{"id":12685,"date":"2021-06-09T14:43:51","date_gmt":"2021-06-09T18:43:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.indianz.com\/News\/?p=12685"},"modified":"2021-06-10T09:07:39","modified_gmt":"2021-06-10T13:07:39","slug":"bryan-newland-opening-statement-assistant-secretary-indian-affairs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/indianz.com\/News\/2021\/06\/09\/bryan-newland-opening-statement-assistant-secretary-indian-affairs\/","title":{"rendered":"Opening Statement of Bryan Newland to serve as Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs"},"content":{"rendered":"
Statement of Bryan T. Newland<\/div>\r\n
Nominee for the Position of Assistant Secretary \u2013 Indian Affairs at the\r\nU.S. Department of the Interior<\/div>\r\nBefore the Committee on Indian Affairs United States Senate
\r\n
Wednesday, June 9, 2021<\/div>\r\n

<\/P>\r\n• PDF: Bryan Newland Opening Statement<\/a><\/strong>\r\n

<\/P>\r\n Aanii (Hello)! Thank you, Chairman Schatz, Vice-Chairman Murkowski, and members of the Committee. It is an honor to appear before you today as President Biden\u2019s nominee to be the Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs at the U.S. Department of the Interior, an important position that serves as a leader for the United States\u2019 trust relationship with Tribal Nations.\r\n

<\/P>\r\nAnd it is a privilege to serve with Secretary Haaland at such an important time for Indian Country.\r\nI\u2019m so happy to have my wife Erica Newland here with me. We grew up together on the Bay Mills Indian Reservation, and she has been my partner, strategic advisor, and designated \u201chumbler\u201d every step of the way. Together, we have two incredible children \u2013 Graydon and Meredith \u2013 who are also here, as are my parents, Gordon and Vicki Newland.

<\/P>\r\nMy parents had me at a young age, under difficult circumstances, and worked hard to raise my brother Robert, my sister Holly, and me. They also both had long careers in public service and instilled those values in us. I thank them for that.

<\/P>\r\nGrowing up on our reservation, I saw how federal laws and policies affected the lives of everyday Indians. Commercial tribal fishermen exercised treaty-protected fishing rights to feed their families. I lived up the street from Bay Mills Community College \u2013 the first tribally-controlled community college in Michigan \u2013 which was established soon after Congress enacted the Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities Assistance Act.\r\nOur family also lived in tribal housing, supported by federal grants.

<\/P>\r\nMy parents were fortunate to each have jobs, which allowed them to get a land-lease to move out of tribal housing and purchase a home. We lived in a single-wide trailer for several years while they waited for the Bureau of Indian Affairs to approve their mortgage. When that mortgage was finally approved, my parents became the first people on the Bay Mills Reservation to have a mortgaged-financed home.

<\/P>\r\nTheir experience with the BIA\u2019s time-consuming mortgage-approval process, and the delays that my parents faced as a part of it, would stick with me.

<\/P>\r\nI attended Michigan State University and the Michigan State University College of Law, where I was the first Native student to enroll in the Indigenous Law and Policy Program.\r\n

<\/P>\r\n

It\u2019s a big day for Bryan Newland, a citizen of the Bay Mills Indian Community who has been nominated for a big job in the Biden administration.

As Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, he'll work with @SecDebHaaland<\/a> @Interior<\/a>. #BryanNewland<\/a> #DebHalaand<\/a>https:\/\/t.co\/wMa4MG32Qq<\/a><\/p>— indianz.com (@indianz) June 9, 2021<\/a><\/blockquote>