Tom Coburn: “as a representative of 14 tribes from the Second District of Oklahoma, I rise in support of the Hayworth amendment. I…”

“as a representative of 14 tribes from the Second District of Oklahoma, I rise in support of the Hayworth amendment. I would first like to thank Chairman Lazio and Congressman Hayworth for their tremendous effort and dedication in putting together the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996. I rise in support of this legislation in large part because the second largest Native American tribe in the United States, the Cherokee, reside in my district respectively. The 14 tribes which I represent in Congress strongly support this landmark Indian housing reform bill. The Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma has a tribal membership which currently numbers 170,000. Despite the large tribal size, the number of Indian housing units is ridiculously low. The Housing authority of the Cherokee Nation manages some 4,300 housing units under the Low Rent, Section 8 and Mutual Help Homeownership Opportunity Program administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Development. But the tribe's need for housing is much, much greater.”