[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 53 (Wednesday, March 22, 1995)]
[House]
[Page H3421]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        NATIVE AMERICAN AMENDMENT DENIED ON WELFARE REFORM BILL

  (Mr. RICHARDSON asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. RICHARDSON. Mr. Speaker, every Member of Congress with Native 
Americans in their district should vote against this bill and this 
rule. Incredibly, the Republican leadership has snubbed their own 
chairman of the Natural Resources Committee, the gentleman from Alaska, 
Don Young, and disallowed a bipartisan amendment that both of us were 
going to offer, treating Indian tribes as States in the new block grant 
system, just like every Republican and Democratic administration has 
done since the 1960's.
  Mr. Speaker, without this amendment this bill will decimate Native 
American programs, violate the tribal sovereignty agreements with the 
United States and will disenfranchise millions of Native Americans.
  It does not surprise me that the Republican leadership would snub 
kids and Native Americans, but their own guy, Don Young, the very able 
chairman of the Natural Resources Committee who was simply trying to do 
the right thing.
  I rise in outrage in learning that the amendment concerning Native 
Americans which the gentleman from Alaska and I have been working on is 
not in order.
  This marks the beginning of an era--the Republican termination era--
for our Nation's relations with tribal governments.
  We have always maintained intergovernmental relations with Native 
Americans--and this has been supported by every administration, on both 
sides of the aisle, since the 1960's.
  This is a significant departure from our belief in and support of 
Indian self-determination, and affronts many statutes passed by this 
body and our predecessors.
  Our amendment would have restored set-asides to Native Americans that 
H.R. 4 destroys--it adds nothing new, would have only maintained the 
independence and ability to serve tribal people that tribes currently 
maintain.
  I am outraged that the Rules Committee has denied this bipartisan, 
rational, technical amendment to H.R. 4; this is fundamentally unfair 
and wrong.
  Mr. Speaker, the bottom line is that there is no place for arrogant 
procedural tactics in this Chamber, it only denies the first Americans 
a voice in the legislative process.


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