House subcommittee finally takes up tribal bills after going silent

Wednesday, May 31, 2017  

The House Subcommittee on Indian, Insular and Alaska Native Affairs is slowly but surely getting back to work.

Since the start of the 115th Congress, the panel has held just two Indian Country hearings.The first took place on March 9 but then there was a long silence until the second one on May 23.

Now the subcommittee is finally going to take up pro-tribal legislation at a hearing next week. Three bills are on the agenda:

• H.R.1074, a bill to address criminal jurisdiction issues on the settlement of the Meskwaki Tribe. The state of Iowa already enacted a law relinquishing jurisdiction over crimes committed by tribal citizens but Congress must also take action. The Senate Committee on Indian Affairs advanced S.381 at a business meeting on March 29.
• H.R.1901, the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium Land Transfer Act. The bill authorizes a transfer of land from the Indian Health Service to the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium in Alaska. Similar legislation has been enacted for other tribal organizations in Alaska.
• S.249, a bill to address leasing issues for Santa Clara Pueblo and Ohkay Owingeh, both based in New Mexico. The Senate Committee on Indian Affairs approved the measure on March 29.

The hearing takes place on at 2pm Eastern on June 7 in Room 1324 of the Longworth House Office Building. A witness list hasn't been posted online.

House Subcommittee on Indian, Insular and Alaska Native Affairs Notice:
Legislative Hearing on H.R. 1074, H.R. 1901 and S. 249 (June 7, 2017)