    [House Hearing, 118 Congress]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

                        INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, AND RELATED
                         AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR 2024

    _______________________________________________________________________

                                     HEARINGS

                                     BEFORE A

                               SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE

                           COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS

                             HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                         ONE HUNDRED EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS

                                  FIRST SESSION

                                ________________

           SUBCOMMITTEE ON INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, AND RELATED AGENCIES

                       MICHAEL K. SIMPSON, Idaho, Chairman

                                                    CHELLIE MAINE MAINE
      CHRIS STEWART, Utah                           BETTY McCOLLUM, Minnesota
      CHELLIE PINGREE, Maine                        DEREK KILMER, Washington
      MARK E. AMODEI, Nevada                        JOSH HARDER, California
      GUY RESCHENTHALER, Pennsylvania
      MICHAEL CLOUD, Texas
      RYAN K. ZINKE, Montana
      JAKE ELLZEY, Texas

             NOTE: Under committee rules, Ms. Granger, as chairwoman of the full
             committee, and Ms. DeLauro, as ranking minority member of the full
               committee, are authorized to sit as members of all subcommittees.

                 Kristin Clarkson, Victoria Allred, Sarah Peery,
                        Courtney Stevens, and Maggie Earle
                                Subcommittee Staff

                                           PART 1

                                                                       Page
      American Indian and Alaska Native
    Public Witness
    Day 1_Morning Session...................

      American Indian and Alaska Native
    Public Witness
    Day 1_Afternoon Session.................

                            [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
                            --------------------------------------

              Printed for the use of the Committee on Appropriations

    Part 1--INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR

                                      2024

                        INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, AND RELATED
                         AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR 2024

    _______________________________________________________________________

                                     HEARINGS

                                     BEFORE A

                               SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE

                           COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS

                             HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                         ONE HUNDRED EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS

                                  FIRST SESSION

    ___________________________________

           SUBCOMMITTEE ON INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, AND RELATED AGENCIES

                       MICHAEL K. SIMPSON, Idaho, Chairman

      CHRIS STEWART, Utah                      CHELLIE PINGREE, Maine
      MARK E. AMODEI, Nevada                   BETTY McCOLLUM, Minnesota
      GUY RESCHENTHALER, Pennsylvania          DEREK KILMER, Washington
      MICHAEL CLOUD, Texas                     JOSH HARDER, California
      RYAN K. ZINKE, Montana
      JAKE ELLZEY, Texas

                  NOTE: Under committee rules, Ms. Granger, as chairwoman of the full
                  committee, and Ms. DeLauro, as ranking minority member of the full
                    committee, are authorized to sit as members of all subcommittees.

                        Kristin Clarkson, Victoria Allred, Sarah Peery,
                              Courtney Stevens, and Maggie Earle
                                     Subcommittee Staff

                                      PART 1

                                                                       Page
      American Indian and Alaska Native
    Public Witness
    Day 1_Morning Session...................
                                                                          1
      American Indian and Alaska Native
    Public Witness
    Day 1_Afternoon Session.................
                                                                        215

                          [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

              Printed for the use of the Committee on Appropriations

                        U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
      53-445

                                WASHINGTON : 2023

                          COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS

                                    ----------
                         KAY GRANGER, Texas, Chairwoman

      HAROLD ROGERS, Kentucky                             ROSA L. DeLAURO, Connecticut
      ROBERT B. ADERHOLT, Alabama                         STENY H. HOYER, Maryland
      MICHAEL K. SIMPSON, Idaho                           MARCY KAPTUR, Ohio
      JOHN R. CARTER, Texas                               SANFORD D. BISHOP, Jr., Georgia
      KEN CALVERT, California                             BARBARA LEE, California
      TOM COLE, Oklahoma                                  BETTY McCOLLUM, Minnesota
      MARIO DIAZ-BALART, Florida                          C. A. DUTCH RUPPERSBERGER, Maryland
      STEVE WOMACK, Arkansas                              DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Florida
      CHARLES J. ``CHUCK'' FLEISCHMANN, Tennessee         HENRY CUELLAR, Texas
      DAVID P. JOYCE, Ohio                                CHELLIE PINGREE, Maine
      ANDY HARRIS, Maryland                               MIKE QUIGLEY, Illinois
      MARK E. AMODEI, Nevada                              DEREK KILMER, Washington
      CHRIS STEWART, Utah                                 MATT CARTWRIGHT, Pennsylvania
      DAVID G. VALADAO, California                        GRACE MENG, New York
      DAN NEWHOUSE, Washington                            MARK POCAN, Wisconsin
      JOHN R. MOOLENAAR, Michigan                         PETE AGUILAR, California
      JOHN H. RUTHERFORD, Florida                         LOIS FRANKEL, Florida
      BEN CLINE, Virginia                                 BONNIE WATSON COLEMAN, New Jersey
      GUY RESCHENTHALER, Pennsylvania                     NORMA J. TORRES, California
      MIKE GARCIA, California                             ED CASE, Hawaii
      ASHLEY HINSON, Iowa                                 ADRIANO ESPAILLAT, New York
      TONY GONZALES, Texas                                JOSH HARDER, California
      JULIA LETLOW, Louisiana                             JENNIFER WEXTON, Virginia
      MICHAEL CLOUD, Texas                                DAVID J. TRONE, Maryland
      MICHAEL GUEST, Mississippi                          LAUREN UNDERWOOD, Illinois
      RYAN K. ZINKE, Montana                              SUSIE LEE, Nevada
      ANDREW S. CLYDE, Georgia                            JOSEPH D. MORELLE, New York
      JAKE LaTURNER, Kansas
      JERRY L. CARL, Alabama
      STEPHANIE I. BICE, Oklahoma
      C. SCOTT FRANKLIN, Florida
      JAKE ELLZEY, Texas
      JUAN CISCOMANI, Arizona

                  Anne Marie Chotvacs, Clerk and Staff Director

                                       (ii)

         DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, AND RELATED AGENCIES
                            APPROPRIATIONS FOR 2024

                                  ----------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

             TESTIMONY OF INTERESTED INDIVIDUALS AND ORGANIZATIONS

                                  ----------

    AMERICAN INDIAN AND ALASKA NATIVE PUBLIC WITNESS DAY 1--MORNING SESSION

                                    WITNESS

    LARRY WRIGHT JR., EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NATIONAL CONGRESS OF AMERICAN
        INDIANS (NCAI)
        Mr. Simpson. The committee will come to order.
        Good morning, and welcome to the first of our public
    witness hearings dedicated to American Indians and Alaska
    Native programs.
        On a personal note, I am thrilled to return as chairman of
    the Interior Subcommittee. It is back to the future again for
    me, but I am proud to be here for the 118th Congress.
        The critical issues of this subcommittee are near and dear
    to me and my home State of Idaho. I look forward to working
    with the Ranking Member Pingree to advance programs that help
    conserve and protect our Nation's most critical natural,
    cultural, and environmental resources and strengthen the
    committee's longstanding effort to increase Federal commitment
    to honor our treaties and trust responsibilities to American
    Indians and Alaska Natives.
        I am proud that our first hearing for fiscal year 2024
    appropriations focuses on these very important tribal programs.
    Indian Country has been and will continue to be a bipartisan
    priority of this subcommittee.
        I also want to welcome all of the distinguished tribal
    elders and leaders here today. Thank all of you--for our
    witnesses for appearing before the committee and sharing your
    concerns and personal perspective on these important topics.
        In terms of hearing logistics, I will call each panel of
    witnesses to the table one panel at a time. Each witness will
    have 5 minutes to present testimony. Your full written
    testimony will be included in the record. So please don't feel
    pressured to cover everything in 5 minutes.
        We will be using a timer to track the progress of each
    witness. When the light turns orange, the witness will have 1
    minute remaining to conclude his or her remarks. When the light
    turns red, I will ask the witness to stop.
        And please don't feel offended if I do that. We have to
    keep it to 5 minutes in order to get through all of the
    different witnesses that we are going to have. I think in the 2
    days we have over 65 tribes that are going to testify before
    us. And so to keep it on schedule, I will tap the gavel at 5
    minutes and stop. So I appreciate that.
        We will hear from every witness on each panel before
    members will be provided an opportunity to ask questions.
    Because we have a full day ahead, I request that we try to keep
    things moving in order to stay on schedule and respect each
    other's time.
        I also want to note that committee rules prohibit the use
    of outside cameras and audio equipment during these hearings.
    The hearing can be viewed in its entirety on the committee's
    website, and an official hearing transcript will be available
    at gpo.gov.
        With that, I thank you all for being here today, and I am
    happy to yield now to our distinguished ranking member for any
    remarks she may wish to make.
        Ms. Pingree. Thank you very much, Chairman Simpson.
        I am very excited to be here with you today, and
    congratulations on your return as chair of the committee.
        I know we are going to have a lot of areas of interest that
    we want to work together on, and this, today, is one in
    particular. So thank you for organizing and holding this
    hearing.
        I echo all of the chair's remarks. I appreciate all of you
    taking the time to come all the way to Washington. It is
    wonderful to be back in the committee hearing room again, but I
    know for many of you, it is a challenge to travel all the way
    here, and so thank you for doing that.
        I look forward to hearing from you, look forward to hearing
    one of our chiefs from Maine, who is also the president of USET
    and always delivers a lot of important issues to us about the
    tribal issues in my State, but so many apply to many of you.
        I particularly enjoy these hearings. I hear we have over 65
    different tribal witnesses, and each of you bring unique
    challenges, unique areas of interest, and I always learn so
    much. So I will be a good listener today. Look forward to
    hearing from all of you. Thank you for taking the time.
        Thank you, Mr. Chair, for having this hearing. And with
    that, I will look forward to getting us started.
        Mr. Simpson. Thank you. And I do appreciate your comments,
    and I would like to say that Ranking Member Pingree has been
    chairman of this committee for the last 2 years, was it, or 4
    years?
        Ms. Pingree. It might have been 4.
        Mr. Simpson. Four years. She has done a fantastic job, and
    I have always enjoyed working with her on this committee. It is
    one of those committees that actually works in kind of a
    bipartisan fashion, particularly on Indian issues. So we will
    continue that, trying to make sure that we meet our treaty
    obligations that we have.
        So I will call the first panel up to the table. Larry
    Wright Jr., executive director of the National Congress of
    American Indians; Tesia Zientek, the National Indian Education
    Association; Laurie Harper, board president of the Tribal
    Education Departments National Assembly; and Tom Miller, board
    president, the Association of Community Tribal Schools.
        Welcome, and thank you all for coming.
        Larry, you have the floor. Please pull that microphone
    toward you and turn it on by pushing until the green light is
    on.
        Mr. Wright. We are on? Can you hear me?
        Mr. Simpson. Yep.
        Mr. Wright. All right. Good morning. My name is Larry
    Wright Jr. I am the executive director for--I guess that works
    better. I am the executive director for the National Congress
    of American Indians. I also served 11 years as tribal chairman
    for the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska.
        On behalf of the National Congress of American Indians,
    thank you for this opportunity to provide testimony on fiscal
    year 2024 funding for the Department of the Interior, the
    Indian Health Service, and the Environmental Protection Agency.
        The funding request that NCAI has written and oral
    testimony are rooted in the promises made by the U.S.
    Government in treaties and agreements with tribal nations. The
    2018 Broken Promises report from the U.S. Commission on Civil
    Rights found that Federal funding for Native American programs
    across the Government remains grossly inadequate to meet the
    most basic needs the Federal Government is obligated to
    provide.
        Congress and the administration have recently taken some
    initial meaningful steps toward making good on the Federal
    Government's promises to tribal nations. However, there is much
    more to be done by the Federal Government to fully--to truly
    fulfill the promises made to tribal nations.
        The BIA is one of the primary agencies responsible for
    providing services throughout Indian Country, either directly
    or through compacts or contracts with tribal nations. The
    operation of these programs and services is essential for the
    health, safety, and social and economic well-being of tribal
    and surrounding communities. Unfortunately, chronic
    underfunding of tribal programs perpetuates systemic issues in
    Indian Country that could be reduced or eliminated by funding
    tribal programs in amounts that meet the Federal Government's
    treaty and trust obligations to the tribal nations.
        NCAI recommends nearly $20.7 billion for Indian Affairs
    programs in fiscal year 2024, consistent with the official
    fiscal year 2024 recommendation of the Tribal Interior Budget
    Council. Specifically, this request includes funding increases
    necessary for public safety on tribal lands. The inadequate
    funding for tribal criminal justice and public safety has
    resulted in staggering rates of violent crime and victimization
    on many Indian reservations.
        As just one example, a DOJ study recently found that more
    than four in five American Indian/Alaska Native adults have
    experienced some form of violence in their lifetime. The
    underfunding of tribal law enforcement and justice systems is
    well documented and contributes to these types of statistics.
    Empowering tribal nations and tribal justice systems to end
    this cycle of violence is critical, which is why NCAI
    appreciates Congress' reenactment of the Violence Against Women
    Reauthorization Act of 2022.
        VAWA has made our community safer and will continue to do
    so and only if robust funding for VAWA-related programs, tribal
    police departments, and justice systems occurs. That is why
    NCAI supports $2.924 billion for public safety and justice
    funding, with approximately $1.766 billion for BIA law
    enforcement and $1.155 billion for tribal courts.
        As place-based peoples, tribal nations have sacred
    histories and maintain cultural practices that tie them to
    their current land bases and ancestral territories. As a
    result, tribal people directly and often disproportionately
    suffer from the impacts of environmental degradation. For that
    reason and others laid out in our written testimony, NCAI
    recommends $100 million to be appropriated for the EPA Tribal
    General Assistance Program and $30 million for the Tribal Air
    Quality Management Program.
        It is no secret that the Indian Health Service is
    chronically underfunded. It is estimated that the full IHS
    funding--need-based funding aggregate cost estimate for fiscal
    year 2024 is approximately $51.4 billion. NCAI supports full
    funding for IHS and strongly urges Congress to ensure IHS
    funding is provided as mandatory spending, with a mechanism to
    automatically adjust spending to keep pace with population
    growth, inflation, and healthcare costs.
        Until such time that IHS is provided mandatory direct
    appropriations, advance appropriations for the IHS is
    consistent with the trust and treaty obligations reaffirmed by
    the United States in the Indian Healthcare Improvement Act. And
    while NCAI applauds the advance appropriation enacted in the
    fiscal year 2023 omnibus bill, adjustments need to be made
    moving forward to account, at a minimum, for fixed costs and
    staffing of newly completed facilities.
        Finally, I want to be clear. Relative to the overall U.S.
    budget, the Indian Affairs and IHS budgets are very small.
    Spending cuts or other budget control measures that affect
    tribal programs can have devastating impacts on tribal nations
    and their citizens but would have little impact on overall
    Federal spending. To the extent Congress considers funding
    reductions in fiscal year 2024, programs for the benefit of
    tribal nations, including those mentioned here today, must be
    held harmless.
        Thank you again for this opportunity, and I look forward to
    answering any questions you might have.
        [The statement of Mr. Wright follows:]
     [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you, Larry.
        Tesia, you are next. Is that--how do you--is it Tesia?
        Ms. Zientek. Tesia.
        Mr. Simpson. Tesia, okay.
                                  ----------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                     NATIONAL INDIAN EDUCATION ASSOCIATION

                                    WITNESS

    TESIA ZIENTEK, PRESIDENT, NATIONAL INDIAN EDUCATION ASSOCIATION
        Ms. Zientek. Miigwech. [Speaking Native language.]
        On behalf of the National Indian Education Association, the
    oldest and most inclusive organization founded to advance
    comprehensive, culture-based educational opportunities for
    American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians,
    miigwech for this opportunity to provide testimony on fiscal
    year 2024 funding for the Department of the Interior, the
    Bureau of Indian Education, and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
    The spending within the subcommittee's jurisdiction is some of
    the most critical for Native youth.
        The fiscal year 2023 budget demonstrated an intentional
    effort to uphold the promises made to our people in exchange
    for life and land by ensuring funding levels for BIE-funded and
    BIE-operated schools not only met inflation rates, but
    increased towards reversing decades of underfunding. We urge
    the subcommittee to maintain this trajectory so Native students
    will have access to the resources they need to thrive in a
    global economy.
        As tribal nations represent central economic engines for
    many rural areas in the U.S., it only makes sense for the
    subcommittee to maximize your investments by providing critical
    resources for our Native youth. Tribal communities are unique
    in that even during times of economic downturn, Natives
    frequently remain their traditional communities. To give tribal
    nations the necessary foundation for economic success and
    prosperity, the Federal Government should support a culturally
    relevant, high-quality education for all Native students that
    uplifts community-based approaches to education.
        The core funding for BIE elementary and secondary schools
    comes from the Indian School Equalization Program. These funds
    cover salaries for teachers, aides, principals, and other
    personnel but are often reallocated to cover program cuts in
    other areas of education. For ISEP, we are requesting $532.6
    million, but we also would highlight the official Tribal
    Interior Budget Council recommendation of $967 million, which
    represents the minimum funding needed to offer a parity
    investment in public schools across the country.
        NIEA also requests $109 million for BIE facilities
    operations and $100 million for BIE facilities maintenance. BIE
    schools use operations and maintenance funding to cover such
    costs as electricity, heating fuels, and other operating
    expenses for both preventive and routine upkeep. Underfunding
    of maintenance continues to be an issue, as a number of
    buildings are in poor condition and cannot maintain proper
    standards.
        NIEA strongly urges the subcommittee to increase the amount
    of funding for BIE education construction. We request $371.2
    million for fiscal year 2024, even though the need is much
    greater. Interior has estimated that more than $639 million
    would be needed to fix only the most pressing deferred
    maintenance issues for BIE schools.
        NIEA requests $23.8 million for the Johnson O'Malley
    Program to assist with the unique educational needs of the
    other 93 percent of Native students in public schools. JOM
    programs provide critical educational resources for afterschool
    programs, academic support, and a number of other Native
    cultural and language enrichment. JOM is supported by its
    parent committees that determine the needs of Native students
    in their communities.
        Tribal education departments and agencies are responsible
    for administering and implementing education priorities in
    tribal nations and are equal partners with State and Federal
    education entities serving Native students. However, as tribal
    nations lack parity with States, local governments, and the
    Federal Government within the tax code, TEDs and TEAs do not
    receive tax revenue to fund their programs. Instead, TEDs and
    TEAs use tribal education department funding under BIE. NIEA
    requests $5.8 million for this account.
        There is a direct link between cultural identity and the
    cognitive success of Native students. It is critical to our
    communities that fight harder than ever to protect our Native
    languages. NIEA requests $25 million for language immersion
    grants for BIE schools. These grants allow tribal communities
    the ability to protect and preserve their unique cultural and
    linguistic heritages.
        NIEA also requests $25 million for Native language
    revitalization under Interior economic development to provide
    funding for tribally run Native language programs, ensuring
    students have language and cultural instruction available to
    them regardless of which school they may attend.
        In fiscal year 2023, this subcommittee and the rest of
    Congress made a major step towards fully upholding its trust
    obligations by providing mandatory spending for the Indian
    Health Service. If healthcare is a major pillar in upholding
    the Federal trust obligation to tribal nations, then
    immediately next to it is the obligation for Indian education.
        NIEA strongly recommends all of Indian education be
    provided for as mandatory spending. This ensures there is never
    a threat of funding halts during critical times, and never will
    a crumbling school facility worry about if construction dollars
    will continue to come.
        The Federal trust responsibility to all Native students is
    an example of the promises that makes this country unique. This
    subcommittee should honor its first promises and support the
    above recommendations to provide only the highest-quality
    education to Native students across the country and provide the
    essential supports for the future of our communities.
        Miigwech. Thank you.
        [The statement of Ms. Zientek follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Laurie.
                                  ----------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

             TRIBAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENTS NATIONAL ASSEMBLY (TEDNA)

                                    WITNESS

    LAURIE HARPER, PRESIDENT, BOARD OF THE TRIBAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENTS
        NATIONAL ASSEMBLY (TEDNA)
        Ms. Harper. Chairman Simpson, Ranking Member Pingree, and
    members of the committee, my name is Laurie Harper, and I am
    the president----
        And I am the president of the Tribal Education Departments
    National Assembly, a national nonprofit organization for the
    tribal education departments and agencies. Thank you for the
    opportunity to speak today about funding through the U.S.
    Department of Interior for TEDs.
        First and foremost, our sincerest gratitude for
    appropriating funds continually since fiscal year 2015 to
    support TEDs through Title 25 United States Code Section 2020,
    also known as Section 2020 grants. For continued and increased
    funding, TEDNA respectfully requests $10 million to support
    TEDs in the Department of the Interior, Environment, and
    Related Agencies appropriations bill for fiscal year 2024 so
    that we can continue to serve and serve better our students.
        Tribes have educated their citizens from time immemorial,
    and education continues to be a tribal sovereign right, a trust
    obligation, an issue of local control, and a sacred
    responsibility of tribal and nontribal governments. That we
    have trusted, as memorialized in treaties and other official
    sovereign and inter-sovereign acts, a part of the formal
    education of our students to the Federal Government via BIE-
    funded schools and States via public schools speaks to our
    expectation of the Federal and State governments to honor their
    end of the bargains and promises made.
        And we should all be concerned. Educational attainment
    rates for tribal students in the United States today are not
    good. Recent Federal reports show that our students have the
    lowest high school graduation rates of any group for whom
    numbers are maintained. While the high school graduation rates
    of whites, Asians, blacks, and Hispanics are at 80 percent or
    higher, 1 in 4 of our students will not graduate from high
    school.
        Federal funding precipitates the abilities of TEDs to help
    address this. TEDs are in a unique position to direct and
    coordinate the resources, management, and provision of
    education for tribal students.
        For example, I serve as the director of education for Leech
    Lake Band of Ojibwe in Minnesota, a Section 2020 grantee and a
    TEDNA member. The tribe is developing a program under Section
    2020 to address our inherent authority over all areas of
    education. I served as the board chairwoman for the tribally
    operated Bug-O-Nay-Ge-Shig BIE-funded school. I am the director
    of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe's Tribal Ed Department, which
    administers Johnson O'Malley funds for public schools on and
    near our reservation.
        With Section 2020 grant funds, we have taken a community-
    based approach to improving education, utilizing community and
    youth input to shape priorities that will be developed into a
    tribal education code and a comprehensive education plan that
    will be culturally specific to our tribal needs.
        We also realize the importance of data sovereignty and have
    recently partnered with the Minnesota Department of Education
    on a data sharing agreement for our K-12 students, in addition
    to a longitudinal early childhood study. Through these
    agreements, we can both identify our students in early
    childhood and follow them through their educational journey
    within the State of Minnesota.
        The Section 2020 grant has been a catalyst for Leech Lake's
    involvement in areas beyond its grant and is making sovereignty
    in education a reality. Many more tribes than the 16 tribes
    currently funded serve the 183 BIE-funded elementary and
    secondary schools and dormitories located across this country.
    They need TED funding. TED appropriations should be increased
    to serve more tribes and more students.
        With increased Section 2020 funding, tribes like the
    Pyramid Lake Paiute in Nevada, for example, could develop a TED
    to support Pyramid Lake Junior Senior High School, a tribal
    secondary school in Nixon, Nevada, on the Pyramid Lake Indian
    Reservation. With increased Section 2020 funding, tribes like
    the Navajo Nation, where many BIE-funded schools are located,
    could train new school board members when the schools convert
    from being BIE operated to being tribally controlled.
        With increased Section 2020 funding, additional tribes
    could decrease their dropout rates, like the Rosebud Sioux
    Tribe in South Dakota did with its Truancy Intervention Program
    administered by the Rosebud TED.
        TEDNA respectfully requests sustained funding of $5.889
    million plus additional funding, for a total of $10 million for
    TEDs in the Department of the Interior, Environment, and
    Related Agencies appropriations bill for fiscal year 2024 to
    continue the vital and excellent work being done through the
    Section 2020 grants.
        Miigwech [speaking Native language].
        [The statement of Ms. Harper follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Tom.
                                  ----------                              --
    --------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                 ASSOCIATION OF COMMUNITY TRIBAL SCHOOLS (ACTS)

                                    WITNESS

    THOMAS MILLER, BOARD PRESIDENT, ASSOCIATION OF COMMUNITY TRIBAL SCHOOLS
        (ACTS)
        Mr. Miller. Good morning. I would like to thank you for
    this opportunity to testify on the 2024 Interior
    appropriations.
        And again, my name is Tom Miller. I am the Association of
    Community Tribal Schools board president. We formed in 1982. We
    represent a pretty good cross-section of the tribally
    controlled schools, and the organization has been around long
    enough that we went through three name changes, basically
    contract, controlled, and now community tribal schools.
        And we represent each year a variety of these schools, but
    the needs are always the same. I am not going to get into the
    actual particulars of the dollar amount because they are in the
    written testimony. But we are running into many, many problems
    now as a result of our recent COVID pandemic.
        Our population has underlying health programs, a large
    percentage of them and in a disproportionate amount. We have
    isolation factors. We have our schools are not next door to a
    Walmart or in that area. We don't have that luxury with many of
    them.
        Many of our schools do not have the Internet connections.
    We have had problems as we have come into trying to get out of
    this separation distance learning thing, as we couldn't do it
    in the first place because of our lack of technologies and
    such.
        We each year come in and we ask for the basics. We ask for
    increases in ISEP. We ask for increases in transportation,
    facility operation and maintenance, tribal grant support, and
    this is to get us holding ourselves even with the water. We are
    not going under this way.
        What we would like to start doing is that we would like to
    see some kind of parity, and one of our ideas that now when I
    started this, all my hair was black, 1980. I believe it was
    there. But right now, we are looking at trying to get parity
    with the Department of Defense schools on salaries, on salaries
    and school construction.
        One of our problems is not only do we have a problem of
    getting teachers--teacher shortage? Oh, it is three times as
    bad on the reservations because, first off, you have to
    recruit, retain. So when I say about the dollars that I am
    going to address right here are those in addition to our
    testimony, that is getting Congress to either forward fund some
    of our areas, maybe all of our areas that we get more funding
    in, so that we are not in the ping pong effect of politics.
        We try to get out of that. We did it once in 1988. It took
    a little bit of a sting then with Congress to forward fund a
    full year. Some of that would take another sting.
        The other big sting would be for facilities. I don't care
    what you do, if you take old schools and maintain them, you
    have an old school maintained. That is all you get.
        Our thing is if Congress were to plan, use a $3 billion
    base, take the schools, the 83 that need replacing right now--
    we are doing 2 a year. I will be dead and long gone by the time
    these schools get addressed. And I am just trying to get--our
    students deserve the same thing that has been done with DOD.
    That is, over 10 years, a couple billion dollars, bring them
    up.
        And they should be supported. The military and those
    schools should absolutely be supported, but so should we. And
    we have been at this--in fact, the last time I testified in
    front of this committee about 6 years ago, I told the chair at
    that time that I could probably have recorded this in 1980 and
    played the same thing again and come pretty close. But that is
    what we are getting now. We are trying to get to a point where
    not only do we get the funding that we normally get in a year--
    and that varies on the percentages--but we have to address some
    of these things in a drastic method because it is not getting
    any better for our kids.
        And our Native students deserve to have enough teachers to
    teach. They need to have enough money to operate, and they
    certainly deserve the ability to have a safe and adequate, up-
    to-date environment, school building. So that is what we are
    pushing this year. If we could get that started, we know it is
    not a one-time shot and it is going to happen overnight, but we
    have got to start somewhere. And to this point, we have always
    been settled with our yearly increases.
        Last year, we would like to thank for the fiscal year 2023
    was good, but we would like to see that every year. And again,
    forward funding would take care of a lot of the problems and
    the instability of our--when the money is coming. And then, if
    you give us a good house to live in, it is a little bit easier
    to make things happen. Those kids deserve that.
        And with that, I thank you for your time.
        [The statement of Mr. Miller follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you, Tom.
        I appreciate all of your testimony. Let me just say keep
    pushing, Tom. It sometimes takes Congress a long time to do
    things, you know? That is generally the way we operate around
    here, yes. But it is something that we need people like you to
    continue to push on that, people like all of you.
        Larry, you mentioned law enforcement and the challenges you
    face. Do you find that--well, let me put it this way. I was out
    at the Fort Hall Reservation and talking with them about
    firefighters and new fire station we are building and the
    police officers that were there and stuff.
        And what we find is that we got a town of 50,000 on south
    of Fort Hall Reservation and a town of 10,000 on the north of
    the reservation, and the reservation police officers, they send
    them to training. They come. They get all trained up. And as
    soon as they do, they get hired by Pocatello or Blackfoot, and
    I mean, it is like the training ground for the other
    communities.
        Do you find that across the country, or is this unique in--
    --
        Mr. Wright. No, I think it is across the country. And when
    you compound that with some reservations are bigger than many
    States.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes.
        Mr. Wright. And you have a police force that is a fraction
    of that and lack of funding to make it so they can train and
    retain a police force, it makes it very difficult.
        And just like teachers, they are going to go where there is
    opportunity and salary that is reflective of what they do and
    their training and education. And police departments are no
    different.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes. Reservations, a lot of the reservations
    are very big. And I have talked to some--I can't remember if it
    was Pine Ridge--that they get a call of domestic abuse, it is
    an hour before a police officer can get there.
        Mr. Wright. Absolutely.
        Mr. Simpson. Well, you know, the problem has gone away one
    way or another then pretty much. That is a challenge. It is
    something I would like to work with you on and how we address--
    I don't know how to address that, but it is something that I
    think needs to be addressed.
        And Tesia, I appreciate your testimony. And Tom mentioned
    the difficulty of finding teachers. How do you keep teachers on
    the reservation?
        I mean, when we have gone to the Navajo reservation and
    stuff, the problem is housing, trying to get doctors there and
    to stay on the reservation. I mean, you don't want to live 50
    miles from where you work, and that is a challenge. How do you
    do that with teachers?
        Ms. Zientek. Absolutely. Housing is a major, major concern.
    So providing we are looking for funding for housing for
    teachers. Also, of course, as mentioned with law enforcement,
    the pay is a huge issue. If teachers are able to get paid
    elsewhere and in a more--where the living is more convenient,
    then they are likely to do that.
        So funding, increased funding for teacher pay to get that
    equal to Federal teaching----
        Mr. Simpson. Yes.
        Ms. Zientek [continuing]. Pay, as well as housing, would
    help with that issue quite a bit. Also, programs to help grow
    your own teachers is extremely helpful. Then if teachers decide
    to stay in their own communities, they might be more likely to
    stay for a long time.
        Mr. Simpson. Do you work at all with TRIO?
        Ms. Zientek. I--I do a little bit in my job, as the
    education director for the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, partner
    with some of our local community colleges.
        Mr. Simpson. I would encourage all of you to start working
    with TRIO because TRIO can be a great asset in what they do.
    That is for people that have never gone to college, never
    thought of going to college or anything like that. But it helps
    mentor them through high school to get them ready if they
    decide they want to go to college.
        Ranking Member Pingree.
        Ms. Pingree. Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
        Thank you, everyone, for your testimony. Really appreciated
    all the themes, and I know we will hear them more today,
    certainly the law enforcement and your statistic about four in
    five members of a tribe have had some form of violence in their
    family or themselves. That is really shocking and another
    reminder of how important it is to fund tribal courts.
        And as you mentioned, the distance in so many of our
    communities is so far, that is really critical. And I have
    worked with one of my schools on school replacement and seen
    just what a challenge it is. And one tiny school, one State,
    and realize if we could just get rid of the backlog at some
    point, as you recommended, and start even. We are never going
    to get there, and I really appreciated your remarks that kids
    need to have the feeling of the respect of going into a
    beautiful building that is dedicated to them, and they can
    comfortably learn.
        And so I just want to say how dedicated I am to that and
    really appreciated the remarks about culturally sensitive
    education. I think the more we can support kids understanding a
    Native language and learning more about the history of their
    tribes, when I have been able to witness those programs, they
    just seem so beneficial. And I hope we can continue to do more
    of that.
        And of course, I am fully supportive of all the funding
    concerns. We are so far behind to not meet our treaty
    obligations. It is so disrespectful of the lack of funding that
    our tribes receive in each and every area that you mentioned.
    So I hope we can do everything to make sure there are no cuts
    and that we can increase that.
        And while Betty is the true Minnesotan here, I was raised
    in Minnesota and spent a lot of my childhood in one of the
    lakes near Brainard. So still go back there to visit my family.
    So love the place you are from.
        I don't have any questions because you just all did such a
    wonderful job, and the chair has asked some good questions. But
    thank you so much for being with us today.
        Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Mr. Zinke.
        Mr. Zinke. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I apologize for
    being late. I had a Montana coffee.
        So, drugs. So on the law enforcement and drugs in Montana
    seems to be they spend a lot of time on drugs, mental health,
    and civil action, mostly domestic violence. And from what I
    understand is all three are related oftentimes.
        Can you talk about the drug problem on the reservations,
    what you are seeing? And my understanding is in Montana, most
    of it is coming from the southern gut. It is coming straight up
    from the border. And in Montana, we have Fort Peck Reservation,
    which is near the Bakken, or many times, great expanses of
    territory. It means that there is opportunity for storage
    lockers of drugs and transportation, and there is a vulnerable
    population.
        So how concerned are you on drugs on the reservations?
        Mr. Wright. Indian Country is very concerned, and we see
    this across the board, and fentanyl is a big issue. And I think
    the things that you hear here today, they are all
    interconnected, and one begets the other. When we have lack of
    law enforcement, it is going to be hard to--if you have a
    reservation that has high crime and drug issues and doesn't
    have the police force to help police that and take care of
    that, it is going to be hard to retain good teachers to come to
    the reservation and live there.
        If we don't have adequate housing, we can't recruit and
    keep our own people on reservations. And so when we have
    underfunding in our housing programs and we have our own wait
    lists for our own tribal citizens to get into housing, it is
    going to be hard to recruit people to come from the outside to
    do that.
        But I think to your specific question on drug issues in
    Indian Country, with, again, the lack of--with the distance and
    the geographic size of our reservations, lack of cross-
    deputization and those kinds of issues, it makes it very tough
    for a small police force to have--to cover that expanse and not
    have some of the same equipment and different things,
    opportunities that other law enforcement agencies have, whether
    it be drug dogs, whatever that might look like.
        But I think we see that, we are seeing it more and more, as
    more of a concern. But again, there is lack of funding and lack
    of the infrastructure there from police departments to help
    adequately address that.
        Mr. Zinke. And Tom, just I am not going to hold you to
    statistics, but would you say that the law enforcement spends
    most of their time on either drug enforcement or mental health
    that are related? That is what I am hearing and across the----
        Mr. Miller. I would say a good question, but the exact, not
    expert enough. I would say this. As far as in our area, the
    Sault Ste. Marie with the Chippewa tribe, recently--just 2
    weeks ago--we had about five overdose, one died. And that was
    in a week.
        So it is--it is a problem, and we address it as best we
    can, but one of the major things that we are short of, funding.
    You can see a problem, but you can't do anything about it if
    you don't have the people to do it, and we don't have the
    people to do it.
        Mr. Zinke. Lastly, inflation. What I have seen across in
    Montana, inflation runs higher because you have distances are
    further. The fuel costs are further. Bus to get the kids around
    costs more because we are using more fuel, and inflation. Would
    you say that inflation is hurting the tribes
    disproportionately?
        Mr. Miller. Oh, I would say that, yes, because we are short
    already. The fact is if you are doing well and you are getting
    inflation, eh, you can kind of adjust to it. But if you are
    already on the short end and inflation comes out, it can hurt
    you.
        Hopefully, things will get better. I am kind of an
    optimist. But I think right now, yes, it hurts everybody. And
    the tribes that don't have the money--and there are some that
    are set fairly well, are handling it a lot better than those
    that aren't. It definitely is, yes.
        Mr. Zinke. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I yield back.
        Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Ms. McCollum.
        Ms. McCollum. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
        First and foremost, thank you for your testimony. For those
    of you who are going to testify later, I am the ranking member
    on Defense, and so I have a conflict, and I have to be there,
    but I have staff here getting the testimony.
        The mandatory funding, we hear Indian Country loud and
    clear on that. The advance appropriations is for 1 year, 1 year
    only. So that is going to have to be re-rolled into any
    legislation that we do. And that was a bipartisan effort on
    behalf of this committee and the White House, and we got the
    Senate's attention. So, hopefully, we can take care of
    healthcare and start the--and really have a serious discussion
    about what we could do for educational funding this year. So I
    appreciate you bringing that up.
        Also, bringing up that there are two accounts that you are
    looking for $25 million for, for the languages was very
    helpful. So thank you for that. That made me take an extra note
    on that.
        I am going to just make a couple of general comments, and
    then I have a question for you all, because I think you are all
    impacted by this. We are going to hear more about, I think,
    drugs and what is happening, especially with tribes that are in
    280. We just had a serious discussion with our U.S. attorney.
    Andy Luger has been meeting and talking with the tribes in
    Minnesota what we can do about, as they describe it, ``catch
    and release.'' And there is no other way to summarize what is
    happening. So I will save that for later and been working with
    Red Lake on that.
        But Minnesota, if you could take a second to talk about
    what Minnesota is uniquely doing to make sure that all of our
    students have the best education possible, and under the
    leadership of Lieutenant Governor Flanagan, this has taken a
    real impetus. And I think the fact that we have tribally
    enrolled members serving in our State legislative body is
    exciting.
        If you would just take a second for that, and then I have a
    general question about broadband.
        Ms. Harper. So, a real quick question. With having
    Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan in that seat, what it has
    helped tribal nations do in the State of Minnesota in education
    specific is identify the need for us to be at the table,
    instead of on the table. And it has opened up discussions that
    include us, and it is not uncommon for not just the Governor's
    office and the Lieutenant Governor's office to reach out to
    tribal leaders, but also to tribal department heads such as
    myself to be asked for our specifics in the field of education.
        In my role, as an education director, I also oversee human
    services. So, MFIP, SNAP-Ed. So, Minnesota Family Investment
    Program, anything having to do with training and education. So
    a lot of our--in Indian Country, a lot of our responsibilities
    are intertwined throughout various funding agencies.
        Ms. McCollum. Thank you. Well, we have started a journey,
    and we hope other States emulate that.
        And it is important that we educate students because they
    are our future not only for the tribe, but for the Nation. And
    as I am leaving to go to a DOD hearing, the fact that Native
    Americans percentage wise serve highest enlistment really makes
    a case for why we need to make sure that they have the adequate
    education.
        Mr. Chair, I know broadband is going to come up a lot. We
    need to figure out not only how to do it in the schools, but to
    get it in the home when they have the homework coming home. So
    thank you all for bringing up broadband.
        Mr. Simpson. Thank you, Ms. McCollum, former chair of this
    committee.
        We have got on this committee two former chairs and one
    current chair that was a former chair.
        Ms. McCollum. Yes.
        Mr. Simpson. There are a lot of chairmen on this committee.
        Ms. McCollum. And we all work together.
        Mr. Simpson. Anyway, thank you. And thank you all for your
    testimony. We appreciate you being here today and look forward
    to working with you on this year's budget.
        Mr. Wright. Thank you. I will get you that statistic, okay?
        Ms. McCollum. Absolutely.
        Mr. Wright. All right.
        Mr. Simpson. Next, we would call--I am going to massacre
    names. Maybe that is the wrong word. [Laughter.] How do you
    pronounce that? Do you know?
        The Muscogee Creek Nation, who is--and Oliver Littlecook,
    chair of the Ponca Tribe.
        Mr. Chaudhuri. Where would you like us?
        Mr. Simpson. Right up here. We got nameplates. [Pause.]
        Mr. Simpson. Okay. Pronounce that name for me.
        Mr. Chaudhuri. Jonodev Chaudhuri.
        Mr. Simpson. Jonodev Chaudhuri. Well, when you say it, that
    is what it looks like now. Thank you.
        Jonodev, you are up.
                                  ----------                              --
    --------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                             MUSCOGEE CREEK NATION

                                    WITNESS

    JONODEV CHAUDHURI, AMBASSADOR, MUSCOGEE CREEK NATION, ON BEHALF OF
        CHIEF DAVID HILL
        Mr. Chaudhuri. Oh, okay. Well, [speaking Native language]
    Jonodev Chaudhuri. I am honored to serve as ambassador of the
    Muscogee Creek Nation.
        Chairman Simpson, Ranking Member Pingree, and members of
    the subcommittee, let me thank you for the invitation to our
    nation to testify here today.
        Let me start by saying how grateful we all are for the
    additional funding this subcommittee has provided in the past 2
    years as a down payment on the permanent commitment going
    forward by the Federal Government to provide the resources
    necessary to uphold its solemn trust and treaty obligations to
    the Muscogee Nation and other tribal nations throughout Indian
    Country.
        As you know, over 100 years of usurpation of the rightful
    authority of the tribal law enforcement on Oklahoma
    reservations has left tribal nations with great needs for
    public safety infrastructure, as particularly the case with the
    Muscogee Creek Nation. As we implement restored jurisdiction,
    $80 million are required for the construction of 8 regional
    tribal jails on the reservation.
        And just a little background, our nation covers eight full
    counties in eastern Oklahoma and parts of three more counties.
    It covers over 3.2 million acres, with well over 1 million
    people within our borders. And we are doing our part to keep
    people safe, and we appreciate your support.
        Additionally, $80 million are required for the construction
    of 8 regional tribal courthouse facilities on the reservation.
    Like most jurisdictions, we have seen an explosion in criminal
    mental health cases, and $27 million for the construction of 2
    mental health facilities for the incarceration of individuals
    requiring mental health evaluation and treatment, both pre-
    trial and post-conviction.
        Finally, $24 million are required for the construction of 4
    juvenile detention facilities on the reservation that will
    appropriately separate young offenders from older, hardcore
    criminals and to focus on the rehabilitation youthful inmates.
        In addition to significant infrastructure needs, our
    current Federal trust funding for ongoing operations is far
    below the rightful amounts. According to the BIA standards, the
    Muscogee Nation must maintain a police force of 312 full-time
    equivalents for our population size, law enforcement FTEs. This
    requires $34.4 million on a recurring basis for increased
    personnel, equipment, and other operational costs.
        Just as law enforcement needs have grown, so, too, have the
    needs of tribal courts. Using the BIA Office of Justice
    Services report, Creek Nation estimates that an additional $40
    million is required to support expanded responsibilities for
    tribal courts.
        In fiscal year 2020, Muscogee Nation's ICWA program
    provided services to more than 1,800 Indian children, placed an
    average of 253 Indian children in homes per month, and
    investigated 1,452 reports of child abuse and neglect, a
    sixfold increase in 5 years. We calculate that $30 million in
    additional funding will be needed to provide tribes in Oklahoma
    sufficient ICWA services.
        The Muscogee Creek Nation's Center for Victim Services
    served 636 victims and survivors in 2022, 575 of which
    experienced VAWA-related crimes. Additional funding of $60
    million would allow for the construction of facilities that
    would allow us to fully administer VAWA and protect our women
    and children from violence.
        In other self-governance needs, the nation performs a
    number of functions related to self-governance, and these
    functions have grown. One exciting area that I would like to
    highlight is natural resources management. We are currently
    working with several members on legislation that would enable
    Muscogee Nation to bring cultural and historical management
    expertise in the co-management position with the National Park
    Service. We believe we can help NPS save taxpayer dollars while
    simultaneously improving the experience of park visitors.
        In closing, we greatly appreciate the opportunity to
    present these views of our needs to you as part of the fiscal
    year 2023 appropriations process. Reaffirmation of the Muscogee
    Nation reservation following the McGirt decision once again
    called our nations together to make decisions for the greater
    public good. We stand ready to assist in providing the core
    public safety services that will protect our reservation and
    the United States, Muscogee Nation citizens, and all our
    friends and neighbors living within our jurisdictions.
        We believe in prosperity for all, and we are doing our
    part. Again, we appreciate your support.
        Thank you.
        [The statement of Mr. Chaudhuri follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Oliver.
        Mr. Littlecook. Yes, sir.
        Mr. Simpson. Turn on the mic.
        Mr. Littlecook. Is that on? Okay. All right.
                                  ----------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                       PONCA TRIBE OF INDIANS OF OKLAHOMA

                                    WITNESS

    OLIVER LITTLECOOK, CHAIRMAN, PONCA TRIBE OF INDIANS OF OKLAHOMA
        Mr. Littlecook. Yes, sir, Chairman Simpson and Member
    Pingree, my name is Oliver Littlecook. I am the chairman of the
    Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma, and I am glad to have this in front of
    me because listening to the other panel there, I almost forgot
    what I was going to talk about because I have the same concerns
    that they have also.
        But I am here, and I am honored to submit a written
    statement to the subcommittee and testify in person. I am a
    lifelong member of the Native American Church, which is a way
    of life that is also described as the ``Peyote Religion.'' And
    as a practitioner of the ceremony and a tribal leader, I am
    compelled to express to this committee that you also have a
    role in the protection and perpetuation of the Native American
    Church and in the continuance of this religion and fulfillment
    of the 1978 American Indian Religious Freedom Act and the
    policy declaration Public Law 95-341 as contingent upon the
    survival of the peyote habitat.
        Without sufficient peyote habitat, the peyote plant, which
    we call peyote, would no longer exist in the wild. The entire
    Native American Church ceremony is dependent on peyote, which
    is used as a sacrament. So what I am here to request is $5
    million for a peyote habitat conservation initiative
    demonstration project.
        And we are in you might say a crisis situation now because
    we have probably over 300,000, 400,000 members all across
    Indian Country, and speaking of those of us at home in Oklahoma
    and my reservation, Ponca, it is getting more difficult to
    obtain peyote. And so it is really important that we find some
    way, we are asking you all for help and some way for we can
    initiate some type of a conservation project to work with the
    farmers and ranchers down in Texas so we can preserve it.
        And--a little slow here. To counteract the peyote habitat
    destruction, we request $5 million for a peyote habitat
    initiative to establish a separately funded grant program
    within the U.S. Department of the Interior and administered by
    the Department of the Interior's Office of Assistant Secretary
    of the Interior.
        And so the National Congress of American Indians recently
    passed Resolution 2209 affirming support for the American
    Indian Religious Freedom Act, as amended, and calling for
    Federal preemption as it pertains to the legalization and
    decriminalization of peyote. And the resolution was endorsed
    unanimously by member tribes in NCAI.
        And again, just personally speaking on behalf of my tribe,
    Ponca, when we were removed from our homeland, original
    homeland up in Nebraska and South Dakota, and when we came to
    Oklahoma, like most tribes, we were devastated with the move.
    We had no really nothing left. Everything was taken away from
    us. And especially our way of life, our religious way of life.
        And so because of that, there was a lot of you might say
    turmoil within our tribe, no direction. And so when the peyote
    religion came to us, I would say it actually saved us, gave us
    all a sense of belonging, a sense of direction, and a sense of
    prayer, which changed our lives and continues.
        And so I, myself, am a lifelong member of this Native
    American Church, and it has done wonders. My tribe was one of
    the six original tribes to incorporate in Oklahoma, to make it
    into a church. So it now is called the Native American Church.
    So I represent all of our members in Oklahoma, speak for all of
    our members across the country, who we really need this.
        So what we are asking of you, just a small lump compared to
    what the rest of the tribes are asking for. So we would really
    need your support and help in helping us save it. It needs to
    be saved. It is protected, but now it needs to be saved.
        So, thank you.
        [The statement of Mr. Littlecook follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you. And thank you both for being here
    today.
        Just out of curiosity, what is the--I mean I support the
    Native American Church just like I do any other religion.
        Mr. Littlecook. Mm-hmm.
        Mr. Simpson. What is the natural habitat of growing peyote?
    You know, like potatoes grow in Idaho, and outside of Idaho,
    there is a lot of tubers grown, but potatoes are grown in
    Idaho. So there is a certain climate for that kind of stuff,
    for Maine and Idaho and stuff.
        Mr. Littlecook. Yes, yes.
        Mr. Simpson. What is the climate like or habitat that
    peyote grows in?
        Mr. Littlecook. It grows in southwest Texas. Right now,
    there is only probably four counties in southern Texas, and it
    is called--it is a shrub brush deal. And so, today, because of
    the ranchers and farmers, they are leasing out their land. And
    of course, with windmill pads and then also the climate change
    and all of that, so it is getting more scarce.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes.
        Mr. Littlecook. It is getting scarce, and so that is why we
    are requesting so we can try to do something to save it. Our
    life--the way we see it, our life depends on it.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes.
        Mr. Littlecook. And it is sometimes I say all on pirate
    land because it is up to the renters. It is their land. So we
    are trying to find a way to work with them.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes. Okay. Appreciate it. Thank you.
        Ms. Pingree.
        Ms. Pingree. Yes, thank you. Thank you both for your
    testimony.
        And I was curious about that, too. Is it--is peyote grown
    as a cultivated plant, or is it only--are you saying it is just
    wild and native in those areas?
        Mr. Littlecook. It is a native plant, yes.
        Ms. Pingree. Yes, okay.
        Mr. Littlecook. It grows wild, and it has been destroyed
    all the way up to now. It is just condensed to maybe like, say,
    four counties.
        Ms. Pingree. Great. Well, I am happy to learn more about
    that, and I appreciate your describing it as a ``small lump of
    money.'' That is a new technical term on the committee.
    [Laughter.]
        Mr. Littlecook. In comparison, I guess.
        Ms. Pingree. Absolutely. No, I mean we talk a lot about big
    numbers, and so----
        Mr. Littlecook. And I think this would be a good start, a
    demonstration project where we can work with them and let it
    grow it into----
        Ms. Pingree. Great. I will--yes.
        Mr. Littlecook [continuing]. Grow into a $100 million grant
    one day.
        Ms. Pingree. Yes, I will be interested to learn more about
    that. So thank you for your testimony.
        And thank you, Mr. Ambassador. My partner is actually from
    Muscogee. He was born there and grew up in Gore. So I have
    spent a little time visiting Oklahoma, and last summer, I got a
    chance to meet with the five--the chiefs of the Five Civilized
    Tribes and talk a little bit about McGirt.
        So I understand some of the unique challenges there and
    particularly in the law enforcement. So thank you for bringing
    that to our attention and happy to continue working with you
    because it is definitely some big challenges there. And you
    described the area and the need and the amount of funding, we
    really need to pay more attention.
        Mr. Chaudhuri. Thank you, Ranking Member. The Principal
    Chief Hill gives his regards. He was taken away on critical
    national business today, but he specifically mentioned that
    meeting, and we were very happy to host you when you came down.
        Ms. Pingree. Thank you.
        Mr. Chaudhuri. And we really appreciate you taking the time
    there.
        A little bit outside of the scope of today's discussion,
    but connected still is our ongoing efforts to implement McGirt
    in the face of kind of these countervailing cases that have
    come our way, including the Castro-Huerta case.
        So we are in a point in history right now where we are
    trying to develop infrastructure that was denied to us for 100
    years because of the unlawful exercise of nontribal
    jurisdiction on our lands. We are very thankful that the court
    affirmed our reservation, but we are concerned that within a
    year after affirming, the very same court placed limitations on
    the inherent sovereignty of our tribe to exert jurisdiction on
    our lands but, by extension, the inherent sovereignty of tribal
    nations throughout the country.
        So our battles truly are Indian Country battles. We
    appreciate the personal attention that you gave to these issues
    because they certainly impact the entire trust relationship
    between the Federal Government and tribal nations throughout
    the U.S.
        A related note. We support a call for Congress to act and
    voice its support of tribal sovereignty in the wake of the
    Castro-Huerta decision because we think that is absolutely
    fundamental to supporting our efforts to protect people within
    our borders, be they Native or non-Native, and protect them
    both in the law enforcement arena, but also in the economic
    development arena.
        And so having Congress signal its support of tribal
    sovereignty, we think not only benefits Indian Country, it
    benefits everybody in our borders. So thank you for the
    personal attention and time that you took to visit our nation.
        Ms. Pingree. Absolutely. I appreciated your hospitality,
    and we will continue this conversation.
        Thank you.
        Mr. Simpson. Thank you. I got to tell you, Tom Cole keeps
    us advised of everything that is going on in Oklahoma. So,
    great member, a great friend.
        But I was just wondering, you mentioned in your testimony
    that law enforcement standards would be you would have 312, I
    think it was, law enforcement people.
        Mr. Chaudhuri. Yes, sir.
        Mr. Simpson. How many do you currently have?
        Mr. Chaudhuri. Oh, I knew you would ask me that. And you
    know, I am not----
        Mr. Simpson. You don't have to be exact. Is it even close?
        Mr. Chaudhuri. Yes, I am not--I want to say we are--we have
    got a lot of cross-deputization agreements. I want to say we
    are well over 100 now. We are 80 or so for a while, but I don't
    know if that--that sounds right.
        Mr. Simpson. That is good enough. I just wondered if you
    were at 200 or 250 or 100, you know?
        Mr. Chaudhuri. Well, we are getting there. But I mean,
    again, we have never been able to develop the infrastructure
    because of these complications created by kind of the unlawful
    exercise of nontribal jurisdiction.
        Now that that has been affirmed, we are using our limited
    resources to the greatest extent possible to build up our law
    enforcement and courts and social workers, but we have got a
    long way to go. And we have been actively engaged in
    intergovernmental agreements since day one from the McGirt
    decision.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes.
        Mr. Chaudhuri. But funding is always--is always critical to
    those efforts.
        Mr. Simpson. Do you have issues with cross-deputization of
    tribal police officers?
        Mr. Chaudhuri. I think it depends on the county. As I said
    before, we cover eight full counties and three partial
    counties. And our relationships are very strong with a number
    of sheriff's offices in a number of counties, but I am not
    going to throw anybody under the bus. There are a couple
    counties that we could have better relationships with.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes, okay.
        Mr. Chaudhuri. Relationships are work, and we are committed
    to doing the work.
        Mr. Simpson. Yep. And when counties--what I have found out
    in Idaho and other places is that when county elections come
    around, you get a new sheriff, sometimes that relationship goes
    good. Sometimes it goes bad, you know?
        Mr. Chaudhuri. And that is an excellent point, and that is
    why the need to have permanent funding allocations is so
    critical. Because a lot of the relationship breakdowns often,
    unfortunately, fall along political lines.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes.
        Mr. Chaudhuri. Whether or not there is a political
    calculation to cooperating with the tribe or not, that
    shouldn't impact law enforcement----
        Mr. Simpson. No, it shouldn't.
        Mr. Chaudhuri [continuing]. Concerns. It shouldn't impact
    funding concerns. So the idea of having permanent funding and
    permanent appropriations is critical.
        So, as I said before, and you mentioned Tom Cole. He has
    been a great advocate for McGirt-related funding, and when I
    mentioned the initial down payment of this subcommittee towards
    law enforcement funding at the start, Tom Cole was a champion
    of that. But that is just a major step forward to everything,
    everything else that needs to be done.
        Mr. Simpson. Just----
        Mr. Chaudhuri. Our nation--oh, I am sorry.
        Mr. Simpson. I was going to say it seems to me that
    everybody who has testified so far, just six, everybody wants
    either forward funding, permanent funding, whatever for these
    programs. What you really all want is stability.
        Mr. Chaudhuri. Absolutely.
        Mr. Simpson. To know what is going to happen, and that is
    really important. I wish we had stability here in Congress.
    That doesn't always work.
        But anyway, listen, I appreciate your testimony and all
    that you guys do, and we will work with you on these issues and
    try to address them.
        Mr. Chaudhuri. Thank you.
        Mr. Simpson. Try to move us forward.
        Mr. Chaudhuri. Thank you, and I am sorry for scaring off
    all the other chairs once we sat down. [Laughter.]
        We had a full room of chairs, but they are all gone now.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes, it is because they are chairs.
        Mr. Chaudhuri. There you go.
        Mr. Simpson. And they have got other committees that they
    have to step into, and a lot of them will step into them and
    come back. And so it is kind of--it is the way it works around
    here.
        Mr. Chaudhuri. Yep.
        Mr. Simpson. Anyway, I appreciate it.
        Mr. Chaudhuri. Thank you, sir.
        Mr. Simpson. Thank you.
        Okay. Buu Nygren. Is that how you pronounced that? Okay.
    Jeez.
        Dr. Nygren. Good.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes. Kirk Francis and Frank Star Comes Out.
        [Pause.]
                                  ----------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                                 NAVAJO NATION

                                    WITNESS

    DR. BUU NYGREN, PRESIDENT, NAVAJO NATION
        Dr. Nygren. Perfect. Good morning. Good morning, Chairman.
    I appreciate you extending the invitation to be here. And
    Ranking Member Pingree, it is good to see you again as well.
    And then the rest of the committee, some of you might be
    listening or some of you might be making your way this way.
        But first of all, I just wanted to start my testimony off
    with the Navajo Nation actually lost one of its iconic leaders
    last night, Dr. Peterson Zah. He was the first president of the
    Navajo Nation, and I understand that he was a good champion
    here on the Hill in the 1990s and the 1980s. So that is a big
    loss for the Navajo Nation, and I just wanted to let Indian
    Country know as well, too.
        I know that he was a huge tribal advocate across Indian
    Country and America. So thank you to his family for letting us
    having him lead the Navajo Nation.
        But my name is Buu Nygren, president of the Navajo Nation.
    I am honored to be here as the newly elected president of the
    Navajo Nation.
        The Navajo Nation is one of the largest tribes in the
    country. It provides critical services to over 400,000 members,
    half of whom reside on the reservation. The Navajo Nation spans
    27,000 square miles across 11 counties in Arizona, New Mexico,
    and Utah. Our nation has approximately one-third of the on-
    reservation Indian population in the United States.
        Indian healthcare. Tragically, the Navajo Nation lost
    nearly 1 percent of its on-reservation population because of
    COVID. This is a high mortality rate, is directly connected to
    ongoing deficiencies in Indian healthcare because of limited
    funding. If further inroads are to be made to address this
    healthcare deficiency, this committee needs to boost IHS
    funding by a factor substantially greater than the inflation
    rate.
        The IHS received an advance funding for fiscal year 2024.
    This is very important for planning purposes, but we ask that
    this committee support making advance appropriations for
    permanent for both the IHS and for the BIA. This is especially
    for critical programs and services such as public safety,
    housing, disaster relief, social services, welfare assistance,
    and self-governance.
        Assuring public safety. For every 1,000 Navajos, there are
    only 0.85 public safety officers. This is far below the FBI's
    recommendation of 3.5. With so few officers available, calls
    for services are delayed because of the distances between
    communities from the law enforcement stations. The Navajo
    Nation requests an increase of $26 million for its public
    safety services.
        Protecting our children. The Navajo Nation's Indian Child
    Welfare Act program is critical to our ability to protect
    Navajo children and the future of the Navajo people.
    Unfortunately, Navajo ICWA has only 15 team members who must
    coordinate and collaborate with tribal, State, and Federal
    partners in 24 States, with 354 active ICWA cases, including
    655 Navajo children. Current funding is less than $1.6 million.
    The Navajo Nation needs $5 million annually.
        Improving housing. The Navajo Nation asks for $23 million
    for BIA's Housing Improvement Program. This program provides
    much-needed housing resources to Indians residing in Indian
    Country who cannot meet HUD's excessive program income
    thresholds.
        Abandoned uranium mine clean-up on the Navajo Nation.
    According to the EPA, more than half of over 523 abandoned
    uranium mine sites located on our nation lack Federal funding
    for clean-up and monitoring. These sites subject our members to
    substantial ongoing cancer and health risks. Approximately $5
    billion is needed to address these sites.
        Fulfill Federal obligations for Navajo Indian Irrigation
    Project. The Navajo Nation agreed to exchange water for a
    Federal promise to build the Navajo Nation Indian Irrigation
    Project. However, approximately 35,000 acres of the promised
    farmland remains undeveloped. The Navajo Nation asks that the
    Federal Government finish its work, which will cost
    approximately $1 billion.
        Navajo relocation. The Office of Navajo and Hopi Indian
    Relocation was created to carry out the forced relocation of
    approximately 15,000 Navajos. That began in 1970. This
    committee knows well the harm and trauma this relocation has
    caused to many people, as well as related multi-decade
    construction freezes imposed over 1.6 million acres of land.
    This harm is felt down onto the second and third generation of
    relocatee families.
        The Navajo Nation requests include an immediate transfer of
    $15 million in excess of ONHIR funds to the Navajo
    Rehabilitation Trust Fund; funding for the Navajo Thaw
    Initiative; funding for studies, analysis, and reports
    concerning Navajo relocation and the construction and repair
    freeze and their ongoing impacts; support for Navajo technical
    amendments legislation that would authorize ONHIR to work with
    the Former Bennett Freeze Area. This would eventually lay the
    groundwork for closure of ONHIR in a humane fashion through a
    multi-agency program of rehabilitation put in place over the
    next 10 years.
        In conclusion, thank you for taking the time to consider
    the Navajo Nation's needs. We look forward to working with you
    all to enact the 2024 appropriations package that you have.
        [The statement of Dr. Nygren follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Kirk.
                                  ----------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                            PENOBSCOT INDIAN NATION

                                    WITNESS

    KIRK FRANCIS, CHIEF, PENOBSCOT INDIAN NATION
        Chief Francis. Good morning, Chairman Simpson; Ranking
    Member Pingree, always great to see you as well; and members of
    the subcommittee. Thank you for the opportunity to provide
    testimony.
        My name is Kirk Francis. I serve as the president of the
    United South and Eastern Tribes Sovereignty Protection Fund. I
    am also the chief of the Penobscot Indian Nation in the great
    State of Maine, where we have terrific potatoes, by the way,
    Mr. Simpson. [Laughter.]
        Mr. Simpson. Oh, yes. I like to tease a lot.
        Chief Francis. And so we are here today as an organization
    to continue to remind you all that the Federal Government is
    failing to deliver upon its obligations to tribal nations and
    Native people. This failure has persisted regardless of changes
    in administration or Congress, despite numerous reports,
    investigations, recommendations, and consistent advocacy from
    Indian Country. It has been evident in the 2002 Quiet Crisis
    report, the 2018 Broken Promises report, and continues in spite
    of the recent funding allocated to tribal nations via the
    COVID-19 relief and infrastructure packages.
        This is not a question about addressing poverty and needs
    across Indian Country. Our relationship with the United States
    is ultimately about honor and fulfillment of commitments and
    promises. The solutions we offer involve a fundamental shift in
    Federal Indian policy and funding. They will allow Indian
    Country to realize its great potential and create lasting,
    positive change for tribal nations and our people.
        With this in mind, we underscore the importance of
    continued increases for tribal lines in the Federal budget. We
    recognize there may be plans and conversations to reduce
    discretionary spending and remind you all that deficit
    reduction must not be accomplished to the detriment of
    obligations to tribal nations.
        Deep and chronic failures require bold systematic changes,
    some of which have recently been proposed under the
    administration. However, because these hearings are being held
    prior to the release of the President's request for fiscal year
    2024, we are unable to react to any specific proposals for this
    appropriations cycle in this testimony. We request the
    opportunity to provide additional written testimony to this
    body after the President's request is released and that maybe
    you might consider holding a future hearing after that request
    is issued.
        It is critical that the administration propose and Congress
    demand budgets containing full funding for all Federal Indian
    agencies and programs. Given our history and unique
    relationship, this funding can no longer be subject to the
    instability of discretionary spending.
        We extend our gratitude for the work of this subcommittee
    in achieving advance appropriations for IHS. It is our
    expectation that this will be included in every appropriations
    bill going forward. In the long term, we must achieve fully
    mandatory funding for all Federal Indian agencies and programs.
        The processes under which OMB develops budgets and policies
    that impact us require reform also. In concert with its newly
    established Tribal Affairs Adviser, OMB must be required to
    produce a full, detailed accounting of funding distributed to
    Indian Country, including only what Indian nations have
    accessed, not funds for which we are technically eligible.
    Congress should also work with OMB to hold States accountable
    for any pass-through dollars that are intended for tribal
    nations.
        While we are appreciative of the inclusion of funding for
    tribal nations in the recently enacted infrastructure packages,
    this level of funding is insufficient to address centuries of
    unmet infrastructure obligations. A much greater Federal
    investment is necessary to rebuild tribal nation infrastructure
    and economies. Similar to the U.S. investment in rebuilding
    post World War II Europe via the Marshall Plan, the legislative
    and executive branches should commit to the same investment to
    rebuild tribal nations.
        As we await details on the President's budget, we provide
    our regionally identified priorities for IHS and Department of
    the Interior in our written testimony. We continue to support
    mandatory funding proposals for IHS as well as the 105(l), CSC
    lines of the IHS budget, BIA, and BIE.
        We would also like to highlight the following additional
    priorities--payment in lieu of taxes for trust land
    acquisitions, increased funding for tribal historic
    preservation, interagency transfer authority for tribal
    funding, $80 million for the Native Behavioral Health Resource
    Program--and dedicated funds and permanency for the following--
    Treasury's Office of Tribal and Native Affairs, OMB's Tribal
    Adviser, and the White House Council on Native American
    Affairs.
        We now call upon Congress, and this subcommittee in
    particular, to work with tribal nations and the administration
    to fulfill the Government's trust and treaty obligations
    through the Federal budget. While each Member of Congress
    shares equally in these obligations, you have a unique
    understanding of this charge, including the unmet funding
    obligations and, more importantly, the opportunity to drive
    historic change.
        In closing, we implore you to lead this change within
    Congress to improve how the United States views, honors, and
    fulfills its promises to Indian Country.
        Thank you very much, sir.
        [The statement of Chief Francis follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Frank.
                                  ----------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                               OGLALA SIOUX TRIBE

                                    WITNESS

    FRANK STAR COMES OUT, PRESIDENT, OGLALA SIOUX TRIBE
        Mr. Star Comes Out. Yes, good morning, Chairman, Ranking
    Member, and members of the subcommittee. I greet you all with a
    warm handshake.
        My name is Frank Star Comes Out. I am the current and newly
    elected president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe. I am also the
    newly elected chairman for the Great Plains Tribal Chairmen's
    Association.
        I will be brief. A little bit about my history and why I am
    sitting here today is I served in the United States Marine
    Corps. I am a proud veteran. I served in the Gulf War and in
    Mogadishu, Somalia, during my tour of duty as a machine gunner,
    and I truly believe--I have always been boots on the ground
    from that day forward, as a young man to this day.
        So I just wanted to mention that, and my fight for my
    people, our people in Indian Country. So, with that, I also
    served as--I started out in the districts, serving my
    communities, and then now as a president of my tribe. And I
    come before you to urge you to fulfill your treaty
    responsibilities.
        We face a lot of challenges on our Pine Ridge Reservation.
    We have the lowest life expectancy in the entire United States,
    high unemployment, and lack of business development, just to
    name a couple. I could spend hours talking about issues, but I
    will try to keep it under 5.
        We suffer a lot of challenges. Law enforcement. We are in
    dire need of manpower, equipment, resources, to meet our
    challenges against violence and drugs.
        Social services. We lack sufficient wages and housing to
    attract staff. We are short social workers. We lack the basic
    transitions to follow-up resources for reunification. Our youth
    need emergency shelters, counselors, nutrition support, and
    services.
        Our healthcare. We have inadequate staffing, long wait
    times, and very few providers because of our geographical
    location and the situation on the reservation.
        Our BIA roads. We lack qualified personnel, equipment, and
    road maintenance. We have a lot of unimproved roads, and the
    location of our reservation is huge. It is a huge land base.
        Telecommunications. We lack coverage. We lack the BIA
    towers, and they are old and outdated. So we have our Internet
    access is limited.
        Education. Schools need facilities upgrade, competitive
    wages, counselors, and school resource officers. We have very
    little funding for school resource officers. But our chief of
    police will be testifying, I believe, tomorrow, and he can
    cover all that, and we submitted our paperwork here. So it
    covers a lot.
        Indian Country formulas do not work for us. Prioritized
    tribal allocations also do not work for us. True, meaningful
    government-to-government consultation and coordination needs to
    happen. I hear talks of leadership here in Washington, D.C.,
    since I have been in--the short time I have been in office. I
    have heard talks of treaty obligations, and I am going to be
    looking forward to that, to having more conversations about
    that.
        I have highlighted important issues in our written
    testimony like I just said, but there are many other equally
    important needs, and it is not fair to prioritize--I feel it is
    not fair because we are in desperate need of all funding in all
    departments, programs.
        So, with that, let me wrap it up. You know, the Oglala
    Lakota are resilient. We are a proud people in culture and
    spirituality, and that is what keeps us strong. We survived a
    lot under harsh conditions, and we will keep going. But we need
    your help to fulfill your treaty obligation.
        I urge you to help us, fund us at the highest possible
    level to ensure the money is being fairly distributed to all
    tribes. Keeping in mind the unique challenges of the Great
    Plains tribes like my tribe, the Oglala Sioux Tribe. For us, it
    is not a policy question. It is life and death.
        Thank you.
        [The statement of Mr. Star Comes Out follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. I thank you all for your testimony, and as I
    am sitting here listening to you, and I have been to Pine Ridge
    several years ago when I was chairman of this committee before.
    And enjoyed the trip but also was, I think, amazed at the
    needs.
        Mr. Star Comes Out. Yes.
        Mr. Simpson. And we visited other reservations. We went to
    Standing Rock and to the Cheyenne River Reservation and Lone
    Pine, and we were down in Oklahoma, too, and visited those
    tribes down there. The differences between tribes is great.
        But I got to tell you--and I think Chellie would probably
    agree with me, having worked on this committee for years--it
    will--it will be years before we can honestly say we have met
    our treaty obligations. I mean, we have been so lack in it over
    the century that it will be years before we can all stand up
    and say we are where we need to be.
        Our goal here is to move us forward and to continue moving
    us forward to address just what you said. And I tell people in
    Idaho all the time that if you really want to see poverty in
    America, let us go visit a few reservations. Because it is
    terrible. I saw schools at some of these reservations that I am
    not proud to say, but I would not send my child to. But that is
    what they had.
        And so it is important that this committee get out and
    actually see on the ground what works. And I can tell you our
    visit to the Navajo reservation was fascinating. That is a
    beautiful reservation down at Window Rock and other places. We
    really--we really enjoyed that, and there are challenges there,
    as you mentioned.
        And while I know that these funding requests that you have
    all asked for are significant, our goal is to move us, as I
    said, in the right direction and not take a step back. Never
    take a step back.
        Yes, Frank.
        Mr. Star Comes Out. Sir, if I may? I know, earlier, you
    mentioned something about stability, and I would like to add on
    to your comment there on stability. And that is the ultimate
    goal of most of us--treaty tribes, I should say, because we
    lack the--we had a formula that wasn't working for us, and it
    is that formula, they have been using it for decades, and it is
    slowly, slowly choking us out.
        And all our programs can attest to that. We had no choice
    to minimize some of the needs there and prioritize, where it
    turns into a life and death situation. And right now, our
    police force is feeling it.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes.
        Mr. Star Comes Out. We have 5 to 7 officers a day
    patrolling 51,000--over 51,000 plus membership. The crime is
    extremely high, the violence, the drugs, the alcohol. And it is
    also affecting our families because the families are--because
    of lack of funding, resources, who do we turn to?
        I look outside our reservations and I see all these
    organizations helping people overseas while you got a Third
    World country right here in America, and we are not even
    addressing it.
        Mr. Simpson. Yep.
        Mr. Star Comes Out. Our people suffered a lot. Our people
    serve this country. I am also a proud veteran, a combat
    veteran. And now I am fighting for my people, my tribe, and I
    will continue to do that.
        But I just want to make you, everybody aware here it is
    time that we are heard. We need to be listened to. We are not
    sitting here begging for help. We are asking you to hold up to
    your end of the bargain with our treaty obligations because
    that has definitely choked us out.
        Mr. Simpson. Yep.
        Mr. Star Comes Out. Thank you.
        Mr. Simpson. I appreciate that, Frank.
        Ms. Pingree.
        Ms. Pingree. Yes, and thank you so much. Thank you for your
    service. And as Representative McCollum mentioned, tribal
    members serve at a much higher rate than the general population
    and that, too, should be considered, this complete lack of
    respect and sufficient funding. And I really appreciated your
    remarks.
        And also your comment that when people suggest you
    prioritize, there is really no way to prioritize because each
    of these you are talking about fundamental basic needs that
    aren't being met. So I hope we can continue to do more and
    certainly not--not go in the wrong direction.
        Congratulations on your new position. I guess you are both
    fairly new here. And I didn't realize just--you brought up a
    lot of important points, of course, but on the uranium mine
    clean-up, is there current mining going on on the reservation?
    And also just on the clean-up point, is that an EPA
    responsibility that we need to be working on, or how does that
    impact you?
        Dr. Nygren. Currently, uranium mining is banned on the
    Navajo Nation since the mid 2000s. But I also believe that
    there is no clean-up happening at the moment, and there is EPA
    involved. But just the lack of actually getting mines cleaned
    up is the holdup. So definitely if we want to hold a hearing,
    maybe a meeting with EPA, we are definitely open to that, to
    try to figure out how do we streamline that.
        Because I know, as of a month ago, there is a school out
    in--Cove Day School. So kids are actually in school over a year
    ago, and just from the uranium mines and all the weather, water
    did come down the mountains, and it actually contaminated the
    school site. So that is halting the BIA construction of the
    school.
        So just as of a year ago, kids were actually in that area.
    So definitely over 500 mines, whatever we can do to really
    collectively address that, that would be great because I think
    that the safety and the well-being of our Americans should be a
    top priority, and that is one of the things that I always like
    to say is that we are Americans as well and also Native
    Americans. But let us try to work collectively together so that
    people can feel safe. So----
        Ms. Pingree. Absolutely. And this committee also has
    jurisdiction on the EPA's budget. So if we can facilitate a
    meeting like that, we would be happy to do it.
        And thank you, Chief Francis. We are all so proud of you in
    Maine and the work that you do for all of the Maine tribes,
    particularly in our legislative challenges that we have in
    Maine, but also what you said in really representing so many
    interests out there and supporting that with all of us.
        I just want to remark that I thought your suggestion that
    we create a Marshall Plan for the tribes kind of goes along
    with your suggestion that we--you know, we just have to at some
    point step back and take a look at this bigger issue that we
    never catch up. We don't come close to meeting our obligations.
    And while I know the chair is really dedicated to keeping us on
    track and keeping the funding going, we are just never going to
    get there if we don't, in a sense, just like we looked at the
    infrastructure bill for the United States, saying what do we
    need to do to have the infusion here to support our obligation?
        And any other thoughts you have about that, I would be
    interested to hear.
        Chief Francis. Well, USET has really worked over the past
    few years on this Marshall Plan theory for Indian Country and
    approach. And as we looked at different--different things, it
    is not just post World War II, but what we see going on in
    Ukraine and different places, how can--and not saying those
    decisions were wrong, by any means. But just that how can we
    get to a place where we are having that type of conversation?
        And so, so USET really has developed a step-by-step thought
    on how to accomplish this. We have put it, I think some of it
    in our written testimony and be happy to provide that to you
    all as well going forward.
        Ms. Pingree. Great, great. Well, I would really be
    interested in working on that. So I will look for it in your
    written testimony, and I can be in touch about talking about it
    more.
        Chief Francis. And it is great to see you, Mr. Zinke. I
    think the last time I saw you, you were paddling the Penobscot
    River.
        Mr. Zinke. You know God has got a sense of humor. I am
    back. [Laughter.]
        Ms. Pingree. You can come back to the Penobscot River
    anytime, Mr. Zinke.
        Mr. Zinke. [presiding]. Well, thank you. Mr. Ellzey, would
    you have any comments?
        Mr. Ellzey. [Indicating no.]
        Mr. Zinke. Thank you for your testimony. I will look
    forward to working with you, and good to see new friends and
    old. I have been to the reservations, and there is a lot to do.
        Up front, I didn't realize how bad the BIA was until I was
    in charge of it. I get it. At the end of the day, we also need
    consensus among the nations on what to do. It is complex
    because it is very difficult. It is hard in Congress to get
    consensus. The nations and the points that I learned, that
    every nation is different.
        It is easy to combine and say, well, the Indian issue
    problem. Well, each nation is a sovereign nation, and they are
    different. And so how we go forward probably to empower the
    front line. If there is one thing I learned as a SEAL--and
    thank you for your service, sempre fi--is that you have got to
    look at the front line.
        It is how the E-5 is--what is his conditions in life? You
    don't learn a lot from the headquarters. You learn when you go
    to the front line. And more resources in the front line, how we
    can make sure that resources get there without being caught up
    in regulations.
        In Montana, a little different. But the counties that are
    adjacent to the reservations, if the counties had the same
    amount of regulation, they wouldn't put up with it. But the
    nations have far greater amount of regulatory oversight
    problems and just trying to get to the first base. So I get it,
    and I look forward--and this is a bipartisan committee. We work
    with the nations. We work together. But we recognize the issue.
        So, thank you, gentlemen.
        [Pause.]
        Mr. Zinke. In D.C., as you know, it is interesting. I am
    still a Reagan optimist. I still think it is fixable. So that
    is good, but it is important here. It is important to hear the
    voice and to identify what we can do. So we look forward to
    your testimony, and I look forward to working with you on it.
        And I do remember my given name is [speaking Native
    language]. So I do remember, sir.
        So, with that, sir, we will begin with you, Jeffrey.
    Jeffrey Stiffarm.
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    --------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                         FORT BELKNAP INDIAN COMMUNITY

                                    WITNESS

    JEFFREY STIFFARM, PRESIDENT, FORT BELKNAP INDIAN COMMUNITY
        Mr. Stiffarm. Good morning, everyone. I would like to say I
    am sitting before you very humbly to speak about our needs, and
    wants and needs back at Fort Belknap in Montana. Thank you for
    listening to our story.
        My name is Jeffrey Stiffarm. I am the president of the Fort
    Belknap Indian Community, home of different tribes, the Nakoda
    Assiniboine Tribe and the A'aninin, the Gros Ventre Tribe. I am
    enrolled member of the Gros Ventre Tribe, and I have been the
    president there going on year number two here. So I have a
    little bit of experience in the political arena, but my career,
    I was a law enforcement officer all in Fort Belknap, and that
    is kind of what I want to testify on and tell my story about.
        You heard a little bit of other stories from other tribes
    about the issues that they have and the problems with public
    safety and other issues in Indian Country. And the things that
    I wanted to kind of point out is I can throw some numbers at
    you here real quick. In the past, the U.S. Government sent over
    $40 billion in foreign aid to other countries. That is over 10
    times greater than they ever spent on anything in Indian
    Country.
        Afghanistan alone, they sent more money to Afghanistan than
    they have ever done to Indian tribes in the United States.
    Something to remember and think about as you guys hand out the
    funding going forward. And the Federal Government gave $2.8
    billion to farmers and ranchers in this country. They gave the
    tribes half that.
        And listening to some of the stories that the people talked
    about earlier and their issues, and that is the same issues in
    Fort Belknap. We are not asking for a handout. We are asking
    for a hand up. We are the First People of this country. Yet we
    are treated, still treated like secondhand citizens. Always
    overlooked, always stepped over, always an afterthought.
        And the issues that we have in Fort Belknap, in 1997, Fort
    Belknap 638 contracted BIA law enforcement. At that time, the
    base funding for law enforcement was $1.2 million. Here we are
    in 2023, our base funding is $1.3 million.
        Now how can you run public safety on that amount of money,
    and nothing has increased. But the yet the cost of living has
    probably increased a thousand times over since 1997. At that
    time, we were funded to hire 10 officers at $10 an hour. We
    have a reservation of over 600,000 acres. We have six officers
    to cover that. So one officer per shift.
        And in my years and experience in law enforcement, the lack
    of funding, whether it was in housing, public safety, or IHS,
    we didn't have an ambulance in the southern end of our
    reservation. So our officers would have to respond to medical
    calls and transport with their police units, and I remember
    transporting people and them dying in my police unit because we
    couldn't get there in time. We didn't have the medical
    training. You know, a heart attack. We would pull over to the
    side of the road, do CPR, things like that.
        What we are asking for is to help us with the bare
    necessities of life for our people. Most of the money that this
    Government sends overseas is to help with wars, and that is to
    help kill people. We are asking for money to help save our
    people, and it is not a very hard thing to think about when you
    talk about life.
        Our children are always sent off to foster care. We don't
    have enough homes. We got five families living in one home at
    Fort Belknap, and I am sure the other reservations, the other
    people have the same issues that we do. I know we all do. And
    the hard times that we are having, like I said, it is the bare
    necessities that are all we are asking for to survive and to
    live on.
        It is a very hard situation, and I know some of the people
    that spoke before me said you guys visited their reservations.
    And I don't know if you guys have been to Montana, except my
    friend here, Mr. Zinke. He has been a champion for our people
    back home, and I want to you for that and what you may do going
    forward. And I want to congratulate you again for being re-
    elected to take good care of us and to help us, and we will
    work together with you to do that. And I mean that from the
    bottom of my heart.
        And a family from Fort Belknap adopted him because he was
    their commander that went over SEALs. That was part of his
    command that was killed. So he had enough compassion to reach
    out to that family back in Fort Belknap, and he is part of our
    reservation now. And I want to thank you again, Commander
    Zinke, from the bottom of my heart.
        That is part of our story that we have. And a lot of that
    funding that we ask for is not just for law enforcement. It is
    for social services. It is IHS, housing. Like I said, the basic
    necessities that we have. We are trying to live.
        We got homeless people. People still live off--you guys
    remember the days they hand out rations. A lot of our people
    still live off of rations, general assistance, because we can't
    provide jobs. We can't provide income for our people. It is a
    hard thing to watch when you are a cop or when you are a tribal
    leader now, and you watch this.
        And we are--reservations across the country are still
    fighting for our water, and so is Fort Belknap. And water is
    another basic necessity that we need it in the country. And our
    prayer, sir, you know say you can't have the land without the
    water. Well, we need water, too, and we need the money to build
    the infrastructure to irrigate, to grow crops to feed our
    cattle, our horses, things like that. To grow our medicines.
        And I am a very strong believer in our culture. I am
    holding a piece of bark that I hold and I talk and I pray with.
    That is from our medicine lodge that I danced in. I asked my
    relatives that have gone before me to say the words that I am
    saying to you. And I speak from the heart to every one of you
    to understand that it is not me speaking, it is the people back
    home where I come from, that the basic needs that we need.
        And I have to reiterate the basic needs--public safety,
    health, housing, court systems, things like that--we really
    need you guys to really think about that and the money that you
    guys send to overseas of over $40 billion, and this is a couple
    years ago. It is probably a lot more now what you guys are
    sending over to foreign countries compared to what you are
    spending on the First People of this country.
        And I won't take any more of your time, but I want to thank
    you for your time, for listening, and I hope that you don't
    listen with your ears, but you listen with your heart to really
    understand what we are going through, the people.
        [Speaking Native language.]
        [The statement of Mr. Stiffarm follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Zinke. Thank you, Mr. President.
        And Council Member Lankford.
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    ------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

     TRIBAL COUNCIL OF THE CONFEDERATED SALISH AND KOOTENAI TRIBES OF THE
                              FLATHEAD RESERVATION

                                    WITNESS

    CAROLE DEPOE LANKFORD, MEMBER, TRIBAL COUNCIL OF THE CONFEDERATED
        SALISH AND KOOTENAI TRIBES OF THE FLATHEAD RESERVATION
        Ms. Lankford. Good morning. [Speaking Native language.]
        My name is Carole Lankford, and it is an honor to be in
    front of this committee today to be able to speak to you, but
    especially in front of you, Congressman Zinke, Chairman Zinke.
    It is a real honor, and I appreciate your service and honor you
    for that.
        Thank you very much.
        My name is Carole Lankford. I am a member of the
    Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Nation.
    The Flathead Reservation was reserved as our permanent homeland
    under the Hellgate Treaty of 1855 and encompasses over 1.2
    million acres in Western Montana, situated around the southern
    half of Flathead Lake, the largest freshwater lake west of the
    Great Lakes.
        Our tribes are made up of approximately 8,000 enrolled
    members, with about 5,000 members living on the reservation.
    With a total reservation population of approximately 30,000
    people, we are the largest minority on our own reservation.
        The past 3 years have been challenging for us as Native
    peoples. The COVID pandemic claimed the lives of three to four
    times that of other populations in the State of Montana. This
    disease took from us elders, speakers of our language, and
    carriers of our beliefs. It swept through our communities
    despite our tribe's working tirelessly to keep our communities
    safe.
        But the pandemic taught us a valuable lesson. We learned
    that if we work together and effectively work toward solutions,
    we can overcome great challenges. We also learned how important
    it is for resources to be deployed where they are needed the
    most.
        Now we must take what we have learned and apply those
    lessons to the challenges ahead. We appreciate the opportunity
    to share our thoughts on addressing these challenges and the
    subcommittee's commitment to improve the lives of our shared
    constituents. We face an ever-growing epidemic of untreated
    mental illness and substance abuse. We also face threats to our
    homeland, water, forests, and animals from fire and other
    natural disasters, as well as from invasive species.
        Our tribal council has endeavored to tackle the challenges
    head on. Like the bison our people have been in a relationship
    for thousands of years, we must turn into the storm. To that
    end, our tribal council has resolved to eradicate homelessness,
    to address and treat mental illness and dependence on drugs and
    alcohol, to make our forests and fields resilient to fire and
    other natural disasters, and to prevent the introduction of
    invasive species that destroy our homeland, private property,
    and economies.
        We support full funding for the Indian Health Service. As a
    self-governance tribe, we have been carrying out all the
    functions of IHS on our reservation for decades. Local control
    and otherwise fiscal management have resulted in significant
    improvements in the delivery of healthcare services, but our
    efforts continue to be limited by funding shortfalls. If we
    have any hope to adequately address mental illness and
    addiction, we need the necessary resources to do so.
        We support additional funding for the Bureau of Indian
    Affairs. I am incredibly proud of the essential governmental
    services carried out by tribal staff under the self-governance
    compact with the BIA. Our law enforcement officers, wildland
    firefighters, and social services, for example, make sacrifices
    every day to protect our people and our homeland. In most
    cases, they do so for less pay and inadequate resources and
    with substandard infrastructure.
        Our reservation was ravaged by wildfire in 2021 by the 2021
    fire season. The CSKT Division of Fire, which engages in a full
    host of fire management activities, was stretched to the
    breaking point due in part to inadequate infrastructure to
    support an evolving fire landscape. Lack of available space and
    facilities to permanent and emergency personnel, the equipment
    is a problem, and it has exponentially over the past few years
    as we adapt to changing snowfall patterns and drought
    conditions.
        And one area of critical concern for us is that tribal and
    wildfire fighters providing fire suppression to our 638
    contract are not paid equitably in relation to other Federal
    firefighters. We need the tools to pay our firefighters the
    same as our Federal counterparts.
        Adequate funding for these essential activities is critical
    as we face the challenges ahead. We appreciate the
    subcommittee's commitment and partnership with us.
        On behalf of the Tribal Council of the Confederated Salish
    and Kootenai Tribes, I thank you for this opportunity.
        [The statement of Ms. Lankford follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Zinke. Thank you.
        Ms. Ashleigh Weeks of the Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes.
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                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

            ASSINIBOINE AND SIOUX RURAL WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM (ASRWSS)

                                    WITNESS

    ASHLEIGH WEEKS, GENERAL MANAGER, ASSINIBOINE AND SIOUX RURAL WATER
        SUPPLY SYSTEM (ASRWSS)
        Ms. Weeks. Good morning, Chairman Zinke, Ranking Member
    Pingree, and members of the subcommittee, my name is Ashleigh
    Dupree-Weeks. I am the general manager of the Assiniboine and
    Sioux Rural Water Supply System in Northeastern Montana.
        There are 21 employees on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation
    that operates, maintains, and replaces this vital system that
    now serves a rural population of 18,000 persons and will serve
    32,000 when the design capacity is reached in several future
    decades.
        This drinking water system supplies safe, high-quality, and
    reliable drinking water from the Missouri River. A regional
    water treatment plant operated by my certified and highly
    capable staff delivers water through 3,200 miles of pipeline
    when completed, with multiple pumping stations and water
    storage tanks.
        The construction of the project is 95 percent complete
    within the Fort Peck Indian Reservation and 85 percent complete
    in the area that we serve off the reservation known as Dry
    Prairie, our non-Indian partners and a very successful part of
    our project. The United States will invest $375 million in
    construction to complete the project in Montana, and Dry
    Prairie will invest an additional non-Federal cost-share of $47
    million.
        I have the responsibility of operating, maintaining, and
    replacing the facilities on the reservation with a Federal
    construction value of $239 million. The request we make of the
    subcommittee for funding in fiscal year 2024 is $4.204 million,
    or 1.75 percent of the construction cost, a modest percentage.
    This is an increase over our fiscal year 2023 funds of
    $772,000.
        Our funding in fiscal year 2021 was $3.28 million. So our
    request this year is nearly 28 percent higher than 3 years ago.
    We only requested small increases in fiscal year 2022 and
    fiscal year 2023, but we now need a significant increase due to
    several factors I will outline for you.
        The first is inflation. Reclamation construction cost
    trends index for our type of construction rose from 505 to 654,
    or over 29 percent, over the last 3 fiscal years. This is
    reflective of the type of inflation for operation, maintenance,
    and replacement.
        The second, increasing water deliveries with service to
    more people. Our deliveries of water rose from 795 million
    gallons to 1.112 billion gallons over the last 3 years, an
    increase of 40 percent.
        Chemical costs at the water treatment plant increased from
    $407,000 to $607,000, an increase of 50 percent.
        Pumping costs increased from $266,000 to $378,000, an
    increase of 42 percent.
        We have also increased the staffing of highly qualified and
    certified operators for our system to its full potential. Our
    labor costs in fiscal year 2021 were around $1 million, and the
    projected cost in this next fiscal year 2024 for current staff
    is $1.5 million, an increase of 70 percent due to the increase
    of manpower, increasing our FTEs from 18 to 21, and an increase
    in average salaries.
        FTEs increased by 17 percent. Average salaries increased by
    21 percent, reflecting an increase in certification as well as
    inflation. Fuel and maintenance cost of vehicles has also
    increased over the last 3 years by about 16 percent.
        Mr. Chairman, factors I have outlined account for the
    increase in funding needed for fiscal year 2024. I thank the
    subcommittee for the continued support of OMR funding for
    ASRWSS, as authorized by Public Law 106-382.
        Thanks.
        [The statement of Ms. Weeks follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr  Zinke. Thank you.
        And my good friend, chairman of the great Assiniboine and
    Sioux Tribe. And Mr. Chairman.
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    --------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                      ASSINIBOINE AND SIOUX TRIBES OF THE
                             FORT PECK RESERVATION

                                    WITNESS

    FLOYD AZURE, CHAIRMAN, ASSINIBOINE AND SIOUX TRIBES OF THE FORT PECK
        RESERVATION
        Mr. Azure. Thank you. Thank you, Chairman Zinke. We have
    had a great relationship for the past few years, and I even
    enjoyed it when you were at the BIA. That was a lot of fun.
        Mr. Zinke. I am glad you did.
        Mr. Azure. I would come to see you. I know what happened to
    you. I didn't agree with it, but some people just do things.
    And I went through the same thing, basically. So it is not
    good.
        And thank you, Ranking Member, and thank you, committee
    members. Thank you for allowing us to be here today, and I want
    to thank you for allowing my manager of our water treatment
    plant give her report, and she does a great job.
        Mr. Zinke. Mr. Chairman, you hire really good people.
        Mr. Azure. I am Floyd Azure and chairman of the Assiniboine
    and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck Reservation. Fort Peck
    Reservation is in northeast Montana, 40 miles west of the North
    Dakota border and 50 miles south of the Canadian border, with
    the Missouri River defining its southern border.
        The reservation encompasses over 2 million acres of land.
    We have approximately 12,000 enrolled tribal members, with
    approximately 7,000 tribal members living on our reservation.
    We have a total reservation population of about 11,000 people.
        We appreciate the subcommittee's continued commitment to
    addressing substance abuse and the consequential challenges
    that arise from this plague. When someone is suffering from
    addiction, it is not just the person who is impacted, it is the
    entire family. And for tribal communities, it is the entire
    tribe.
        The addictions our people are facing today, and
    particularly meth and heroin, are so much more destructive than
    alcohol. I am not sure we can survive another generation with
    our people locked in the grasp of addiction to these drugs.
        Thus, I would like to take the time today to talk about the
    importance of supporting Indian Health Service, and we need to
    support the Indian Health Service's capacity to collect from
    third-party payers like Medicaid, Medicare, and private
    insurance. From expanded Medicaid, Montana has allowed the
    Indian Health Service to actually provide healthcare rather
    than band-aids, which all too often were prescription
    painkillers.
        It is an old story across Indian Country that the biggest
    drug dealer on the reservation is the IHS clinic. This is
    because the IHS historically did not have the resources to
    treat serious conditions like torn ACLs, rotator cuff injuries,
    or even gallbladder disease because these conditions are not
    life or limb conditions and would not qualify for PRC contract
    care.
        Consequently, the providers, who were led to believe that
    painkillers would be a safe alternative to real care,
    prescribed painkillers. Thus, for a generation, we have had to
    deal with people who were given pills and became addicts, which
    led to the destruction of lives, families, and in the end,
    compromised the very foundation of our community and our
    future.
        However, since Medicaid expansion, the numbers tell us that
    people are getting real healthcare, and their quality of life
    is improving, which means the quality of life of our children
    is improving. No longer are our people being told that they are
    not sick enough to get quality healthcare and given a bottle of
    pills for the pain.
        Specifically, we have had scores of hip and knee
    replacements and other orthopedic surgeries and other
    preventive and screening healthcare, including substance abuse
    treatment. While there is no magic solution to combatting the
    many issues that are caused by drug and alcohol addiction, I am
    certain that ensuring people have access to quality healthcare
    is a big part of the solution.
        As our people heal, we must work to heal our families, and
    that is why I am here again asking for additional funding for
    our tribal social services program. Over 35 percent of our
    children are in foster care in Montana. They are Indian
    children. Indian people represent only 10 percent of the State
    population.
        Finally, a key factor in keeping families together and
    healthy is housing. Our reservation is in dire need of housing.
    It is masked by the fact that we have families living in
    overcrowded situations.
        Thus, when someone is asked do they have housing, they
    answer, ``Yes, I live with my grandmother.'' What they do not
    disclose is that sometimes four or five other families live in
    that house, and it is usually a two- or three-bedroom home.
        We need additional Housing Improvement Program funding to
    be able to meet the low-income housing needs for our members.
        Thank you.
        [The statement of Mr. Azure follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Zinke. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
        We talk a lot about treaty obligations, but there is also
    an obligation to border security. There is also an obligation
    to create the economic conditions where people can reach
    prosperity.
        So I recognize, fully recognize the obligations of treaties
    because sovereign nations, it is one nation having a treaty
    with another nation. So I understand that and respect that, but
    also the U.S. can do a lot better with our obligations on
    border and such.
        Ranking Member, would you like to ask a question?
        Ms. Pingree. Thank you very much.
        Thank you so much for your testimony. I thought that was a
    really good way of describing the issues when you don't have
    sufficient healthcare and the IHS being the biggest drug
    dealer. We understand the progression that has happened in so
    many places where people start with a painkiller.
        Did the tribes--or did your tribe receive any of the
    settlement funds with the drug companies? Were you involved in
    any of that litigation?
        Mr. Azure. No. No.
        Ms. Lankford. Yes.
        Ms. Pingree. No. Yes, you are? Yes, that is interesting. I
    think----
        Mr. Azure. The issue with us----
        Ms. Pingree. Go ahead.
        Mr. Azure. You know, the drug problem we have is great on
    our reservation, but the biggest issue I have to deal with is
    the children that are affected by it. My wife has been a
    schoolteacher for 33 years in kindergarten, and she deals with
    it. And the children that come in have increasingly came in
    with mental disabilities.
        And not only that, but this drug problem we have increases
    the burden on our healthcare and law enforcement and
    correctional, our social services. And that is why we have the
    majority of our children in social services. We got 97 of them
    in foster care on the reservation, and they are not on a
    reservation that is spread out through the State of Montana.
        Ms. Pingree. Right.
        Mr. Azure. But it all stems from the drug abuse that we
    have, and there--in Montana, there was a representative in
    Montana that was putting a bill forward to come to Congress and
    ask to do away with the reservations with the drug problem, but
    you have got to remember that our reservation is in the middle
    of Montana. So it is not coming from us. It is coming from the
    State of Montana.
        And we have to work with the State of Montana. We have been
    working with the State of Montana. We have a drug task force
    with the State of Montana, and it extends to the state of
    Minneapolis, and it extends to the State of Washington, our
    ties. And we have been catching people on Burlington Northern
    because they have no guidelines on Burlington Northern. Anybody
    can get on Burlington Northern.
        We caught one person that was coming from Washington--from
    Portland, Oregon, all the way across going to Minneapolis. And
    they stopped it, they have a stop in Williston, North Dakota.
    Well, the agents from Williston, North Dakota, came in, joined
    with our agents. We put them on the train in Wolf Point. They
    pinned the guys down, who they were and where they were at in
    the train, and they took them off the train in Williston, North
    Dakota.
        And my people, working with the State of Montana, we worked
    with the Highway Patrol. We worked with the County of
    Roosevelt. We worked with the County of--Valley County, the
    City of Wolf Point. We all have the same issue. We don't have
    enough officers.
        But we have been doing a great job. We have had a bust
    almost every week. The last bust we had was over 5 pounds of
    marijuana, over a kilo and a half of meth, and I don't know how
    many fentanyl pills in one bust. But that is what is destroying
    our reservation. And if the State of Montana can't stop them
    from coming into our State, how are we going to stop them from
    coming into our reservation?
        Ms. Pingree. Yes. No, and thank you for the good work that
    you are trying to do. And you are right. It is certainly not
    just specific to tribal reservations. It is a huge issue in all
    of our rural communities in a State like mine, too.
        So, but thank you all for your testimony. I really
    appreciate it.
        Mr. Zinke. Thank you.
        Mr. Ellzey, do you have any comments?
        Mr. Ellzey. [Indicating no.]
        Mr. Zinke. Thank you.
        One last, Mr. President, you had mentioned before that you
    have five officers because you had to reduce the number of
    officers simply to raise the pay. Because you get the same
    amount over time, and 10 years later, you have the same amount,
    obviously inflation, it is hard to recruit when they are so
    underpaid.
        But is that true? You had to reduce the number because the
    budget has been the same. You got to hire somebody, and you got
    to find someone to do the job.
        Mr. Stiffarm. Yes, exactly. We had to reduce the number of
    officers down to five to increase their wages, which their wage
    is still incompatible to surrounding areas, the county or
    Highway Patrol or anything like that. And we are not cross-
    deputized. The only officers that serve our people back home is
    tribal officers, 638.
        And like I said, their starting wages in 1997 were $10 an
    hour. That is minimum wage to put your life on the line, and
    that is how when I started in law enforcement, I was at $9 an
    hour. And people, the surrounding areas, counties, they are
    offering $30, $40 an hour. And like I said, we are a training
    ground.
        The lack of funding throughout Indian Country also affects
    the BIA. In my years of being a council member, every time I
    came to D.C. I asked BIA for extra funding to increase our
    baseline for our officers' pay and then give us one-time
    funding, which was like around $100,000, and you couldn't use
    it towards wages. You have to use it for equipment or things
    like that. And I tell them it was a training ground for other
    agencies.
        And the BIA told us last year that they are going to
    increase the BIA police officers' wages because they are a
    training ground. And I told them, well, welcome to our world.
    We have been living that from day one. And here you guys are
    the people that distribute money down to the tribes that have
    638 contracts, and you guys got to remember us. You know, you
    give us pennies on the dollars you get.
        But then what the BIA and the Federal Government gives to
    BIA is pennies on the dollars to what they give foreign
    countries and other entities. Something to think about going
    forward is how much money you give other countries compared to
    what you give to the tribal nations of this country, our First
    People.
        But I want to thank you again for this opportunity to let
    us tell our story and the stories you are going to hear after
    us, and I appreciate every one of you.
        Mr. Zinke. Thank you, Mr. President. And thank you all.
        [Pause.]
        Mr. Zinke. Well, thank you. I am honored to be chairman of
    the next panel. So we will go right into it.
        Doctor, we are interested and waiting for your testimony.
                                  ----------                              --
    --------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                         UKPEAGVIK INUPIAT CORPORATION

                                    WITNESS

    DR. PEARL BROWER, PRESIDENT/CEO, UKPEAGVIK INUPIAT CORPORATION
        Dr. Brower. Thank you. Thank you.
        Uvlaalluataq. Good morning, Chairman Zinke, Ranking Member
    Pingree, and honorable members of the Subcommittee on Interior,
    Environment, and Related Agencies.
        Uvuna Nageak, Taniktunsiniga, Dr. Pearl Kiyawn Brower.
    Ukpiagvinmiuguru?a. Qaugliruna uvunga Ukpeagvik I?upiat
    Corporation, UIC. Quviasuktuna maaniitchumi(ng)agama uvlupak.
        So, good morning. My name is Dr. Pearl Brower, and I am
    from Utqiagvik, otherwise known as Barrow, on the edge of the
    Arctic Ocean in Alaska. I live, work, and have the
    responsibility of caring for our land, the land of the Inupiat,
    as the president of Ukpeagvik Inupiat Corporation.
        I am here to talk to you about the clean-up, or lack
    thereof, of the contaminated lands conveyed to Alaska Native
    communities as part of the 1971 Alaska Native Claims Settlement
    Act, ANCSA. Specifically, I am here to testify regarding the
    need for additional ANCSA contaminated land funding through the
    Environmental Protection Agency. Quyanaqpak. Thank you for
    allowing me the opportunity to provide our perspective on the
    impact of contamination in Alaska.
        UIC is an Alaska Native village corporation created under
    ANCSA, and UIC has worked to become self-sustaining and provide
    for the economic, social, and cultural prosperity of our
    shareholders. We celebrate our 50th anniversary this year and,
    as a company, are in the strongest position we have ever been
    in.
        As part of ANCSA, the Federal Government agreed to convey
    to 12 Alaska Native regional corporations and more than 200
    village corporations 44 million acres of land and $962.5
    million in settlement of aboriginal land claims of Alaska
    Native peoples. However, much of the land conveyed had serious
    issues with contamination, including PFAS, gasoline and oil
    spills, metallic debris, and other contaminants.
        In 1995, Congress directed the Secretary of the Interior to
    prepare a report on the extent of the contamination. The result
    was a report to Congress entitled ``Hazardous Substance
    Contamination of Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act Lands in
    Alaska.'' The report acknowledged conveying approximately 650
    contaminated sites to Alaska Native corporations with various
    types of hazardous waste and toxic materials, which pose
    significant health risks to humans, animals, and the
    environment, including arsenic, unexploded ordnances, PCBs,
    among others.
        Since 2016, there has been very little progress regarding
    remediation. There are 35 active contaminated sites in
    Ukpeagvik, and UIC itself owns 11 of those sites. Currently,
    the Navy, according to the Restoration Advisory Board meeting
    held in October of 2021, was on its third 5-year long-term
    monitoring review. Today, in 2023, we are in the 21st year of
    the long-term monitoring, and this year started the fourth 5-
    year review.
        The results from the 5-year review show the absence of an
    established contaminant degradation rate, and the 2021 trend
    data make it unclear when this site will achieve clean-up
    levels via natural attenuation. It is recommended that the
    annual long-term monitoring program of active zone water
    continue until clean-up levels are achieved.
        So, basically, essentially, contaminants are not going away
    naturally. In July of 2017, the Navy conducted surface water
    sampling at Imikpuk Lake, found PFAS and PFOA was present above
    the EPA lifetime health advisory, showing that the contaminants
    are moving into previously clean areas. This lake, used by
    hunters and animals alike, was transferred to UIC from the
    military.
        We, as a people, are heavily dependent on subsistence
    resources consisting of migratory birds, caribou, fish, and
    marine mammals. Our connection to the land and sea, which
    surrounds us, is paramount. To sustain our culturally healthy
    way of life, we must have healthy lands, waters, and animals.
    It is our cultural belief that taking care of our environment
    will continue to sustain a healthy way of life, which is why
    the continued contamination of our land is so harmful.
        We hunt on land and in the sea because hunting feeds our
    children and ourselves. But we hunt on contaminated lands and
    waters. We hike inland on tundra, looking for eggs, gathering
    greens, but we encounter hundreds of barrels left by the
    Federal Government while researching Arctic activity decades
    ago.
        This contamination seeps into the water we drink and the
    land from which we feed ourselves and our families. The clean-
    up is costly, but we cannot put a price on the health of our
    families.
        The fiscal year 2023 appropriation bill included $20
    million for the inventory, verification, assessment, and
    remediation of contaminated ANCSA sites. While this is a step
    in the right direction, $20 million will not cover the
    remediation of UIC lands, let alone all of the contaminated
    sites in Alaska.
        Therefore, I am asking the committee to include a larger
    set-aside for ANCSA contaminated lands in your fiscal year 2024
    appropriations bill to ensure the efforts to clean our lands
    can and will be addressed. By mitigating these issues now, we
    are preventing further problems in the future.
        I look forward to working with the committee to address the
    issues of land contamination in Alaska.
        Quyanaqpak. Thank you so much for your time and the
    consideration of your testimony, and come and visit us anytime.
        [The statement of Dr. Brower follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Zinke. The good thing is you are a long way away from
    it now.
        Dr. Brower. We certainly are. I was looking--I think I have
    traveled the farthest. Good to be here. Got in at 10:00 last
    night. [Laughter.]
        Mr. Simpson [presiding]. David.
                                  ----------                              --
    --------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                          METLAKATLA INDIAN COMMUNITY

                                    WITNESS

    DAVID BOXLEY, COUNCIL MEMBER, METLAKATLA INDIAN COMMUNITY
        Mr. Boxley. [Speaking Native language.]
        Good morning to you all, Representatives of the United
    States. Chairperson Simpson, Ranking Member Pingree, and
    members of the subcommittee, it is my deep privilege to be here
    before you today, and I am profoundly honored to speak to you
    on behalf of my people, the Metlakatla Indian Community of the
    Annette Islands Reserve. Thank you for the opportunity to share
    our funding priorities for the 2024 Federal budget.
        In 1891, Congress set aside the Annette Islands to create a
    permanent home for the Tsimshian pioneers of Metlakatla in what
    was then the colonial territory of Alaska. In doing so, a new
    trust relationship was born between us.
        I have traveled a very long way--not quite as long as
    others, but a long way--to ask Congress to maintain this trust
    to keep faith with Metlakatla, to redouble its efforts in our
    shared commitment to face down every threat, to overcome every
    obstacle, and build a brighter tomorrow for the next
    generation.
        We strongly recommend a substantial increase in baseline
    funding to the BIA. Year after year, we have large funding
    shortfalls across all BIA-funded programs, causing services in
    our community to constantly depend on an inconsistent patchwork
    of Federal funding. We have been forced to choose between
    meeting water quality standards or providing scholarships to
    our students.
        It has sadly become the norm that we don't receive our full
    yearly appropriation until several months, sometimes longer,
    after the start of the fiscal year, making it nearly impossible
    for us to plan, grow, or achieve self-sufficiency. Full advance
    appropriations for the BIA would lead to better stability,
    reduce dependence on uncertain grant funding, and improve
    everything overall.
        For many years, tribes have requested that IHS be funded on
    advance appropriation cycle. Going forward, we urge the
    subcommittee to take the necessary steps to continue advance
    appropriations for the IHS for 2025 and beyond.
        Like many tribal communities, we continue to be impacted by
    the growing challenge of climate change. The Tongass National
    Forest, a temperate rainforest, now sees droughts that can last
    for years, bringing existential threats like water shortages
    and wildfires closer and closer to our shores. Erosion,
    landslides, sea level rise, ocean acidification, and changes in
    seasons all contribute to the serious challenges that my
    community currently faces.
        We are forced to reduce emissions to mitigate and adapt,
    but to be truly successful, we need additional support,
    Government funding at levels that are equal to the threat.
        On top of climate change, our shores have already been
    invaded by the European green crab, an invasive species that
    threatens to supplant native crabs, leaving desolation in their
    wake, most significantly the potential of destroying the salmon
    population, which we cannot allow to go unchallenged. Salmon
    are a keystone species and have shaped the lives of my people
    for millennia.
        We are asking the subcommittee to continue increased
    funding levels for fish hatcheries next year. Our own Tamgas
    Creek hatchery has greatly increased production in recent
    years, doing our part for the local economy as well as the
    salmon fishing industry as a whole in southeast Alaska.
        In addition to the critical funding needs I have mentioned,
    the Federal trust responsibility does not and should not
    require that we jump through hoops and compete against other
    tribes to see that trust services are provided to our people.
    We support moving away from competitive grants for Federal
    funding mechanisms. We must be granted the flexibility we need
    to respond to the specific needs of our own community, not
    those prescribed by Federal grants.
        There is also an invisible threat looming over my people.
    Our heritage language, Sm'algyax, is dying. The Tsimshian
    language is considered critically endangered. There are only a
    few dozen speakers remaining in the world. We must impart the
    grave seriousness of this to every member of this committee.
    With permanent recurring annual funding as part of our compact,
    we can, in partnership with Congress, help to save our
    language, which will ensure a positive identity and future for
    generations to come.
        The challenges facing my people are many, but the
    pioneering spirit of Metlakatla is as strong today as it was
    when my ancestors first raised the star-spangled banner on that
    sandy beach on Annette Island in August of 1887. The bravery
    and patriotism of the Metlakatla proudly shows in the faces and
    records of service of our veterans, as we have the most
    servicemembers per capita of any city, State, or tribe in
    America.
        Metlakatlans have the fortitude to withstand the challenges
    that face us if Congress will stand with us. We need funding
    increases not to become more dependent, but to become more
    independent. We want nothing more than to enjoy what many of
    our American Tsimshian warriors fought and died to protect,
    freedom. Freedom from poverty and freedom to determine for
    ourselves how our destiny will unfold.
        So when we recommend increases in baseline funding to IHS
    and the BIA, we are asking in the context of the trust
    relationship between Metlakatla and the United States that once
    again is built upon the premise of making the Annette Islands
    our permanent home.
        I come before this esteemed committee today not to beg for
    money, but to ask you to invest in Metlakatla's future, that
    our trust relationship can grow stronger, that together we can
    create opportunities that will bring prosperity to our whole
    region because what is good for Metlakatla is good for Alaska.
    What is good for Alaska is good for America.
        [Speaking Native language.] Your time and attention has
    been a blessing.
        [Speaking Native language.] Thank you for listening to me.
        [The statement of Mr. Boxley follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you, David.
        Cecilia.
                                  ----------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                    OGLALA LAKOTA NATION EDUCATION COALITION

                                    WITNESS

    CECILIA FIRETHUNDER, PRESIDENT, OGLALA LAKOTA NATION EDUCATION
        COALITION, BOARD OF TRUSTEES FOR OGLALA LAKOTA COLLEGE, AND LITTLE
        WOUND SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER
        Ms. Firethunder. Good morning.
        Mr. Simpson. Good morning.
        Ms. Firethunder. Chairman Simpson, Ranking Member Pingree
    [speaking Native language]. I greet you with a warm handshake
    with good feelings from my heart.
        And I am one of those people who speaks two languages,
    Lakota and English. Lakota first and English second.
        So I would like to--Members of the House Subcommittee on
    the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies, thank you for
    the opportunity to testify today regarding issues of importance
    to my tribe, Oglala Sioux.
        My name is Cecilia Firethunder, and I am the president of
    the Oglala Lakota Nation Education Coalition of six schools on
    the Pine Ridge, and we are pulling in additional schools to
    help us on this work that we need to do to increase our budget
    for our tribal schools. I am also on the Board of Trustees for
    Oglala Lakota College.
        Oglala Lakota Nation Education Coalition represents the
    Oglala Sioux Tribe's six tribally enrolled controlled schools--
    tribally controlled grant schools. And so one of the things
    that we are so happy about is that back around 19--Senator
    Abourezk, as you know, recently left us. And it was because of
    Senator Abourezk's work, the Senate Committee was established
    many, many years ago.
        And one of the things that Senator Abourezk did was for
    Public Law 93-638 that allowed tribes to take ownership of
    programs in their community, and so we are part of that,
    tribally controlled schools. So we have our own school boards,
    and we administer and run our own schools. So, with that, I
    just wanted to put that out there. Okay? Thank you.
        One of the things--and I also want to be a good relative.
    Us Indian people, no matter what tribe we come from, look out
    for each other. So, today, I also want to acknowledge not only
    the Federal schools on the Pine Ridge, but the 183 schools
    across Indian Country that are under the BIE-administered
    education. So we have relatives all over that we need to also
    look out for.
        100-297 tribally controlled grant schools are the primary
    provider for education for on-reservation Indian students. Yet
    schools operating within the BIE system are woefully
    underfunded, outdated, and dangerous for students and staff.
    According to the Department of Education, in fiscal year 2023,
    the Federal Government funded Indian students at roughly half,
    $6,283, versus what the public schools were getting on my
    reservation, $12,500. That is like half. Half, okay?
        This also includes the 9.24 percent increase from the
    omnibus bill. I am also deaf. So you have to forgive me.
    Sometimes I can't pronounce words very well. Omnibus bill. Did
    I say it right?
        Mr. Simpson. Yep.
        Ms. Firethunder. Thank you. [Laughter.]
        Anyway, so even with the increase, we are still
    underfunded. So what we wanted to do was to ask for your
    serious consideration to support our request for the Bureau of
    Indian Education to increase their budgets for our schools so
    we can provide even greater, better services.
        The ISEP, which is the Indian School Equalization Program,
    funding--so, all Indians schools are under ISEP. ISEP dollars
    are set aside to educate our children. Teachers' salaries,
    books, supplies. Unfortunately, Congressman, what is happening
    is that because of the underfunding of ISEP and all school
    operations, including everything else, we are using money out
    of the money set aside to educate our children to make up for
    shortfalls in operation and maintenance.
        Last year, my school, Little Wound School, we spent a
    little over $300,000 feeding our students. So the USDA, under
    CANS, is supposed to also help feed our children.
    Unfortunately, there is not enough money there. The CANS
    program only pays for one person in the kitchen, okay? And we
    have eight people. So seven of them we have to pay.
        So one of the things, and you will be hearing from us on
    this on a nutrition bill, a demonstration project that we want,
    too. So we want USDA to fund directly tribal schools. Right
    now, USDA funds the--gives the money to the State. The State
    puts regs on it, and they give it to us. And I am running out
    of time here. So I just want to--you have my written testimony.
        However, I also want to talk about our college. Our tribal
    colleges are like the diamonds on our reservation. The Oglala
    Lakota College on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation has done
    some fantastic work in terms of graduating. Our president of
    the college graduated from our college. He is a Ph.D.
        Our schools on Pine Ridge, my school especially, our
    principals graduated from our high school and went on to get
    higher education.
        So one of the things I want to ask you to do is to really
    give a serious consideration and as we ask for an increase in
    the ISEP funding and so our schools can provide better services
    and, most importantly, use the money for education and increase
    the line-items and all the other responsibilities the Bureau of
    Indian Affairs has.
        [Speaking Native language.] Thank you.
        [The statement of Ms. Firethunder follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Thank you. I appreciate your
    testimony.
        And you mentioned that we spend about half of the money
    on--per student----
        Ms. Firethunder. Yes.
        Mr. Simpson [continuing]. On Indian education as we do
    other students.
        Ms. Firethunder. Public schools.
        Mr. Simpson. Public school students.
        Ms. Firethunder. Mm-hmm.
        Mr. Simpson. Same is true with health services. If you look
    at the amount of money that is spent per individual on health
    services versus what is spent outside that, versus what is
    spent for veterans, it is about--it is about half of what we
    spend for patients outside Indian Services. And I mean, that is
    a dichotomy that we have got to address.
        Ms. Firethunder. Thank you.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes, it really is.
        You mentioned something else that I agree with, but if you
    would explain it, please. You said that treaty obligations--I
    will paraphrase--but treaty obligations shouldn't require
    tribes to compete against one another for grants and stuff.
        Explain to me where that comes from. What are the programs
    that you are competing with other tribes for, for money for?
    Because I agree with what you are saying.
        Mr. Boxley. Well, and specifically for funding that should
    be part of trust obligations anyway.
        Mr. Simpson. Right.
        Mr. Boxley. Grants, very often that they are competitive
    grants are for base services in our community.
        Mr. Simpson. So some tribes are going to get them, and
    other tribes are not going to get them?
        Mr. Boxley. Right. Or because of whether it is population
    or land based, other tribes are favored, ignoring the needs,
    the specific needs of the given communities that are up for
    those grants.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes.
        Mr. Boxley. And just there is not quite enough
    consideration there.
        Mr. Simpson. Especially if it is a trust responsibility.
        Mr. Boxley. Absolutely.
        Mr. Simpson. If it is a trust responsibility, it is the
    trust responsibility for all tribes.
        Mr. Boxley. Absolutely. Yes, it shouldn't be one or the
    other. It should be everybody.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes. I appreciate you bringing that up. That
    is important.
        Thank you all for being here.
        Ms. Pingree.
        Ms. Pingree. Thank you. And I just want to emphasize that
    whole point about the per student expenditure. It is just hard
    to fathom like that you could ever do an adequate job with half
    of the average that we spend in other schools.
        And I wanted to just sympathize. I come from the coast of
    Maine, and green crab invasion has been a serious issue for us,
    too. So I guess they are hitting both coasts at the same time.
    I certainly know the importance of your fisheries to the tribe.
        Mr. Boxley. Absolutely. It is crucial to us. Our hatchery
    is doing fantastic, but we are the first community in Alaska to
    encounter green crab, and we are pushing the State also for
    funding and because it is just going to keep spreading. Our
    neighbors over in Canada, in Haida Gwaii, talked to their
    dismay about how out of control it is. And as I mentioned,
    salmon is a keystone species, and we have got to do everything
    we can to protect it. Not just for economic reasons, but the
    stability of our ecosystem.
        Ms. Pingree. Absolutely, yes. We had a--I think we had a
    contest in our State with chefs trying to develop recipes for
    green crabs, but we are not going to eat our way out of this
    problem. [Laughter.]
        It is devastating to our shellfish industry, our clams and
    other things.
        And the number of contaminated lands and the sites that you
    are dealing with is really staggering, and I am sorry that we
    have not met the obligation. And when Representative McCollum
    is back, we will remind her that the Navy has funds to do that
    kind of clean-up, and at the very least, we should be pushing
    and going after those places where we know the resources are
    there.
        I mean, all of this clean-up should be done. It is just
    unfathomable that we would say, here, look at all this great
    land we are giving you. Oh, by the way, we didn't clean it up
    before we turned it over. And then not to fund the clean-up. So
    I am supportive of helping you in any way we can.
        Thank you. Thank you for traveling the distance that you
    both did.
        Mr. Simpson. I have got to be real honest with you. I have
    never heard of green crabs.
        Mr. Boxley. European green crabs, there is--I have heard a
    couple of stories about their origin as to how they made it to
    the United States. It sounds like there is one strain of it on
    the coast that someone purposefully dumped off a boat at some
    point.
        They are--they are smaller than Dungeness. They breed
    rapidly. They destroy herring and salmon habitat. They eat
    through everything. It could be--it is to the--our knowledge so
    far is that there probably isn't a way to eradicate them. We
    have to learn how to maintain their population to prevent them
    from destroying natural wildlife and habitat.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes, I am very interested in salmon habitat. I
    have been working on an initiative to restore Idaho salmon runs
    that are--will be extinct if we don't do something about them.
    And it is amazing how hard it is to do.
        But the one thing I will tell people whenever they talk to
    us, I said, you know, every tribe in the Pacific Northwest,
    every tribe, when they sign treaties reserve their fishing
    rights. Those fishing rights, those reserved fishing rights
    don't mean anything if there is no fish. And especially if
    there is no fish because of what we have done to destroy those
    fish habitats.
        So we have got to restore those, but it is going to be--it
    is controversial. It is costly, but it has got to be done. Or
    one day you are going to wake up and your children will say,
    ``What were you doing when the salmon went extinct in Idaho,
    and why do they call that the Salmon River? There is no salmon
    in it,'' you know?
        Mr. Boxley. Well, and I would just like to add that it is
    similar--actually, we could talk about funding for language
    revitalization. Doing something now before it is too late----
        Mr. Simpson. Yep.
        Mr. Boxley [continuing]. Is going to be less expensive --
        Mr. Simpson. Exactly.
        Mr. Boxley [continuing]. In many ways than if we just take
    care of it now.
        Mr. Simpson. Yep.
        Mr. Boxley. As to whether that is salmon or our language,
    it is a cheaper investment now than later. Yes.
        Mr. Simpson. Absolutely. Absolutely. Thank you all for
    being here today. We appreciate it.
        Abigail Echo-Hawk and Aurene Martin.
        Ms. Echo-Hawk. Good morning.
        Mr. Simpson. Good morning.
        [Pause.]
        Mr. Simpson. I have got Abigail Echo-Hawk first on here.
    So, Urban Indian Health Institute.
                                  ----------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                         URBAN INDIAN HEALTH INSTITUTE

                                    WITNESS

    ABIGAIL ECHO-HAWK, EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, SEATTLE INDIAN HEALTH
        BOARD AND DIRECTOR OF THE URBAN INDIAN HEALTH INSTITUTE
        Ms. Echo-Hawk. Good morning. Thank you so much for the
    opportunity to speak, Chairperson Simpson, Ranking Member
    Pingree, and members of the committee. I would also like to
    thank the staff, who did an incredible job of pulling us all
    here together. It is always an incredible feat to keep this all
    going.
        I am Abigail Echo-Hawk. I am enrolled citizen of the Pawnee
    Nation of Oklahoma and the director of the Urban Indian Health
    Institute, along with the executive vice president of the
    Seattle Indian Health Board, an Urban Indian Health program in
    Seattle, Washington.
        I have had the opportunity to spend a lot of time working
    to end violence against indigenous women and all women across
    this country. Four years ago, I stood at the Capitol alongside
    Senator Lisa Murkowski, where we released the very first data
    report on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls that
    has ever happened in this country.
        In that data report, what we found is that there was a
    crisis of missing and murdered indigenous women and girls and
    people. However, what we knew is that there wasn't any data
    being collected, and our report 4 years ago pointed out this
    gap. As a direct result of our report, the advocacy of tribal
    leaders and grassroots advocates, there was legislation passed,
    Savanna's Act and the Not Invisible Act, along with, and I am
    very proud to say our report is cited in more than 40 pieces of
    legislation in States across the country.
        I self-funded that report with $20,000 I raised out of
    speaking fees because nobody would fund us to do it because
    nobody believed what was happening to our people. And then we
    proved it.
        But 4 years has gone by, and what has happened?
    Unfortunately, we have seen the dismal, nonexistent work that
    the Department of Justice was supposed to do under Savanna's
    Act and the Not Invisible Act. And I want to share with you
    what we have done instead.
        As a result of the Department of Justice not fulfilling
    their responsibilities under Savanna's Act and the Not
    Invisible Act, Indian Country had to act. My organization, the
    Urban Indian Health Institute, stepped up to do that because--
    not because we wanted to, but because we had to because our
    people were suffering.
        We looked at and we found that under the--there was a
    Government Office of Accountability report that looked at the
    implementation of Savanna's Act and Not Invisible Act and found
    that Department of Justice was lacking. And in fact, it took
    them more than a year and a half to simply appoint people to a
    committee to look at this crisis.
        In the year and a half in which they did that, in a year
    and a half, I was able to reform an entire law enforcement data
    department for one of the largest counties in the country, King
    County, Washington, where we reformed their data, and I was
    able to train their law enforcement officers and fix the
    problems that they said couldn't be fixed.
        All of the things that my team and I are doing are actually
    in the work of Savanna's Act and the Not Invisible Act. We are
    doing this with a small amount of funding as a tribal
    epidemiology center. We are 1 of 12 tribal epidemiology centers
    in the country. However, we are drastically underfunded. Yet
    despite that drastic underfunding, we continue to do the work
    that nobody else is doing.
        I remember when we released that report. I was standing at
    the Capitol, and a woman from a tribe came up to me, and she
    said, ``Abigail, I buried every single one of my four sisters
    covered in bruises.'' She said, ``We can't keep doing this. We
    have to keep working.''
        And every time when I step into this work and I realize
    that despite everything that we do and despite all of the work
    that you have all done to ensure that this legislation passed,
    we are not seeing the fulfillment of it happening within the
    administration. They need to be held accountable, and those of
    us who are doing the work need to receive the funding that we
    desperately need to do so.
        I have done and volunteered more than 20--my team and I
    have done more than 2,000 hours of unpaid work in this 4 years,
    along with right now I am actually funding the State of Hawaii,
    who passed legislation to address missing and murdered
    indigenous women and girls into a data report, but they didn't
    give them any money. So I raised $100,000 and am currently
    funding the work in the State of Hawaii because our women
    matter that much.
        Mr. Simpson. Let me--let me interrupt you for just a
    second. I am sorry.
        Would that funding that you are requesting come out of the
    Department of Justice? Is that where it should be funded or
    whatever? Or out of this budget?
        Ms. Echo-Hawk. So we are asking for $474 million for a
    line-item for the tribal epidemiology centers, which is the
    work. The tribal epidemiology centers work across tribal
    nations. The 11 represent every tribal nation within the IHS
    regions, and the Urban Indian Health Institute works with the
    urban Indian population, which is more than 70 percent of our
    population. And so that line-item for $474 million would be
    under IHS.
        Mr. Simpson. Okay.
        Ms. Echo-Hawk. Am I willing to take DOJ money? Yes.
    [Laughter.]
        Well, I am tired of talking about what I can do with so
    little. What we are looking for is parity.
        And I will close with a story. I was working with a group
    of young women who had been kidnapped, incarcerated,
    trafficked. They were forcibly injected with heroin and other
    types of drugs.
        They had been recovered, and a tribal community was
    bringing them together. They were working to bring healing to
    them. They are using their traditional value system. Everything
    every tribal leader here has been talking about--connection to
    land, connection to culture, resources within the Indian Health
    Service, which is why we need mandatory advance appropriations.
        And I was sitting there with those young women, and I was
    sharing with them my own story. I am a survivor of sexual
    assault and of rape that was never prosecuted as a result of
    being an Indian person on Indian land. And I told them the
    story of the blueberry.
        And a blueberry in my tribal community in Alaska, where I
    was born and raised, it teaches us so many things. It teaches
    us how to survive in the greatest cold and the most heat. It
    has the most nutrients. It teaches us how to go out and gather.
    It tells us that we can survive despite all obstacles. I shared
    that with those young women.
        About a year later, I was at another conference. A young
    woman comes up, and she runs up to me, and she gives me the
    biggest hug. And she grabbed me and she said, ``Abigail, I want
    you to know that today I am a blueberry.'' She is like ``I can
    survive. I can make it. And I didn't think I could. But I am a
    blueberry because I am learning my language. I am connected to
    my land again. I am incorporated in my community. I am with my
    elders.'' She said, ``Abigail, I can be a blueberry, too.''
        And so, today, I challenge you to think about what it means
    for all of you to step into that same place, hold DOJ
    accountable, get the resources to Indian Country and law
    enforcement on tribal lands and urban Indian areas, to the
    tribal epidemiology centers into the Indian Health Service,
    appropriately in fulfilling treaty and trust responsibility.
    Because you are a part of our story, too.
        And when I go again and I see that young woman because now
    this young woman is about to graduate college. She is going to
    be stepping into these spaces and places and advocating for her
    people, and we are going to work to ensure. And that is the
    kind of healing we are bringing. When we bring our cultural
    value systems in, when we fight for our people, we will see the
    healing because opiates, substance misuse, health disparities
    are all grounded in trauma. And until we address the root cause
    of that, we are going to be sitting at these tables for
    decades.
        I don't want to sit at this table. I want to talk about
    healing, and I want to be a blueberry along with all of you.
        [The statement of Ms. Echo-Hawk follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you, Abigail. I let her go on because I
    interrupted her.
        Aurene.
        Ms. Martin. That is a tough act to follow. [Laughter.]
                                  ----------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                   NATIONAL INDIAN CHILD WELFARE ASSOCIATION

                                    WITNESS

    AURENE MARTIN, TREASURER, NATIONAL INDIAN CHILD WELFARE ASSOCIATION
        Ms. Martin. [Speaking Native language.] Good morning,
    Chairman Simpson, Ranking Member Pingree, and Mr. Ellzey.
        My name is Aurene Martin, and I am a citizen of the Bad
    River Band of Ojibwe in Wisconsin, and I am also on the Board
    of Directors for the National Indian Child Welfare Association.
        NICWA is a national American Indian/Alaska Native
    organization with nearly 40 years of experience in policy
    development focused on Native children and families. Our
    mission is twofold.
        First, it is to address issues of child abuse and neglect
    through training, research, policy, and community development
    and, two, to support compliance with the Indian Child Welfare
    Act. And that is really my connection. I am an adoptive mom of
    two Native children, and I practiced Indian Child Welfare Act
    law when I was a practicing attorney.
        But today, I am here to talk about BIA programs serving
    Native children and families. And before I go into my comments,
    I do want to thank the committee. I want to thank you
    personally for what you have done in the last few years on
    child welfare programs. You have created some increases that
    have been extremely helpful, and we do appreciate that.
        But your support for these programs is extremely important
    because Native children are placed in foster care at a rate
    higher than that of the general population. In some States, it
    is 10 times higher than the general population.
        Yet tribal governments have some of the most limited access
    to Federal child welfare funding. In many cases, they don't
    have any direct access, and they have to access funding through
    States. We know and studies have shown that the surest way to
    reduce the flow of Native children into the child welfare
    system is to ensure that tribes have full capacity to protect
    their children and families, whether they are at home or in
    State care.
        Accordingly, we make the following recommendations. First,
    we recommend that Indian Child Protection and Family Violence
    Prevention Act grant programs--get that wrong every time--be
    fully funded at $90 million. These two grant programs remain
    our highest priority.
        The law creating these programs was enacted in 1990 to
    address the lack of reporting, investigation, treatment, and
    prevention of child abuse in Indian Country. The act was very
    successful in improving the reporting of abuse because it
    created mandatory reporting requirements for people that have
    regular contact with Native children. It also created the
    background check system for foster families.
        But the unique provisions of the act authorizing direct
    funding for child abuse prevention and treatment for Native
    families was only funded last year by this committee in an
    amount of $1 million. We request this program be funded fully
    every year, but we hope you consider any increase because we
    know that any access to this program will be groundbreaking.
        The other priority recommendation I would like to make with
    you is to increase funding for the ICWA on-reservation program
    and off-reservation program, changing on-reservation from $17.8
    million to $30 million and increasing the urban program from
    $1.5 million to $5 million. The BIA ICWA program provides
    dedicated funds for tribes to provide their own child welfare
    services, both to children living on and off the reservation.
        But even though tribal child welfare programs work with
    some of the most at-risk and needy families in America, they
    have access to fewer resources than their State counterparts.
    Although almost every tribe receives ICWA funding from BIA,
    almost two-thirds of tribes receive less than $30,000. This
    $30,000 is expected to support a wide array of essential child
    welfare services, including child protective services, family
    reunification and rehabilitation, case management, foster care,
    recruitment and retention, and adoption services. And that is
    not even enough to fund one full-time position.
        The same services are provided by ICWA off-reservation
    programs usually through urban programs, but the funding is
    even more scarce. We know that Native children living outside
    of their communities face bigger challenges because they have
    harder time connecting with their culture communities and
    kinship networks. These services are crucial, as the 2020
    Census indicated that nearly 87 percent of all individuals who
    identified as Native lived off-reservation, up from 67 percent
    in 2010.
        And 60 percent of individuals live in metropolitan areas,
    making urban programs vitally important to the tribal child
    welfare system. We are so grateful that you appropriated $1.5
    million last year, a $500,000 increase in this program, and we
    are hoping that you will consider bigger increases for this
    year.
        In conclusion, I would like to note that the statistics
    tell us that both the Native population and the number of
    Indian families involved in the child welfare system has been
    increasing for a number of years. We also know that prevention,
    early intervention, and treatment of childhood trauma saves
    lives, but it also saves money because children who experience
    violence are more likely to have problems and enter the system.
        Thank you for the opportunity to testify today, and I am
    happy to answer any questions.
        [The statement of Ms. Martin follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Thank you both for testifying.
        You don't even want to get me started on this. This is a
    huge problem. The abuse of Native American women in this
    country is horrendous. They have just started making some TV
    movies about it. I think that has raised the public's attention
    to this.
        But I grew up, the southern border of my town was Fort Hall
    Indian Reservation. I went to school with a lot of kids. I saw
    the abuse that Indian children took and stuff. Not just on the
    reservation, but the abuse they took at school.
        This is, to me, almost the largest problem that has got to
    be addressed. I mean, there are other things. Yes, we need new
    buildings for schools. We need--we can go on and on. This can't
    happen in this country. We can't allow it to happen.
        So I appreciate everything that you all have done and are
    doing to try to address this problem.
        Ms. Echo-Hawk. Thank you so much.
        And I did a study that was released in 2018 that actually
    showed--it was a study in Seattle, Washington, where of the
    Native women we talked to, 94 percent of them had been raped or
    coerced into sex in their lifetime.
        In addition to that, one of the things we found is that
    they were more likely to have broken bones and large amounts of
    broken teeth, which is not actually the same when you look at
    other populations. And so my staff and I were thinking about
    that. It is like we could think about it as people beat us
    more, or we are fighting back harder.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes.
        Ms. Echo-Hawk. So we really want to see that strength. We
    have been working with--for us at the Seattle Indian Health
    Board, we have a full dental program, but we also--I have been
    working with American--the folks from the American Dental
    Association to think about what pro bono work looks like.
        And unfortunately, because of the underfunding of the
    Indian Health Service, because we need mandatory advance
    appropriations, our programs don't always have what we need to
    truly do some of the basic things. Cosmetic dentistry for
    somebody's teeth who were all broken out because they were
    beaten.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes.
        Ms. Echo-Hawk. Those are the necessary things our people
    need, and we deserve that. That is a basic dignity, let alone
    now we need to have the mental health resources to address the
    problem at the root cause.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes.
        Ms. Echo-Hawk. And so, again, mandatory advance
    appropriations for the Indian Health Service is absolutely key.
        Mr. Simpson. Having been a dentist in the real world, I
    know exactly what you are talking about. And of course, you
    don't have the same challenge in the urban Indian Health
    Service. There are actually dentists within miles of where you
    are. But when you are out on a reservation, Pine Ridge or
    something, how do you get dentist to go out there? How do you
    get a dentist to live there or a physician or something else?
        And there are so many challenges, but I will tell you--and
    I mean this from the heart--we cannot in this country allow
    what is 94 percent----
        Ms. Echo-Hawk. Yes. Yes.
        Mr. Simpson [continuing]. Of the women have been raped?
        Ms. Echo-Hawk. In the study that I did in Seattle,
    Washington, yes. And I do want to say for the urban Indian
    health programs, as funded through a contract through the
    Indian Health Service, we do receive less than 2 percent of the
    overall IHS budget. We do struggle with getting dentists within
    our program.
        And while there are dentists, for example, outside of our
    agencies, our folks, because of the socioeconomic deprivation
    that they experience, don't have the resources to access those
    services. So it is still an incredible gap and one that we are
    always addressing across the urban Indian health programs.
        Mr. Simpson. Well, I would be more than happy to work with
    you with the ADA because I have a close association with them.
        Ms. Echo-Hawk. Love that.
        Mr. Simpson. And see what we can do about pro bono. We can
    find dentists that do pro bono work that are willing to do
    that.
        Ms. Echo-Hawk. I would really appreciate that, and so would
    our women.
        Mr. Simpson. You bet.
        Ms. Pingree.
        Ms. Pingree. Yes, thank you. And thank you so much, Mr.
    Chair. I really appreciate your strong commitment to dealing
    with this.
        And thank you so much for your commitment and the amazing
    work you have done. And really, your personal commitment of
    raising money. You should never have to be in that position,
    but then we shouldn't have so much neglect of this problem. And
    I would be fully committed to doing anything we can to make
    sure that the Justice Department--we are a small committee, and
    we should budget everything we possibly can to meet the
    requests that you have mentioned. But also we can make sure
    that the Justice Department in this administration is doing
    their job because it is a just staggering issue that we are
    still dealing with this.
        Mr. Simpson. I can see some joint letters coming up.
        Ms. Pingree. I can see so. Yes, yes.
        Ms. Echo-Hawk. We would love to work with you on those.
        Ms. Pingree. Put down on that. So, yes, we would love to
    have your guidance on that. And really, thank you again for
    your work and your support, and I am just anxious to work with
    you in any way we can.
        And of course, you two are dealing with two really critical
    heart-breaking problems, the issues of women and the issues of
    children. And so many of these issues that you brought up are
    being under addressed.
        And I just can't even imagine when you said that almost
    two-thirds of the tribe received $30,000. And then the list
    that you made of all the things that have to be done with that
    money, that just doesn't even come close to being a drop in the
    bucket to what is needed. So I hope we can continue to do more.
        Thank you both, really, for the work you do.
        Ms. Martin. Thank you so much.
        Mr. Simpson. Mr. Ellzey.
        Mr. Ellzey. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
        Thank you all for being here today.
        This is my first hearing. I am new to this subcommittee,
    and I am grateful to be on it. I waited to listen until I heard
    all morning's testimony, and a lot of folks have gone, on the
    problem that faces our tribal nations.
        I am a husband, father, warrior, and protector, Navy 20
    years. I live in Texas. I don't have any tribal--tribes in my
    district, but what I have heard this morning is that we need to
    break the cycle of hopelessness and dependence that has existed
    for so long.
        And as we talk about kids, as a Naval aviator, there is not
    one thing that occurs to end up in a mishap. It is a chain of
    things. We call it the Swiss cheese model. And everything has
    to line up to have the end result being that mishap. And if you
    take one of the--if you block one of those holes in the Swiss
    cheese, you can effect mission success instead of mission
    failure.
        And so what I have heard this morning is we have a failure
    of education, employment, addiction, abuse of women, crime,
    housing, healthcare, and inflation. And we have to start with
    stopping one of those issues going forward. It seems like from
    where I sit, the easiest one--easiest. Nothing is easy. The
    most direct one is safe communities with adequate law
    enforcement based on full fricking treaty adherence to getting
    the law enforcement that you deserve.
        And as I have--it is very hard not to get emotional and, as
    I think you said, don't even get me started, as a warrior
    protector, and your staggering numbers. And of course, as you
    mentioned, it is in pop culture now. But now that I am a part
    of this committee, I would like to learn more. You have talked
    about the victims. Who are the serial perpetrators of these
    crimes over and over and over again?
        Can you answer that in 1 minute or less?
        Ms. Echo-Hawk. Yes. So we actually find that a majority of
    the perpetrators are white men who have identified,
    particularly in reservation areas, the opportunity to exploit a
    maze of jurisdiction where they are not prosecuted.
        So the things that are happening under the Violence Against
    Women Act, the expansion of tribal authorities is absolutely
    essential and needs to continue to grow and have further
    funding associated with that. And we also need to be holding
    law enforcement accountable that is outside of the reservations
    in doing that.
        And again, and when we talk about it being hopelessness
    within our reservations, I would say this room here is full of
    hope. Because when we have the full fulfillment of our treaty
    and trust responsibility, we have the ability to stand up for
    our people, and our culture community and commitment to each
    other is what continues to give us hope, despite overwhelming
    obstacles.
        Mr. Ellzey. Thank you for that answer. It is staggering,
    and I look forward to supporting in any way I can to--and as
    you said, there is always hope. So I look forward to being a
    part of that solution on this subcommittee.
        Thank you for your testimony, everybody's testimony this
    morning. Thank you for your time.
        I yield back, Mr. Chairman.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes, one of the things that really is eye-
    opening is to go visit our Indian brothers and sisters on their
    terms, on their land, and see what is actually going on on the
    ground and stuff. And we started that a few years ago. I think
    we were the first committee, when I was chairman, that took on,
    went out to Oklahoma and South Dakota and a few other place,
    and then other chairmen have followed up.
        We couldn't do it the last couple years because of COVID
    and all that kind of stuff, but we are going to continue that.
    And we certainly invite anyone that wants to go along, and we
    will decide which areas we are going to go this year. We want
    to go to some place we haven't been yet.
        Because I think it is important not only that you come and
    talk to us, as you are today, but we come and talk to you out
    on your reservations and your places of living and stuff about
    the challenges you are facing there.
        So I thank you for your testimony today very much.
        Ms. Echo-Hawk. Thank you so much.
        Mr. Simpson. Thank you.
        That concludes the morning session. We will begin again at
                                          1:00 p.m.

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

       AMERICAN INDIAN AND ALASKA NATIVE PUBLIC WITNESS DAY 1--AFTERNOON
                                    SESSION

                                    WITNESS

    DONNA THOMPSON, VICE-CHAIRWOMAN, FORT HALL BUSINESS COUNCIL OF THE
        SHOSHONE-BANNOCK TRIBES
        Mr. Simpson. The committee will come to order.
        We now have Donna Thompson, vice chairman of the Fort Hall
    Business Council of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes, Quincy
    Ellenwood, Treasurer, Nez Perce Tribal Executive Committee, and
    Keenan Groesbeck, councilman, Northern Arapaho Business
    Council. Donna, you are up.
        Ms. Thompson. Good afternoon. My name is Donna [Audio
    malfunction.] I want----
        Mr. Simpson. You want the mic.
        Ms. Thompson. I want to thank Chairman Simpson, who is our
    representative, for his continued efforts on behalf of the
    Shoshone-Bannock tribes, and for his efforts on salmon recovery
    for the Snake River. Thank you.
        My written testimony includes several issues of great
    importance to the tribe, including the need for more funding
    for the Johnson-O'Malley Program, BIA road maintenance,
    wildlife conservation, and wildland fire programs, as well as
    the need to maintain advanced appropriations for the Indian
    Health Service in the fiscal year 2024 appropriations. But
    today, I will focus on one: the Gay Mine Superfund Site,
    located on our reservation, BIE teacher salaries, and the need
    for a comprehensive approach to the opioid epidemic.
        The Gay Mine was an open pit phosphate mine that operated
    between 1946 and 1993. Ultimately, the mine would cover 7,000
    acres of reservation land with 158 pits, each ranging in size
    from 15 to 20 acres, many with high walls of 50 feet or more,
    and many with contaminated pit lakes. There are also 57 mill
    shell piles with over 30 million tons of overburden. The
    original lease in 1946 stated that Simplot would return the
    land in ``as good condition as received.'' This did not happen
    when the mine closed in 1993, and 30 years later, this has
    still not happened.
        Over the past 30 years, minimal reclamation work to make
    the land usable, again, has occurred, and only recently has
    environmental remediation work started to address the
    contamination caused by the mine. While the EPA remediation
    process is underway, the tribe would like to lead a strategic
    study to plan the reclamation of the site in order to utilize
    the area for future development of the tribe. When Gay Mine was
    leased in 1940, the tribes never thought that when the mine
    closed, we would never be able to use the land again. We,
    again, ask for your help in reclaiming our reservation land by
    directing the BLM and BIA to work with the tribe to undertake a
    strategic reclamation study of Gay Mine.
        Turning to the need for more funding for the BIE teacher
    salaries, the current funding levels prevent providing
    competitive salaries for qualified teachers at the Shoshone-
    Bannock Junior/Senior High School, which is a tribally-
    controlled BIE School on the reservation. Right now, the only
    way our school can compete on teacher salaries with local
    schools in Idaho is to use carryover funding, over $146,000
    this school year. Over the last 2 weeks, the school has been
    closed for 4 days due to a lack of certified teachers. This is
    not sustainable for the school. While the BIE has informed the
    school that additional funding was provided and the school
    should be following the BIE teacher salary schedule, the school
    is simply not receiving enough funding to meet the BIE teacher
    schedule. As a result, the school is having great difficulty in
    recruiting and retaining high-qualified certified teachers as
    well as having funding to provide a guidance counselor and a
    school resource officer. We urge the subcommittee to hold an
    oversight hearing on the BIE and to increase funding for
    teacher salaries.
        Finally, I want to make an urgent plea to the subcommittee
    to help us address the opioid epidemic that our community is
    facing. In the past 2 weeks alone, we have lost four tribal
    members to overdose. There is simply not enough funding for
    prevention and treatment. The tribes lack any suitable detox
    center or treatment facility on the reservation, limiting the
    ability of those in need to get treatment. Further, the lack of
    enforcement and prosecution of non-Indians on the reservation
    by the Federal Government is making the reservation a haven for
    drug dealers. We need immediate assistance to combat this
    issue.
        Thank you for the opportunity to testify.
        [The statement of Ms. Thompson follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you, Donna. Keenan.
        Mr. Groesbeck. Yes, sir.
                                  ----------                              --
    --------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                       NORTHERN ARAPAHO BUSINESS COUNCIL

                                    WITNESS

    KEENAN GROESBECK, COUNCILMAN, NORTHERN ARAPAHO BUSINESS COUNCIL
        Mr. Groesbeck. Good afternoon, Chairman Simpson, Ranking
    Member Pingree, and the members of the subcommittee. My name is
    Keenan Groesbeck, and I am a member of the Northern Arapaho
    Tribe, and I am business councilman from Wyoming. And I come
    here to speak on behalf of the Native American Church and
    peyote habitat that is being lost, you know. And I come before
    you guys today, and I want to thank you for your time, you
    know, to hear us out, you know.
        And we are here as a representative for the Native American
    Church, you know. I participate and run ceremonies as a tribal
    leader for the Northern Arapaho Tribe, you know. And the issue
    that we have now is the decline of habitat for the peyote
    cacti, and it is a holy sacrament through our Native American
    Church. And I come before the subcommittee here to ask for some
    funding, you know, to help the decline of the habitat. And
    through the efforts by us, sustaining the purity habitat is
    going to sustain a way of life, you know, that we have as
    Native-American peoples throughout Indian Country, you know.
        And the Northern Arapaho Tribe are 1 of 5 tribes that
    practice the Native American Church way of life, you know, and
    it is going to be detrimental to our people and other people
    for the loss of the habitat for the peyote cactus, you know?
    And we are here to ask the subcommittee here for allocations of
    funds, you know, to pay the private landowners in Southwest
    Texas, Laredo area, for the habitat, for the peyote that grows
    there. And through development of energy, and the roads, and
    construction, and everything, you know, the habitat is being
    lost at an alarming rate, you know. And we are here to put the
    markers up, and I will have you guys look into that, you know,
    see more Federal oversight on the issue of the peyote habitat
    loss, you know? And for myself, you know, it is a pretty scary
    time for our Indian people, you know, because we depend on this
    way of life, you know? It is the way we worship, you know? It
    is to the core over people, you know, how we get along with one
    another and how we support one another, and it would really
    hurt our tribe enormously, you know, if we was to not have the
    peyote to use as a holy sacrament in our Native American
    Church, you know.
        So on that, we are just asking for some stability into the
    habitat so we don't lose it, and that is what I have to say
    today. Thank you.
        [The statement of Mr. Groesbeck follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you.
        Mr. Groesbeck. Yep.
        Mr. Simpson. Appreciate it.
        Mr. Groesbeck. Mm-hmm.
        Mr. Simpson. And then next, we have Quincy.
                                  ----------                              --
    --------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                      NEZ PERCE TRIBAL EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

                                    WITNESS

    QUINTIN ``QUINCY'' ELLENWOOD, TREASURER, NEZ PERCE TRIBAL EXECUTIVE
        COMMITTEE
        Mr. Ellenwood. [Speaking native language], Quincy,
    Illinois. I am known to my people [Speaking native language],
    the Nez Perce people, as [Speaking native language] after the
    late John Miller of Clear Creek, Idaho. And I am currently
    serving or the Nez Perce Tribal Executive Committee as the
    treasurer, and I am also the Natural Resource chairman. I also
    sit on Human Resources, Law and Order, and Land Commission. I
    want to tell you all thank you very much for your time today,
    and it is an honor to be here to testify on behalf of my Nez
    Perce people. Although I want to only summarize a few of the
    recommendations contained, you know, in this written testimony,
    I hope that you will fully respect the request of the
    subcommittee and the recommendations made by the Nez Perce
    Nation, and also those from the Columbia River Inter-Tribal
    Fish Commission during their deliberations for fiscal year
    2024.
        I want to also give a big testimony towards our Indian
    Health Services for the fiscal year 2024 and increased
    appropriations on a bipartisan basis to the multitude of
    programs under your jurisdiction, which tribal nations
    administer and benefit from, funding increases to tribal
    programs, including the fiscal year 2023 build on increases
    secured to Indian Country in fiscal year 2022. We want to say
    thank you.
        The Nez Perce tribe does a tremendous amount of work
    administering programs with the Bureau of Indian Affairs,
    Indian Health Services, and Environmental Protection Agency
    under 638 programs and direct services. The Federal funding for
    this work benefits tribal and non-tribal citizens within the
    exterior boundaries of the Nez Perce Indian Reservation. It is
    very important to protecting the treaty-reserved resources to
    the Nez Perce Tribe, and the tribe urges you to continue the
    funding of these programs to the fullest extent.
        The Nez Perce Tribe, we have our own law enforcement and
    social services are two of the larger departments that the
    tribe administers. Currently, the tribe, we have to subsidize
    our law enforcement program to ensure services are provided
    throughout the Nez Perce Indian Reservation. In addition, we
    have constructed our own jail facility and finance all this for
    the Nez Perce Tribe because of the lack of cooperation with
    some of the local jail facilities in the five counties that we
    have on the Nez Perce Indian Reservation. So we would greatly
    appreciate advocacy for work for more funding through the
    Bureau of Indian Affairs.
        The Bureau of Indian Affairs, Natural Resource Tribal
    Priority Allocations, and Endangered Species Program funding.
    This funding is key for our work related to salmon, [Speaking
    native language] in our language, and the steelhead. And also
    the Bureau of Indian Affairs Rights Protection Implementation
    Account has also been critical in supporting our exercise of
    treaty-reserved rights on and off the reservation, and
    particularly, hunting and fishing and monitoring our fish
    harvest. In addition to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the tribe
    operates a healthcare facility, which provides services to over
    4,000 Nez Perce and non-Nez Perce. This computes to over 40,000
    medical provider visits, and we have the main healthcare
    facilities in Lapwai, Idaho, with a satellite facility in
    Kamiah, to my people [Speaking native language] first, and then
    Kamiah second.
        The tribe's funding through the Environmental Protection
    Agency comes from a variety of programs: the Clean Water Act,
    Indian General Assistance Program, the Clean Water Act, just to
    name a few. And remember, these programs have been funded at
    the same levels for several years, and the tribe would
    recommend and increase in fiscal year 2024. The Nimiipuu River,
    salmon people, and we also travel to buffalo country. Since
    time immemorial, we have fished in the Columbia, and the
    Snakes, and the Clear Water Rivers. The tribe requests that
    this subcommittee continue the EPA's Columbia River Basin
    Restoration Program. We recommend that no less than $3 million
    provided for fiscal year 2023 be appropriated for 2024.
        We also work with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in
    operation of the Kooskia National Fish Hatchery, which is
    neighboring to where I grew up on the CERCLA area, which is a
    tributary to Clearwater River. The tribe manages the hatchery
    and the Snake River Rights Act of 2004. The hatchery is in dire
    need of new water supply. An extraordinary amount of sediment,
    it accumulates in the current water that is feeding Kooskia
    National Fish Hatchery. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that
    service should be allocated adequate funding with operations
    and importance in the O&M of this hatchery facility. Also, the
    State and Tribal Wildlife Grant Program has enabled the tribe
    to monitor gray wolves, conduct research on bighorn and
    California condor habitat, and conserve rare plants. The tribe
    does a tremendous amount of work with the Forest Service, and
    we just recently signed a GNA, Good Neighbor Authority, and we
    work with 12 different national forests that we deal with in
    fishing, hunting, eating, and exercising our way of life, which
    is now considered the treaty.
        In closing, thank you all for your time. It is an honor to
    be in your presence and also your attention to missing,
    murdered indigenous women. It needs more and more advocacy, and
    I stand with it, and I will do the best I can to always protect
    the givers and takers of life: our women folks. Thank you.
        [The statement of Mr. Ellenwood follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you. You say it is an honor to be here.
    You know, what an honor it is to have you, truthfully, so thank
    you all for being here.
        I have really enjoyed working with the Nez Perce Tribe on
    trying to save the salmon in the Snake River. We are going to
    get it done. It is going to take some time, something you have
    been working on for years. I am a latecomer to it, but we have
    been working very hard with your tribe, and with the Shoshone-
    Bannock Tribe, and the tribes along the Snake River in Colombia
    to try to restore these salmon. And it is hard to do. It is
    controversial. It is going to take some changes to the way we
    are doing things right now, but I appreciate working with you
    on that and the other things that you have done on the Nez
    Perce Reservation, the tribes have done. So great work.
        Donna, have any of those high walls come down yet?
        Ms. Thompson. No.
        Mr. Simpson. None? Zero? I told them, give me some
    dynamite, you know? [Laughter.]
        Ms. Thompson [continuing]. Come back again.
        Mr. Simpson. I enjoyed our tour up there, and it is such
    beautiful country----
        Ms. Thompson. Right.
        Mr. Simpson [continuing]. That it does need to get restored
    to its original state, and we have got to make that happen.
        Ms. Thompson. Yes.
        Mr. Simpson. And as I said at the time, I don't know what
    it is going to take, but it is going to take the cooperation of
    all sides. And I was hoping that the company, Simplot, and the
    tribes could get together and come to some resolution to start
    working on this because it has got to get done, and it is just
    getting more expensive as we wait. So I look forward to working
    with you on that.
        You know, I didn't know that we were having trouble keeping
    teachers because of low pay on the reservation versus higher
    pay in Blackfoot and Pocatello, I suspect. I knew that that was
    a problem that I brought up earlier, in fact, in another panel
    with police officers and firemen. I didn't know that that was
    the case with teachers also. I don't have the answer to that,
    but it is something we got to work on. It is an issue that not
    just affects tribes, but I noticed when I was a city councilman
    in Blackfoot, we would train all the police officers and
    firemen for Pocatello and Idaho Falls, bigger cities, you know?
    And as soon as they got trained, they would go there where they
    get paid more. Well, tribes, it is the same problem with
    tribes. They are the training grounds for the police and
    firemen in the larger cities that really are on the borders of
    the Fort Hall Indian Reservation, but I find that that is true
    across the country.
        I don't have the answer to that, but I brought it up with
    several individuals, and it is something that I think we need
    to work on very seriously. So I look forward to working with
    you on that and trying to address that problem. But as you
    know, I have always been thrilled to work with the Sho-Bans on
    issues that they have out there. I sat one day in a classroom
    where they were teaching Bannock language to bunch of
    youngsters, you know, and just listened to them. You know, we
    can't lose our languages of our Native-American tribes in this
    country. We have to find a way to maintain those languages and
    stuff. We have to find a way to maintain those cultures.
        I got an award from American Rivers the other night, and I
    said, you know, I have been working with the tribes on saving
    salmon, and I told them, this was at the reception, I said, you
    know what? I said, there is a wisdom there that we don't take
    advantage of with our Native-American tribes. Sometimes we take
    it too lightly, something we need to listen to and learn from.
    So I appreciate all of you being here today. Where are you
    located?
        Mr. Groesbeck. Central----
        Mr. Simpson. Central. That is right. Okay. Yeah. Ms.
    Pingree.
        Ms. Pingree. Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thank you so much
    for your thoughts are, and also your commitment to restoring
    Salmon Rivers, also a main issue. And as you said, it is not
    easy. It is often controversial, and it takes a lot of
    dedication and a lot of time, but it is particularly important,
    I think. Where our tribal communities have the salmon rights,
    it is really extremely important, so thank you for that. And we
    have learned a little bit about the disappearance of native
    peyote today, and so I am interested to keep learning more
    about that and seeing what we need to do to help preserve those
    areas where it is growing.
        And, Leslie, just tell me a little bit more, and I don't
    have to take up too much time about this, but so, how has it
    taken so long? If that was 1993 and there is still a company
    actively involved--you said, Simplot and FMC--and it is a
    potential or is a Superfund site, what is the barrier here?
    Like, how did they walk away in 1993 and not do any of the
    cleanup? And then I am pretty sure my calculations, it is 30
    years now, right?
        Mr. Ellenwood. Well, we could have a long discussion----
        [Laughter.]
        Ms. Pingree. All right. I may have to just buy the chair a
    drink sometime and hear the whole story, but it just seems like
    we need to do more. And you are not the only cleanup site or
    Superfund site we have heard about from tribes today, just----
        Ms. Thompson. We have two on our reservation, and, you
    know, that is----
        Mr. Simpson. Yep.
        Ms. Thompson. It is horrible because we cannot use the land
    because, you know, just like I said, they were going to restore
    it to its, you know, natural state, but that has not happened.
    I would love if any of you could come out and see what we have.
    I think you would be probably surprised. Unless you can see it,
    I don't know if we can explain it.
        Ms. Pingree. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
        Ms. Thompson. But thank you. Anything that can happen to
    help us, that would be very well received.
        Ms. Pingree. All right. I will try to learn more about it.
    Thank you so much.
        Mr. Simpson. Ms. McCollum.
        Ms. McCollum. Thank you, Mr. Chair. So, Ms. Thompson, is
    there a school shortage of teachers in Idaho that you are aware
    of, I mean, because I think there is a national problem with
    people not going into teaching.
        Ms. Thompson. Yes, there is, but, however, because our pay
    scale is lower than the State----
        Ms. McCollum. Yeah.
        Ms. Thompson [continuing]. School, and we have a hard
    time----
        Ms. McCollum. And then you have issues with housing and
    where people live.
        Ms. Thompson. Right.
        Ms. McCollum. And if you are married and you have a spouse
    that works, and that, but I think as we hear about this--I am a
    former teacher--there is going to be a real crunch----
        Ms. Thompson. Mm-hmm.
        Ms. McCollum [continuing]. For teachers in general. And if
    we don't get this fixed, you are always going to be behind,
    yeah.
        Ms. Thompson. Absolutely.
        Ms. McCollum. Councilmember Groesbeck, so I want to
    understand your journey. So you are in Wyoming now.
        Mr. Groesbeck. Yeah.
        Ms. McCollum. The peyote is in Texas.
        Mr. Groesbeck. Yeah.
        Ms. McCollum. So tell me your journey.
        Mr. Groesbeck. We have the tribe, you could call it. You
    could call it enough to pick it, to gather it, you know? And
    what is going on now is the private landowners, you know, their
    land is being developed, so it is being lost. We go down there
    with the medicine, and when we bring it home, we use the
    sacrament.
        Ms. McCollum. So were there also tribes that also went
    there? I mean, in Minnesota, we have Pipestone.
        Mr. Groesbeck. Yeah.
        Ms. McCollum. So tribes travel for Pipestone, so this is
    just not an issue for your tribe.
        Mr. Groesbeck. It is an issue for all tribes in Indian
    Country, yeah, so that would be, like, a bona fide tragedy. It
    would be, like, the Kiowa, Comanche, Cheyenne, you know, and
    the Cheyenne-Arapahos in Oklahoma, and there are more other
    tribes that use it.
        Ms. McCollum. Are there any, and I can find out more about
    this later, but are there any tribes where that was ancestral
    homeland where maybe the Federal Government and tribes together
    could work to, you know, purchase back some of the land or
    something like that?
        Mr. Groesbeck. I think there are some other tribes that
    have done it. It can be, like, Comanche and Apache, you know--
    --
        Ms. McCollum. Okay.
        Mr. Groesbeck [continuing]. Yeah, route through there. That
    is what we are asking is for dollars from habitat conservation
    demonstration project for fiscal year----
        Ms. McCollum. Okay. So there would be many who would
    benefit from something like that.
        Mr. Groesbeck. Yeah.
        Ms. McCollum. And, Treasurer Ellenwood, I really
    appreciated the way that you talked about the whole of
    government, not just in the Interior bill. So, you know, when
    Forest Service isn't plussed up and Fish and Wildlife isn't
    plussed up on the right lines, and you aren't plussed up. It is
    a multiplying effect of almost like a death by a thousand
    little cuts. You are not able to move forward. There are the
    lines that go directly to your tribe, but then there are all
    the other lines that go to other things that Mr. Simpson and
    Ms. Pingree will be funding that that your tribe draws from.
    Could you just expand on that a little more?
        Mr. Ellenwood. So yeah, we do a lot of work through the
    Forest Service, you know, through the culverts replacement,
    salmon habitat, and particularly, it would be really beneficial
    hugely to everybody be on the same page to protect each other's
    work. You know, for instance, water quality, you know, we have
    water quality issues in the South Fork area, South Fork of the
    salmon, and so, you know, there is a huge site to be proposed
    there, to protect each other's work that ultimately come
    through the tribe, and to have the advocacy that we have. You
    know, above all, you know, it takes a team. Teamwork makes the
    dream work, and ultimately, we have a right to live our lives
    as God has created us, and as you said, Mr. Chairman, you know,
    there is a lot.
        I urge you all to come out and visit Indian Country, Nez
    Perce country, any other tribe that is out there, because you
    said, Mr. Chairman, there is some huge wisdom that is there. We
    have a right to live our lives as the way God created us, and
    when we have pandemics like this, when people pass, sometimes
    that history is gone. So I urge you as the way it is taught to
    myself to teach it, to learn it, to observe it, to feel it, I
    urge you to come out and do the same along with us. It is a
    beautiful way of life, very, very beautiful way of life.
        Ms. McCollum. Thank you, Mr. Chair [Audio malfunction.].
        Mr. Simpson. Yeah, and we are going to do a little more
    traveling up around there, and I would like to get out of the
    Pacific Northwest, and, I think, down to the southern part of
    this country where we haven't really spent any time down in
    Mississippi, and Alabama, and those places. So we are going to
    be looking at some of these places that we can visit because I
    think, as I said earlier today, that it is important that we
    actually get out and see where you live and the challenges that
    you face and stuff.
        So I thank all of you for being here today. Let me ask you
    one question, Keenan.
        Mr. Groesbeck. Yes, sir.
        Mr. Simpson. Is South Texas the only place that peyote
    grows?
        Mr. Groesbeck. No, it grows across the border.
        Mr. Simpson. Well, I am not sure I want to do that, but----
        [Laughter.]
        Mr. Simpson. Yeah, but its habitat is very small, huh?
        Mr. Groesbeck. Right, so.
        Mr. Simpson. So you couldn't take it up and say I am going
    to grow it in Wyoming or----
        Mr. Groesbeck. I don't know. [Laughter.]
        Mr. Simpson. Pretty rough, huh?
        Mr. Groesbeck. Yeah.
        Mr. Simpson. That would be like Maine trying to grow
    potatoes, huh?
        Mr. Groesbeck. Yeah, that is right? [Laughter.]
        Mr. Simpson. I just get a shot in every time----
        Ms. Pingree. You got my material----
        Mr. Simpson. Yeah, that is right. Yeah. [Laughter.]
        Thank you all for being here today, and thank you for your
    testimony. I appreciate it.
        Okay. Stephen Roe Lewis, governor of the Gila River Indian
    Community; Tehassi Hill, chairman of the Oneida Nation, and
    John Johnson, president of the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake
    Superior Chippewa Indians.
         Voice. They just called votes. Do you want to try to do
    one person?
        Mr. Simpson. They just called votes.
         Voice. Yeah.
        Mr. Simpson. Let's at least listen to one person before we
    go.
         Voice. Okay. Perfect. We will keep an eye on the time.
        Mr. Simpson. We are going to be interrupted in the middle
    of this. We will hear the first testimony from Stephen Roe
    Lewis, and then we have got to go vote real quick. I think it
    is two votes.
         Voice. Two votes, yeah.
        Mr. Simpson. We have two votes, and then we will be back
    and continue, okay?
        So, Stephen, you are up.
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                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                              GILA RIVER COMMUNITY

                                    WITNESS

    STEPHEN ROE LEWIS, GOVERNOR, GILA RIVER INDIAN COMMUNITY
        Mr. Lewis. Thank you. [Speaking native language.] I am
    Governor Stephen Roe Lewis of the Gila River Indian Community.
    Chairman Simpson and Ranking Member Pingree, Congresswoman
    McCollum, and the committee, thank you for the opportunity to
    provide testimony today, and also Congressman Elizey as well.
    Thank you for allowing me to provide testimony on behalf of the
    Gila River Indian Community.
        Now, today I have two requests: first, funding to implement
    the surveying of Federal rights-of-way on our community's
    reservation, Chairman, which is required under legislation
    unique to the community; second, funding for the Indian Self-
    Determination Act Section 105 (l) Program, which will benefit
    Indian Country as a whole. And I want to thank the
    Congresswoman McCollum for being such a champion from the
    beginning on the 105(l).
        In 2018, Congress approved the Gila River Indian
    Communities Federal Rights of Way Easement and Boundary
    Clarification Act. This act was necessary to enable the
    community to obtain the full benefits of the settlement that
    the community reached with the United States to resolve
    litigation that was filed in 2006. The act requires that all
    Federal rights-of-way on the community's reservation be
    surveyed within 6 years of enactment of the law, subject to
    appropriations. So at the time the act was passed, the
    estimated funding needed to complete these surveys was
    approximately $15.5 million. Since the Act became law, the
    community has requested $3 million annually to ensure the
    completion of this work within the 6-year time frame. Now, we
    are in the 5th year since enactment, and only $1 million has
    been appropriated to date, and if annual appropriations
    continue in the $1-million range, it will take another 14
    years, Chairman, to fully implement a settlement that began
    with litigation in 2006.
        Now, the community entered into this settlement in good
    faith with the United States, and Congress passed this act in
    good faith as well, but unless appropriations are consistently
    awarded in the amounts needed to complete implementation of the
    act, that good faith will be breached to all of the committee
    members and Chairman, leaving the community with an unresolved
    portion of its settlement. So today, I am asking this committee
    to allocate a minimum of $3 million to implement this
    legislation so the community can begin the good work in earnest
    as intended when the act was passed in 2018.
        Now, my second request addresses mandatory funding for
    sovereign tribal nation obligations under Section 105 (l) of
    the Indian Self-Determination Act. Today and tomorrow, you will
    hear from my fellow tribal leaders across Indian Country. You
    will hear a consistent theme: the need for improved or newly-
    constructed facilities for schools, law enforcement,
    healthcare, natural resources, and administrative functions.
    Now, Congress has already developed a solution to those
    infrastructure needs for a majority of Indian Country. In 2018,
    I sat in this chair before this committee and proposed a pilot
    construction program, a program that would allow the community
    to design and construct a new school, and then lease that
    school facility back to the Department of the Interior under
    Section 105 (l) authority. You took a chance on that program
    then, and we were able to construct that school less
    expensively and in half the time that it would have taken the
    Federal Government.
        Now, since that time, the community has successfully
    utilized, moved this program forward to construct a second
    school, and last fall, we broke ground on a new police
    department. We have hosted tribes across Indian Country to
    learn about this program to show them that this program works.
    And with the support of this committee and the past two
    administrations, the program has indeed grown. The funding for
    the program has also grown an acknowledgement of this
    innovative approach to meet the needs of Indian Country. The
    funding has been elevated from pilot funding, to line item
    funding, to indefinite funding. Now, the next critical step to
    ensure that the program can be implemented to its full capacity
    and in compliance with the statutory mandates under the Indian
    Self-Determination Act and subsequent court cases is for the
    funding to become mandatory.
        Now, I want to note that this mandatory funding will not
    necessarily help my community. Our construction program is well
    under way, and we have entered into leases on our eligible
    existing facilities, but with help with any rehabilitation and
    repair needed on those buildings, that will help definitely.
    But this funding will help Indian Country by allowing the
    program to reach the potential anticipated by this committee.
    Now, mandatory funding will provide the mechanism needed to
    encourage the public/private partnership, that component of
    this program, by providing the capital needed for tribes to
    construct facilities, which is required before leases can be
    negotiated with the administration.
        Now, this program that I am describing is the embodiment, I
    believe, of the intent of the Indian Self-Determination Act to
    empower tribes to make decisions regarding the scope and type
    of facilities needed to carry out our governmental
    responsibilities to our members. I ask you to finish the job
    and to make this funding mandatory in line with the sovereign
    tribal obligations under this act. And also, in addition, I
    echo my fellow tribal leaders on the need to provide resources
    to tribal nations to address the MMIP issue, the terrible
    scourge of fentanyl that is sweeping across not only this
    Nation, but Indian Country as well, and also the necessary
    behavioral health services that are needed throughout Indian
    Country as well.
        Thank you, Mr. Chair, and Thank you, Members of the
    Committee.
        [The statement of Mr. Lewis follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you, Stephen. We are going to have to
    recess the committee to go vote, a couple of votes, and then we
    will be right back. So have a Coke and a Snickers, but I will
    tell you, Stephen, you mentioned in there that there was an
    agreement you signed with The Federal Government that was
    subject to appropriations. You always want to be really careful
    signing an agreement with the Federal Government that says,
    ``subject to appropriations'', because sometimes it doesn't
    come through. [Laughter.]
        I appreciate it, but we will be back in just a few minutes.
        The committee is in recess.
        [Recess.]
        Mr. Simpson. Tehassi, you are up.
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                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                                 ONEIDA NATION

                                    WITNESS

    TEHASSI HILL, CHAIRMAN, ONEIDA NATION
        Mr. Hill. [Speaking native language.] Greetings, everyone.
    I am Tehassi Hill, chairman for Oneida Nation. It is the people
    that I come from. So [Speaking native language]. Thank you,
    Chairman Simpson, and Ranking Member Pingree, and members of
    the committee. On behalf of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin, I
    submit the following testimony for the Subcommittee on
    Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies hearing on fiscal
    year 2024 annual appropriations bill. The agencies and programs
    involved in the Nation's request are Indian Health Service,
    Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the Environmental Protection
    Agency.
        Indian Health Service funding. I would like to begin my
    formal remarks by offering the subcommittee and those who serve
    on the full committee my gratitude from the Oneida Nation of
    Wisconsin for your efforts to provide advanced appropriations
    to cover Indian Health Services for fiscal year 2024. As you
    know, providing health security to our members has been a
    priority for our nation and all Indian Country for many years.
    Your efforts will likely save lives and bring calm to the many
    who depend on IHS for their services. This was a great step in
    ensuring the Federal Government meets its trust and treaty
    obligations.
        The next step is full and mandatory funding for IHS. Access
    to healthcare is a core element of the Federal treaty and trust
    responsibility. Moving IHS funding from discretionary to
    mandatory will ensure that the health of our people will no
    longer be impacted by government shutdowns or delays in the
    appropriation process. Long-term care. Groundbreaking language
    giving IHS specific authorities for provisions of long-term
    care was authorized in Affordable Care Act. These authorities
    represented a major step forward for our communities.
    Unfortunately, while authorized, these services have not been
    funded. We request Congress fund long-term care in the fiscal
    year 2024 appropriations. The nation has operated a long-term
    care facility since 1978 and currently operates a 48-bed
    multipurpose building they include skilled nursing, congregate
    elder meal site, and physical therapy services. Currently we do
    not receive IHS funding to provide our long-term care services.
        Next item is BIA law enforcement. Our nation's law
    enforcement program is severely underfunded, even by Indian
    Country standards. We only receive about 4 percent of our
    operating budget for criminal investigations. That doesn't even
    cover payroll for 1 of our 22 officers. Our funding allocation
    for public safety is so low because the BIA has chosen not to
    fund police for tribes, and Public Law 280 States. The Bureau
    tells us that in Public Law 280 States, like Wisconsin, that
    the State, not our tribal government, has primary criminal
    jurisdiction, so we don't need the money, they say. That is
    wrong. If we don't provide emergency services for the 27,000
    people living across our 102 square mile reservation, no one
    will. In 2021, our officers made a hundred 173 arrests, of
    which 133 were drug related. We cannot ignore these crimes and
    just say someone else will handle it. To that end, I ask that
    you set a minimum allocation of $500,000 for each tribe within
    the BIA public safety line item.
        Another item for BIA is the realty service funding. The
    nation asks appropriators to increase funding for equipment to
    assist and expedite our processes to acquire lands. The BIA's
    Division of Land Title and Records is to maintain timely,
    certified Federal land title ownership records. However, many
    of these details associated with the work of this office are
    carried out by tribes on their respective reservations. While
    the BIA employees are provided with new equipment on a regular
    basis, tribes, who are being asked to help carry out these
    programs, are failing to receive similar upgrades, or, in some
    instances, even enough computer hardware to carry out their
    responsibilities.
        Beyond the lack of support for technology, BIA has an
    abysmal track record of completing realty transactions in a
    timely manner. FETA Trust applications for even clear-cut
    examples can take between 5 and 10 years to complete. Realty
    transactions on tribal, residential, agriculture, and
    commercially-leased properties can take 6 months to a year, if
    not longer. Individual trust probates can take at least 5
    years, if not longer. It is clear that BIA's trust and realty
    offices are under resource and understaffed, and the nation
    asks Congress to provide funding to rectify these chronic
    issues.
        The next section is the EPA funding. We would like the
    committee to know that Oneida Nation takes the protection of
    our lands and waterways seriously. To that end, we have
    partnered with the Environmental Protection Agency for many
    years. However, our resources are stressed, particularly since
    funding has not increased in 24 years. We also take advantage
    of Section 319 of the Clean Water Act, which partially funds
    our Non-Point Source Program. This program did recently see an
    increase after many years from $30,000 to $36,000 annually, so
    thank you.
        [The statement of Mr. Hill follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you. I appreciate it. John.
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                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

             LAC DU FLAMBEAU BAND OF LAKE SUPERIOR CHIPPEWA INDIANS

                                    WITNESS

    JOHN JOHNSON, PRESIDENT, LAC DU FLAMBEAU BAND OF LAKE SUPERIOR CHIPPEWA
        INDIANS
        Mr. Johnson. [Speaking native language.] Thank you,
    Chairman Simpson, Ranking member Pingree, subcommittee members,
    and staff. I am John Johnson, Senior, president-elect of Lac du
    Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians. I am a second
    term right now as president and have served the tribal
    government for about a decade. I am also the current chairman
    of the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission, GLIFWC.
    I strongly commend to you the work of GLIFWC to protect the
    treaty rights on behalf of the 11 Ojibwe tribes residing in
    Minnesota, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Thank you for your
    invitation to testify regarding the fiscal year 2024 budget. I
    will focus primarily on BIA and IHS.
        Our small reservation is located North Central Wisconsin
    with lands in Southwestern Vilas and Iron Counties. Half of our
    reservation is lakes. The preservation and protection of our
    water, land, and air are critical to the health and well-being
    of all of our reservation residents. We have an enrollment of
    4,141 tribal citizens. Roughly one-half of our members live on
    the reservation along with over 1,615 non-residents. Our tribe
    faces many challenges as a rural remote community that must be
    most governmental services ourselves. Drug misuse is high. We
    are fighting to maintain professional staff and provide them
    with affordable housing, which we lack on our reservation. That
    is why Federal appropriations to the tribe for the programs we
    carry out on behalf of the Federal Government are so important
    to us.
        Despite the modest tribal casino, according to the latest
    data from HUD, we have nearly 700 Native American households
    that fall well below median family income in Vilas County, with
    a population of 25,000 residents'. Median household income was
    $57,000 in 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Our
    median is $17,100 for a family of 4. Seventeen thousand one
    hundred dollars is not a living income.
        Many tribal leaders have come before you for decades to
    repeat a simple truth. In most instances, Federal
    appropriations for Indian tribes spell the difference between
    the success and failure of Federal programs enacted for the
    benefit of Indian tribes. If our tribal programs succeed,
    tribal members lives improve. Funds for scholarships, the
    Johnson-O'Malley Program, and social services, road
    maintenance, law enforcement healthcare help tribes provide a
    healthy and safe environment for our citizens. Since 1975,
    under the Indian Self-Determination And Education Assistance
    Act, Indian tribes have contracted BIE-funded and IHS-funded
    programs and receive funds and the authority to administer
    these programs.
        First, we urge the subcommittee to direct the BIA and IHS
    to reexamine outdated funding formulas and direct these
    agencies to develop and implement more transparent formulas in
    consultation with tribes that consider the geographical
    challenges that each tribe faces. Second, please decrease
    Agency preference for competitive grants and annual
    appropriations. Instead, increase their recurring funding for
    tribal programs that we contract from BIA and IHS under the
    Indian Self-Determination Act. Third, please increase the
    funding line items for the BIA accounts, including BIA, Fish
    and Wildlife, and parks, public safety, and justice, and road
    maintenance as I highlight in my written testimony.
        For example, our fish hatchery operation has a total budget
    of $1.2 million annually. That supports 260 lakes with stock,
    including over 14 million fish, 212,000 fingerlings, including
    walleye, musky brown trout, and perch. The Federal funds we
    receive in our contract with BIA total $503,000. This amount
    represents 46 percent of the total needs. Please increase the
    modest BIA fish, wildlife, and TMDP programs within the BIA
    budgets. Excuse me.
        Our tribe alone requires an additional $432,000 this year
    to address our current full-time employees for our law
    enforcement program staffing needs to hire and recruit two
    additional officers, one detective, one evidence technician,
    and two additional surveillance operators. That figure
    represents 95 percent of all BIA law enforcement funds,
    $455,000 we receive annually. The BIA funding accounts for 17
    percent of our $2.7 million annual law enforcement budget.
    Narcotics and drug crimes are the most significant crimes and
    public safety problems we face. Meth, heroin, and fentanyl
    arrests have exploded in our community, along with drug-related
    overdose calls our officers are called upon to respond. We
    typically lose our officers when 3 years of employment due to
    an existing retirement plan, which cannot compete with outside
    jurisdictions. We need help.
        Finally, please increase the BIA Road Maintenance Program
    to allow us to purchase and replace outdated heavy maintenance
    equipment and provide routine and emergency road maintenance
    services, like snow removal, sanding, and salting. It has been
    over 30 years, in 1990, since Congress included a significant
    one-time appropriation increase to the BIA Roads Maintenance
    Program Account to prevent BIA and contracting 638 tribes to
    upgrade outdated equipment.
        Thank you again for affording me the time and my tribe for
    the testimony here today.
        [The statement of Mr. Johnson follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you all for being here today. I
    appreciate your testimony. And, you know, it seems like there
    is a common theme running through all the testimony that we are
    hearing from the various tribes about the need to increase law
    enforcement funding, and road maintenance, and other types of
    things. So I appreciate what you have to say, and we will
    certainly work with you as we try to put together a 2024 budget
    that isn't ridiculous. That might be hard to do, but we are
    going to try. Anyway, Ms. Pingree.
        Ms. Pingree. I am going to quote you on that, the not
    ridiculous part. Yeah, thank you. Thank you so much, Governor.
    I really appreciate your description of the 105(l). I have
    heard you talk about it before, and you are a great, real
    proponent and a good example to other tribes of how that can
    work, so we will try to continue to increase that funding. I
    thought that was very helpful to hear about the Public Law 280
    States where you don't get a minimum for law enforcement. That
    sounds ridiculous really. Obviously, they are not going to come
    in and do the law enforcement if they don't have to, and
    hearing the representation of the family income of $17,000 for
    4, we all know that is not doable. So my maiden name is
    Johnson, so I am on your team.
        Mr. Johnson. I just wanted to tell you, you know, a lot of
    things that are going on up on our neck of the woods also comes
    up with this heroin, and fentanyl, and stuff like that. There
    are a lot of grandparents raising their grandkids now, and you
    think about the money that they are getting. It was, like,
    $3,200 a month, $3,600 a month. It costs $17,000 a year to
    raise a child, and I just wanted to bring that up. So thank you
    for letting me speak then.
        Mr. Simpson. Ms. Pingree brings up a really interesting
    idea. Your idea about schools and an alternative way on how to
    build them and stuff. That is fascinating because I am all into
    looking at other ways that might be better to accomplish the
    same goal, so I appreciate your testimony. I am going to take a
    look at that. Ms. McCollum.
        Ms. McCollum. Thank you. I think we started working on that
    when you became chair of Energy and Water.
        Mr. Simpson. Yeah. Yeah.
        Ms. McCollum. And it is a great solution for some tribes,
    but we also need to fund other lines for our other tribes. So
    thank you very much for your testimony, Governor. I still
    haven't gotten out to see the schools because of COVID, so you
    are on my bucket list to see the school, but the other thing
    that this committee helped do is the Bug School, which we are
    all very familiar with what we were able to do with looking at
    alternative ways to build, to build faster, to build cheaper.
    And I want to get back to the Bug School, you know, like about
    6 years later and kind of see how it is all holding up. But if
    that works and a combination of that, I think we are well on
    our way to be creative for ways to get schools done faster.
        Mr. Simpson. Really?
        Ms. McCollum. So, you know, because even if you get the
    money, you can't let it sit there for year after year after
    year and just be on a list to keep getting knocked down. That
    was interesting with what you told me about the title records
    because I know we were working with the Bureau of Land
    Management with some of the tribes with some of the expertise
    that was available to them for, whether it was oil, or coal, or
    natural resource development, but just the whole issue of not
    even having the right equipment. I hope you are not using DOS
    computers like the Indian Health Service told us one time. So I
    am going to look a little more into that.
        And then, Mr. Johnson, GLIFWC, is near and dear to my
    heart, and we need to make sure that that we fund that because
    we are the flyaway for so much. I know you are feeling it in
    Maine and Idaho has well. We are all Northern tier States.
    People look at us and think climate resilience is not a big
    deal for our lumber, for our fish, for our land, for our water.
    It is. Our Lakes are suffering now because we don't get the
    same kind of freeze-thaw. You know, the ice flow effects so
    much to do with the fish and the walleye. And, you know, you
    have your salmon, we have our walleye, and perch is good
    eating, too, but thank you for all the work that you do with
    GLIFWC.
        Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Mr. Kilmer.
        Mr. Kilmer. I am happy to yield so we can get back on
    schedule.
        Mr. Simpson. Okay. Thank you. Thank you all for being here
    today, and I don't know what you do with a walleye. I know what
    you do with a salmon. Is a walleye a fish? [Laughter.]
        So now I can tease Betty about walleyes and Chellie about
    potatoes, so we will sit down and have a walleye and potato
    dinner one day.
        Ms. Pingree. I don't know that you want to bring up walleye
    before the next three tribal----
        [Laughter.]
        Ms. McCollum. Yeah.
        Mr. Simpson. I heard the moan out there.
        Ms. McCollum. Not only that, Mr. Chair, I know who actually
    ate the buffalo tongue when we were on a reservation.
        Mr. Simpson. Yes, she did. I didn't, but you did. Okay.
    Thank you all for being here today. We appreciate it very much.
    Kevin DuPuis, Michael Fairbanks, Darrell Seki?
        Mr. Seki. Seki.
        Mr. Simpson. It looks like ``seek,'' Senior. Kevin, you are
    up first.
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                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                   FOND DU LAC BAND OF LAKE SUPERIOR CHIPPEWA

                                    WITNESS

    KEVIN DUPUIS, CHAIRMAN, FOND DU LAC BAND OF LAKE SUPERIOR CHIPPEWA
        Mr. DuPuis. [Speaking native language.] Good afternoon. My
    name is Chairman Kevin DuPuis from the Fond du Lac Band of Lake
    Superior Chippewa. I just want to say Meegwetch to Chair
    Simpson and the board for having the opportunity to come and
    testify on appropriations. You have the paperwork that we sent
    to you. I am not going to read from the paper. I am going to
    speak the way I was taught to speak and what my uncles told me
    always: talk from the heart the best that you possibly can.
        With all the distinguished tribal leaders that came
    forward, there is a commonality between everybody that is here,
    and it is the lack of funding. I think with Fond du Lac and the
    other tribes, I think the biggest thing we need to look at is
    that direct funding that comes to the tribes. Direct funding
    allows us to take care of the people the way that we are taught
    and know how to take care of the people. When we take a look at
    funding itself in general, it was talked about the police
    departments, police staff. We talked about opiates. We talked
    about COVID. On Fond du Lac, in 2020 when COVID hit, we had 102
    people pass away. We have 4,200 Band members and approximately
    1,200 people that live within the confines of our reservation.
    This death rate that happened in Fond du Lac wasn't just COVID.
    It wasn't about the virus. It was the effects of the virus that
    hit, the acts of violence, the drugs, the alcohol, depression,
    the rates of suicide, mental health. These are the effects of
    COVID, and it is affecting any Indian Country in a manner that
    is running wild.
        In the state of Minnesota, there is approximately 5.7
    million people. We make up 1.1 percent of the population. Every
    formula that is put into place under the State level and in on
    the Federal level does not include the tribes. I know some are
    going to say that is crazy, but when you think about it
    mathematically, we are not part of the formula. We can't be
    part of the formula if we only make up 1.1 percent of the
    population in the State.
        Our disparities are higher than any ethnic group in the
    United States--any ethnic group. Our people are dying, and they
    are dying at rates that we can't control. We have a job as
    tribal leaders. We are obligated to the ones who came before us
    to pick up for the fight that they left off, to do what we can
    do today for one simple purpose, and that is to ensure that we
    have a future of our unborn. And to have a future of our unborn
    means that we have to maintain our way of life and our belief
    systems, and to do that we have to be able to do that in a
    manner that carries it forward, and a lot of things that have
    been talked here today as simple as appropriation is meaning
    that to receive the revenue.
        Tehassi Hill is a brother from Oneida talked about IHS.
    Region 5 is the least funded region in the country, and it is
    still the least-funded region. Even if we got full funding,
    which we hope, it is about addressing the need so we can
    eventually address the unmet need. The funding principles do
    not address the simple need, and the simple need allows us to
    look into the future to ensure that we have a future for our
    unborn, and that is to meet the unmet need. We do not know what
    the unmet need is yet because we haven't even addressed the
    need, and it is important that we do these things. It is
    important that we take a look at it. It is important that the
    United States, the States, see a people whose lands they sit on
    are dying at a rate that nobody else is dying in a State in the
    United States.
        We are the first, and we should be the last. Our rates of
    passing away, our rates of dying, our rates of violence, our
    rates are suicide, our rates of homelessness, every disparity
    that you can think in your country, we are higher than
    everybody else in the country. COVID came. The first call with
    tribal leaders was to say we want to address the at-risk
    communities. It was never done, but the tribes pulled together
    in the State of Minnesota. We got together. We talked to each
    other at 10:00 in the morning every day to see what one Band or
    what tribe was you doing so we could work together so we could
    ensure that we had a safety net for our people, but we always
    have to do it.
        If anybody knows how to stretch the dollar, it is the
    tribes, and by giving us direct funding, it allows us to take
    care of what we need to take care of so we can possibly address
    the need to find out what the unmet need is. And, again, I
    appreciate the time. I am here representing people. I am here
    representing our past so we have a future for our people.
    Meegwetch.
        [The statement of Mr. DuPuis follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                               WHITE EARTH NATION

                                    WITNESS

    MICHAEL FAIRBANKS, CHAIRMAN, WHITE EARTH NATION
        Mr. Fairbanks. [Speaking native language.] Meegwetch. Thank
    you, Chairman Simpson and the rest of the committee. You know,
    I know listening to our leadership today, and, you know, the
    panel before us, and I think all of us are on the same kind of
    tome that funding, and allocations, and, you know, the
    hardships that we have endured through the years of being
    underfunded. You know, I think this is a good day today that we
    testified with your group of representatives, that we come here
    with an open heart and trying to find common ground on how we
    can solve these issues.
        You know, I know one thing that when I get back home
    tomorrow, that I will be going directly to my nephew's funeral
    who passed away from an overdose, so I know that these things
    hit hard, you know. Back home, it is like, you know, we are the
    biggest reservation in Minnesota, and I have a lot of members
    that I have to talk to and communicate back to, too, like every
    one of us in this room here that we have to address, and we
    have to give our condolences and ask them why, and ask them,
    you know, why aren't we helping as a nation to address these
    drug issues. And I think that is one thing that I didn't really
    put on my thing, but I think following this and listening to
    everyone's heavy heart that we talk about this opioid epidemic
    is something I really wanted to say today, too, that White
    Earth Nation is making a hard stance against this, and we all
    are, you know, declaring these emergencies for our people. So
    but I guess I will get back on track now, and thank you for
    that.
        And, you know, the first thing I wanted to mention was our
    roads department. You know, back in 2003, I know White Earth
    Nation received over $5 million for our 150 miles of roads, but
    since then, you know, I know the various acts that came along
    that they cut us by 70 percent. We receive $1.4 million for our
    roads, and I think that is not enough. I mean, right now, we
    are struggling to tar our roads, to maintenance our dirt roads,
    you know. I think this is one issue I think that you heard
    today, too, is like, that is a huge part of why I am out here,
    too, is our roads department.
        And the next issue I have is on our health, and I talked
    about the epidemic with the drugs, but I know the other one is
    the IHS funding. Like we talked earlier, 37 percent of funding
    that comes through our Midwest region is the lowest funding
    amount that we have here in the Midwest. And, you know, I think
    that is important that we are trying to pick it up, you know.
    You know, for ourselves here at White Earth, you know, we have
    clinics and we have suboxone clinics, and we are doing what we
    can to help our people. The money that we do generate through
    our billing, you know, does supplement and does help, and we
    can offer services to ones that are sick out there. So I know
    that is a huge part of this is to keep that funding mandatory,
    that we get that money, and include the contract support cost
    with that, too.
        The next issue I have is, of course, what I think a lot of
    us in this room, we had a meeting today with all the tribal
    leaders across Minnesota, is the Four Walls, and I did talk to
    her some of our representatives from Minnesota about this. You
    know, after May 11th, we have 9 months to figure it out, so I
    think that is one thing that I think all the leadership from
    Minnesota here is. We were on the call today with that, with
    our health directors on how we are going to address this Four
    Walls issue, too, so I think that is something that I think
    that we are going to have to revisit and come back, and
    hopefully, you know, that Congress has a plan for us. And, you
    know, we are working with our State. Our State is really
    beneficial to us. They are helping us, you know, but, I mean,
    this is something I think that could be an easy, easy fix at
    the national level, too. So I am really, really addressing this
    to this committee that you take a look at Four Walls, too.
        And I guess the last thing I want to talk about is one of
    the things that, you know, we brought up here not too long ago
    was getting back some of our Tamarac National Refuge back home.
    You know, there is a lot of history with Tamarac, and, you
    know, when we talk about the horrible acts that came through
    back in the 30s--the Nelson Act, these acts--that were behind
    it that we were stealing our land from us, and Tamarac kind of
    falls into that where there are our lands that were kind of
    desecrated and that also that were taken from us. And I know
    that as a nation, we are reaching out to Fish and Wildlife and
    Department of Interior to work with us.
        You know, maybe it could be a fix at the Interior, but, I
    mean, we look at this, and, you know, if we look at history,
    and I gave you the handout on that, that is just a history of
    it. It is kind of like each President with the U.S. Forest
    Service when they are giving back 13.6 thousand acres. So it is
    something, hopefully, that you can look at, and we initiated
    those talks with the National Fish and Wildlife, with the local
    agency yesterday, so we are sharing those talks with them. And
    I know that one thing that when we get these parks back, I
    believe that us as stewards of the land, we know how to take
    care of our land because we do have Wild Rice Lake in that
    refuge that we take to heart, that we know how to take care of
    our water.
        You know, I appreciate it, and I really appreciate the
    members of this committee for listening to me, and I appreciate
    that you can work with us. So Meegwetch.
        [The statement of Mr. Fairbanks follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Darrell.
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                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                       RED LAKE BAND OF CHIPPEWA INDIANS

                                    WITNESS

    DARRELL SEKI, SR., CHAIRMAN, RED LAKE BAND OF CHIPPEWA INDIANS
        Mr. Seki. [Speaking native language.] Now, I will speak in
    my second language. Good afternoon, Chair Simpson, and the rest
    of the staff, and our friend, Betty McCollum. Meegwetch for
    being here and listening to us, and it is an honor for me to be
    here to present our testimony. I am Darrell Seki, Senior,
    chairman of the Red Lake Nation. Meegwetch for this opportunity
    to testify today. This is my third term as chairman. I am proud
    to say this subcommittee has always worked in a bipartisan
    manner to do the best they can for the Indian Country, and I
    believe all of you to continue this tradition. Today, I want to
    talk about four appropriations requests. These funding requests
    would help improve the lives of Red Lakes' 16,650 members.
        First, we request additional $49 million for tribal law
    enforcement operations, $22 million for detention operations,
    and $4 million specifically for Red Lake law enforcement. Red
    Lake is in the midst of an opiate crisis, spurred by non-drug
    dealers. Red Lake law enforcement is doing their best, but they
    are hamstrung by two things. One, our BIA funding is way too
    low. Our BIA public safety expenditures were $5 million more
    than BIA provided. Two, we have been hamstrung by the Supreme
    Court decision that tribal police cannot arrest and detain non-
    Indians. The drug dealers notice, and they keep coming back to
    this reservation. Congress needs to authorize tribal police to
    arrest and detain non-members, drug dealers because over 130
    members of ours died from these fentanyl drugs that are brought
    by non-members. Something needs to be done. I keep saying that
    every time I talk to the feds or the State. We are not a 280
    tribe, but yet we need help to get that fixed so we can
    prosecute these non-members that come to our reservations and
    do what you guys are supposed to be doing: saving lives of our
    people.
        Second, we request that you fully fund, make permanent, and
    expand BIA's Tiwahe recidivism reduction initiatives. Tiwahe
    addresses many vital needs in our community. It helps
    strengthen youth suicide prevention efforts, made it possible
    for our children's healing center to implement a 24/7 youth
    residential treatment program for rehabilitative mental health,
    substance abuse services, and combat tribal member unemployment
    rates by providing classes, training, and workforce development
    programs. We ask that you provide that additional Tiwahe
    funding in fiscal year 2024, including $8 million for healing
    and wellness courts. Third, we request that you direct BIA to
    ensure that self-governance tribes, including Red Lake, that
    operates natural resources tribal management development
    programs, known as TNDP, are included in any increases. In
    fiscal year 2023, you provided a $3 million increase to TMDP,
    but BIA left Red Lake out of this funding.
        Fourth, you must direct the IHS to meet immediately include
    both depreciation principal and interest payments for eligible
    facilities, just as BIE does. The BIA correctly reached the
    Section 105(l) statute, which requires the payment of debt
    service obligation, both principal and interest, as well as
    depreciation. In 2021, the IHS would only allow depreciation,
    not principal and interest. Then in 2022, IHS reversed course
    and allowed principal and interest payments, but not
    depreciation. You need to help us hold IHS accountable to the
    law.
        In my hand, I have the Red Lake Nation treaties and
    agreements outlining the Federal trust responsibility to the
    tribes. You must continue to enforce these agreements. And the
    United States Constitution in my hand states in Article VI the
    treaties were adopted under United States Constitution. The
    Federal Government and the States have trust responsibility to
    the tribes for the welfare, the safety, and health for the
    people of all tribes, not just Red Lake, but everyone. And I
    want to say [Speaking native language] for allowing me to speak
    for all the things I presented, but 5 minutes is not enough. We
    need more time to address this subcommittee, and I am glad that
    I was allowed to speak. Again, I didn't have enough time. I had
    to cut mine because the red light came on, but anyway, I am
    going to [Speaking native language], and thank you. [Speaking
    native language.] [Laughter.]
        By the way, Chair Simpson, walleye is the best fish to eat,
    and we have the best walleye in the whole world.
        [The statement of Mr. Seki follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

         Voice. How big is the walleye?
        Mr. Seki. They get big.
         Voice. Twenty-some pounds.
        Mr. Seki. But we have the biggest. You want to buy some?
        Mr. Simpson. I got a 31-pound chinook on my wall in my
    office. Anyway, thank you all for your testimony. We appreciate
    it. You know, Kevin, you said you have an obligation to carry
    out the wishes of your forefathers, something along those
    lines----
        Mr. DuPuis. Yes, we do.
        Mr. Simpson [continuing]. Abide by the wishes of your
    forefathers, the obligations of your forefathers. We have that
    same obligation, and that is called meeting the treaty
    obligations that we have made in this country over the years
    that we haven't done.
        Mr. DuPuis. So are you guys going to start doing it
    tomorrow?
        Mr. Simpson. Well, we have been working on it for a number
    of years, and it is moving toward meeting those obligations
    that we are interested in. So, you know, we wish we could do it
    tomorrow, as long as we are moving in the right direction.
    Somebody once told me it doesn't matter where you stand. What
    matters is what direction you are headed.
        Mr. DuPuis. Meegwetch for that, Chairman, but can I make a
    comment to that? And we do understand that, and we do know
    that.
        Mr. Simpson. Yeah, I know.
        Mr. DuPuis. But 530 years is a long time, and we don't want
    it to have 530 years to reverse that.
        Mr. Simpson. I agree fully.
        Mr. DuPuis. Meegwetch. Thank you.
        Mr. Simpson. Ms. Pingree.
        Ms. Pingree. Thank you very much. Thank you all for your
    testimony, and I appreciate all of the comments that you made.
    I mentioned this earlier. Betty is the true Minnesotan, and we
    are so glad to have on the committee, but I was also born in
    Minnesota, spent a lot of my childhood growing up on a lake
    cabin around Brainerd. So very familiar with where all of you
    come from. And my family sends me a big bag of tribal wild rice
    every year, and I depend on that. So I am very interested in
    all the concerns that you brought up today, and hopefully
    sometime when I am home visiting my family, I will get to
    visit.
        Mr. Seki. Meegwetch.
        Mr. Simpson. Now I know the challenge. We have got two
    Minnesotans here. [Laughter.]
        Ms. McCollum.
        Ms. McCollum. And the bright wild rice from every tribe in
    Minnesota tastes really good. I have never done a blind tasting
    test, but I love it all. So I don't have favorites when it
    comes to wild rice, but I do when it comes to fish walleye. To
    the chairman of Fond du Lac, one of the things that really has
    stayed with me the entire time last time I was at the
    reservation is when I was looking at the water bottle facility
    that is right outside of your tribal chambers, and so treaties
    matter. Get things right matter. So when you are in Fond du
    Lac's tribal facility, you walk right outside, and I won't
    mention the company because I am not going to give them any
    advertising, there is a company that that bottles water, and
    they are denied access to a lake, a beautiful Lake, right by
    them. It is all privately held, and it goes back to the Nelson
    Act and some of the other things that that happened where
    lumber barons here came in and got Congress to allow
    subdivision of property. And Red Lake was the one tribal nation
    that didn't do that. I want you to know that that is a powerful
    memory with me, and thank you for sharing from the heart.
        I would like you to, Chairman Fairbanks, to explain to the
    committee why it is important for wild rice beds in the Tamarac
    region, and how you have to get in a lottery basically to
    harvest wild rice that is in Minnesota's checkerboard in this.
    I was just shocked that Fish and Wildlife make you go in a
    lottery, and I hope Fish and Wildlife is listening.
        Mr. Fairbanks. Yeah, I mean, I know that is one part of the
    lottery system is, I know that when we talked to him yesterday,
    that we talked about the maintenance, just the levels of the
    lakes themselves that we have to have a certain level.
    Otherwise, if we get too much water, it gets uprooted, and then
    don't have a crop. And I know all the leaders from Minnesota
    understand what I am talking about, but the lottery system
    itself, the racers themselves have to sign up to get into this
    lottery to be one of the few that get to race on the lakes in
    the refuge, so that is one thing, so.
        Ms. Pingree. Can non-tribal members sign up? Can they get
    into the levee?
        Mr. Fairbanks. I don't believe, not so. No, I don't think
    so.
        Ms. Pingree. No, no, you have to be a tribal member.
        Mr. Fairbanks. Yeah.
        Ms. Pingree. Okay.
        Ms. McCollum. But it is still a lottery system, nail-
    biting----
        Mr. Fairbanks. Yeah.
        Ms. McCollum [continuing]. And everything else.
        Mr. Fairbanks.
        Ms. McCollum. Chairman, see, I always learn from you, and
    so now I have learned about depreciation, interest, all that
    other kind of stuff, so I am going to go to school on that. You
    always teach me something new, and I am so glad that you do
    every time I meet you. So thank you.
        Mr. Seki. Mm-hmm. Meegwetch.
        Ms. McCollum. And I just want to put in a plug for the
    State of Minnesota. We are not perfect as a State, but the
    State has taken great strides--great strides--over several
    different governors. But right now, our lieutenant governor is
    a tribally-enrolled member, and we have tribally-enrolled
    members serving in our State legislature, and it has made a
    difference. It made a difference in how COVID was administered.
    I was on the phone calls with the State of Minnesota and the
    tribes. We still had work to do, still wasn't perfect, but we
    are learning from that. The State of Minnesota is discussing
    how to support schools right now because we know of the
    shortage, and we know that they are our future.
        And I was just with the humanities folks from Minnesota,
    and they have a brochure called Why Treaties Matter, which you
    are part of. As a social studies teacher, it is going teach why
    treaties matter, and it is going to teach dignity and respect,
    and the wrong that was done to the tribes there. So as things
    are different in different States, I am glad Minnesota is
    stepping forward, but I am here to say we need to do our tribal
    responsibility. Meegwetch.
        Mr. Simpson. Mr. Kilmer.
        Mr. Kilmer. Thanks, Mr. Chairman. I will just say I
    appreciate your statement in terms of having the Federal
    Government step up and meet its treaty obligations. The U.S.
    Commission on Civil Rights did an update to its Quiet Crisis
    report called the Broken Promises report, and laid out stuff
    that Congress ought to do. We turned that into a bill called
    the Honoring Our Promises to Native Nations Act to step up with
    funding, and I would just commend it to you, and I commend it
    to my colleagues. With that, I yield back.
        Mr. Simpson. You yield back? I called on you because you
    are a salmon person----
        [Laughter.]
        Mr. Simpson [continuing]. And we got a little debate going
    here about salmon and walleye, and I wanted some support.
    [Laughter.]
        Mr. Kilmer [continuing]. Last panel.
        Mr. Simpson. Yeah. Thank you all for being here. I
    appreciate it very much.
        Okay. Edward Johnstone, Ron Suppah, Ann McCammon Soltis,
    and Ron Allen.
                                  ----------                              --
    --------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                     NORTHWEST INDIAN FISHERIES COMMISSION

                                    WITNESS

    EDWARD JOHNSTONE, CHAIRMAN, NORTHWEST INDIAN FISHERIES COMMISSION
        (NWIFC)
        Mr. Johnstone. Thank you, Chairman Simpson and members of
    the committee. My name is Ed Johnstone. I am a Quinault tribal
    member, and I am the chair of the Northwest Indian Fish
    Commission. The Northwest Indian Fish Commission was formed
    shortly after the United States v. Washington court, commonly
    known, the Bolt decision. Our tribal leaders knew that in that
    court case, which affirmed our off-reservation fishing rights,
    was important, and we looked at the court case, and so we
    created the Northwest Indian Fish Commission in 1974. That
    decision was affirmed by the Supreme Court in 1979.
        I am honored to be here and represent the Northwest Indian
    Fish Commission. The people that have done this work around
    this table before me are instrumental in working with Congress
    and working with you folks to tell our story about the Indian
    people of the Pacific Northwest who signed those treaties in
    1854 and 1855, the Stevens treaties, and what it means to us, a
    salmon people, to our culture and way of life, that we view
    things in a different manner. We are holistic, that everything
    is connected.
        And to listen to the tribal leaders before me, that is
    telling the story of us as Indian people as Billy Frank,
    Junior, would say. And we experience all of that when I hear
    the health and so forth, and what it is to COVID when I worked
    with a young man for 32 years, two doors down from me, that I
    walked in one night late, and he said, hey, boss, and scared
    me. I was after paperwork. So was he. Within a week, he had
    died. He had visited his mother on the Muckle Shoot
    Reservation, caught COVID over Thanksgiving. She died a week
    before him. These are the stories of us Indian people and the
    needs that we have. We have that great need here in Indian
    Country in the Northwest and our salmon and our salmon story.
        It is in our testimony, in our background, and a lot of
    what you are hearing here is cultural identity. Our salmon
    people, our young people are losing that cultural identity and
    the connection to who we are through our fishing rights,
    hunting and gathering, all those things that you see in the
    testimony. And the different areas talk about, you know, Fish
    and Wildlife, the parks, the Forest Service, national parks,
    anywhere that we are connected, and the story of our funding
    are important because that talks about our access and our
    availability.
        And, you know, when a young lady that sits on Council for
    the Stillaguamish Tribe. For over 30 years, Stillaguamish have
    not finished. She fights every day for that right that she has
    never been able to do it herself, nor are those waiting, and
    the young ones don't really know or understand because they
    don't have the access. And so we are talking about Puget Sound,
    and listed stocks, and recovery, things like the Pacific salmon
    funds either through the PST, Pacific Salmon Treaty, and PSC,
    Puget Sound through the Puget Sound funding. All of these
    different funding sources that you see in our funding requests
    are key to us tribes and those rebuilding process to do the
    work. We know how to do that work. We put the data together. We
    own the Bible, and in the recovery plans on every watershed of
    the 20-member tribes, we have that. That is what everybody goes
    to. It describes how to rebuild those stocks or protect them,
    so it is all threaded in the information.
        So I am here to bring that message, as short as it might
    be, to answer questions, but we are very appreciative of this
    committee. We have come a long ways in understanding. Some of
    you have been around this table for a long time, and that is my
    congressman from the 6th on the end, who I always appreciated
    working with and listening to who we are as Indian people. But
    we are losing our identity, and then you get the rest of what
    happens when that happens. I work often with the Alaskan
    natives, and that is very much evident up in Alaska. So with
    that, I will close and just wait for remarks.
        [The statement of Mr. Johnstone follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you, Ed. Ron, you are next.
        Mr. Suppah. Good afternoon. Long time since when we were
    wandering around in the backyard, and we ran into each other.
        Mr. Simpson. A real long time ago, yeah.
                                  ----------                              --
    --------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                   COLUMBIA RIVER INTERTRIBAL FISH COMMISSION

                                    WITNESS

    RON SUPPAH, CHAIR, COLUMBIA RIVER INTERTRIBAL FISH COMMISSION
        Mr. Suppah. First of all, I would like to thank you guys
    for allowing us to be here to testify today, and I appreciate
    my staff because they did an excellent job with preparing the
    written testimony that you guys each have, and they also did a
    good job with my oral testimony.
        Good afternoon, Chairman Simpson, Ranking Member Pingree,
    and members of the subcommittee. My name is Ron Suppah, and I
    have the honor of serving as chair of the Columbia River Inter-
    Tribal Fish Commission, or CRITFC. I am a member of the
    Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, Oregon. CRITFC was founded
    in 1977 by the four Columbia River treaty tribes, Confederated
    Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, Confederated Tribes
    of Warm Springs Reservation, Confederated Tribes and Bands of
    the Yakama, and the Nez Perce Tribe. CRITFC provides
    coordination and technical assistance to these tribes. Our
    regional, national, and international efforts protect and
    restore our shared salmon steelhead, Pacific lamprey, and white
    sturgeon and resources, and the habitat upon which these
    species depend. CRITFC's work is critically important. That is
    why I appreciate the opportunity to share our funding
    priorities with you today. Collectively, the priorities ensure
    that we are able to continue exercising our treaty-reserved
    right to harvest fish on the Columbia River.
        First, CRITFC requests $5 million to fund implementation of
    the Columbia River In-Lieu and Treaty Fishing Access Site
    Improvement Act. This 2019 act recognized the failing
    conditions of fishing access sites, which Congress authorized
    $11 million to refurbish the site so meet human health and
    safety standards. The assessment of the sites was completed in
    2022. The additional funds will ensure architect design
    designed and initial construction continues to successfully
    implement the act. Second, CRITFC urges the subcommittee to
    provide funding for Columbia River fishing access site
    operation and maintenance. BIA contracts with CRITFC to provide
    these services beginning in fiscal year 2022. Congress provide
    $1.7 million for this program. We ask that the subcommittee
    continue to fund these costs for tribal member health and
    safety.
        Third, CRITFC asks the subcommittee to increase funding for
    law enforcement at Columbia River In-Lieu sites. CRITFC
    appreciates the additional appropriations that were provided
    previously to enhance public safety and law enforcement
    services. CRITFC conservation and criminal enforcement officers
    patrol 150 miles of the Columbia River in Oregon and
    Washington, providing policing services at 31 fishing access
    sites. Continued annual increases are important for retention
    and long-term stability of public safety. Fourth, CRITFC
    requests the subcommittee provide $624,000 in additional
    funding for Columbia River fisheries management. Funding
    shortfalls prohibit the achievement of tribal self-
    determination goals for fishing management, ESA, recovery
    efforts, protecting non-listed species, conservation
    enforcement, harvest monitoring, and increased funding will
    allow CRITFC to make core fishery efforts and maximize habitat
    management in the Columbia Basin.
        Next, CRITFC urges the subcommittee to provide funding for
    youth program initiatives. CRITFC strives to build a tribal
    workforce of skilled Native-American scientists, policy
    analysis, technician managers who will serve tribes, fisheries,
    and natural resources management's needs. Without an increase,
    CRITFC and the member tribes may have to reduce youth
    programming that enhances career readiness and workforce
    development. Next, CRITFC encourages the subcommittee to
    increase funding for Columbia River treaty modernization.
    Rights protection implementation supports CRITFC participation
    in the negotiation to modernize the Columbia River Treaty.
    CRITFC urges ecosystem function as a third primary purpose of
    that treaty.
        In closing, I would like to thank you for listening today,
    and we appreciate the opportunity to be able to participate in
    this forum. Thank you.
        [The statement of Mr. Suppah follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thanks, Ron. I appreciate it.
                                  ----------                              --
    ------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                GREAT LAKES INDIAN FISH AND WILDLIFE COMMISSION

                                    WITNESS

    ANN MCCAMMON SOLTIS, DIRECTOR, INTERGOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS, GREAT LAKES
        INDIAN FISH AND WILDLIFE COMMISSION
        Ms. Soltis. [Speaking native language.] I am Ann McCammon
    Soltis. I am the director of intergovernmental affairs with the
    Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission, or GLIFWC as
    we call ourselves. The chair of our board, Jim Williams, who
    also is the chair of the Lac Vieux Desert Band of Chippewa,
    regrets that he could not be here today to speak to you, but I
    appreciate the opportunity to testify. So my testimony is going
    to focus on rights protection implementation within the BIA's
    budget and the Great Lakes restoration initiative within the
    EPA's budget, two very important line items to us.
        As you might recall from our testimony in previous years,
    we are an inter-tribal natural resource agency of 11 tribes
    that have reservations in what is now Michigan, Minnesota, and
    Wisconsin. These tribes sold or ceded tens of millions of acres
    of land in those States through treaties with the Federal
    Government in the mid-1800s. In exchange, they reserved their
    right to continue to live their life way on those lands by
    hunting, fishing, and gathering within the ceded territory.
    Court cases in the late 20th century reaffirmed the right of
    our member tribes to govern their members in the exercise of
    their rights by passing their own laws and enforcing those laws
    against tribal members into tribal courts. Because the rights
    are shared by multiple tribes, they created GLIFWC in 1984 to
    help ensure that Federal court orders were being properly
    implemented through intertribal coordination, cooperation, and
    management. Our full-time staff numbers around 75, doubling
    with part-time help during the spring fishing season when they
    take all those very tasty walleye. [Laughter.]
        Ms. Soltis. We have conservation officers that patrol the
    ceded territory and cite tribal members into tribal courts for
    violations of tribal law. We employ biologists, public
    information staff, and experts in language and traditional
    knowledge, and this traditional knowledge really embraces a
    world view in which all beings, humans and non-human, are
    interdependent, related, and deserving of our respect, and I
    think you have heard that from many of the panelists who have
    spoken today. GLIFWC appreciates the bipartisan support that
    our programs have received from this subcommittee over the past
    30 years. We believe that our programs are a good use of
    taxpayer dollars, one that is efficient, effective, and takes
    place at the most local unit of government that is appropriate,
    which is the inter-tribal level.
        We greatly appreciate the increase in RPI funding that we
    received in 2023, and as we committed to do in our testimony
    last year, we have used the increase to bring our pay scale up
    from the 2018 GS level to the 2023 GS level, which is
    wonderful. Unfortunately, we still can't afford to pay our
    employees at salaries commensurate with their State and Federal
    counterparts, and unfortunately, this led to us being able to
    not fill three conservation officer positions, which is 17
    percent of our conservation officer workforce. We did not
    receive any qualified candidates, which was unfortunate, and we
    really attribute that to the fact that we just can't match the
    salaries that they can get at the DNR or at the Fish and
    Wildlife Service, but any increase that Congress might choose
    to provide for us would go toward remedying that situation. And
    I would just note we do not get any separate law enforcement
    funding. It all comes through our rights protection
    implementation budget, so that is really the only source that
    we have for law enforcement.
        I worked with Federal agencies for, well, as you can see by
    the color of my hair, 30 years now, and, really, I think it is
    kind of an unprecedented time right now in many Federal
    agencies' commitment to listen to tribes, and to talk with
    tribes, and to consult with tribes, and to take things like
    traditional knowledge seriously. I think there are tremendous
    opportunities right now to advance tribal interests and really
    engage the Federal Government, but I keep saying to people it
    is a little bit like trying to drink from the proverbial fire
    hose. There are a lot of Federal agencies that have a lot of
    people working for them, and we have got 75.
        We are very thankful that our RPI base budget has allowed
    us to embrace those opportunities as much as we can--we are
    doing our best--and expand on them by educating agencies about
    tribal culture, world view, and knowledge. And, you know, those
    perspectives benefit everybody, not just tribal members. The
    benefits of our programs go beyond just tribal membership in
    other ways. Our conservation enforcement staff are often called
    on as members of our local and very rural enforcement community
    to rescue stranded ice fisherman, and to search for missing
    people, and to do all those things that, you know, all law
    enforcement agencies are called upon to do when you don't have
    a lot of them, and they are spread pretty thin.
        The other program I would like to briefly address, though,
    is the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, which it would be
    hard to overstate the importance of that program to our member
    tribes that have treaty rights in the Great Lakes. This
    committee has been very supportive of, and we have worked with
    EPA staff to develop and implement a distinct tribal program,
    the DTP, as we call it, that directs funding to EPA for further
    distribution to the tribes through Self-Determination Act
    contracting mechanisms, which has been really huge. This
    increased the flexibility that our member tribes have and
    provided certainty. We would just like to ensure that as the
    GLRI receives increases, so does the DTP. EPA has been a very
    committed and willing partner that has provided those
    increases, and we just want to ensure that they are codified so
    that they are not at the whim of one particular person.
        I see that my time has run out, so I will just say
    Meegwetch. Thank you for listening to me, and I appreciate the
    opportunity.
        [The statement of Ms. Soltis follows:]
       [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you, Ann.
                                  ----------

                                              Wednesday, March 8, 2023.

                           JAMESTOWN S'KLALLAM TRIBE

                                    WITNESS

    W. RON ALLEN, CHAIRMAN AND CEO, JAMESTOWN S'KLALLAM TRIBE
        Mr. Allen. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, committee members, and
    thank you for the opportunity. So I am Ron Allen. I am the
    chair for the Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe, located about 60 miles
    west of Seattle. I come here carrying a couple of different
    hats that are critically important to us.
        Mr. Simpson. One of those hats better be that salmon are
    great. [Laughter.]
        Mr. Allen. I am a commissioner representing the 25 tribes
    that are part of the U.S.-Canada Pacific Salmon. Our charge is
    to manage the harvest management from Alaska through British
    Columbia, trying to get by a few dams up the Snake River. You
    might have heard about them.
        Mr. Simpson. Yeah.
        Mr. Allen. So it is a very challenging job for our tribes
    to engage with our State counterparts, our Federal
    counterparts, and, of course, our Canadian counterparts. It is
    a very complicated world for us in the models that we have to
    model, the way we have to analyze the status of the stocks, et
    cetera, to come up with who gets to catch what and how much,
    all up and down the coast. And so what we are asking for in
    that venue is that in the rights protection, there are about
    $7.1 million for the 25 tribes to do our job with regard to
    that international forum. And so we are urging that that get
    bumped up to $8 million to help us deal with the complicated
    issues, including, really, in the very near future, we will be
    re-negotiating these annexes in the chapters that oversee all
    the species, from chinook, coho chum, sockeye, et cetera. So
    that is a very challenging job for us.
        I do want to say as the chairman, we fully support the
    National Congress of American Indians and National Indian
    Health Board, Affiliated Tribes. They all made strong
    recommendations to you categorically across the Indian programs
    for Interior and over in IHS. So we deeply appreciate their
    recommendations. I also am the chair of the BIA Interior TBIC
    Tribal Advisory Committee, so all these conversations that you
    heard from your previous panels, whether it is road
    maintenance, public safety issues, natural resource management,
    all the issues that the Bureau of Indian Affairs has to manage
    helping tribes elevate their sovereignty and their self-
    governing authority. So they are very important agendas for us.
        One of them is an initiative that has been active now for
    30 years. It is called the Self-Governance Movement, and self-
    government is about the tribes negotiating their fair share of
    Federal systems and taking over those Federal functions and
    moving out into our backyard so that we can manage those
    limited dollars that tribes receive from the Federal
    Government, from the Bureau of Indian Affairs, or Indian Health
    Service, and make them more successful. The monies that go into
    the program that manages that program is called the Self-
    Governance Office. It is inside the executive section of the
    budget. And so we would like to get a special line item for it
    because it covers a lot of responsibilities to administer the
    388 tribes that are actually currently participating and
    growing every year. So that is a huge issue for us, and we urge
    you to seriously consider that.
        We fight for those monies, you know, in terms of
    administering it. We are in the middle of negotiating the
    negotiated rulemaking for PROGRESS Act, which extends the Title
    IV to be consistent with Title V. Title V is IHS, and,
    unfortunately, when that was passed, COVID happened and we end
    up with this problem in terms of that the authorization in that
    act to negotiate rulemaking, and we are hopeful that you might
    be able to help us solve that problem. All we are looking for
    is an extension. It is very complicated, every one of those
    sections of the regulation, so that would be very helpful for
    us as we move that agenda forward. We are making decent
    progress, but April 21 is when the authorization of the
    administration ceases, and we need to fix that and move that
    agenda forward. But the self-governance line item is a critical
    issue for us as well.
        The last thing I want to emphasize is Fish and Wildlife,
    and, you know, I listen to the Great Lakes tribes talking
    about, you know, the Fish and Wildlife and the challenges. My
    tribe happens to be currently negotiating a refuge from Fish
    and Wildlife, and it is becoming very successful. So it is
    actually in our backyard, right in front of our village, and we
    want to take it over because we feel that we are as good as a
    steward as anybody out there, including Fish and Wildlife. And
    so there are lots of examples of that. There is an example in
    Minnesota. There is an example in Kawerak up in Alaska, and my
    tribe is joining that effort, the Bison Range over in Montana
    with the Salish and Kootenai. And so that line item that
    administers those programs, the refugee, et cetera, we really
    do need some help so that we can, as we negotiate it, we also
    negotiate the share of administering and managing those
    refuges, and so it is a critical issue for us.
        The administration currently is advancing this co-
    management, co-stewardship, which is consistent with our
    culture about, you know, we are as good as steward with the
    guards of nature and natural resources as anybody out there.
    You know, we feel that we understood conservation way before
    the word emerged in the Federal system, so it is a big deal to
    us. So looking for ways to get additional resources into that
    line item for that would be very helpful for us.
        Outside of that, there is a long list, and you have been
    listening to it, you know, all day today and tomorrow. I always
    want to say thank you for continuing to have these hearings. We
    don't get these same opportunities over on the Senate side, so
    at least somebody is listening to us. I go back to the Sadie
    Yates days. I have been coming here for a lot of years, and so
    I just appreciate these opportunities. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
        [The statement of Mr. Allen follows:]
        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Mr. Simpson. Thank you. I appreciate all your testimony.
    Ms. Pingree.
        Ms. Pingree. Thank you. I am sorry. I apologize for having
    to leave a little bit during your testimony but just want to
    reinforce that anything that has to do with salmon is important
    to us on the East Coast as well, and we understand really the
    cultural importance and economic importance of that to the
    tribe, and just want to say that you are extremely well
    represented by Mr. Kilmer, who keeps all of you in our minds as
    often as he possibly can.
        Mr. Simpson. Mr. Kilmer.
        Mr. Kilmer. Thank you, Chairman. I just wanted to give an
    opportunity to Chairman Johnstone, or Chairman Allen, or both
    to speak a bit about two programs that get funded through this
    subcommittee that really matter, one the BIA Rights Protection
    Implementation, and two, the Puget Sound Geographic Program. I
    think it would just be helpful to share with the subcommittee
    how tribes use those dollars, why they are important, the
    impact that they have.
        Mr. Johnstone. Thank you, Congressman. I would definitely
    yield to Chairman Allen----
        [Laughter.]
        Mr. Johnstone [continuing]. That is I work for, that is who
    we represent----
        Mr. Kilmer. Me, too, by the way. Me, too. [Laughter.]
        Mr. Johnstone. I will be happy, you know, to help, you
    know, that conversation, but it is hugely important. Number one
    is the salmon. We are salmon people, and I listened to the
    Great Lakes folks talk about walleye, how important walleye is
    to them. That is who they are, right? That is the fish that
    sustained them along with the other things that they always
    have had access to and lived off from. That was their
    subsistence as salmon is to us. That is who we are from the
    salmon in Puget Sound, out the Straits and the Pacific Coast,
    as well as what other resources they provide to us and for us.
        So, you know, rights protection, Western Washington, Boldt
    fundamentally is the base that Congress came up with after the
    Boldt decision and the legislation that put us in the base.
    That is where we started. And back then, that was reflective of
    what we knew at that time in those court cases, which was U.S.
    v. Washington. So we built the structure around that to comply
    with what the judge ruled, and the conservation, and how to
    manage. And for years and years and years, until this committee
    took it up with 2010, that base had never been adjusted. We
    went for years and years, and for us on the Pacific Coast and
    Northwest, then you came along the Hoh v. Baldridge. Hoh v.
    Baldridge talked about river by river, run by run, and
    sustainability, but no funding.
        And then you get the Pacific Salmon Treaty that is that
    recognition between Canada and the United States to bring our
    fish back to those rivers, run by run, accountability to catch
    all the methodologies as we have gone forward. What the Coded
    Wire Tagging Program means to us, all of that data collection
    identified where our fish are caught, by whom, and when, as Ron
    talks about. And then you come to Rafidi in 1992, another case
    for our shellfish but does not come with implementation
    dollars. In 2010, this committee upped it by--I can't
    remember--$10 million? Ten million dollars. And then that goes
    to all the treaty areas and how that is applied, and we did
    what we did internally at Fish Commission with the member
    tribes to help step that up.
        And you saw these duties and responsibilities in these
    graphs, and then you saw the inflationary dollars, you know,
    going this way, and so those lines went up. Well, they were
    going down, and so increases are over the long term. I heard
    what we are talking about. We can't just do this overnight, but
    with your help, we have been able to make some steady gains, so
    critically important, same way as in Puget Sound with the
    multiple amounts of funding that we connect to recovery of
    salmon in Puget Sound, the Geographic Program, and then through
    Puget Sound Partnership, all of these different cells that we
    work together with, moving towards recovery of salmon, recovery
    of the watersheds to support the recovery of the salmon.
        You know, we are heavily embedded in climate scientists. We
    recognized that as an organization over a decade ago, hired a
    climate scientist. Then working through Congress and through,
    you know, even State legislative process to put together
    climate adaptation plans, and they thread all the way into this
    management. They thread all the way into the recovery plans. I
    mean, they are very vital and very important. And as we go more
    in that direction of trying to figure out the work that we were
    doing under the old before climate really became apparent and
    really is pressing on us now to do more to react, and so much
    is required in data. I mean, it is all embedded in our written
    testimony. Most all of them intersect. I mean, harmful algae
    bloom in the oceans. Ocean is too warm, can't harvest. You
    know, you have to test all the time. They all are threaded
    together.
        Mr. Kilmer. Thank you. Thanks.
        Mr. Simpson. Thank you. I didn't ask any questions because
    I didn't want to get off on salmon. [Laughter.]
        That is something I have been obviously interested in the
    last several years, and those of you from the Pacific Northwest
    know that we put out, oh, about 3 years ago, a Columbia Basin
    Initiative to try to restore salmon runs. Idaho salmon runs
    particularly interest me because I am from Idaho obviously, but
    they are going to go extinct if we don't do something. And we
    started off by saying, you know, there has got to be a way to
    save these dams on the Columbia River and are on the Lower
    Snake River and still say the salmon. We couldn't find one. We
    couldn't find anything that we had not tried, you know? We have
    tried everything in the world to try to save these dams and
    still save these salmon runs, and they continue to decline. And
    we came to conclusion the only way, as many fish biologists, as
    all the tribes have, as have many other people, that the only
    way you are going to save these salmons is to remove these
    dams. That gets a little controversial.
        And we took a political risk and put out our plan, and
    said, you know, let people look at it, and it started a
    conversation, and it has got to continue, in the Pacific
    Northwest about how we are going to save them, because some of
    the tribes are looking at it as, well, you are talking only
    about the Idaho salmon runs. Well, we expanded it that we have
    got to improve salmon runs throughout the Pacific Northwest. We
    had money in there and programs in there for Puget Sound. We
    had, you know, for different river basins, whether they were
    the John Day or the Yakima, and that kind of stuff. We got to
    improve them always, but everybody says to me, well, we got to
    improve the habitat. We are not only taking on dams. We just
    got to improve the habitat.
        Idaho has some of the best pure habitat for salmon in the
    world, in the lower 48 for sure. It is high elevation, cool
    waters, and all that kind of stuff. Could we improve the
    habitat at some point? Probably. That is not what we need
    because you can have the best habitat in the world. If the fish
    can't get there, it doesn't matter. I actually had a guy say to
    me, this guy worked for the Army Corps of Engineers, say to me
    that, well, do you know it is the dams that are causing these
    salmon to go extinct. I said because if you look at the
    recovery rates of the John Day or the Yakima, the fish that go
    to Idaho then have to go over four more dams. The only
    difference is they go over four more dams, and their SARS rate
    drops to squat, to extinction levels. And he says, well, maybe
    it is not the dams. I said what else is it? He said, it could
    be the distance they have to swim, and I said to him, so what
    you are telling me is, like, in 1940 or 1950 when they had
    hundreds of thousands of fish coming back, somehow those fish
    knew a secret path that they had to swim less distance than
    these do now. Well, maybe that wasn't smart. [Laughter.]
        Everybody is looking for an excuse, but some time we are
    going to have to face it, and if nothing else, we started a
    discussion in Pacific Northwest about what are we going to do
    about this. So I appreciate all of your work on it. To me, it
    is the most important issue that I have been working on in
    Congress in the 24 years I have been here, so I look forward to
    working with you.
        Mr. Allen. If I might, Mr. Chairman, yes, we agree with
    you. It is the four H's.
        Mr. Simpson. Yeah.
        Mr. Allen. It is the hydro. It is the habitat.
        Mr. Simpson. Yep.
        Mr. Allen. It is the harvest management. It is the
    hatcheries.
        Mr. Simpson. Yep.
        Mr. Allen. They have to be advanced in balance----
        Mr. Simpson. Yep.
        Mr. Allen [continuing]. In order to save this particular
    set of species for the Northwest, from Idaho, all the way north
    to Alaska.
        Mr. Simpson. Yep.
        Mr. Allen. And we agree with you.
        Mr. Simpson. But if you look at Puget Sound, it is not dams
    that are challenged for salmon in the Puget Sound.
        Mr. Kilmer. Habitat.
        Mr. Simpson. It is other things. It is habitat and stuff.
    So, you know, you are right. It is all of them----
        Mr. Allen. Yes.
        Mr. Simpson [continuing]. That we got to address.
        Mr. Allen. Imbalance, and your initiative is a very
    aggressive one, but it can be done.
        Mr. Simpson. Yeah, appreciate it. Thank you all for being
    here today. I look forward to working with you on walleye and
    salmon. [Laughter.]
        That concludes our testimony for today, so we will restart
    tomorrow morning at----
         Voice. Nine a.m.
        Mr. Simpson [continuing]. 9:00 a.m. with the second day. So
    thank you all for being here.
        The committee is adjourned.
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