119-sres156

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 156 Agreed to Senate

    (ATS) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
S. RES. 156

Commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Indian Self-Determination and 
 Education Assistance Act.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

 April 5 (legislative day, April 4), 2025

 Ms. Murkowski (for herself, Mr. Schatz, Mr. Mullin, Mr. Lujan, Mr. 
Rounds, Ms. Duckworth, Mr. Curtis, Ms. Smith, Mr. Hoeven, Mr. Heinrich, 
 Mr. Sullivan, Ms. Cortez Masto, Mr. Padilla, and Ms. Klobuchar) 
 submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to

_______________________________________________________________________

 RESOLUTION

Commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Indian Self-Determination and 
 Education Assistance Act.

Whereas the 1970s ushered in a new era of Federal Indian policy, one of Tribal 
 sovereignty and self-determination that enhanced government-to-
 government relations between the United States and Indian Tribes through 
 administering Federal programs, services, and functions to Tribal 
 citizens;
Whereas, on July 8, 1970, in his ``Special Message to Congress on Indian 
 Affairs'', President Richard M. Nixon--

    (1) recognized that Indian Tribes constitute a distinct and valuable 
segment of the Federalist system in the United States and acknowledged that 
Tribal governments are--

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        (A) best able to meet the needs of their citizens; and

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        (B) best situated to determine their political and economic 
futures;

    (2) recognized that past Federal policies of legal and political 
termination of the government-to-government relationship between the United 
States and Indian Tribes, along with paternalistic and oppressive oversight 
and control of Tribal affairs, devastated the political, economic, and 
social aspects of life in Tribal communities;

    (3) rejected the misguided policies of termination and paternalism as 
``morally and legally unacceptable''; and

    (4) endorsed ``the integrity and right to continued existence of all 
Tribal governments'', laying the foundation for new, enlightened Federal 
Indian policy grounded in economic self-reliance and political self-
determination;

Whereas, 5 years after President Nixon's ``Special Message to Congress on Indian 
 Affairs'', Congress unanimously passed the Indian Self-Determination and 
 Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.) (referred to in this 
 preamble as ``ISDEAA'' or the ``Act'') on December 19, 1974, and 
 President Gerald R. Ford, Jr., signed the Act into law on January 4, 
 1975;
Whereas the Act --

    (1) recognizes the inherent authority of Indian Tribes to exercise 
their sovereignty and right to self-determination; and

    (2) promotes Tribal sovereignty by authorizing Indian Tribes to 
administer Federal programs, functions, and services for their benefit, 
such as health care, education, public safety, and natural resources 
development, which promotes local decision making, improves service 
delivery, and fosters innovative solutions for community development;

Whereas the Act is one of the most successful Federal Indian policies in the 
 history of the United States, having--

    (1) profoundly reshaped the relationship between the Federal Government 
and Indian Tribes;

    (2) grounded the ongoing efforts of the Federal Government to fulfill 
its trust and treaty obligations to Indian Tribes by authorizing Indian 
Tribes to enter into contracts and compacts with the United States to 
administer Federal programs, functions, and services for their own 
communities;

    (3) empowered Indian Tribes to achieve remarkable progress in self-
determination, self-governance, and community development through the 
authorities described in paragraph

    (2) ;

    (4) enabled Indian Tribes--

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        (A) to reclaim their role as decision makers for their own people;

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        (B) to improve the quality of life for their communities; and

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            (C) to improve service delivery through culturally-appropriate 
solutions tailored to local needs;

    (5) helped Indian Tribes build capacity to manage complex Federal 
programs, strengthen internal governance and administrative structures, and 
advocate for policy changes to improve allocation of resources and 
services;

    (6) improved the efficiency, effectiveness, and reach of essential 
government and community services, including health care, public safety, 
education, elder and child care, and natural resource management, which 
consistently outperform programs directly managed by the Federal 
Government; and

    (7) increased innovation, job creation, and long-term planning in 
Tribal communities, resulting in improved community welfare;

Whereas, since the 1975 enactment of ISDEAA, Congress has authorized the 
 expansion of Tribal self-determination and self-governance authorities 
 across the Federal Government, including by amending the Act in multiple 
 Congresses, including in--

    (1) the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act 
Amendments of 1988 (Public Law 100-472; 102 Stat. 2285) to increase Tribal 
participation in the management of Federal Indian programs and ensure long-
term financial stability for Tribally-managed programs;

    (2) the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act 
Amendments of 1990 (Public Law 101-644; 104 Stat. 4665) to support Tribal 
self-determination efforts;

    (3) the Indian Health Amendments of 1992 (Public Law 102-573; 106 Stat. 
4526) to authorize a Tribal Self-Governance Demonstration Project within 
the Indian Health Service for Indian Tribes to enter into self-governance 
compacts to administer their own health care programs;

    (4) the Indian Self-Determination Act Amendments of 1994 (Public Law 
103-413; 108 Stat. 4250) to establish a permanent Tribal self-governance 
program within the Department of the Interior, allowing Indian Tribes 
greater autonomy in managing and administering Federal programs at the 
Department of the Interior;

    (5) the Tribal Self-Governance Amendments of 2000 (Public Law 106-260; 
114 Stat. 711) to authorize title V of ISDEAA and the Tribal Self-
Governance Program within the Indian Health Service, including for health 
care facility construction activities; and

    (6) the PROGRESS for Indian Tribes Act (Public Law 116-180; 134 Stat. 
857) to streamline and strengthen Tribal self-governance by reforming the 
approval process of the Department of the Interior, creating consistent 
interagency statutory frameworks for ISDEAA agreements and clarifying 
Federal and Tribal roles in certain self-governance compacts;

Whereas multiple laws have expanded self-determination and self-governance by 
 authorizing ISDEAA provisions and parallel authorities in other Federal 
 agencies and programs, including--

    (1) part B of title XI of the Education Amendments of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 
2000 et seq.) to authorize Indian Tribes to contract with the Bureau of 
Indian Affairs to provide educational services for preschool through grade 
12;

    (2) the Tribally Controlled Schools Act of 1988 (25 U.S.C. 2501 et 
seq.) to provide Indian Tribes additional flexibility in managing and 
leading educational programs for their children, including educational 
facilities improvement and construction projects;

    (3) the Indian Employment, Training and Related Services Act of 1992 
(25 U.S.C. 3401 et seq.) to authorize Indian Tribes to consolidate 
federally-funded employment, training, and related service programs;

    (4) the Indian Employment, Training, and Related Services Demonstration 
Act Amendments of 2000 (Public Law 106-568; 114 Stat. 2930) to expand 
eligible uses of consolidated Federal funding for employment-related 
services provided by Indian Tribes;

    (5) the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (Public Law 107-110; 115 Stat. 
1425) to clarify inherent Federal functions and eligible costs relating to 
Indian education that are eligible for contracts under part B of title XI 
of the Education Amendments of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 2000 et seq.) and to clarify 
applicable ISDEAA provisions to certain Indian education lease payments;

    (6) the FAST Act (Public Law 114-94; 129 Stat. 1312) to authorize 
contracting and compacting funding agreements with Indian Tribes to 
administer Department of Transportation funding for Tribal transportation 
programs and other Federal transportation services that are otherwise 
available to Indian Tribes;

    (7) the Indian Employment, Training and Related Services Consolidation 
Act of 2017 (Public Law 115-93; 131 Stat. 2026) to revise the approval 
processes for, and types of programs that may be integrated into, 
federally-funded employment, training, and related service programs for 
Indian Tribes; and

    (8) the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (Public Law 115-334; 1323 
Stat. 4490) to authorize demonstration projects at the Food and Nutrition 
Service and Forest Service for Tribal self-determination contracts for--

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        (A) the food distribution program on Indian reservations carried 
out under 

section 4

    (b) of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 
2013

    (b) ); and

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        (B) forestry management activities under the Tribal Forest 
Protection Act of 2004 (25 U.S.C. 3115a et seq.);

Whereas the laws described in the 2 preceding whereas clauses reflect the 
 ongoing commitment of Congress to enhance Tribal sovereignty and 
 continually perfect self-determination and self-governance through 
 amendments to ISDEAA and related statutes;
Whereas the majority of federally recognized Indian Tribes use ISDEAA self-
 determination and self-governance authorities to deliver essential 
 government and community services;
Whereas, as of March 2024, the Department of the Interior reported that 526 of 
 the 574 federally recognized Indian Tribes, or 92 percent, have entered 
 into self-determination contracts and 295 federally recognized Indian 
 Tribes have entered into self-governance compacts under ISDEAA;
Whereas, as of March 2025, the Bureau of Indian Education reported that 129 of 
 the 187 Bureau of Indian Education-funded elementary and secondary 
 schools, or 69 percent, are Tribally controlled schools under the 
 Tribally Controlled Schools Act of 1988 (25 U.S.C. 2501 et seq.);
Whereas, as of July 2024, the Department of Health and Human Services reported 
 that the Indian Health Service has entered into 121 self-governance 
 compacts and 141 funding agreements under ISDEAA across all 12 Indian 
 Health Service Areas;
Whereas other Federal agencies, including the Department of Agriculture and the 
 Department of Transportation, have reported successful implementation of 
 parallel authorities to advance Tribal self-determination and self-
 governance in managing Federal programs;
Whereas Indian Tribes use the authorities under ISDEAA to serve as providers for 
 health, housing, education, public safety, infrastructure, economic 
 development, natural resource management, nutrition, child and elder 
 care, and other social services; and
Whereas Indian Tribes have prospered from administering Federal programs for 
 their own benefit through ISDEAA: Now, therefore, be it
 Resolved, That the Senate--

    (1) recognizes January 4, 2025, as the 50th anniversary of 
 the enactment of the Indian Self-Determination and Education 
 Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.) (referred to in this 
 resolution as ``ISDEAA'');

    (2) commemorates the extensive achievements made by Indian 
 Tribes through implementation of ISDEAA and parallel 
 authorities in Federal law;

    (3) reaffirms that ISDEAA--
        (A) enhances the well-being of Tribal communities 
 through self-determination and self-governance;
        (B) promotes the stability and prosperity of Indian 
 Tribes by empowering Indian Tribes to manage and 
 improve Federal programs; and
            (C) respects the sovereign authority of Indian 
 Tribes to determine and implement solutions for their 
 own people;

    (4) calls on the Federal Government to continue working 
 with Indian Tribes to fully uphold and implement ISDEAA and 
 parallel authorities in Federal law;

    (5) reaffirms the fiduciary obligation of the United States 
 to respond to the strong expression of Native people for self-
 determination and self-governance and to ensure that Federal 
 services are responsive to their unique needs;

    (6) recommits to maintaining the continuing trust 
 relationship of the Federal Government with, and the 
 responsibility of the Federal Government to, Native people 
 through policies that promote self-determination and self-
 governance;

    (7) declares its commitment to support and assist Indian 
 Tribes in developing strong and stable governments capable of 
 administering Federal programs in service of their respective 
 communities; and

    (8) celebrates the successes of Indian Tribes in fulfilling 
 the promise of self-determination and self-governance set forth 
 in ISDEAA during the 50-year period preceding the date of 
 adoption of this resolution, with optimism for the next 50 
 years and beyond.
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