The Ad Hoc Group on Indian Water Rights held a briefing on Tuesday, April 24 in the Senate Indian Affairs Committee Room. Four senators attended and spoke at the briefing in support of providing adequate funding for Indian land and water right settlements; namely, Senators Pete Domenici (R-NM), Chairman, Senate Budget Committee; Jon Kyl (R-AZ), Vice Chairman, Senate Water and Power Subcommittee; Ben Nighthorse Campbell (R-CO), Chair, Senate Indian Affairs Committee; and Daniel Inouye (D-HI), Ranking Member, Senate Indian Affairs Committee. Over 70 people consisting of Congressional staff and federal agency representatives attended.

Mike Brophy, Chairman of the Western States Water Council (WSWC), and John Echohawk, Executive Director of the Native American Rights Fund, conducted the briefing. Susan Cottingham, Executive Director of Montana’s Reserved Rights Compact Commission, represented Governor Martz and the Western Governors’ Association. The Western Regional Council, the other member of the Ad Hoc Group, was represented by Kit Kimball, Executive Director. After introductions, the briefing began with an historical perspective on settlements by Mike Jackson, former long time congressional staff member to the Senate Indian Affairs Committee. Mr. Jackson was followed by Mike Connor of the Department of Interior, who catalogued current settlement negotiation and implementation efforts, with a focus on those settlements that may come before the 107th Congress. Attendees then heard from all four senators. Senator Domenici announced his intention to introduce legislation to facilitate funding for settlements in such a way as to avoid detriment to other Department of Interior programs. Both Senator Campbell and Senator Inouye expressed their intention to cosponsor such legislation. Senator Kyl pledged his efforts to promote funding for settlements.

At the conclusion of the Senators’ presentations, perspectives were shared by various Congressional committee staff and federal agency representatives. David Burnhardt, Counselor to Secretary Norton of the Department of Interior, expressed Interior’s intent to carry on the work to support negotiated settlements, indicating that he contemplated the same level of effort as the previous Administration had undertaken in recent years under the leadership of David Hayes, then Deputy Secretary of Interior. Margaret Stewart, of the Senate Budget Committee, shared her expectations as to the form of the legislation to be introduced by Senator Domenici. However, draft language has not been finalized. Norm Starler of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), while making it clear that OMB had no position as yet with regard to the concept being advanced by Senator Domenici, explained an OMB institutional history of opposing special funding treatment for a specific program, given the fact that every program’s constituents believe their program to be vital and deserving of special consideration. However, he also made clear that OMB understood the special trust relationship of the federal government relative to Indian tribes.

The Ad Hoc Group consists of the Western Regional Council, an association of large business interests in the West, the Western Governors’ Association, the Native American Rights Fund, a tribal advocacy organization located in Boulder, Colorado, and the WSWC. The State of New York, Office of Federal Affairs, has also agreed to join as a member of the group in support of settlements, given the number and extent of land claims being pursued by Native Americans in the state of New York.

Several people in attendance were staff to members of the House. They encouraged a similar briefing on the House side. Other suggestions were made for next steps in the roundtable discussion that followed the presentations. A list of attendees, as well as the written materials that were provided to them at the briefing, can be accessed at the web site of the Western Governors’ Association; namely, www.westgov.org.