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- By Native News Online Staff
On Tuesday, members of the 25th Navajo Nation Council took part in a tribal consultation hosted by the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Indian Affairs Workforce Efficiency and Productivity initiative at the Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute in Albuquerque, N.M. During the meeting, they emphasized the importance of maintaining meaningful tribal consultation and ensuring continuity of essential services.
Speaker Crystalyne Curley advocated for sustained federal investment in key programs, notably the PL 102-477 Workforce Development Program and the finalization of the Office of Navajo Hopi Indian Relocation (ONHIR). She also highlighted the need for forward funding of the Johnson-O’Malley Program, support for the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act, mandatory funding for the BIA 105(l) Lease Program, reforms to the BIA Homesite Lease process, and more efficient National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) compliance.
Additionally, Speaker Curley called for federal support of the Navajo Division of Child and Family Services’ 477 Plan, which is designed to streamline bureaucracy, enhance coordination of services, and empower families through job training, education, childcare, and culturally rooted healing programs.
“We call on DOI to ensure no agency under a 477 plan is eliminated. Doing so would violate the statute and undermine tribal self-determination,” she said.
Noting ONHIR’s funding will expire at the end of the fiscal year, Speaker Curley stated, “The Nation’s position is clear: ONHIR must stay open until its work is complete. We are open to negotiating closure terms that ensure relocatees are served, the remaining 13,000 acres are selected, and obligations are properly transferred.”
On education, she called for forward funding of the Johnson-O’Malley Program. “Some districts on the Nation haven’t received their 2024-2025 payments, even as the school year ends,” she said.
Speaker Curley also pressed Congress to make 105(l) lease payments mandatory to ensure tribes receive consistent facility funding.
“This protects health, education, and safety funds from being displaced and supports long-term planning,” she added.
To improve homesite leasing, she urged BIA collaboration on reforms, including better staff training on Trust Asset and Accounting Management System data standards, which would help track and improve processing times.
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