Senate approves omnibus Indian package

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2002

Approval of key Indian legislation appeared uncertain on Wednesday as both chambers of Congress wrapped up remaining business for the year.

Although the Senate passed a catch-all omnibus act last night by unanimous consent, a leading lawmaker said there was only a "slim" chance the House would do the same when it meets briefly tomorrow to to tie up loose ends. The Senate officially adjourned yesterday.

Sen. Pete Domenici (R-N.M.), who sits on the Indian Affairs Committee, nonetheless praised the work on S.2771 as essential. While mostly technical in nature, he said it will benefit Indian health, water rights, land and numerous other programs.

"I'm ready to get it to the President as soon as possible," he said.

Another bill to change the way Indian lands are inherit is also up in the air. Tribal leaders and Indian advocates pressed for reform in the probate process in order to prevent the loss of the Indian estate.

Co-sponsored by Sen. Dan Inouye (D-Hawaii) and Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell (R-Colo.), the leaders of the Indian committee, S.1340 was approved by unanimous consent yesterday. But instead of being pushed in the House, it was folded into the omnibus act, a move that would make passage easier.

The primary goal is to unify inheritance standards. Currently, individual Indians must abide by state probate code, and with every state have its own laws, this can complicate matters.

"The effect of applying up to 33 different state laws," Assistant Secretary Neal McCaleb said during a Congressional hearing in May, "results in disparate and unfair treatment."

The change was among dozens contained in the omnibus bill. Most were corrective but some were significant, including a one-year reauthorization of the Indian Health Improvement Act, which expired in September 2000, to improve health care facilities, address urban Indians and continue substance abuse and treatment centers.

Another extension applies to the Navajo-Hopi and Settlement Act of 1974, which attempts to settle a dispute over land use in northeastern Arizona affecting Navajo and Hopi tribal members. S.2711 directs the Department of Interior to conduct a one-year study to determine if the goals of the program have been met and recommend future action.

Other provisions include:

Temporary protection of land owned by the Pechanga Tribe of California that is currently the subject of a condemnation action by the state.

Protection of funding for the Crownpoint Institute of Technology in New Mexico and the United Tribes Technical College in North Dakota.

A water study affecting the Quinault Nation of Washington.

Get the Bill:
Indian Programs Reauthorization and Technical Amendments Act of 2002 (S.2711)