared statement............... 31
S. 4104, S. 4439, AND H.R. 5221
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WEDNESDAY, JULY 20, 2022
U.S. Senate,
Committee on Indian Affairs,
Washington, DC.
The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 2:53 p.m. in room
628, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Brian Schatz,
Chairman of the Committee, presiding.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. BRIAN SCHATZ,
U.S. SENATOR FROM HAWAII
The Chairman. Good afternoon. During today's legislative
hearing, we will consider three bills: S. 4104, the Hualapai
Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act of 2022, S. 4439, the
Katimiin and Ameekyaaraam Sacred Lands Act, and H.R. 5221,
Urban Indian Health Confer Act. S. 4104, introduced by Senators
Sinema and Kelly, would authorize and ratify the Hualapai Tribe
Water Rights Settlement Agreement between the tribe, certain
allottees, and the State of Arizona, and would transfer certain
lands into trust for their benefit.
H.R. 5221, passed by the House in November last year, would
require the Department of Health and Human Services to confer
with Urban Indian Organizations, or UIOs, on matters impacting
healthcare for American Indians and Alaska Natives living in
urban areas. I will note that Senators Smith and Lankford
introduced an identical Senate companion bill in May.
Lastly, Senator Padilla's bill, S. 4439, would transfer
approximately 1,031 acres from the U.S. Forest Service to the
Department of Interior to be placed into trust for the benefit
of the Karuk Tribe to allow for traditional and customer uses.
Before I turn to Vice Chair Murkowski, I would like to
extend my welcome and thanks to our witnesses for joining us
today. I look forward to your testimony and discussion.
Vice Chair Murkowski?
STATEMENT OF HON. LISA MURKOWSKI,
U.S. SENATOR FROM ALASKA
Senator Murkowski. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, I appreciate
the hearing today on these three bills. I think you have
detailed them appropriately.
With regard to the legislation sponsored by Senators Sinema
and Kelly, S. 4104, I think it is important to recognize that
this settlement is a decade in the making. I am looing forward
to hearing more about the details. We know that settling water
rights through negotiated settlements approved by Congress
continues to be the best way to deliver wet water to tribes.
I am pleased that we were able to include in our bipartisan
infrastructure law $2.5 billion in an Indian Water Rights
Settlement Completion Fund to fulfil the Federal Government's
commitment to our tribes for Congressionally approved water
rights. So it is good to see how this is playing out.
With regard to S. 4439, introduced by Senators Padilla and
Feinstein, I would note that while the Department of Interior
is intending to testify in support of taking this land into
trust for the tribes, I do think it would be prudent, Mr.
Chairman, that the Committee also receive testimony from the
Forest Service, particularly on what impacts this bill may have
on their current administration of these lands and waters. I
would suggest that the Committee seek the testimony in writing
as we continue to consider this bill.
Then with the legislation sponsored by Congressman
Grijalva, I would note that Senators Lankford and Smith are
sponsoring an identical Senate companion. While we have no UIOs
in Alaska, it is my understanding these organizations in the
lower 48 have found the Confer process with IHS to be
beneficial with regard to providing healthcare services to
American Indians and Alaska Natives living in our urban areas.
So I am interested in learning how this confer process may help
address other important health-related issues, too, as well as
the missing and murdered indigenous peoples crisis.
So I look forward to the testimony and hearing from our
witnesses.
The Chairman. Thank you very much, Vice Chair.
We will turn to our witnesses. First, we have Mr. Jason
Freihage, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Management, of the
Office of the Assistant Secretary, Indian Affairs, at the
Department of Interior. Mr. Benjamin Smith, Deputy Director of
the Indian Health Service, U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services. And I would now like to introduce Senator Sinema to
introduce her guest and testifier.
STATEMENT OF HON. KYRSTEN SINEMA,
U.S. SENATOR FROM ARIZONA
Senator Sinema. Thank you. Good afternoon, Chairman Schatz
and Vice Chair Murkowski. I am honored to speak about the
importance of the Hualapai Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act of
2022, legislation that I have introduced with my colleague,
Senator Mark Kelly.
Our legislation provides long-term stability to the
Hualapai Tribe's water needs in northern Arizona, which is
especially important as Arizona and the southwest face historic
drought conditions. Our legislation is the result of
collaboration between the State of Arizona, the Hualapai Tribe,
and the Department of the Interior. It has broad support among
Arizona water stakeholders, including Mojave County, Salt River
Project, the Arizona Department of Water Resources, the Central
Arizona Water Conservation District, and Freeport-McMoRan.
Currently, the Hualapai Tribe relies on groundwater alone
to meet their water needs, which in today's climate and with
our forecasted water future is not a permanent or sustainable
solution. The Hualapai Tribe Water Settlement Rights Act will
provide the tribe a permanent allocation of Colorado River
water and the funding to construct the infrastructure needed to
deliver that water from the Colorado to the tribe's main
residential and commercial centers, Grand Canyon West and Peach
Springs, Arizona.
I now have the incredible honor to introduce the chairman
of the Hualapai Tribe, Dr. Damon Clarke, who will be able to
explain the legislation in further detail and how it will
benefit the tribe in Arizona. Chairman, thank you for being
here today.
The Chairman. Thank you very much, Senator Sinema.
Now we have Senator Padilla to introduce his guest and
explain his legislation.
STATEMENT OF HON. ALEX PADILLA,
U.S. SENATOR FROM CALIFORNIA
Senator Padilla. Thank you, Chair Schatz and Ranking Member
Murkowski, for allowing me to join you today to introduce
Russell Attebery, Chairman of the Karuk Tribe in California. It
is an honor to introduce Chairman Attebery, who is here
virtually, to testify on a bill that I am leading with Senator
Feinstein in this house and Congressman Huffman on the House
side that will transfer 1,000 acres of sacred lands from the
Forest Service to the Interior Department to place those lands
into trust for the tribe. The lands covered by this bill are
considered to be the center of the Karuk world and sit at the
heart of the tribe's culture, religion, and identity.
Chairman Attebery is currently serving his third
consecutive term as chairman, and has been a key leader in
championing this effort. During his 11 years as chairman, he
has also served on the Department of Interior's Tribal Interior
Budget Council, the Executive Council of the California Tribal
Chairmen's Association, and was recently selected as one of the
seven primary tribal representatives to the Department of
Interior's Progress Act negotiated rulemaking committee.
Chairman Attebery was also appointed by Governor Jerry
Brown to the California Native American Heritage Commission.
Before serving as chairman, Mr. Attebery worked for the Reading
and Siskiyou School Districts, and he holds a lifetime clear
teaching credential from Humboldt State University.
The Karuk Tribe have lived and conducted ceremonies on the
sacred lands known as Katimiin for centuries. These sacred
lands, which are used for the tribe's World Renewal Ceremony
represent the center of the Karuk world and serve as an
integral part of tribal culture, religion, and identity.
Currently 95 percent of the Karuk aboriginal territory is
managed by the Federal Government, and the tribe has a special
use permit from the Forest Service to access the land for
prayers and ancestral ceremonies.
However, in recent years, the tribe has struggled to access
the site and conduct their sacred ceremonies privately, without
interruption. So it is a moral imperative to restore these
lands to tribal ownership. Placing these lands in trust would
allow the Karuk to further their mission to enhance and restore
the natural world, and allow them to preserve their traditional
practices.
I thank Senator Feinstein for introducing this legislation
with me in the Senate, and Congressman Huffman for championing
this effort in the House. I also want to thank Chairman
Attebery for his testimony today, and for his leadership in
working to advance the long overdue effort. His approach to
Federal-tribal relationships has been one that says
collaboration is always the best first step in building
partnerships, and his testimony today is a testament to that.
I look forward to working with my colleagues to enact this
bill as quickly as possible and return these sacred lands to
their originals stewards. Thank you again, Mr. Chairman.
The Chairman. Thank you, Senator Padilla. Now I would like
to turn it over to Senator Smith to introduce her guest.
STATEMENT OF HON. TINA SMITH,
U.S. SENATOR FROM MINNESOTA
Senator Smith. Thank you so much. Thank you, Chair Schatz
and Vice Chair Murkowski, for holding this hearing today and
for including the Urban Indian Health Confer Act.
Senator Lankford and I introduced the Senate version of
this bill which would require every agency within the
Department of Health and Human Services to confer with Urban
Indian organizations when policies affect healthcare for urban
Native communities. This measure is an important step towards
parity for urban Native communities, and something that I think
we should all be able to agree on. So I look forward to working
with the Committee to get this bill across the finish line this
year.
To help us understand the impact of this bill, I am very
glad to welcome Dr. Patrick Rock, Chief Executive Officer of
the Indian Health Board of Minneapolis, and a member of the
Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe. Dr. Rock is a family physician and
has been serving patients at IHB for over 25 years. He is a
tireless advocate for the urban indigenous community in
Minneapolis, and his leadership has helped IHB grow into the
distinguished institution that it is today.
I recently had a chance to visit the Indian Health Board to
hear about their work on mental health, reproductive care, and
comprehensive health services for urban indigenous Minnesotans.
Under Dr. Rock's leadership, they are also working on an
expansion that will expand their capacity and incorporate
indigenous cultural components into the facility. So I am very
proud to work on behalf of the Indian Health Board and
Minnesota's urban indigenous communities here in Washington on
this bill. I hope to see us move this forward and get it done.
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
The Chairman. Thank you very much.
And to Senator Lankford, for an opening statement.
STATEMENT OF HON. JAMES LANKFORD,
U.S. SENATOR FROM OKLAHOMA
Senator Lankford. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thanks for the
time on this, and thanks for taking up this bill as you work
through this.
I would like to first start off by saying thank you to the
leadership and to the individuals that serve in the two
Oklahoma Urban Indian Clinics in Tulsa and in Oklahoma City for
their continued service to the urban Indian population.
Oklahoma Urban Indian Clinics serve the second largest
population next to California, and Senator Padilla knows we are
right behind him on that one. Leaders like Robyn Sunday-Allen
and Carmelita Skeeter in Tulsa and in Oklahoma City, they are
the reason that all this works so well. They work incredibly
hard and they are absolutely the gold standard for health care
and clinic operations.
I was proud to sponsor and help pass into law two Urban
Indian Clinic focused bills with Senator Smith. We helped pass
the coverage for Urban Indian Health Providers Act and the
Facilities Improvement Act. Both ensure greater parities for
UIOs and the Indian health system. Both bills were the first
ever standalone UIO bills passed in Congress. So it is a big
deal. We are continuing to be able to build on that.
I am proud to be able to cosponsor with Senator Smith the
Senate companion to the Urban Indian Health Confer Act. This
simple legislation will ensure that UIOs are brought into
important conversations in Confer at HHS. We talk a lot about
consultation with tribes. But currently, HHS is not doing
consultation with our Urban Indian Clinics. That needs to
start. So we would like to be able to bring that into line
right now on that.
I look forward to the full consideration and quick passage
of the bill in this Committee. We have a lot more to do to be
able to bring parity to UIOs and this is another really
important step. I thank the Chairman and Ranking Member for
bringing this to the attention today.
The Chairman. Thank you very much.
We welcome all of our testifiers and thank all the members
for their leadership. I want to remind our witnesses that your
full, written testimony will be made part of the official
hearing record. Please keep your statements to no more than
five minutes, so that members may have time for questions.
Mr. Freihage, you may begin.
STATEMENT OF JASON FREIHAGE, DEPUTY ASSISTANT
SECRETARY OF MANAGEMENT, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF
THE INTERIOR
Mr. Freihage. Good afternoon, Chairman Schatz, Vice
Chairman Murkowski and members of the Committee. My name is
Jason Freihage, and I serve as the Deputy Assistant Secretary
of Management for Indian Affairs at the U.S. Department of the
Interior. Thank you for the opportunity to present the
department's testimony on S. 4104, the Hualapai Tribe Water
Rights Settlement Act of 2022, and S. 4439, the Katimiin and
Ameekyaaraam Sacred Lands Act.
The Biden Administration strongly supports the resolution
of Indian water rights claims through negotiated settlements.
Congress plays an important role in approving water rights
settlements, and we stand ready to work with this Committee and
the members of Congress.
Negotiations regarding potential settlement of the tribe's
water rights claims have been ongoing since 2011. The first
phase addressed reserve water rights, the several off-
reservation tracts in the Bill Williams River Basin, and
resulted in the Bill Williams River Water Rights Settlement Act
of 2014. The second phase addressed in S. 4104 covers
additional water rights in the Bill Williams River Basin as
well as the remainder of the tribe's water rights in the
Colorado River Basin and the Verde River Basin.
S. 4104 would resolve the tribe's remaining water rights
claims in Arizona, ratify and confirm the Hualapai Tribal Water
Rights Settlement Agreement among the Hualapai Tribe, the
United States, the State of Arizona, and others, and authorize
funds to implement the settlement agreement. The bill would
reallocate 4,000 acre feet of fourth priority Central Arizona
Project, non-Indian agricultural priority water, to the tribe
to be used for any purpose on or off reservation within the
lower Colorado River Basin in Arizona.
S. 4104 establishes a trust fund of $180 million that the
tribe can use to develop water infrastructure on its
reservation. It also authorizes a $5 million fund for the
Secretary of the Interior for settlement implementation,
including for ongoing groundwater monitoring and modeling.
The department supports S. 4104. The bill is a result of
over a decade of good faith negotiations. Rather than
committing the tribe or the United States to construct specific
water infrastructure projects, S. 4104 allows the tribe to make
decisions regarding how, when, and where to develop water
infrastructure on its reservation. This approach to settlement
is consistent with tribal sovereignty and self-determination.
Environmental compliance and issuance of a record of
decision by the Secretary are conditions precedent to
construction of tribal projects with the trust fund. The
environmental compliance process will allow for the
identification and mitigation of any adverse impacts of a
project, including adverse impacts to the Grand Canyon National
Park.
Previously introduced bills to approve the settlement
included provisions prohibiting the tribe and the United States
from objecting to any use of groundwater outside the boundaries
of the reservation. Recent negotiations have produced
compromise language tailored to the unique facts and
hydrogeology on and around the reservation. The department
believes that S. 4104 would protect the groundwater resources
available on the reservation while providing certainty to
surrounding communities that also rely on the Truxton Aquifer.
However, we caution that the compromises reached in this
settlement are not a one-size-fits-all, and should not be
considered a precedent for other settlements. As a final
matter, the department notes that S. 4104 contains restrictions
on taking lands into trust in Arizona. This restriction is a
significant limitation on the authority of the United States
under existing Federal law, and is contrary to the
Administration's strong support for returning ancestral lands
to tribes. The department does not seek to contradict the
tribe's decision that the benefits provided by S. 4104 justify
this compromise.
The department supports the tribe's exercise of its
sovereignty while strongly disfavoring restrictions on taking
of lands into trust. The department is pleased to support S.
4104.
S. 4439 would transfer approximately 1,031 acres of Federal
land in Siskiyou and Humboldt Counties, California, from the
United States Forest Service to the Department of Interior, and
directs the Secretary to take that land into trust for the
benefit of the Karuk Tribe. The transfer of the administrative
jurisdiction and transfer into trust is subject to the
condition that the Chief of the Forest Service continues to
manage the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System that flows
through the Katimiin and Ameekyaaraam land.
Additionally, the bill directs the Secretary of Agriculture
to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the Karuk
Tribe to establish mutual goals to protect and enhance the
river values of any components of the National Wild and Scenic
River System that flows through the land. Gaming on the land
would be prohibited.
The Department supports this legislation. The Katimiin and
Ameekyaaraam land is sacred to the Karuk Tribe and vital to
their culture and traditions. We appreciate the difficulty and
uncertainty the tribe faces in relying on special use permits
for ceremonial access.
The Department strongly supports returning traditional and
sacred lands back to tribes, and supports agreements with
Indian tribes to collaborate and co-stewardship of Federal
lands and waters under the jurisdiction of the Department of
the Interior and Department of Agriculture.
Chairman Schatz, Vice Chairman Murkowski and members of the
Committee, thank you for the opportunity to provide the
department's views on these important bills. I look forward to
answering any questions.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Freihage follows:]
Prepared Statement of Jason Freihage, Deputy Assistant Secretary of
Management, U.S. Department of the Interior
Hello and good afternoon, Chairman Schatz, Vice Chair Murkowski,
and members of the Committee. My name is Jason Freihage, and I serve as
the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Management for Indian Affairs at the
U.S. Department of the Interior (Department).
Thank you for the opportunity to present the Department's testimony
on S. 4104, The Hualapai Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act of 2022, a
bill to approve the settlement of water rights claims of the Hualapai
Tribe and certain allottees in the State of Arizona, to authorize
construction of a water project relating to those water rights claims,
and for other purposes and S. 4439, The Katimiin and Ameekyaaraam
Sacred Lands Act, a bill to take certain Federal land located in
Siskiyou County, California, and Humboldt County, California, into
trust for the benefit of the Karuk Tribe, and for other purposes.
The Department supports both S. 4104 and S. 4439.
S. 4104--Hualapai Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act of 2022
I. Introduction
The Biden Administration recognizes that water is a sacred and
valuable resource for Tribal Nations and that long-standing water
crises continue to undermine public health and economic development in
Indian Country. This Administration strongly supports the resolution of
Indian water rights claims through negotiated settlements. Indian water
settlements help ensure that Tribal Nations have safe, reliable water
supplies; improve environmental and health concerns on reservations;
enable economic growth; promote Tribal sovereignty and self-
sufficiency; and help fulfill the United States' trust responsibility
to Tribes. At the same time, water rights settlements have the
potential to end decades of controversy and contention among Tribal
Nations and neighboring communities and promote cooperation in the
management of water resources. Congress plays an important role in
approving Indian water rights settlements and we stand ready to work
with this Committee and Members of Congress to advance Indian water
rights settlements.
Indian water rights settlements play a pivotal role in this
Administration's commitment to putting equity at the center of
everything we do to improve the lives of everyday people--including
Tribal Nations. We have a clear charge from President Biden and
Secretary Haaland to improve water access and water quality on Tribal
lands. Access to water is fundamental to human existence, economic
development, and the future of communities--especially Tribal
communities. To that end, the Biden Administration's policy on
negotiated Indian water settlements continues to be based on the
following principles: the United States will participate in settlements
consistent with its legal and moral trust responsibilities to Tribal
Nations; Tribes should receive equivalent benefits for rights which
they, and the United States as trustee, may release as part of the
settlement; Tribes should realize value from confirmed water rights
resulting from a settlement; and settlements should contain appropriate
cost-sharing proportionate to the benefits received by all parties
benefiting from the settlement. In addition, settlements should provide
finality and certainty to all parties involved.
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act provided a significant
boost toward meeting our commitments to Tribal Nations for water rights
by providing $2.5 billion in the Indian Water Rights Settlement
Completion Fund (referred to as the Completion Fund) for enacted Indian
Water settlements. In February, the Department announced allocations
totaling $1.7 billion for enacted Indian water rights settlements that
have outstanding federal payments necessary to complete their terms.
All of this funding has been allocated by the Bureau of Reclamation for
settlement project implementation or by the BIA into settlement trust
funds where they are earning interest until the Tribes are able to pull
down the funds for settlement uses. In order to complete allocations of
remaining funding, BIA is engaging with Tribes to finalize indexing
costs which are necessary to determine their final settlement payments
over the coming months. The Bureau of Reclamation will continue to work
with the Department to identify project specific allocations from the
Completion Fund to meet implementation needs.
II. Historical Context
A. The Hualapai Reservation and the Hualapai Tribe
The Hualapai Tribe's aboriginal homeland is located in the Grand
Canyon and plateau region to the south of the Grand Canyon. The Tribe's
main Reservation was established on January 4, 1883, by Executive
Order, and is comprised of approximately 992,462 acres of tribal trust
lands in northwestern Arizona. The tribal headquarters is Peach
Springs, Arizona, near the southern boundary of the Reservation. The
northern boundary of the main Reservation is 108 miles along the
Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. There is also a 60-acre Executive
Order Reservation located in the Big Sandy River Basin, approximately
40 miles south of the main Reservation.
The primary sources of employment on the Reservation are
recreation, tourism, and tribal and federal government services. The
Grand Canyon is the primary source of tourism on the Reservation, with
activities at the Tribe's tourism center, Grand Canyon West, and river
rafting in the Colorado River. The Tribe also owns and operates the
Hualapai Lodge, located in Peach Springs.
In 2007, the Tribe completed Grand Canyon West, which includes the
Skywalk, a horseshoe-shaped glass-bottom walkway that extends out from
the rim of the Grand Canyon. Pre-pandemic, annual visitation at Grand
Canyon West exceeded one million visitors, making it the primary
economic driver on the Reservation.
B. Water Resources of the Hualapai Reservation
The main Reservation is located primarily in the Colorado River
Basin with a small portion in the Upper Verde River Basin. Most on-
Reservation streams are ephemeral. Several springs discharging from the
regional aquifer at the bottom of canyons can provide baseflow for
short perennial reaches, which ultimately discharge to the Colorado
River. The largest of these perennial streams are Diamond Creek and
Spencer Creek, with mean annual flows of over 3,700 acre-feet per year
(afy) and 4,600 afy, respectively. The springs that feed these streams
are located in remote portions of deep canyons and are not readily
accessible for use by the Tribe. Smaller springs on the plateaus
provide water for livestock purposes.
Groundwater is the primary water supply on the Reservation and is
available in varying degrees of magnitude, depending on the type and
location of water-bearing zones. The major water use on the Reservation
occurs in two locations: the town of Peach Springs and Grand Canyon
West. Three wells serve the Peach Springs public water supply system
and are located approximately 6.5 miles southwest of the town. These
wells produce water from the Truxton Aquifer, an aquifer in the Truxton
Valley that extends off the Reservation.
For over a decade, Grand Canyon West relied entirely on groundwater
pumped and then transported by way of an approximately 35-mile-long
pipeline. In 2019, the groundwater well supplying Grand Canyon West
went dry. To keep this cornerstone of the Tribe's tourist economy
operational, the Tribe has had to haul water approximately 30-miles
from a well near Peach Springs to the now-dry well site. The hauled
groundwater is then piped to Grand Canyon West. For it to thrive as the
Tribe has envisioned, Grand Canyon West needs improved access to water.
III. Proposed Hualapai Tribe Settlement Legislation
The Tribe claims water rights in the Colorado, Verde, and Bill
Williams River basins. Negotiations regarding potential settlement of
the Tribe's water rights claims have been ongoing since 2011, when the
United States established a team to negotiate a comprehensive
settlement of all the Tribe's water rights within Arizona. The
settlement was divided into two phases; the first phase addressed
reserved water rights to several off-reservation tracts in the Bill
Williams River Basin and resulted in the Bill Williams River Water
Rights Settlement Act of 2014, P.L. 113-223. The second phase,
addressed in S. 4104, covers additional water rights in the Bill
Williams River Basin, as well as the remainder of the Tribe's water
rights in the Colorado River Basin and the Verde River Basin.
S. 4104 would resolve the Tribe's remaining water rights claims in
Arizona; ratify and confirm the Hualapai Tribe water rights settlement
agreement among the Hualapai Tribe, the United States, the State of
Arizona, and others; and authorize funds to implement the settlement
agreement. The bill would reallocate 4,000 acre-feet of fourth-priority
Central Arizona Project (CAP) non-Indian agriculture priority water to
the Tribe to be used for any purpose on or off the Reservation within
the lower Colorado River basin in Arizona. S. 4104 establishes a Trust
Fund of $180 million, to be indexed, that the Tribe can use to develop
water infrastructure on its Reservation as it determines necessary and
on its own timeframe. S. 4104 also authorizes a $5,000,000 fund for the
Secretary of the Interior for settlement implementation, including for
ongoing groundwater monitoring and modeling.
As discussed below, S. 4104 is the product of negotiations among
the Tribe, the United States, the State of Arizona, and other
interested parties, to resolve Departmental concerns expressed in prior
testimony.
IV. Department of the Interior Position on S. 4104
The Department is pleased to support S. 4104. This bill is the
result of over a decade of dedicated, good-faith negotiations to reach
consensus on key issues. The Department appreciates that each
settlement is unique, and its terms must be tailored to meet the needs
of the settling Tribe and other parties.
S. 4104 is drafted to meet the Tribe's current and long-term needs
for water by providing a Trust Fund to be used by the Tribe according
to its needs and determinations. Rather than committing the Tribe or
the United States to construct specific water infrastructure projects,
S. 4104 allows the Tribe to make decisions regarding how, when, and
where to develop water infrastructure on its Reservation. This approach
to settlement is consistent with tribal sovereignty and self-
determination.
S. 4104 provides that the Tribe can use the Trust Fund to plan,
design, and construct a water project in the lower Colorado River basin
in Arizona at locations on or directly adjacent to the Hualapai
Reservation. Environmental compliance and issuance of a record of
decision by the Secretary are conditions precedent to construction of
such a project. The environmental compliance process will allow for the
identification and mitigation of any adverse impacts of a project,
including adverse impacts to the Grand Canyon National Park.
Previously introduced bills to approve the settlement included
provisions prohibiting the Tribe and the United States from objecting
to any use of groundwater outside the boundaries of the Reservation,
even if those uses interfere with acknowledged Federal reserved
groundwater rights. The Department testified repeatedly against such
restrictions. Recent negotiations, however, produced compromise
language tailored to the unique facts and hydrogeology on and around
the Reservation. The Department believes that S. 4104, as introduced,
would protect the groundwater resources available on the Reservation
while providing certainty to surrounding communities that also rely on
the Truxton Aquifer for their development. However, we caution that the
compromises reached in this settlement are not a ``one size fits all''
and should not be considered a precedent for other settlements.
As a final matter, the Department notes that S. 4104 contains
restrictions on taking lands into trust in Arizona. The State of
Arizona takes the position, as a matter of policy, that Indian water
rights settlements must include the restriction that, as of the date of
enactment, the settling Tribe may have additional lands taken into
trust only if specifically authorized by Congress. This restriction is
a significant limitation on the authority of the United States under
existing Federal law and is contrary to this Administration's strong
support for returning ancestral lands to Tribes. The Department does
not seek to contradict the Tribe's decision that the benefits provided
by S. 4104, including the addition of certain lands to the Reservation
as part of the settlement, justify this compromise. The Department
supports the Tribe's exercise of its sovereignty while strongly
disfavoring restrictions on the taking of lands into trust.
V. Conclusion
The Department appreciates the dedication of all parties, including
the Tribe and the State of Arizona, to these prolonged negotiations and
the willingness of all the parties to reach consensus on contentious
issues. The Department is pleased to support S. 4104.
S. 4439--Katimiin and Ameeky araam Sacred Lands Act
S. 4439 would transfer approximately 1,031 acres of Federal land,
including improvements and appurtenances thereto, in Siskiyou and
Humboldt Counties, California, from the United States Forest Service to
the Department of the Interior and direct the Secretary of the Interior
to take that land into trust for the benefit of the Karuk Tribe. The
transfer of administrative jurisdiction and transfer into trust in the
bill is subject to the condition that the Chief of the Forest Service
continues to manage the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System that
flows through the Katimiin and Ameeky araam land. Additionally, the
bill directs the Secretary of Agriculture to: (1) provide to the
Secretary of the Interior a survey of the land, and (2) enter a
memorandum of understanding with the Karuk Tribe to establish mutual
goals to protect and enhance the river values of any component of the
National Wild and Scenic Rivers System that flows through the land.
Gaming on the land would be prohibited.
The Department supports this legislation. The Katimiin and Ameeky
araam land is sacred to the Karuk Tribe and vital to their culture and
traditions. We appreciate the difficulty and uncertainty that the Tribe
currently faces in relying upon a Special Use Permit for ceremonial
access. The Department strongly supports returning traditional and
sacred lands back to Tribes and supports agreements with Indian Tribes
to collaborate in the co-stewardship of Federal waters under the
jurisdiction of the Department of the Interior and the Department of
Agriculture. As set forth in Joint Secretarial Order 3403, signed by
the Secretaries of both the Department of the Interior and the
Department of Agriculture, we will continue to support Tribal
opportunities to consolidate Tribal homelands and empower Tribal
stewardship of those resources. As an example of the multiple
strategies the Administration is advancing, the FY 2023 President's
budget includes $14.8 million for land acquisition efforts on and off
current reservations.
Conclusion
Chairman Schatz, Vice Chairman Murkowski, and Members of the
Committee, thank you for the opportunity to provide the Department's
views on these important bills. I look forward to answering any
questions.
The Chairman. Thank you very much.
Mr. Smith, please proceed.
STATEMENT OF BENJAMIN SMITH, DEPUTY DIRECTOR,
INDIAN HEALTH SERVICE, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
AND HUMAN SERVICES
Mr. Smith. Good afternoon, Chairman Schatz, Vice Chair
Murkowski, and members of the Committee. Thank you for the
opportunity to testify on H.R. 5221.
H.R. 5221 would amend the Indian Health Care Improvement
Act to establish and Urban Indian Organization confer policy
for the Department of Health and Human Services. The bill would
require the Department of Health and Human Services to ensure
its agencies and offices confer with Urban Indian Organizations
in carrying out laws relating to Indian health care.
I would like to first start off by underscoring the unique
and political relationship we do have with Indian tribes before
I move on to this bill in particular. Because in the integral
component of the government-to-government relationship is our
commitment to regular and meaningful consultation with
federally recognized Indian tribes.
The Department of Health and Human Services takes its
responsibility to consult with tribal governments seriously. It
first established the department's Tribal Consultation Policy
in 1997. This policy specifically establishes the unique
political status of tribal governments, and it is upon that the
status of the government-to-government relationship is affirmed
through the HHS tribal consultation policy.
The Indian Health Service Tribal Consultation Policy was
last updated on January 18th, 2006. Likewise, it was developed
in consultation with Indian tribes and outlines that
consultation with Indian tribes will occur to the extent
practicable and permitted by law before any action is taken
that will significantly affect Indian tribes.
Other statutes and policies exist that allow for Federal
consultation with Indian organizations and confer with Urban
Indian Organizations that by the nature of their business serve
Indian people and might be affected if excluded from the
consultation and confer process.
As part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act,
Congress reauthorized and amended the Indian Health Care
Improvement Act, and added a requirement that the Indian Health
Service confer to the maximum extent practicable with Urban
Indian Organizations in carrying out the Indian Health Care
Improvement Act.
In 2014, the Indian Health Service established its first
policy on conferring with Urban Indian Organizations. The
policy serves as a guide when the agency seeks input from Urban
Indian Organization leaders on urban Indian health matters. The
IHS urban confer policy strives to assure that urban Indian
heath care needs are considered at the local area and national
levels when implementing and carrying out the Indian Health
Care Improvement Act.
The Indian Health Service confer policy has been used since
its implementation to ensure that the highest possible health
status for urban Indians occurs. The Indian Health Service is
the only Federal agency in the Federal Government to implement
this formal process. It is a best practice and critical
partnership opportunity.
The Indian Health Service has consistently heard from Urban
Indian Organizations through the confer process that they would
like the opportunity to confer with other HHS operating
divisions and staff offices. They have also expressed that the
need to confer with other HHS agencies is even more critical
due to the pandemic and need for interagency collaboration.
The Indian Health Service conferring process works to
ensure that health care priorities for urban Indian populations
are being heard and addressed at the local, area, and national
levels. We look forward to continuing our work with Congress on
this bill, and welcome the opportunity to provide technical
assistance as requested by the Committee or its members.
I am happy to answer any questions that you may have. Thank
you.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Smith follows:]
Prepared Statement of Benjamin Smith, Deputy Director, Indian Health
Service, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Good afternoon Chairman Schatz, Vice Chair Murkowksi, and the
Members of this Committee. Thank you for the opportunity to testify on
H.R. 5221, Urban Indian Health Confer Act.
The Indian Health Service (IHS) is an agency within the Department
of Health and Human Services (HHS) and our mission is to raise the
physical, mental, social, and spiritual health of American Indians and
Alaska Natives to the highest level. This mission is carried out in
partnership with American Indian and Alaska Native Tribal communities
through a network of over 687 Federal and Tribal health facilities and
41 Urban Indian Organizations (UIOs) that are located across 37 states
and provide health care services to approximately 2.6 million American
Indian and Alaska Native people annually.
H.R. 5221
H.R. 5221 would amend the Indian Health Care Improvement Act
(IHCIA) to establish a UIO confer policy for HHS. The bill would
require HHS to ensure its agencies and offices confer with UIOs in
carrying out laws relating to Indian health care.
An integral component of the government-to-government relationship
is our commitment to regular and meaningful consultation with
Federally-recognized Indian Tribes. The importance of Tribal
Consultation has been affirmed through an Executive Order in 2000 and
Presidential Memoranda in 1994, 2004, 2009, and 2021.
HHS takes its responsibility to consult with Tribal governments
seriously and first established the Department's Tribal Consultation
Policy in 1997, with multiple revisions since its creation, most
recently updated in 2012 and evaluated in 2021. Each time the policy
has been updated, it was in collaboration with Tribal governments,
recognizing that HHS and Indian Tribes share the goal to establish
clear policies to further the government-to-government relationship
between the Federal government and Indian Tribes. As such, the policy
specifically recognizes the unique political status of Tribal
governments and it is upon that status that the government-to-
government relationship is affirmed through the HHS Tribal Consultation
Policy.
HHS has a long-standing commitment to working on a government-to-
government basis with Indian Tribes and in partnership with American
Indians and Alaska Natives. HHS is also committed to strengthening this
relationship and enhancing coordination and collaboration across its
Divisions to address Tribal issues within the context of each
Division's mission. Each Division shares in the Department-wide
responsibility to coordinate, communicate, and consult with Indian
Tribes on issues that affect Tribes. All Divisions are responsible for
conducting Tribal consultation to the extent practicable and permitted
by law on policies that have Tribal implications.
The IHS Tribal Consultation Policy, updated January 18, 2006, was
developed in consultation with Indian Tribes. The IHS Tribal
Consultation Policy outlines that consultation with Indian Tribes will
occur, to the extent practicable and permitted by law, before any
action is taken that will significantly affect Indian Tribes. Such
actions refer to policies that have Tribal implications and substantial
direct effects on one or more Indian Tribes or on the distribution of
power and responsibilities between the Federal Government and Indian
Tribes. The consultation process is triggered with the identification
of a critical event, which is defined as a planned or unplanned event
that has or may have a substantial impact on Indian Tribes or Indian
communities, including but not limited to the development of new or
revised policies or programs or funding/budget requests. Part of this
process includes facilitating collaboration between HHS Divisions,
Regional Offices, and the Indian Tribe(s) to assist with consultation
and address any identified issue(s), such as access to HHS programs and
services, that could be provided directly to an Indian Tribe(s). IHS
has also developed special Tribal advisory committees to provide
leadership, advocacy, and guidance to the Director on policy and
program matters.
Although the unique Federal relationship with Indian Tribes is
based in part on the fundamental concept of government-to-government
relations, other statutes and policies exist that allow for Federal
consultation with Indian organizations and confer with UIOs that, by
the nature of their business, serve Indian people and might be affected
if excluded from the consultation and confer process. The IHS enters
into limited, competing contracts and grants with 41 non-profit
organizations to provide health care and referral services for Urban
Indians in 22 states and 11 IHS Areas. UIOs are defined by 25 U.S.C.
1603(29) as a nonprofit corporate body situated in an urban center,
governed by an Urban Indian controlled board of directors, and
providing for the maximum participation of all interested Indian groups
and individuals, which body is capable of legally cooperating with
other public and private entities for the purpose of performing the
activities described in 25 U.S.C. 1653(a).
On March 23, 2010, as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable
Care Act, Congress reauthorized and amended the IHCIA. 25 U.S.C.
1601, et seq. Congress added a requirement that the IHS
``confer,'' to the maximum extent practicable, with UIOs in carrying
out the IHCIA. 25 U.S.C. 1660d(b). ``Confer'' means engaging in an
open and free exchange of information and opinions leading to mutual
understanding and comprehension and emphasizing trust, respect, and
shared responsibility. 25 U.S.C. 1660d(a). HHS supports conferring
with UIOs as set forth in the declaration of national Indian health
policy in the IHCIA.
On September 22, 2014, the IHS established the policy on
``Conferring with Urban Indian Organizations,'' in Part 5, Chapter 26,
of the Indian Health Manual, consistent with the new IHCIA authority.
The policy serves as a guide when the Agency seeks input from UIO
Leaders on Urban Indian health matters. The IHS urban confer policy
strives to ensure that Urban Indian health care needs and priorities
are considered at the local, area, and national levels when
implementing and carrying out the IHCIA.
The IHS policy has been used since its implementation in carrying
out the IHCIA to ensure the highest possible health status for Urban
Indians. The IHS is the only agency within the Federal government to
implement this formal process, and it is a best practice and critical
partnership opportunity. The IHS has consistently heard from UIOs that
they would like the opportunity to confer with other HHS Divisions.
They have also expressed that the need to confer with other HHS
Divisions is even more critical due to the pandemic and need for inter-
agency collaboration. The IHS continues to implement its urban confer
policy, measure the level of satisfaction of the urban conferring
process, and confer with UIOs when necessary to improve the process to
bring about the desired results.
We look forward to continuing our work with Congress on this bill
and welcome the opportunity to provide technical assistance as
requested by the Committee or its Members. We are committed to working
closely with our stakeholders and understand the importance of working
with partners to address the needs of American Indians and Alaska
Natives.
The Chairman. Thank you very much.
Dr. Clarke, please proceed with your testimony.
STATEMENT OF HON. DAMON CLARKE, CHAIRMAN, HUALAPAI TRIBE
Dr. Clarke. Thank you, Chairman Schatz, and Vice Chairwoman
Murkowski and members of the Committee.
I am Damon Clarke, Chairman of the Hualapai Tribe. The
Hualapai Tribe strongly supports S. 4104, the Hualapai Tribe
Water Rights Settlement Act of 2022.
The Hualapai Reservation encompasses approximately one
million acres in the northwestern Arizona. The Colorado River,
we call Hakataya, forms a 108-mile northern boundary of the
reservation through a portion of the Grand Canyon. Our
reservation has no significant surface streams other than the
Colorado River. It has very limited groundwater resources.
The tribe's groundwater wells are being depleted and water
levels on the reservation have been dropping for years. The
tribe's residential community at Peach Springs relies
exclusively in three groundwater wells in the Truxton Aquifer,
near the reservation's southern boundary. Those wells were
installed in 1975, so the piping for the well system is 47
years old and has failed in the recent past, leaving our
community without water for several days.
One of the wells has also suffered episodes of dangerous E-
coli contamination. We are very vulnerable to the short-term
interruptions in supply from these wells, and also to the long-
term decline in the water levels in the aquifer.
The situation is even worse elsewhere in the reservation.
There are two wells at West Water which has provided all the
water for tourist development 35 miles away at Grand Canyon
West on the western rim of the Grand Canyon. But three years
ago, those wells suddenly failed because of the drought. The
collapse of these wells has forced us to limit our operations
at Grand Canyon West, thus threatening our tribal economy and
the main source of employment for our members.
As an emergency measure, we have resorted to pumping more
water from the Truxton Aquifer and hauling it 15 miles by truck
on a gravel road to get to Grand Canyon West. The patchwork
system is insecure and expensive. But it is the only way that
we can continue our remaining operations at Grand Canyon West.
The Colorado River is the only feasible solution to these
problems, and the only water supply that can satisfy the long-
term needs of our population living in Peach Springs and on the
rest of our reservation. This settlement would give our tribe
an allocation of 4,000 acre feet a year of Colorado River water
and funding for the pipeline system to deliver that water to
the reservation in order to serve our needs at both Peach
Springs and Grand Canyon West.
Passage of this legislation is essential for our tribe if
it is to have a secure future on our reservation. We have done
everything possible to provide jobs and income to our people in
order to lift them out of poverty. But the lack of a secure
water supply is a major obstacle we still face. This
legislation would very much help us to overcome this obstacle.
This legislation is strongly supported by the State of
Arizona and other important State parties, including the CAP,
the Salt River Project, and it also has the support of our
neighbor, Mohave County. Finally, for the first time, I am very
pleased that this legislation is supported by the Department of
Interior and the Department of Justice.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today.
I will be pleased to answer any questions you may have, and our
tribe will help in any way we can to secure enactment of this
critical legislation. Thank you.
[The prepared statement of Dr. Clarke follows:]
Prepared Statement of Hon. Damon Clarke, Chairman, Hualapai Tribe
Chairman Schatz and members of the Committee, my name is Dr. Damon
Clarke. I am Chairman of the Hualapai Tribe.
The Hualapai Tribe strongly supports S. 4104, the Hualapai Tribe
Water Rights Settlement Act of 2022. Before I describe the major
elements of this legislation and the critical benefits the Tribe
receives from it, let me briefly explain to the Committee our Tribe's
pressing water needs.
1. The Tribe's Critical Need for Additional Water
The Hualapai Reservation encompasses approximately one million
acres in northwestern Arizona. All lands on the Reservation are tribal
trust lands; there are no allotments or fee inholdings. The Colorado
River forms the 108-mile northern boundary of the Reservation through a
portion of the Grand Canyon.
Our Reservation is arid. It has no significant surface streams
other than the Colorado River. It has very limited groundwater
resources. The Tribe's groundwater wells are a depletable resource and
well levels on the Reservation have been dropping for years. The
Tribe's principal residential community at Peach Springs relies
exclusively on three groundwater wells in the Truxton Aquifer, near the
Reservation's southern boundary. Those wells were installed in 1975, so
the piping for the well system is 47 years old and has failed in the
recent past, leaving our community without water for several days. One
of the wells has also suffered episodes of dangerous E-coli and
coliform contamination and we have not been able to locate the source
of the contamination. When that well is out of service because of
contamination, we are unable to supply sufficient water to the
community, so we have to implement strict mandatory conservation
measures. Because this groundwater is the only source of water for our
residential needs on the Reservation, we are very vulnerable to any
short-term interruptions in supply from these wells, and also to the
long-term decline in the water levels in the Truxton Aquifer.
Our own water experts have studied the Truxton Aquifer and
concluded that it can supply ``approximately 30 to 40 years of the
Tribe's long-term demand'' and therefore is not ``a permanent water
supply solution'' for the Tribe. In addition, the Truxton Aquifer
extends off the Reservation and is vulnerable to depletion from off-
Reservation pumping that is out of the Tribe's control. This
groundwater clearly is not a secure long-term water supply that the
Tribe can rely on for the future of our Reservation population.
The situation is even worse elsewhere on the Reservation. There is
a small well on the east side of the Reservation that provides water to
ranchers and wildlife in that area, but the water is not potable for
human consumption. And there are two wells at West Water, which is on
Buck-and-Doe Road, a gravel road that runs from Peach Springs to our
tourist development at Grand Canyon West on the western rim of the
Grand Canyon. The West Water wells, which are 35 miles from Grand
Canyon West, previously provided all of the water for our activities
there. But four years ago, the water table in those wells suddenly
dropped because of the drought, and both wells failed.
This crisis continues today. For the past three years, the Tribe
has been forced by lack of water to curtail some of our operations at
Grand Canyon West, thus threatening the heart of our on-Reservation
economy and the main source of employment for our members. We have
attempted to locate other sources of water that we can use to supply
Grand Canyon West. Although we did find some off-Reservation sources,
Arizona law prohibited us from transporting this water across basins.
As an emergency measure, we have resorted to pumping water from the
Truxton Aquifer and hauling it 15 miles by truck on Buck-and-Doe Road
to the West Water site, where the water is then pumped for 35 miles out
to Grand Canyon West. This patchwork system is burdensome, insecure and
very expensive, but it is the only way we can continue our remaining
operations at Grand Canyon West. And this emergency has made the Tribe
even more dependent on the Truxton Aquifer. It also has placed
additional stress on that Aquifer because we are now forced to use it
to supply both Peach Springs and, more distantly, Grand Canyon West.
Let me quote our Director of Public Works about the current situation:
This places an even greater demand on the public water system
serving the community of Peach Springs. Leaving the Tribe
praying that the trucks don't break down, the pumps don't fail,
the pipeline stays together and there are no more E-coli
events.
Providing Colorado River water for the Tribe to use at Grand Canyon
West would alleviate a substantial burden on our members, who rely on
their jobs at Grand Canyon West to support their families. Grand Canyon
West is located a two-hour drive on a gravel road from Peach Springs,
where virtually all tribal members now live. Thus, tribal members who
are employed at Grand Canyon West have daily four-hour round-trip
commutes to their jobs, and even longer in inclement weather.
Currently, it is impossible to locate a residential community at Grand
Canyon West because of the total lack of water there. This situation
imposes an unsustainable burden on tribal members who live in Peach
Springs and work at Grand Canyon West, and on their families. The Tribe
urgently needs Colorado River water delivered to the Reservation in
order to allow the Tribe to develop a residential community at Grand
Canyon West so the tribal members who are employed there can reside
closer to their jobs.
I cannot emphasize strongly enough the importance of Grand Canyon
West to the economic sustainability of the Hualapai Tribe. The Hualapai
Reservation does not have the natural resources to permit commercial
agriculture, timber or mineral development. But the Reservation's
virtually unique location on the Grand Canyon gives the Tribe a strong
basis to create a self-sustaining tourism-based economy. Grand Canyon
West is the centerpiece of the Tribe's economy. Prior to the pandemic,
the Grand Canyon Resort Corporation, a tribal corporation which
operates Grand Canyon West and other tribal enterprises, along with the
tribal government, employed more than 1,500 workers (more than 550 of
whom were non-tribal members). At that point, the Hualapai Tribe was
the second largest employer in Mohave Country in Arizona, and Grand
Canyon West hosted over 1 million visitors a year. We believe that
operations there will return to this capacity as pandemic restrictions
continue to ease.
As I noted earlier, the groundwater wells nearest to Grand Canyon
West, which are 35 miles away, have given out. With the Colorado River
water that the Tribe will receive if this legislation is enacted, and
with the funding to build the infrastructure to deliver that water to
Grand Canyon West that will be authorized by this legislation, the
Tribe will be able to take full advantage of the potential for further
development of Grand Canyon West, and will be able to create additional
jobs for both tribal members and non-Indians, as well as provide new
revenues for our tribal government.
And there will also be significant benefits beyond this. In 2017,
the Tribe commissioned Professor Joseph P. Kalt from the Harvard
Project on American Indian Economic Development at the John F. Kennedy
School of Government, to analyze the economic impact that
implementation of our water rights settlement would have on the
regional economy of northwestern Arizona and southern Nevada, as well
as on the economy of the State of Arizona and the Nation as a whole.
Professor Kalt's report, which was prepared prior to the impact of the
recent pandemic, states that the economic development of Grand Canyon
West that would be triggered by the water and infrastructure authorized
by this settlement would support an average of more than 6,500 jobs per
year in Arizona, and close to 1,000 jobs per year in southern Nevada.
For the Nation as a whole, the project would support an average of more
than 10,000 jobs per year, nearly $1.5 billion in federal tax revenues
(in 2017 dollars), and a present value (in 2017 dollars) of more than
$9.3 billion in gross domestic product (GDP) for the United States.
The use and delivery of water for this kind of economic development
is well within the parameters of past Indian water rights settlements.
Most Indian water rights settlements in this century have provided
federal funding for infrastructure development to support commercial as
well as residential uses of water. There is, for example, ample recent
precedent for federally-funded irrigation projects to deliver water to
Indian reservations for purposes of commercial agricultural, where
agriculture is the basis of a tribe's economy. And in other recent
settlements, federally-funded projects have delivered water to support
other kinds of economic development--including hydropower and other
energy development, and a retail travel center. Therefore, the
infrastructure development authorized by S. 4104 to support the
Hualapai Tribe's tourism-based economy is completely consistent with
past Indian water rights settlements approved by Congress.
The Colorado River is the only feasible water supply for satisfying
the long-term future needs of our population living in Peach Springs
and on the rest of our Reservation. Our Tribe needs delivery of
Colorado River water both to provide a permanent and secure water
supply for the domestic and residential needs of our present and future
population, and also to fully realize the opportunities for economic
development that we have at Grand Canyon West.
2. History of Settlement Negotiations
Over a five-year period beginning in early in 2011 and ending in
2016, the Hualapai Tribe, in two phases, negotiated a settlement of all
of the Tribe's federally reserved water rights with the State of
Arizona and major private entities in Arizona. The United States
actively participated in these settlement negotiations through a
Federal Negotiating Team consisting of representatives from affected
Interior Department agencies and from the Department of Justice. In
Phase 1, the parties successfully resolved a portion of the Tribe's
water rights--those in the Bill Williams River watershed, where the
Tribe has a small parcel of Reservation land and tribal members have
some allotted trust land. That phase 1 settlement was ratified by the
Bill Williams River Water Rights Settlement Act of 2014, Pub. L. 113-
223, 128 Stat. 2096 (Dec. 16, 2014).
In 2016, the Tribe and the State parties reached an agreement on
Phase 2, but the Federal agencies were unprepared to support it. Since
then, the Tribe and the State parties have worked diligently to reach
agreement with the Federal Negotiating Team, and we are very pleased
that we have done so this year. The legislation now before the
Committee, S. 4104, will resolve all of the Tribe's remaining water
rights claims on a comprehensive basis. The legislation is strongly
supported by the Tribe, by the State of Arizona and by the private
entities which are parties to the settlement--the Salt River Project,
the Central Arizona Water Conservation District and Freeport Minerals
Corporation--all of which have signed the settlement agreement. It is
also supported by Mohave County, the local jurisdiction in which most
of the Reservation is located. And now for the first time, this
legislation also has the support of the Departments of the Interior and
Justice.
This negotiation to resolve the Hualapai Tribe's water rights,
which has now taken us 11 years to complete, has been a very long road
for the Tribe. Versions of this legislation to ratify our water rights
settlement were introduced in the House or Senate, or both, in the
114th Congress, the 115th Congress and the 116th Congress. This
Committee conducted two hearings on the Hualapai settlement bills in
earlier Congresses, in September 2016 and December 2017. A subcommittee
of the House Natural Resources Committee conducted a hearing just two
months ago, in May 2022, on the companion House bill in this Congress,
H.R. 7633.
Until this year, we never before had the full support of the
Interior Department and the Justice Department for our water rights
settlement. We are very pleased that the comprehensive settlement of
our water rights--and S. 4104 which ratifies that settlement--now has
the full support not only of all State parties, but of the Federal
parties as well.
3. Elements of the Settlement
Let me now summarize the principal elements of the comprehensive
water rights settlement ratified by S. 4104, and also point out two
important differences in the legislation from the earlier versions of
the bill:
The Act comprehensively settles all of the Hualapai Tribe's
federally reserved water right claims for its Reservation and
trust lands, including the Tribe's right to water from the
Colorado River.
The Settlement Act recognizes the Tribe's exclusive rights
to all groundwater and surface water on the Reservation and its
other trust lands. The Act protects the Tribe's on-Reservation
groundwater by preserving the rights of the Tribe and the
United States to object to off-Reservation pumping in certain
specifically defined circumstances that could impair the on-
Reservation groundwater resource. This is an important change
from earlier versions of the legislation which provided that
the Tribe and the United States would entirely waive their
rights to object to off-Reservation pumping. This legislation
therefore strengthens the protections for the Tribe's
groundwater, which is a particularly significant and positive
change for the Tribe with regard to the Truxton Aquifer.
The Tribe receives an allocation of 4,000 acre-feet a year
of Central Arizona Project (CAP) water from the Colorado River.
Of this amount, 1,115 acre-feet a year will be ``firmed'' (half
by the United States and half by the State) until 2108 to
protect against future shortages in the availability of
Colorado River water in Arizona. The Act also provides that the
Tribe itself can ``firm'' additional portions of the Central
Arizona Project water allocated to the Tribe in any year the
water is available and is not needed for delivery to the
Reservation.
The legislation authorizes the appropriation of $180 million
for a trust fund for the Tribe to use to construct an
infrastructure project to deliver up to 3,414 acre-feet a year
of water from the Colorado River to the Reservation. The
project, as currently planned by the Tribe, will divert water
from the Colorado River on the Reservation at Diamond Creek and
then deliver it through a 70-mile pipeline to both Peach
Springs and Grand Canyon West. This system will replace the
Tribe's reliance on the existing groundwater wells in the
Truxton Aquifer (except when those wells are needed as an
emergency backup). The legislation also authorizes the
appropriation of $5 million for the U.S. Geological Service to
use to monitor groundwater levels in the Truxton Aquifer.
I want to point out that the provisions in this legislation
relating to the infrastructure project also differ from earlier
versions of this bill. Previous legislation would have ratified a
``project-based'' settlement, and authorized funding for an
infrastructure project to be constructed by the Bureau of Reclamation.
S. 4104 instead will ratify a ``funds-based'' settlement, and
authorizes an agreed-upon amount of funding to be provided to a trust
fund for the Tribe to use to construct the infrastructure project. This
change in approach was made at the request of the Interior Department,
and is supported by the Tribe.
Finally, certain lands owned by the Hualapai Tribe in the
Bill Williams Basin are designated by the legislation to be
brought into trust status, and certain other lands currently
held in trust for the Tribe near the Hualapai Reservation will
be made part of the Reservation.
4. Conclusion
Passage of S. 4104 to ratify the Hualapai Tribe water rights
settlement is absolutely essential if our Tribe is to attain a secure
future on our Reservation, to accommodate future growth of our
population and to realize the full economic potential of our
Reservation. We have done everything possible to provide jobs and
income to our people in order to lift them out of poverty--but the lack
of a secure and replenishable water supply on our Reservation is our
major obstacle that prevents us from achieving economic self-
sufficiency, a goal that Federal Indian policy has long favored.
Passage of this legislation is essential to allow my Tribe to attain
this goal.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today. I will
be pleased to answer any questions you may have, and our Tribe will
help in any way it can to secure enactment of this critical
legislation.
The Chairman. Thank you very much. Thank you for being
here.
Next, we have the Honorable Russell ``Buster'' Attebery,
Chairman of the Karuk Tribe, Happy Camp, California.
STATEMENT OF HON. RUSSELL ATTEBERY, CHAIRMAN, KARUK TRIBE
Mr. Attebery. [Greeting in Native tongue.] Hello, Chair
Schatz, Ranking Member Murkowski, y``otva, thank you for
inviting me here to testify on behalf of the Karuk Tribe. My
name is Russell ``Buster'' Attebery. I am Tribal Chairman.
Our tribe is extremely grateful to Congressman Huffman,
Senator Padilla, and Senator Feinstein for their partnership in
this endeavor to return the sacred lands to the Karuk people.
In Karuk language, these places are known as Katimiin and
a>uuyich, our center of the world, Ameekyaaraam, our place for
First Salmon Ceremony and World Renewal Ceremony, [name in
Native tongue], the Klamath River, and [name in Native tongue],
the Salmon River.
Our traditional ancestral homeland encompasses a vast,
remote territory of over one million acres in the mid-Klamath
region of northern California, near the Oregon border. The
seizing of these lands by the United States was done without
the free, prior informed consent of the Karuk Tribe. Nor did
the establishment of the National Forest System specify its
direct effects on our people. Our people have lived and
conducted ceremonies on these sacred lands since time began.
The stewardship and management of these lands are vital to the
preservation and continuation of Karuk culture, language,
religion, and identity.
Many aspects of our ceremonies require isolation from any
kind of human interaction. In recent years, we have seen a
dramatic increase in disturbances from airplanes, helicopters,
and recreational users. This legislation will provide our
people protection from these types of negative and
disrespectful occurrences.
The tribe's historic and present-day government-to-
government relationships with the United States is due in large
part to ceremonial leaders and families conducting ceremonies
and rites on these lands. These areas are integral to
understanding the Karuk creation stories as well as the
perpetuation of Karuk customs, language, and culture.
This legislation will also provide the Karuk Tribe what
other Americans have long had the right to do, which is freely
exercise our religion on land that is sacred to us, without
fear of outside disturbances, interference or interruptions.
Our Karuk legislative team has conducted exhaustive outreach to
educate stakeholders, our tribal neighbors, local and State
governments, the Administration and Congress about this
legislation and why it is so desperately needed.
We have also facilitated productive internal discussions
with Karuk ceremonial families and community members to ensure
we have their support and their advocacy through this process
of returning the center of the world to our people.
To date, we have received no opposition to the Katimiin and
Ameekyaaraam Sacred Lands Act. We look forward to working with
Congress and the Administration to have this bill enacted as
quickly as possible and return these sacred lands to their
original stewards.
Y``otva, thank you to this Committee for listening to my
testimony that represents many years of advocacy on the part of
the Karuk Tribal Council, Karuk ceremonial leaders and Karuk
people who have waited far too long for this sacred place to be
repatriated. Y``otva, thank you.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Attebery follows:]
Prepared Statement of Hon. Russell Attebery, Chairman, Karuk Tribe
Purpose
The purpose of S. 4439, the Katimiin and Ameekyaaraam Sacred Lands
Act, is to provide for the transfer of approximately 1,031 acres of
Federal land into trust for the benefit of the Karuk Tribe. This land
is our ``Center of the World'', a special and sacred place where Karuk
people have lived, fished, prayed and fixed the world since time began,
and continue those same traditions today. By placing this land into
trust, this bill will forever protect and preserve our ability to
exercise our religious beliefs in the same manner as our ancestors have
done since the beginning of time.
Background and Need
Ancestral Territory--The traditional ancestral homeland of the
Karuk Tribe encompasses a vast territory of over 1 million acres in the
Mid-Klamath region of California. The seizing of these lands by the
United States was done without the free prior and informed consent of
the Karuk Tribe, nor did the establishment of the National Forest
System specify its direct effects on the Karuk people. Natural resource
utilization and management remains a vital part of Karuk culture. The
territory includes two counties, two Congressional Districts and 95
percent of our ancestral territory is currently being managed by the
United States Forest Service. As a result, the Tribe struggles to
ensure that traditional management practices and Karuk cultural values
are integrated into management decisions. The harvest of salmon,
acorns, deer, elk, mushrooms and other natural products still serve as
subsistence for many tribal families while the act of hunting,
gathering, managing and processing these natural food products help
define the Karuk Tribe's cultural identity.
Cultural Significance--The Karuk Tribe's historic and present-day
government to government relations with the United States is due in
large part to ceremonial leaders conducting ceremonies and rites at
Katimiin, Ameeky araam and several other ceremonial areas. These areas
are integral to understanding Karuk cosmology and creation as well as
the perpetuation of Karuk customs, language and culture. Enactment of
this legislation will ensure Tribal ceremonial leaders and traditional
practitioners will have unfettered access to these lands for inter-
generational learning and traditional and customary uses in perpetuity.
Some aspects of our ceremonies require isolation from any kind of human
interaction, in recent years we have seen a dramatic increase in
disturbances from airplanes, helicopters and recreational users. S.
4439 will provide our people protection from these types of negative
and disrespectful occurrences. This legislation will also provide the
Karuk Tribe what other Americans have long had the right to do, which
is freely exercise our religion on land that is sacred to us without
the fear of outside disturbances and interruptions.
Summary of Major Provisions
S. 4439, as introduced, is an amended version of H.R. 6032
introduced into the House of Representatives on November 16, 2021 by
Congressman Jared Huffman. The Tribe has diligently conducted
additional outreach with the Administration and the Senate version has
incorporated those revisions: (1.) The legislation provides for the
transfer of approximately 1,031 acres to the Karuk Tribe, the exact
acreage and boundaries will be determined by a land survey completed
within 180 days of enactment. (2.) The components of the National Wild
and Scenic Rivers System that flows through this land will continue to
be managed by the Chief of the Forest Service and the Tribe will enter
into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Chief to ensure protection
and enhancement of Wild and Scenic components are done in cooperation
with the Tribe.
This legislation when enacted will not affect valid existing
rights, these may include land held in fee, Special Use Permits,
Easements and other similar rights held by individuals or businesses
before the transfer of these lands is realized.
Outreach
The Karuk Tribe has conducted extensive outreach to cultural and
ceremonial leaders, local Tribes, local and State governments, private
landowners, the Administration and Congress to educate and gather
support for this sacred lands bill. The level of support the Tribe has
received has been both humbling and reassuring: this type of simple,
straightforward legislation returning lands that are without question
sacred to Tribes is of utmost importance. The Tribe has received no
opposition that we are aware of in regards to H.R. 6032 or S. 4439. The
Karuk Tribal Council has elevated this effort as our highest priority
and will commit to further engagement as needed to educate and inform
Congress and the Administration on any aspect of this legislation.
The Chairman. Thank you very much.
Finally, we have Dr. Patrick Rock, the Chief Executive
Officer of the Indian Health Board of Minneapolis in
Minneapolis, Minnesota.
STATEMENT OF DR. PATRICK ROCK, CEO, INDIAN HEALTH BOARD
Dr. Rock. Thank you, Chairman Schatz. Good afternoon. My
name is Dr. Patrick Rock. I am a member of the Leech Lake Band
of Ojibwe. I serve as the CEO and health care provider at the
Indian Health Board in Minneapolis. We are also a member of the
National Council of Urban Indian Health.
Let me start by saying thank you for the opportunity to
testify on the bipartisan Urban Indian Health Confer Act, H.R.
5221, which passed by an overwhelming majority of 406 votes
last November. I would also like to applaud two leaders of this
Committee, Senators Tina Smith and James Lankford for their
bipartisan introduction of the identical companion legislation,
S. 4323. This legislation would require agencies and offices
within the Department of Health and Human Services to discuss
the important policies relating to health care for urban
Indians with Indian health organizations.
As a background, through the Indian Health Care Improvement
Act, the Indian Health Service has a legal obligation to confer
with UIOs, which is an essential tool used to ensure access to
health services for Native people. Unfortunately, HHS has
interpreted it to mean that only IHS has the requirements to
confer with UIOs. It is critical to patient care that HHS and
all agencies it operates establishes a formal confer process.
We would like to adhere to the phrase, no policies about us
without us. A clear communication pathway between the Federal
health agencies and UIOs is imperative, especially during the
ongoing COVID-19 pandemic that has disproportionately impacted
Natives. This pandemic has demonstrated that a lack of a confer
policy can result in missed opportunities for awareness and
information provided to UIOs regarding Native health care which
would otherwise be avoided through the confer process. For
instance, key information regarding vaccine distribution for
the initial COVID-19 vaccine rollout was miscommunicated and
created necessary hardship. HHS initially only directed tribal
programs, which we are not considered to be, to choose a
vaccine distribution program. It was unclear if UIOs needed to
decide between receiving vaccines through their State or IHS.
In fact, due to the uncertainty around Federal decisions,
my clinic decided to receive vaccines through our State.
However, many UIOs, unlike mine, experienced delayed rollout
because the Federal Government was not prepared to distribute
vaccines through our clinics. At the House hearing on this
bill, IHS confirmed on the record that a lack of confer policy
delayed patient access to vaccines.
Urban confer would also help with implementation of 100
percent Federal medical assistant percentage for services
provided to Medicaid beneficiaries at UIOs. Last year, Congress
authorized this for two years in the American Rescue Plan Act,
with the intent to increase financial resources for UIOs. But
over a year later, our clinics are still not receiving any
financial benefit from 100 percent FMAP through increased
reimbursement rates.
An urban confer policy across HHS agencies, including CMS,
would be instrumental in ensuring that obstacles relating to
programs and benefits that directly affect UIOs are addressed
quickly so UIOs are better equipped to provide health care to
their patients. Support for urban confer is strong in Indian
Country. In fact, two years ago, the National Congress of
American Indians passed a resolution calling for urban confer
policy across HHS departments.
It is important to note that urban confer policies do not
supplant or otherwise impact tribal consultation and the
government-to-government relationship between tribes and
Federal agencies. Further, we have support from the
Administration and bipartisan support from Congress.
As such, we urge swift passage of this bill to improve
health care deliver to Native patients who do not reside on
reservations. We must get past the notion that only IHS has a
trust obligation to Native people, as the Federal Government as
a whole has responsibility to provide health are for all Native
people.
Thank you for the opportunity to speak on this important
issue. I have provided written testimony to the Committee. I am
happy to answer any questions.
[The prepared statement of Dr. Rock follows:]
Prepared Statement of Dr. Patrick Rock, CEO, Indian Health Board
Chairman Schatz, Vice Chairman Murkowski, and Members of the Senate
Committee on Indian Affairs of the United States, thank you for the
opportunity to testify today on urban confer policies. My name is Dr.
Patrick Rock, I am a member of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe and I
serve as a medical provider and Chief Executive Officer of the Indian
Health Board in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Established over 50 years ago,
the Indian Health Board of Minneapolis is the oldest urban Indian
organization (UIO) in the country which provides medical, dental,
medication-assisted treatments, health and wellness programming, and
counseling services to more than 5,000 American Indian and Alaska
Native (AI/AN) patients each year. In addition, I am a member of the
National Council of Urban Indian Health (NCUIH), which represents the
41 UIOs across the nation who provide high-quality, culturally-
competent care to urban Indians, who constitute over 70 percent of all
AI/ANs.
I testify today in support of the Urban Indian Health Confer Act
(H.R. 5221), which requires agencies and offices within the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to confer with UIOs
regarding health care for AI/ANs living in urban areas. This
legislation enables UIOs to engage in important dialogue with all
divisions within HHS so that urban Indian communities are made aware of
major healthcare policies. I will speak to you today about the
importance of this bipartisan legislation and how it improves
communication between federal agencies and UIOs on healthcare issues,
and in turn, improves healthcare access for the more than 70 percent of
AI/AN people that reside in urban areas.
For the reasons stated herein, I urge the Members of this Committee
to act on their commitment to improving urban Indian health and move
forward on this legislation.
Background
UIOs are a critical part of the Indian Health Service (IHS) system,
which includes IHS facilities, Tribal Programs, and UIOs. This is
commonly referred to as the I/T/U system. Unfortunately, UIOs
experience significant parity issues compared to the other components
of the I/T/U system, as well as other federally funded health care
systems, which greatly impacts our services and operations. This
includes the lack of clear communication and urban confer policies
between UIOs and federal agencies.
Urban confer policies are the response to decades of deliberate
federal efforts, such as forced assimilation, termination, and
relocation, that has resulted in 70 percent of AI/AN people living
outside of Tribal jurisdictions. Thus, urban confer has become an
essential tool used to address the health care needs of most AI/AN
persons.
Currently, only IHS has a legal obligation to confer with UIOs. It
is crucial that HHS, and the agencies it operates, establish a formal
confer process to communicate with UIOs on policies that impact them
and their AI/AN patients living in urban centers. Urban confer policies
do not supplant or otherwise impact Tribal consultation and the
government-to-government relationship between Tribes and federal
agencies. The lack of urban confer has enabled HHS agencies outside of
IHS to disregard the needs of urban Indians and neglect the federal
obligation to provide health care to all AI/ANs.
Establish Urban Confer Between HHS Agencies and UIOs
I would like to applaud two leaders of this Committee, Senators
Tina Smith and James Lankford, for their bipartisan introduction of the
identical companion legislation, Urban Indian Health Confer Act (S.
4323), which reiterates the vital importance of establishing formal
paths of communication between UIOs and federal agencies.
Specifically, this legislation requires HHS agencies to confer with
UIOs on healthcare issues affecting AI/ANs and provides a forum for
important feedback from AI/AN stakeholders. A clear communication
pathway between federal health agencies and UIOs is imperative,
especially during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic that has
disproportionately impacted AI/ANs. Missed opportunities for awareness
and information provided to UIOs regarding AI/AN healthcare can be
easily avoided through a confer process.
For example, key information regarding vaccine distribution for the
initial COVID-19 vaccine rollout in December of 2020 was poorly
communicated to UIOs and created unnecessary hardships. HHS addressed
initial communications only to Tribes and did not direct it to the UIO
component of the IHS system. When HHS was asked about whether UIOs
needed to similarly decide between an IHS or state vaccine allocation,
it was unclear for weeks as to whether they were expected to make such
a decision. Eventually, HHS asked UIOs to decide between receiving
their vaccine distribution from either their state jurisdiction or IHS
on the same day as the initial deadline (which thankfully HHS
subsequently extended for several days). Some UIOs were informed of the
deadline by their Area office with no formal national communication.
Consequently, UIOs were prevented from providing input, resulting in
many clinics experiencing serious delays in vaccine distribution. For
example, Native American LifeLines, the Baltimore UIO, did not receive
vaccines until just 5 days before the general public was eligible. This
had dire consequences, as the pandemic took the lives of AI/ANs at the
highest rates of any population. Ultimately, this flawed process could
have been easily avoided with an urban confer policy.
In an October 2021 House Natural Resources Subcommittee for
Indigenous Peoples of the United States (SCIP) hearing on H.R. 5221,
IHS Deputy Director, Benjamin Smith, confirmed the failure to properly
communicate with UIOs around COVID-19 vaccine distribution in his
remarks, ``Initially urban Indian organizations were not included in
the discussion and request from the Department of Health and Human
Services about whether urban Indian organizations would receive their
vaccine allocation from the state or from the Indian Health Service. As
a result, it was unclear to urban Indian organizations on whether they
were expected to make a similar decision as tribes did. It was
ultimately determined that the urban Indian organizations could select
a state or Indian Health Service for their vaccine allocation. In some
urban Indian organizations, however, there were delays in the initial
vaccine rollout.'' \1\
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legislative-hearing_october-5-2021
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Today, the ongoing public health crisis that is COVID-19 continues
to amplify the long-overdue need for urban confer among HHS agencies to
adequately communicate the constantly changing healthcare policies with
UIOs that directly impact their patients.
An urban confer policy across HHS would require all agencies within
HHS to engage in direct communication with UIOs on issues, resources,
and programs that affect UIOs and their patients. The current lack of
urban confer policies for agencies other than IHS is a significant
roadblock to UIOs' efforts to engage with these agencies to improve
health services for AI/ANs living in urban areas. For example, last
year, Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) which
authorized 100 percent Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP)
reimbursement for services provided to Medicaid beneficiaries at UIOs
for eight fiscal quarters. The congressional intent of this extension
was, in part, to address a longstanding inequity within the Indian
healthcare system and to increase financial resources for UIOs during
the COVID-19 pandemic. The ARPA FMAP extension ends in less than one
year, but UIOs have generally not received any financial benefit either
through cost-saving reimbursement from states or increased rates.
Overall, UIOs cannot expect to receive any such benefit in the absence
of guidance and advocacy from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid
Services (CMS), as CMS is the federal agency responsible for the
administration of the Medicaid program. While IHS has engaged with
urban confer with UIOs on this matter, CMS currently does not have an
urban confer policy and thus UIOs have restricted opportunities to
engage and collaborate with CMS on implementing FMAP in the manner
intended by Congress. Many federal agencies do not understand that over
70 percent of AI/ANs reside in urban areas and that UIOs are a critical
part of the Indian healthcare system. An urban confer policy with
agencies, such as CMS, would be instrumental in ensuring that obstacles
relating to programs and benefits that directly affect UIOs are
addressed quickly so that UIOs are able to access all resources
available to provide healthcare to their patients.
This legislation remedies these problems and codifies a proper
confer policy between HHS and UIOs, thus ensuring that AI/AN lives are
no longer jeopardized by the lack of adequate communication pathways
between HHS agencies and UIOs.
Strong Indian Country and Congressional Support for Urban Confer
The support for confer with UIOs is strong among stakeholders in
Indian Country. In November 2020, the National Congress of American
Indians (NCAI) passed a resolution to ``Call for the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services Secretary to Implement an Urban Confer Policy
Across the Department and its Divisions.'' \2\ In October 2021, Walter
Murillo (Choctaw Nations of Oklahoma), Chief Executive Officer of
NATIVE Health, and President-Elect of NCUIH, testified before the House
Natural Resources SCIP in support of H.R. 5221, citing the ongoing
challenges that UIOs and urban AI/ANs continue to face given the
absence of an urban confer policy across all HHS agencies.
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\2\ The National Congress of American Indians Resolution #PDX-20-
021. https://www.ncai.org/attachments/
Resolution_ROtzxPAdbKLfUbrnRVmUoOfklRbZgxXvXJBCqoyBgPomYTflsHu_PDX-20-
021%20SIGNED.pdf
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Members of Congress from both sides of the aisle have expressed
their direct support for urban Indian health and confer policies with
UIOs. In the same SCIP hearing on H.R. 5221, Representative Matt
Rosendale recognized the importance of Indian parity by emphasizing
Walter Murillo's statement of ``no policies about us, without us,'' and
Representative Darren Soto said, ``It's time to modernize and improve
health access for our Native Americans. This requires us to have
greater urban access through the Indian Health Service and the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services, which is why we applaud Chair
Grijalva for this great bill [H.R. 5221].'' \3\
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We are pleased that this critical legislation was ultimately passed
in the House on November 2, 2021, by an overwhelming majority of 406
votes.
Conclusion
The Urban Indian Health Confer Act is an essential parity issue for
UIOs that ensures that AI/ANs residing in urban areas continue to have
access to high-quality, culturally competent health services. We must
move past the notion that only IHS has a trust obligation to AI/ANs, as
the federal government bears a responsibility to provide health care
for all AI/AN people. Urban confer must be established across HHS to
further improve healthcare delivered to urban Indian patients.
We therefore urge the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs to
continue to prioritize urban Indian health and ensure the swift passage
of this bill, thereby enabling UIOs to continue providing high-quality,
culturally competent care to AI/AN people, regardless of where they
live.
The Chairman. Thank you very much.
I will start the questions. Assistant Secretary Freihage,
access to Federal lands that contain tribal sacred sites is an
important exercise of the government-to-government
relationship. Sometimes simple access is not enough,
particularly for the Karuk Tribe, which doesn't have a big land
base.
How does this bill strike the appropriate balance between
tribal and Federal interests?
Mr. Freihage. The bill does strike a strong balance between
the two. I think it is consistent with the joint secretarial
order signed by the Secretaries of Interior and Agriculture,
number 3403, which sets the direction for co-stewardship, co-
management between the tribes and land management agencies.
Up front, it is also important to recognize that Federal
interest does include trust responsibilities of the tribe,
including the sacred lands. So we take that into account,
obviously, along with the important responsibilities of land
management bureaus. When you consider the sacred land, the
importance to the tribe, as Chairman Attebery noted, that this
is the center of their world, the bill then taking the step of
ensuring that the wild and scenic river components continue to
be managed by the Chief of the Forest Service allows for co-
management. Then through the requirement of having an MOU with
the Forest Service and the Karuk Tribe, that allows them to
make sure they are on the same wavelength to ensure that we
have that appropriate balance.
The Chairman. Thank you very much.
Deputy Director Smith, you know Native Hawaiians receive
health care through HHS as a result of, as an expression of the
Federal Government's trust responsibility. But HHS doesn't have
an official consultation or confer policy that applies to
Native Hawaiians at the moment.
Do you need a statute in order to do that?
Mr. Smith. Thank you for the question, Chair Schatz. I can
speak from the Indian Health Service at a department level with
regard to the tribal consultation policy as it pertains to
federally recognized Indian tribes. It is certainly a question
that we could take back.
The Chairman. Let's be crisp, here. Native Hawaiians don't
have tribal recognition. Native Hawaiians are not currently
pursuing tribal recognition. What we are saying is that under
the trust responsibility, because there is money being pushed
out, is there some way to get at conferring without having to
hang your hook on a government-to-government relationship, but
rather the trust relationship?
It seems to me that you have the flexibility to express the
idea, nothing about me without me, without having to make a
square peg fit into a round hole.
Mr. Smith. Similar to what is at play with the proposed
bill H.R. 5221, other operating divisions outside the Indian
Health Service do not have a specific rule or requirement.
There is nothing preventing them from conferring, but there is
no requirement or policy that allows them to initiate confer.
The Chairman. They are not allowed to do it?
Mr. Smith. There is nothing preventing them from doing it.
The Chairman. There is nothing preventing them from doing
it.
Mr. Smith. Certainly.
The Chairman. And then you say there is no statute that
allows them to do it? That sounds like the lack of a statute
prevents them from being able to do it.
Mr. Smith. There is no statute, to my knowledge, that --
The Chairman. It seems to me that if an agency wants to
confer, they can confer. And if using certain legal terms
triggers a widespread freakout, we can use different words. But
the point is, that to the extent there is trust responsibility,
nothing about me without me. The Biden Administration, it seems
to me, has a perfect legal right to express that through an
internal memorandum, a new rule, a directive from the director
of the department or one of the agencies.
I think we are overcomplicating this, and I think there are
a bunch of people who are going, gosh, they are not a tribe, so
we can't. That is not what I am saying. What I am saying is, to
the extent that there are agencies and organizations that
receive funding from HHS they should be consulted with. I am
hoping we can work together on this.
Mr. Smith. We are happy to work with you on it. Thank you.
The Chairman. Thank you very much.
Final question for this round. Chairman Clarke, you have
testified about the difficulties your tribe has encountered as
a result of water shortages. How does this settlement help?
Dr. Clarke. Thank you for that question.
This will help because on one side of the reservation, we
have not even looked at, on the east side, and with the drought
as we are looking at today, we are very, very short on water.
Like I said earlier, our water on the wells have depleted. Some
of the wells have also collapsed. So now we are taking water
from fire hydrants, putting it on the truck, trucking it to
another area for it to get out to Grand Canyon West.
In the meantime, our community is suffering because we are
taking water from the community to go out there. If our water
truck breaks down or has a flat, then we have to fix that, and
again, we are short on water because there is no water going
out there.
On the east side of the reservation, we haven't, I mean, we
have talked about it, but we need to get water on the east side
as well, not just on the west side in the community, but also
on the east side. So this would really help.
The Chairman. Thank you very much.
Vice Chair Murkowski?
Senator Murkowski. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Chairman Clarke, thank you for that. It sounds like not an
idea situation as you are looking to literally truck water from
a fire hydrant.
Let me ask you, Mr. Freihage, the Hualapai Tribe has been
working on completing this water settlement for nearly a decade
now. In 2016, I recall that the tribe and the State partner
reached an agreement on phase two. The Federal agencies at the
time did not support it. Now we have an agreement with the
Federal negotiating team and Interior is testifying in support
of this.
What happened? What transpired there in the settlement that
allowed interior to now get behind this settlement?
Mr. Freihage. I believe one of the factors was on the
looking a little more narrowly, the focusing of the looking at
the impacts of groundwater uses and how that could, the ability
to narrow that, so that we had a better surety about there
would truly be wet water rights for the tribe at the end of the
process. I believe that was one of the critical factors.
Senator Murkowski. The Chairman asked you a question about
the MOU between the Karuk Tribe. I raised the issue of Forest
Service in my opening. Your testimony states that the
department supports the agreements with Indian tribes to
collaborate in the co-stewardship of Federal waters and the
jurisdiction of DOI and Ag. This legislation is directing the
Chief of the Forest Service and the tribe to enter into an MOU
to protect and enhance wild and scenic river systems, all done
in cooperation with the tribe.
So in addition to the MOUs, do you need any other tools to
support the co-stewardship of lands and waters with the tribes?
Just an example I would raise is the 638 contracts under ISDEA,
under the Indian Self-Determination Act, they also promote co-
stewardship. Is this something that could be helpful in this
case?
Mr. Freihage. Yes, certainly. I think the more that other
Federal agencies beyond especially Indian Affairs, IHS, can use
638 contracting, self-governance compacting mechanisms, it is a
great tool to allow to engage tribes in partnerships for co-
stewardship, co-management.
Another key factor is in our 2023 budget we have a $14.8
million funding request for land acquisition for tribes. That
could be a tool also where tribes could be purchasing lands and
end up with some joint strategies with Federal agencies. A key
part of that is funding. Then the other part is to be able to
do that we need, there is currently an annual cap on land
acquisition funding that goes back to the 1934 Indian
Reorganization Act. So if we could get that lifted to at least
the amount we are requesting.
Plus the 638 contracting and OSG and self-governance
compacting, those would be two significant steps forward.
Senator Murkowski. Okay. It has been mentioned that
Interior, well, along with the rest of the government, has of
course a trust responsibility to tribes. How is the Department
of Interior going to be involved in upholding that trust
responsibility as the tribe and Forest Service negotiate this
MOU that is mandated under the legislation?
Mr. Freihage. Hopefully, I think because the structure is
sort of set up in the joint secretarial order 3403 with
Interior and Agriculture it outlines a lot of the best
practices and policies we can provide for continuing to engage
with the tribe and our trust responsibility, along with the
Forest Service, to ensure that that balance is found between
the Federal and tribal interests. So to be consistently
engaged.
Senator Murkowski. Mr. Smith, you gave a pretty good
outline there about this whole process within HHS for tribal
consultation and the development of the confer policy. I don't
know that I actually heard you say whether or not you, whether
HHS actually supports the bill. I think you said that you stand
ready to provide technical assistance. But what is the position
of HHS on H.R. 5221?
Mr. Smith. Thank you very much for the question. In this
declaration of National Indian Health policy, Congress has
specifically declared that it is the policy of the Nation to
ensure the highest possible health status for Indians and urban
Indians. The Department of Health and Human Services is
committed to working with Indian and urban Indian communities
to meet this policy.
However, as I mentioned, only the Indian Health Service has
a legal obligation to confer with Urban Indian Organizations.
We are the only agency within HHS and the Federal Government at
this time that has implemented a formal confer process. So at
this time, I cannot speak for our departmental colleagues. But
what I can tell you is that we have found the process to be
successful and beneficial. We are happy to provide technical
assistance to you.
Senator Murkowski. I think that is kind of maybe a soft
support, they think it is going to work, actually you know it
can work. I am going to mark that down as a maybe.
Mr. Chairman, my time is expired.
The Chairman. Let's follow up together.
Senator Murkowski. Sure.
The Chairman. Senator Smith?
Senator Smith. Thank you. I appreciate your question,
Senator Murkowski, and your response as well, Senator Schatz.
Mr. Smith, I will just say that we have been working with the
Department of Health and Human Services for a long time, trying
to get a definite yes, we support this. And we have so far been
unsuccessful in getting that. However, we have, I think,
testimony today that spoke to the power of consultation with
urban indigenous communities. I think it is an obvious next
step that that confer process with other parts of the
Department of Human Services would also be useful and valuable.
I would, Mr. Smith, ask as you return to the Department of
Health and Human Services that you tell them that we are eager
to work with the department, and we would appreciate it if we
could get speedy responses and fast technical support, so that
we can understand if there are any issues with the legislation
so that we can resolve them in order to move it forward.
Will you make that commitment to me?
Mr. Smith. Thank you, Senator Smith. I absolutely will take
that back and coordinate.
Senator Smith. All right. Let me go to Dr. Rock, if I may.
I am so grateful to you for joining us today. I think you are
in a great position to help us understand some of the issues
that urban indigenous organizations have had that could be
resolved by this kind of confer process.
One example that comes to mind, Dr. Rock, is an issue
around data sharing. Senator Murkowski and I actually have a
piece of legislation that would get at making sure the
Department of Health and Human Services is sharing public
health data with epidemiology centers, tribal epidemiology
centers, urban indigenous organizations.
Dr. Rock, could you tell us how this kind of public data
sharing with the CDC, for example, would help you in the work
you are doing?
Dr. Rock. Certainly. It would help at multiple levels. For
example, with research and patient safety, those are areas I
think we could make a lot of strides, especially with folks
like CDC, with vaccine distribution and things like CARES
appropriations, pieces. Also including things like missing and
murdered indigenous people. That is something data is key to,
to start addressing some of these issues, especially folks like
out in Seattle with UIHI, and the epicenter there.
So having transparent and free flow of information helps
all our urban Indian health organizations. We are really in a
key place to address some of these issues.
Senator Smith. Thank you very much. I completely agree with
you.
You raised in your testimony the issue of the 100 percent
FMAP policy. We worked hard in the American Rescue Plan to
deliver $84 million in direct funds and two years of 100
percent Federal medical assistance percentage for services to
urban indigenous organizations. Yet we know there have been
issues with implementation that I think have affected UIOs in
every State.
Dr. Rock, can you let us know a little bit about what that
looks like in Minnesota and how appropriate consultation might
have made this problem a lot easier to resolve?
Dr. Rock. Certainly, thank you, Senator. Over 20 years of
my time has been focused on this issue of 100 percent FMAP, at
least bringing payment parity to urban Indian health
organizations, especially during the time of COVID. For the
last 15 months since the FMAP provisions were enacted, we of
course have been working with Senator Smith's office, as well
as our governor's office on how to make this a reality.
Unfortunately, we have yet to see really any type of activity
or actual reimbursement occur, utilizing the 100 percent FMAP
through the Federal system, which is extremely, extremely
disappointing, I need to tell you.
We continue to seek out solutions going forward. But I
think we are going to need help with our State partners as well
as our Federal partners, including CMS. This would be an
important point to have access and confirm with CMS.
Senator Smith. Thank you. I know that you all are not alone
in having that challenge with FMAP reimbursement. Again, if
there had been good consultation across all Department of
Health and Human Services, that would have been easier to
resolve. On issues of data sharing, 100 percent FMAP, I would
say also, federally qualified health center issues, all of
those would be easier to resolve if we had the kind of
consultation that our bill would require.
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
The Chairman. Thank you, Senator Smith.
Senator Hoeven, are you ready for your questions?
STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN HOEVEN,
U.S. SENATOR FROM NORTH DAKOTA
Senator Hoeven. I will be in just a minute, thanks, Mr.
Chairman.
The Chairman. Do you need me to stall for a moment?
Senator Hoeven. Yes, for like 30 seconds, just to survey
the terrain here.
[Laughter.]
Senator Hoeven. We are good.
The Chairman. Senator Hoeven.
Senator Hoeven. Thanks, Mr. Chairman. Thanks to the
witnesses.
Deputy Director Smith, the Urban Indian Health Center Act
requires the Department of Health and Human Services to confer
with Urban Indian Organizations. Does HHS and its agencies and
offices currently confer with Urban Indian Organizations on an
informal basis?
Mr. Smith. Thank you for the question, Senator Hoeven.
As I just mentioned, at this time the Indian Health Service
is the only Federal agency that has the legal obligation to
confer with Urban Indian Organizations, and as such is the only
Federal agency within the department that has a formal policy
and process.
Having said that, there have been instances where the
Indian Health Service has initiated urban confer on behalf of
other Federal agencies within the department in seeking input
on their behalf. So I hope that answers your question.
Senator Hoeven. I am wondering what impact formal
consultation would have between HHS and Urban Indian
Organizations. Talk about how that is going to change and the
fact that it goes from informal to formal, and how you think
that affects things.
Mr. Smith. What I can share with you from the Indian Health
Service experience is certainly by developing a policy, well,
first by having confer defined in statute, which the Indian
Health Care Improvement Act does, it defines confer as a form
of communication that emphasizes trust, respect, and shared
responsibility, and open exchange of opinions. That means that
two entities are going to be listening to each other, and how
they are going to listen.
We further developed policy around establishing what we are
going to talk about. So we defined in our policy as a critical
event. To give you an example, throughout the pandemic,
Congress provided several supplemental packages that required
funding decisions that had a huge impact on Urban Indian
Organizations. So we engaged in our policy, invoking our policy
to confer with Urban Indian Organizations to solicit their
input prior to making those funding decisions. We believe that
did have an impact on the manner in which we made those
decisions.
Senator Hoeven. Do you have other examples?
Mr. Smith. Another example, one that is actually occurring
right now and we are very thankful to the members of the Senate
that signed a letter to the Biden Administration earlier this
year requesting that the Administration consider the formation
of an Urban Interagency Work Group. Certainly, that made its
way down through the department. In May, we sent a letter
through our Acting Director, Ms. Fowler, to Senator Padilla
saying that we would initiate urban confer, to look at an
exploration of an Urban Interagency Task Force on behalf of
government.
So just recently, earlier this month we held our first
urban confer session to hear directly from Urban Indian
Organizations on what that would look like. We are actively in
that process. We will look to going through our process to see
what comes from the exploration of that idea of formulating an
Interagency Work Force dedicated to Urban Indian Organizations.
Senator Hoeven. Do you think that setting that up as a
formal process through legislation like this would strengthen
that process, and be a benefit? Any other thoughts on it?
Mr. Smith. What we have experienced through the Indian
Health Service, again, is that it really helps to identify
critical issues and necessary input at the area, local and
national levels on what is deemed as a critical event, whether
it is a budget, policy issue, or those items that are outlined
in our policy. We are happy to provide additional technical
assistance to you on this matter.
Senator Hoeven. Okay, thank you very much. Thank you, Mr.
Chairman.
The Chairman. Thank you, Senator Hoeven.
If there are no more questions for our witnesses, members
may also submit follow-up written questions for the record. The
hearing record will be open for two weeks. I want to thank all
the witnesses for their time and their testimony.
This hearing is adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 3:51 p.m., the hearing was adjourned.]
A P P E N D I X
Prepared Statement of Theodore C. Cooke, General Manager, Central
Arizona Water Conservation District
Chairman Schatz, Vice Chairman Murkowski and members of the
Committee, I am Theodore Cooke, General Manager of the Central Arizona
Water Conservation District (CAWCD). Thank you for the opportunity to
provide the views of the CAWCD on S. 4104 ``Hualapai Tribe Water
Settlements Act of 2022'' through this statement for the record. For
the reasons I will discuss below, CAWCD supports S. 4104.
Role of CAWCD in Arizona
CAWCD manages the Central Arizona Project (CAP), a 336-mile canal
system that delivers Colorado River water into central and southern
Arizona. CAWCD's service area includes more than 80 percent of
Arizona's population. The largest supplier of renewable water in
Arizona, CAWCD diverts up to 1.5 million acre-feet of Arizona's 2.8
million acre-foot Colorado River entitlement each year through the CAP
to municipal and industrial users, agricultural irrigation districts,
and Indian communities. Our goal at CAWCD is to provide our customers
with an affordable, reliable, and sustainable supply of Colorado River
water.
Background
CAWCD, the Hualapai Tribe, the State of Arizona and other Arizona
parties have worked for the past decade to reach a settlement that
accomplishes the goals of fairness and certainty to all parties. H.R.
7633 represents resolution of Phase 2 of the Hualapai settlement. Phase
1 resolved issues relating to the Bill Williams watershed, and now
Phase 2 resolves all remaining claims of the Tribe for water rights
within Arizona, including claims to the Colorado River.
Among other things, the Act would reallocate to the Tribe 4,000
acre-feet of Central Arizona Project water, and provide federal funding
for water-related infrastructure to the Tribe. This water would help
address the water supply needs of the Tribe's residents on the
reservation, as well as the Tribe's plans for economic development. The
Act will not only benefit the Tribe by providing wet water, but will
avoid the burden of costly litigation and provide certainty going
forward to water users throughout the area.
Conclusion
For the reasons noted, the CAWCD Board of Directors voted
unanimously to support the settlement and S. 4104. We would like to
thank Senator Sinema and Senator Kelly for their sponsorship of this
bill, Thank you for your consideration.
______
Prepared Statement of the U.S. Department of Agriculture
Chairman Schatz, Vice Chairman Murkowski, and Members of the
Committee, thank you for the opportunity to discuss the views of the
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) on S. 4439, Katimiin and
Ameekyaaraam Sacred Lands Act.
S. 4439 would transfer administrative jurisdiction of approximately
1,031 acres of National Forest System land located in Siskiyou and
Humboldt Counties, California, from the USDA Forest Service to the
Department of the Interior and direct the Secretary of the Interior to
take that land into trust for the benefit of the Karuk Tribe.
The transfer of administrative jurisdiction and transfer into trust
in the bill is subject to the condition that the Forest Service
continues to manage the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System that
flows through the Katimiin and Ameekyaaraam land. The bill directs the
USDA to provide to the Secretary of the Interior a survey of the land,
and also enter into a memorandum of understanding with the Karuk Tribe
to establish mutual goals for the protection and enhancement of the
river values of any component of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers
System that flows through the land taken into trust. USDA supports
continuing to manage the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System and
strongly supports the development of a memorandum of understanding to
establish mutual goals for the protection and enhancement of the river
values. We are committed to fulfilling the trust relationship between
the United States and Tribes.
USDA acknowledges that the lands administered by the Forest Service
are the ancestral homelands to American Indians and Alaska Natives and
contain cultural and natural resources of significance to their people,
such as sacred religious sites, burial sites, wildlife resources, and
sources of Indigenous foods and medicines. The Katimiin and
Ameekyaaraam land is sacred to the Karuk Tribe and vital to their
culture and traditions.
With the 2021 Joint Secretarial Order on Fulfilling the Trust
Responsibility to Indian Tribes in the Stewardship of Federal Lands and
Waters (Order No. 3403), Secretary Vilsack re-committed to ensuring
that the USDA manages federal lands and waters ``in a manner that seeks
to protect the treaty, religious, subsistence, and cultural interests
of federally recognized Indian Tribes,'' through co-stewardship
agreements. The Secretary also re-affirmed the USDA's obligations to
Tribes in the 2021 Memorandum of Understanding Regarding Interagency
Coordination and Collaboration for the Protection of Indigenous Sacred
Sites and the Memorandum of Understanding Regarding Interagency
Coordination and Collaboration for the Protection of Tribal Treaty and
Reserved Rights.
For all these reasons, USDA supports the intent of the Katimiin and
Ameekyaaraam Sacred Lands Act and looks forward to continued discussion
with the Committee and bill sponsors on provision details and
considerations for implementation.
______
Wild and Scenic Rivers Coalition
August 19, 2022
Dear Chair Schatz and Ranking Member Murkowski:
On behalf of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Coalition, we write to
thank you for holding a recent Committee hearing on the Katimiin and
Ameekyaaraam Sacred Lands Act (S. 4439). The Wild and Scenic Rivers
Coalition is a national alliance of more than 60 river protection
organizations. Coalition member organizations appreciate the Senate's
efforts to advance this legislation that recognizes Indigenous
sovereignty and the cultural significance of sacred lands and waters to
Indigenous Peoples.
The Wild and Scenic Rivers Coalition strongly supports the Katimiin
and Ameekyaaraam Sacred Lands Act, introduced by Senator Padilla and
co-sponsored by Senator Feinstein. This bill would return 1,031 acres
of land along California's Klamath and Salmon Rivers to the Karuk
Tribe. This land transfer will allow the Karuk Tribe to conduct World
Renewal Ceremonies and other acts of religious and cultural
significance without interruption or interference while maintaining
Wild and Scenic River protections. We support the bill's provision to
include the Tribe in the management and protection of the rivers within
the returned lands.
We support the Katimiin and Ameekyaaraam Sacred Lands Act and urge
you to advance this important bill.
Sincerely,
Lisa Ronald, National Coordinator
On behalf of the following Wild and Scenic River Coalition member
organizations:
Joshua Theurer, Associate Director, Project Design, Adventure
Scientists, Bozeman, MT
Jack West, Policy and Advocacy Director, Alabama Rivers Alliance,
Birmingham, AL
David Moryc, Senior Director of Wild and Scenic Rivers and Public
Lands Policy, American Rivers, Washington, D.C.
Kevin Colburn, National Stewardship Director, American Whitewater,
Cullowhee, North Carolina
Megan Fiske, Executive Director, Foothill Conservancy, Jackson, CA
Fred Akers, River Administrator, Great Egg Harbor Watershed
Association, Newtonville, NJ
Nicholas Nelson, Executive Director, Idaho Rivers United, Boise, ID
Richard Dodds, Chair, Lower Delaware Wild and Scenic Management
Committee, Stockton, NJ
Dr. Denielle Perry, Director of Free-flowing Rivers Lab, Northern
Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ
April Ingle, Policy Director, River Network, Boulder, CO
Joseph Callahan, President, Taunton River Watershed Alliance,
Taunton, MA
Bill Napolitano, Administrator, Taunton River Stewardship Council,
Taunton, MA
Maggie Johnston, Executive Director, Wild Alabama, Moulton, Alabama
______
Trout Unlimited
July 20, 2022
Dear Chairman Schatz, Ranking Member Murkowski, and members of the
Committee,
We write in support of S. 4439, The Katimiin and Ameeky araam
Sacred Lands Act. This legislation would restore free and undisturbed
access for the Karuk people to their sacred places by transferring
1,000 acres along the Klamath River from the U.S. Forest Service to the
Department of the Interior to be held in trust for the Karuk Tribe. The
land is currently part of a larger Cultural Management Area recognized
for its significance to the Tribe. Called ``Katimiin'' in the Karuk
language, these 1,000 acres are the heart of the Karuk's ancestral
territory, ``literally the center of the universe, a spiritual balance
point for all of existence.'' The Karuk people have lived and conducted
ceremonies at Katimiin and Ameeky araam since the beginning of time.
These areas are integral to Karuk cosmology and creation belief as well
as the perpetuation of Karuk customs and culture.
Trout Unlimited has been working with the Karuk and other
signatories to the Klamath Hydroelectric Settlement Agreement for more
than two decades to restore the Klamath River and its once-prolific
runs of salmon and steelhead. Ensuring that these lands will be held in
trust for the Karuk is consistent with the overall goal of renewing the
Klamath's ecological, cultural, and community values, and we are
grateful to the efforts of Senator Padilla and Senator Feinstein to
help us attain that goal while righting an historical wrong.
We support the Karuk Tribe's efforts to ensure the repatriation and
management of Katimiin and Ameeky araam so their ceremonial leaders,
traditional practitioners and community members will have access to
these lands for traditional and customary uses in perpetuity.
We thank you for holding a hearing on this bill and urge the
committee to favorably advance this legislation.
Sincerely,
Brian J. Johnson, California Director
______
YUROK TRIBE
August 3, 2022
Dear Chairman Schatz and Vice Chairwoman Murkowski,
The Yurok Tribe submits this letter to support the Katimiin and
Ameekyaaraam Sacred Lands Act (H.R. 6032), also known as the Karuk
Lands Bill. This Bill was created to restore land to the Karuk Tribe
and recognize the Karuk Tribe's role and responsibility in managing
federal lands within its territory. By restoring these lands to the
Karuk Tribe, who were the original stewards of such lands, the Karuk
Tribe can exercise its tribal sovereignty and traditional practices
without interruption. We extend our support to the Karuk Tribe through
this Bill.
Indeed, the Yurok Tribe supports tribal land restoration for all
tribes and believe that tribes should support each other's land
restoration efforts. Like the Karuk Tribe, we introduced the Yurok
Lands Act (H.R. 7581). Our Bill was created to reclaim our role as the
original stewards of our land by revising our reservation boundary line
to transfer more than one thousand acres of historically Yurok land
back to our Tribe. The Karuk Lands Bill and Yurok Lands Act are
important legislation and promote the overall goal of tribal land
restoration.
Lastly, the Biden Administration supports our overall goal of
tribal land restoration. The Biden Administration, for example,
promised to ``provide tribes with a greater role in the care and
management of public lands that are of cultural significance to Tribal
Nations.'' Likewise, the Department of the Interior has launched the
Tribal Homelands Initiative which increases opportunities for tribes to
participate in federal lands management. We urge you to quickly take up
and pass the Karuk Lands Bill and continue to work toward this shared
goal of tribal land restoration.
Sincerely,
Hon. Joseph L. James, Chairman
______
Freeport-McMoRan
July 22, 2022
Dear Chairman Schatz and Vice Chairwoman Murkowski,
I write to express the support of Freeport Minerals Corporation
(Freeport) for S. 4104, the Hualapai Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act
of 2022 (Settlement Act). The Hualapai Tribe is one of the eleven
federally recognized Indian tribes in Arizona that still have
unresolved water rights claims. As a water user in Arizona, we strongly
believe that resolving these claims through settlement will reduce the
cost and uncertainty of hostile litigation and provide certainty to
both tribal and non-tribal water users. Settlement provides the
necessary funding to construct and operate water-based infrastructure
to tribal members--something that litigation cannot. This Settlement
Act is an excellent example of successful regional collaboration to
address the Hualapai Tribe's water rights claims.
Freeport is one of the nation's leading producers of copper and
other minerals. The Company is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, and
its workforce in the U.S, as of 2021, included 24,700 direct employees
and 42,000 contractors. Freeport's copper and molybdenum mining complex
in Bagdad, Arizona, is located approximately 60 miles west of Prescott,
Arizona and is 100 miles northwest of Phoenix, in Yavapai County. The
open pit mine has been operating since 1945, encompassing approximately
49,800 acres. Production at the Bagdad mine in 2021 totaled 184 million
pounds of copper and 9 million pounds of molybdenum. The direct and
indirect economic contribution of the mine to Arizona's economy totaled
$282.7 million in 2020.
Although the Bagdad operation has sufficient water sources to
support current operations, Bagdad faces increasing competition for
water and variability in supply availability due to the on-going
drought and climate change. Current water supplies for the Bagdad Mine
include access to groundwater and surface water resources in the Big
Sandy River Groundwater Basin and the Big Sandy River in the Bill
Williams River Watershed. The need to protect and ensure long-term
sustainable water supplies for our Bagdad mine, as well as those of our
neighbors in the watershed, is the reason for Freeport's involvement in
these water rights settlements. We all share this resource and Freeport
strongly believes that our neighboring communities, like the Hualapai
Tribe, should have equitable access to reliable water supplies for
their own future.
Freeport has a unique and exceptionally cooperative relationship
with the Tribe and greatly treasures its relationship with the Hualapai
people. This relationship has developed through years of positive and
collaborative settlement discussions and has resulted in Freeport
providing the following contributions to the Hualapai Tribe:
Assistance with the construction of a hunting bunkhouse for
Hualapai Game and Fish (significant source of tribal revenue)
Emergency Operations Center for COVID response
Microgrid solar power project
Playground in Peach Springs
Juvenile Detention center gardening project
Tai Kwon Do camps
Blanket-making classes coordinated by the Cultural Resource
Department
Rope rescue training for the Emergency Response Team at
Grand Canyon West
Cultural Monitor Training
2 scholarships for tuition are awarded to Hualapai college
students each year
As a precursor to this Settlement Act, Freeport played a
significant role in the completion of the Bill Williams River Water
Rights Settlement Act (Phase I Settlement). As a part of the Phase 1
Settlement Freeport contributed $1,000,000 to the Tribe to assist in
the development of professional studies evaluating alternatives for
Colorado River water delivery. Freeport also contributed to an Economic
Development Trust that enables the Tribe to seek the purchase of lands
and additional water rights along the Colorado River in Arizona.
Finally, Freeport donated a portion of the Planet Ranch lands and water
rights to the Arizona Game and Fish Department for lease to the U.S.
Bureau of Reclamation. This contribution provides a long-term benefit
to the Lower Colorado River Multi-Species Conservation Program.
Freeport is grateful for Senators Kirsten Sinema and Mark Kelly's
support and assistance in introducing this long-awaited and critical
piece of legislation. Freeport looks forward to our continued
relationship with the Hualapai Tribe ensuring they, like many others,
have access to reliable and secure water supplies. Freeport urges you
to positively advance S. 4104.
Sincerely,
Sandy Fabritz, Director, Water Strategy
______
American Whitewater
July 19, 2022
Dear Chairman Schatz and Vice Chairwoman Murkowski,
On behalf of the whitewater paddling community, American Whitewater
writes to express our appreciation for holding a hearing on the
Katimiin and Ameekyaaraam Sacred Lands Act (S. 4439). This legislation
would take certain Federal land located in Siskiyou County, California,
and Humboldt County, California, into trust for the benefit of the
Karuk Tribe. The Katimiin and Ameekyaaraam land is located in the
aboriginal territory of the Karuk Tribe and represents the center of
the Karuk universe at the confluence of the Salmon River with the
Klamath River. Restoring these unceded lands to the stewardship of the
Karuk Tribe is a long overdue moral imperative.
About American Whitewater
American Whitewater is a national non-profit 501(c)(3) river
conservation organization founded in 1954 with approximately 50,000
supporters, 6,500 dues-paying members, and 100 local-based affiliate
clubs, representing whitewater enthusiasts across the nation. American
Whitewater's mission is to protect and restore America's whitewater
rivers and to enhance opportunities to enjoy them safely. The
organization is the primary advocate for the preservation and
protection of whitewater rivers throughout the United States, and
connects the interests of human-powered recreational river users with
ecological and science-based data to achieve the goals within its
mission. Our vision is that our nation's remaining wild and free-
flowing rivers stay that way, our developed rivers are restored to
function and flourish, that the public has access to rivers for
recreation, and that river enthusiasts are active and effective river
advocates. Our members live, work, and recreate in the Klamath River
watershed and within the lands and waters included in this bill.
Support for S. 4439--Katimiin and Ameekyaaraam Sacred Lands Act
American Whitewater strongly supports the Katimiin and Ameekyaaraam
Sacred Lands Act (S. 4439), introduced by Senator Padilla and co-
sponsored by Senator Feinstein. This legislation would transfer
administrative jurisdiction of the Katimiin and Ameekyaaraam land,
representing 1,031 acres, from the Secretary of Agriculture to the
Secretary of Interior to be held in trust for the benefit of the Karuk
Tribe to be used for traditional and customary uses. This would re-
establish the Karuk Tribe as the stewards of these lands for Tribal
ceremonies, education, and cultural uses and will ensure that Tribal
ceremonies can be conducted without interruption or interference.
The legislation includes a condition that the Chief of the Forest
Service shall continue to manage the component of the National Wild and
Scenic Rivers System that flows through the Katimiin and Ameekyaaraam
lands and allow continued access by the Forest Service for the purpose
of managing the Klamath and Salmon Wild and Scenic Rivers. The
legislation also includes a provision for the Secretary of Agriculture
to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the Karuk Tribe, to
establish mutual goals for the protection and enhancement of the river
values of the Wild and Scenic Klamath and Salmon Rivers.
The whitewater boating community enjoys recreational opportunities
on both rivers that flow through lands included in this legislation.
The Salmon River from Brannons Bar to the confluence with the Klamath
River is known to boaters as the Lower Salmon, \1\ and the run on the
Klamath River from this point down to Dolans Bar near Orleans,
California is known to boaters as the Ikes Run. \2\ We understand and
respect that when we pass through these sacred lands we come as
visitors to a place of deep spiritual and cultural significance to the
Karuk people and that the World Renewal Ceremonies that they hold here
are central to their culture and identity. We have an interest in
further educating our community on the importance of these sacred lands
and support the Karuk Tribe in their efforts to ensure ceremonies can
be conducted without interruption or interference. We welcome any
opportunity to work directly with the Karuk Tribe to develop
appropriate education and outreach materials for our community and the
general public.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Salmon River, Brannons Bar to Klamath River, American
Whitewater National Whitewater Inventory, https://
www.americanwhitewater.org/content/River/view/river-detail/11392/main.
\2\ Klamath River, Ishi Pishi Bridge to Dolans Bar (Ike's Run),
American Whitewater National Whitewater Inventory, https://
www.americanwhitewater.org/content/River/view/river-detail/235/main.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Conclusion
On behalf of the whitewater paddling community, thank you again for
holding this hearing and the opportunity to provide testimony on this
legislation. We strongly support the Katimiin and Ameekyaaraam Sacred
Lands Act (S.4439). We urge you to move this bill through the Committee
and to the Senate floor to re-establish the Karuk Tribe as the steward
of their sacred lands.
Sincerely,
Scott Harding, Stewardship Associate
Theresa L. Lorejo-Simsiman, California Stewardship Director
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Brian Schatz to
Dr. Patrick Rock
Question 1. Can you expand on potential gaps in agency outreach and
services for the Indian Health Board of Minneapolis resulting from the
lack of a comprehensive HHS urban confer policy?
Answer. The lack of an HHS urban confer policy was incredibly
disruptive in the vaccine distribution for many UIOs, and if there had
been such a confer policy, we could have avoided delays.
For instance, key information regarding vaccine distribution for
the initial COVID-19 vaccine rollout at the end of last year was poorly
communicated to UIOs and created unnecessary hardship. HHS addressed
initial communications only to Tribes and did not direct it to the UIO
component of the IHS system. When HHS was asked about whether UIOs
needed to similarly decide between an IHS or state vaccine allocation,
it was unclear for weeks as to whether they were expected to make such
a decision. Eventually, HHS asked UIOs to decide between receiving
their vaccine distribution from either their state jurisdiction or IHS
the same day as the initial deadline (which thankfully HHS subsequently
extended for several days). Some UIOs were informed of the deadline by
their Area office with no formal national communication. As a result,
many of our clinics experienced delays in vaccine rollout. Had this
critical request and deadline been communicated directly with UIOs in a
timely manner, UIOs would not have been forced to rush their
jurisdiction selection. This flawed process could have been avoided
with an urban confer policy.
Another great example might be HRSA, which operates many programs
that dictate our ability to provide direct care to Natives in urban
areas. Right now, there is a HRSA/IHS workgroup and we appreciate the
Indian Health Service for involving themselves in that, but it still
doesn't provide for our direct communication with HRSA and we cannot
represent the day-to-day operational issues that UIOs face. We cannot
do that when we are passing through a non-operative office like IHS.
With more clear and direct communication, my UIO and all other UIOs
would be aware of important healthcare policies affecting urban Indian
communities, allowing us to better serve our urban Indian patients.
Question 2. How has IHS's urban confer policy helped address your
organization's needs?
Answer. The IHS urban confer policy is an established dialogue to
address the care needs of our Native patients. It has addressed our
UIOs needs, as well as many other UIOs needs, in integral ways. For
instance, IHS held an urban confer on the President's Executive Order
on Missing and Murdered Indigenous People to get UIO input on this
crisis affecting our community. Urban confer allowed for IHS to work
with us to discuss prevention efforts that reduce risk factors for the
victimization of Native Americans. However, it is the responsibility of
HHS as a whole, not just IHS, to work with urban Native communities to
reduce violent crime and address the MMIP epidemic.
Ultimately, IHS's urban confer policy has helped UIOs like mine
have an influential voice in how to best address the most critical
issues facing Indian Country. This has allowed us to provide better
care and health services and has empowered us to start combatting the
most pressing health issues facing our Native clients.
Question 3. What role would establishing an HHS urban confer policy
play in honoring the federal trust responsibility?
Answer. Establishing a formal urban confer process with HHS, and
the agencies it operates, is critical in honoring the federal
government's trust responsibility to provide health care for all
American Indian and Alaska Native people. This urban confer process
will ensure effective communication with UIOs on health policies that
impact them and their Native patients living in urban areas. Currently,
the lack of urban confer has enabled HHS agencies outside of IHS to
disregard the needs of urban Indians, which has prevented Native
patients from receiving critical health services. We must move past the
notion that only IHS has a trust obligation to American Indians and
Alaska Natives, and as such, establishing this formal urban confer
process is integral to furthering the trust obligation of the federal
government to provide healthcare to all Native Americans by ensuring
clear and direct communication with urban Indian organizations.
It must also be noted that Urban confer policies do not supplant or
otherwise impact Tribal consultation and the government-to-government
relationship between Tribes and federal agencies.
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Brian Schatz to
Hon. Russell Attebery
Question 1. What challenges has the Karuk Tribe faced in light of
having limited trust lands?
Answer. First and foremost; land forms the basis for social,
cultural, religious, political, and economical life for tribes. \1\ The
Karuk Tribe's Ancestral Territory is just over 1 million acres. This
area holds the history of our people since time began and has supported
our needs and culture through a continuous and uninterrupted
stewardship of the land. The Tribe's Aboriginal Territory consists of
north east Humboldt County, much of Siskiyou County and portions of
Southern Oregon. This Aboriginal Territory includes our areas of
influence, service areas and large populations of Karuk people we
serve. In 1905 President Theodore Roosevelt declared much of our
Ancestral Territory the Klamath Forest Reserve, \2\ later becoming the
Klamath and Six Rivers National Forests. Though establishment of these
reserves did not expressly extinguish any reserved, inherent or
retained right or title, the Karuk Tribe has purchased and deeded back
approximately 950 acres to the United States to be held in trust.
However, this strategy of purchasing land and deeding it back to the
U.S. is not sustainable due to limited tribal funds and the lack of
private property within our aboriginal territory. With the majority of
our lands, including ceremonial areas, in areas that have multiple
jurisdictions, management conflicts are constant. Lacking such an
essential cornerstone to a tribe's wellbeing perpetuates the negative
effects of prior attempts to erase our culture and our people's way of
life. The deficit in trust land creates barriers in getting crucial
projects completed. When pursuing projects on our trust lands we follow
our own Tribal codes thus avoiding over-complicated and sometimes
unnecessary additional government restrictions (i.e. State and local
requirements).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ COHEN'S HANDBOOK OF FEDERAL INDIAN LAW 15.01-15.02 at 994
(2012)
\2\ Presidential Proclamation 544--Establishment of the Klamath
Forest Reserve, California (1905)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
California is a P.L. 280 state which creates concurrent
jurisdictions that further complicate federal and state obligations. On
Karuk Lands, where we exercise jurisdiction as outlined in our
Constitution, the Tribe can increase our capacity to self-govern when
those jurisdictional responsibilities come with financial resources.
The Tribe's compacted dollars have been woefully inadequate since we
began to receive them. An increase to our compacted funds would allow
the Tribe the ability to increase our capacity to meet our management
needs.
Question 2. Why is it important for the Karuk Tribe to have
management authority over places that help support cultural education
and language revitalization?
Answer. The Karuk Tribe has steadily increased our management
authority over our tribal lands with the vision of restoring their
natural state and preserving our cultural and ceremonial traditions.
Our ceremonies are vital to keeping our world in balance, they are
conducted the same way every year since time began: we have an inherent
right and responsibility to continue these same ceremonies, practices,
rites and prayers to ensure our survival as Karuk People. If the Tribe
has management authority over the land we utilize for ceremony we are
able to conduct outreach for temporary exclusion zones, perform much
needed maintenance and restorative activities and increase the safety
and solitude needed for our ceremonial participants. Our language is
fundamental to the inter-generational learning needed to ensure future
generation of Karuk people know and understand Karuk culture and
customs.
Question 3. As part of S. 4439, the Forest Service will have
continued access to certain relevant sections of the Wild and Scenic
Rivers System. Why is this continued partnership with the Forest
Service important and has the agency's expressed any administrative
concerns regarding the proposed arrangement?
Answer. The Karuk Tribe's partnership with the Forest Service has
been necessary and important due to the intersections between land
management, access and capacity building. The Wild and Scenic Rivers
System designation has objectives and goals that present a challenge
for the Karuk Tribe to support, both monetarily and within the
framework of our ceremonies. With a future congressional appropriation,
the Karuk Tribe could possibly administer this Wild & Scenic portion of
the Klamath River. Because our ceremonies require long periods of
solitude, the recreational components of this designation are in
conflict with our traditional ways. The Forest Service has not
expressed any administrative concerns.
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Brian Schatz to
Hon. Damon Clarke
Question 1. At the hearing, you testified to the complexities and
precariousness of water delivery on your reservation. Can you speak
more about the economic impacts that water scarcity and insecurity have
on the citizens of the Hualapai Tribe? Can you also further describe
the type of resources your Tribe has to expend in order to provide
water to your community and how S. 4104 addresses those issues?
Answer. The Hualapai Tribe has suffered for years from a lack of
adequate water on the Reservation. We currently rely entirely on
groundwater in the Truxton Aquifer in the southern part of the
Reservation as our only source of water. As I stated in my testimony,
that Aquifer is served by three wells that are 47 years old, and that
have been prone to malfunctions and E-coli contamination.
These wells are the only source of water for our main residential
community at Peach Springs. When a well is out of operation for
mechanical reasons or because of contamination, the drop in the water
that we can supply to the community puts enormous strain on the ability
of our members to live in their homes. Because of lack of water, we
have been limited in the number of new homes we can construct in Peach
Springs. Residents of the Peach Springs community have been unable to
maintain gardens for their personal use and enjoyment. Lack of water is
especially acute in three subdivisions of Peach Springs--the Milkweed,
Music Mountain and Wi Tham Bo'--where new homes cannot be constructed
because there is no reliable water source.
Further, our dependence on the Truxton Aquifer provides no long-
term security to the Tribe. The Aquifer extends off the Reservation and
is therefore subject to uncontrollable pumping by landowners in Mohave
County and to the potential for accelerated depletion.
The Tribe has suffered economically from lack of water on the
Reservation in a number of ways. Our major economic activity is the
Tribe's tourist attraction at Grand Canyon West, on the rim of the
Grand Canyon in the northwestern part of the Reservation. This is the
main engine of the Tribe's economy, generating jobs for Tribal members
(as well as for non-Indians living off the Reservation). The Tribe
attracts more than a million visitors to Grand Canyon West, many from
nearby Las Vegas. At Grand Canyon West, visitors enjoy the magnificent
vistas of the Grand Canyon as well as presentations about the Tribe's
history and culture. These visitors contribute to the Tribe's economy
by paying an admissions fee and spending money in our gift shops and at
our restaurants.
For many years, Grand Canyon West was served by two distant
groundwater wells at Westwater, about 35 miles away. But because of the
drought, those wells both ran dry four years ago and have stopped
producing. We have been forced to pump water from the Truxton Aquifer
and then haul it by truck more than 15 miles to the Westwater wells,
from where the water is pumped to Grand Canyon West. This is an
expensive, insecure and burdensome process, costing the Tribe over
$350,000 in labor and equipment costs this year. It further depletes
the Truxton Aquifer. And because we cannot haul the quantity of water
sufficient to serve our needs at Grand Canyon West, we have been forced
to curtail activities there, closing restaurants and tourist
attractions, and thereby losing the revenues we would otherwise
receive.
The lack of water impacts our members in another way. Grand Canyon
West is located a two-hour drive on a gravel road from Peach Springs,
where virtually all tribal members on the Reservation live. Thus,
tribal employees at Grand Canyon West have daily round-trip commutes of
four hours a day to their jobs at Grand Canyon West, and longer in
inclement weather. Our members need the ability to live closer to their
jobs. But it is impossible to locate a residential community at Grand
Canyon West because of the lack of water there. This imposes an
unsustainable burden on tribal members and their families.
S. 4104 addresses these problems in multiple ways. First, and most
importantly, it provides the Tribe with a quantified right to water
from the Colorado River, which forms the northern boundary of the
Reservation. The legislation also provides funding for the Tribe to
develop the infrastructure necessary to deliver water from the Colorado
River to Peach Springs and to Grand Canyon West. This will allow the
Tribe to provide water from the Colorado River both to our members in
Peach Springs and also to our tourist development at Grand Canyon West.
And finally, although the Tribe will no longer be solely dependent on
the Truxton Aquifer for our water supply, the settlement legislation
also provides protections against off-Reservation pumping from the
Aquifer at a rate that could threaten the Aquifer. This too will
enhance the Tribe's long term water security.
Question 2. You testified there is federal, state, and county
support for S. 4104. Can you elaborate on ways in which this settlement
agreement will impact Arizona and its residents?
Answer. Our water rights settlement will bring enormous benefits
not only to the Hualapai Tribe but also to Mohave County and all of
northwestern Arizona. That is why our settlement is strongly supported
by Mohave County as well as by Governor Ducey.
We believe that Grand Canyon West has great potential for growth as
a regional tourist attraction, but it cannot take advantage of this
potential because of the severe lack of water that is needed to serve
visitors there.
As I noted in my testimony, the Tribe commissioned a study by
Professor Joseph P. Kalt of the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard
University to analyze the economic impact that enactment the Tribe's
water rights legislation would have on the regional economy of
northwestern Arizona and southern Nevada, as well as on the economy of
the State of Arizona and the Nation as a whole.
Professor Kalt testified to this Committee in December 2017 during
the 115th Congress, at a hearing on S. 1770, an earlier version of S.
4104. In his report, which was attached to his written testimony,
Professor Kalt stated that there was strong evidence that the Grand
Canyon West, if supported by adequate infrastructure, is capable of
attracting a growing number of visitors in the coming years, thus
generating further economic development. His report estimated that the
economic development of Grand Canyon West that would be triggered by
the water and infrastructure authorized by this legislation would
support an average of more than 6,500 jobs per year in Arizona, and
close to 1,000 jobs per year in southern Nevada. For the Nation as a
whole, the project would support an average of more than 10,000 jobs
per year, nearly $1.5 billion in federal tax revenues in then-present
value, and a then-present value of more than $9.3 billion in gross
domestic product (GDP) for the United States.
As Governor Ducey also notes in his letter of support in this
hearing record, providing the Tribe with access to Colorado River water
would also diminish the Tribe's reliance on groundwater, consistent
with the State's overall policy of preserving groundwater supplies.
Question 3. Can you elaborate on how the legislation's proposed
trust lands may contribute to your Tribe's ability to access water and
develop water infrastructure?
Answer. The legislation will take into trust the Cholla Canyon
Ranch parcels of fee lands owned by the Tribe in the Bill Williams
Basin. The Tribe currently has a small parcel of Reservation land in
that Basin as well as a number of parcels of trust land allotted to
tribal members. The Cholla Canyon parcels, which are within the Tribe's
aboriginal homeland, are of great cultural significance to the Tribe
since these parcels contain Cofer Hot Springs, an area of particular
cultural importance. The flow of the Springs is currently threatened by
development of lithium mining on nearby BLM lands. It is our hope that
having the Cofer Hot Springs taken into trust will enhance the Tribe's
ability to protect this sacred site.
The Cholla Canyon Ranch also presents an opportunity for additional
economic development for the Tribe. The Ranch is located near a major
traffic route between Las Vegas and Phoenix. Although the Tribe has no
specific plans yet for economic development of this land, having the
land taken into trust preserves the potential for doing so in the
future.
Otherwise, the legislation confers Reservation status on a number
of parcels of land near the main Reservation which are currently held
in trust for the Tribe.
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Brian Schatz to
Benjamin Smith
Question 1. You testified that there is no formal barrier
preventing the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) from
developing an official consultation or confer policy that applies to
Native Hawaiians. How does HHS currently engage the Native Hawaiian
community to ensure fulfilment of the federal government's trust
responsibility, which includes providing health care to Native
Hawaiians?
Answer. HHS authorities for Native Hawaiians include a number of
programs implemented by the Health Resources and Services
Administration (HRSA), the Administration for Children and Families
(ACF), and the Administration for Community Living (ACL) that benefit
Native Hawaiians. The Native Hawaiian Health Care Systems Program
(NHHCS) is authorized by the Native Hawaiian Health Care Improvement
Act (NHHCIA) (42 U.S.C. 11701-11714). HRSA awards funding under
this Congressional Special Initiative to improve the provision of
comprehensive disease prevention, health promotion, and primary health
care services to Native Hawaiians.
Question 1a. What are the next steps for HHS to develop an official
consultation or confer policy for Native Hawaiians?
Answer. HHS is committed to enhancing the health and well-being of
all Americans, and we will work with the Department of Interior's
Office of Native Hawaiian Relations to provide consultation where
possible. HHS's subject matter experts are available to provide advice
and guidance in support of care delivery, health education, and disease
prevention to improve health among the people of Hawaii.
Executive Order 13175, which establishes the mandate for Federal
government consultation with federally-recognized Indian tribal
governments, does not include Native Hawaiians. HHS agencies consult
with Native Hawaiians pursuant to their authorizing legislation. For
example, the NHHCIA requires consultation with Papa Ola Lokahi for
grants or contracts to provide health care services to Native
Hawaiians. HHS subject matter experts are available to provide
technical assistance.
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Tina Smith to
Benjamin Smith
Question 1. The Congressional intent of 100 percent FMAP for urban
Indian organizations was to address a longstanding inequity within the
Indian healthcare system and to provide an opportunity to increase
financial resources to UIOs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Can you
elaborate on the FMAP implementation status and what roadblocks HHS is
facing due to a lack of urban confer policy?
Answer. Under section 9815 of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021
(Pub. L. 117-2) (ARP), states can temporarily receive a 100 percent
federal match for their expenditures for Medicaid services received
through certain Urban Indian Organizations (UIOs). The Centers for
Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) implements this provision and
explained in an August 30, 2021 State Health Official letter (#21-004)
(SHO letter) that ARP section 9815 addresses the federal medical
assistance percentage (FMAP) that CMS pays to states for certain
Medicaid expenditures, and does not address the payment rates that
states opt to pay to UIOs for Medicaid-covered services. States have
the discretion to set and adjust Medicaid provider payment rates, as
long as the state payment rates meet certain requirements under the
Social Security Act. In the SHO letter, CMS offered to provide
technical assistance to states that believe adjusting their
reimbursement rates for UIOs is appropriate.
In that SHO letter, CMS also explained that it interpreted the
amendments made by section 9815 of the ARP to authorize 100 percent
FMAP for expenditures for services received by all Medicaid
beneficiaries receiving services through such UIOs. Currently, the
statutory language limits the 100 percent FMAP available under ARP
section 9815 to the eight fiscal quarters beginning April 1, 2021, and
ending March 31, 2023, with states able to claim federal matching funds
retroactively, so long as they submit their claims for federal matching
funds within a statutory two-year limit.
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has the authority
to calculate IHS All-Inclusive Rates (AIR), which are reviewed and
approved by OMB prior to being published in the Federal Register. These
rates are used by IHS when seeking reimbursement for services,
including services covered by Medicare and Medicaid. HHS, including
IHS, generally does not have the authority to require that states adopt
specific Medicaid provider payment rates for UIOs. States have adopted
the IHS AIR as their payment rates for certain provider types.
HHS continues to have internal discussions regarding the possible
calculation of a UIO-Specific AIR through Urban Confer. To date, confer
sessions occurred on July 26, 2021, and June 10, 2022, to discuss
whether and how a UIO-Specific AIR might be developed.
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Brian Schatz to
Jason Freihage
Question 1. From the Department's perspective, how have co-
management MOUs and MOAs between Tribal governments and federal
agencies facilitated mutually beneficial stewardship practices over
sacred sites?
Answer. Sites sacred to Indian Tribes often occur within a larger
landform or are connected through physical features or ceremonies to
other sites or a larger sacred landscape. The connection to place is
essential to the spiritual practice and existence of Indian Tribes.
MOUs and MOAs represent one of the Department's most successful tools
to facilitate collaborative and cooperative stewardship for sacred
sites.
For example, the Rappahannock Tribe re-acquired 465 acres at Fones
Cliffs, a sacred site to the Rappahannock Tribe located on the eastern
side of the Rappahannock River in Virginia. The Rappahannock Tribe will
own the land, however, it will be publicly accessible and held with a
permanent conservation easement conveyed to U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service. This collaborative stewardship arrangement ensures that the
Rappahannock Tribe owns its ancestral homeland containing a Tribal
sacred site while allowing the Department to conserve a globally
significant Important Bird Area.
In keeping with Executive Order 13007 (Indian Sacred Sites), the
Department, to the greatest extent practicable, accommodates access to
and ceremonial use of Indian sacred sites by Indian religious
practitioners from Indian Tribes and avoids adversely affecting the
physical and spiritual integrity of such sacred sites. During
consultation with the Department, Indian Tribes may identify sacred
sites and may also identify preferred treatments of such places.
Costewardship MOUs and MOAs alert planners and resource managers to the
potential presence of sensitive areas and are kept confidential to the
extent permitted by law.
Question 2. Have Tribal co-management agreements contributed to
building Tribal capacity for cultural education opportunities, language
revitalization, and land management across the Department? If so, how?
Answer. Co-stewardship MOUs and MOAs actively contribute to
building Tribal capacity for cultural education, language
revitalization, and land management. Multiple Tribes have arrangements
in place with the Department to implement or provide cultural
interpretation and/or educational programming at Departmental units
located on or near Tribal homelands across multiple land management
bureaus. For example, an Alaska Native group has an agreement in place
to offer seasonal interpretive programming. Many Indian Tribes in the
lower 48 states have similar MOUs or MOAs in place. Several Tribes also
have arrangements that support language revitalization, including a
Montana Tribe with an agreement in place with the Department for
creation of trilingual entrance signs for units including indigenous
names/language and land ownership and designation information on signs.
Multiple Tribes have agreements in place to coordinate and
cooperatively manage Federal and Tribal lands and waters. A Tribe in
the Pacific Northwest has received transfer and conducts full
management of a federal fishery under a co-stewardship agreement. These
are broad examples, and the Department is proud of the benefits to
Tribal capacity for cultural education, language revitalization, and
land management that result from co-stewardship MOUs and MOAs.
Question 3. From the Department's perspective, what are some
barriers to facilitating efficient and effective co-management policies
between Indian Tribes and the federal government?
Answer. Collaborative and cooperative co-stewardship agreements
have been a component of the Department's engagement with Indian Tribes
for many years. Following Joint Secretarial Order 3403 in November
2021, the Department is evaluating future policies and practices to
streamline co-stewardship MOUs and MOAs. These may include, for
example, broader sharing of data with Indian Tribes about co-
stewardship requests and disposition of those requests, clearer
information about points of contact regarding co-stewardship MOUs and
MOAs, and a uniform interpretation of the Indian Self-Determination and
Education Assistance Act's (ISDEAA) ``programs, services, functions,
and activities'' for use by BIA and all non-BIA bureaus in determining
eligible activities for self-governance co-stewardship activities.
Specifically, broadening the use of ISDEAA 638 contracting and self-
governance compacts by land management agencies would facilitate
cooperation with Tribes necessary to advance costewardship.
One example of a barrier to co-stewardship is need for a Tribal
land base to make use of the Good Neighbor Authority with Federal land
management agencies. Many Tribes have very limited acreage or no land
holdings which can be managed in ways that are complementary to Federal
land holdings, as appropriate through existing Good Neighbor Authority
agreements. To address this challenge, the President's Budget proposes
$14.8 million for Tribal land acquisition. Accompanying this budget
request, is a request to increase the annual statutory cap on land
acquisition funding from $2 million to $10 million. The cap on land
acquisition dates back to the original language enacted in the 1934
Indian Reorganization Act. In today's dollars, $2 million in 1934 would
equal over $40 million now. Lifting this cap is necessary for
additional appropriations to be provided to advance self-determination
and collaborative and cooperative stewardship. Additional funding to
support increased land acquisition would eliminate one barrier to co-
stewardship. Expanding the reach of Good Neighbor Authority for Indian
Tribes would eliminate another barrier to co-stewardship for Indian
Tribes.
Question 4. How can co-management policies and practices be
integrated into the Department's efforts to facilitate Tribal climate
resilience, adaptation, and mitigation?
Answer. The Department has already integrated collaborative and
cooperative stewardship agreements into our operations to facilitate
Tribal climate resilience, adaptation, and mitigation efforts. For
example, the Department uses prescribed burning for vegetation
management and to restore cultural landscapes. In 2017, a land
management unit collaborated with Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife
Commission member Tribes to conduct the first cultural burn in many
generations. The Department looks forward to more collaboration with
Indian Tribes to further facilitate Tribal climate resilience,
adaptation, and mitigation through co-stewardship agreements.