The roof at a Bureau of Indian Education school has sprung multiple leaks after being installed in 2010 at a cost of $3.5 million. Efforts to fix the problem have gone nowhere, according to federal officials. Photo from Government Accountability Office

The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies holds a hearing next week to examine the fiscal year 2017 budget request for the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

President Barack Obama is seeking $2.9 billion for the agency. If enacted by Congress, that would amount to 5 percent increase from the current level.

Included within the budget is $138.3 million for construction programs at the Bureau of Indian Education. Members of the subcommittee have been pushing for more money to address poor conditions at Indian schools.

"Congress needs to spend whatever it takes to fix these schools," Rep. Betty McCollum (D-Minnesota), the top Democrat on the panel, said at the National Congress of American Indians winter session last month.

Officials from the BIA and the BIE will appear at the hearing, which takes place on March 16. The witness list follows:

Panel 1:
Lawrence "Larry" Roberts
Acting Assistant Secretary
Indian Affairs
Department of the Interior

Charles "Monty" Roessel
Director
Bureau of Indian Education

Michael Black
Director
Bureau of Indian Affairs

Panel 2: Melissa Emrey-Arras
Director
Education, Workforce, and Income Security
Government Accountability Office

Committee Notice:
Budget Hearing - Indian Affairs and Oversight of Bureau of Indian Education Schools (March 16, 2016)

FY2017 Budget Documents:
Budget in Brief | Strengthening Tribal Nations and Insular Communities | Indian Affairs | DOI Fact Sheet

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