For Immediate Release
February 3, 2023
Contact:
Manu Tupper or Mike Inacay (Schatz) at press@indian.senate.gov
Jacqueline Bisille (Murkowski) at jacqueline_bisille@indian.senate.gov
$580 Million Secured By Schatz, Murkowski To Fulfill Indian Water Rights Settlements
Funding From Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Will Help Develop Tribal Water Infrastructure Projects
WASHINGTON – The Department of the Interior today announced a nearly $580 million allocation to continue fulfilling settlements of Indian water rights claims using funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Reclamation Water Settlements Fund.
“The federal government’s trust responsibility to Native communities includes providing Tribes with access to clean, reliable water,” said Chairman Schatz. “This announcement follows through on our work to pass and fund Indian water rights settlements to ensure water security for Tribes and surrounding communities.”
“As a lead author and negotiator of the historic bipartisan infrastructure law, one of my top priorities was ensuring that Native people were not left out. As a result, the final package includes substantial funding for Tribes, Alaska Native Corporations, and other Native organizations to benefit Native communities across the country,” Senator Murkowski said. “This announcement – investments in Tribal water settlements – is an important step in upholding our federal trust responsibility. I look forward to seeing the real-life impacts it will have on these communities.”
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law invests more than $13 billion directly in Tribal communities across the country. That includes $2.5 billion to implement the Indian Water Rights Settlement Completion Fund, which will help deliver long-promised water resources to Tribes, certainty to all their non-Native neighbors, and a solid foundation for future economic development for entire communities dependent on common water resources.
More information on the announcement is available here.
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