[House Hearing, 118 Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, AND RELATED
AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS FOR 2025
_______________________________________________________________________
HEARINGS
BEFORE A
SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE
COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
ONE HUNDRED EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
__________
SUBCOMMITTEE ON INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, AND
RELATED AGENCIES
MICHAEL K. SIMPSON, Idaho, Chairman
MARK E. AMODEI, Nevada CHELLIE PINGREE, Maine
GUY RESCHENTHALER, Pennsylvania BETTY McCOLLUM, Minnesota
MICHAEL CLOUD, Texas DEREK KILMER, Washington
RYAN K. ZINKE, Montana JOSH HARDER, California
JAKE ELLZEY, Texas
CHUCK EDWARDS, North Carolina
NOTE: Under committee rules, Mr. Cole, as chairman 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, Sarah Peery, Courtney Stevens,
Maggie Earle, and Scott Prutting
Subcommittee Staff
__________
PART 3
Page
American Indian and Alaska Native
Public Witness Day 1_Morning Session....
1
American Indian and Alaska Native
Public Witness Day 1_Afternoon Session..
209
[GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
__________
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
58-049 WASHINGTON : 2025
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COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
----------
TOM COLE, Oklahoma, Chairman
HAROLD ROGERS, Kentucky,
Chair Emeritus
KAY GRANGER, Texas,
Chair Emeritus
ROBERT B. ADERHOLT, Alabama
MICHAEL K. SIMPSON, Idaho
JOHN R. CARTER, Texas
KEN CALVERT, California
MARIO DIAZ-BALART, Florida
STEVE WOMACK, Arkansas
CHARLES J. ``CHUCK'' FLEISCHMANN,
Tennessee
DAVID P. JOYCE, Ohio
ANDY HARRIS, Maryland
MARK E. AMODEI, Nevada
DAVID G. VALADAO, California
DAN NEWHOUSE, Washington
JOHN R. MOOLENAAR, Michigan
JOHN H. RUTHERFORD, Florida
BEN CLINE, Virginia
GUY RESCHENTHALER, Pennsylvania
MIKE GARCIA, California
ASHLEY HINSON, Iowa
TONY GONZALES, Texas
JULIA LETLOW, Louisiana
MICHAEL CLOUD, Texas
MICHAEL GUEST, Mississippi
RYAN K. ZINKE, Montana
ANDREW S. CLYDE, Georgia
JAKE LaTURNER, Kansas
JERRY L. CARL, Alabama
STEPHANIE I. BICE, Oklahoma
SCOTT FRANKLIN, Florida
JAKE ELLZEY, Texas
JUAN CISCOMANI, Arizona
CHUCK EDWARDS, North Carolina
ROSA L. DeLAURO, Connecticut
STENY H. HOYER, Maryland
MARCY KAPTUR, Ohio
SANFORD D. BISHOP, Jr., Georgia
BARBARA LEE, California
BETTY McCOLLUM, Minnesota
C. A. DUTCH RUPPERSBERGER,
Maryland
DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Florida
HENRY CUELLAR, Texas
CHELLIE PINGREE, Maine
MIKE QUIGLEY, Illinois
DEREK KILMER, Washington
MATT CARTWRIGHT, Pennsylvania
GRACE MENG, New York
MARK POCAN, Wisconsin
PETE AGUILAR, California
LOIS FRANKEL, Florida
BONNIE WATSON COLEMAN, New Jersey
NORMA J. TORRES, California
ED CASE, Hawaii
ADRIANO ESPAILLAT, New York
JOSH HARDER, California
JENNIFER WEXTON, Virginia
DAVID J. TRONE, Maryland
LAUREN UNDERWOOD, Illinois
SUSIE LEE, Nevada
JOSEPH D. MORELLE, New York
Susan Ross, Clerk and Staff Director
(ii)
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, AND RELATED AGENCIES
APPROPRIATIONS FOR 2025
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
----------
TESTIMONY OF INTERESTED INDIVIDUALS AND ORGANIZATIONS
----------
AMERICAN INDIAN AND ALASKA NATIVE PUBLIC WITNESS DAY 1--MORNING SESSION
WITNESS
LEE JUAN TYLER, CHAIRMAN, FORT HALL BUSINESS COUNCIL OF THE SHOSHONE-
BANNOCK TRIBES
Mr. Simpson. The committee will come to order.
Good morning, and welcome to the first of our public
witness hearings dedicated to American Indian and Alaska Native
programs. I believe these hearings are very important, and I
thank each of you for being here today. I know it is hard
sometimes to get here from all across the country. Indian
Country has been and will continue to be a bipartisan priority
of this subcommittee. I look forward to working with Ranking
Member Pingree to continue to strengthen this committee's
longstanding efforts to increase the Federal commitment to
honor our treaty and trust responsibility with American Indians
and Alaska Natives. I would like to welcome all of the
distinguished tribal leaders and other leaders here today.
Thank you to all of our witnesses for appearing before the
committee and sharing your concerns and personal perspectives
on these important topics.
In terms of hearing logistics, I will call each panel of
witnesses to the table, one panel at a time. I will generally
call it by panel one or panel two or panel three. So 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 witnesses. When
the lights turn orange, the witness will have 1 minute
remaining to conclude their remarks. When the light turns red,
I will have to ask the witness to stop to remain on schedule.
We have about 80 witnesses over today and tomorrow, so we have
a lot to go through, and believe me, it is very important to us
to hear from the tribes and what is happening in their area
from their perspective.
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 so we can 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 GOP.gov. With that, I thank all of you for being here today,
and I am happy to yield now to our distinguished ranking member
for any remarks that she may wish to make.
Ms. Pingree. Good morning. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I want to echo his welcome to this first day of public witness
hearings on tribal programs under the jurisdiction of the
Interior, Environment Appropriations subcommittee, and I want
to thank the chair for setting up these 2 days of hearings and
for his strong support of Indian Country. I want to thank you
and all of our future witnesses for traveling to Washington,
D.C. to testify before our subcommittee. We really do
appreciate it. We know you have busy lives and you have come a
long way, so thank you very much for your time.
We are all looking forward to hearing your thoughts about
the needs and challenges facing Indian Country and about your
priorities for the Interior bill. It will certainly help to
inform us as we write the 2025 appropriations bill. And with
that, I yield back to the chair.
Mr. Simpson. Thank you, Ranking Member Pingree. I will now
call our first panel to the table and our first witness will be
someone I know very well, Lee Juan Tyler from Fort Hall
Business Council. Thank you for being here today, and you may
begin.
Mr. Tyler. All right. Thank you. [Speaking native
language.] Good morning. [Speaking native language.] Good
morning. My name is Lee Juan Tyler, and I am the chairman of
the Fort Hall Business Council, the governing body of Shoshone-
Bannock Tribes. Before I start, I want to thank the honorable
Mike Simpson, who is our representative, for his continued
efforts on behalf of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes and of Indian
Country to uphold the treaty and trust responsibility. Today I
will focus on, one, the Gay Mine Superfund Site located on our
reservation; two, law enforcement funding; and three, BIA road
maintenance funding.
The Gay Mine Superfund Site is an open pit phosphate mine
covering 7,000 acres of our reservation land that opened in
1946 and closed in 1993. It has 158 pits, each ranging in size
from 15 to 20 acres, many with high walls, 50 feet or more, and
many with contaminated pit lakes. There are also 30 million
tons of waste over this area. Since the mine closed over 30
years ago, very little reclamation work has been done to re-
slope the land and make it usable again, and only recently has
the EPA begun environmental remediation work to address the
contamination caused by the mine.
While the EPA remediation process is underway, the tribes
would like to lead a strategic study to plan the reclamation of
the site in order to best use the area for the tribes in the
future. I want to thank this subcommittee for including report
language last year directing the Bureau of Land Management to
engage the tribes in this reclamation study. Unfortunately,
that report language did not make it in the final bill. When
Gay Mine was leased in the 1940s, the tribes never thought that
when the mine closed, we would never be able to use this land
again. We, again, ask for your help in reclaiming our
reservation land by directing the BLM to work with the tribes
to undertake a strategic reclamation study of Gay Mine during
the need for more funding.
Turning to the need for more funding for law enforcement,
returning to this area, under the BIA formula guidelines, the
Fort Hall Police Department should have 25 officers, but due to
severe underfunding, our department has just 14 total officers.
At this staffing level, our department can only have two
officers patrolling 550,000 acres, reservation that covers four
counties during each 12-hour shift. This is a serious public
safety problem for our tribal members. It also creates a huge
strain on our officers with many getting burned out and leaving
other agencies with less stress and more pay.
Recently, the BIA issued a report on funding levels as
required by the Tribal Law and Order act. This report shows
that the level of need for law enforcement across Indian
Country is over $1.7 billion, but the BIA is funded at just
$256 million. This massive underfunding of law enforcement is
leading to dangerous conditions on the Fort Hall Reservation
and throughout Indian Country. We ask that the subcommittee
honor the treaty and trust responsibility by providing law
enforcement funding at the level of need in the BIA report.
Finally, I want to talk about continued need for increases
in road maintenance funding. I want to thank the subcommittee
for trying to increase funding for the BIA's Roads Maintenance
Program last year. Unfortunately, that funding increase was not
included in the final bill, and road maintenance was again
funded at $39.2 million. At this level, our transportation
department cannot make the necessary repairs to our roads. Due
to the lack of funding, as some paved roads fail, we are having
to turn them into gravel roads. The Bipartisan Infrastructure
Law authorized funding for the BIA Road Maintenance Program at
$56 million for fiscal year 2025. This additional funding is
absolutely critical to maintaining our roads. We ask that the
subcommittee fund the BIA Road Maintenance Program at the
authorized level of $56 million.
So we appreciate your time and thank you for this
opportunity to come over here and testify, and God bless you
all, and have a great day. How's that?
[The statement of Mr. Tyler. follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you very much. Whitney.
Ms. Gravelle. Yes.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
CHIPPEWA OTTAWA RESOURCE AUTHORITY
WITNESS
WHITNEY GRAVELLE, PRESIDENT, CHIPPEWA OTTAWA RESOURCE AUTHORITY
Ms. Gravelle. Thank you, Mr. Chair. [Speaking native
language.] My name is The Woman Who Stands in the North. My
English name is Whitney Gravelle, and I currently serve as the
president of Bay Mills Indian Community. I am here today as a
representative of the Chippewa Ottawa Resource Authority, and I
testify before you to emphasize the critical importance of
Federal funding for the exercise of reserve treaty rights and
the management of natural resources protected by treaties
throughout the Great Lakes.
The Chippewa Ottawa Resource Authority is a treaty
regulatory body that comprises five federally-recognized tribal
nations in the State of Michigan, united under the 1836 Treaty
of Washington with the United States. These tribes, including
mine, have fought for decades to preserve our rights to hunt,
fish, and gather in our ancestral territories. This battle has
involved many legal challenges, resulting in landmark court
decisions affirming our treaty rights. It is understood
collectively that the rights forged under the 1836 Treaty of
Washington are the bedrock of our cultural identity and our
sustenance.
I give great thanks to my ancestors that helped negotiate
this treaty, for despite ceding 14 million acres of land and 13
million acres of water to the United States for the creation of
the State of Michigan, they protected what was most important
for our continued existence of our people. That was the usual
privileges of occupancy, the ability to simply live an
indigenous way of life. The ceded lands comprise more than 40
percent of what is modern day Michigan and are still the
continued homelands of my people. The funding we receive
through the Rights Protection Implementation Program is
essential for protecting and preserving our ability to
sustainably manage these natural resources.
Our treaty rights extend just beyond fishing in the waters
of the Great Lakes. They are a reaffirmation of what our
ancestors negotiated long ago. They encompass hunting, fishing,
trapping, gathering, picking blueberries, eating strawberries,
all throughout the ceded territory, both inland and in the
waters of the Great Lakes. But they also encompass the ability
to teach our children, to feed our elders, and to pass on our
culture. They recognize this exclusive right to regulate these
activities and allocate harvest opportunities so that we can
put food on the table for our families.
Together with the State of Michigan and the United States,
the Chippewa Ottawa Resource Authority has been managing the
ceded territory and regulating all treaty activity in the Great
Lakes since 1985. We have negotiated multiple successor Great
Lakes fishing decrees and recently began negotiations for a
third agreement in the fall of 2019. Despite the COVID-19
pandemic, we were able to learn how to use Zoom and continue
negotiations throughout that period of time, which then
resulted in a new and proposed Great Lakes fishing decree,
which was ordered by the court in August of 2023, and it is now
time to implement that new decree.
Implementation not only supports a wide range of
activities, but also establishes conservation-based
regulations, monitoring of critical fishery and wildlife
populations, as well as creates enforcement and conservation
laws throughout the ceded territory. It also supports vital
initiatives to address ecological stresses inflicted by climate
change, from monitoring and mitigating invasive species to
implementing adaptive management strategies. These funds are
extremely critical for ensuring the resilience and
sustainability of our natural resources as well as for the
continued existence of our people. Without adequate funding, we
risk severe cuts to these essential programs, leading to the
increased conflicts and reduced protection of our natural
resources. If you can help us protect the Great Lakes, we will
protect it for everyone else.
I urge you to prioritize funding for the rights protection
implementation in the fiscal year 2025 and allocate additional
funds to the Chippewa Ottawa Resource Authority for
implementation of the new Great Lakes fishing decree. This
funding is not only vital to uphold our treaty rights, preserve
our cultural heritage, ensure the sustainability of our natural
resources, but also so that we can continue to teach those
children and their children for many generations to come what
it means to be Great Lakes and Anishinaabe. So thank you for
your consideration of this request. [Speaking native language.]
[The statement of Ms. Gravelle follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you, Whitney. Kirk.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
UNITED SOUTH AND EASTERN TRIBES SOVEREIGNTY PROTECTION FUND (USET SPF)
WITNESS
KIRK FRANCIS, CHIEF OF THE PENOBSCOT INDIAN NATION, UNITED SOUTH AND
EASTERN TRIBES SOVEREIGNTY PROTECTION FUND (USET SPF)
Mr. Francis. Thank you. Good morning, Chairman Simpson,
Ranking Member Pingree.
Mr. Simpson. If you would, could you explain what the
United States South and Eastern Tribes Sovereignty Protection
Fund is?
Mr. Francis. Happy to. United South and Eastern Tribe
Sovereignty Protection Fund is an organization that is made up
of 33 tribal nations, from Maine to Florida, over to Texas, and
focusing primarily on our relationship with the United States
Government.
So again, sir, it is good to see you this morning, Ranking
Member Pingree as always, and members of the subcommittee, and
thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony. I am Kirk
Francis. I am the chief of the Penobscot Indian Nation in the
great State of Maine, the potato capital of the world, by the
way. [Laughter.]
Mr. Francis. I knew I was starting--[Laughter.]
Mr. Francis. And the president of the United South and
Eastern Tribe Sovereignty Protection Fund.
Tribal nations appear before you on the heels of another
foreign aid package that has sent tens of billions of dollars
overseas. Since 2022, Ukraine alone has received $135 billion
from the U.S. Government. I raise this issue not because we
feel this aid is unnecessary, but because this is a frustrating
reminder that in spite of barriers, like deficits and
procedural rules, Congress is capable of finding billions of
dollars in flexible funds for other units of government,
including foreign governments. However, year after year, Indian
Country is expected to advocate for the funding that we are
owed by this country, only to receive minor increases and
burdensome requirements for its use. These increases fail to
address the chronic underfunding of trust and treaty
obligations and often fail to account for inflation. As the
U.S. works to support and rebuild its allies, it must work to
provide the same support and restoration to the domestic
nations within its own borders, including through a Marshall
Plan for tribal nations.
You are already well aware of our history and the Federal
Government's ongoing failure to honor its obligations. We
remind you that our relationship with this country is
ultimately about honor, fulfilling commitments and promises. To
that end, we offer solutions representing 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.
In pursuit of this change, we extend our strong support for
the full implementation of Executive Order 14112 and ask that
you join us in working to ensure this executive order is
meaningfully implemented across the Federal agencies. In the
short term, the EO will result in greater deference to tribal
decision-making and improved services across Indian Country
through funding flexibilities. In the long term, proper
implementation will provide the detail necessary for the
subcommittee to advocate for additional funding for tribal
nations. We urge you to not only exercise oversight as this EEO
is implemented, but to also support the legislative change and
increased appropriations necessary for it to be successful.
Appropriators must work with Indian Country to achieve
mandatory funding for Federal Indian agencies and programs. We
continue to appreciate certainty and stability for IHS under
advanced appropriations, but this is a temporary solution. Full
and mandatory funding for agencies like IHS and BIA better
honors your obligations to Indian Country and will truly change
conditions for our people.
We should start immediately with mandatory funding for CSC
and 105(l) so that appropriations increases go towards services
and not binding Federal obligations. Relatedly, the processes
under which OMB develops budgets and policies that impact us
require reform. In concert with its newly established tribal
affairs advisor, a position that must be made permanent, OMB
must be required to produce a full, detailed accounting of the
funding distributed to Indian Country, comparing what actually
tribal nations can access against what is factually received.
Congress should also work with OMB to hold States accountable
for any passthrough dollars that are intended for tribal
nations.
Finally, in addition to our regional priorities for IHS and
BIA, we extend our support to the following: the President's
proposal for a tribal land and water Conservation fund and a
consolidated grant program at ACF; funding and permanency for
the Treasury's Office of Tribal and Native Affairs, OMB's
Tribal Affairs Office, and the White House Council on Native
American Affairs; and the following additional policy changes--
a special behavioral health program at IHS, payment in lieu of
taxes for tribal trust land acquisition, increased funding for
tribal historic preservation, and interagency transfer
authority for tribal funding. We 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
responsibility and, more importantly, the opportunity to drive
historic change. We urge you to lead this change within
Congress and improve how the United states views, honors, and
fulfills its promises to Indian Country, and, again, it is my
pleasure to be here, and I am happy to answer any questions.
[The statement of Mr. Francis follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Lee, it doesn't surprise me that we
have the same issues that we have been working on for a long
time. We have got to get the high walls down, and I don't know
if I will be around when it finishes, but I am going to be
around while it starts because we are going to get that done.
Law enforcement, you and I have talked about before, both law
enforcement and firefighting. You hire law enforcement and
firefighting people, and with Pocatello being 12 miles south of
you and Blackfoot being 12 miles north of you, as soon as you
train them up, they get more pay, and that is where they go.
And so you are a training ground, and somehow we got to change
that. That is something we have talked about in the past.
Interesting that you brought up roads. I will tell you the
story that Ms. McCollum and I were out on a Navajo Reservation,
and they took us out to a school on a dirt road. We both had
Fitbits on. We sat in the bus that took us out there. I got
50,000 steps just sitting in the bus, that is how bad the road
was. But I know that Mr. Cole, our full community chairman now,
is very interested in that, and he bumped the roads budget in
the transportation bill, and I am sure that we will be looking
at that again because roads are a big thing. So thank you for
being here, and I talk to you all the time.
So you brought up one thing, and I am going to mention it
here. I don't expect anybody to answer it right now because it
is something I want everyone to think about. I have been asked
by several tribes why do we fund the Indian Health Services
when money comes off the top through that party, through their
administration, and some tribes that have talked to me believe
that they could deliver more services by direct appropriation
to the tribes. That is a complicated subject, and it is
different for different tribes. Our goal is to make sure that
we get the money that we are appropriating to tribes for health
services.
And we will be sending out some letters to the tribes and
asking them to respond what they think. I don't know if it is a
good idea or a bad idea. All I am trying to do is get the best
services that we can for the money that we are spending. And I
would like to hear from the different tribes, and I suspect it
is going to be different from smaller tribes to larger tribes,
so that is an issue. Nobody cares about Indian Health Services
and their member services than the tribes do. So that is a
question that will be coming up, but thank you all for being
here today. Ms. Pingree.
Ms. Pingree. Yeah. Thank you very much. Thank you, Mr.
Chair. Thank you, all of you, for your testimony. Good to learn
a little bit more about the challenges that are being faced
back in the chairman's home State, and I hope we can do more to
help with that cleanup. That is really a devastating
description of the amount of waste that you have to deal with
and the fact that it has never been cleaned up. So maybe
between the work we do on this committee and also with the EPA,
we can give that a little push.
And good to hear about the work you are doing on the
fishing in the Great Lakes. I am originally from Minnesota, so
my heart is still a little bit in the Great Lakes, even though
I am solidly saltwater now. But still, I agree with your ending
statement that if you have the right to manage the species and
the water, you will do a very good job. So we will be happy to
help on that.
And, Chief Francis, really appreciate your coming here from
Maine, and I know we will have a chance to hear again a little
bit from the Penobscots later today, but I really appreciate
your taking sort of the UCET point of view and this broader
picture because that is not something we get to do that much in
this committee is sort of back up and say, you know, it is a
really good point. We all care deeply about making sure we got
funding to Ukraine, but we often don't think about how we get
beyond just like, oh, maybe we can eke this up, $2 million here
and $6 million there, and really, really getting into meeting
our treaty obligations, and you touched on so many different
points of view. I would like to have a follow-up conversation
really sometime with this committee because I think many of our
colleagues do turn to us and think, like, well, what else
should we be doing. They know there are issues in their home
State and that our funding levels are not enough. And even just
the process, looking at OMB, how it does things, how we oversee
these things.
So you brought up way too many points for me to kind of go
through, but I think we really should have a follow-up
conversation, especially with the people on this committee who
have been working on these issues for a long time and sort of
seen the frustration of, you know, we are not doing enough
here, you know, the roads. I mean, we talk about the law
enforcement issue every single time and the shortage, and, you
know, it is not a moment in time where we can just let that
slide. As you said, you know, if this was, if this was a big
city in the United States, you know, we would be all over it,
talking about it every day on the floor, what are we doing
about this, and yet, we have got communities all over the
country that don't have sufficient law enforcement and
certainly aren't getting the resources that they need.
So thank you so much for your thoughts, and I don't want to
let that go. I want to dig in on that, so thank you. I yield
back.
Mr. Simpson. Mr. Ellzey.
Mr. Ellzey. Thank you all for being here.
Mr. Simpson. Ms. McCollum.
Ms. McCollum. Well, thank you all for your testimony. We
started working when I first came on the committee, I think it
was Mr. Cole, who was chair at the time, trying to get OMB to
give us an accounting. And we have had some success, but the
challenge for tribes, especially smaller tribes, but it is a
challenge for all tribes, is there is money in Judiciary, there
is money in Ag, there is money here, and there is money in the
Health and Human Services bill. It is all over, and to ask a
tribe to write all these different grants and try to make a
matchup at the same time to do something is really herculean
task. And you are absolutely right, there is more that we can
do on that, so thank you for bringing that up again.
Mr. Chair, I am ready to go to school because I know a
little bit about mining and mine reclamation because of, you
know, other members who have served on this committee, Mr.
Rodgers and that. But the Bureau of Land Management, I know,
sometimes helps write the leases, so did they write a good
lease to make sure that we can get everything back? I am a
history teacher. I already know the answer, but, you know, I am
supposed to look for the facts first, so I would like to learn
more about that and work with you on that.
I want to talk about the funding for the tribes and the
State passthroughs, especially with you, Mr. Francis, because
in Maine, after we passed VAWA, the Women Against Violence Act,
we did a set aside in this committee, and your tribe was not
able to access it. Minnesota, during COVID, we did everything
right with the tribes. We have been passing everything direct,
not taking anything off in Minnesota, but then you have the
exact opposite in Maine. Would you just briefly tell the
committee what happens in Maine when the Federal Government
thinks that we are getting money to honor our trust and treaty
obligations?
Mr. Francis. Sure, and thank you, and I think it is a good
example of kind of what we are saying in terms of OMB's
crosscut. They talk about a $20 billion figure that gets out to
Indian Country. We really know it is not half of that actually
reaches Indian communities. So like in Maine, for example, you
guys did a great job addressing opioid funding, for example,
and getting opioid funds into States. We have not received a
dollar of those funds through State government in Maine. We
have also not received any money, as the congresswoman points
out, in dealing with the Violence Against Women Program.
However, I want to thank you all for your fix of that a few
years ago, the reauthorization and including the main tribes.
That was extremely important and historic, so we appreciate
that.
So it is an example of tribes all across the country really
struggling, whether they are PL 280 self-governing tribes.
Whatever the statues are in their State funding, I think just
Congress needs to understand that with all the well intentions,
it is not reaching everybody and that States need in their
reporting, I think, to be held more accountable in terms of
what demographic of people are actually being reached that the
funding is intended for.
Ms. McCollum. And, Mr. Chair, before I conclude, I want to
thank you for your testimony on behalf of the Great Lakes. We
heard all about Idaho and Maine and their potatoes, but nobody
can beat our water, so thank you for the work you do on that,
and we are looking to see what we can do more. I took some more
notes, and we will be talking with the GLIFWC and others that
all work together on those issues, so Miigwetch.
Mr. Tyler. Chairman, may I something?
Mr. Simpson. Quickly, yeah.
Mr. Tyler. Yeah. I just wanted to share real quickly the
Public Law 280, and since 1963, it was forced on us in Idaho.
You are talking about direct funding. Is that funding actually
coming to those seven areas of the concurrent jurisdiction, and
there should be, like, an investigation because where is all
that money going in those four counties. And then looking at
those four areas up there, Department of Interior, EPA and
Forest Service, and Department of Agriculture, and Indian
Health Service, that is all part of life. We want to make sure
that is all protected for resources of our reservations,
Minesto plants, et cetera. I am really honored to be here as
well and appreciate your time.
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Whitney, what kind of fish is that
on your bead work?
Ms. Gravelle. This is a pike. So Ghanoush Nakanims where I
am from is the place of Northern Pike, so that is here
representing the fish in the Great Lakes.
Mr. Simpson. Great. I appreciate it. I will tell you that
we are going to hold a hearing later on this year on missing
and murdered Indian women. It is a huge problem in this
country. We lose 6,000 people. If that was any other
subpopulation, there would be an outrage across this country,
but not many people know that, and I think we need to delve
into it. You got very, very few police officers and a lot of
large reservations that they cover. Congress needs to do
something about that, but I think it is going to come down in
large part to the funding and the relationship with the FBI.
And I will tell you one quick story before we get on to the
next panel. I was holding--I probably shouldn't say this--a
fundraiser one day, and Lee came over to it. And I was talking
at this fundraiser about how the far left and the far right in
Congress are kind of at odds, and they make it hard to get
anything done and all that kind of stuff at the end. I mean, he
had a beaded necklace on, and it had a big eagle on it,
beautiful piece of beadwork. And he said, I want you to know
this magnificent bird has a left wing and it has a right wing,
and it can only fly if both wings work together, which is
something to think about. Anyway, thank you all for being here
today. I appreciate it very much.
Panel Number Two: Mr. Johnson, Mr. Seki, Mr. Dupuis, and
Mr. Schlender.
[Pause.]
Mr. Simpson. Mr. Johnson, you are first.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
PRAIRIE ISLAND INDIAN COMMUNITY
WITNESS
GRANT JOHNSON, PRESIDENT, PRAIRIE ISLAND INDIAN COMMUNITY
Mr. Johnson. Good morning, Chair Simpson, Ranking Member
Pingree, and distinguished members of the subcommittee, and
good morning to Congresswoman McCollum. It is good to see you.
Ms. McCollum. Good to see you, too.
Mr. Johnson. My name is Grant Johnson. I am the president
of the Prairie Island Indian Community. Our tribe is grateful
to be invited to testify today, and we thank you for your
efforts to ensure that Indian Country receives the funding it
so desperately needs.
While our tribe and our Mdewakanton Dakota ancestors have
lived along the banks of the Mississippi River for countless
generations, the Federal Government took all the lands from us
in the 19th century. The Department of Interior later reversed
course and acquired land for our tribe on an island known as
Prairie Island in the Mississippi River. Today, that land forms
the core of our reservation. Unfortunately, the Federal
Government also built and licensed infrastructure projects on
and adjacent to Prairie Island that benefit other communities
at our expense. More specifically, we are burdened by a Federal
dam that contributes to the repeated flooding of our
reservation. The Federal Government's National Weather Service
characterizes the worst level of flooding as a major flood
event. Our reservation has been subject to four major flood
events in the last 3 decades, the most recent one occurring
just last year, in 2023. During these events, as well as in
years with lower but still damaging flood levels, we are forced
to use our own financial and human resources to build temporary
barriers and to take other actions to try to protect homes,
sacred and cultural sites, government offices, and tribal
businesses.
Making matters worse, since the early 1970s, the Federal
Government has licensed the continued operation of a nuclear
power plant less than 700 yards from our reservation, despite
the tribe's longstanding objections. Even though this nuclear
plant is already one of the oldest in the United States, its
operators are now petitioning to extend its license to 2054.
Further, the Federal Government licensed the storage of more
than a thousand tons of nuclear waste at the plant over the
express objections of the tribe and the Bureau of Indian
Affairs. Plant operators are now petitioned to expand this
nuclear waste storage to as much as 2,100 tons. Finally, trains
carrying hazardous materials across our reservation and often
block the only access on and off Prairie Island even in
emergency situations. We are constantly concerned about what
would happen if our members, business patrons, and employees
are unable to evacuate the island in a nuclear or flooding
emergency due to rail traffic.
Separately and together, these three infrastructure
projects continuously endanger the health and safety of our
members and the viability of the tribal businesses that provide
the bulk of the revenue to fund our government. We know of no
other community in America forced to live in such close
proximity to these threats. It is against this backup that we
urge the subcommittee to prioritize three categories for
Federal funding.
First, we are in desperate need of relocation funds. Our
tribe has had no choice but to seek additional reservation land
to remove ourselves from the threats I have just described. We
use our own money to buy land, known as Elkron, that is located
within our historic territory and within 50 miles of Prairie
Island, consistent with an agreement we have with State of
Minnesota. We need Federal funding to build infrastructure and
homes on this land. Unfortunately, existing Federal funding for
tribal relocation is woefully inadequate, and nearly all such
funding has been directed to addressing land loss caused by
climate change. The Prairie Island Indian Community's
relocation needs are necessitated not just by climate change,
but most fundamentally, by hazards caused by Federal-
constructed and licensed infrastructure projects. We urge
Congress to make relocation funding available to tribes with
environmental justice threats like ours.
Second, we urge that more Federal funding needs to be
available to support law enforcement in the country. In light
of the severe threats faced by our tribe, adequate law
enforcement, public safety, emergency response infrastructure
is critical for the protection of our citizens, patrons, and
employees. The BIA has long reported that Indian Country law
enforcement funding is adequate, and we urge Congress to
prioritize funding to meet these public safety needs. We note
we have submitted a community project funding request for an
updated mobile command vehicle for our first responders to use
in an emergency.
Finally, we need funding for the preparation of a
comprehensive emergency plan. Without adequate planning, chaos
inherently follows a nuclear event, catastrophic flooding, or
hazardous substance released from a train derailment. We need a
single point of contact to help coordinate the multiple Federal
agencies that would be involved, and we need funding for the
development of a Federal emergency plan. Our funding request is
compelled by the Federal Government's general trust
responsibility to our tribe, particularly given that the grave
threats we face are federally created.
Thank you for your time today, and I am happy to answer any
questions.
[The statement of Mr. Johnson follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Ellzey. [Presiding.] Chairman Seki, the Red Lake Band
of Chippewa Indians.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
RED LAKE BAND OF CHIPPEWA INDIANS
WITNESS
DARRELL SEKI, SR., CHAIRMAN, RED LAKE BAND OF CHIPPEWA INDIANS
Mr. Seki. Good morning. [Speaking native language.] Good
afternoon to all our friends here. I am Darrell Seki, senior
chairman of the Red Lake Nation. This is my third term as
chairman, and I am proud to say this subcommittee has always
worked in bipartisan manner to do the best they can for Indian
Country, and I believe in all of you to continue this
tradition.
Today I want to talk about four appropriation requests.
These funding requests would help improve the lives of Red
Lake's 17,000-plus members. First, we support the Tribal
Interior Budget Council's recommendation based on the latest
TLOA report to Congress for additional $1.1 billion for tribal
law enforcement, $1.1 billion for tribal courts, $103 million
for detention operations, and $8.5 million specifically for Red
Lake law enforcement.
Red Lake is in the midst of opiate crisis spurred by the
non-Indian drug dealers. Red Lake law enforcement is doing
their best, but they are hamstrung by two things. One, RBI
funding is way too low. RBI public safety expenditures were
$8.5 million more than BIA provided over the last 2 years. Two,
we cannot arrest and detain non-Indians. The drug dealers know
this and they keep coming back. Congress needs to authorize
tribal police to arrest detained non-Indian drug dealers. The
1978 Oliphant Law has to be changed so tribes can arrest and
detain non-members that are hurting our people that are
violating our tribal laws. Second, we request that you fully
fund and expand, make permanent BIA's Tiwahe Initiative, that
Tiwahe be declared an official government policy. Tiwari
addresses many vital needs in our community from youth suicide
prevention efforts, allowing our Children's Healing Center to
implement a 27 youth residential treatment program for mental
health, and substance abuse efforts to combat tribal members'
unemployment rates.
I just returned from the third National Tiwahe Conference,
and there were more than 250 attendees sharing their success
stories and dreams of strengthening families. Thanks to you,
last year, BIA was able to onboard four more Tiwahe sites,
bringing the number to 10 sites and 65 tribes, and this year,
BIA was able to provide one-time funds to 12 Tiwahe incubator
sites to enable them to develop Tiwahe implementation plans so
they will be ready to become full Tiwahe sites when Congress
provides additional funds. The President has requested
additional Tiwahe funding, and we ask for your support to
expand Tiwahe to more tribes.
Third, we request financial assistance for Red Lake's
crumbling water and wastewater infrastructure system. Most of
this infrastructure dates back to the 1960s, and the lines are
made of asbestos, cement, and are seriously deteriorating. Our
projects have been unable to get on the IHS sanitation
deficiency list because IHS prioritizes projects where houses
are crammed together to provide more service per mile. This IHS
policy unfairly harms Red Lake, and we have nowhere else to go
for financial assistance. We have six projects totaling $39
million that are shovel ready, and we request this amount in
fiscal year 2025.
Fourth, as I have raised in the past years, you must direct
the IHS to immediately include both depreciation principal
interest payments for eligible 105 lease facilities just as BIA
does. 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 I
renew my call that the funding honoring these treaties must be
mandatory and discretionary. In my right hand, I have the
United States Constitution of America. Article VI treaties were
adopted. It is the supreme law of the land. Promises were given
to tribes but always broken promises, and we are forgotten. Do
the right thing, Jimmy.
[Speaking native language] for allowing me to request your
support for some of our most immediate needs at Red Lake as you
enact 2025 appropriations that direct impact my constituents,
and I want to say, we are a nation within a Nation. We are
exercising our sovereignty inherent to self-govern. Miigwech.
[The statement of Mr. Seki follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Ellzey. Thank you, Chairman, and welcome home. Chairman
Kevin Dupuis of Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and
an 8-year Marine. Over to you, sir.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
FOND DU LAC BAND OF LAKE SUPERIOR CHIPPEWA
WITNESS
KEVIN DUPUIS, SR.
Mr. Dupuis. [Speaking native language.] Hello. My name is
Kevin Dupuis. I am the Fond du Lac chairman. I would just like
to say thank you, Chairman Simpson and Ranking Member Pingree.
I have come here for many, many years, and I don't think
there is anything that I can say today that you haven't already
heard from tribal members throughout the country over the
years. But what I want to bring up is the reality of the things
that people request, including Fond du Lac and other tribes.
We listen to my brother to my left here, Chairman Seki. I
have known him for many years and working together with him,
and hearing the issues of my brother over here from Prairie
Island, my brother here from LCO, and listening to what they
all have to say, and prior tribal leadership that have come in
front of them. Again, what you have been hearing is nothing
new. It is a continuation, and I heard comments earlier when I
was sitting there on why these things are the way that they
are.
I don't know what the reason is why they are the way they
are, but the simplicity is this. We are dual citizens in the
Act of 1924, and people forget that. Individual States forget
that they still have a duty and responsibility based on that
dual citizenship. And to Chairman Seki's point, the treaty
rights and reserve rights trust responsibility is supreme law
of the land. And every time we go into a perspective to talk
about what we need and what we want for our reservations and
our home, it seems that we have this bureaucracy that sits in
front of us, but the reality is this. We are a people, too, and
I need to say the way that I feel. We see you, but does
everybody see us?
And we live in every direction we turn. To the forward, to
the back, to our left or to our right, we are looking at
somebody who surrounds us. And the question always comes up
from my brother, Kevin Jensvold from Upper Sioux, is be
invisible. I am not going to use that term, ``invisible.'' I am
just going to make the basic term of the simplicity of saying,
do you see us?
Our land, our resources, everybody wants, everybody has
used. Treaty rights, usufructuary rights, things that have been
taken out of the ground--granite, marble--to build these great,
huge, beautiful buildings in every city in the country, and
that resource has been taken, and sometimes it is to the point
that we are just asking for it back. If somebody is done using
it and destroyed it the way it is, give it back to us so we can
build land mass.
The other thing is when we take a look at the reality, and
we talked about VAWA, that is a very big thing in Indian
Country. We have our own police departments, we have our own
law enforcement, we have our own court systems, but we are
still looked at as, again, as second class compared to
everything else. If we were a regular municipality, to your
words, ma'am, why won't we be treated like everybody else? And
the issue is the original inhabitants of this land, we have a
true identity, we have a language, we have a culture, and it
needs to be understand. If we can look at and the law says that
we have true sovereignty and legitimate governments, then why
aren't we looked at as true, legitimate governments?
Why are we the only group of people that really has to come
up and ask for help when the reality is if we were treated
basically the same as everybody else and looked at the same, we
wouldn't be doing these things. But as this unique political
entity that we are under that principles, and we understand
that, then we are going to come here every year and we are
going to ask for these things, and it is not a point of asking
anymore. It is got to be a demand.
Our people are dying in alarming rates. If we only make up
1 percent of the population in the State of Minnesota and there
is 5.7 million people, and we have the highest disparities of
anywhere, we have to do the math. We have to do the math. If
every assessment is done on a disparity and it is based on a
hundred thousand, and the tribal membership in the State of
Minnesota is federally-recognized tribes of 11 bands and tribes
in the State, we don't make up a hundred thousand, so in
theory, we are not part of anybody's formula. But these numbers
are used to generate revenue throughout, and we are the ones
not getting the revenue. So if we make up 12 percent of the
homeless population in the State of Minnesota, why aren't we
getting 12 percent of the funding? If we make up 34.7 percent
of the suicide rate in the State of Minnesota, then why aren't
we receiving 34.7 percent of the suicide prevention revenue? It
is a simple math issue nd in reality.
We try to do what is best for our people. And again, I
didn't want to come here and talk about things that you guys
have already heard, and you are going to hear it a thousand
more times, but these are the things that we need to understand
that we are here and does everybody see us. And if everybody
truly does see us, then everybody has to come to the table and
listen to what we have to say and find resolve to the issues
that we have. Miigwech.
[The statement of Mr. Dupuis follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you, Kevin. Jason.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
GREAT LAKES INDIAN FISH AND WILDLIFE COMMISSION
WITNESS
JASON SCHLENDER, ADMINISTRATOR, GREAT LAKES INDIAN FISH AND WILDLIFE
COMMISSION
Mr. Schlender. [Speaking native language.] So good morning,
everybody. My name is Jason Schlender. I am the executive
administrator of the Great Lakes and Indian Fish and Wildlife
Commission. First of all, I would like to acknowledge Chairman
Simpson, Ranking Member Pingree, and also distinguished Member
McCollum from the State of Minnesota.
The Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission
recently celebrated the 40th anniversary of its founding and of
the 7th Circuit opinion reaffirming the rights guaranteed in
treaties of 1837 and 1842. We also celebrated this year the
25th anniversary of the Supreme Court's reaffirmation of our
treaty rights in the Mille Lacs v. Minnesota case. We truly
appreciate Congress and this committee's support over the
years. That support not only allows tribes to exercise their
right to self-governance and the implementation of Federal
court orders that resulted from litigation, but also helps to
fulfill the United States obligation under those treaties.
As you know, GLIFWC's fundamental job relates to the
assistance of implementation of our treaty rights, whether it
is issuing harvest permits, monitoring harvests, enforcing
tribal laws, and ensuring safety of our tribal members. And we
do that work well, but we also strive to meet the myriad of
challenges that face us by remaining creative, innovative, and
responsive. From climate change to non-native beings, the
threats to treaty resources are many.
One current challenge, less directly related to
environmental conditions, which is equally, if not more
important, relates to transferring knowledge and cultural
practices to the next generation of Ojibwe and Anishinaabe
people. What good are our treaty rights if our youth have lost
connection to their culture, their life ways, and the ability
to harvest and consume healthy food?
One way GLIFWC seeks to meet that challenge is through
community outreach, which is organized and facilitated by our
conservation enforcement officers. Every summer, 50 middle-
school-aged tribal members attend our Camp OnjiAking in the
Odawa National Forest. They learn cultural teachings,
harvesting techniques, and develop an appreciation for the
outdoors. Unfortunately, the continuation of this camp may be
in jeopardy.
GLIFWC has a vacancy rate of 44 percent in our warden
force. We simply cannot compete in terms of salary with other
similar State and Federal agencies. Thus, in our written
testimony, we have asked this committee to provide additional
funding. And just remember that our funding comes primarily
through RPI funding for our enforcement division. So we ask
that so that we can provide wage raises for our enforcement
officers to a level commensurate with their counterparts. We
truly understand that this is an issue that many non-tribal
agencies face as well. However, this is an unmet treaty
obligation and, as such, should be prioritized.
The five commissions funded under RPI estimated their
current combined need for RPI funding to be approximately $66
million. Even if that full amount is not currently possible, we
will place a priority on full employment in our Conservation
Enforcement Division. We would also like to prioritize cost of
living adjustments and competitive salaries for all of our
staff should additional funds be available. We very much
appreciate this committee's recommendation last year for an
$800,000 increase to RPI, but we are equally disappointed that
the increase was not included in the final appropriation. And
so in closing, we hope that you will try once again. Miigwetch
[Speaking native language.]
[The statement of Mr. Schlender follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Thank you all for being here today.
I am going to turn to Ms. Pingree first.
Ms. Pingree. Well, thank you all very much. I really
appreciate what you had to say. As I mentioned to the earlier
panel, I am originally from Minnesota, so, and I had a chance
to visit the Mille Lacs Tribe this year and so always
appreciate the challenges that you are facing in that State.
And thank you so much for drawing some of the bigger picture
connections there.
I won't use the word ``invisible'' either, but I think it
is a really important point to make with all of us all the time
about some of the things that Chief Francis had mentioned
earlier. Why aren't we stepping back and looking at the big
picture, not asking you to come every year and saying, could
you give us another $100,000 or $15 here or there. These are
really big issues that we are not facing right now at the level
of the lack of funding. So thank you for talking about the sort
of deep challenges that that provides.
And I was particularly concerned to hear what you mentioned
about the youth camp funding, which, you know, again, it is
only a microcosm of the challenges, but that is such an
important thing to be able to allow young people to have that
connection to, whether it is foraging or just understanding
sort of their natural surroundings, and it would be really
tragic not to have those vacancies filled so you could make
sure that the opportunities were there. But thank you all.
Really important testimony. We appreciate you all very much.
Mr. Simpson. Ms. McCollum.
Ms. McCollum. In office, I use my hometown team mask up
here, so not as large as some of the others, but my eyes, the
mightiest.
Chairman Johnson, he brings up a real important point, and
unless you are on the Prairie Island reservation and you see
the kids' playground and you know when they are up in the
swings that they are looking at cast upon cast of nuclear
storage in the Mississippi floodplain with railroad tracks not
too far from it. I was there, I voted against the storage, and
my fear was not only we were being disrespectful to the tribes,
but that it would be permanently stored there.
And it was NSP at the time, a different company owned it,
and they weren't going to, you know, do 12 casts. Oddly enough,
the day after the law was passed, they had 12 concrete
platforms, and they have used them, and then they re-racked
when they told us and they told you that they couldn't re-rack.
So it is really something to behold, and I know people get
upset with me sometimes from certain States, but that I will
vote for Yucca Mountain every chance I get, but I fear because
the State of Minnesota took an affirmative vote to store the
nuclear waste, even if that were to open, we are at the bottom
of the list. Thank you for reminding us that nuclear waste has
an impact on communities, and your community was not consulted,
and for that, I didn't prevail, but I was glad to be part of
the fight along the side with you.
I want to pick on what you two gentlemen said about Tiwahe,
and we have been working on it. It started out as pilots. It is
successful in that, so anything we need to do with the
authorizing committee, I think we should look at and make sure
we get things in place to move forward with it. The President
has recognized it now, and it is a game changer in communities.
You still need the other resources, as you both pointed out,
but it has been a game changer.
We just had a vote on the floor last week, and it had to do
with the boundary waters and the proposed mining to go up
there. All these mines have failed, but would you maybe
explain, and I will have Fond du Lac do that because you are
the most impacted directly. All the tribes have been
supportive, including Sioux Nation tribes. Could you explain
what happens when the sulfite gets in the water because they
say how the mine is not in the boundary waters, but it is like
a sponge up there. All these mines have failed. What happens?
What happens?
Mr. Dupuis. Has everybody heard of the Laurentian Divide?
Ms. McCollum. I am a geography teacher.
Mr. Dupuis. Okay.
Ms. McCollum. So water flows north.
Mr. Dupuis. So that means the water flows north. So north
of the mine area is the boundary waters, so anything at that
point in time we look at is where Fond du Lac as a downstream
State for anything flowing into the St. Louis river and then
flow into Lake Superior. But the misconception is that the
Laurentian Divide at that point in time absorbs water and moves
north, so it flows north into the boundary waters itself. So
opening up a mining principle into Superior National Forest for
that principle will find its way into the boundary waters. So
when you take a look at the law for the protection of this
place and restoring it to what it is and maintaining in
perpetuity in the boundary waters, that won't happen.
Sulfate, it kills wild rice. It kills things into the
water. Principles of mining, reverse osmosis. You can't put
that pure water back into a system because when it doesn't have
the minerals and doesn't have principles like that, it also
kills the ecosystem. So when we take a look at where it exactly
is and what they are going to do with it, it will go into the
boundary waters. The water will make its way into the boundary
waters. There is no safe mining that exists. There is
responsible mining that can happen, but there is also
irresponsible mining that continues to happen. So if we think
of that, it is like anything. What is the residual of this
toxin? Well, there are all kinds of residuals from every toxin
that exists and then other things that have to be monitored
under that principle.
To my friend's comment there, it is basically this. There
isn't any mining that can happen that will not affect an
ecosystem in a negative way. I think that is the simplicity way
to put it, but there are responsible ways of mining, and nobody
has come up with the responsible ways of mining. I shouldn't
say that. I apologize. They have come up with the responsible
ways for mining. The other thing, too, is the one biggest piece
that needs to be looked at is that consultation piece with
tribes. Listen to ecological knowledge that has been here for
four ice ages, and that is where it needs to come. That
consultation needs to happen. That conversation with tribes
need to happen to understand what the ecosystem is and how the
ecosystem has survived for four ice ages under this principle.
Miigwetch.
Ms. McCollum. Thank you. And as was pointed out, military
service, you mentioned how tribes are often viewed as
invisible. I serve on the Defense Appropriations Committee. I
knew before I was on the committee, but now that I am on the
committee, I understand it even more. The percentage of Native
Americans who serve our Nation compared to any other population
is off the charts, and you can't go to one pow-wow where
veterans aren't recognized. So thank all of your veterans for
their service. Miigwetch. I yield back.
Mr. Simpson. Thank you all for being here. Let me just say
that I appreciate your testimony. I have been rereading a book
that I read when I was first chairman of this committee. It is
called ``The Rights of Indians and Tribes. I just read last
week the section on law enforcement, and you brought up that
issue. I don't know how you do any law enforcement on
reservations with the different laws that exist. If you are a
Native American and you commit a crime on trust land against
another Native American, it is one thing. If it is against a
non-Native American, it is another thing. If it is on non-trust
land but on the reservation, it is treated differently. I don't
know how you ever find out who the hell is in charge of any of
this, and we need to simplify this.
I am one of those who believe that tribes have the right to
police their own reservations and enforce the law against
whoever breaks the law, so I would like to, get into how we
change these laws. And it is due to different Supreme Court
decisions along the way and all sorts of crazy stuff, but I am
more confused after I read it than I was before I read it. Go
ahead, Darrell.
Mr. Seki. Okay. I want to make a comment on that. You know,
like, non-members violate our tribal laws, bring drugs in. They
abuse our women and children and grandparents. They keep doing
it and then we banish them, but they still come back in. So 3
years ago, this one individual got caught 5 times violating the
banishment, so we incarcerated them. As a chairman of the
tribe, this person was abusing this woman and the kids and plus
the grandma, and I kept him in jail. The BIA, they were going
to take our funds away. They also were going to charge me for
obstruction of justice. And so without me still against to let
him go, they released him to the county. The county kept him
only 2 or 3 days and let him go, and then, sure enough, he got
arrested on the outside of the reservation, but this is the
problem we have.
Mr. Simpson. Yeah.
Mr. Seki. Now they are using our tribal members. The drug
dealers are using our tribal members to bring the drugs in. It
is a continued fight.
Mr. Simpson. Yep.
Mr. Seki. We are doing our best to stop it, but we got to
be allowed to incarcerate these non-members and detain them and
charge them, but we are not allowed because of the 1978
Oliphant law.
Mr. Simpson. Yeah.
Mr. Seki. That has got to be changed for tribes. It is just
not Red Lake. It happens all over.
Mr. Simpson. That is right.
Mr. Seki. All over Indian land. I ask you guys, do the
right thing. Miigwetch.
Mr. Simpson. I have always found it strange that you can
only incarcerate for a year at the most. And so a lot of times,
if there is a drug dealer you want it prosecuted by the county
or by the State, it is just a bizarre set of laws, and somehow
I think we need to look at that whole situation and how we can
improve that. But that takes an authorizing bill, and I think
the Natural Resources Committee that oversees this ought to be
looking at how can we reform these laws to have them make sense
because you guys care more about what happens on your
reservations than anybody else does. And drug dealers are using
them because they know of the challenges if they are not on the
reservation.
Mr. Seki. They know well.
Mr. Simpson. Yeah. So anyway, thank you all for being here
today. We appreciate your testimony and look forward to working
with you on these.
[Pause.]
Mr. Simpson. Mr. Lowes.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
SAULT STE. MARIE BAND OF CHIPPEWA INDIANS
WITNESS
AUSTIN LOWES, CHAIRMAN, SAULT STE. MARIE BAND OF CHIPPEWA INDIANS
Mr. Lowes. [Audio malfunction.]--is in the upper peninsula
of Michigan. We administer 23 governmental divisions and manage
over 75 Federal, State, local and tribally-funded programs
across our seven-county service area. We have a tribal
membership of approximately 50,000. Our territory includes
2,800 acres of trust land. We also utilize territories
throughout Michigan to exercise our treaty rights to hunt,
fish, and gather.
For almost 50 years, the Sioux Tribe of Chippewa Indians
has built its government capacity to provide the full range of
services to its members, including healthcare, education, elder
services, law enforcement, housing, social services, and
cultural programs. We operate eight health clinics across our
seven-county service area. In these clinics, we offer a wide
range of services, including medical, dental, behavioral
health, special diabetes, nutrition, pharmacy, wellness
programs, and traditional medicine. We are proud of the work
that we do in this space.
The Sioux Tribe of Chippewa Indians at this time would like
to express its deep appreciation for the Congress' action in
providing advanced appropriations for fiscal year 2025 for the
Indian Health Service. Given the very uncertain fiscal times
facing our Nation, we appreciate the knowledge knowing that
this base budget of our Indian health system is secure. This
allows our program and staff to plan accordingly on how to best
meet the healthcare needs of our people.
Regarding healthcare, one of the greatest threats to the
future of tribal communities is substance abuse and mental
health conditions, and this is important to me because prior to
being elected chairman of my tribe, I was a mental health
therapist who worked in this area. Since the heroin/opioid
public health emergency of 2018, illicit drug use and mental
health illnesses have only escalated to a national emergency,
particularly in Indian Country. With healthcare staff
shortages, long waiting lists, and patients in crisis, the need
for mental health and addiction treatment services is
absolutely overwhelming. It is clear that funding and staff
shortages continue to be primary barriers to safety services.
According to the 2021 National Survey on Drug Use and
Health, nearly half of young adults aged 18 to 25 in 2021 had
either any mental health illness, AMI, or a substance use
disorder, SUD, in the past year. American Indian or
acquisitions were 11.4 percent higher than all other
nationalities at 34.2 percent to have either an AMI or an SUD
in that same period. As these rates continue to climb, the
access to necessary hospital treatments to combat the mental
and opioid epidemics continue to be nonexistent. Key programs
offered by IHS, SAMHSA, DOI, and partnering agencies provide
limited respite to exhausted communities and health staff.
While the Department of Interior, Department of Health and
Human Services, and the Department of Justice have been tasked
with coordinating certain existing department programs pursuant
to the Tribal Law and Order Act, funding to expand and
implement successful prevention, treatment, and aftercare
programming is stagnant. The current interagency agreement
calls for the development of tribal action plans. However,
funding is limited to SAMHSA's available competitive funding
instruments, leaving out necessary full funding of tribal
action plans that have already been adopted by tribes.
Notwithstanding the lack of funding for the tribal action
plans, the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians was one
of the first tribes in the Nation to have completed a tribal
action plan to combat substance abuse on our reservations.
Tribes now need the resources to implement their plans. We
would call on the committee to provide additional funding to
both the BIA and IHS to fund the implementation of tribal
action plans. It is also time to fully fund Indian Health
Services. Miigwetch, and thank you for your time.
[The statement of Mr. Lowes follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you, Austin. George.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
LAC DU FLAMBEAU BAND OF LAKE SUPERIOR CHIPPEWA
WITNESS
GEORGE W. THOMPSON, VICE PRESIDENT, LAC DU FLAMBEAU BAND OF LAKE
SUPERIOR CHIPPEWA
Mr. Thompson. Mr. Thompson. Good morning. George Thompson,
vice president of the Lac du Flambeau Tribal Council. On behalf
of the Lac du Flambeau tribal president, John Johnson, I thank
you for inviting us to testify today concerning the fiscal year
2025 budget needs. Unfortunately, President Johnson could not
make it due to the recent passing of his wife, Manedu Wigan,
also known as Sue Johnson. She was known as Auntie Sue, Grandma
Sue to many youth, and was very passionate about integrating
tribal culture and education. Our Ojibwe ancestors entered into
the treaties of 1836, 1837, 1842, and 1854 that ceded certain
lands while reserving the right to hunt and fish and gather in
ceded territories. The Federal Government must honor these
treaties that are now a part of the United States trust
responsibility to Indian peoples.
I am joined today by our chief of police Thomas Bills,
state of emergency data analyst Stacey Stone, and administrator
Dee Allen. The unified theme of my testimony is the epidemic
that continues to devastate our community like other tribal
nations heard this morning. Drug addiction, including, but not
limited to, meth, fentanyl, and heroin, harms our members. It
diminishes our housing stock, increases the mental health
crisis, and spurs human trafficking on our reservation. To
combat crime and addiction, the tribal government subsidizes
Federal programs with millions of dollars that the BIA, IHS,
and EPA accounts should cover as a part of the Federal trust
responsibility. About 40 percent of our annual arrests by
tribal police involve drugs. We ask the subcommittee to respond
to this crisis with significant funding increases to address
this emergency.
I turn to our requests. Within Vilas County, our tribe has
eleven officers compared to the sheriff's department's 39
officers. Both respond to an equal amount of calls, which
average around 6,000 per year. This takes a toll on our tribal
police officers, who work 12-hour shifts. They are stretched
too thin. Please increase BIA law enforcement accounts in the
fiscal year 2025 budget and pass H.R. 4524. Our tribal social
programs need additional BIA funds to address the consequences
of substance use disorders. This includes domestic abuse and
child neglect. Please increase BIA human services accounts and
expand the successful Tiwahe initiative to all tribes and have
more resources to address these challenges. Please increase the
IHS accounts for mental health counseling and drug treatment,
such as medication-assisted treatment programs that require
trained health professionals, counselors, and local access to
culturally-appropriate treatment and aftercare centers to
succeed.
Finally, we see the gaps in the statutory authority that
appears to prohibit the use of Federal funds in EPA, IHS, and
BIA accounts to clean meth- and fentanyl-contaminated homes.
EPA funds can clean meth-contaminated labs but not meth-
contaminated homes. IHS personnel can and do provide technical
assistance to the tribes to develop standards to clean homes,
but IHS has no funds to award the tribes to clean a
contaminated tribal home or rental unit. It costs the tribe at
least $4,000 to $8,000 to clean and test a meth-contaminated
home. We are losing our housing inventory due to drugs. This is
causing overcrowding and domestic and child abuse. Please
provide clear statutory authority and appropriations for IHS,
EPA, and BIA to permit the use of Federal appropriations to
clean tribal homes from drug contamination and direct IHS and
EPA to assist tribes to develop a uniform standard to mitigate
illicit drug contamination of tribal homes. Thank you.
Miigwetch.
[The statement of Mr. Thompson follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Ms. Pingree.
Ms. Pingree. Thank you. Thank you both very much for your
testimony and certainly for covering the substance use disorder
challenges that we are all facing, particularly in rural States
like mine, but also at a high level. And everything you talked
about--fully funding IHS funding, the tribal action plans that
you are talking about--seems just critically important, so
thank you for addressing that and raising our attention to
that. So I hope we can make a difference on that.
And the point you made about decontaminating a home is an
interesting point and maybe something we can figure out, since,
in the scale of things, you are not talking about an enormous
pot of funding, but you are talking about something that is
critically important and very expensive for the tribes to have
to deal with themselves. And I think we all know how
devastating it is to lose housing stock because that compounds
all the other problems that we are talking about, so thanks for
bringing that to our attention. But really, overall, the law
enforcement, supporting the funding on mental health and
substance use disorder, thank you for bringing our attention to
that. I yield back.
Mr. Simpson. Ms. McCollum.
Ms. McCollum. Wow. Pointing out that there is no funding
for cleaning the houses, I know when we were dealing with meth,
even in the municipalities I represented, dangerous for police
officers to go in. The cleanup was very complicated. Very
complicated. And then you have got all the hazardous material
after you are done doing the clean, and then sometimes flooring
and everything has to come out, so the $4,000 to $5,000 is
probably maybe even the low range for doing that. So would the
housing be eligible to be cleaned if there was more money? I
want to make sure I understand that right because I know there
were different pots of money, even for municipalities in, like,
North St. Paul and St. Paul, and this is what the State of
Minnesota had to draw on. Could you help me understand that a
little better? And it might not be in this committee, it might
be in Judiciary or something like that, but I would like to
take a look. Could you help navigate that?
Mr. Thompson. You asked if housing could receive funds?
Ms. McCollum. Yeah, so there is money that you get for
doing some of the hazmat, and the police departments usually
get equipment and that for going in. But for cleaning up the
housing, is it a lack of funding available to clean up the
housing, or is it that the money would not even be eligible for
cleaning the houses? We can look into that, too.
Mr. Thompson. It is a little bit of column A and column A
on that.
Ms. McCollum. Okay.
Mr. Thompson. They sometimes have to subsidize funding
through housing in order to clean these units just because of
the same EPA regulations. Of course, you know, tribes have the
EPA regulations we use because it is the higher standard.
Ms. McCollum. Right.
Mr. Thompson. So part of the problem is, you know, having
the funds, access the test kits, cleaning the houses, retesting
the houses to make sure they are at safe levels. This is a very
lengthy process, and depending on the amount of drugs that were
used inside of the home, you know, you could go through
multiple cleanings, so you take that number and sometimes
multiply it by 2 or 3. We were at a point with the amount of
drug use, it damn near bankrupted our housing authority, and it
still continues to hurt our housing authority, but at the same
time, you also have a lot of homes that were owned by
individual tribal members with no housing attached to it.
That is where a portion of that funding comes into play for
us as well to clean these homes up so they are available stock
for someone to purchase and have their own home. Could that be
the responsibility, yes, but, you know, being as remote as we
are in the North Woods, access to that type of cleaning
service----
Ms. McCollum. Yeah.
Mr. Thompson [continuing]. Or materials is very hard to
come by.
Ms. McCollum. Okay, well, it might not be the funding that
is in this committee. It might be something we need to, as
appropriators, talk to some of our fellow appropriators on
other committees because losing housing stock is a crisis on
these tribal lands, and housing goes to a lot of the mental
health and substance control issues that you were talking
about. Would you just take a second and talk about how housing
plays into that? There is a whole lot of things, and your
testimony is wonderful, but just staying on the theme of
housing.
Mr. Lowes. Yeah. So regarding the theme of housing, I
believe that tribal families are more likely to use substances
if they don't have certain opportunities available to them, and
that includes housing, education, and employment. So if people
have a stable place to live and they have a good life, they are
less likely to use, plain and simple.
Ms. McCollum. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Mr. Thompson. And as you mentioned, really quick, if I can
respond to that, I do understand that that is another
committee, but we are asking for some help in addressing this
committee as well, and we do appreciate that if you can reach
out to us. You know, as I mentioned before, it is not just
housing. It is also on the tribal land, too, and we have
subsidized close to $200,000 this year to try and combat that.
That only leaves us a small window of opportunity to get so
many houses cleaned and ready, and it goes back to what Austin
was saying as well. Without that lack of housing, you know, it
just keeps creating that downward spiral for people, and just
it pushes the drugs harder on our reservations as well.
Ms. McCollum. Well, Chief Francis was making an excellent
point earlier about, and Ms. Pingree and the chair have talked
about this, too, about how we have control over limited amount
of funding in this appropriations committee. Then there is the
authorizing committee to do some of the work that Chairman
Simpson was talking about in law enforcement. But the challenge
that we have in this committee, too, is we don't have a unified
budget to look at if we want to plus something up to go to our
colleagues in another committee and say, hey, we can be real
impactful if we do that because we don't see that either. So we
pay attention to it, but we are kind of in the same canoe as
you all are when it comes to being impactful because we touch
other committees as well. So I think the testimony today about
getting a unified budget would be very helpful for us in
allocating our dollars more effectively, too.
Mr. Thompson. And we as tribes are more than willing to
come to the table and advocate as well. We spent the last day
or so, and we are going to spend the next day or two, speaking
to IHS and other departments requesting some additional funding
for this help. We aren't just looking at this as, well, it is
one and done. You know, we have created so many things within
our reservation alone to think outside the box, to try and get
people help, try and restock the housing. We are very forward
thinking, so it is not just like the money is there and it just
goes to something and that is it.
You know, I give our administration, our chief of police,
and our state of emergency data analysts a lot of credit over
some of the outreach programs that we have created in the past
2 years trying to help a person that comes in and says I have a
problem with addiction find those resources within that right
amount of time so that it doesn't cause that person to just
say, well, I ain't getting nothing, so this is how my life is
going to be. We try very hard, and we are willing to speak to
whomever to try and get assistance, not just for Lac du
Flambeau, but for other tribes.
And I believe you heard it in the previous testimonies, and
you will probably hear it more today, that is an issue plaguing
us. And now we have trafficking that is starting to pick up on
our little reservation, and it is horrible. You know, these
people are taking advantages of young women, and it is very sad
to see it come down to that. So thank you again.
Mr. Simpson. Mr. Zinke.
Mr. Zinke. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I agree with you on
fentanyl, but also, you know, my understanding is on building
costs, is that building costs, when you are looking at
materials that can be cleaned, sometimes it is 200 or 300 times
more the elevated cost. So just the building, and then in the
case of the Blackfeet, is the infrastructure. So you need the
infrastructure in order to do it.
But talking about enforcement, when I was Secretary, we put
together a drug task force, and it was multiagency, because as
you point out, jurisdiction is an issue. You have BIA, you have
county, and you have the sovereignty of the nation. So the task
force, in coordination with the nations, we had FBI, DIA, and
Interior has a lot of law enforcement, and we didn't knock
everything out, but we were successful at least giving the
message that, look, you know what? On Indian territories, drugs
aren't free anymore. Would you agree that a task force of that
type, with multiagency, in coordination with the tribes, would
at least be helpful in addressing some of the problems we have
between missing and killed and murdered and indigenous women as
well as the tribes?
Mr. Thompson. Yes, I would agree that increased support to
these task force would definitely be a help. We do have good
working relationships with State DCI Naji and other task force
that are just slipping my mind at the moment--I am sorry--but
they work great together, and they have combated our drug
issues as soon as they come in to our reservation. You know, I
can't speak enough about how grateful I am for the law
enforcement that we have in our community right now. They went
from your standard patrol people to drug enforcement agencies.
But, you know, as you mentioned, these task force that you
talk about, sometimes their hands get really tied and, you
know, we are starting to see more interaction between cartels
targeting tribes and bringing this stuff directly to the
reservation. That is where that flow up and beyond our reach,
you know, can definitely use some reinforcement. I think our
tribal police can offer a lot of information.
Mr. Zinke. Mr. Chairman, do you share the same?
Mr. Lowes. I share that sentiment. I do, yes.
Mr. Zinke. I appreciate it. Mr. Chairman, I yield back.
Thanks.
Mr. Simpson. Thank you, and thank you both for being here
today. Interesting testimony, something that we will certainly
look into consideration of when we are trying to put together a
budget. Thank you.
Mr. Thompson. Thank you very much.
Mr. Simpson. Panel Number 4: Mr. Fox, Ms. Buckles, and Ms.
Langford.
[Pause.]
Mr. Simpson. Henry, you are your first from the White Earth
Nation.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
WHITE EARTH NATION
WITNESS
HENRY FOX, VICE CHAIRMAN, WHITE EARTH NATION
Mr. Fox. [Speaking native language.] Good morning, Chairman
Simpson, Ranking Member Pingree, and members of the
subcommittee. My name is Henry Fox. I am the vice chairman of
the Reservation Business Council of the White Earth Band
Ojibwe. Established by the Treaty of 1867, the White Earth
Reservation is a 36-miles-by-36-mile square in Northern
Minnesota. I am grateful for the opportunity to share with you
today some of our physical priorities and needs at White Earth
and in Indian Country. Lagging Federal investment in
infrastructure on tribal lands over the last several decades
has created serious need within our communities. My testimony
today will focus on roads, tribal management, acquisition of
the Tamarack National Wildlife Refuge, and IHS funding.
First, I will address the reservation roads program by
highlighting funding levels as well as BIA policy. Despite
having a very large rural land base with many reservation roads
and isolated communities, the White Earth Nation does not
receive anywhere near the necessary funding to build or
maintain roads for their citizens. This jeopardizes public
health and safety. We understand that Federal funding is
limited, but we believe the BIA policies on distributing
existing monies also plays a key role in these budget
shortfalls. Transportation facilities located on Indian
reservations and within tribal communities are maintained
largely by the tribe. Funds for road maintenance programs are
administered at the BIA region offices for roads identified as
part of the BIA road system as public roads, BIA roads, and
bridges are often major corridors that provide critical access
for tribal communities through which medical, education,
commercial, and recreational services and opportunities are
delivered or made available to tribal members and the general
public.
The White Earth Reservation has a large land base, and the
Band finds it increasingly difficult to maintain the current
roads and bridges into inventory to acceptable standards. While
the Band once received about $5 million-plus dollars in annual
allocation, the amount the Band now receives has decreased to
approximately $1.5 million. This is a 70-percent reduction in
funding, yet there is no reduction in the Band's responsibility
or cost. Without adequate funding, the Band must make difficult
decisions to choose which projects to fund over others. These
decisions are often no-win choices that all have unavoidable
risks associated with them. Recent increases in construction
costs and equipment repair have made this progressively more
difficult. The BIA maintenance formula provides only pennies to
a dollar compared with our local counterparts for cost per mile
to maintain. We simply cannot continue to upgrade and maintain
our roads under the current system. The allocation system must
be fair to all.
Based on the Band's long-range transportation plan to meet
future residential expansion and economic growth, we require a
total of $30 million for road repairs and upgrades. These
repairs and upgrades will assist the Band in meeting the goals
within our transportation plan. They will also provide safer
transportation on the many roads which Band members use to
travel to their homes and between communities. Currently, many
of these are gravel or dirt roads and investment in maintaining
and improving them will help make our roads safer and more
well-suited to our northern climate.
My second topic is the Tamarack National Wildlife Refuge.
The Tamarack National Wildlife Refuge was created within White
Earth Reservation by the Collier Agreement in 1935. This was an
agreement between the Biological Service, now the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service, and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Unfortunately, the terms of the Collier Agreement have not been
fulfilled to the satisfaction of the White Earth Band. The
Federal Government has failed to meet its obligation with
respect to protecting the interests of the Band in many ways,
including hunting, fishing, gathering, and allotments in the
refuge area. Additionally, some of the lands used to create the
Tamarack were taken from tribal allottees who were deprived of
their land at below market value under methods that were
deceptive, underhanded, and would not be allowed today.
The White Earth Band of Ojibwe is now seeking to manage
these lands once again. We believe the first step to this
should be a co-stewardship and co-management agreement between
the Band and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. We believe
that the White Earth Band of Ojibwe can better administer these
lands more effectively and at a lower cost to the taxpayer than
the current approach. Many areas at the Tamarack contain
important cultural and historical heritage areas and patrimony,
all of which the White Earth Band would be most qualified to
manage and preserve. Last year, White Earth sent a letter to
Secretary Deb Haaland requesting the DOI enter into co-
management agreement with the U.S., and we have been having
productive discussion with the DOI. We have also worked to keep
the Minnesota congressional delegation briefed on progress.
Today, we respectfully request that funding be included in
fiscal year 2025 Interior approach appropriations to help fund
a 638 self-determination executive and imminent co-management
agreement for the Tamarack.
While funding for 638 contracts is mandatory for BIA
programs, 638 contracts with other agencies are discretionary
and are heavily impacted by the availability, or lack thereof,
of appropriated funds.
Mr. Simpson. I am going to have to ask you to speed
quickly.
Mr. Fox. Okay.
Mr. Simpson. Very quickly.
Mr. Fox. I will move on from that then, right away. My
third topic is highlight the urgent need for increased
financial support for the White Earth Tribal Police Department
to address its acute recruitment and retention challenges.
Despite its unwavering commitment to safeguarding the White
Earth Reservation community, our police department has faced
significant obstacles due to limited resources. The struggles
we have with recruiting and retentions are primarily rooted in
our inability to offer competitive salaries and benefits
compared to other law enforcement agencies, so they had to make
cuts in some positions just to get what we got today for our
tribal police.
I urge the subcommittee to allocate additional financial
resources to the BIA to support the recruiting and retrenchment
efforts of the tribal police departments nationwide. Thank you
for your opportunity to testify today, and I would be happy to
answer any questions you may have.
[The statement of Mr. Fox follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Ms. Buckles.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
ASSINIBOINE AND SIOUX TRIBES OF THE FORT PECK RESERVATION
WITNESS
DANA SAM BUCKLES, COUNCILMAN, ASSINIBOINE AND SIOUX TRIBES OF THE FORT
PECK RESERVATION
Mr. Buckles. Thank you. Okay. Good morning. [Speaking
native language.] That is ``good morning'' in my language. I am
Dana Buckles, councilman of the Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of
the Fort Peck reservation. I want to thank the subcommittee to
commit full funding for IHS, BIA, and EPA. I have spent decades
in public service and most of my career in our tribal health
system working to improve health outcomes for our tribal
members, so today I want to spend most of my time addressing
healthcare needs.
First and foremost, we are facing a significant mental
health and addiction crisis. While these challenges are not
entirely new, there are elements of the situation today that
require significant additional resources and creative
applications of resources. We are dealing with the widespread
use of the accessibility of opioids, specifically fentanyl. The
potency and lethal of the fentanyl are unlike anything before.
This drug is impacting all our demographics in our community.
The impact of the crisis is magnified by longstanding
inequities in terms of healthcare and basic infrastructure of
Indian Country. Fort Peck's health system is operated on an
utterly inadequate budget for decades. We are also very rural,
which adds additional layers of complications to attracting and
retaining healthcare professionals. It is critical now, as the
need is heightened, that Congress commit funds to the IHS
commensurate with documented needs.
On our reservation, we only have a single drug treatment
facility, which is spottable, which, because of its current
resources, only provide outpatient treatment. The demand for
our outpatient treatment exceeds what we can provide, but even
more notably, we have a dire need for inpatient treatment
services and none to provide at this time. We are experiencing
an unrelenting wave of overdoses and many resulting in death.
These tragedies always have widespread impacts of our entire
families. It is simply unacceptable. We cannot continue to lose
people when the crisis is preventable and treatable if the
resources are made available. I ask Congress to please commit
additional resources to the tribal mental health and substance
misuses programming.
Finally, there is a significant need for funding for our
dialysis treatment. At Fort Peck, we operate a dialysis unit in
high demand and does not receive any Federal funding. Despite
clear statutory authority in the IHCIA and the demonstrated
need for greater funding for dialysis treatment, including the
need for additional staff, equipment, greater access to organ
transplant, and facilities located locally in Indian Country,
far too many Native Americans are losing their lives to
diabetes. The Fort Peck Tribes subsidized our tribal health
dialysis program, carried out under a 638 contract, in the tune
of $300,000 to $500,000 annually. We urge this subcommittee to
appropriate funds to the IHS service account to fund direct and
tribally-delivered dialysis treatment to address this emerging
situation.
I thank you for the commitment to improving the quality of
life of Indian Country. The Fort Peck tribes look forward to
continue to serve our citizens with greater Federal resources.
Thank you, sir.
[The statement of Mr. Buckles follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Carole.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
CONFEDERATED SALISH AND KOOTENAI TRIBES OF THE FLATHEAD RESERVATION
WITNESS
CAROLE LANKFORD, COUNCILWOMAN, CONFEDERATED SALISH AND KOOTENAI TRIBES
OF THE FLATHEAD RESERVATION
Ms. Lankford. [Speaking native language.] Chairman Simpson,
members of the committee, good morning. My name is Carole
Lankford, and I am a member of the tribal council of the
Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead
Reservation. Thank you for this opportunity to share our
thoughts in addressing challenges facing our community and the
subcommittee's commitment to improve the lives of our shared
constituents.
In our view, the first step is to double down on the
efforts to address mental illness and substance abuse. Our
tribes are made up of approximately 8,000 enrolled tribal
members. Approximately 5,000 enrolled tribal members live on
the reservation, which has a total population of approximately
30,000 people. Unfortunately, nearly every member of our
community has felt the impacts of mental illness and addiction.
As fentanyl and other opioids plague our community, we must
support our law enforcement, health professionals, and social
service programs. As an original self-governance tribe, we have
carried out all functions of IHS and BIA for decades. Our local
control and wise fiscal management of these programs have
allowed us to dramatically improve the quality of services to
our community. However, despite the efficiencies, we are
limited by available resources. Full funding for Indian Health
Service and additional funding for the Bureau of Indian Affairs
is, therefore, a critical component to our ability to
adequately address the crises we face surrounding mental health
and addiction.
For the past several years, I have served as a member of
the Lake County Drug Court, where I witnessed firsthand how
appropriate support can help people lift themselves out of the
darkness of untreated mental illness and addiction. At CSKT, we
are administering several cutting-edge programs to address
these challenges. For example, it includes the development of a
drug treatment court as a diversion to criminal charges pending
in our tribal court; a reentry program that assists individuals
returning to their communities after encounters with the
criminal justice system; and streamlining the delivery of
services through our participation in the Tiwahe initiative.
The Tiwahe was established to improve the health and well-being
of tribal communities by reducing poverty, substance abuse,
domestic violence, and associated outcomes such as youth
suicide.
Since joining Tiwahe, we have made significant strides in
developing steps leading to the coordinated system of change,
resulting in positive outcomes for our children and families.
We have identified the need to create a coordinated service
delivery system to break through silos. We have also
implemented a cross-disciplinary team to manage case involving
children in need of care, care and services. We are now working
to incorporate tribal language and cultural perspectives into
our programming, reviewing our codes and policies to address
these challenges, and begin subsequent phase through action and
strategic planning. We are grateful for the subcommittee's
support of the Tiwahe initiative and excited to see the
positive outcomes that increases in Tiwahe funding will have on
our people.
Of course, we cannot overlook the importance of brave men
and women in law enforcement that keeps our communities safe.
Our law enforcement officers serve as the first line of defense
in slowing the imports of opioids and other illegal drugs to
our reservation. We must ensure that these officers have the
resources they need to protect our people.
Like many of our neighbors, we are experiencing
unprecedented drought conditions that persist from year to
year. These extreme conditions present threats to our land,
water, and our natural resources from fire and other natural
disasters. Our Flathead Reservation was reserved as a permanent
homeland under the Hellgate Treaty of 1855 and encompasses over
1.2 million acres of timber, range, and farmland in Western
Montana, and is situated around the south half of Flathead
Lake, the largest freshwater lake west of the Great Lakes.
Unfortunately, our reservation has been ravaged by fire during
the past three fire seasons, but without the subcommittee's
support, outcomes could have been worse. We were pleased to
have the congressional appropriations staff who were able to
witness firsthand the work of the CSKT Division of Fire and a
full host of fire management activities it provides.
We look forward to continuing work with the subcommittee to
address adequate infrastructure to support the evolving fire
landscape and to ensure parity for our tribal wildland
firefighters. Currently, criteria limits firefighter workforce
retention funding to only wildfire staff paid by preparedness
and fuels funding. This approach limits workforce retention and
has created tension in our organization. Our wildland fire
militia, who are vital to the wildfire program during critical
periods every summer, are not eligible for the retention. While
we have work to do, we are extremely grateful for the
subcommittee in addressing the wildfire as we adapt to changing
snowfall patterns and drought conditions and continue to
improve fire management.
Thank you for this opportunity to testify, and I am
available for questions.
[The statement of Ms. Lankford follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you Carole. Ms. Pingree.
Ms. Pingree. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you all for your
testimony. You really covered so much, from the critical issues
related to substance use disorder to firefighting, which I can
see is a huge problem where you are located, so thank you for
that. It gave us a lot to think about in writing the budget,
and I do appreciate your mention of the drug courts everywhere.
I have seen those. They just make such a huge difference, and
if we had sufficient funding for all tribes to have access to
that, I think it would make a big difference in this
challenging issue.
And thank you as well, Mr. Fox. The description of how much
money you actually receive for roads and then what you really
need is sort of staggering, the gap there. I represent Maine.
We have a lot of rural roads and had some horrible weather this
winter, and I know how quickly gravel roads can wash out and
then people lose their access to get to work, to do the work
they have to do, and so these are vital lifelines for people.
We really have to think about getting more funding there. So
thank you all. I yield back.
Mr. Simpson. Mr. Zinke.
Mr. Zinke. Thank you Mr. Chairman, and Chairman Fox, I
noticed you are supporting a U.S. Army tattoo. Thank you for
your service, sir. Councilmember Buckles, thank you, and I do
honor holding the title of a Wonga in Tacha. That is my given
name in Assiniboine, and always nice to have you, Councilmember
Lankford.
I want to drill down a little on healthcare, on fentanyl,
so, and you deal with the IHS. We had the IHS commissioner
here, director, and she understands, I believe, the plight of
the reservation. So you are looking at fentanyl. Can you give
an estimate of how much resources that our health services at
Fort Peck are dedicated to either drug abuse or related
healthcare issues because of drugs in mental health? I hear it
staggering.
Mr. Buckles. Yes. So I only have a few, a couple tribal
programs and mainly IHS, and we are really lacking that. That
is why we need funding for that. You know, that fentanyl is
pretty potent out there. It is just not the person. When you
really look at it, it is basically families, too, but there are
only a few of our programs that help. It touches, I think, part
of it, but it doesn't do a whole complete overall, like,
wraparound services for that need.
Mr. Zinke. Would you consider it the significant problem at
Fort Peck?
Mr. Buckles. Yes. You know, earlier I heard drug cartels.
You know, I hear drug task forces, too. You know, the Mexican
cartels are really bad, and we hear that they are not just on
our reservation or on all reservations because it is, like, it
is a lot easier to penetrate and utilize going through
reservations. And it is like they pump this fentanyl and
everything on these reservations and get all our tribal members
hooked on it.
Mr. Zinke. I have asked other chairmen because when I was
Secretary, we did put together a multiagency task force--FBI,
DEA--in coordination with the tribes always because I respect
the sovereignty of the nations. But I thought it was effective,
and in this budget, it was pulled, and we are looking at ways
to reestablish that, but obviously, it would have to be
tribally I would say pushed, so I get that.
And, Carol for you, thank you for your service, longtime
service. I do support the FERC variants, but I also support, so
upstream. So I think the Hungry Horse Dam can be well managed
or better managed so we don't run ahead of this problem because
as three generations of plumbers, you have fill and you have
drain up there on the reservation, and both sides, fill and
drain, will make the solution on it. And just wraparound, I do
strongly support the finalization of the last three compacts,
the Belknap and Indian Nation, and we are going to the
chairman.
I think Indian nations should be feeling pretty good
because we have a wonderful chair. I think Chairman Cole is
outstanding. We have Chairman Simpson in this, and think the
ranking member and members all understand that we have been
lacking in our duties, especially on our commitments on
treaties, so I think we all get that.
So on the problems with on healthcare, let me ask you the
same question. Do you think a task force would be helpful in
combating that? And last time, it was drug task force, but
drugs and human trafficking are related, so it really was both
looking at indigenous women and the plight of that. Would you
find value in a task force, multiple agency, to try to unwind
some of the jurisdictional issues?
Mr. Dupuis. Yes, absolutely. When we had the Northwest Drug
Task Force, it was overwhelmingly positive, and it protected
the drugs coming in, so absolutely, I think that was a big hurt
to a lot of us when that went away. And I don't know, maybe it
still exists on a different level, but certainly I know our
tribal police in Lake County, they struggle with the
coordination and all of that, but the task force did do that,
and we had a lot of positive messages.
And I think it uses about 65 percent of our Indian health/
tribal health budget, and that is a guess, but it has affected
everything that we do, and that is why my testimony said, hands
down, we are fighting this and we need to do whatever we can.
And thank you for mentioning the drug courts because it is very
important that every tribe has an opportunity to do something
besides throwing people in jail and throwing the key away. It
doesn't work, but this, I found, does work, and so I thank you
for asking that question. But yes, the task force is just
another part that will help all of us, and I am saddened that
it is not there anymore. So thank you.
Mr. Zinke. I appreciate it. Mr. Chairman, I yield back.
Mr. Simpson. Ms. McCollum.
Ms. McCollum. Thank you, and thank you for mentioning
Tiwahe. We had a bit of a discussion about that earlier.
Tiwahe, drug courts, everything. It is all about wraparound
services. We are whole individuals, and everything touches the
individual, it touches their family, and it is a great way to
really get a community also then involved so that we are
supporting each other, right? So thank you for mentioning that.
Vice chairman Fox, we have had some successes in Minnesota
in large part to our lieutenant governor, who is a proud member
of White Earth. I would like maybe for the committee just to
talk about a couple of the things that we are trying to get to
work and how you see the Federal Government playing a better
role. The State of Minnesota has been returning land back to
tribal nations. The State of Minnesota has been trying not to
take any kind of cut for administration as funds come through.
I think the biggest success was COVID, and I am very excited
about the conversations that you are having with Fish and
Wildlife about co-management leading possibly to full
management if everybody decides code management works well.
So you talk about some of the things that the State is
doing because we have 87 counties in Minnesota. It is crazy,
but the law was that you could ride to the county on a
horseback and get home that night. So we have 87, even though
nobody rides a horse to fill out their paperwork anymore. So
you have got the counties, you have got the cities, you have
got the municipalities.
And White Earth has kind of been very fortunate sometimes,
especially when it comes to some drug issues, working with the
FBI and that, but that is in part because the counties you work
with. So could you maybe talk about how State and county
cooperation is important because I don't know how we mandate
that, but maybe we can do that by sweetening the pot for those
counties who do law enforcement for working with your law
enforcement.
Mr. Fox. Well, kind of on the road situation, I know,
working with the county because in my district over there,
which is District 1, and our casino goes through the
reservation County Road 7 to get to our Bagley site. Well,
every year, trying to work with the county of saying are you
going to at least put a little bit of gravel on that road where
our BIA roads is willing to do it and not even get nothing for
it. They are so good up there with their snowplows and
everything that I don't know why they don't make that
connection.
They probably get money for doing it, which we wouldn't
even want, so they could still get the money, I wouldn't care.
I am sure somebody else would, but I am a big man, too, of
chemical dependency. That was my background. Actually, this
Easter I celebrated 25 years of sobriety. So they say I am a
big impact on our res, but I don't feel it, so I just try to
help as I can.
So kind of like with the roads, we did have a county trail
coming through, which is gravel. Well, the tribe got to tar
half of it, but the county wouldn't let them tar the other half
of it. So it is kind of like that, like, maybe they bump heads
a little bit or I can do it better than you, so I guess that is
where that is at.
Ms. McCollum. We are making inroads, but in Minnesota,
there is a long way to go.
Mr. Fox. Yeah.
Ms. McCollum. Thank you.
Mr. Fox. Thank you.
Mr. Simpson. Mr. Ellzey.
[No response.]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you all for being here today. We
appreciate your testimony. We will certainly take it into
consideration as we try to put together 2025 fiscal budget
year.
Panel 5: Joseph Rosette, Ashleigh Weeks, Marvin Weatherwax,
and George Jay Ball.
[Pause.]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you all for being here today. Joseph,
you are up first.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
CHIPPEWA CREE TRIBE
WITNESS
JOSEPH ROSETTE, COUNCILMAN, CHIPPEWA CREE TRIBE
Mr. Rosette. [Speaking native language.] Thank you,
Chairman Simpson, Ranking Member Pingree, and members of the
subcommittee for the opportunity to share our fiscal year 2025
funding priorities. My name is Joseph Rosette, Jr., and I serve
as a business committee member of the Chippewa Creek Tribe of
Rocky Boy Indian Reservation located in Northcentral Montana.
Our total enrollment is over 7,000, including over 4,000 who
live on the reservation. We are grateful for the historic
investments this subcommittee has recently made in Indian
Country. We urge you to remember that Congress' trust and
treaty responsibility to tribes exist irrespective of any self-
imposed budgetary caps. It is imperative that this subcommittee
appropriate the full amounts necessary to fulfill its
obligations. I offer the following recommendations for your
consideration.
Chronic underfunding of the Indian health system has caused
disproportionately high rates of obesity, diabetes, heart
disease, cancer, substance use disorders, and other preventable
conditions. We urge the subcommittee to appropriate full and
mandatory funding for the IHS at $54 billion, including 14
billion for hospitals and health clinics, $4.5 billion for
mental health, and $5 billion for alcohol and substance use. We
also strongly support transitioning contract support costs and
Section 105(l) leases to mandatory spending. If mandatory
appropriations cannot be achieved for fiscal year 2025, we
continue to support advanced appropriations for the IHS in the
short term. We urge the subcommittee to extend advanced
appropriations to all IHS accounts for fiscal year 2026.
We were disappointed to see that this subcommittee approved
cuts to electronic health records modernization, healthcare
facilities construction, and sanitation facilities construction
in fiscal year 2024. The Indian health systems infrastructure
is among the oldest and most dilapidated in the country. I,
therefore, request that this subcommittee restore and fully
fund these accounts at $6 billion. This includes $2 billion for
sanitation facilities construction. Our citizens still do not
have ready access to clean, potable water. This creates
significant health risks for the tribal members living on our
reservation. We appreciate that Congress included a short-term
extension of special diabetes programs for Indians in fiscal
year 2024 appropriations at an increased annualized rate. Given
the great success of this program, Congress should reauthorize
SDPI at $250 million annually with the option of receiving
funds through self-government mechanisms.
Our tribe has been devastated by the ongoing fentanyl
epidemic. We are in dire need of in-community sober living
homes and detox centers. This year, Congress only appropriated
$2 million to fund essential detoxification-related services.
That is less than $1 per IHS patient. We urge the subcommittee
to dedicate resources to detoxification and reemphasize the
importance of fully funding the IHS. We also fully support the
President's domestic supplemental request, which includes a
$250 million investment in IHS to address the fentanyl
epidemic. Like many tribes, we are seeing a drastic increase in
drug trafficking on our lands. Congress needs to provide
additional resources to the BIA, U.S. attorneys offices, FBI,
and other agencies to help us stem the flow of illegal drugs,
investigate crimes, and prosecute offenders. We urge the
subcommittee to provide $3 billion for BIA public safety and
justice funding, with $2 billion for law enforcement and $1
billion for tribal courts.
The Rocky Boy North Central Montana Regional Water System
Project, funded through the Bureau of Reclamation, is critical
to addressing the poor water quality on our reservation and
surrounding communities. We are still waiting to receive safe
drinking water as part of our 1998 water rights settlement. As
portions of the tribal components of the infrastructure have
been completed, the BIA has been required to engage with the
tribe and pay for the operations, maintenance, and repair. A
trust fund was established to pay for OMR costs, which have
been sufficient to account for the interim costs while the
tribe awaits water service. However, it is estimated to be
drastically insufficient once the new water treatment plant and
water system comes online, likely in 2027. At that time,
additional funding will be required to pay for the BIA OMR cost
obligations, which would be several million dollars annually.
We are actively working with the BIA to begin preparations for
full-scale water system operations.
Finally, we support moving away from competitive grants.
Grants impose unnecessary, onerous administrative burdens and
pit tribes against each other for resources we are all entitled
to. This is entirely inconsistent with the Federal trust
responsibility. We join other tribal leaders in calling for
direct funding for Indian Country. You can find our full
recommendation in our written testimony. We look forward to
working with you to implement our requests. Thank you.
[The statement Mr. Rosette of follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you, Joseph. Ashleigh.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
ASSINIBOINE AND SIOUX RURAL WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM
WITNESS
ASHLEIGH WEEKS, GENERAL MANAGER, ASSINIBOINE AND SIOUX RURAL WATER
SUPPLY SYSTEM
Ms. Weeks. Good morning, Chairman Simpson, Ranking Member
Pingree, and members of the subcommittee. My name is Ashleigh
Dupree Weeks, and 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 18,500 persons and will serve
32,000 when the design capacity is reached in several future
decades. We are an organization that has proven successful
exercise of tribal sovereignty.
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 plants and water storage
tanks. The project serves an area that could cover 25 percent
of the State of Maine. The construction of the project is 97
percent complete within the Fort Peck Indian Reservation and 88
percent complete in the area that we serve off the reservation
known as Dry Prairie, our non-Indian partners. 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 2025 is $5.248 million,
or 2.20 percent of the construction costs, a modest percentage.
This is an increase over fiscal year 2024 of $1,803,000.
The committee is asked to consider the following factors.
In my testimony last year, I requested $4.204 million, but the
administration had only requested the fiscal year 2023 amount
and $3.445 million was appropriated. The project was $759,000
short. We need to recover the $750,000 needed in fiscal year
2024 appropriations, include another $750,000 in fiscal year
2025 appropriations to maintain what was needed in fiscal year
2024, and increase our budget by 4303,000 to cover inflation
between fiscal year 2024 and 2025. The annual increase in costs
between fiscal year 2024 and fiscal year 2025 of $303,000 is
due to inflation. Chemical costs between have increased year
over year from $608,000 to $796,000 and account for most of the
additional $303,000 requested. Power bills for treating and
pumping water throughout the project increased from $379,000 to
$420,000. Two more employees are also needed to fill vacant
points at a cost of about $150,000 for salaries, benefits, and
payroll taxes.
Chairman, the factors I have outlined account for the
increase in funding needed for fiscal year 2025. I thank the
subcommittee for the continued support of OMR funding for the
Assiniboine Sioux Rural Water Supply System as authorized by
Public Law 106-382. Thank you.
[The statement of Ms. Weeks follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Mr. Weatherwax.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
BLACKFEET TRIBE OF MONTANA
WITNESS
MARVIN WEATHERWAX, JR., COUNCILMAN, BLACKFEET TRIBE OF MONTANA
Mr. Weatherwax. Here we go. Good morning, Chairman Simpson,
Ranking Member Pingree, and members of the subcommittee. My
name is Marvin Weatherwax, Jr. I am a member of the Blackfeet
Tribal Business Council. I also serve as the chairman of the
Coalition of Large Tribes and serve as a member of the Montana
State legislature in House District 15. Before I go any
further, I want to extend my thanks and gratitude to the
leadership committee chair, Tom Cole, and Congressman Ryan
Zinke, with respect to our youth center appropriation request
from last year that will be essential to the healing of the
Blackfeet children.
I appreciate the opportunity to provide testimony in
support of funding of wastewater infrastructure for the
Blackfeet Tribe. The Blackfeet Tribe is seeking funding to
construct critical wastewater infrastructure for the Blackfeet
Indian Reservation, which spans more than 1.6 million acres and
is home to over 17,000 members in five reservation communities.
We view the need for wastewater infrastructure as a priority to
fulfill the purpose of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation under
the Treaty of 1855, namely, to be the permanent homeland for
our Blackfeet people.
The Blackfeet Tribe has been subjected to enormous amounts
of land loss stemming from the failed Federal policy of the
Dawes Act. The loss of our reservation land base occurred
during the starvation winter of 1883, when our chiefs were
coerced to sign another treaty to receive rations in exchange
for 130,000 acres of land. In 1911, the Blackfeet were subject
to the Blackfeet allotment, where another 156,000 acres were
sold as surplus to non-natives. Our tribe asserts our treaty
rights consistent with the original Blackfeet Treaty
reservation boundaries, which span from the eastern front of
the Rocky Mountains to the Yellowstone National Park, bordered
by the Yellowstone River on the south, all the way to what is
now the North Saskatchewan River in the Province of Alberta.
As of today, our tribe has lost 90 percent of our original
reservation due to the action of the U.S. Federal Government.
Of note, we lost land to the establishment of Glacier National
Park and the creation of the National Forest, which includes
land sacred to the Blackfeet, the land known as the Badger to
Medicine area. The existing Blackfeet inner reservation lands
includes the headwaters of the St. Mary's river, which is a
tributary to the Mississippi River.
The Army Corps of Engineers, without any consultation with
the Blackfeet Tribe, constructed a major pipeline project to
divert water to support off reservation, non-Indian communities
downstream. These non-Indian communities waters their crop,
cattle, provide domestic water for their communities, and have
done so for decades with Blackfeet water without any
acknowledgement, much less any compensation for our senior
rights to that very water. After nearly 4 decades of
negotiation and work, in 2016, the United States enacted the
Blackfeet Water Rights Settlement Act. However, that act does
not include funding for wastewater. At the time, the Blackfeet
tribe was informed by the administration that wastewater
funding was not eligible to be included in the Indian water
settlement.
The Secretary's Indian Water Rights office has now thought
better about the United States' investment in the approach to
tribal water rights and now supports wastewater funding in
Indian water rights settlements, as evident by the Montana
Water Protection Act, Confederated Salish and Kootenai Indian
water rights settlement enacted by Congress in 2020 and the
administration's support for the Fort Belknap Indian Community
Water Rights Settlement Act 2023, both of which have language
supporting wastewater.
All Blackfeet tribal communities suffer from dilapidated
infrastructure and associated challenges, such as boil order
mandates, expensive water hauling, and bottled water purchases.
The Blackfeet tribal leadership has expended huge amounts of
tribal resources to address emergency shutoffs, tribal offices,
closures of essential government services, putting tribal
members health, safety, and welfare at risk due to water main
breaks and non-drinkable water. Pallets of water and portable
toilets have been all too normal for the members and residents
of the Blackfeet reservation. The ability to update and provide
new water and wastewater infrastructure will improve tribal
members' health outcomes, where clean water and reliable
wastewater has been shown to improve nutrition by accessing
clean water and decreasing reliance on sugar drinks and avoid
contaminated drinking water. Additionally, having clean water
and reliable wastewater systems allow tribal members tend to be
less exposed to illness for obvious reasons. Finally, the cost
savings realized in avoiding bottled water and hauling water
allows limited resources to be put to better use for things
like food and housing.
The Blackfeet people believe funding for the wastewater
should be authorized and appropriated in order to achieve the
same goals and objective of any Indian water rights settlement.
I thank you, sir.
[The statement of Mr. Weatherwax follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Mr. Ball.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
FORT BELKNAP INDIAN COMMUNITY
WITNESS
GEORGE JAY BALL, COUNCILMAN, FORT BELKNAP INDIAN COMMUNITY
Mr. Ball. Good morning, Chairman Simpson, Ranking Member
Pingree, and members of the subcommittee. My name is George Jay
Ball, and I am a Assiniboine representative of the Fort Belknap
Indian Tribes of Montana, and I thank you today for this
opportunity to testify before you.
Our top priority is passage and funding of the Fort Belknap
Indian Community Water Rights Settlement Act. The act affirms
that our water rights settles our damage claims against the
United States. In 1908, we went to court to fight for our water
rights in the Winters case. The Supreme Court held that our
treaty and reservation included the water we need to make a
homeland. This is known as the Winters doctrine. Under this
doctrine, all tribes are able to produce, protect, and quantify
their water rights. More than 100 years later, we still don't
have our water rights, and the water projects the United States
promised us are failing or simply were never built. More than
100 years ago, we negotiated a treaty and we agreed to give up
vast lands and resources, but the United States did not provide
the water and irrigation projects promised. Settling our water
rights is a treaty and trust responsibility and is the supreme
law of the land.
Our water rights claims are currently pending in court. If
we are forced to litigate, there is no question who will win.
We have the oldest priority date, and the farmers, ranchers,
and towns upstream from us will have to stop using our water.
We would rather settle. We spent the last 30 years negotiating
a fair and final settlement with the United States and the
State of Montana. Our settlement is a win-win that provides
water for all. Litigating 31,000 water rights claims would take
another 30 years, would be a waste of taxpayers' money, and
upset about 10 percent of Montana's gross domestic product.
Settlement also provides the funding to fix water
infrastructure that was built in the early 1900s. This aging
water infrastructure threatens the economy, talents, and
livelihoods of North Central Montana, including more than
120,000 acres of non-Indian irrigation and more than 25,000
acres of reservation that feeds about 1 million people per
year. This infrastructure also provides drinking water for more
than 20,000 people. Our water settlement costs about $1.3
billion and passed the Senate last December. Our settlement has
the full support of our tribes, the administration, the Montana
governor and lieutenant governor, the Rocky Mountain Tribal
Leaders Council, the Milk River Joint Board of Control, the St.
Mary Rehabilitation Working group, local counties, water users,
stockmen, conservation groups, tribal members, and more.
The subcommittee should provide mandatory funding to
implement our water settlement and other tribal water
settlements. We need these funds to ensure that our settlement
is final and enforceable. We need a stable and permanent fund
just like the DOJ Settlement Fund. We should not have to spend
all this time negotiating a water settlement and then have to
come back year after year for discretionary funds. We have
played by the rules. We negotiated treaties and agreements with
the United States. We agreed to settle on reservations much
smaller than our ancestral lands that sustained our tribes for
generations. We spent the last 30 years negotiating a fair and
final water settlement, and it is time for Congress and the
subcommittee to do its part.
Water is not our only priority. The United States does not
provide the funding we need for basic law enforcement services
on our reservation. We need significant increases for our law
enforcement officers, court systems, and detention. All three
of these must be working to keep our communities safe. Starting
with law enforcement, our reservation is the size of Rhode
Island. Rhode Island has more than 1,700 police officers. We
have nine. Our officers travel across a large reservation and
often have to respond to calls in remote areas without backup.
With nine officers, only a couple are on patrol at any given
time. The crisis of murdered indigenous women was identified
long ago, but we still don't have the police officers we need.
Now we have drug cartels setting up shop on our reservation. We
need more Federal resources and expanded tribal criminal
jurisdiction to keep our communities safe. We need to increase
pay to be competitive. We need a new police academy in the
Montana-Dakota area to reduce training times so that we can
develop our own police officers.
Our courts are also underfunded. The laws require BIA to
provide training and funding for all tribal courts. BIA needs
to double or triple the funding to meet these requirements.
Detention is also important. There is a detention facility near
our reservation in Harden, Montana, that could hold 400
inmates. The BIA only had enough staff to house 20 inmates, and
that means that many of our tribal members get shipped to
Oklahoma, far from their families and support networks. This is
not the right way to help them recover.
The Broken Promises Report released in 2018 found that
funding for Indian programs is grossly inadequate to meet the
most basic needs that the Federal Government committed to
provide our tribes. This impacts social services, foster care,
head start, and even our wildlife programs. These are the very
services that we need to help our people deal with meth
addiction, address domestic violence, and to provide education
for our children.
The responsibility to provide funding for this program
starts right here in this subcommittee. We need you to champion
Indian Country and put forward funding that will meet our basic
needs and will also meet the United States solemn promises to
our tribes. Thank you for the opportunity to testify today, and
I am available for questions.
[The statement of Mr. Ball follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Ellzey. [Presiding.] Thank you very much. Ms. Pingree.
Ms. Pingree. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you all for your
testimony. I really appreciated it, and you covered some of the
issues we have been talking about all day: the Indian Health
Service, the fentanyl problem, the drug-related issues, the
lack of law enforcement. Your numbers about sort of comparing
Rhode Island to your own tribal lands is really staggering when
you think about those numbers, and then you understand why we
have the problems with murdered and disappeared women and also
just the drug issues that continue to grow. And so we want to
give a lot of focus to that, and I appreciate your talking
about that.
And also thank you, everyone, to your focus on
infrastructure. I just hesitate to think how many water
settlements that we have that we have let you drag on forever
about. I mean, we just know how vital clean water sewage
systems are, and we expect you to operate huge communities
without that. It is staggering to me. So I hope we can get more
of those settled and more of the funding out there and that
more of the money from the BLM and the other infrastructure
money we have passed is going to some of the tribal communities
to meet some of the backlog.
And thank you for wearing your headdress. Really, I can't
help myself. The whole time I am like, I wonder what species
that is, and it is really beautiful, magnificent, so appreciate
that. And I am glad to hear you are also a representative to
the legislature. It is so important to have that State
representation as well, so I really appreciate your all being
here. Thank you.
Mr. Ellzey. Ms. McCollum.
Ms. McCollum. Thank you. I like to look at maps, so I
pulled up a map. So I spent a lot of summers in Montana and did
a lot of fishing before the reclamation took place--I am a lot
older than you are, Ms. Weeks--in the Fort Peck area. So when I
pulled up the map, it shows your prime tribal water. And then
the one below it, that goes into Richland County, Sidney, that
area where I spent all my summers. Is that part of the dry
creek that you are part of or----
Ms. Weeks. The dry red water? No, we are separate on the--
--
Ms. McCollum. You are separate.
Ms. Weeks [continuing]. Northern side of the Missouri
River.
Ms. McCollum. So what I am looking at on here that shows up
on the Montana website probably isn't accurately describing the
two divisions that you are talking about.
Ms. Weeks. Right. The Fort Peck Reservation is bordered
there, and we were surrounded by our non-Indian partners, the
Dry Prairie Rural Water System to the north, East, and West of
us.
Ms. McCollum. They mention it, but they don't divide it.
They don't show the division on the map. Mr. Ball, when you
were talking about your water settlement and getting things in,
so if you look at the map of Montana and there is only four
regional water settlements, areas where everything is kind of
interconnecting in that, how do you fit in with the State doing
its share when I don't see any regional water connections to
where some of your tribes are located? Does that make your
systems more expensive? Are you so located that it doesn't make
sense to join with neighboring cities? You have got mountains
as you move to the West. Montana is very different West to
East, so I just want to understand better about some of your
connections because I understand Fort Peck's.
Mr. Ball. Well, the headwaters of the Milk River, they
start up in Glacier----
Ms. McCollum. Okay. So you are right here.
Mr. Ball [continuing]. And it flows downstream into the
Missouri River.
Ms. McCollum. Okay.
Mr. Ball. So that covers the whole region of Northcentral
Montana.
Ms. McCollum. Wow. Huge.
Mr. Ball. Yes.
Ms. McCollum. Huge. Please.
Mr. Weatherwax. I kind of think that the reason why we
haven't joined any of those, any of the tribes have, because we
view everybody else as customers.
Ms. McCollum. Okay.
Mr. Weatherwax. So that is the----
Ms. McCollum. Okay. They don't have the unique relationship
that you have been able to set up in Northeastern Montana.
Ms. Weeks. Right, and that is, I think, very successful
point in our system is having our partners on the off-
reservation portions in four surrounding counties, strong
leadership for several years bringing this regional water
system together.
Ms. McCollum. And I know that the water in your area, Ms.
Weeks, is very heavy with iron. Is that true as you move West?
Mr. Weatherwax. No, ma'am. At my house you can make coffee
with the water and you don't have to use sugar. [Laughter].
Mr. Weatherwax. No, I am just kidding. I am kidding. No,
our water is pretty good. It is just when it gets into the
municipalities because we have to have water treatment plants.
Ms. McCollum. Right.
Mr. Weatherwax. But like myself, I am on a well. I am
actually hooked into an underground aquifer, so my water is
really good.
Ms. McCollum. Thank you.
Mr. Ellzey. Well, thank you all very much. For those who
have just come in here, we have this conversation every year.
It is very basic. It is about sovereignty, treaty adherence,
water, food, health, security and roads, the foundations of
life, and we need to work harder at fulfilling all of our
obligations to you. Thank you very much.
Voice. Thank you.
Mr. Ellzey. Time for Panel Number 6 with Shere Wright-
Plank, Ervin Carlson, and Frank Starr Comes Out.
[Pause].
Mr. Ellzey. Thank you all for coming out, again, today.
Panel 6 is Shere Wright-Plank from the Rosebud Sioux Tribe,
Ervin Carlson, the president the Inter-Tribal Buffalo Council;
Frank Star Comes Out, president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe. It
is good to see you again, and we will start off with Shere
Wright-Plank. The floor is yours, ma'am.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
ROSEBUD SIOUX TRIBE
WITNESS
SHERE WRIGHT-PLANK, COUNCILWOMAN, ROSEBUD SIOUX TRIBE
Ms. Wright-Plank. [Speaking native language.] I greet you
with a heartfelt handshake. My name is Shere Wright-Plank. My
Lakota name is Pretty Woman. I come to you, honorable members
of the U.S. House Appropriations Committee on Interior,
Environment and Related agencies. I have the honor of serving
as a councilmember for the Rosebud Sioux Tribal Council in
South Dakota. Unfortunately, President Herman can't be here
today, so I am here charged by the tribe to state some of our
serious needs to the esteemed committee.
Today I stand before the committee to present our fiscal
year 2025 appropriations priorities, focusing on matters of
public safety and justice that are paramount to our tribal
community. And before I go through this written document, I
want to really iterate that one of the biggest hurdles in
Indian Country for recruitment, retention, and funding is the
fact that our local economies really suffer. We don't have tax
funding. We are all on trust land. A lot of the setup of our
reservation is spread out. For Rosebud Reservation, it is 20
communities on a million acres of land. So one community, our
furthest community, is 185 miles apart from one end of the
reservation to the other, which makes it very difficult to
support any transportation, like community transportation and
any business strips as well, to try and promote economic
development. And the reason that is key is because it makes it
difficult for us to recruit our doctors, police officers, all
of that.
So I just wanted to say that is why we are here today
asking for the funding. It is not funding that we can just
raise locally or appropriate ourselves through tribal
government with tax funding because we don't have that. For the
Rosebud Sioux Tribe, the only tax revenue that we do get is
about $2 million a year, and that goes to fund several other
programs that have been operating for several years.
The Rosebud Sioux Tribe has recently declared an Indian
country law enforcement emergency, underscoring the urgent need
for heightened attention and resources to address the pressing
issues we face. We have actively advocated for this cause,
promoting the enactment of NCAI Resolution Number 23-066, which
calls on the Congress and President to undertake emergency
Indian Country law enforcement initiative.
Through engagements, such as Tribal Nation Leaders' Summit
with the Attorney General Garland, and the DOJ Office of
Justice Program, and the BIA office of Justice Services
meeting, we have gained critical insights. It is evident that
the current funding allocated to the Bureau of Indian Affairs
and the tribal police, approximately $565 million nationwide,
fails significantly short meeting the real law enforcement
needs in Indian Country. For the record, this paper we
submitted, it says we have 15 tribal officers. We have 25. So
the correction there. The Rosebud Sioux Tribe, we currently
have 25 officers. We urgently require an additional 20
officers, at least four more dispatchers and detention
personnel to effectively manage community policing. This past
year, we had 28,000 calls for service in our communities.
Our community is on the grip of a profound public safety
and public health crisis driven by drug trafficking, violent
crime, and inadequate law enforcement projection. The Rosebud
Sioux Tribe has half the tribal police officers, with twice the
population and 3 times the violent crime suffered back in the
year 2000. The Great Plains Region--North Dakota, South Dakota,
and Nebraska--is facing a public safety and public health
emergency resulting from drug trafficking, violent crime, and
lack of adequate protection of our communities, reflected in a
severe increase in violent crimes, drug-related crime, and drug
distribution-related violent crimes.
Native Americans suffer the highest level of fatal opioid
drug overdoses. Native-American methamphetamine abuse and
related crimes occur at 3 times the national average and
drastic increases in hard drugs, including fentanyl and heroin.
Homicide rates per 100,000 population are at the highest levels
in America. The Rosebud Sioux Tribe suffers the highest levels
of suicide in America. The Rosebud Sioux tribe has experienced
severe increases in aggravated assault, sexual assaults, and
firearm-related incidents.
The Rosebud Sioux Tribe, in alignment with the 1868 treaty,
implores Congress to fulfill its commitment to ensuring the
peace and safety of our communities by funding tribal law
enforcement, public safety, and tribal administration of
justice under Public Law 93-638. We acknowledge the diligence
of this committee in understanding the legal obligations and
the historical content that necessitate Federal funding to
support and nurture Indian reservation economies.
Our tribe, with nearly 40,000 tribal members and
approximately 30,000 residing on the reservation, grapples with
the repercussions of public safety crises daily. While we
strive for economic development, the pervasive issue of drugs
and alcohol abuse continues to hinder our progress. The Rosebud
Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services is charged with ensuring
law and order within the boundaries of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe
and to trust lands in Mellette, Tripp and Lyman and Gregory
counties, so have a five-county reservation.
RST law enforcement responds to over 20,000 calls for
service every year. RST law enforcement serves an area of
approximately 1 million acres, or roughly 1,500 square miles,
with only 25 patrol officers and five criminal investigators.
The national average officer-to-person ratio is 3.5 per every
thousand persons, whereas RST LES officers person ratio is 1
officer every thousand person. And with that, too, I also want
to say that the call time, so if you call the police, you can
wait anywhere from a half hour to 45 minutes before an officer
arrives, which could, in some instances, mean life or death. So
I just want to mention that.
The Rosebud Sioux Tribe declared a state of emergency due
to methamphetamine, opioid, and fentanyl epidemic plaguing the
reservation. The RST law enforcement responds to a high volume
of violent crimes. Illegal narcotics, alcohol are both
contributing factors around 95 percent of the time. RST LES
administration has repeatedly called for a request in base
funding. We haven't had a base funding increase since 1994 when
638 contracted our law enforcement services, so it has been the
same. And with inflation and cost of living increases, it
hasn't helped with retention much at all either. As last stated
by our president, Scott Herman, the BIA law enforcement should
be at least funded at $1.2 billion, and that is not for the
Nation.
As last year's delayed fiscal year 2024 appropriations, the
funding remains 100 percent underfunded. While the country
grapples with increased drug and human trafficking, tribes
remain at a gap in the law enforcement effort, a gap that the
Federal Government is obligated to close. Rosebud reiterates
that the funding for the BIA tribal police and justice system
should be increased as follows: $1.2 billion for BIA Office of
Justice Services and tribal police officers; $150 million to
redress murdered and missing indigenous persons; $300 million
for BIA detention and public safety construction programs; and
$400 million for tribal courts, prosecutors, probation
officers, diversion programs, and prevention programs.
Specifically, the Rosebud Sioux requires an increase in the
tribal police budget from $3.5 million, fiscal year 2025, to
support 20 new tribal police officers and four dispatchers and
detention officers. In addition, the Rosebud Sioux Tribe also
needs 4500,000 for our tribal courts with our high caseload,
and that kind of piled up from COVID. It backed up.
So the Rosebud Sioux Tribe with Yankton Sioux Tribe has
also advocated for a regional BIA law enforcement academy for
the Upper Plains to help recruit for much-needed officers.
Artesia is too far away from our communities, and it is also
very hard to get in. Sending these recruits to such a distance
for an extended period removes them from the communities they
intend to serve and the families they want to protect. A
regional academy hosted at the State law enforcement center in
Pierre, South Dakota would allow recruits to remain near their
families and communities while joint classes with the State
officers would build relationships between our law enforcement
agencies. This year, our advocacy efforts at the State level
for support of regional academy achieved unanimous passage in
both House and Senate, of House Concurrent Resolution HCR 6011,
urging the Bureau of Indian Affairs law enforcement to
establish law enforcement training academy in South Dakota.
The Rosebud Sioux Tribe also requests your help to help
secure funding for our Indian Health Services. Our hospital is
30 years old. It is outdated and lost its functionality. With
the loss of hospital functionality, we have lost medical staff
and our patient confidence and loyalty. Due to poor healthcare
provided by the Rosebud Sioux Tribe, our people have poor
health status. The Robert Wood Johnson County by County Health
Assessment shows that the Rosebud Sioux Reservation ranks at
the bottom of the poor health status. The poor----
Mr. Simpson. [Presiding.] I have to ask you to wrap it up.
Ms. Wright-Plank. Okay.
Mr. Simpson. We are about 7 minutes over time.
Ms. Wright-Plank. Okay. Sorry. So I guess the tribe
requests $300 million for IHS, $5 million for alcohol and drug
treatment programs, and $300 million for the Rosebud Sioux
tribal hospital replacement. Thank you.
[The statement of Ms. Wright-Plank follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. I appreciate it. Ervin.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
INTER-TRIBAL BUFFALO COUNCIL
WITNESS
ERVIN CARLSON, PRESIDENT, INTER-TRIBAL BUFFALO COUNCIL
Mr. Carlson. Again, good morning, Mr. Chairman and
honorable members of the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee.
My name is Ervin Carlson, and I am a member of the Blackfeet
Nation, and also I am the president of the Inter-Tribal Buffalo
Council. I stand before you today on behalf of 83 federally-
recognized tribes to inform you of our important work to
restore buffalo to tribal lands and to heal our people and
provide environmental benefits to our lands.
American Indian tribes were sustained by the buffalo prior
to the arrival of non-Indians to this country. Buffalo were
essential to the life ways of tribal people as they provided
the opportunity for tribes to be self-sustaining. Buffalo
provided food, shelter, and clothing for us, but, most
importantly, they provided us with a purpose and became an
essential figure to our culture and our religious practices. To
this day you will hear our people, our Indian people, referring
to the buffalo as our relative. They are sacred to us.
Historians tell us there were once between 30 and 60
million buffalo living in what is now North America. As the
Indians were moved and restricted to reservations, buffalo were
hunted by non-Indian buffalo hunters, resulting in millions and
millions of our buffalo being slaughtered. The destruction was
so complete by the late 1800s, that only a few buffalo
remained. As the great chief, Sitting Bull, observed, ``A cold
wind blew across the prairie when the last buffalo fell, a
death wind for my people.'' Indeed, the population of the
Indian people, once numbering in the millions, was estimated to
have dropped to 250 by the early 1900s. Without the buffalo,
Indians lost their historical lifestyle and independence, and
in the early reservation days, many starved to death.
Thanks to the efforts of early conservationists that
recognized that buffalo were a keystone species to North
America, including Teddy Roosevelt and some Indian tribal
leaders who didn't get the publicity that Roosevelt did, the
buffalo were brought back from the brink of extinction. For the
Indian people, recovery from this devastation or restoration of
buffalo herds on our lands began in earnest in 1991 when a
handful of Indian tribes organized the Inter-Tribal Bison
Cooperative and now known as the Inter-Tribal Buffalo Council.
Our organization has grown significantly, and today I am proud
to tell you that we have 83 tribes in 21 States, all dedicated
to restoring herds on our lands. The Indian population of our
member tribes exceeds 1 million.
ITBC has received Federal appropriations since 1992 in the
form of earmarks, inclusion in the President's budgets, or
through DOI administrative action. However, despite the growth
in our membership, our funding has been stagnant, about $1.4
million. These funds, which are the only funds directly
allocated to these Indian tribes, fall critically short of
meaningful assistance to tribes for restoration efforts.
Federal funding directly to tribes is a fraction of the support
for fishing tribes to access and co-manage fish, even though
courts have recognized the Federal responsibility to assist all
tribes with access to traditional food sources. While fishing
tribes work to conserve and co-manage, we are still working to
restore our buffalo.
ITBC did get a boost this year through the funding made
available via the secretarial order on bison, but unless this
committee acts, that is likely only to be a one-time
allocation. ITBC awards funds to tribes to determine how best
to use them for restoration and management efforts as exercises
of tribal sovereignty. ITBC recently conducted a needs
assessment, and our member tribes provided a cumulative
response of $17 million. This is the realistic base for tribal
herd development grants for buffalo restoration efforts. I am
respectfully asking this committee to appropriate in fiscal
year 2025 $17 million for herd development, $2 million to
continue ITBC conservation work with national parks, $100,000
for health-related research, and $500,000 for education and
outreach to tribal youth, for a total of $19.6 million.
We are also working to create a permanent statutory
authorization for tribal buffalo restoration that will void the
current discretionary funding that has limited creation of a
tribal buffalo industry for true restoration and move towards
self-sustainable herds and economic returns. In the last
Congress, the late Don Young, together with a dozen bipartisan
colleagues, introduced and secured passage of the Indian
Buffalo Management Act through the House. This year,
Congresswoman LaMalfa and Peltola, together with a bipartisan
group of members, have once again introduced that legislation,
and it has been ordered reported out of the House Natural
Resources Committee. Senators Heinrich, Mullen, and others have
introduced it in the Senate, where we are awaiting a hearing
before the Indian Affairs Committee.
Honorable members, committee members, we hope that you will
see clear to fund our request at $19.6 million. We have some
success today, but much more is needed. We are regularly
transporting surplus buffalo from our national parks to Indian
tribes, hoping to create or diversify herds and, in so doing,
help out both the parks and our members. We need your help to
enhance the restoration of buffalo to tribes and the recovery
of our people. I would like to say, even though we have had a
small increase for one time, I have been here many times. I
think my hair was a different color when I first came here.
Mr. Simpson. Mine, too.
Ms. Weeks. Our funding has stayed stagnant, and our numbers
have grown of our tribes that have joined the organization.
Many, many tribes feel it very important for these herds, and I
know we have a lot of other issues in Indian Country that are
paramount, but these are also very, very important to our
culture and returning our culture, and helping us heal from all
of the things that are happening on the other areas in our
tribes. So I am really respectfully asking you to help us with
healing of bringing back our buffalo and the healing of our
people.
[The statement of Mr. Carlson follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. I appreciate it. Frank.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
OGLALA SIOUX TRIBE
WITNESS
FRANK STAR COMES OUT, PRESIDENT, OGLALA SIOUX TRIBE
Mr. Star Comes Out. Yes. Good morning, Ranking Member,
Madam, Sir. We meet again. My name is Frank Starr Comes Out. I
am the president of Oglala Sioux Tribe, a Marine Corps veteran
of the Gulf War in Mogadishu, Somalia. Today I serve my people.
Many of you are familiar with our tribe and the Pine Ridge
Indian Reservation. I know some of you have visited our lands.
We invite you back.
Our reservation is roughly 3.1 million acres, and our
enrollment membership is over 52,000. We have tremendous
untapped potential on our reservation. However, the chronic
underfunding for the United States to carry out its peace
treaty and trust obligations has taken an enormous toll on us.
We look to you to uphold the U.S. peace treaties and its
obligations. We need you to continue your work to fulfill
funding shortfalls so that our people can enjoy the same
quality of life and opportunities enjoyed by all other
Americans. My written testimony is comprehensive. Today, I will
highlight a few priorities.
First, the tribe is in the midst of a dire public safety
crisis. We implore the subcommittee to reset the base funding
for law enforcement and fully fund our law enforcement. Our
acting chief of police will be testifying later with details.
Next, I bring to your attention our health needs. We have a
priority list. A priority is specialty care. We need
specialized doctors. We only have one podiatrist, two dentists
for our whole reservation. We also need specialists in mental
and behavioral healthcare. Our reservation, we suffer a much
higher than average suicide rates. Having specialists would
decrease the number of patients being referred out and save the
IHS money in the long run. When our patients are referred out
for care, they are left on their own. The families turn to the
tribe to help cover gas money and to get them home, and for
hotel stays while they visit their loved ones in the hospital.
As a tribe, we support our tribal members in this way, but we
need resources to do so. We ask you to appropriate funds at
levels that support full staffing at our facilities, and to
legislate for enticements for healthcare workers to come work
for us.
We also need ambulances. We have three for our entire
reservation. One is dedicated solely for transporting patients
from our hospital to Rapid City for care, so actually, we only
have two to serve our large reservation. We also ask for direct
funding to upgrade certain of our community water systems and
six wastewater lagoons. Our priority need for us is roads,
equipment. Our current fleet is outdated and some is decrepit.
It costs us thousands of dollars each time we repair equipment.
It quickly eats up our allotted budget for emergency repairs.
Finally, funding the Tiwahe initiative is critical to our
tribe. We urge the subcommittees to meet the President's
funding request for Tiwahe so that the new sites, of which we
are one, can gain parity. Also, general assistance is also a
priority for our tribe, and it is so important for our members.
In closing, we are people rich in history, culture, and
traditions, and one of the largest tribes in the Nation, but we
are the poorest reservation in the country. With that, I would
like to thank you, and I am available for questions.
[The statement of Mr. Star Comes Out follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Buffalo is certainly a big issue.
We always see some requests from members for buffalo
restoration and it is certainly important in my part of Idaho.
I am tempted to ask you, but I don't know if you would know the
answer to this or not. I grew up in Blackfoot, Idaho. Any
relationship to Blackfoot Indians? Nobody knows how Blackfoot,
Idaho became Blackfoot, Idaho. It used to be Grove City, and
then it became Blackfoot, Idaho, and there are all sorts of
stories out there, but nobody really knows. It is kind of
interesting. Anyway, thank you. Ms. Pingree.
Ms. Pingree. Yep. Thank you very much for your testimony,
and I really appreciate both of the South Dakota tribes talking
about all of the issues that we know are so important, but
particularly your sort of detailing the law enforcement crisis
and how significant this is. And obviously, we have heard this
from many tribes, but when you are talking about the area that
both of your reservations cover, it is just staggering. I
looked up some of the numbers, and this is part of why we are
going to hear about this all day today, that right now, it is
estimated that our funding of BIA covers 13 percent of the need
across the country. So 13 percent of the need is a drop in the
bucket when you are dealing with the crises that you have got.
I know this budget request from the administration is
another $95 million, which would certainly be helpful if we are
able to do that, but the estimated need is actually $3 billion
nationwide, so are not even beginning to give you the level of
assistance that you need. You know, what is that?
Mr. Simpson. Three-point-three.
Ms. Pingree. Three-point-three, so there, I stand
corrected, but I hope we can do more with that and also more
with the health issues. The idea that you have three ambulances
to cover the territory that you have got is completely
insignificant. So thank you so much for detailing the
challenges, and I hope we can offer more support. And I, too,
am a strong supporter of the buffalo, and also even more so,
have really tried to work on issues related to food as
medicine, getting people able to connect with the traditional
foods, and certainly the buffalo is such a significant role.
And when you look at the pictures of the slaughter that
happened in the late 1800s, it is really unfathomable, such a
majestic species and so fundamental.
So I hope we can do more. I don't know that we will get
$19.2 million or whatever the number was, but I can see that
bumping it up would really make a huge difference. And I am so
happy to hear that more and more tribes are getting engaged and
involved, so if there is anything that we could do to support
that, I hope we can. Thank you. I yield back, Mr. Chair.
Mr. Simpson. Just like in the 1800s when they slaughtered
all these buffalo, that was how we were going to control the
tribes, by controlling their food supply or eliminating their
food supply, and they would consequently have to go to
reservations. But one of the best ways to treat diabetes is
getting back to traditional foods, and that is one of the most
effective means that we have got on treating diabetes that is
higher among Indians than it is any other subpopulation of the
country. So anyway, thank you for all you do. Thanks for being
here today. I appreciate it very much.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
UPPER MATTAPONI TRIBE
WITNESS
FRANK ADAMS, CHIEF, UPPER MATTAPONI TRIBE
Mr. Adams. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and ranking member, for
the hospitality and the privilege to testify. I have not
testified before this committee before, but I am looking
forward to the task. First, my name is Frank Adams. I am chief
of the Upper Mattaponi Tribe in King William County, Virginia.
We were one of the six tribes that became recognized in 2018,
so we are newbies, but we fought for decades to obtain Federal
recognition. And some of our accomplishments have been that we
were one of the first of the six tribes to put land into trust.
We were basically a landless tribe until we got federally
recognized, but we had put some small portion of property into
trust that we have begun our reservation.
But we do have an issue because since getting federally
recognized, it was suggested by the BIA that we update and
rewrite our constitution, which we did over 2-year span. We put
a lot of thought into it, but our tribal constitution calls for
a tribal court. So we did our due diligence and made a request
for 638 funding with the Eastern Region BIA in Nashville,
Tennessee, only to be rejected and told that they didn't have
any funding for tribal judicial systems. So we appealed that
decision and were rejected again simply because they didn't
have the funds.
As a result of that, I feel like the Upper Mattaponi Tribe
and all the Virginia tribes are treated unfairly. It seems that
since we were recognized in 2018, we are penalized for coming
to the table late, but the law is clear. Indian self-
determination, all tribes are able to contract with BIA. The
Thomasina Jordan Act, the act of established our Federal
recognition status, states that the tribe and all of its
citizens shall be eligible for all service and benefits
afforded to federally-recognized Indian tribes. That is written
in the law. And then the Indian Reorganization Act, saying that
there is no difference between tribes. Again, there is law.
But my ask today is that the BIA Eastern Region be funded
appropriately to support the Upper Mattaponi Tribe's justice
system, as well as the other Virginia tribes who will most
certainly be following behind us in establishing their own
court and establishing their own reservations. With that, I say
thank you for your time and attention.
[The statement of Mr. Adams follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Mr. Adkins.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
CHICKAHOMINY TRIBE
WITNESS
STEPHEN ADKINS, CHIEF, CHICKAHOMINY TRIBE
Mr. Adkins. I guess it is afternoon. Good afternoon,
Chairman Simpson and Ranking Member Pingree. Thank you for the
opportunity to provide testimony today on behalf of the
Chickahominy Indian Tribe. My name is Stephen Adkins. I am
chief of the Chickahominy Indian Tribe, and I am accompanied
here today by Wayne Adkins, my first assistant chief. Wayne, if
you would raise your hand.
The Chickahominy Indian Tribe is located not far from here,
along the Chickahominy River in Charles City County, Virginia,
near homelands that we have inhabited over a thousand years.
Despite our long and intertwined history with the United
States, our tribe was only recently recognized on January 29,
2018, Public Law 115-121. Since that time, our tribe has worked
with this committee and the administration to establish and
fund our Federal priorities and build out our tribal capacity
and infrastructure.
So our first request is to increase the funding for our new
tribe, which turns out to be a transition to tribal priority
allocation funding for the tribes, and we are asking for
funding at a minimum of $1 million. You may want to ask why.
During COVID, it was determined that every tribe should get at
least a million dollars, and I think that logic still holds
today. We need those funds to build the infrastructure that we
need, such as social services, education, law enforcement, and
healthcare, among others.
So for the first 3 years after acknowledgement, tribes are
allocated the new tribes funding, but guess what? The new tribe
funding is based on a population of less than 1,700 members for
$160,000, from 1,700 to $3,500. The funding is determined on a
case-by-case basis for those tribes with population over 3,500.
So for tribes with less than 1,700, it is $160,000, and for
tribes 1,700 to some number a little bit above that, it is
$320,000. It is impossible to stand up the infrastructure that
we need to achieve the self-determination of Public Law 93-638
with additional funding. So the amount of new tribe funding and
tribal priority allocation funding for new tribes is not
sufficient, as I said, to stand up government structure needed
to carry out all of the programs that we need, and I stress
healthcare, law enforcement, and social services.
So to obtain Federal funding and implement Federal programs
requires substantial resources. As newly-recognized tribes, we
are competing with tribes that already have experienced
personnel resources to obtain and carry out grants and
implement programs. I also admit we are better than we were
when we used bake sales and car washes to generate income, but
this is not sufficient to help us get where we need to be. So
the measure of population with new tribes and tribal priority
allocation funding does not equate to the needs and should not
be used as a basis for tribal funding. And incidentally, we
don't have the expertise in-house to write these competitive
grants with a real measure of success, so another reason we
need funding to help stand us up so that we can actually
compete for those funds that there are there for tribes.
So our tribe is aggressively working to build capacity, but
today, many of us wear two to three hats to cover the
responsibilities that are there. So that brings me to our
second priority: mandatory funding for the Indian Self-
Determination and Educational Assistance Act, 105(l) Program. I
would first like to thank this committee for having the vision
to support and to fund the Section 105 Program. This lease
program allows tribes to enter into leases with the Department
of Interior or the Indian Health Service and receive funding
facilities used to carry out self-governance programs.
We long since outgrew her tribal center, which now houses
our governmental office. Our tribe is excited to enter this
program for the buildings that we currently use to house social
services and tribal government programs, and we have been
participants in the program since 2023. We consider the Section
105(l) Program a way to exercise our self-governance as a
newly-recognized tribe, and we see the potential for this lease
revenue to help us address the lack of Federal funding
available to new tribes, for a reason: going to the commercial
market for funding, living on reserved land, banks aren't that
keen to lend the funding. And if we have this revenue stream,
the 105(l), at least we can use that to help us attract funds
to build the infrastructure that we need.
So as more and more tribes exercise their self-
determination through the 105(l) Program, the funding needed to
honor those leases has the potential of disrupting funding for
other programs at the Department that are also much needed, so
we don't want to borrow from Peter to pay Paul. We want to make
sure that what we get doesn't deprive other needed areas, and
this, to me, looks like a way to ensure that does not happen.
The intent of the 105(l) Program was not to compete with other
Federal programs, but to offer a way for tribes to carry out
self-governance programs and construct the necessary
infrastructure to implement those programs, and, again, this
would help us attract the necessary capital. So for the
Chickahominy Tribe, the mandatory funding would offer much-
needed security for us to obtain the financing needed to
construct a new administration building, which we sorely need.
As we expand our Federal footprint, we are already at capacity
for the space we need for our program, employees, tribal
council, and community meetings.
We appreciate this committee's commitment and understanding
of our tribal funding needs and the opportunity to speak
directly to those needs during today's hearing. We know that
you have difficult decisions to make, but we hope you will
consider the priorities that the Chickahominy Tribe have
requested today. Thank you for your time and your attention.
[The statement of Mr. Adkins follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. I thank you both for your testimony and for
bringing up the subject because it is, frankly, something that
I have not really thought about, the needs of newly-recognized
tribes and the challenges. So I appreciate you bringing that
up, and it is certainly something we will look at, at least I
will have my attention focused on a little bit more when we
write this bill. I appreciate the information.
Mr. Adkins. But feel free to reach out. I will provide my
phone number, and anytime you need more information, I would
(inaudible), but I just appreciate you entertaining us today.
And I didn't use the microphone. I think you heard what I said,
though.
Mr. Simpson. Ms. Pingree.
Mr. Adkins. But we are we open for questions beyond today,
if you are so inclined.
Ms. Pingree. Great. Thank you. And I concur with the chair.
I learned a lot about the challenges that a new tribe faces,
and I will look forward to working on the issues with you, and
we certainly can get back in touch on that, so thank you.
Mr. Simpson. Kind of seems strange to call them a new
tribe, huh?
Ms. Pingree. I know. I know.
Mr. Simpson. They have been here for longer----
Ms. Pingree. We know you are probably not new, yeah, but--
--
Mr. Simpson. Newly-recognized tribe.
Ms. Pingree. Yeah. Congratulations on being recognized.
Mr. Adkins. We were forced off our homeland in 1646, so
that Trail of Tears----
Ms. Pingree. Been waiting while.
Mr. Adkins. The template was set in what is now the
Commonwealth of Virginia back in 1646.
Ms. Pingree. Wow. Well, thank you for being with us.
Mr. Simpson. Thank you all for taking the time to be here
this morning, and we sincerely appreciate all of you coming to
testify for our committee.
The committee stands adjourned until 1:00 p.m. Thank you.
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
AMERICAN INDIAN AND ALASKA NATIVE PUBLIC WITNESS DAY 1--AFTERNOON
SESSION
WITNESS
JEFFREY GILL, COUNCILOR, SENECA NATION
Mr. Simpson. The committee will come to order. Good
afternoon, and welcome to the second session of our public
witness hearing, specifically focused on American Indian and
Alaska Native programs. I would like to welcome all the
distinguished tribal elders and leaders here today and thank
our witnesses for appearing before the committee to share their
perspectives on these important topics.
In terms of 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, but we will stick to the 5
minute rule because we do have, like, 80 tribes that we are
trying to hear from this morning, this afternoon, tomorrow
morning, and tomorrow afternoon. We will be using the timer to
track the progress of each witness, and 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
witnesses to stop so that we can remain on schedule.
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 so we can stay on schedule and respect each
other's time. And as I said, about 1:30, we are going to have
to leave for a few minutes for a vote anyway. We will briefly
recess to allow members to vote and then resume the panel when
members return. I also want to note that committee rules
prohibit the use of outside cameras or 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 on GOP.gov. I would be happy to yield to my
friend, Ranking Member Pingree, if she has anything to say.
Ms. Pingree. I can be very brief. Thank you, Mr. Chair, for
bringing us together again. Thank you to all the witnesses that
we will hear from this afternoon. We really appreciate you
taking your time to come and talk to us. It plays a huge role
in informing what we do in the 2025 budget, so thank you very
much in advance for what I know we are going to hear from you,
so I will yield that back.
Mr. Simpson. Jeffrey, you are up first.
Mr. Gill. Good afternoon. I am Jeffrey Gill, Councilor from
the Seneca Nation. The Seneca Nation is one of the largest of
the six native nations from the historic Iroquois Confederacy,
a democratic government that predates the formation of the
United States. We are located in what is now called West New
York State, and we have over 8,500 enrolled members, most of
whom reside on or within 50 miles of our multiple territories.
I want to start by thanking the committee for providing
advanced appropriations for the Indian Health Service. Next,
for fiscal year 2025, we asked the committee to provide
targeted funding within the IHS budget to combat the opioid and
fentanyl crisis, as everyone is fighting that today. Like other
native nations, the Seneca Nation is experiencing a surge in
opioid abuse and fentanyl overdoses and deaths. Between 2015
and 2020, there were 110 documented overdoses on two of our
territories. There have been so many funerals within the
community over the past year, that a group of Senecas formed a
grassroots organization to help grieving families with our
traditional ceremonies that are required when someone passes
away. Lately, it has been continuous.
We see success when we can strengthen a person's cultural
practices, offer them detoxification in treatment in a
culturally relevant way. Our Seneca Strong Program focuses on
culturally-focused drug alcohol prevention and recovery.
Additionally, we are also hosting the World Indigenous Suicide
Prevention Conference. The data available shows that opioid and
fentanyl use is directly related to suicide in Indian Country.
We know how to address the mental and behavioral health parts
of this crisis. We just need some financial resources to
assist, so we ask this committee to provide a separate pot of
funding for the opioid fentanyl crisis in the IHS budget. We
also ask for more funding for the EPA Section 106 Program of
the Clean Water Act. The Seneca Nation, like many other native
nations, relies on funding we receive from the Section 106
Program. These funds help us develop, maintain, and expand our
water quality programs. We use the funds to access and monitor
the quality of the water within our territories and to control,
prevent, and eliminate any pollution.
At our headwaters of the Cattaraugus Creek lies the West
Valley Nuclear Repository, and nuclear waste travels directly
through our nation. Each native nation that applies for the
Section 106 Program will receive some funding. The problem is
that more native nations are applying for the program, but the
funding is not increasing to match the demand. This means that
our base funding is decreasing each year. So we ask the
committee to increase funding for the Section 106 Pollution
Control grant.
I want to end today by reminding the committee that we are
nations. I know you had mentioned tribes earlier, but the
Seneca Nation is a nation-to-Nation, government-to-government.
We are not racial groups. The Seneca Nation has always defended
our sovereign status. Our lands are not held in trust by the
United States. We have original title to our lands, but our
lands and people have been impacted by the United States. And
that is why we seek responsible funding from you. Every U.S.
President, and Congress in recent decades acknowledges our
government-to-government relationship. President Biden recently
announced support for the Duggenes to play lacrosse under our
own indigenous flag when the sport returns to the Olympics in
2028. We memorialize the game and still utilize it as our
healing medicine game to this day, so it makes sense to
recognize our sovereignty to play it at the Olympics.
In December, President Biden issued an executive order for
native nations that says, ``Now is the time to build upon this
foundation by ushering in the next era of self-determination
policies in our unique nation-to-Nation relationships, during
which we will better acknowledge and engage with tribal nations
as respected and vital self-governing sovereigns.'' Again, that
is from President Biden.
We thank this committee for inviting us to share our views
on the funding for the Interior, EPA and IHS. In that spirit,
during the break, I would like to present you items of interest
from the Seneca Nation in honor of our government-to-government
relationship. We need to bring those items to you so that you
honor and understand where we are coming from. Yahweh. Thank
you very much.
[The statement of Mr. Gill follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Wema.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
QUAPAW NATION
WITNESS
WEMA SUPERNAW, CHAIRWOMAN, QUAPAW NATION
Ms. Supernaw. Chairman Simpson, Ranking Member Pingree,
members of the subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to
be here to speak to you about the priorities of the Quapaw
Nation. [Speaking native language.] My name is Wema Supernaw,
and I am the elected chairperson of the Quapaw Nation. I am
here today on behalf of 6,000 enrolled tribal members to ask
that you help close a dark chapter in our history.
Shortly after the establishment of our reservation in 1833
up through the 1960s, our trustee, the Bureau of Indian
Affairs, allowed our natural resources to be plundered. The
mining activities conducted on our lands produced more than 50
percent of the lead and zinc used to defend the United States
during World War I, and from 1917 through 1947, over $20
billion of ore was extracted from our lands. They then allowed
the plunderers to dump the waste on our land. BIA's actions not
only destroyed our ability to use the reservation, they also
poisoned it for generations. Our pleas for justice fell on deaf
ears for more than a hundred, but finally, in 2012, a
congressmember from the State of Oklahoma, with a deep
understanding for our history, stepped in, and I am incredibly
grateful that this outstanding champion of Indian Country,
Congressman Tom Cole, now has the distinguished honor of
chairing this very committee.
Congressman Cole's legislation gave the Quapaw Nation and
our co-claimants the ability to seek restitution from the
United States in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims for the
damages alleged in the case of Thomas Charles Baer, et al. v.
the United States. With the support of our nation, our co-
claimants, and the U.S. Department of Justice, on January 9,
2020, the court entered a historic settlement of the Baer case.
The Court recommended that the nation and our co-claimants
receive $137-and-a-half million in compensation for the
damages. This funding would help us address the generations of
damage to our land and trauma to our people.
Sadly, I am here today because more than 4 years later, the
Quapaw Nation and our co-claimants have not seen a dime. We
have not seen a dime even though more than $20 billion in lead
and zinc deposits were removed from our land. We haven't seen a
dime even though portions of our reservation are so
geologically unstable, that garbage trucks cannot drive on
certain roads out of fear they may collapse into ubiquitous
mines authorized by the Bureau. We have not seen a dime even
though some of the piles of toxic mining waste that still sit
on our reservation are more than five stories tall, taller than
other manmade structures that exist for miles. We have not seen
a dime even though the Quapaw people have lived in and next to
the Tar Creek Superfund Site, one of the most toxic sites in
the country.
Congress, in fact, this very committee, can help us turn
the page. I ask that you join the Quapaw Nation and our co-
claimants in asking the U.S. to finally live up to its trust
and treaty responsibilities. An appropriation to settle the
Baer case will not undo all the damage, but it will help us
move forward. Thank you and I appreciate this opportunity to
testify before you today. [Speaking native language.]
[The statement of Ms. Supernaw follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Carson.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
MUSCOGEE (CREEK) NATION (MCN)
WITNESS
CARSON BALL, SELF GOVERNANCE COORDINATOR, MUSCOGEE (CREEK) NATION (MCN)
Mr. Ball. Thank you, committee. I would just like to thank
all of you on behalf of the Muskogee Creek Nation for allowing
me the opportunity to provide testimony today.
So just a little bit on the Muskogee Nation. We are the
fourth largest federally-recognized tribe in the United States
with a reservation spanning nearly 5,000 square miles, and we
represent the interests of over a hundred enrolled citizens,
and thousands of other Native Americans, and hundreds of
thousands of non-natives who live on our reservation.
One of the first kind of points I want to get into is
public safety and justice. After the McGirt decision, the
Muskogee Nation experienced unprecedented growth in both our
criminal and civil jurisdiction, which has led to a rapid
expansion of all court systems, law enforcement, and detention
services. From this committee, we have received increases in
funding to address these needs. However, the levels are
inadequate to the amount of needs we are facing on the ground.
I will just give you an example.
Our light horse police, which is our law enforcement,
currently, they receive about $4 million a year, and we ran the
minimum amount they would need to be at capacity for both the
size of the reservation, the mix of urban and rural, and for
just the amount of criminal activity we are seeing, we are
looking at $12 million. So we are receiving less than a third
of that currently. And our detention services really need to be
increased. When we look at the associated costs with building
and maintaining the infrastructure of detention centers, you
are looking for an 80-bed facility operation costs yearly are
going to be $1 $2 million. So we know that the funding we
receive for detention centers is not built into our compact
yet. That is something we would really, really want to see
instead of this being an amount that is annually decided on,
really looking at that being added to our compact.
Outside of that, also education is something that we are
really looking at within the Muskogee Nation. Specifically, we
would like to implore Congress to increase the per student
amount for the Johnson O'Malley. We realized that in 2018, the
JOM Modernization Act set forward to increase the amount we
would receive per student. However, they have still not
increased that amount, and they don't plan to until the 2025
budget cycle, even though this bill was passed and enacted in
2018. It was supposed to start in the 2019 fiscal year cycle.
So looking at the amount of money we have not received in that
amount of time, when we are receiving $60 per student and the
State in Title VII or VIII rate is about $160, we would kind of
implore the committee to look at ways to help kind of fund that
gap where we weren't receiving funds, where we were entitled
through our obligations.
Another thing is the Indian Health Services, and we would
strongly urge Congress and this committee to reclassify
appropriations made to IHS as mandatory spending and establish
a complementary mechanism to automatically kind of adjust the
spending to keep up with pace in population growth, inflation,
and healthcare costs, which have skyrocketed since the COVID-19
pandemic. Moving these funds to mandatory would ensure that the
appropriation Congress provides for Indian healthcare can be
used efficiently and strategically by the Muskogee Nation to
really best serve our community.
At Muskogee Nation, our Department of Health has a proven
track record of utilizing IHS funds to operate community
hospitals, long-term acute care facilities, physical
rehabilitation centers, and we are one of the few tribes within
the United States where we do offer service to tribal citizens
and the general public. So we have seen the firsthand impact of
our healthcare solutions being able to lift up rural and urban,
native and non-native communities alike. And being able to make
this mandatory and know these numbers and have them be
distributed in timely segments would really allow our
healthcare facilities to further develop and serve the
communities in which they are located.
The last thing I would like to bring up is the
Environmental Protection Agency. As a place-based people, the
Muskogee Nation has sacred histories and maintain cultural
practices, and our tribe is tied to the land and our ancestral
territories, and as a result, we are often disproportionately
affected by a lot of environmental degradation that happens
within our lands. And so we really implore the committee to
look at creative ways to increase fiscal and infrastructural
support for climate resiliency initiatives and clean energy
expansion, not just for urban centers, but for rural areas as
well. A lot of electrical initiatives and the move away from
gas is really difficult when you don't have the infrastructure
pre-established in rural communities, and looking at ways in
which we could increase appropriations to better establish this
baseline infrastructure would be beneficial. And we would also
recommend an increase in appropriations to the EPA Tribal
General Assistance Program, which has really been a pivotal
Program at the nation to deal with a lot of the onsets of
climate change that we have seen. Thank you for your time.
[The statement of Mr. Ball follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you, Carson. Chief Hoskin.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
CHEROKEE NATION
WITNESS
CHUCK HOSKIN, JR., PRINCIPAL CHIEF, CHEROKEE NATION
Mr. Hoskin. Chairman Simpson, Ranking Member Pingree, and
members of the Interior Subcommittee, I bring you greetings
from the Cherokee Nation. I am proud to represent more than
463,000 citizens living across our 7,000 square mile
reservation in Northeast Oklahoma and across the United States.
In fact, we have citizens in all 435 congressional districts,
and we are the largest tribe in the country. I wanted to share
a few thoughts on this year's Interior bill.
For fiscal year 2025, we encourage the subcommittee to do
four things. First, push the Indian Health Service to open a
new round of applications for the Joint Venture Program. As the
committee knows, the Joint Venture Construction Program is the
gold standard approach to innovative and cost-effective
healthcare infrastructure development in Indian Country. We at
Cherokee Nation have successfully used this program 3 times.
Twice we built clinics in rural and underserved areas of our
reservation, and most recently, we opened a 469,000 square foot
outpatient center in our capital of Tahlequah. And we are
prepared to use the Joint Venture Program once again to
increase access to quality healthcare in our region, and
Congress can help by urging the Indian Health Service to take a
new round of applications.
Second, we want to see continued funding for tribes
directly impacted by the McGirt decision. We want to thank the
subcommittee for its continued attention to McGirt and public
safety and issues related to McGirt over the past three
appropriation cycles. We maintain one of the largest and I
think one of the best justice systems in the country, but our
needs and responsibilities continue to grow, so here is what we
have done. We have increased our own public safety and justice
spending by $35 million annually so we can strengthen law
enforcement capabilities. We have to meet a 380-percent
increase in felony and misdemeanor filings in the wake of the
McGirt case. The cost of sustaining that system are
substantial, but we are grateful the resources that this
committee, this Congress has provided in the wake of McGirt in
recent years, and we would ask that the committee continue that
support in fiscal year 2025.
Third, we ask the committee to closely scrutinize IHS
spending requests and push back strongly against any IHS
attempts to improperly use the ``new tribes funding'' to
support tribes that are neither new nor restored. In fiscal
year 2025, IHS sent a justification to include $6 million in
``new tribes funding'' to ``support the delivery of healthcare
services for the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in
Oklahoma.'' This funding is an improper use of Federal dollars.
It is unnecessary, it is redundant, and the subcommittee
should, frankly, reject this request. This is at least the
third time that IHS has sought to use new tribe funding for the
United Keetoowah Band. This is a tribe that was recognized more
than 70 years ago. It was created by the Congress, but it was
more than 70 years ago that the tribe was created. It is not a
new tribe. Six years ago, when the IHS sought to use this
account for this sort of funding, IHS acknowledged that it is
typically used ``when a new tribe is federally recognized or
reinstated.'' The UKB is neither.
This is the most significant part, though, Mr. Chairman and
members. It is completely duplicative. We already at Cherokee
Nation provide healthcare services to all Native Americans
living within our reservation. Congress should not let IHS
waste the very limited amount of dollars, and that is what we
are here to talk about collectively, that it commits to the
Indian Health Service when we already provide the biggest and
best healthcare in Indian Country.
Finally, Mr. Chairman, consider reclassifying tribal
contract support costs. Right now, contract support costs are
legally required and mandatory in nature, but they currently
reside on the discretionary side of the ledger. This is taking
up an increasingly larger share of IHS appropriation. It
results actually in a net reduction in funding provided for
actual programs. Given the potential budgetary impact of the
case pending before the Supreme Court in Becerra v. San Carlos
Apache, moving contract support costs to the mandatory spending
side is simply good risk management on the part of the
Congress. We appreciate your consideration of these issues.
Happy to answer any questions when the time presents.
[The statement of Mr. Hoskin follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Thank you all for your testimony.
The Burns case that you mentioned?
Ms. Supernaw. Bear.
Mr. Simpson. Bear case that you talked about, $130?
Ms. Supernaw. Hundred thirty-seven-and-a-half million.
Mr. Simpson. Hundred thirty-seven-and-a-half million. That
came out of a court case, right?
Ms. Supernaw. It did. It was actually a congressional
reference in 2012 but sent it to the U.S. Court of Federal
claims, and then when the settlement was reached in January of
2020, it was basically referred back to Congress for purposes
of appropriation. I should say recommendation, I think that is
what it is called.
Mr. Simpson. Yeah. I was just wondering why it didn't come
out of the Justice Fund because most time, when a court
decision requires funding, it comes out of the Justice
Department's Justice Fund. I see. Okay. Very interesting.
Ms. Supernaw. That is why we are here for your help.
Mr. Simpson. Yeah. We will take a look at this and see what
it is going to do, but I know that and the McGirt decision are
going to cost some money, but I will tell you that we are very
proud to have Mr. Cole as chairman of the full Appropriations
Committee, too. He is a friend to all of us on both sides of
the aisle. And obviously he has educated me to challenges and
issues in Indian Country for the years that I have known him.
He is one of my best friends in Congress, and he is going to do
a great job as chairman. So, Ms. Pingree.
Ms. Pingree. Thank you. Thank you to everybody for your
testimony. I am glad the chair is already looking into the Bear
case, so I hope we can do something to make that right. That is
really tragic how long you have had to go, and also just the
idea that that much was taken from your land, which I know
happened in many cases across the country, but I hope you can
do something about that.
And I appreciate Seneca Nation being here. Thank you. It
was very interesting to hear about the Lacrosse change in the
Olympics. That will be fascinating to watch. But also, I know
you brought up a lot of really critically important things we
have been talking about today about the opioid crisis and many
of the other things that are challenges. So I hope we can
address some of those in this year's budget.
Mr. Gill. Thank you for your comments.
Ms. Pingree. Absolutely. And to the Oklahoma tribes, thank
you. I had a chance to visit that fantastically beautiful, just
breathtaking, honestly, the clinic that you built and the
medical school. I mean, really such an amazing example of what
can be done when the resources are there, and I know it is so
different for every tribe, but really, really impressive the
things that have been done with the resources. And I look
forward to getting back to Oklahoma again to just see more
tribes and the communities, but certainly I think we are all
counting on having Chairman Cole weigh in this year. I hope you
all weigh in with him about our allocation in this committee
because that is really where this all starts. I mean, I think
we have to step back and deal with some bigger funding crises
that we have in meeting our treaty and tribal obligations. But
for this committee in particular, we are often struggling with
funding the EPA and the BIA and BIE and the arts agencies. And
if we start with a very small allocation, then everybody gets
these cuts that are completely unconscionable, honestly, to
make.
So when it comes to things like McGirt, which really
deserves significant funding, and the contract support costs,
absolutely big critical items to fund. I hope we can work with
the chair of the full committee, and I think we are all
fortunate to have him in this position this year. So thank you
all so much really. I can't talk about every single thing you
brought up, but really, really impressive testimony.
Mr. Simpson. Mr. Edwards.
Mr. Edwards. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I would just like to
express my appreciation to all of our guests. I know it is
quite a commitment to come all the way to Washington, D.C. to
speak for just a few minutes on the things that are important
to you back at home. I found this very useful, and I want you
to know I appreciate you being here. Thanks.
Mr. Simpson. Ms. McCollum.
Ms. McCollum. Well, I would just like to agree with
everything that has been said, including thank you so much for
your time for coming, but if I could follow up with you, Mr.
Ball, on the third party payment. So you said you are taking
third party payments. Tell me, is it insurance? Is it Medicaid/
Medicare? Is it VA? What third party payments are you taking?
Mr. Ball. From my understanding, it is insurance, Medicare,
Medicaid.
Ms. McCollum. It is everything.
Mr. Ball. Mm-hmm. Yes.
Ms. McCollum. Because when we started doing the VA for
third party payment, it wasn't a smooth start, so I would be
interested in knowing how it is going. If you would maybe
follow back with your business office and share with the chair
how the third party payments are going, who is involved, what
is working, what is not working. Maybe it is working great with
private insurance, but it is not working great with the third
party, with the Federal Government, or the State for Medicaid,
Medicare. Let us know.
Mr. Ball. Yeah, that would be great. We have a commission
set aside for that, and I would love to connect you----
Ms. McCollum. Yeah.
Mr. Ball [continuing]. And anyone else on the committee
with them.
Ms. McCollum. Because a lot of tribes are in the position
where they can sometimes serve other areas, and it is a win-win
for everyone, and you know where we can figure out how that
works, where that sweet spot is, we would like to do it,
especially when it comes to dialysis in very rural areas. Thank
you, Mr. Chair.
Mr. Ball. Thank you.
Mr. Simpson. Mr. Harder.
Mr. Harder. Nothing I would like to add. Thank you all so
much for your time and your testimony, and the hard work you do
every day, and we will do our best to support you.
Mr. Simpson. Let me ask my Oklahoma guys. Tom took me to
Oklahoma in August. It is hot in Oklahoma in August, but we
visited a lot of tribes. [Laughter.]
Mr. Simpson. But really, the question I would like to ask
you is how have the tornadoes been on your tribal members?
Ms. Supernaw. We actually fared okay, at least last night.
Let's just keep our fingers crossed and keep our prayers to the
Creator that kind of continues to bypass us. Not all of our
neighbors fared so well last night.
Mr. Ball. Mr. Chairman, we are assessing the damage now,
but in Barnsdale and the Osage Nation, there was a fatality.
Mr. Simpson. Yeah. Pretty dramatic effects. [Laughter.]
Mr. Simpson. But it is beautiful country, and our prayers
and thoughts go out to all your members and hope that they are
safe in this environment that seems to happen all the time, you
know. I appreciate it. Thank you all for being here today, and
we look forward to working with you as we take into
consideration your sentiments and views of what we should be
doing in this bill. Thank you.
We are going to call up Panel Number 9: John Pettigrew,
Julius Murray, Dustin Klatush.
Mr. Klatush. Klatush.
Mr. Simpson. Klatush. Okay. I was close. You knew what I
was talking about, and Cindy Marchand. They have just called
our votes, but we will proceed with the panel. But we will let
you testify before we go to votes, and then we will have to run
over and vote, and then we will be right back. First, John.
Yeah, we have talked before.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
OGLALA SIOUX TRIBE--DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY
WITNESS
JOHN PETTIGREW, ACTING CHIEF OF POLICE, OGLALA SIOUX TRIBE--DEPARTMENT
OF PUBLIC SAFETY
Mr. Pettigrew. I am John Pettigrew. I am the acting chief
of police for the Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public
Safety. I got about 20 years of law enforcement experience with
the Ogalala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety.
The Pine View Reservation is the third largest reservation
in the United States that is just under the size of
Connecticut, the State of Connecticut, with an enrolled
membership of around 151,000. Last year, Algin Young, the
former chief of police, testified about our extreme officer
shortage and an increase in violent crime. In 2022, we had
138,000 calls for service with 33 officers. In 2023, we have
seen a jump from around of around 30,000 to around 165,000
calls for service with less officers. We only had 30. That is
four to six officers per shift.
Add to that the medical clearances that are required for
many of the people that we arrest. These clearances take up to
anywhere from 3 to 6 hours. And just like that, the four to
five officers covering nine districts is down to three to five,
two to four, depending on how busy it is, and because of this,
our response time for non-emergent calls is running 30 minutes
to an hour. Even emergent calls, depending on the officer
covering the area, if he is busy with medical clearances,
prisoner transport, more often than not than not is covering
multiple districts and has to respond from a large distance
away.
Officer safety is a huge concern for me. As with response
time, backup is over a half hour, if backup is available at
all. This leaves my officers in a very dangerous position. Five
minutes is a lifetime when you are fighting for your life, let
alone 30 minutes. My Federal partners, the FBI and BIA drug
agents, are based in Rapid City, an hour and a half away, but
takes 2 to 4 hours for any call ups for them to respond. My
investigators and officers are first at these incidences and
complete most of the work before they arrive. I do appreciate
the help and the work they do, and we do work very closely with
them, but when my officers do most of the work but get a little
to no credit, it is a little upsetting.
[Chart]
Mr. Pettigrew. The picture I am showing you--I believe she
handed it out--is of a 13-year-old student carrying a handgun.
I wish this was an isolated incident, but it is not. We have
over a hundred weapons in our evidence that were taken on
school grounds. That is just on the school grounds, the parking
lots, classrooms, those kind of things, knives, handguns,
machetes, those types of things. Many State schools refuse to
come to a reservation because they consider it too dangerous to
send their people, their kids.
I have a recording. I am not sure if I give it to you guys
here or not. It is 9-1 recording, but I must warn you, it is
graphic. On this recording, you will hear what my 9-1-1
dispatchers hear: a young woman beaten by multiple men for over
an hour. She suffered fractures to her arm, skull, ribs, and
legs. Because of lack of officers and obstacles I have
mentioned before, it took 1.5 hours to respond. Many of you may
know what it feels like to feel helpless, knowing someone is in
danger and you are powerless to help.
My officers know this feeling very well. My officers are
overworked, underpaid, and on the verge of burnout. My officers
receive the same training to do the same job as BIA and State
officers or State counterparts, but do it for far less pay, no
real benefits, and far less resources. The BIA funds my
department base at 15 percent of need. Fifteen percent. In what
world is that acceptable? What we are asking for is a budget
correction to bring us up to par with our Federal and State
counterparts, but to be real, I know this will never happen,
but something needs to because 15 percent is a crazy number. We
are not asking for more than we need, just a fair share because
15 percent is a joke.
I thank you for your time and allowing me to be here.
[The statement of Mr. Pettigrew follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. We have got time for one more.
Julius, let's have you testify, and then we are going to run
over and vote real quick, and then we will be back.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
UTE INDIAN TRIBE OF THE UINTAH AND OURAY RESERVATION
WITNESS
JULIUS T. MURRAY, III, CHAIRMAN, UTE INDIAN TRIBE OF THE UINTAH AND
OURAY RESERVATION
Mr. Murray. I will read fast then. Chair Simpson, Ranking
Member Pingree, and honorable members of the subcommittee,
thank you for the opportunity to testify today. My name is
Julius T. Murray, III, and I serve as the chairman of the Ute
Tribal Business Committee. Our reservation in Northeastern Utah
and is the second largest in the United States, covering
roughly 4.5 million acres. We have about 2,700 members, and
over half of our members live on the reservation.
Investment in Indian energy is needed. Continued neglect
and misguided criticism of oil and gas and development in the
Uintah Basin presents a threat to the nationwide energy economy
that supports countless jobs for the American families. More
than 91 percent of our tribal government revenues come from
energy development. These revenues fund our government and
provide essential services to our members. Energy development
on our land supports thousands of jobs and hundreds of millions
of dollars in economic development.
The tribe cannot tap into the full potential of its mineral
estate due to limited access to refineries capable of
processing black wax and yellow wax crude. The remoteness of
our reservation and limited means of transportation have forced
the tribe to rely on refineries in Salt Lake City with limited
capacity to process crude oil. In 2013, the final report for
the Uintah Basin Energy and Transportation Study forecasted up
to $29 billion in lost production revenue over the course of 30
years due to transportation constraints in the Uintah Basin.
This report was published over a decade ago, and yet no
meaningful transportation improvements have been implemented.
The proposed Uintah Basin Railway Project would have
expanded access to proven refineries in the Gulf Coast by
connecting the Uintah Basin to the national rail network. Rail
access would decrease trucks on the Nation's highways and grow
the nationwide market for waxy crude, a low sulfur solid
substance that presents for fewer environmental hazards than
other more common forms of crude oil. Energy development in
Indian Country also continues to be slowed down by staffing
shortages at the Bureau of Indian Affairs. A year ago, the BIA
Division of Energy and Mineral Development had 46 contract
employees. Now there are just over 20 contract employees. Many
of these layoffs occurred on the same day, further
demonstrating that this administration's effort to target the
energy sector funding for qualified staff decreased from 26
million to about 5 million. The subcommittee should invest more
funding to support Indian development and provide enough BIA
staffing.
Funding for BIA law enforcement and detention staff is
needed as well. The subcommittee should also provide an
increase for BIA law enforcement and detention staff funding.
BIA and its Office of Justice Services lack the funding to
fulfill the United States' treaty and trust responsibility to
maintain safety in our tribal communities. Due to lack of
funding, the tribe is required to fund half of BIA law
enforcement officers and provide over 50 percent of on-
reservation law enforcement services, including radios, patrol
vehicles, and other necessary equipment. Funding for detention
services also needs to be increased. Congress stopped the
funding for law enforcement detentions and tribal court
construction when the tribe was near the top of the
construction priority list. The tribe was forced to use $36
million of its own tribal funds to build a new tribal justice
center.
The tribe contributed another $1 million to cover stored up
costs, including necessary equipment and supplies. The Tribal
Justice Center was completed in 2016 using BIA-approved plans,
which complied with the applicable Federal size and use
specifications. The tribe entered into a memorandum agreement,
MOA, with BIA to authorize Federal occupancy of the building
and detention areas in exchange for a Federal contribution to
the operation and maintenance of these spaces. However, the
Tribal Justice Center remains mostly empty due to lack of funds
to provide enough staffing.
The BIA has been granted oversight through the MOA and
implemented four phases with the goal of ultimately reaching
full capacity. The facility remains at the first phase of
implementation and requires a staff of 13 correction officers.
However, BIA is only able to employee four. Tribal members are
sent away from reservation to county jails, and BIA pays county
detention facilities every 2 weeks, diverting funding to off-
reservation facilities. Additionally, prisoners are often
released from jail, are not picked up on warrants due to the
lack of space, and additional costs of housing them off our
reservation. This creates a public safety issue for our tribe.
Base funding for law enforcement must be increased by 3 to 5
times the current levels to meet the tribe's needs.
Infrastructure. Uintah Indian Irrigation Project requires
critical Federal funding for repair and rehabilitation due to
decades of deferred maintenance, disrepair and deterioration.
Recently a D.C. Circuit Court has confirmed that the United
States has trust obligations to the tribe in the management and
administration of the UIIP. It is of paramount importance that
Congress allocates the necessary Federal funding to ensure that
its solemn trust obligation to the tribe is met.
Conclusion. Congress must uphold its trust and treaty
responsibility to the Uintah Indian Tribe and the other tribes.
Chronic underfunding of programs supporting Indian tribes
continue to plague our ability to develop our resources,
promote our economics, and provide safe communities. Thank you.
[The statement of Mr. Murray follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. I apologize for this, but we are
going to have to go to vote, and we will be back hopefully
within 15-20 minutes. The next vote doesn't take that long, so
we will be back as soon as we can, but I would like to talk to
you about police protection and what needs to be done.
So the committee stands in recess for approximately 15, 20,
25 minutes. Thank you.
[Recess.]
Mr. Simpson. The committee will be back in order. Thank you
for your patience. It took a little longer than we thought,
but, Cindy, you are up next.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
CONFEDERATED TRIBES OF THE COLVILLE RESERVATION
WITNESS
CINDY MARCHAND, SECRETARY, CONFEDERATED TRIBES OF THE COLVILLE
RESERVATION
Ms. Marchand. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Good afternoon,
Chairman Simpson, Ranking Member Pingree, and members of the
subcommittee. My name is Cindy Marchand, and I serve as the
secretary of the Colville Business Council, which is the
governing body of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville
Reservation. I thank you for this opportunity to provide
testimony today on the subcommittee's fiscal year 2025 spending
bill.
By way of background, although now considered a single
Indian tribe, the Confederated Tribes of the Colville
Reservation is a confederation of 12 aboriginal tribes and
bands from across Eastern Washington State, Northeastern
Oregon, Idaho, and British Columbia. The present-day Colville
reservation is in North Central Washington State and was
established by Executive Order 1872. The Colville Reservation
covers more than 1.4 million acres and, geographically, is
larger than the State of Delaware, and it is the largest Indian
Reservation in the Pacific Northwest.
The first issue I would like to discuss is the Indian
Health Service. The Colville Tribes has endured many problems
with IHS mismanagement of the PRC Program. Last week, the tribe
testified at a legislative hearing before the Subcommittee on
Indian and Insular Affairs on a bill that we developed that
addresses the problem of tribal members being sent to
collection agencies when IHS fails to pay health providers
under the PRC Care Program.
The Colville Tribes would like the subcommittee to include
report language that directs Government Accountability Office
to investigate and report on IHS' management of the Purchased
Referred Care Program at IHS managed facilities. Specifically,
we would like GAO to address why IHS has allowed such a large
amount of carryover PRC funds to accumulate in most IHS area
offices. We estimate that of the $34 million in PRC carryover
funds in the IHS Portland area, as much as $24 million of those
dollars is attributable to unreconciled PRC purchase orders
from the Colville Service Unit from the PRC Program. There are
many problems with IHS' administration of the PRC Program, and
we request that the committee direct GAO to investigate the
carryover issue in report language.
I would also like to discuss public safety. There is
constant need for additional funding from tribal law
enforcement and detention operations. Large land-based tribes
almost always have too few many officers, and this results in
long response times to calls. There are occasions when the
Colville Tribes has only one single officer on duty for the
entire 1.4 million acre reservation. Collectively, the police
department has a 30 percent vacancy rate for both commissioned
and noncommissioned officer positions. Nationwide, BIA law
enforcement is funded at only a fraction of the actual need.
Recruitment and retention remain acute issues even with the
Colville Tribes supplementing the BIA funding allocation by
more than 200 percent annually. The Colville Tribes requests
that the committee provide a hundred-million-dollar increase
for the criminal investigations and police services account to
enable tribes in all BIA regions to hire more police officers
and retain their existing police officers.
The last issue I would like to discuss is wildland fire
funding. Since 2015, more than half of the 1.4 million acreage
Colville Reservation was burned due to wildfire events, yet my
tribe and other tribes must compete for resources within DOI
for funding from other DOI land management agencies. On a per
acre basis, Indian tribes receive a fraction of what is spent
on U.S. Forest Service and other Federal lands for forest
management and wildfire preparedness, yet make those dollars go
farther than Federal agencies ever could. Funding for wildfire
preparedness is particularly important as the treatments funded
by this program helps keep small and moderate fires from
becoming mega fires. Because of our history having to deal with
major fires, we have been at the forefront of recommending
policy changes to enable the Colville Tribes and similarly-
situated tribes to protect their on reservation forests. The
Colville Tribes ask that the subcommittee include report
language that directs the Secretary of Interior to prioritize
tribal requests for preparedness funding from the wildland fire
management account.
Thank you for allowing me to testify today. This concludes
my testimony, and I would be happy to take any questions. Thank
you.
[The statement of Ms. Marchand follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Dusty.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
CONFEDERATED TRIBES OF THE CHEHALIS RESERVATION
WITNESS
DUSTIN KLATUSH, CHAIRMAN, CONFEDERATED TRIBES OF TE CHEHALIS
RESERVATION
Mr. Klatush. Thank you, Chairman Simpson, Ranking Member
Pingree, and members of the subcommittee for having me here
today to provide testimony. My name is Dustin Klatush. I am the
chairman of the Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis
Reservation. The Chehalis Reservation was established by
executive order in 1864 and is located between the confluence
of the Chehalis River and the Black River. Geographically, the
tribe is located approximately halfway between Seattle and
Portland, just off Interstate 5. The Tribe's 500-acre
reservation is largely checkerboarded and spans three different
counties in Southwest Washington State. The tribe has
approximately 996 tribal members, with 40 percent of them being
under the age of 18.
I would like to highlight three different issues today. The
first is law enforcement. The Chehalis Tribal Police Department
carries out law enforcement and detention services under
contract with the BIA under the Indian Self Determination and
Education Assistance Act of 1975. The tribe's police Department
has 13 commissioned officers who are certified under the State
law to enforce State and local criminal laws in addition to
Chehalis tribal criminal laws. Like most tribes, the BIA's
portion of the tribe's law enforcement budget represents a
fraction of the actual need.
The Chehalis Tribe needs additional resources to assist
with recruitment and retention of experienced law enforcement
officers. We have lost experienced law enforcement officers to
neighboring jurisdictions offering more competitive pay and
benefits. The tribe currently offers a competitive salary only
because it supplements the funding it receives from the BIA
with significant tribal funds. More BIA law enforcement funding
is needed to allow tribes to be more competitive with
neighboring jurisdictions. In fiscal year 2024, most BIA law
enforcement programs received level funding compared to the
fiscal year 2023 enacted levels. The fiscal year 2025
President's budget requested seeks $45.5 million increase in
criminal investigation police services, with $33.5 million
specifically allocated to increase the number of officers and
investigators in Indian Country. The tribe is requesting that
subcommittee fund the criminal investigation and police
services account with at least the fiscal year 2025 requested
levels.
The second issue I would like to discuss is housing. Forty
percent of the Chehalis tribal members are under the age of 18,
demonstrating a need for new housing for tribal members that
will only become more acute over time. Our Tribal Housing
Authority receives formula funds from HUD under the Indian
Housing Block Grant, but these funds do not cover housing-
related needs. The BIA's Housing Improvement Program provides
funds to tribal members with substandard or no housing and no
immediate housing assistance. HIP funds can be used for home
repair, renovation, replacement, and new housing. Like most
tribes' unmet housing needs, the Chehalis Tribe needs more
resources from the HIP Program to improve and extend the life
of its existing housing stock. The president's fiscal year 2025
budget request seeks $18 million for fiscal year 2025. The
tribe requests that the committee fund the HIP Program at the
requested levels or higher levels.
Finally, I want to highlight a report language request in
my written statement. In the BIA's Northwest Regional Office,
there is an acute shortage of contracting officers to process
various types of transactions, including process payments for
contract support costs. The tribe is awaiting payment for its
CSCs for fiscal years 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024, which
collectively amount nearly $4 million. Timely payments of CSCs
assist in keeping our contracted programs, such as law
enforcement, housing and other programs, and services operating
smoothly. Based on discussions with BIA, the reason for the
delay is a shortage of contracting officers in the BIA.
We understand that this problem is not limited to the
Northwest Region, but is nationwide. Given the backlog in
payments that the Chehalis Tribe and other tribes are
experiencing, the Department should deploy contracting officers
from other agencies within the Department to assist the BIA in
clearing the backlog of the CSCs and other payments that tribes
are waiting for. My written statement provides language for the
subcommittee to consider that would give the Department this
direction.
I want to thank the subcommittee for allowing me to provide
testimony and look forward to answering any questions. Thank
you.
[The statement of Mr. Klatush follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you, and I will thank all of you for
your patience.
We have talked a lot about tribal law enforcement. This is
an excuse, not a good one, but the reality is we are going to
get an allocation here, and we are going to have some things we
are going to have to fund. We have concentrated over the last
several years on trying to increase Indian Health Services,
figuring that was the highest priority. Many of us, everybody
on this committee, have wanted to increase Indian education
accounts and Indian law enforcement accounts. When you look at
the number of murdered and missing indigenous people in this
country due to the lack of law enforcement funding, and the
fact that you have so few officers per huge acres.
Somehow, we have got to get an allocation where we can both
take care of Indian Health Services and we can do those other
things that are necessary because for too long, we have said we
got to do Indian Health Services. Health is the number one
issue, we got to do that, and the others we tried to increase a
little bit, but, frankly, we have got to do more. I wish I had
the answer to address it, but it is a travesty what is
happening with law enforcement and the need out on the
reservations.
I was just talking to one of my chairmen of the Sho Bands,
and Fort Hall, it is 12 miles to Pocatello and it is 12 miles
to Blackfoot, and as soon as they train up an officer and he
gets good, guess where he goes? Where they can offer him more
money. So they are the training center for firemen and for
police officers, and that is a huge problem. Somehow we have
got to address that, and the only way to address it is by
paying the wages to keep them where they are.
So anyway, I appreciate your testimony, and I told a panel
earlier that I was rereading a book that I read when I was
first chairman of this committee on Indians' and tribes'
rights. I just finished the one chapter on law enforcement last
week. I don't know how you guys do anything because you wonder
whose law do you fall under. If you are an Indian and you
commit a crime on trust land and an Indian law enforcement
officer picks you up, it is different if you are a non-Indian
or if you are on the reservation and it is non-trust land. It
is a jumble. I don't know how officers get trained enough to
know whether they have jurisdiction or whether it is the State
or Federal Government that has jurisdiction. Somehow we need to
make this simpler. Thank you. Chellie.
Ms. Pingree. Thank you. I will just reinforce that again,
and we have talked about it pretty much every panel, but when
you talk about a reservation as big as the one that you are
dealing with, you really are reminded these numbers just don't
work. It is something like 15 percent of the actual funding
that we get, and even if we can meet the requested budget this
year, it will be $651 million, and we have been told it is
about $3 billion in need. So we just have to do something about
it. And you are right, we try to focus on Indian health, but we
are just so far behind.
I just admire the people who are willing to be in law
enforcement. As you have all mentioned, people are drastically
underpaid, but just the danger that every law enforcement
officer is in when they are so understaffed and trying to meet
the needs that you have all talked about, so I hope we can do
something about that. Certainly on the forest fire issues,
through the Forest Service, we are trying to put more money
towards dealing with the problems there, but if not enough is
reaching Indian Country, we have to figure out what to do about
that. And those backlogs on the contract support numbers, I
don't know how you run your budget every year being that far
behind. So we will keep working on it. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Mr. Simpson. Ms. McCollum.
Ms. McCollum. Chair, I would like to find out, I mean,
Klatush, is it?
Mr. Klatush. Klatush.
Ms. McCollum. Klatush. Excuse me. You know, thinking that
everybody else is in the same boat, but I will say from the VA,
when it came to backlogs and that in the VA, we found that some
visions were doing great and others were not doing great. And
part of it was management, part of it was turnover, other
things like that. I would be interested to know how the other
contractors offices are doing. We need to do something, but I
think we need to find out if there is one that knows how to do
it right with whoever that they have, or maybe there is just so
much turnover, and then we also have to get our bills done on
time because that also delays everything.
While we are on law enforcement, sir, when you were giving
your testimony, you can see the concern for your officers on
your face, the gravity in which you take the situation. And the
concern I have is for your officers, not only for their
personal safety when they are out on patrol, but for when they
come home from patrol. So we have tried to boost things up in
healthcare. What is out there for mental health, either Zoom
conversations or whatever, or are your officers so overworked
with time spent on the job that they don't have time to take
care of themselves and do the obligation that they feel for
their family? How is their mental health?
Mr. Pettigrew. Well, the fact is that most times those
officers don't have time for themselves. With that few
officers, they are on a 12-hour hour shift. They are working
all night. Most times, that 12-hour shift, in all reality, is
an 18-hour shift. They go home, go to bed, and come back to
work the next day.
Ms. McCollum. Is there programming available for them if
they had the time to take it? If we don't have the programming
available, that is an issue we need to address along with pay,
number of officers, and that, too.
Mr. Pettigrew. There is a program through IHS, the mental
health and whatnot, and the Employee Assistance Program that is
available to them, but most officers do not take advantage of
those things.
Ms. McCollum. Thank you.
Mr. Simpson. Mr. Kilmer.
Mr. Kilmer. Thanks, Chairman, and thanks to my friends from
Washington State for being here. Chairman, the issue you raised
with regard to contract support costs, you know, one, I don't
think we cover enough terrain with regard to the contract
support costs that are provided; and two, the fact that you are
seeing these delays is really unacceptable. Yeah, I think
intuitively we have a sense of what that means in terms of
budgeting, but what has it meant in terms of the provision of
services, your capacity to budget for your tribe?
Mr. Klatush. Pretty much it is just moving money around to
take care of the housing stuff like that, housing and all the
other things that the contract should be supporting, you know.
Mr. Kilmer. Yeah.
Mr. Klatush. So it is just taking money away from different
departments that shouldn't be going anywhere.
Mr. Kilmer. Yeah. So thank you for being here. Thanks for
sharing. Thanks, Chairman.
Mr. Simpson. Thank you all for putting up with our delay
there for a little bit and look forward to working with you as
we try to put this bill together and try to address the
multiple issues that you bring up. Thank you.
Panel No. 10: Maulian Bryant, Darnell Maria, Thora Padilla.
Ms. Bryant, you are first.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
PENOBSCOT NATION
WITNESS
MAULIAN BRYANT, AMBASSADOR, PENOBSCOT NATION
Ms. Bryant. Good afternoon. I am Maulian Bryant, Penobscot
Nation Tribal ambassador. Thank you, Chairman Simpson, Ranking
Member Pingree, my fellow Mainer, and members of the
subcommittee for allowing me to testify today. I am going to
focus on funding for tribal courts and law enforcement,
including game wardens, within the Interior budget and on
funding for programs within the EPA.
The Penobscot Nation's lands historically covered much of
what is now the State of Maine. Our land holdings became
scattered after the enactment of a land claim settlement
between us, Maine, and the Federal Government in 1980. Today we
rely on the Federal Government to meet its trust responsibility
by providing us with funds for certain programs that we then
use to leverage for additional competitive grant funding. We
understand that this bill has one of the smaller allocations
each year, but this bill is the fundamental bill that fulfills
the bulk of the Federal Government's trust responsibility to
tribal nations. It funds direct services to native people and
protects our food and water sources.
The 1980 Settlement Act I previously referenced requires
the Interior to provide us with funds through the use of a
self-governance compact, so our participation in self-
governance is mandated by Congress. We cannot retrocede our
programs back to the Interior Department if we feel that the
shortfall in funding makes us incapable of properly operating a
program, so this is different from other tribes in the country.
There are three components to our tribal justice system. We
have our police department, our game wardens, who are located
in our natural resources department, and lastly, our tribal
court. They are all severely underfunded. This well-known
shortfall in funding creates an incentive for criminals to
commit crimes. It is also demoralizing for our employees and
citizens. The biggest obstacle in our police department right
now is our inability to compete with State and local police
departments to recruit, hire, and retain officers. When we
finally get qualified applicants and train them, they don't
stay long often because they are quickly recruited to a better-
paying job with lower hours and retirement benefits. These
vacancies result in our existing officers having to work over
40 hours a week with no vacation time, which affects the
wellness of our officers.
The same is true of our game wardens where we consistently
have one-third of our positions vacant because we cannot
recruit and retain qualified personnel. We are growing more
concerned about these shortages given the increased activities
of Chinese drug cartels developing a sprawling network of
illicit cannabis growing operations in rural Maine. The chronic
shortage in funding for law enforcement also impacts our tribal
court system. Of the more than a hundred cases our tribal court
handles each year, the vast majority of them involve some kind
of substance abuse issue. Almost 80 percent of our child
welfare cases involve parental opioid abuse.
We asked the committee increase funding for the tribal
priority allocations to specifically address funding for tribal
courts and tribal law enforcement compensation. We also ask
that the committee increase funding for the Tewahi Program and
direct BIA to expand the number of tribal nations who can
participate because we have been waiting to participate for
numerous years. Lastly, we ask that the committee increase
funding for the Conservation Law Enforcement Officer Program,
wildlife management and natural resources law enforcement
programs to help fund additional game wardens.
We are a sustenance tribe, which means that our people
continue to rely on hunting and fishing, and having access to
these traditional foods cuts down on the cost of commercial
groceries and also reduces our health disparities. Given the
importance of our land, wildlife, forestry, and water to our
daily living, our department of natural resources runs several
programs focused on management and protection of these
resources. We ask the committee to direct EPA to identify and
create tribal set asides in all State and tribal assistance
grants programs, including programs funded by the
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
Within the State and tribal assistance grants portion of
the EPA funding bill, the Penobscot Nation relies on Section
319, non-point source, and Section 106, pollution control. We
also rely on funding from the Indian Environmental General
Assistance Program, and we would ask that the committee
increase funding for all three programs. We use EPA funds to
protect our waters and lands. We conduct multiple water quality
monitoring and assessments across our lands, and this helps us
to report back to Congress with our data and update State water
quality standards, as well as helping us study contaminants in
wild foods used by our people, and allows us to develop health
consumption advisories.
That concludes my remarks. I would love for you to read our
full written remarks which flesh out a lot of these acts, and
it is great to be back here with you all. Thank you.
[The statement of Ms. Bryant follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Thora.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
MESCALERO APACHE TRIBE
WITNESS
THORA PADILLA, PRESIDENT, MESCALERO APACHE TRIBE
Ms. Padilla. My name is Thora Padilla, and I am honored to
serve as president of the Mescalero Apache Tribe. Thank you for
this opportunity to testify about urgent funding needs to
combat violence in Indian Country and bring parity to tribal
forestry funding.
For the Mescalero people, forestry is our way of life. Our
forest is part of our traditions and provides food, shelter,
and employment and protects our vital watershed. For more than
a century, we worked with the BIA to make our forestry program
one of the best in the Southwest. In 2022, the tribe contracted
BIA forestry activities so that we could set the priorities for
our forest.
Since the 1990s, the tribe has conducted essential
hazardous field reduction projects, developed strategic
ridgetop field breaks, and implemented wildland urban interface
treatments across the reservation. The tribe has treated more
than 60,000 acres. These projects were coordinated with
commercial harvest operations, recognizing that understory
thinning alone won't reduce destructive crown fires. Our work
has proven effective to protecting lives and property
throughout Indian Country while maintaining the healthiest
forests in the Nation. Despite the importance of this mission,
budget costs cut slashed our forestry staffing levels by 43
percent since 2016 and limited treatments in our forest. The
current funding system is now at a breaking point.
My first request is that you bring tribal forest funding
into parity with Forest Service funding. I urge you to follow
the IFMAT IV recommendations to increase tribal forestry
funding by $96 million and increase wildland fire funding by
$42 million. While our forest management practices attempt to
armor our reservation, fire knows no boundaries. The Mescalero
reservation is sandwiched between the northern and southern
sections of the Lincoln National Forest. The 2012 Little Bear
fire that started on the Lincoln showed the impact of unhealthy
Federal forests. Due to a slow response and poor management,
the fire caused millions in damage to the tribes area. As a
result, my second request is for report language to extend
Tribal Forest Protection Act authority throughout Forest
Service lands where tribes have proven connections. Tribes must
be empowered to do more complementary work throughout Federal
lands to better protect our homelands. The Federal agencies
have refused to conduct real wildland urban interface work,
and, as a result, our nation will never address the wildfire
crisis. Too often, the agencies shy away from treating these
areas because of the environmental complexities. We have seen
this over and over with the Lincoln.
I now want to turn to the critical public safety needs
facing Indian Country. Mescalero views the Federal Government's
treaty obligation to provide for public safety as non-
negotiable. For that reason, our community relies on the BIA's
Mescalero agency to provide direct law enforcement services. I
regret to report that the Agency is failing our people.
Violence is escalating, and many are losing faith in the
justice system. While I have a long list of failures at the
Mescalero agency, we acknowledge that many of our concerns stem
from a lack of funding. This outdated system is broken and
lacks any measures to hold Federal officials accountable. We
urge Congress to take action to fix this system and, more
importantly, to fund it. For years you have heard about the
staggering rates of domestic and sexual violence, the crisis of
missing and murdered, and so much more. These horrific
statistics are the result of the broken justice system and a
lack of funding.
The BIA's most recent report to Congress confirms the
funding disparity. Current funding meets only 13 percent of
need. It would take an additional 11,500 police officers to
adequately serve Indian Country. To address these shortfalls,
we urge you to support the TIBC request to increase BIA public
safety and justice funding to $2.9 billion. To improve
accountability to direct service tribes, we urge you to include
report language to require the BIA to share crime data and
staffing information with the tribe that that agency serves. We
shouldn't have to FOIA vital information about our community.
Finally, we urge you to coordinate with the CJS
Subcommittee to address these shortfalls. DOJ has an equal
obligation to protect Indian Country. CJS should establish a
10-percent set aside for DOJ programs and increase agents
serving on the FBI's Indian Country Crime Unit. Thank you for
this opportunity to come before you.
[The statement of Ms. Padilla follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Darnell.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
RAMAH NAVAJO CHAPTER
WITNESS
DARNELL MARIA, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, RAMAH NAVAJO CHAPTER
Mr. Maria. Good afternoon. My name is Darnell Maria, and I
have with me my detention administrator, Mignoly Uslo. Thank
you for providing this opportunity, Chairman, and also the
committee here. I am an alumni of NSU, just to let you know.
I have four priority issues with Ramah Navajo. Ramah Navajo
is a sub political unit of the Navajo Nation. There are 110
chapters within the nation. However, Ramah Navajo is under the
Southwest region out of Albuquerque. We are geographically
isolated and semi-autonomous from the Navajo Nation.
We do have four priorities that we have. The number one is
the inadequate funding of tribes of 638 programs as compared to
BIA programs. Many of the Federal programs, as we all know,
have been contracted by the tribes, the BIA, and Indian Health
Services. Federal law requires that the programs be funded at
the same level if the Secretary had operated these programs
directly, and the funding is for facilities, operation and
maintenance, replacement of buildings, equipment, and vehicles.
However, continue to be woefully underfunded, and we need to
have additional funding. For many years, since 2018, the
chapter continued to receive program funds at the same level
with only minor increases and even some decreases. When
increases are funded by Congress, the tribes often do not
receive these increases in the years the funds are
proportionate to BIA. Perhaps forward funding would be ideal
for all tribes. So that is what I have there. And then we
request that Chapter 638 programs be increased by 30 percent
across the board. This increase is necessary even to begin to
provide services within our contracts that we have.
Number two is lack of funding and basic police operations
and fair value officer salary, as we have heard throughout this
afternoon. According to the CFR 12.34, police officers
operating under the 638 contract should be paid the same wages
as the BIA Office of Justice Services. However, BIA does not
fund this mandate, even though the BIA has received $23 million
in annual funding since 2009. Despite an additional $22 million
in fiscal year 2019 alone, very little of the almost $50
million in increases BIA has received since 2019 has come to
Ramah Navajo, except for congressional inflation adjustments.
We receive funds at less than 40 percent of the overall annual
operation budget.
[Chart]
Mr. Maria. There is clearly a disparity, as the chart will
show, in terms of how much Ramah Navajo receives compared to
the districts in the Southwest region. We have a pueblo of
Zuni, which neighbors our Ramah Navajo community there, and it
has dissimilar population, dissimilar land base and all of
that, and yet Raymond Navajo doesn't receive as much funding as
they do. We are requesting for an additional $400,000 per year
of recurring annual funding for tribal law enforcement. I think
the thing that we need to do is to have the funding go directly
to tribally-operated program law enforcement because when
funding is allocated, central office takes a chunk of it, and
then the 12 regions take an additional, and then the tribe is
left with what is available. So I would like for you to take
that into consideration.
The new public safety facility. Ramah Navajo has been
severely impacted socially and economically, resulting in lack
of infrastructure. We have a 47-year-old facility that has been
determined deficient and requires replacement. The Ramah Navajo
Chapter has been planning a new public safety building for 30
years. The chapter has taken the initiative in 2010 to complete
the land withdrawal of 15 acres, the roadway and utility
easement survey, the boundary survey, the archaeological
survey, the biological survey, environmental assessment. You
name it, that has been all completed. We just need funding to
plan and design the new public safety, and it is basically
shovel ready. So we are requesting an amount of $500,000 for
the architectural and engineering design for the police
department.
Unmet needs for road maintenance. The Road Maintenance
Program operates road maintenance under the 638 contract. Our
annual funding recurring budget is for staff, material, fuel,
and maintenance. In 2023, we received $323,891. However, we
have received no funding for 2021. Our road maintenance general
road maintenance functions require to maintain a safe and
sustainable roadway without a capacity to increase. We barely
have six staff members, and there is a need for additional
staff. And one of the important matters regarding this is that
our current inventory of equipment needs show that they are in
constant repairs, are dilapidated and beyond its useful life.
We are requesting an increase of $700,000 to meet these
identified needs.
Then the rest of it also entails information on Tribal
Transportation Program and how we have to utilize those funds
to cover the road maintenance. Thank you.
[The statement of Mr. Maria follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Ms. Pingree?
Ms. Pingree. Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. Thank you,
everybody, for your testimony, and, in particular, thank you,
Ambassador Bryant, for being with us today. We are so happy to
have two people from Maine with us today. And so much of what
you brought up was things that we have been hearing about
today, but the Maine tribes have particular challenges because
of the land claim settlement, so it makes it even more
important that we have the funding there. I was glad you
brought up the hunting and fishing, the game wardens part. I
mean, hunting and fishing is a huge part of the tradition in
Maine and critically important that you are able to have the
personnel that you need. And I was glad you brought up the fact
that it is not only important to what people eat and the cost
of food, but also to just overall health and well-being, and so
we want to do everything we can to support that.
And also on the law enforcement and court side that we have
heard so much about today, it is, Mr. Chair, a bizarre
challenge that we have in Maine right now is these weird
Chinese drug cartels who have been buying up small rural homes
in communities all over rural Maine and doing big marijuana
growing operations. It has attracted the FBI's attention and it
is become a big law enforcement issue, and it like sort of like
little mushrooms springing up everywhere. So they have a unique
crime problem going on that you wouldn't have sort of pictured
in the outreach of Northern Maine.
And thank you as well, certainly the forest issues you
brought up are important. We have heard a little bit about that
today, making sure that the tribes are funded on parity with
the Forest Service, and I have no doubt that the management
that is going on in the forest lands that you manage is very
good, but you need the funding to be able to do it, and so many
of the things that you brought up are things we are hearing
throughout the day. So thank you all for your time with us
today. We always learn so much. I yield back.
Mr. Simpson. Mr. Kilmer.
Mr. Kilmer. Nothing to add. Thank you.
Mr. Simpson. Thank you all for being here today. We
appreciate it very much. Interesting testimony and we will take
it into consideration when we try to put this bill together.
And it will be inadequate, I am certain of that, but we will
certainly look at your priorities of what we can do.
Ms. Padilla. Put one foot in front of the other. That is
all we can do.
Mr. Simpson. That is right. That is all you can do. Thank
you.
Ms. Padilla. Thank you.
Mr. Simpson. Panel No. 11: Victoria, Greg Hitchcock, Jeremy
Takala, and Ron Allen.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
WINNEBAGO TRIBE
WITNESS
VICTORIA KITCHEYAN, CHAIRWOMAN, WINNEBAGO TRIBE
Ms. Kitcheyan. Wonderful. Good afternoon. My name is
Victoria Kitcheyan. I have the honor of serving as the
chairwoman for the Winnebago Tribe. Thank you for allowing us
to share our priorities.
First, I encourage the committee to increase funding for
BIA public safety and justice programs. The BIA and law
enforcement staffing shortages and overall insufficient level
of police services is a longstanding issue in Winnebago. In
just the last year, we have had multiple instances where BIA
police department in Winnebago was severely short staffed. Last
September, in fact, our chief of police was detailed to another
area for 120 days without notice to the tribal council or
rationale from District 1. There was no communication, and an
existing officer was appointed as the acting chief of police.
That situation was on the heels of the tribe having to ask the
acting chief of police to deputize our wildlife and parks
officers to supplement the severely understaffed law
enforcement.
BIA law enforcement has become heavily reliant on these
tribal resources and tribal officers to be patrolling when
others are detailed elsewhere. These are paid entirely from
tribal resources. The tribal council is doing all we can to
keep our community safe, but it is really hard to not think
these criminals aren't feeling emboldened, and our reservation
is left vulnerable. However, the Federal Government, we urge
them in this committee to increase funding for criminal
investigations and police services. The lack of adult and
juvenile detention services is also an issue. The closest
detention center is on the Omaha Reservation, 11 miles away,
Thurston County, 20 miles away, but BIA law enforcement often
has no contract with these facilities or there is no
availability. As a result, BIA uses the Yankton Sioux Agency,
which is 2 hours away, and you can imagine taking that one
police officer off the patrol to transport.
Turning to juvenile services, BIA law enforcement recently
informed the tribe that we had to have several juvenile
detainees at our youth crisis intervention center, and that
center wasn't meant to house or detain or provide housing for
juveniles who require extended periods of detention. We are
forced to resort to things like this because there are no
facilities close. The closest one is 450 miles away in Standing
Rock, which is a 7-hour drive where law enforcement would take
a youth. The tribe needs BIA to do a better job of having these
active contracts in place, and it just puts our community at
risk, so we urge the subcommittee to increase funding for
detention and correction programs.
Next, the tribe urges the subcommittee to increase funding
for mental health programs within the Indian Health Service.
Tribal members in Indian Country are struggling with serious
mental health issues, often facing additional and unnecessary
burdens to receive lifesaving treatment outside the
reservation. The tribe's hospital is not capable and equipped
to handle these necessary treatments for those experiencing
mental health crisis, so treatment is sought outside of the
facility where these emergencies can be handled. The tribe
recently worked on legislation in the State of Nebraska that
provides for the recognition of tribal mental health commitment
orders and for the transportation and commitment of persons
civilly committed under tribal law. Now that the State
acknowledges these orders, our Federal partners can no longer
skirt their responsibility and bear the financial costs for
healthcare of the tribal individuals.
In fact, the Eighth Circuit of Appeals clearly laid this
out in White v. Califano. As a result of that case, the Great
Plains area administers an involuntary civil commitment program
to pay hospital charges for American Indians who require
involuntary psychiatric hospitalization. Although the Califano
case applies to the entire Eighth Circuit, the Winnebago Tribe
and other tribes within Nebraska have had no access to this
fund appropriated by Congress. The tribe urges the subcommittee
to increase funding for mental health and clarify that all
tribes in the Eighth Circuit are eligible for the Califano
fund.
Next, the tribe urges the subcommittee to increase funding
for tribal colleges and universities. We are very proud of
Little Priest Tribal College and their capacity. They have
doubled their student enrollment, they have doubled their
programs, and they have a master plan to expand the campus. Our
buildings are 20 to 70 years old, ranging from our library, our
museum, student services, and it is just an old campus. You
know, it was a former boarding school, to be honest. In
addition, funding is needed to address our overcrowded
classrooms and, just generally, a limited lack of space. There
is an adjacent 10 acres that we would like to develop and
really help grow our campus and provide opportunity for our
students. Allowing for that growth, we urge the subcommittee to
increase funding for tribal colleges and universities and
tribal college facilities and improvement repair. The Winnebago
Tribe appreciates the opportunity to share these points.
[The statement of Ms. Kitcheyan follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Greg.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
COWLITZ INDIAN TRIBE
WITNESS
GREG HITCHCOCK, VICE CHAIRMAN, COWLITZ INDIAN TRIBE
Mr. Hitchcock. [Speaking native language.] Thank you,
Chairman Simpson, Ranking Member Pingree, for the opportunity
to address this subcommittee today and for this distinguished
panel's attention to the unique appropriations needs of Indian
Country. [Speaking native language.] Greg Hitchcock. My name is
Greg Hitchcock, and I serve as the vice chairman of the Cowlitz
Indian Tribe. My testimony today will address Federal funding
that is crucial for the Cowlitz Indian Tribe's efforts to
support tribal government and infrastructure, preserve our
culture and natural resources, and promote economic
development. This includes funding to, one, improve desperately
needed public safety and physical law enforcement
infrastructure; expand healthcare access and services; co-
steward Federal lands and resources; and facilitate tribal
economic development through innovative green energy projects.
The Cowlitz Public Safety Department is overburdened and
acutely under resourced. In addition to the department's duties
to its tribal members and lands, it extends law enforcement
services into multiple neighboring non-native jurisdiction,
including one local community that lacks its own police
officers. Despite its expansive and essential functions, the
Cowlitz Public Safety Department operates from the confines of
two modular buildings that house 15 tribal officers and the
tribal court. Space limitations don't allow for detention
processing area, holding cells, or evidence and records
storage, and limit the matters that the tribal court, legal
department, and child welfare department can handle. Federal
funding is needed to defray the cost of constructing a public
safety facility that can address the needs of nearly 5000
tribal members, visitors, and neighboring communities.
According to a 2021 BIA analysis, the total estimated
public safety and justice needs for Indian Country topped $3.5
billion, but the Agency spent less than $500 million that same
year. The enormous delta between available funding and Indian
Country's unmet needs is reflected in the lived experience of
tribes as they respond to the opioid epidemic and other complex
public safety challenges. Without a substantial increase in the
funding for tribal law enforcement, the Cowlitz Public Safety
Department will be unable to fulfill its highest obligation to
protect the tribe, its members, and its sovereignty.
Like many other federally-recognized tribes, the Cowlitz
membership is geographically dispersed, but the tribe is deeply
committed to meeting the healthcare needs of its enrolled
members, no matter their proximity to our healthcare clinics.
The tribe successfully clarified with the Indian Health Service
that it may use third party revenues to provide access to
healthcare for enrolled members who reside outside the tribe's
defined service area, and we are deeply appreciative of IHS'
flexibility and commitment to tribal self-determination.
Cowlitz clinics serve thousands of patients annually, both
native and non-native. Funding for IHS makes this lifesaving
work possible. This includes continued funding for the Special
Diabetes programs for Indians, which is critical to further
reduce the prevalence of diabetes in Indian Country. We
strongly support its long-term or permanent reauthorization.
The Cowlitz Indian Tribe strongly supports the U.S.
Government's engagement of tribes in the stewardship of Federal
lands. Co-stewardship agreements leverage tribes' unique
historical and cultural knowledge to better inform the use,
management, and conservation of the United States' most
precious physical resources. Cowlitz recently submitted a co-
stewardship request to the Fort Vancouver National Historic
Site, located within the tribe's historical territory, which
was long used as a place of inter-tribal commerce before
European contact. The tribe looks forward to working with the
National Park Service as well as other tribes that traveled and
traded in the area to provide the public with a better
understanding of indigenous populations and their historical
and cultural contributions.
Tribes can access some funds appropriated for the Federal
management and operation of national parks and other Federal
lands, but Congress should strengthen these partnerships by
making additional funds available specifically to support
tribal co-stewardship agreements of Federal lands. While the
benefits to tribes and Federal land managers are apparent, the
general public benefits most through better management and
conservation of Federal lands. Finally, I ask that you
prioritize funding for the Department of Interior programs that
facilitate tribal energy development. Through innovative and
sustainable energy production methods, tribes can harness their
sovereignty, lands, resources, and members to promote truly
impactful green energy projects that will boost tribal economic
activity while lessening our dependence on gaming while
materially benefiting our environment.
[Speaking native language.] Thank you, Mr. Chairman and
members of the subcommittee, for permitting me to address you
today. I am happy to answer any questions.
[The statement of Mr. Hitchcock follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Jeremy.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
CONFEDERATED TRIBES AND BANDS OF THE YAKAMA NATION
WITNESS
JEREMY TAKALA, COUNCILMAN, CONFEDERATED TRIBES AND BANDS OF THE YAKAMA
NATION
Mr. Takala. Thank you, Chair Simpson, Ranking Member
Pingree, and distinguished members. My name is Jeremy Takala. I
am one of the 14 elected members of the Yakama Nation Tribal
Council. I serve as the chair for the law and order, the fish
and wildlife, and our legislative committee. I am also the vice
chair for the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission.
The Acclamation acts, pursuant to its inherent sovereign
status in the 1855 treaty, reserved authority to protect its
natural and cultural resources for the health, safety, and
welfare of more than 11,000 enrolled members. It is an urgent
time on the Yakama Reservation for the subcommittee to honor
Federal duties and obligations under treaty, statute, and trust
responsibility. Federal treaty promises of public safety within
the Yakama Reservation are not being met. The department relies
on one-third of the officers needed to protect and serve the
communities across the 1.4-million-acre reservation. I also
want to note the Yakama Nation also has trust land outside its
reservations, so their expansion is very large when it comes to
serving our tribal communities.
Federal funding for our 638 contracted law enforcement
responsibilities has been flat over the past 2 decades. The
resources have been going in the wrong direction to provide an
adequate Federal response to the drug-related violence and the
missing murdered indigenous people crisis of human trafficking.
An unaddressed element of the public safety discussion is
untreated substance abuse. The misuse of opioids have led to
increased rates of addiction, mental health issues, and social
instability within the reservation communities. In response,
our staff are working with all available entities, including
the local and State levels, to push for greater Federal
engagement through Indian health Services to create an
inpatient treatment center on our reservation.
Under another 638 contract, we have been working for years
to support the Appraisal and Valuation Services Office to catch
up on the backlog of appraisals of trust and allotted lands.
There are currently around 500 individual probates pending in
the tribal court, and those probates will likely require
between 1,500 to 2,000 appraisals. Current funding levels only
provide for a single appraiser for the Yakama Nation needs. We
created a solution with the AVSO to batch mass appraisals for
efficiency, but funding for training and staffing under this
new approach is necessary for our members to be able to use
their land for new economic purposes.
The Yakama Nation's treaty reserved right to fish is more
than a right to put our nets in empty water, but a healthy and
abundant harvest is critical to protecting and perpetuating our
way of life. Historically, the Federal hydroelectric systems
devastated the 17-plus million salmon adults that would return
annually. My ancestors negotiated to preserve our rights to
that robust fishery in the Treaty of 1855. Today, the hydro
system kills between 5 to 11 million salmon per year, and the
14 of the 16 salmon species in the Columbia River Fishery are
threatened or endangered by extinction. We cannot fish for the
few abundant stocks of fish due to harvest limitations that
protect the endangered stocks.
For decades, the recovery funding has failed to keep pace
with the required mitigation for salmon loss each year to the
hydroelectric systems. This subsidy to the regional economy,
paid on the backs of subsistence fish and families and the
sacrifices of having enough fish in our homes, fund the hydro
systems backlog of fish mitigation measures for habitat
hatcheries and cold wind water flows in the Columbia River
because our trading fishers have never seen harvest benefit of
true mitigation, and for more than a generation, the annual
salmon runs have been far below the number of salmon that get
killed by the hydro system.
The Yakama Nation has a 650,000-acre forest that has been
mismanaged by the BIA for more than a decade. Congressional
inaction here threatens the loss of more than 200 jobs on our
reservation. The BIA completes less than a handful of timber
sales in any given year, and a dozen of vacant forestry
positions remain unfilled. Meanwhile, the Yakama member-owned
logging companies have gone out of business, and the Yakama
Nation's own commercial mill can no longer sustain itself from
the lack of reservation timber harvest. We have requested
funding for alternative harvest equipment to preserve its own
timber resources from being wasted through forest decay and
wildfire. This specialized equipment will assist in harvesting
steep slope logs and expand the area where Yakama Nation can
implement its own forest management practices despite the
extreme dysfunction at the BIA for years of gridlock in the
Forestry Program.
Moving on to our water resources, the Wapato Irrigation
Project has been underfunded to the point of system failure.
The BIA has systematically decreased its support for water
measurement and crop reporting. Water conservation on the
Yakama Reservation is nearly impossible without significant
capital investments. Our modernization and conservation plan
needs funding for the next phase of work with BIA and other
partners.
This Congress needs to prioritize capital investments for
education. Our tribal school is nearly 70 years old. We ask
that BIA Facility Condition Index be evaluated because it will
take us nearly at least up to 2050 until our school meets
number one on the list. So the BIA school replacement funding
needs a significant increase to address the more than 80 tribal
schools ranked in poor condition.
So I just want to thank Chair Simpson, Ranking Member
Pingree, distinguished members of this committee here, and
thank you for allowing me to make my testimony.
[The statement of Mr. Takala follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you, Jeremy. Ron.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
JAMESTOWN S'KLALLAM TRIBE
WITNESS
RON ALLEN, CHAIRMAN AND CEO, JAMESTOWN S'KLALLAM TRIBE
Mr. Allen. Thank you, Mr. chairman and committee members. I
appreciate the opportunity to present some testimony on behalf
of the Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe. We are a small tribe in
Western Washington, west of Seattle, about 60 miles. You can
put our reservation in the Yakama parking lot. [Laughter.]
Mr. Allen. But we do a lot to help make a difference for
Indian Country and for our tribe specifically. I do want to
just apologize. I have been doing this for 40 years, back to
the Sid Yates days, and know better to put my phone on silent,
so I hope you will think kindly about our ask here.
I do want to do a quick shout-out before I get into the
Jamestown ask. I am a commissioner on the U.S.-Canada Pacific
Salmon Commission, and so there is a budget in rights
protection in BIA that funds the tribes, 24 tribes, including
the Yakama Nation and the Metlakatla Tribe up in Alaska. And so
it is about $7 million in that budget to help us be able to be
effective in that forum. So there are lots of needs in there in
the different departments, but the Department of Interior BIA
is important to all of us.
I have been very active over the years with NCAI and NIHB,
and I know that they always make strong recommendations to this
committee that complement all my colleagues throughout today
and tomorrow, and we are fully supportive of them. They are
very thorough in terms of the analysis and the needs with
regard to the Department of Interior. And so I just want you to
be very clear that we are all very supportive of the ask that
complement our ask.
Without a doubt, there are a lot of issues. I also chair
the Department of Interior TIBAC, the Tribal Interior Budget
Advisory Committee, working with the Secretary with regard to
the recommendations to the President's budget, and it is
challenging. I can tell you that when we look at the budget, we
know it is a challenge in terms of finding ways to fully and
adequately fund IHS and the BIA programs and all the complex
programs that are there, and it is a huge issue for all of us.
And so contract support costs and 105(l) is a big issue. We all
support trying to move it into mandatory and advanced funding.
We got it for IHS. We definitely need it for BIA for the same
fundamental reasons. So we continue to urge and encourage you
to seriously consider those asks as we move this agenda
forward.
My tribe is a small tribe, and we try to do everything we
can to be effective for our people as well. One of the things
that is in our ask is consistent with the President's co-
management, co-stewardship agenda, we want to take over this
year--in fact, we are going to as of late this summer--a refuge
from Fish and Wildlife. And so inside of our ask is that we
have had to negotiate with the Fish and Wildlife with regard to
what do they use to manage this refuge. This refuge happens to
be right in front of our village, right literally in front of
us, and it has many of our burial sites on it. And so it is
important to us not just for the conservation reasons that
refuges are established, but also for cultural and traditional
reasons that are important to the tribe. We have all become
very good managers. Stewardship is a big deal to all tribes,
and it certainly is a big deal to us in the Northwest.
I am wearing my salmon necklace here. We fully support
removing four dams up the Snake River as long as I can get some
of the fish before the Yakama gets it. [Laughter.]
Voice. [Inaudible].
Mr. Allen. But we have to do what we can, and, of course,
the U.S.-Canada is harvest management. Meanwhile, we have to
deal with the other three with regard to protecting salmon and
restoring it to sustainable levels. So that is a big deal.
So in our national refuge that we want to take over--well,
we are going to take over--Fish and Wildlife budget is not the
same as BIA. It is very complicated, and you have to break it
down in terms of how they cover the various costs. And it was
not a good negotiation for us for moving it into our self-
governance. We believe that the appropriate number is around $1
million actually to manage just two of these refuges. There are
six of them, and we are taking over two of them. It is the most
popular ones. That is where all the people go to and visit, and
so it is a huge deal for us, so we hope that you would look
favorably at that particular ask.
I want to do another shout-out, Tiwahe. You probably have
heard numerous advocations for the Tiwahe Program and the $36
million that they have been asking for. It is a success. It
takes many, many programs, brings them together to help our
people become safer, healthier, and more vibrant for the youth
and for the families themselves, and so that is a program that
is critically important.
So I will leave it at that. There are lots of asks. You are
going to hear about it today and tomorrow, and we know it is a
huge challenge, but we do appreciate the fact that these
budgets are helping us building our nations so that we can
become self-reliant, so it is a huge deal for us. So thank you.
I appreciate the opportunity to testify.
[The statement of Mr. Allen follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. You all don't want me to start
talking about salmon. We could be here for several days.
Anyway, thank you for your testimony. I appreciate it very
much.
Ms. Pingree. I apologize for missing some of your
testimony, but thank you for those of you who did, and I do
appreciate that you brought up salmon. We have had some dam
removal and a lot of mitigation on the rivers in Maine dealing
with Atlantic salmon, some of the same concerns, and I
appreciate the chair's interest in this topic, so thank you for
that, and thank you for so many of the other things that you
brought up. I appreciate having you here today. I yield back.
Mr. Simpson. Mr. Kilmer.
Mr. Kilmer. Thanks, Chairman. Thanks to each of you for
being here. Chairman Allen, you mentioned the co-management
arrangement with Fish and Wildlife for the co-management of the
two refuges and the importance of contract support costs. I am
just hoping you can pull that thread a little bit more for the
subcommittee in terms of the importance of expanding indefinite
appropriations for other accounts for which that is not
currently allowed under the Department of Interior. What would
that mean to your tribe? What does that mean just in terms of
dollar and cents and the provision of resources?
Mr. Allen. Well, thanks, Congressman. Everybody knows what
contract support covers. It covers the programs that are inside
the Federal Government in terms of how the Federal Government
manages its affairs, and it has been quite a success. And this
committee and the full committee has been fully supportive of
it covering the full cost, and we deeply appreciate it. As
tribes now are becoming more assertive with all agencies within
the Department of Interior and HHS. The way that your language
is in the appropriation, it doesn't cover CSEC. Fish and
Wildlife, Bureau of Reclamations, and Bureau of Land
Management, et cetera, they don't have a line item in there for
contract support cost. So as we take over those programs, there
is no money there.
So when the President says, okay, how do you, the
departments and agencies, remove these impediments and
barriers, that is one of the impediments and the barriers. So
if we can modify that language just for the Department of
Interior, and, personally, I think should be for HHS because we
are venturing into the other agencies in HHS as well, so that
you only need one line item for contract support. You don't
need multiple line items. And so we would urge that you modify
the language because it is essential to be successful at
managing any Federal program.
Mr. Kilmer. Right. I think you make a great case. Chairman,
we would sure love to work with you on that. I yield back.
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. I look forward to working on that.
Thank you all for being here today and for your testimony. We
will talk some more about salmon.
Mr. Allen. We can. We want to get you in a good mood right
away, you know. [Laughter.]
Mr. Simpson. If nothing else, we have started a debate that
needed to happen.
Mr. Allen. Yes, you did.
Voice. We might save you some money. [Laughter.]
Mr. Simpson. Mr. Brian Harris and Gloria O'Neil.
Mr. Simpson. Brian, you would be first.
Mr. Harris. Yes, sir.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
CATAWBA NATION
WITNESS
BRIAN HARRIS, CHIEF, CATAWBA NATION
Mr. Harris. Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman and members of the
subcommittee. My name is Brian Harris, and I am the chief of
the Catawba Nation. The Catawba Nation is the only federally-
recognized tribe in the State of South Carolina, and on behalf
of the Catawba Nation and my people, it is an honor for me to
be here to testify for you today.
So with that being said, I am here today to shed light on a
deeply troubling chapter in our nation's history, one that
demands acknowledgement, accountability, and, above all,
justice. The tragic saga of the Carlisle Indian Industrial
School represents a dark stain on the fabric of our collective
past, a reminder of the profound injustice inflicted upon
indigenous people in the name of assimilation and cultural
erasure. The request I am making today would impact the
National Park Service and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
This issue holds a significant personal meaning for both
the Catawba Nation in South Carolina and the family of Wade
Ayres. Wade, a 13-year-old little fellow from the Catawba
Nation, enrolled at the Carlisle in 1903. Tragically, just 4-
and-a-half months later, he passed away due to complications
arising from a vaccine administered during his time at school.
Wade's remains are among those that appear to have been an
improperly designated consequence of apparent mismanagement of
the cemetery over the years.
Between 1880 and 1910, nearly 200 Native-American children
lost their lives while attending the Carlisle facility. Founded
in 1879 at the Army's Carlisle barracks, this institution
operated under the chilling of ``Kill the Indian, Save the
Man''--I will repeat that: ``Kill the Indian, Save the Man''--
seeking to forcibly assimilate over 7,800 Native-American
children from more than 140 tribal nations throughout a
coercive blend of Western-style education and harsh labor. The
toll of this cruel experiment was measured in lives lost and
dreams shattered. At least 194 indigenous children were laid to
rest in the school cemetery. Their final resting place is
marked by simple graves with 14 bearing the heartbreaking
inscription of ``unknown.''
The story of Wade Ayers and 193 other children who remain
lost in history illustrates the level of disrespect that
Federal institutions have historically shown to native peoples
and native values. Here are several programs this committee
should support that represent important opportunities to
support efforts to protect our culture and our heritage. Number
one, I urge at least $40 million for the National Park Service
Tribal Historic Preservation Program. Pursuant to the National
Historic Preservation Act, tribal nations established their own
tribal historic preservation offices to protect tribal lands
and sacred sites. These offices receive funding from the
National Park Service, but that funding has been flatlined for
years even as the number of tribal historic preservation
offices has grown. THPOs are the front line of our efforts to
preserve tribal, sacred, and cultural sites, as well as our
representatives in many inter-government discussions that
impact tribal cultural heritage, including repatriation, as in
the case of Wade Ayres, AS well as working with museums and
research centers.
Number two, I urge at least $1.5 million for Native-
American Grants Protection and Repatriation Act, NAGPRA
enforcement. This committee's support for dedicated NAGPRA
enforcement funding in recent years has directly contributed to
more effective law enforcement to protect this important tribal
cultural patrimony. Number three, I urge at least $1 million
for funding implementation of the Safeguard Tribal Objects of
Patrimony, which is also known as the STOP Act. This law,
passed in the last Congress, will ensure the protection of many
sensitive tribal items from illegal export. It is important to
put in place the necessary resources in the Federal Government
to enable this law to be implemented effectively and quickly.
I further ask that you work with your colleagues to direct
the Army Corps of Engineering--this is very important--to allow
tribes, in addition to families, to petition for the return of
remains. Historically, only living relatives of those buried in
the cemetery have been allowed to pursue the returns of the
remains. Relatives may not be aware of the remains that are
there, that there is a possibility to request those remains
through repatriation, or have the technical expertise to pursue
such options. As the Army persists in its endeavors to identify
and repatriate the remaining children in Pennsylvania, it is
imperative that tribal nations are treated with respect,
dignity, and sovereignty they rightly deserve. Throughout this
undertaking, it is essential to ensure that the Department of
the Interior is actively involved, especially concerning the
implementation of NAGPRA. The funding I have just outlined will
contribute to achieving this objective.
And lastly, I would like to address one additional matter.
The Catawba Indian Nation has recently submitted a request for
congressional direct spending through the office of Senator
Graham in the amount of $750,000. This funding is intended to
support a clean water project aimed at facilitating the
construction of a new school on our reservation and much-needed
housing on our reservation. We believe that this project will
also have positive implications for our municipal neighbor, the
City of Rock Hill in South Carolina. Therefore, I respectfully
urge the members of the subcommittee to consider accepting this
request from the Senate should it be presented to you during
your fiscal year 2025 appropriation process, and I thank you
for this testimony that I gave you today.
[The statement of Mr. Harris follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you, Chief. Gloria.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
COOK INLET TRIBAL COUNCIL/ALYCE SPOTTED BEAR AND WALTER SOBOLEFF
COMMISSION ON NATIVE CHILDREN
WITNESS
GLORIA O'NEILL, COOK INLET TRIBAL COUNCIL/ALYCE SPOTTED BEAR AND WALTER
SOBOLEFF COMMISSION ON NATIVE CHILDREN
Ms. O'Neill. Thank you. Chairman Simpson, Ranking Member
Pingree, and members of the committee, thank you for the
opportunity to speak today. My name is Gloria O'Neill, and I
serve as president and CEO of Cooking Inlet Tribal Council, or
CITC, which serves 12,000 Alaska Native and American Indians
annually.
As the primary tribal social services, workforce
development, and education provider in Anchorage, Alaska, we
have seen firsthand how to transform lives and create real
population-level change. My testimony addresses three areas:
expansion of Public Law 102477, Tiwahe, and recommendations of
the Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on Native
Children.
First, 477. For over 30 years, 477 has been a critical tool
for tribal innovation and workforce development to serve our
people most effectively by combining our employment, training,
and related grant programs into a single, comprehensive,
tribally-customized workforce development plan with a single
budget and report, allowing us to maximize participant progress
towards self-sufficiency, work seamlessly across programs to
address the needs of each unique individual and family, and
increase efficiency, decreasing administrative burden, and
ensuring community impact, all while maintaining program
guidelines and increasing self-determination. This is why it is
so important to Indian Country and meeting the Federal trust
responsibility.
CITC has operated a 477 plan since 1994. A key component is
the improved coordination offered by our one-stop-shop,
addressing the entirety of the individual and family to create
a holistic approach that results in individuals moving from
cash assistance to work and finding real career pathways. For
example, in 2023, CITC participants realized an average hourly
wage gain of more than $12 per hour. That is real poverty
reduction. However, despite the program's effectiveness,
challenges remain. We offer these urgent requests.
First, the Department of Interior's Division of Workforce
Development is doing a great job in supporting 477 tribes and
tribal organizations, but they are stretched too thin and need
additional resources to handle the growing number of tribal
providers. Second, the current simple annual report format is
set to expire soon. The current form does not require reporting
by individual funding source. It works well and reinforces the
477 legislation. CITC supports the Federal Tribal Work Group's
collaboration in producing an updated, simplified form that
furthers our focus on serving people. Third, roadblocks and
delays and fund transfers from other agencies to DOI are
impeding the full implementation of 477, including reluctance
by DOJ and delays from Commerce and BIE. Finally, we strongly
encourage this committee to insist that other agencies uphold
the spirit of the 477 law, especially with regard to new OMB
requirements that restrict flexibility in how we manage
investment funds.
Secondly, I want to highlight the recommendations of the
Federal Commission on Native Children, which I had the honor of
chairing. In addition to highlighting the success of 477, the
Commission identified critical appropriation priorities for
improving the lives of native children and youth, among them:
funding for training of State child welfare agencies on the
ICWA Act delivered by native experts; reforms in BIA juvenile
justice allowing and expanding funds to be used for
preventative measures like counselors; and funding specific
programs to be delivered in public tribal and BIE schools about
trauma, suicide, and substance abuse; finally, funding short-
term demonstration projects to support native health entities'
capacity for third party billing.
Lastly, I encourage expanded funding for the Tiwahe
initiative within BIA, which provides tribes and tribal
organizations the flexibility to combine Bureau funds related
to child welfare, including social services, ICWA housing,
anti-recidivism, law enforcement, and courts, into a
consolidated multiyear plan. Like 477, Tiwahe has shown great
success in outcomes. With a current budget of $44 million, BIA
has asked for an additional 36 million in fiscal year 2024 and
2025 that would fund all the current incubator tribes.
Through strong support of 477, investments in native
children, and expanded funding for Tiwahe, we can provide
greater impact in tribal communities across our country, and I
just want to thank you for this opportunity.
[The statement of Ms. O'Neill follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you, and thank you for your testimony.
Repatriation of both Native Americans and the artifacts that
are in museums all over the world, frankly, should be a high
priority, and I think we tried to make that in the last bill.
In fact, I have the staff here call museums to tell them they
need to give those back. Anyway, thank you for your testimony.
I appreciate it.
Ms. Pingree. Yeah, and thank you for bringing up the real
crime of the boarding schools and the importance of placing
more emphasis on that, and making sure everyone is aware of
that history and also the suggestions that you had of the
National Park Service. Each one of those funding lines would be
very important, I think. I appreciate it.
Mr. Harris. We appreciate it.
Ms. Pingree. Yeah, and thank you. All your suggestions were
great. I had a chance to go to Alaska last year during the
Arctic encounter in April and tour around the Cook Inlet a
little bit with Senator Murkowski. You live in a beautiful
place. I mean, it is not Maine, but it was really quite
beautiful. [Laughter.]
I mean, it is kind of Alaska-like. You know, we just got
little tiny mountains. You guys are spectacular, but also
really very significant issues, and each one of your
suggestions was very good. Thank you.
Ms. O'Neill. Thank you. Thank you.
Mr. Simpson. I am glad that Maine and Alaska are nice, but
you flew right over God's country. That would be Idaho.
Ms. Pingree. Yeah. Where is that again? [Laughter.]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you for your testimony. I appreciate it.
Mr. Harris. Thank you.
Mr. Simpson. Last panel of the morning or the afternoon, of
the day. Jill Sherman-Warne, Catalina Villa Montes, Russell
Attebery, and Carmine McDarment.
Jill, you are up first.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
HOOPA VALLEY TRIBE
WITNESS
JILL SHERMAN-WARNE, COUNCILMEMBER, HOOPA VALLEY TRIBE
Ms. Sherman-Warne. Wow. I have the hard act of following
Ron Allen. I want to say [Speaking native language.] I am very
thankful for being here and being able to testify before you
today. Nobody warned me that my heart was going to break as I
listened to the testimony of my fellow tribes. I am just here
to say on behalf of Hoopa that we would like to increase the
request that we submitted last year, which was $10.4 million to
$20.8 million, and this is just the bare minimum, and that is
the sad thing that I heard today as people were talking, my
fellow tribes were talking, is that they are asking for a
million dollars when, in fact, the programs probably need
significantly higher levels of funding.
And we are talking about law enforcement. As you know, I
come from California. Hoopa is located in Northern California.
We are the largest land-based tribe in California. Luckily, we
have been able to fund the return of 10,000 acres to the
reservation that will allow us to access a sacred mountain, and
we are going to be celebrating that on May 14, so you are
invited to come and attend that celebration. And Hoopa has a
long history of trying to correct the wrongs of our ancestral
lands being taken away and for us to work to return them.
When we talk about fish and salmon, I think I am one of the
few fortunate youngsters, if I could call myself a youngster,
that had the BIA surround our house with AK-14s and arrest my
grandfather and my 8-year-old brother for engaging in
traditional fishing. And those are really raw memories for me
because I remember the fear that I had when they came because
we were just trying to assert our fishing rights, and now we
have fishing rights and we don't have any fish. Last year, we
were able to harvest 364 salmon to feed 3,600 people. You are
talking about needing to have Jesus come along and perform a
miracle to ensure that we have that.
We need funding for law enforcement. In Northeastern
Humboldt County, it is Hoopa that provides a majority of the
law enforcement within the Northeastern county. We are also the
ones who provide the emergency services, ambulances. Many of
the local towns wouldn't have access to ambulance if it wasn't
for the work that we have done. The Tiwahe initiative,
everything they have said, and all I can say is I refer you
back to the U.S. Civil Commission's report that they did in
2003 called ``A Quiet Crisis,'' and then their updated report
that was in 2018 called ``Broken Promises.'' All you have to do
is look at those things and know that we need to be funded at a
much higher level.
We have talked about law enforcement and healthcare, and
healthcare, you know ago, there was a study done by a private
Indian health committee, and they found that if we could just
get the same amount of funding that prisons do for healthcare,
we would be on an equal basis. So can we just get the same
amount of funding as U.S. prisons? Like, that is the level of
where we are at in terms of healthcare services. Have there
been increases? Absolutely. Have those increases been
monumental to us? Absolutely, but the need is very well
documented, and I hope that at some point, we can fund that.
Besides being on my tribal council, I am also the executive
director of the Native American Environmental Protection
Coalition, which is a coalition of 28 tribes. I work with EPA,
predominantly with EPA. I also serve on the California Air
Resources Board Environmental Justice Committee. I also sit on
the CalEPA Tribal Advisory Committee. So environmental issues
are near and dear to my heart, and I see the struggle that
tribes have. If there is something that I would love to see, is
that the general assistance funds under the GAP Program, I
would like to see action taken to fund that program for tribes
into perpetuity because GAP acts as aid to tribal government in
terms of environmental protection, and we have to do those
things ourselves. In terms of wildland fire, as you know, with
climate change--maybe I am not supposed to say that here--but
we are experiencing wildfires almost all year long. October was
our last wildfire, and yet the tribe is almost broke by that
because we are still waiting for over $3 million worth of
reimbursements for assisting in those fires, and it is a huge
strain on our government funding.
So I am kind of I am kind of veering off of my actual
prepared speech, but I felt like this might be my one
opportunity to bend your ear and say there are all these things
that need to be done.
Because we talked about IHS, I want to talk about the
Rehabilitation Services Administration Section 121 programs,
which is the program that funds tribal vocational
rehabilitation programs, which is much like a State program. We
need to make sure that tribes are getting those funds. Under
that particular program, we are allowed to get up to 1 percent
of the total amount funded, and we have never met that barrier,
and we need to be making sure that have these programs. Hoopa,
we have a program along with Yurok. We need to make sure that
those programs are funded sufficiently because the need is
great. We are losing so many young ones, whether it is to be
murdered and missing or have mental health issues, and we are
all struggling with those things. You have heard from a
majority of my colleagues here about the need that exists
within Indian Country, and I don't know how we are going to get
those things really impressed upon not just you here at the
table, but your colleagues as well because I know that most of
the times, our school systems do a disservice with teaching
Native-American history, and there is a lack of understanding
that we are not an ethnicity. I mean, we are an ethnicity, but
here before you as enrolled tribal members of our tribes, we
are citizens of our governments. And so we are asking you guys
to uphold the treaties and the promises that have been made and
broken.
[The statement of Ms. Sherman-Warne follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you, Jill. Catalina.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
RIVERSIDE-SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY INDIAN HEALTH, INC.
WITNESS
CATALINA VILLA MONTES, TREASURER, RIVERSIDE-SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
INDIAN HEALTH, INC.
Ms. Villa Montes. Thank you. Thank you. Good afternoon,
Chairman Simpson and Ranking Member Pingree. I am Catalina
Villa Montes, Pechanga Band of Indians member, Riverside San
Bernardino County Indian Health director, and board treasurer,
and I sit on the California Rural Indian Health Board as a
director. My tribe is 1 of 9 in the consortium of Riverside San
Bernardino County Indian health, and I want to thank you for
the opportunity to speak to you today.
Year after year, you hear from tribal entities requesting
more Indian health funding. While these needs are important, so
is the need to protect the recurring funding for Indian health
programs that we already rely on to provide services.
Unfortunately, delays in the Federal budgeting process
exemplify why the entire Indian Health Service budget needs to
be moved to mandatory appropriations. We are extremely
appreciative that in fiscal year 2023, Congress first provided
for advance appropriations for the IHS. However, certain
accounts were excluded from those advanced appropriations,
including contract support costs, lease funds, and certain
facility funds. The threat and disruption of potential
shutdowns, sequestrations, and continuing resolutions continue
to loom over our operations despite advanced appropriations.
And the only way to ensure that Indian health programs are held
harmless like other Federal health programs is to move the IHS
budget to the mandatory side. This is necessary to uphold the
Federal obligation for Indian healthcare to provide funding
stability for tribal health programs.
Inflation, especially in the medical sector, has decreased
our buying power and means the funds we have do not go as far
as they historically have. Post-pandemic provider salaries,
medication costs, and nearly every component of our programs
have increased. While in fiscal year 2023, the administration's
program to fully fund the IHS required $36.7 billion, only one
year later, that number rose to $54 billion, yet the total
agency appropriation remains less than $10 billion. Oh, did I
say ``million?'' I meant ``billion.'' We continue to support
the budget's push towards full funding for the IHS.
The California IHS area does not receive equitable funding.
Our State is one of four IHS areas that are designated PRC
dependent, meaning we have little or no access to an IHS or
tribally-operated hospital and, therefore, must purchase all or
a large portion of inpatient and specialty care from non-tribal
providers at a significantly higher cost. Every year, our PRC
funding is nearly or completely depleted before the end of the
fiscal year. As a result, our patients often must forego access
to certain specialty care that they need unless they have non-
IHS resources to cover the cost.
On behalf of the 68 federally recognized tribes and the
tribal organizations that I represent, we respectfully request
this committee support Congressman Kevin Kiley's PRC budget
request of $82.9 million for the California IHS area in fiscal
year 2025. This request was endorsed in writing by several
members of Congress. We also ask the committee to support
funding for the development of two regional specialty care
centers in California. When these facilities are operational,
we could refer our patients to them to receive the care that is
available. It would also alleviate some pressures on our PRC
budget. Given that there are twelve IHS areas across the
country and the California area is one of four formally
designated as PRC dependent, California is often overlooked and
chronically under resourced by IHS. As a result, we have little
recourse to correct these inequities without congressional
support, and we need you now more than ever. Please support my
PRC requests.
We know that the IHS has continued to ask for large budget
outlays for its Health Information Modernization Project that
the Agency intends to move to replace its antiquated system
with a new Oracle system. Unfortunately, our programs could no
longer wait for IHS to decide to modernize, so over 6 years
ago, we purchased our own modern electronic healthcare record
system that was necessary for us to meet our patient needs.
However, using this different EHR technology impacts our
ability to submit data to the Federal data warehouse, and the
incompatibility between our system and IHS' system impacts
patient data that may feed into funding formulas. We ask that
Congress provide funding to improve systems integration with
new IHS EHR technology and ongoing maintenance costs required
to enhance data accuracy.
Lastly, but not least, contract support costs, which cover
our necessary overhead and administrative costs, are critical
to sustain our operations and ensure that our program funds can
be detected dedicated to services. However, ever since Congress
mandated full funding of contract support costs in 2014, IHS
has devised different ways to attempt to limit or reduce these
reimbursements. Therefore, we ask the committee to direct IHS
to eliminate its reconciliation process, which permits IHS to
come back years after our books are closed to request funds
back for a prior fiscal year, many of which have already been
spent. Our indirect cost rate setting process already accounts
for over or under recoveries in any given fiscal year, and this
repetitive agency reconciliation process only distorts this
process further.
I thank you for your time and consideration of our
requests.
[The statement of Ms. Villa Montes follows:]
[GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Russell.
----------
Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
KARUK TRIBE
WITNESS
RUSSELL ATTEBERY, CHAIRMAN, KARUK TRIBE
Mr. Attebery. [Speaking native language.] Hello. Chairman
Simpson, Ranking Member Pingree, thank you for the opportunity
to testify. My name is Buster Attebery. I don't know if I would
turn around if you called me Russell, so--[Laughter.]
Mr. Attebery. And I am currently serving my 13th year as
chairman of the Karuk Tribe. We are located in Northern
California just below the Oregon border.
A quick overview, including fee-to-trust process, Karuk
Tribe is one of California's largest tribes by population, but
our trust lands are relatively small, rural, and subject to
natural disasters, both in the decline of the Klamath River
salmon, on which our tribe has depended since time immemorial,
and wildfires and flooding that have destroyed homes of
hundreds of our members. We have worked to overcome these
obstacles, but we have much more to do. Karuk's involvement in
removing obsolete dams on the Klamath is a major step toward
restoring the river's fishery, but it will be many years before
we see a return to its former abundance.
To reduce the threat of wildfires and resulting flooding
that have so devastated our community, we have invested in an
aggressive program of wildfire prevention through traditional
burning and other forestry activities, all which rely upon a
well-resourced tribal government.
Fee-to-trust process. As Karuk tribe's trustee, Interior
should be our ally in these efforts. Instead, Interior
sometimes spends its limited resources creating obstacles, in
this case using a unique legal interpretation to advance a
gaming application that harms tribes in California and Oregon,
exceeds the authority delegated by Congress, and which the
Department previously found fails to meet its criteria. If
approved, this project would damage our tribal government's
ability to manage our lands and assist our members for decades.
By approving a project in Medford, Oregon, 170 miles from the
applicant's existing lands and in an area in which the
Department found that the applicant lacks historical
connection, the Department would set a new national precedent
without consulting tribes, conducting a regulatory process, or
congressional authorization. The sponsors of the relevant law
have written Interior to express that it violates their
legislative intent. Despite all this, Interior is using an
expedited process which fails to include consultation with
tribes actually located in the area.
A bipartisan group of members representing our region have
requested appropriations language prohibiting Interior from
approving projects like this one. A more rigorous process,
which includes tribal consultation and considers the views of
State and local governments, would remain available to the
applicant tribe. Interior has a trust response to all tribes
and should never interpret the law to benefit one at the
expense of others. That is why this application is opposed by
26 members of the House and Senate and over 65 tribal
governments. These decisions must be made fairly and
transparently, for when land is taken into trust for one tribe
in an area to which others have a connection, those tribes can
be harmed forever. Fee-to-trust decisions for cultural and core
government functions should be expedited, but those intended
for purely economic purposes, such as gaming, require thorough
review. I respectfully request that the committee exercise its
oversight role, include this language in your 2025 bill, and
restrict Interior from advancing projects which do not comply
with the law.
Forest and management wildfire. Tribes have always used
fire for cultural and land management purposes, and I urge the
committee to clarify with report language that tribes develop
fire programs on trust lands without the need for BIA approval.
We need to be able to act quickly when we identify a hazard
situation, not when we are finally given permission to do so.
The committee should also recognize the importance of BIA, Fish
and Wildlife, and parks funding the tribes receive. While there
is not a great deal of funding for tribes, this is one of the
most flexible tools we have for resource management on our land
and natural forest lands. Just a side note: we encourage co-
management. We have worked diligently with the Forest Service.
They are on board. We will continue to ask for equitable
funding for the tribes so we can work together and create what
we know is a sustainable economy on our forest lands.
Real quick. I ask to consider baseline law enforcement
funding to tribes in PL 280 States for education on PL 280 law.
Thank you for your consideration and your time. I appreciate
it.
[The statement of Mr. Attebery follows:]
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Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Carmine.
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Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
TULE RIVER INDIAN TRIBE
WITNESS
CHARMAINE McDARMENT, CHAIRPERSON, TULE RIVER INDIAN TRIBE
Ms. McDarment. Greetings, Chairman Simpson and committee
Ranking Member Pingree. My name is Charmaine McDarment, and it
is an honor to appear before you today. I serve as chairwoman
of the Tule River Indian Tribe of the Tule River Indian
Reservation in California. I formerly served as the tribe's
general counsel for over 20 years. We are Yokuts Indians and we
have occupied the entire San Joaquin Valley in California for
thousands of years. On behalf of our 1,999 tribal members, I
come before you today to share with you our most critically
underfunded needs in order to guide the United States on how it
can best fulfill its treaty and trust obligations to the Tule
River Tribe and properly fund Indian programs and services that
we rely upon most. Our funding priorities are water settlement,
funding for wildfire prevention and fighting, and also law
enforcement.
Tule River, like other tribal nations, are no strangers to
land loss, fraud, broken promises, unratified treaties, and
theft of our homelands and our water. Our ancestors signed the
Treaty of Paint Creek in 1851, shortly after California became
a State, but Congress never ratified that treaty. Instead, we
were driven from our homelands, relocated to two reservations,
only to be forced a third time to our current reservation into
the foothills of the Sierra and Nevada mountains. We work hard
to make our inadequate reservation a viable, safe, and
nurturing homeland.
The Tule River Indian Reservation is located in Central
California, south of the town of Porterville. It ranges in
elevation from 900 feet to 7,500. The reservation's eastern
boundary abuts the Forest Service's giant Sequoia National
Monument. In 1922, the United States violated their trust
duties to us when they appropriated our water rights to
downstream users, leaving us in a battle for over 100 years to
regain those rights back. As the former general counsel and as
the current chairwoman, I know that without water and adequate
infrastructure, our members and the tribe as a whole suffer.
We are actually forced to limit the number of enrolled
tribal members because our constitution includes a residency
requirement to enroll with the tribe. To become enrolled, you
have to have a tribal member parent and they have to live on
the reservation for a year before you are born. The only other
way is to reside on the reservation for 5 consecutive years.
And right now we have a moratorium on the establishment of any
more land assignments for homes because we don't have enough
water to serve those homes, so as you can see, it is hard to
get people enrolled. And imagine being forced to limit the
number of citizens of your nation due to lack of water and
infrastructure. Imagine the impact that has on our tribal
elders and our youth. The lack of water hinders our ability to
sustain our food lifeways, maintain economic development and
schools for our children.
You may recall hearing about the wildfires ravaging the
Great Sequoias and killing those ancient beings. Those same
fires burned and encroached on our reservation, threatening our
lands. We have Giant Sequoias also on our reservation, and they
burned several of those. Without water, we had no choice but to
pitch in to fight those fires with little to no resources and
rely on Federal assistance to bring in water to control the
fires. This is why we adamantly advocated and continued to
support the Save our Sequoias Act to fast track support for
future wildfires because they are coming. The Save our Sequoias
Act can never replace real long-term infrastructural solutions.
That is why I am here to make sure you understand why mandatory
and immediate funding for Indian water rights settlements must
happen.
We are thankful to Senator Padilla and the late Senator
Feinstein for their support of championing our water bill, S.
306, the Tule River Tribe Reserved Water Rights Settlement Act
of 2023. The proposed settlement will settle and declare our
rights to thousands of acres of feet of water, return the land
containing the headwaters of the South Fork of the Tule river,
which is about 9000 acres of the Sequoia National Park and
monument that will go back to the tribe. And it would also fund
a reservoir and water delivery system that will safeguard the
Tule River Tribe with managed water for generations to come.
While we await introduction of the House version of our water
rights settlement legislation, we believe moving this
legislation forward into law will achieve success towards
meeting the United States' trust responsibility to the Tule
River Tribe by safeguarding our rights to access clean drinking
water. However, there is no justice without funding this
settlement.
I am running out of time, so I defer to my submitted
written testimony that outlines our other most critical funding
needs, and I thank you on behalf of Tule River Tribe for
hearing or for listening to my testimony, and I am open to
questions. Thank you.
[The statement of Ms. McDarment follows:]
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Mr. Simpson. Mr. Simpson. Thank you. Thank you all for your
testimony today. It seems like we got it done just about in
time since we are going to have votes here in about two
minutes. Ms. Pingree.
Ms. Pingree. Sure. Thank you, and thank you all for your
testimony. It has been interesting for us to be able to hear
from tribes all over the country and in California. You have a
lot of interesting things in common, particularly the increased
amount of wildfires and the challenges that you deal with with
water, and getting those water settlements is obviously very
critical, and you are right in what you mentioned. It is kind
of hard to picture having a community and having to say you
can't join our community because there isn't enough water when
you have enough land or other resources that would make it
possible, so I understand why that is so critically important.
Thank you for your comments about the Indian Health
Service, and certainly I hope that someday we are in a position
to provide mandatory funding. I know advanced appropriations
was really important. Well, actually I can say being on this
committee I have learned the difference between advanced and
mandatory, and mandatory, in the long run, is far more
critical, but I appreciate all that. And you are right when you
were talking in the beginning about so often people are just
here saying we could live with the bare minimum, but we need 25
law enforcement officers, could you just get us two more, and I
hope sometime we are not in the position to just be looking at
the bare minimum. So thank you all for taking the time to be
with us today. I yield back.
Mr. Simpson. Thank you. It is great to have you here. As
Ms. Pingree well knows, in the East they try to get rid of
water. In the West we try to save every drop. That is why the
east coast has biparian water rights and in the west, we have
prior appropriations water rights, whole different set of laws.
It is very complicated. But anyway, thank you all for being
here today. We look forward to working with you as we put this
bill together. Thank you.
The committee stands adjourned till tomorrow morning.
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