U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, and U.S. Senator Brian Schatz, Vice Chairman, held a legislative hearing on July 30 to examine five bills related to Indian water rights settlements.
Murkowski said, “Indian water rights settlements resolve longstanding claims, provide certainty for Tribal and non-Tribal water users, and deliver critical infrastructure to communities that have waited far too long. This hearing was an important opportunity to examine these bills, ensure they are structured for successful implementation, and fulfill our trust responsibilities in a fiscally responsible manner.” She continued, “I thank our witnesses – including my colleagues Senators Kelly and Padilla – for sharing their expertise and perspectives with the Committee, and the Tribal leaders who have spent years negotiating these agreements and advocating for their communities.”
Schatz said during the hearing, “This is clearly a broken system. If a project can’t be completed, then the time value of money, inflation, and then you end up with lots of difficulty. It is not cheaper to only partially fund a project. I am hoping we can work together to get to fully fund water rights settlements.”
Witnesses at the hearing included Senators Kelly and Padilla as well as Tribal leaders who participated in negotiations over these agreements. Written testimony from witnesses along with an archived video of the hearing are available online. The Committee will continue accepting written testimony until July 12; submissions may be sent via email.
The Senate Committee on Indian Affairs operates as a standing committee in the U.S. Senate dedicated to Native American affairs—including oversight of legislation affecting education, health care, economic development—and supports self-determination through policy development across Alaska and other U.S. insular regions; it became permanent in 1984 after its original formation as a select committee in 1816, according to the official website.