Secretary Haaland Celebrates Major Accomplishment for Species Conservation, Highlights President’s Investing in America Agenda in Arizona

Sep 5, 2024

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. — This week, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland traveled to Arizona to join the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in announcing the delisting of the Apache Trout from the Endangered Species list. This milestone is a significant achievement for species conservation. Additionally, she highlighted how President Biden’s Investing in America agenda is bolstering Indian Country through substantial investments in electrification and upgraded water sanitation systems.

In Phoenix on Tuesday, Secretary Haaland hosted a roundtable with Tribal representatives and leaders from financial, philanthropic, and nonprofit sectors to discuss innovative approaches to expand economic development and investment in Tribal communities nationwide. They discussed the implementation of Executive Order 1411, which President Biden announced at the 2023 White House Tribal Nations Summit to ensure equitable funding for Tribes. The Biden-Harris administration has initiated a new era for Tribal self-determination by investing $45 billion directly into strengthening Indian Country through President Biden’s American Rescue Plan, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and Inflation Reduction Act. This marks the third roundtable that Secretary Haaland has hosted across the nation.

On Wednesday, Secretary Haaland joined Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs, White Mountain Apache Tribe Chairman Kasey Velasquez, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Deputy Director Siva Sundaresan, and conservation partners at a celebration in Mesa to announce that the Apache Trout is being removed from the federal list of endangered and threatened wildlife. This achievement results from over five decades of collaborative recovery efforts supported by $5.1 million from President Biden’s Investing in America agenda. It represents a notable conservation victory under the Endangered Species Act as it is the first sportfish delisted due to recovery.

Following her visit with the Hopi Tribe on Thursday, Secretary Haaland and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan announced $300 million through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda for Tribal communities to combat climate pollution and accelerate clean energy transitions. As part of this initiative, the Hopi Tribe will receive more than $20 million to provide renewable electricity to nearly 900 homes.

Earlier this year, Secretary Haaland visited the Hopi reservation to announce a $4.2 million award through the Department’s Tribal Electrification program—an important step towards electrifying all homes in the United States with clean energy sources—and advancing efforts towards achieving a carbon pollution-free electricity sector by 2035. President Biden's Investing in America agenda aims to deploy transformational investments providing affordable high-speed internet; safer roads and bridges; modern wastewater and sanitation systems; clean drinking water; reliable electricity; and good-paying jobs across every Tribal community.

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