Despite the promise of the two programs, Trump is taking a different view. In his fiscal year 2018 budget request, which was released two days before Hoeven dropped his bill, he sought $600 million for the Indian Housing Block Grant Program, which represents a cut of $50 million. Trump's proposal -- which is subject to Congressional approval -- would take Indian Country backwards, according to tribal leaders. They have instead asked key lawmakers to allocate $700 million for the program to address needs in their communities. "The IHBG program has been flat funded since fiscal year 2011 and has not kept pace with the rate of inflation," Chairwoman Dee Pigsley of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians said in written testimony to the House Appropriations Committee on May 17. The loan guarantee program, popularly known as Section 184, fares even worse in Trump's world. He requested $0 for it in his budget, with a justification document arguing that "carryover" funds from prior years are enough to sustain an initiative that helps tribal citizens become homeowners. "This program makes it possible for Indian tribes, Indian housing authorities, and tribally designated housing entities to promote the health of reservation economies and communities by making homeownership a realistic option for tribal members. It provides access to market-rate, private mortgage capital, and is not subject to income restrictions," a justification document from the Department of Housing and Urban Development reads.
Congress appropriated $7.5 million for Section 184 in 2016 and again in 2017, an amount that supports up to $1.3 billion in loan guarantees. According to the Trump administration, a total of $9.1 million is left over from those two years. Both programs were authorized by Congress in 1996 through the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act. The law was reauthorized in 2002 and in 2008 but it expired in September 2013. Since then, Congress has been unable to renew the law. Some of the delay can be traced to disagreements in Indian Country, with certain provisions generating controversy among large tribes like the Navajo Nation. But tribal leaders and advocates also say conservative Republicans have held up the bill due to concerns about programs based on "race" -- specifically, those for Native Hawaiians. Trump's recent signing statement about tribal housing, despite going against precedent, gives those critics more ammunition to block the reauthorization of NAHASDA. A similar situation played out as Indian Country pushed lawmakers to renew the Indian Health Care Improvement Act. A seemingly coordinated effort between the George W. Bush administration and conservative Republicans kept the law in limbo for nearly a decade until Democrats gained control of Congress and Barack Obama became president. The IHCIA was made permanent in 2010 through the Affordable Care Act, popularly known as Obamacare. A hearing on Hoeven's bill takes place on June 13. A total of three bills are on the agenda:
• S.1250, the Restoring Accountability in the Indian Health Service Act. The bill seeks to improve the delivery of care within the Indian Health Service.Senate Committee on Indian Affairs Notice:
• S.1275, the Building Useful Initiatives for Indian Land Development Act.
• A bill, not yet numbered, to address the HUD/VA Veterans Affairs Supporting Housing program, which has been used to improve housing for Native veterans.
Legislative Hearing to Receive Testimony on the Following bills: S.1250, S.1275 (June 13, 2017)
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