FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Anthony Walters, Executive Director (202) 789-1754 [email protected]
House and Senate introduction of NAHASDA bills, September 2017
Washington, DC: Companion bills to reauthorize NAHASDA were introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate yesterday. Congressman Steve Pearce (NM) introduced H.R. 3864, along with eight bipartisan cosponsors. Similarly, Senator Tom Udall (NM) introduced S. 1895, with 4 cosponsors in the Senate.
NAIHC has been working with Congress to reauthorize NAHASDA since it expired in 2013. Congressman Pearce has led the effort in the House, introducing similar NAHASDA reauthorizations in 2014 and 2015. Both of those bills were passed out of the House but were not able to make it through the Senate. H.R. 3864 is nearly identical to those past efforts.
Upon the introduction of the bills, NAIHC Chairwoman Sami Jo Difuntorum stated “The National American Indian Housing Council appreciates the work of Congressman Pearce, Senator Udall, and all the cosponsors of the companion NAHASDA bills. Since 1996, NAHASDA has allowed tribes to take control of housing development in their communities, and these bills include vital improvements to the program. NAIHC stands ready to work with the sponsors and other members of Congress to move the bills through the House and Senate as quickly as possible.”
The next steps for the two bills is to have hearings held or be voted out of their respective Committees. Both the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs and the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance have held NAHASDA-related hearing this year, so the bills could possibly be voted out of Committee without formal hearings.
Earlier this year, Senator Hoeven (ND) introduced S. 1275, the Bringing Useful Initiatives for Indian Land Development Act (BUIILD Act), which would also reauthorize NAHASDA programs. NAIHC Chairwoman Difuntorum testified at a hearing regarding the BUIILD Act in June, and that bill is currently pending before the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs.
Click the bill number to see the text of H.R. 3864 and S. 1895. Additionally, Congressman Pearce’s press release can be found here.
About the National American Indian Housing Council: The NAIHC is the only national organization representing the housing interests of Native people who reside in Indian communities, Alaska Native villages, and on Native Hawaiian homelands. The NAIHC is composed of over 271 members representing 463 tribes and housing organizations. NAIHC promotes and supports Native housing entities in its efforts to provide culturally relevant, quality, affordable housing on behalf of Native people.
For more information about NAIHC, go to NAIHC.net or
# # #
