On the recordSeptember 28, 2016
I will be brief. We are all aware of the latest controversy surrounding the failure of the Federal Government to consult with Native American tribes. Wisely, the Obama administration has postponed work on the Dakota Access pipeline while it meets to hear tribes' concerns about the inadequacy of the consulting process in that case and, more broadly, across the Federal Government. In the bill before us, Mr. Chairman, we are authorizing billions of dollars in Army Corps of Engineers projects and providing direction for work it is doing in almost every community throughout our great country. There is no question that the Corps' responsibility to undertake this work and the indigenous people's desire and ability to protect their cultural and natural resources will continue to clash, and we know that tribes continue to be frustrated by how Federal agencies, including the Army Corps, do their so-called consulting with them. I share this frustration. I would love to go much further with this amendment, but my amendment, Mr. Chairman, simply requires the Army Corps to work with tribes to review its current consultation policies. Let me just read a little bit, Mr. Chairman, because it sounds good on paper. ``All federally recognized Tribes are sovereign governments and will be treated with respect. . . . The trust responsibility will be honored and fulfilled. . . .…
