OPA

Ben Reifel, a former South Dakota Congressman and an enrolled member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe, has accepted a "recess appointment" as Commissioner of Indian Affairs.

President Ford announced the appointment of Reifel December 7 following a recommendation by Secretary of the Interior Thomas S. Kleppe. Reifel succeeds Morris Thompson who left the post November 3 to return to Alaska as Vice President of the Alcan Pipeline Co.

Reifel will take the oath of office in a ceremony in Secretary Kleppe's office at 3:30 p.m. today.

Reifel, 70, worked 22 years with the Bureau of Indian Affairs before beginning five terms in Congress in 1960. He started with BIA as a Farm Agent on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. He later was Agency Superintendent at Pine Ridge and at the Fort Berthold Agency in North Dakota. He was, from 1955-60, Director of the Bureau's Aberdeen Area, which includes North and South Dakota and Nebraska.

A World War II Army veteran, Reifel is a graduate of South Dakota State College. He received a Master's Degree in Public Administration from Harvard in 1949. A John Hay Whitney Foundation Opportunity Fellowship enabled him to continue at Harvard for a Doctorate awarded in 1952. He has received honorary doctorates from both the South Dakota State University and the University of South Dakota.

Reifel served without compensation as an Assistant for Indian Affairs to the Director of the National Park Service from 1971 to 1974. He was Director of the American Indian National Bank when it was organized in 1973 and served as Chairman of the Board from March 1974 until he retired from that position in March, 1976.

He is president of Arrow, Inc., an Indian service organization, a member of the National Advisory Council of the Boy Scouts of America and on the Board of Trustees of the Freedom Foundation, Valley Forge, Pa. He is a member of the National Advisory Council for the Education of Disadvantaged Children and has been chairman of the National Capitol Planning Commission. He has been active on a number of other civic commissions and task forces.

Reifel was born on the Rosebud Reservation in 1906. His mother was a full-blood Indian and his father a German-American.

George V. Goodwin, Jr., a member of the White Earth Band of Chippewa Indians, has been appointed Minneapolis Area Director for the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Commissioner of Indian Affairs Morris Thompson announced today.

The area includes the states of Minnesota, Michigan, Iowa and Wisconsin.

A swearing-in ceremony for Goodwin will be held December 18 at 1 p.m. in the Leamington Hotel, Minneapolis.

Goodwin has been Executive Director of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe since February of 1973. In this position he was responsible for the planning, development and implementation of programs for economic and community development and for the administration of the tribal office.

Since 1965 Goodwin has worked in Indian community action programs in Minnesota and Washington, D.C. He is familiar with the Federal, State and local agencies working with Indian people in the area and has a personal knowledge of most of the tribal groups.

Goodwin, 33, has a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration from Bemidji State College, Minnesota, and has done some graduate work toward a law degree.

Goodwin has been an officer in the National Congress of American Indians and a board member for the American Indian Management Institute and the Native American Rights Fund.

The 23 tribal groups served by the Minneapolis Area Office were consulted prior to Goodwin's selection.

A plan for the use and distribution of $4.6 million awarded to the Winnebago Indians by the Indian Claims Commission is being published in the Federal Register, Commissioner of Indian Affairs Morris Thompson announced today.

The award represents payment for lands in Wisconsin and Illinois ceded by the Winnebago Tribe to the United States between 1829 and 1837.

The plan, approved by Congress and made effective October 30, 1975, divides the award between the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska and the Winnebago Tribe of Wisconsin on the basis of current tribal rolls.

A per capita distribution of the total amount allotted to the Winnebago Tribe of Wisconsin will be made to enrolled members of the tribe.

Thirty-five percent of the amount allotted to the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska will be used for programs benefitting the tribe. These will include a Tribal Burial Trust Fund, Tribal Credit Program and Tribal Land Acquisition Program. The remaining 65 percent will be distributed on a per capita basis to tribal members.

Persons eligible for enrollment in both tribes will be asked to make a choice for the purpose of updating the current rolls.

A plan for the use of $450,000 awarded by the Indian Claims Commission to the Creek Nation of Oklahoma was published in the Federal Register December 23, 1975, Commissioner of Indian Affairs Morris Thompson announced today.

The award represents payment for land in Oklahoma taken without payment by the United States between 1881 and 1924 and additional payment for land sold under the Creek Agreement of March 8, 1900.

According to the plan, approved by Congress and made effective November 16, 1975, the funds will be used to pay off the indebtedness on the Creek Nation Office Complex at Okmulgee, Oklahoma, with any remaining balance made available for additional development of facilities of the Creek Nation Capital Complex as recommended by the Principal Chief.

A plan for the use and distribution of $3.9 million awarded by the Indian Claims Commission to the Cherokee Nation is being published in the Federal Register, Commissioner of Indian Affairs Morris Thompson announced today.

The award is additional payment for land in Northern Oklahoma acquired by the United States from the Cherokees from 1872 to 1893.

According to the plan, approved by Congress and made effective November 5, 1975, $1 million will be distributed on a per capita basis to all living persons listed on any of the tribe's final rolls approved under the provisions of the Act of April 26, 1906.

The remainder of the award will be invested and the income used for tribal purposes as recommended by the Principal Chief or any Cherokee Nation governing body recognized by the Secretary of the Interior. These would include annual administrative expenses of the tribe and funds used for social and economic development purposes.

Applications for a per capita share of the $1 million must be filed with the Director of the Muskogee Area Office of the Bureau of Indian Affairs within one year of the effective date of this plan.

A plan for the use of approximately $500,000 awarded to the Navajo Tribe by the Indian Claims Commission was published in the Federal Register, December 23, Commissioner of Indian Affairs Morris Thompson announced today.

The award represents additional payment for certain reserves of helium-bearing gas.

According to the plan, approved by Congress and made effective November 17, 1975, the funds will be used for scholarship grants and other educational purposes as designated by the Navajo Tribal Council.

Secretary of the Interior Thomas s. Kleppe has signed a decision on coal leases and options to lease on the Crow Indian reservation which he said he, hoped would result in the discontinuance of a lawsuit filed by the Crow Tribe challenged the validity of the leases.

In his decision, Kleppe directed Shell Oil Company and American Metals Clim s (AMAX) to reduce their leaseholds to 2,560 acres each or clearly demonstrate a need for a waiver of the Department regulation concerning acreage limitations. In the case of Peabody and Gulf Oil, the Secretary decided that the Billings Area Director, Bureau of Indian Affairs, was correct in his decision the terms of their permits did not support a request for leases of more that 2,560 acres.

He also said any larger lease must be negotiated with the Crow Tribe, subject to the approval of the BIA. He also said no final department approval will be forthcoming on any leases until environmental impact statements have been completed in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969.

Kleppe said he hoped that, in light of his decision, "the Crow Tribe and the companies involved in this litigation will attempt at once to resolve their differences in a more cooperative forum in order that the development, in which all parties have expressed repeated interest, may proceed in an orderly manner."

The Secretary’s decision was consistent with the June 4, 1974, decision of then-Secretary Morton in acting on a petition submitted by the Northern Cheyenne Tribe and raising similar issues arising from similar circumstances.

The Department of the Interior today gave copies of final draft litigation reports on the land claims of the Passamaquoddy and Penobscot Indian tribes in the State of Maine to the Attorney General of that State and attorneys for the tribes. The draft report was delivered earlier in the week to the Justice I Department.

Interior Solicitor H. Gregory Austin said that these draft reports do not represent the final decision of the Department of Interior regarding the tribal claims. He said that because of the important nature of the controversy, his successor in the Carter administration should have the opportunity to review the research which has been done and make his own decision.

Austin said he agrees with the views stated in a Justice Department memorandum filed today in Maine Federal court that the serious consequences of the Indian claims to the non-Indian citizens of Maine may be alleviated only by means of legislation enacted by the United States Congress. In the meantime, the Interior and Justice Departments must act as trustees for the tribes in accordance with the order of a federal appeals court.

WASHINGTON – Today President Donald Trump proposed a $936.3 million Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 budget for the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Indian Education (BIE).

The BIE’s primary mission is to provide quality education opportunities from early childhood through life in accordance with a tribe’s need for cultural and economic well-being, in keeping with the wide diversity of American Indian and Alaska Native tribes as distinct cultural and governmental entities.

For the first time in its history, the BIE’s budget request is being presented in a separate budget justification. All BIE budget activities are shifted out of Indian Affairs’ Operation of Indian Programs account into a new Operation of Indian Education Programs account. In addition, the Education Construction budget activity is shifted to a new Education Construction account.

“The President’s Fiscal Year 2020 budget for the Bureau of Indian Education supports his goals for tribal self-determination by improving education services to Indian Country,” said Acting Interior Secretary David L. Bernhardt. “This budget recognizes the BIE being as important to tribes in the education of their children as the BIA is to supporting them in the management of their trust lands and resources.”

“I appreciate the President’s recognition through his FY 2020 proposal of the need to elevate the BIE budget to bureau-level status within the overall Indian Affairs budget, given its broad range of responsibilities for educating our students,” said Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Tara “Katuk” Sweeney. “Our children are sacred and we’re fighting for their futures. That is why having the BIE budget as a separate account will allow for greater transparency and accountability for our education responsibilities.”

The 2020 budget acknowledges the distinct and separate responsibilities and missions of Indian Affairs’ two bureaus – BIE and the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) – by elevating the BIE budget request to the bureau level and presenting it separately from the BIA’s. This proposal will advance BIE reform, provide autonomy and accountability, streamline services, maximize efficiency, and build capacity.

The request also supports the Administration’s commitment to helping promote tribal nation-building and self-determination, empower tribal communities, foster tribal self-sufficiency, create educational and economic opportunities, ensure safe Indian communities, and preserve and foster cultural heritage. The goals and vision reflected in the FY 2020 budget are informed by tribal leaders and the Tribal-Interior Budget Council (TIBC) who helped the Department identify the priorities in this request.

Budget Overview: The President’s FY 2020 budget for BIE is $936.3 million in current appropriations.

The Bureau manages the Federal school system comprised of 169 elementary and secondary schools and 14 dormitories, located on 64 reservations in 23 States, providing educational services to 46,692 individual students, with an Average Daily Membership of 40,641 students. It also operates two post-secondary schools and administers grants for 29 tribally controlled colleges and universities and two tribal technical colleges.

BIE funding supports classroom instruction, student transportation, native language instruction, cultural enrichment, gifted and talented programs, and school improvement and maintenance. In some schools, funding also supports residential costs, mostly in remotely located sites. And, because the BIE functionally serves as a State Education Agency (SEA), it administers and oversees U.S. Department of Education programs in BIE-funded schools, and receives additional Education Department funds to educate and provide services to students attending these schools.

The FY 2020 budget request prioritizes direct school operations, school improvement, early childhood programs, and completing the Bureau’s reform efforts to improve service and technical assistance for BIE-funded schools. Staffing is estimated at 2,448 full time equivalents in 2020.

Operation of Indian Education Programs: The FY 2020 budget for the Operation of Indian Education Programs account is $867.4 million. In 2020, priority is given to sub-activities providing for direct school operations and school improvement in line with the BIE’s Strategic Direction plan.

Foster Tribal Student Success – The FY 2020 budget proposes to accomplish this in two ways: 1) By serving as a capacity builder and service provider to support tribes in delivering culturally appropriate education with high academic standards to allow students across Indian Country to achieve success, and 2) By prioritizing funding for core mission programs and operations at BIE-funded elementary and secondary schools and tribally controlled colleges and universities. The request includes:

• $726.8 million for Elementary and Secondary programs,
• $98.0 million for Post-secondary programs, and
• $42.6 million for Education Management.

The FY 2020 budget request’s focus on direct school operations, which includes classroom instruction, student transportation, Native language development programs, cultural awareness and enrichment, school improvement and maintenance, and in some remotely located schools, residential costs, reflects its continuing investment in activities that promote educational self-determination for tribal communities. The request includes $81.5 million for Tribal Grant Support Costs for tribes that choose to operate BIE-funded schools themselves – a funding level that supports 100 percent of the estimated requirement.

BIE Reform Efforts – The FY 2020 budget proposes $32.3 million in education program management funds to improve service to BIE-funded schools and build in-house capacity and accountability.

Tribal Priority Allocations – The FY 2020 budget proposes Tribal Priority Allocation funding of $16.1 million.

Compliance with the Every Student Succeeds Act – Funding from the Department of Education would provide for continued implementation of the Act and help BIE establish high quality standards, accountability and capacity to invest in meaningful assessments.

Construction: The FY 2020 budget proposes to shift the Education Construction budget activity to a new Education Construction account and requests $68.9 million in annual funding for this activity.

Funding will continue to focus on facility improvement and repairs at existing BIE-funded schools. In addition, available funding from prior years will enable work to continue on completing construction on schools listed on the Bureau’s Replacement School Construction Priority List published in the Federal Register on March 24, 2004, and to begin design and construction phases for schools listed on a subsequent list published on April 29, 2016.

The Assistant Secretary–Indian Affairs advises the Secretary of the Interior on Indian Affairs policy issues, communicates policy to and oversee the programs of the BIA and the BIE, provides leadership in consultations with tribes, and serves as the DOI official for intra- and inter- departmental coordination and liaison within the Executive Branch on Indian matters.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs’ mission includes developing and protecting Indian trust lands and natural and energy resources; supporting social welfare, public safety and justice in tribal communities; and promoting tribal self-determination and self-governance.

The Bureau of Indian Education implements Federal Indian education programs and funds 183 elementary and secondary day and boarding schools (of which two-thirds are tribally operated) located on 64 reservations in 23 States and peripheral dormitories serving nearly 47,000 individual students. The BIE also operates two post-secondary schools and administers grants for 29 tribally controlled colleges and universities and two tribal technical colleges.

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WASHINGTON – Today President Donald Trump proposed a $1.9 billion Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 budget for Indian Affairs, which, for this request, includes only the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and the Office of the Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs. The Bureau of Indian Education’s (BIE) budget request is presented separately.

The primary mission of Indian Affairs is to honor the nation’s trust, treaty and programmatic responsibilities to American Indians and Alaska Natives, and to improve the quality of life in Indian Country. These objectives are achieved by recognizing the wide diversity of American Indian and Alaska Native tribes as distinct cultural and governmental entities, strengthening government-to-government relationships, and advancing their self-governance and self-determination.

“President Trump’s FY 2020 budget proposal for Indian Affairs supports his Administration’s commitment to Indian self-determination and tribal self-governance,” said Acting Interior Secretary David L. Bernhardt. “His budget prioritizes programs serving the broadest tribal service populations reflecting Indian Country’s priorities as expressed by tribal leaders who help guide our budget development process.”

“The President’s Indian Affairs budget for FY 2020 is focused on building tribal economic self-sufficiency through the improved management of tribal trust assets and addressing community needs,” said Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Tara “Katuk” Sweeney. “The budget proposal supports tribes through funding for law enforcement, improving trust lands and resources management, full funding for estimated contract support costs, fulfilling Indian settlement commitments, and fighting the opioid crisis that plagues Indian Country.”

Indian Affairs programs serve the nation’s 573 federally recognized tribes, a service population of approximately two million American Indians and Alaska Natives in tribal communities nationwide. The goals and vision reflected in the FY 2020 budget are informed by tribal leaders and the Tribal-Interior Budget Council who helped the Department identify the priorities in this request.

The FY 2020 budget also supports the Administration’s commitment to helping promote tribal nation-building and self-determination, empower tribal communities, foster tribal self-sufficiency, create educational and economic opportunities, ensure safe Indian communities, preserve and foster cultural heritage, and steward natural resources.

Budget Overview: The President’s FY 2020 budget for Indian Affairs is $1.9 billion in current appropriations.

Indian Affairs programs deliver community services, restore tribal homelands, fulfill federal commitments related to water and other resource rights, execute federal fiduciary trust responsibilities, support the stewardship of tribal energy and other natural resources, and create tribal economic opportunities.

The BIA provides direct services and funding for Public Law 93-638 contracts and Tribal Self-Governance compacts that allow tribal governments to administer Bureau-funded programs in their communities for a wide range of activities necessary for their development. These programs address tribal government, natural resources management, trust real estate services, law enforcement, economic development, and social service needs.

The FY 2020 Indian Affairs budget prioritizes programs serving the broadest American Indian and Alaska Native service population. Staffing is estimated at 2,989 current direct full time equivalents in 2020.

Operation of Indian Programs: The FY 2020 budget for the Operation of Indian Programs account is $1.5 billion. In 2020, priority is given to programs serving tribal communities nationwide rather than initiatives executed through pilot programs or programs that serve fewer tribes.

Promote Tribal Self-Determination – The Department continues to support tribal sovereignty. The BIA Tribal Government activity supports assistance to American Indian and Alaska Native tribes to strengthen and sustain their governmental systems and support their self-determination through the contracting and compacting processes.

The FY 2020 budget request provides $326 million for programs that support the Tribal Government activity. Within this amount is included:

• $178.9 million for compacts for self-governance tribes.
• $75.3 million to support Consolidated Tribal Government programs, which promote Indian self-determination, giving approximately 275 tribes the flexibility to combine and manage similar or compatible contracted programs and grants while also simplifying the contracting of them.
• $34.9 million for Road Maintenance to support pavement and gravel maintenance, remedial work on improved earth surface roads, bridge maintenance, and snow and ice control for the BIA’s inventory of nearly 29,000 miles of roads and more than 900 bridges throughout Indian Country.

Protect Indian Country – The BIA’s Office of Justice Services (OJS) funds law enforcement, corrections and court services to support safe tribal communities. These programs safeguard life and property, enforce laws, maintain justice and order, and provide funding to detain American Indian and Alaska Native offenders in safe, secure and humane environments.

The OJS also provides technical assistance to tribal governments in the amending of their legal codes for consistency with the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010 and the Violence Against Women Act of 2013. In addition, the BIA is implementing training for direct services law enforcement program staff in the areas of law enforcement, social services, victim services and courts, and is making this training available to tribes operating these programs under self-determination contracts and self-governance compacts.

The FY 2020 budget request of $409.2 million for the Public Safety and Justice activity includes:

• $376.7 million to support 191 law enforcement programs and 96 corrections programs operated by tribes and by the BIA as direct services;
• Includes $10 million to address the opioid crisis, an increase of $2.5 million over the 2019 CR
• $22.3 million for Tribal Justice Support programs; and
• $30.9 million for Tribal Courts.

Support Indian Communities – Sustaining families is critical to fostering thriving tribal communities. The BIA Office of Indian Services supports a community-based approach to Indian child welfare, family stability, and strengthening tribal communities as a whole.

The FY 2020 budget request of $143.0 million for BIA Human Services includes:

• $74.7 million for Welfare Assistance and
• $64.9 million for Social Services and Indian Child Welfare Act programs.

Manage Trust Resources and Lands – The BIA Trust-Natural Resources Management activity supports the stewardship of trust lands in Indian Country. The Bureau’s Natural Resources programs assist tribal governments in the management, development and protection of Indian trust land and natural resources on 56 million surface acres and 58 million acres of subsurface mineral estates. These programs enable tribal trust landowners to optimize the use and conservation of resources, providing benefits such as revenue, jobs, and the protection of cultural, spiritual and traditional resources. The BIA also helps support 300 tribes with managing 18.7 million acres of their forest lands.

The FY 2020 budget proposes $184.1 million for natural resource management programs, which include agriculture, forestry, water resources, and fish, wildlife and parks activities. The request amount includes:

• $54.8 million for BIA’s Forestry Program and projects to support the development, maintenance and enhancement of forest resources in accordance with sustained yield principles included in forest management plans;
• $25.1 million for BIA’s Agriculture and Range Program to continue support for multiple use and sustained yield management on over 46 million acres of Indian trust land dedicated to crop and livestock agriculture;
• $14.5 million for Fish, Wildlife and Parks; and
• $10.6 million for Water Resources management activities.

Keep Fiduciary Trust Responsibilities – The Trust-Real Estate Services activity manages Indian trust-related information to optimize the efficacy of Indian trust assets. The FY 2020 budget supports the processing of Indian trust-related documents such as land title and records as well as geospatial data to support land and water resources use, management of energy resources, and the protection and restoration of ecosystems and important lands.

The FY 2020 budget proposes $122.0 million for real estate services programs, including $12.7 million for probate services to determine ownership of Indian trust assets essential to economic development and accurate payments to Indian trust beneficiaries.

Support Economic Opportunities – The FY 2020 budget requests $44.4 million for the Community and Economic Development activity, and features investments in Indian energy activities. The request supports the Administration’s priority for domestic energy dominance and economic development, including management of energy resources on tribal lands.

The FY 2020 budget also continues the commitment to the Indian Energy Service Center, which coordinates Indian energy development activities across Interior’s bureaus. Income from energy and minerals production is the largest source of revenue generated from natural resources on Indian trust lands, with royalty income of $1 billion in 2018 payable to tribal governments and individual mineral rights owners.

Tribal Priority Allocations – The FY 2020 budget proposes Tribal Priority Allocation funding of $658.8 million.

Contract Support Costs: The President’s FY 2020 budget maintains the Administration’s support for tribal self-determination and strengthening tribal communities across Indian Country. Contract Support Costs enable tribal governments to assume the responsibility for operating federally funded programs by covering the costs associated with administering such programs. The request for the Contract Support Costs account is $285.9 million.

The request fully supports estimated needs at the FY 2020 request level. The budget continues to request funding for Contract Support Costs in a separate indefinite current account to ensure full funding for this priority.

Construction: The FY 2020 budget request proposes $58.5 million for BIA Construction activities. The request includes:

• $19.7 million for Safety of Dams program. The Safety of Dam program is currently responsible for 138 high or significant-hazard dams located on 42 reservations.
• $9.9 million for irrigation projects rehabilitation. The Irrigation Rehabilitation program addresses critical deferred maintenance and construction work on BIA-owned and –operated irrigation facilities, including 17 irrigation projects, with a focus on health and safety. Many of these facilities are nearing 100 years of age and are in need of major capital improvements.

Land and Water Claims Settlements: The FY 2020 budget request of $45.6 million for Land and Water Claims Settlements prioritizes funding to meet Indian settlement commitments. Settlements resolve tribal land and water rights claims and ensure tribes have access to land and water to meet their domestic, economic and cultural needs. Many of the infrastructure projects supported in these agreements improve the health and well-being of tribal members, preserve existing economies, and over the long term, bring the potential for jobs and economic development.

Fixed Costs: Fixed costs of $7.2 million are fully funded.

Bureau of Indian Education: For the first time in its history, the Bureau of Indian Education’s (BIE) budget request is being presented as a separate budget justification starting in FY 2020, when all BIE budget activities are shifted out of the OIP account into a new Operation of Indian Education Programs account. In addition, the Education Construction budget activity is shifted to a new Education Construction account. The total amount associated with BIE budget activities in FY 2020 is $936.3 million.

The Assistant Secretary–Indian Affairs advises the Secretary of the Interior on Indian Affairs policy issues, communicates policy to and oversee the programs of the BIA and the BIE, provides leadership in consultations with tribes, and serves as the DOI official for intra- and inter- departmental coordination and liaison within the Executive Branch on Indian matters.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs’ mission includes developing and protecting Indian trust lands and natural and energy resources; supporting social welfare, public safety and justice in tribal communities; and promoting tribal self-determination and self-governance.

The Bureau of Indian Education implements federal Indian education programs and funds 183 elementary and secondary day and boarding schools (of which two-thirds are tribally operated) located on 64 reservations in 23 states and peripheral dormitories serving nearly 47,000 individual students. The BIE also operates two post-secondary schools and administers grants for 29 tribally controlled colleges and universities and two tribal technical colleges.

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