TITLE: Inviting the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights to Visit Tribal Nations While Updating A Quiet Crisis: Federal Funding and Unmet Needs in Indian Country
WHEREAS, we, the members of the National Congress of American Indians of the United States, invoking the divine blessing of the Creator upon our efforts and purposes, in order to preserve for ourselves and our descendants the inherent sovereign rights of our Indian nations, rights secured under Indian treaties and agreements with the United States, and all other rights and benefits to which we are entitled under the laws and Constitution of the United States, to enlighten the public toward a better understanding of the Indian people, to preserve Indian cultural values, and otherwise promote the health, safety and welfare of the Indian people, do hereby establish and submit the following resolution; and
WHEREAS, the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) was established in 1944 and is the oldest and largest national organization of American Indian and Alaska Native tribal governments; and
WHEREAS, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (Commission) is in the process of updating its 2003 report “A Quiet Crisis: Federal Funding and Unmet Needs in Indian Country” which found evidence of a chronic and persistent underfunding of programs that provide vital services to tribal communities; and
WHEREAS, the Quiet Crisis study found that federal funding directed to Native Americans for several programs was insufficient to address basic and very urgent needs in a variety of areas including health care, education, public safety, housing, and rural development; and
WHEREAS, the capacity of the United States to fulfill trust responsibilities, fiduciary obligations, and treaty obligations is affected by the level of federal funding for tribal communities; and
WHEREAS, inadequacies in federal funding will affect the health and safety of tribal communities and harm the productivity of the natural resources that provide foods, medicines, income and employment for generations to come; and
WHEREAS, the deliberations of the Commission must be informed by an understanding of the consequences of the failure to provide adequate funding for tribal communities.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the National Congress of American Indians does hereby urge that the Commission visit Indian Country to obtain first-hand information on how unmet needs are affecting tribal communities and resources; and
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that this resolution shall be the policy of NCAI until it is withdrawn or modified by subsequent resolution.
CERTIFICATION
The foregoing resolution was adopted by the General Assembly at the 2016 Midyear Session of the National Congress of American Indians, held at the Spokane Convention Center, June 27 to June 30, 2016, with a quorum present.