appropriation of up to $2 million a year. There is also some authority in the Indian Finance Act. Senator MCCLURE. Is the tribe exercising its own authority with respect to deconsolidation of ownership and of the elimination of fractional interests? Mr. MORISHIMA. We are attempting to acquire fractional interests as they become available. The loan program we are proposing involves the acquisition of lands which people are willing to sell. Senator McCLURE. Acquisition of lands being held by Indian owners or non-Indian? Mr. MORISHIMA. Indians and non-Indians alike. Senator MCCLURE. Are they intermingled lands? Mr. MORISHIMA. Yes, we have a checkerboard ownership pattern on our reservation. Senator MCCLURE. Thank you very much. Mr. MORISHIMA. Thank you. [The statement follows:] STATEMENT OF QUINAULT INDIAN TRIBE We are here today to inform Congress of our basic financial needs to support our efforts to attain self-determination. Documents containing detailed descriptions and budgets for individual aspects of our proposed operations will be provided for the comittee's reference. Our request may be summarized as follows: The present budget proposed by the BIA provides for less than 2% of our actual needs. We note with deep concern the decrease of nearly $66 million in the total federal funds requested the BIA becuase we recognize that the Indian people, not the agency, will suffer the consequences of reduced service delivery and drastic cuts in tribally operated programs. The agency will take care of its own needs first, and leave the tribes to absorb the impact of budget reductions. As an example, our Tribe has not received a single adjustment to compensate for cost increases due to inflation over the past four years while agency employees continue to get annual cost of living raises. Such practices are frustrating our self-determination efforts. We fully recognize that it will not be possible or desireable to meet all our needs through federal appropriations. We believe that it is of the utmost importance that the limited federal funds which are available be utilized to assist the Tribe to reduce its dependence upon the federal government. In this regard, we would like to concentrate the balance of our testimony upon a program of vital importance to our future: the development of our reservation's forest resources. Request: The Quinault Tribe requests that a $50 million revolving loan fund be established for the purpose of financing a tribal forest resource development program for the Quinault Reservation. The Tribe proposes to purchase land, manage it for commercial timber production, and retire the debt to the Treasury using a percentage of the timber receipts derived at the time of harvest under an arrangment similar to that authorized for State governments under 16 USC 567. Justification: The Quinault Tribe has been so improverished by ill-advised federal allotment policies and termination management of the reservation's natural resources that it must look to federal sources for investment capital to finance a land consolidation program. Owners of several thousand acres of reservation land have offered to sell their property to the Tribe, but we lack the resources necessary to complete the transactions. The establishment of a $50 million revolving loan fund would enable the Tribe to acquire approximately 15,000 acres of land in various stages of timber production. Only forest lands which owners are willing to sell to the Tribe would be purchased. Once acquired the land would be developed as a commercial forest property under the management guidance of a special advisory board which we would request the Secretary of Interior to appoint. Income derived from timber harvest would be used for these purposes: (1) A percentage of gross timber receipts would be used to retire the loan to the Treasury; (2) The balance of the receipts would be placed in a revolving loan fund to enable the Tribe to continue its land consolidation efforts and be used to help defray the costs of property development. In making our request, we are asking the federal government to invest in the future of our people and the nation as a whole. For the past several decades Quinault timber has comprised over 28% of the wood harvest in the Twin Harbors region of Washington State, and has supported more than 4,300 jobs. This harvest has been attained through the liquidation of our reservation's forest resources. Under present ownership patterns and resource depletion management, the future timber yield from our reservation will decline drastically. If present trends are allowed to persist unchecked, not only will future generations of Quinaults be left with a hopeless legacy of impoverishment, but the local economy will suffer severe economic consequences as well. On a national and international level, demand for wood products is steadily increasing, but world-wide depletion of forest resources continues. Quinault lands are conservatively estimated to be capable of supporting an annual sustained harvest of 200 million board feet a level which could play a vital role in maintaining a strong forest economy in the Twin Harbor's region, and help provide for the needs of a growing world population. Neither the Quinault Tribe nor society in general can afford to perpetuate this needless waste of valuable and renewable natural resources. Utter, de-facto, economic devastation will inevitably result from continued apathy, inaction, and lack of investment in our reservation's forest resources. The conditions of life on our reservation are already disturbing and promise to deteriorate even more unless a positive image of the future replaces the despair which drains away the life of our people. We have no desire to be swept down the whirlpool of progressive federal relief caused by programs which serve to exacerbate dependency. While our health, education, and employment problems may be alleviated by well-meaning poverty programs, our pride and spirit must pay the costs. We ask only to have the opportunity to utilize the limited funds which may be available during this time of austere federal budgets in order to gain our self-respect and a more hopeful future. We want to be able to provide for our own needs. The roots of our economic and emotional poverty must be severed. We are in fundamental agreement with the philosophy expressed by Congressman Udall in his letter of February 8, 1979 that our future will be dependent upon our ability to establish a healthy reservation economy based upon development of our natural resources to generate employment and wealth for our own people. If successful, our forest development efforts will lead to substantial savings in costs of federal administration and service delivery. More importantly, however, will be the increased Tribal self sufficiency Decessary to build the strength and pride of our people. Background: At the source of our impoverishment lies the ill-advised federal policy of allotment. Our 190,000 acre reservation located in Western Washington was established by treaty in 1855. Despite the fact that the vast majority of the land was only suited for timber production and totally unfit for agricultural or grazing purposes, our reservation was almost entirely allotted in 80 acre parcels to over 2,300 individuals. Since the time of allotment, ownership of our reservation grows increasingly complex with each passing day. The well known and often studied Indian heirship problem continues to diminish and dissipate the resource base among Indians from our own and other reservations and non-Indians. Approximately 4% of the reservation is owned in common by the tribe; trust ownership of individual allotments (64%) is held through several thousand undivided property interests. An allotment may bave as few as one owner or as many as 500. Unless a remedy to the heirship process can be found by the time of the next timber harvest, which may be as long as several decades from now on some properties, the ownership pattern will become hopelessly complex. balance of our reservation (32%) is owned primarily by large timber companies which acquired the property from individual owners or through sales supervised by the BIA during the era of federal termination policy. The The patchwork ownership pattern has fostered controversy and conflict while precluding the economic development of our reservation's resources. Forest management under allotment at Quinault has devastated the productivity of our resources and has left behind a legacy of impoverishment. We are not interested, however, in dwelling upon the past, but look instead to the future with a positive approach to reservation development. For more than 60 years spanning 3 generations, the problems plaguing our forest have been discussed and the solutions have been known. The need for unified management of Quinault lands is no recent In 1975, Quinault Tribal leadership launced a program designed Our forestry development program is a comprehensive, highly ment. STATEMENTS OF: NAVAJO COMMUNITY COLLEGE JOY HANLEY, ACTING PRESIDENT CARL TODACHEENE, CHAIRMAN, BOARD OF REGENTS Senator MCCLURE. The next witnesses are Joy Hanley and Carl Todacheene, Navajo Community College. Ms. HANLEY. I am Joy Hanley. It is an honor to be here. I am the acting president of Navajo Community College. I have come to this committee to request an appropriation for $7,305,000 for fiscal year 1979 for the Navajo Community College, which is situated in Tsaile, Ariz. Our programs have been developed through careful planning, looking at what the manpower needs are of the Navajo Reservation. Indeed, as I'm sure you are aware, we are blessed with coal reserves, uranium reserves, oil and gas, yet we do not have the manpower to develop these vast resources. So one of the main tasks of the college is to develop professions in areas that meet manpower needs, first being in the area of resource development. The second is in the area of developing our people in the administrative areas. We do not have middle class Indians to run businesses. We do not have the entrepreneurs to develop the economy in the communities on the reservations. The third is in the area of health professions. The area of health professions is lacking on the reservation. We have just only one or two M.D.'s and we are lacking professionals in the medical areas, all of the other areas that are drastically needed to upgrade the health on the reservation. In addition, we have a vast agricultural program that has been funded by Congress and we are lacking, again, the professionals and technicians in those particular areas. Agriculture has been a traditional profession of the Navajo people, but we are lacking in current upgraded know-how of the 20th century. In addition, one of the most important, but not the least is in the area of education. We are lacking in education professionals, teachers, adminstrators, and many of the other specialties. In addition to providing these kinds of professions for Navajo people on the reservation, we are working with the tribal governments and entities to upgrade persons in positions within the different governmental agencies, so that we are extended throughout the reservation in a number of sites. Right now, we have 45 extension sites in which we are providing educational courses. If you are not aware, our reservation is about the size of West Virginia in mass, and again, is quite extensive. Few roads exist and getting educational programs to people has become quite expensive. Senator MCCLURE. Mr. Todacheene? Give your statement or summarize, if you would like. Mr. TODACHEENE. May I summarize, please, sir? Mr. TODACHEENE. I think we are privileged to be here. We represent the Navajo Tribe, which constitutes about 155,000 souls. We serve the same number of people. We think that we are very appreciative of the fact that through the generosity of the taxpayers of America, we have operated for 10 years. We are trying to uplift the economic condition of our people, whose educational level is still down at the fifth grade level, whose income is still way below the low-income level of the Nation as a whole. I think with the further support in the amount of $785,000 would certainly be helping our Navajo people through your appropriations and be able to continue the work that I just described. We are the pioneers of the community college among the American Indians. And we have members of the group of 16 other community colleges which has moved right along in the last 10 years trying to get our people across the Nation as a whole in their quest for better economic status, as well as becoming better citizens of the Nation as a whole. We are a fully accredited college by the Accreditation Association of American Colleges and Schools. Again, we wish that you would seriously consider our request and support us with the appropriation of $7,305,000, as we have projected the same budget. Thank you very much. Senator MCCLURE. Is this appropriation the sole financial support for the community college? Ms. HANLEY. The basic. Senator MCCLURE. Does the state contribute anything to the support of the community college? MS. HANLEY. No. Senator MCCLURE. Does the tribe provide any financial support? Ms. HANLEY. Initially, the tribe did in terms of money for facilities. They did assist in construction of the facilities and they have loaned the college money for construction of the facilities. Senator McCLURE. Is it on tribal lands? Ms. HANLEY. Yes, sir, right in the middle of Navajo lands. |