Andrea Joy Campbell: “in 1996 the Congress enacted historic legislation involving the financing, construction, and maintenance of housing for…”

“in 1996 the Congress enacted historic legislation involving the financing, construction, and maintenance of housing for Indian people. With the enactment of the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (NAHASDA), Indian housing is no longer solely in the province of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). With NAHASDA tribes have the opportunity to develop and implement housing plans that meet their needs and values, and can do so in a way that is more efficient. I am hopeful that the success achieved by tribes participating in the Indian Self-Determination and Education Act and the Self-Governance Act programs can be duplicated in the housing arena with the implementation of NAHASDA. The Act requires that funds for Indian housing be provided to Indian tribes in block grants with monitoring and oversight appropriately provided by HUD. By empowering the tribes themselves and decreasing tribal reliance on the federal bureaucracy, this Act is consistent with principles of tribal self-determination and self-sufficiency that have been the hallmark of federal Indian policy for nearly thirty years. By the terms of the Act, NAHASDA becomes effective October 1, 1997. This will mean sweeping changes in the way housing is built and financed in Indian country. It is my hope that we can build on the NAHASDA model and encourage related initiatives such as banking, business development, and infrastructure construction.”