On September 21, 2020, the House passed H.R. 8319, a Continuing Resolution (CR) to keep federal agencies funded from October 1, 2020 to December 11, 2020. A CR is needed because, athough the House passed all of its appropriation bills for Fiscal Year 2021, the Senate has yet to vote on any appropriation bills needed to fund federal agencies after this fiscal year, which ends September 30, 2020. The CR also authorizes the Special Diabetes Program for Indians through December 11 and provides a one-year extension for the Federal Highway Bill, which authorizes most tribal transportation programs. The Senate is expected to vote on H.R. 8319 next week.

A deluge of progress occurred this Monday, September 21, 2020 in the U.S. House of Representatives where four bills to assist Indian Country were approved to become law: Savanna’s Act, S.227/H.R.2733; Not Invisible Act, S.982/H.R.2438; the Native American Business Incubators Program Act, S. 294; and the Progress for Indian Tribes Act, S. 209. All four bills now head to the White House for President Trump’s signature.

Savanna’s Act authorizes new guidelines for responding to cases of missing and murdered indigenous women and creates new incentives for its implementation. It is named in honor of Savanna LaFontaine-Greywind, a member of the Spirit Lake Tribe who vanished from her apartment in Fargo, North Dakota while eight months pregnant. Savanna was found eight days later wrapped in plastic in the Red River, her baby cut from her womb.

Native American women face a murder rate ten times higher than the national average, with eighty-four percent experiencing some form of violence in their lifetime.

“We have a long road ahead to help our people heal,” Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said, “...but with the measures included in Savanna’s Act we are hopeful that more resources and data will help bring more missing persons home to their loved ones.”

It is unknown how many Native women go missing each year due to the lack of adequate data systems and coordination within law enforcement agencies. In 2018, the Urban Indian Health Institute completed a landmark survey, reporting 5,712 missing Alaska Native and American Indian women and girls, only 116 of whom were registered in the U.S. Department of Justice database.

Congresswoman Deb Haaland (D-NM), a citizen of the Pueblo of Laguna, co-sponsored Savanna’s Act to help empower Tribal governments with the resources and information they need to respond to cases of missing or murdered American Indians, and  to increase relevant data collection. Savanna’s Act also increases coordination and communication among federal, state, and tribal officials.

The Speaker of the Navajo Nation Council, Seth Damon applauded this historic moment. “The passage of Savanna’s Act is a major milestone in the pursuit of justice for our Native American relatives that are missing or were victims of murder,” he said. “Too often, cases involving Indigenous peoples don’t receive the same level of attention from law enforcement agencies. These systemic issues require an extensive amount of evaluation and consultation, and we, as Navajo people, are ready to engage in this process of creating a more accountable and responsive law enforcement system.”

Navajo Nation Council Delegate Amber Kanazbah Crotty, a nationally recognized champion of this issue said, “The job of addressing missing and murdered Diné relatives is never-ending and is something that requires our collective efforts to reverse the violence inflicted on and within Native American tribal communities.”

The Not Invisible Act creates a U.S. Department of the Interior and U.S. Department of Justice joint commission on reducing violent crime against Indians. Both bills were co-sponsored by Senator Tom Udall (D-NM) and passed by the Senate this Spring. “The missing and murdered Indigenous women crisis is appalling and demands the attention of Congress and the entire nation,” Senator Udall said. “Savanna’s Act and the Not Invisible Act are important first steps for improving the federal MMIW response and making Native communities stronger and safer.”

Senator Udall was also the original sponsor of S.294, the Native American Business Incubators Program Act, which the Senate passed last summer; and the House passed this Monday.  The bill authorizes a new program at the Department of the Interior to boost entrepreneurship and economic development in Indian Country by helping entrepreneurs overcome the unique and myriad challenges of establishing businesses on tribal land. 

S. 209, the Progress for Indian Tribes Act, has also been a top legislative priority for many tribes for nearly two decades. S. 209 will strengthen Title IV of the Indian Self-Determination Education and Assistance Act, conforms Title IV to Title V, and advance the policy of tribal self-governance. Rep. Haaland led the debate of S.209 to passage on the House floor.

On September 23, 2020 the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs held a hearing to address broadband and health care access in Indian Country, focusing on three bills: Bridging the Tribal Digital Divide Act, S. 3126; Native Behavioral Health Access Improvement Act, S. 3126; and Special Diabetes Program for Indians (SDPI) reauthorization bill, S. 3937. 

The Bridging the Tribal Digital Divide Act, introduced by Ranking Member Tom Udall (D-NM), along with Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Martin Heinrich (D-NM), would accelerate the deployment of broadband services to Native communities by coordinating and improving the effectiveness of federal resources.

“My bill (S.3264) would improve the deployment of broadband in Indian Country by shoring up broadband programs at the FCC and the USDA,” said Udall.  “It also establishes a pilot program for tribes to permit rights-of-way for broadband deployment on tribal lands and a Tribal Advisory Committee so that Congress can tailor legislation to truly meet Indian Country’s broadband needs.”

Earlier this year the Navajo Nation Office of President and Vice President presented a white paper to Congress and the White House that proposed revisions to federal laws, regulations and policies to streamline rights-of-way permitting for broadband deployment and other urgently needed infrastructure initiatives.

The Native Behavioral Health Access Improvement Act, introduced by U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) and Udall, would create a behavioral health program to help tribes develop solutions for prevention, treatment, and recovery. The bill would create the Special Behavioral Health Program for Indians—the SBHPI—which would be modeled after the Special Diabetes Program for Indians (SDPI).

“The severe lack of access to comprehensive culturally competent behavioral and mental health services in Native communities is one of the many disparities that the current COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare. And this bill – which builds on the successful SDPI model – is an important tool we should work to provide Tribes as quickly as possible,” said Udall.

Hopi Nation Chairman Timothy Nuvangyaoma testified in support of both bills. Nuvangyamo stated, “Modeled after SDPI, (the Native Behavioral Health Access Improvement Act) would provide tribes with critical resources to battle mental and behavioral health challenges in our communities. Further, (the Bridging the Tribal Digital Divide Act) is needed now more than ever as we are relying heavily on broadband service during the ongoing pandemic.”

Authorization for SDPI, which has been flat funded at $150 million for the past 14 years, will soon expire. Senator McSally’s bill, S. 3937, would reauthorize SDPI for five years at $200 million per year. This Spring Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez and Vice President Myron Lizer sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) urging their help to reauthorize  SDPI. “Since September 2019, Congress has renewed SDPI four different times in short increments of several weeks, or several months. Right now, SDPI is set to expire on November 30, 2020. That is completely unacceptable.”

During Wednesday’s hearing, Senator McSally said, “The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the critical need to address underlying health conditions such as diabetes. The changes and updates included in my bill will provide long-term stability to a successful program and allow SDPI to better meet today’s tribal needs in a culturally competent manner.”

On September 25, 2020 Vice President Lizer spoke  with members of Congress and the FCC about the Navajo Nation’s top priorities that are currently being decided in Washington DC. Number one on that list is legislation to authorize an extension of the Coronavirus Relief Fund deadline from December 30, 2020 to December 30, 2022. Vice President Lizer also advocated for a House vote this Fall on the Navajo Utah Water Rights Settlement Act, S.886, which the Senate passed by unanimous consent this summer, as well as long term reauthorization of the Special Diabetes Program for Indians, and measures that are immediately needed to improve broadband access on the Navajo Nation. Vice President Lizer’s trip was funded by a sectarian non-profit organization to support his faith in motion at a national prayer conference occurring on September 26, 2020 in Washington DC.

On September 25, 2020 the Executive Director of the Navajo Department of Health, Dr. Jill Jim shared the experiences of the Navajo Nation during COVID-19 with the World Health Organization (WHO).

Dr. Jim explained to  the international audience of esteemed health experts about the Navajo Nation’s existing progress, opportunities, and early challenges implementing a coordinated and optimal response to the pandemic within a complex health care system on tribal land that lacks much of the infrastructure needed to adequately support public health.

“The Navajo Nation remains a vulnerable population to COVID-19 due to high underlying rates of chronic disease, poverty, lack of electricity, water and sanitation infrastructure, and multi-generational housing. This is evidenced by a COVID-19 case fatality rate nearly double that of the general US population, ”Jim offered.

Despite those challenges and delayed federal response, “Strong leadership at the highest level, along with close partnerships and coordination within the Navajo Nation, executive orders, and public health orders; accompanied by clear public health messaging, have led to a decline in cases and increase in negative test results.”

Dr. Jim shared Dr. Anthony Fauci’s high praise for Navajo’s COVID-19 response, which he expressed this Monday during the Virtual Navajo Town Hall. “Navajo could be a model,” Dr. Fauci said. “The reason you should be proud of what you've accomplished is that you have proven that when you do these public health orders you can turn around a serious surge of infection.”