Senate passes bills supporting Native American interests

WASHINGTON, D.C.-Recently, the U.S. Senate passed several bills that support Native American interests.

One of these was passage of S. 2515, the Practical Reforms and Other Goals to Reinforce the Effectiveness of Self-Governance and Self-Determination (PROGRESS) for Indian Tribes Act of 2018.

"This legislation works to correct the bureaucratic processes and procedures that the Department of the Interior Self-Governance program has imposed upon Tribes," said Senator John Hoeven, chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. "By cutting onerous red tape we can facilitate more productive negotiations between the Department and Indian tribes when renewing contracts or annual funding agreements. The provisions included in S. 2515 provide Tribes with the certainty and guidance from Congress they need to set their own goals and fulfill their own destinies. I look forward to the House of Representatives passing this legislation so we can send it to the president's desk."

S. 2515 would streamline the Department of the Interior's process for approving self-governance compacts and annual funding agreements for Indian programs, aligning it to be similar to the processes used by the HIS, and add more flexibility in administering those contracts for tribes that either have not qualified for self-governance or have chosen to administer only a few Bureau of Indian Affairs programs.

A few days later, Senator John Hoeven (R-ND), welcomed Senate passage of R. 3021, America's Water Infrastructure Act (AWIA).

"America's Water Infrastructure Act will help facilitate critical water resources development projects in Indian Country. These projects include improving aging irrigation systems, enhancing dam safety and flood protections, and helping ensure access to clean drinking water," said Hoeven. "These projects fulfill important treaty and trust obligations to Indian Tribes."

In the same vein the Senate passed the Spokane Reservation Equitable Compensation Act, S. 995, which Hoeven says, "provides the Spokane Tribe with compensation that will be used for the economic development; infrastructure development; and educational, health, recreational and social welfare objectives of the Tribe."

The bill, S. 995, establishes the Spokane Tribe of Indians Recovery Trust Fund to compensate the Spokane Business Council for the use of tribal lands for the generation of hydropower from the Grand Coulee Dam.

Senator Tom Udall, vice chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, announced that the Senate has passed the House-endorsed Patients and Communities Act, which will combat the opioid epidemic and includes a number of key tribal provisions.

"This bill-which gives Tribes the resources to build treatment and prevention solutions that reflect their unique needs-is an important step toward enabling all communities to work collaboratively to destigmatize addiction, deliver effective treatment and save lives," said Udall.

Key tribal provisions in the legislation include a 5 percent Tribal set-aside within the 21st Century Cures Act Opioid Response Grants and gives Tribes additional flexibility to use funding to address additional substance use disorders, like methamphetamine addiction, specific to their communities; creates a 3% Tribal set-aside within the Plans for Safe Care Programs to support Tribal efforts to address maternal and infant health issues resulting from substance abuse disorders; expands Tribal access to grant resources for development of recovery centers, prescription drug monitoring systems, overdose surveillance, youth addiction prevention programs and job training and treatment services; ensures the Office of National Drug Control Policy consults with Tribes in development of the national drug control strategy; and directs the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to include Tribes in efforts to analyze substance abuse data.