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Senate Committee on Indian Affairs reschedules business meeting

Monday, May 15, 2017

The Hualapai Tribe owns and operates the Grand Canyon Skywalk, a popular tourist attraction at the Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona. Photo: Leonardo Stabile

The Senate Committee on Indian Affairs has rescheduled a business meeting that went awry after the surprise firing of the nation's top law enforcement official.

The normally bipartisan committee was set to take action on pending legislation until Democratic outrage over President Donald Trump nearly brought the U.S. Senate to a halt last Wednesday. But members appear to be back on track to advance Indian Country's agenda.

And they've added one more item to their agenda. The committee is meeting on Wednesday to consider three bills:

• S.458, the Native Educator Support and Training Act (NEST Act). The bill aims to recruit and retain teachers in Indian Country by providing new scholarships, federal student loan forgiveness and teacher development courses.
• S.691, the Thomasina E. Jordan Indian Tribes of Virginia Federal Recognition Act. The bill extends federal recognition to six tribes in Virginia.
• S.1116, a bill to amend the Native American Business Development, Trade Promotion, and Tourism Act, the Buy Indian Act and the Native American Programs Act to improve economic development opportunities in Indian Country.

The meeting takes place at 2:30pm on May 17 in Room 628 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building. It will be immediately followed by an oversight hearing on "high-risk" tribal programs.

Senate Committee on Indian Affairs Notices:
Business Meeting to Consider S. 458, S. 691, & S.1116 (May 17, 2017)
Oversight Hearing on "High Risk, No Reward: GAO's High Risk list for Indian Programs." (May 17, 2017)