"The purpose of today's hearing is to discuss how to resolve Carcieri v. Salazar, and how to address issues concerning Federal fee-to-trust policy."
"Trust land is critical for tribes to exercise their unique powers of self-government, making resolution of Carcieri critical."
"this is a relationship between the Federal Government and Indian tribes."
"the Endangered Species Act is in need of significant reforms, with the success rate of species' moving from endangered to fully recovered around 1-3 percent."
"H.R. 2662, the Restoring Accountability in the Indian Health Service Act, is intended to make reforms to the Indian Health Service to help a broken system."
"Adequate health care is one of the most important issues to American Indian and Alaska Natives; however, the IHS direct care system is deficient, inadequate, and is simply failing areas of the country..."
"This bill does not fix every problem in the IHS, however, it is a step in the right direction for Indian Country."
"I see a lot of parallels with the Veterans Administration and IHS here."
"the real frustration is with implementation of the projects."
"My interest, part of the interest in working on this Committee is working for more Indian sovereignty and more of their own ability to pursue their interests as they see fit."
"The purpose of today's hearing is to perform a status check on the Land Buy-Back Program for Tribal Nations."