During past government shutdowns, thousands of federal employees, many of whom are tribal citizens, were furloughed or working without pay for weeks. The results crippled the finances of families throughout Indian Country. The uncertainty of a shutdown also compounds the challenges Tribes face recruiting and retaining professionals to work on Indian lands. No one is willing to consider moving to or investing on Indian lands knowing that their very source of employment could be placed in jeopardy on what is growing to be an annual occurrence. A shutdown is not inevitable. The Senate Appropriations Committee passed all twelve federal funding bills out of Committee – all by wide bipartisan margins. However, the House Appropriations Committee passed 10 of the 12 funding bills all along party-line votes with no bipartisan support. Indian Country applauds the work of the House Interior Appropriations Subcommittee for protecting Tribal Government programs and services in its version of the FY’24 bill that sets funding levels for critical programs at the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Indian Health Service, and Indian Education. However, the House-passed funding bills overall cut spending below the caps agreed to in the June 2023 debt ceiling agreement and include divisive culture war riders that will be rejected in the Senate. Attached is a draft letter to moderates in the U.S. House of Representatives. We urge your Tribe to consider contacting these offices, urging them to press House Leadership to compromise to avoid a government shutdown. Please contact Danielle Her Many Horses at dhermanyhorses@indiangaming.org with any questions or concerns with this Alert.
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