Bureau Of Indian Affairs' 1983 Appropriation Request Is $1.05 Billion

The proposed budget for the Bureau of Indian Affairs for fiscal year 1983 requests appropriations of $1.05 billion for the operation of Indian programs and construction projects.

The appropriation request for the operation of Indian programs exceeds 1982 funding by $40 million.

Programs receiving increases include school operations, plus $3.7 million; social services, plus $8.3 million; self-determination services, $7.6 million; business enterprise development, $7.9 million, and natural resources development, $9. 5 million.

There is an increase of $12.7 million for the construction of buildings and utilities and a decrease of $3.6 million for road construction.

The budget also calls for a general overhead cost reduction of $16 million. Interior Assistant Secretary Ken Smith said that consolidating area offices would be one of the administrative actions taken to cut overhead costs. Smith said that the development of communications and the widespread use of computers "greatly reduced the need for regional offices geographically close to the groups they serve."

The 1983 budget plan also calls for the closing of elementary boarding schools at Concho, Oklahoma and Wahpeton, North Dakota and the post-secondary vocational training school, Southwest Indian Polytechnic Institute at Albuquerque, New Mexico. The Bureau will also be transferring village day schools in Alaska to the state system.

Funds requested for new initiatives include $5 million to help small tribes acquire and maintain basic management capabilities and $10 million for tribes starting economic development ventures. The funds would assist the tribes with "seed money" aimed at encouraging private sector investment and sound business principles in the tribal programs. Indian Education: $256,7 million is requested for BIA Indian education programs.

This consists of $179.8 million for school operations; $26 million for Johnson-O'Malley programs; $30.i _million for college student assistance grants; $4 million for adult education; $10.4 million for tribally controlled community colleges and $6.4 million for the operation of the Haskell Indian Junior College at Lawrence, Kansas and the institute of American Indian Arts at Santa Fe, New Mexico.

The budget request also includes $51.1 million for the proposed transfer of the Title IV program from the Department of Education. Funds in the amount of $838,000 were also requested to supervise the spend out of prior year obligated balances for a Department of Education Indian school construction program.

Indian Services: The $98.7 million requested for social services includes $7.7 million for carrying out provisions of the Indian Child Welfare Act. The $56.9 million for self-determination services provides $30.3 million to cover tribal overhead costs associated with P: L. 93-638 contracts and $19.4 million for grants to tribal governments. Construction: The $60.1 million requested for construction of buildings and utilities include $15 million for first phase construction of Hopi High School in Arizona and $45.1 million for facilities improvements and repairs. The $45.9 million for irrigation construction includes $29.8 million for the legislatively mandated Ak Chin, Arizona project (to be made available upon enactment of authorizing legislation.) There is also $1 million for a Fallon, Nevada project and $2.6 million for the Grass Rope Project in South Dakota. A line item breakdown of the budget request, with the 1982 funding figures follows:

*1982 figures include actual appropriations and pending supplemental request.

**Programs included in the Department of Education in FY 1982, including rescission proposed in FY 1982.

***Includes Ak Chin Irrigation Project proposed for later transmittal.