Elton Gallegly: “I rise in support of the Rahall Amendment and urge its adoption by the House. Included in the Interior bill are several…”

“I rise in support of the Rahall Amendment and urge its adoption by the House. Included in the Interior bill are several provisions relating to trust reform efforts and the Cobell v. Norton litigation. These legislative provisions will limit an historical accounting of trust funds from the period of 1985 to 2000, which will assume all records before 1985 are correct. There is also language included in the bill that would not provide an accounting for funds held in an account closed as of December 31, 2000. I believe these provisions undermine existing Federal law requiring a full accounting of all trust funds and a Federal court decision requiring an accounting of all funds regardless of the date deposited. As a former Chairman of the Native American and Insular Affairs Committee of the House Resources Committee, I have heard countless times the concerns of Native Americans who say they just want an historical accounting done by the government entrusted with managing their assets. They have waited long enough. I would strongly encourage the House to vote for the Rahall Amendment.”