Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1722, the Grand Ronde Reservation Act Amendment of 2023. My district is the proud home of the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde community, who, like Oregon's other indigenous peoples, were the original stewards of our land and abundant natural resources, yet they have also faced tremendous injustices at the hands of the Federal Government. The Grand Ronde Reservation was established in 1857. In 1871, during a survey of the reservation, an 84-acre piece of land known as the Thompson Strip was mistakenly excluded. It took over 100 years for this error to be delivered, and rectifying it does require an act of Congress. At some point in the process of drafting legislation, language was erroneously inserted that took away Grand Ronde's right to bring any further land claims in the entire State of Oregon, not just around the Thompson Strip. {time} 1545 The Grand Ronde community is to this day the only Tribe in Oregon that is subject to this prohibition. H.R. 1722 will finally correct this decades-old error and restore Grand Ronde's ability to pursue land claims. This legislation enjoys strong bipartisan support in both the House and Senate. I thank my colleagues here today from the Natural Resources Committee, as well as the support of the entire Oregon delegation. Passage of H.R. 1722 would be enormously consequential for the Grand Ronde community.…”