Deb Haaland: “As I stated before, this legislation is a result of over a decade of bipartisan, bicameral negotiations. Since…”

“As I stated before, this legislation is a result of over a decade of bipartisan, bicameral negotiations. Since self-governance was first enacted in 1994, there have been no assumptions by Tribes of Bureau of Reclamation projects--none. Under the 1994 law, the conditions, requirements, and limitations mitigating against any such Tribal assumption of a Bureau of Reclamation project have resulted in no such assumptions. S. 209 does not change the 1994 authority in this regard. This is why the gentlewoman's concerns are completely unfounded and why we defeated an amendment on this in committee in the first place. More so, S. 209 already contains a lengthy disclaimer specifically stating that it does not affect, in any way, the ability of Tribes to take over programs or projects of Interior agencies other than the BIA. {time} 1215 Unless I'm not privy to yet another department reorganization, the Bureau of Reclamation is not part of the BIA. This bipartisan bill is critical to the furtherance of self- governance and improvements in Tribal communities. I strongly urge my colleagues to do the right thing and support this legislation. Madam Speaker, versions of this bipartisan bill have lain before this House and the Senate for nearly 2 decades, passing each body several times. It is time to finally push this legislation across the finish line so that Tribes can finally move to effectively-managed programs for their people.…”