Senator MELCHER. The next witness is Kurt Blue Dog, attorney for the legal services project, Native American Rights Fund, from Boulder, Colo. He will be accompanied by Arlinda Locklear, attorney, Native American Rights Fund, from Washington, D.C.

STATEMENT OF KURT BLUE DOG, ATTORNEY, LEGAL SERVICES PROJECT, NATIVE AMERICAN RIGHTS FUND, ACCOMPANIED BY ARLINDA LOCKLEAR, ATTORNEY, NATIVE AMERICAN RIGHTS FUND

Mr. BLUE DOG. Mr. Chairman, my name is Kurt Blue Dog. I am a Sioux Indian from South Dakota.

I am a staff attorney for the Native American Rights Fund, working out of the Boulder, Colo., office.

The Native American Rights Fund is a national Indian interest law firm dedicated to protecting and preserving the rights of American Indian people from all across the Nation. On behalf of NARF and our clients, I thank you for this opportunity to offer our views on the operation of the Federal acknowledgment project of the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

NARF is governed by a 13-member steering committee composed of Indians from across the country. This all-Indian board charts the direction of NARF's activities under the priorities and policies they have established.

When NARF was established nearly 10 years ago, and continuing to this very day, one of the five original priorities of our efforts has been the preservation of tribal existence. In this context, our office has assisted numerous tribal groups in their efforts to gain Federal recognition.

We have assisted, or plan to assist, the following tribal groups: the Pascua Yaqui Tribe; the Siletz Tribe of Oregon; the Tewas of Tortugas, New Mexico; the Traditional Kickapoo Tribe of Texas; the Grand Traverse Band of Michigan; the Mashpee Tribe; the Narragansett Tribe; the Gayhead Wampanoags; the Alabama Creeks; the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana, and others.

I am personally involved in the representation of the Traditional Kickapoo Tribe of Texas. I would like to briefly describe the conditions of the Traditional Kickapoos of Texas for the purpose of illustrating the importance of the efficient operation of the Federal recognition office.

These Texas Kickapoos number approximately 600 and they maintain two village sites, one in Nacimento in northern Mexico and the other underneath the International Bridge at Eagle Pass, Tex. A majority of the members reside at the Mexican village during the winter months, when religious ceremonies are held.

During the summer, the members travel throughout the United States working as migrant laborers. A permanent population resides at Eagle Pass, Tex., to maintain a village there which is swelled during the summer months by the migrant laborers.

The Kickapoos were forced from their ancestral homelands in Wisconsin and Michigan in the 1830's by U.S. cavalry. They have resided at Eagle Pass for approximately the last 140 years.

At the present time, the Kickapoos at Eagle Pass reside in traditional woodland structures, made out of wood and cardboard, pictures of which are attached as attachment No. 1 of our statement.

With only a few exceptions, none of these Kickapoos speak English, but they all speak their own Kickapoo language. The entire village shares one water fountain. They share one bathroom facility and three large garbage cans.

According to the Texas Department of Health, these conditions pose an imminent health threat to the entire Kickapoo community. Attachment two to this testimony attests to the views of the Texas Department of Health.

Despite these conditions and the acknowledged needs of the tribe, the Texas attorney general has stated that it is unconstitutional for any agency of the State of Texas, including the Texas Indian Commission, to assist the Kickapoo Tribe of Texas. I offer attachment No. 3, attorney general opinion No. MW-49, attached to this testimony.

The attorney general based his opinion on the fact that the traditional Kickapoo Tribe of Texas is not federally recognized by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. I have also included pictures of the Kickapoo Indian Tribe, as well as their houses in Eagle Pass, Tex.

These Traditional Kickapoos desperately need the assistance of the Bureau of Indian Affairs and they need it as soon as possible. The message that I bring to this committee today on behalf of the Traditional Kickapoo Tribe of Texas, the Native American Rights Fund, and on behalf of the numerous petitioning groups is that the process must be speeded up.

I have heard projections that at the pace at which the acknowledgment project is presently functioning, it could take until the year 2003 for that Office to process all of the petitions which are now filed. This is entirely too slow.

The Kickapoos, and I am sure other tribal groups, cannot wait for 20 or more years for a process that is crucial to their survival.

Even in this era of budgetary cutbacks and fiscal restraint, it is more important than ever that funding for the efficient operation of the Federal acknowledgment project must be increased. Also, its stature on the list of priorities at the Bureau of Indian Affairs must be dramatically raised.

That is all of my testimony, Mr. Chairman. I am available for any questions.

This is Arlinda Locklear. She is a staff attorney with the Native American Rights Fund, based in our Washington, D.C., office.

Mr. MELCHER. Thank you very much.

Without objection, your entire statement with attachments will be included in the hearing record at this point.

[The statement and related material follow. Testimony resumes on p. 19.]

PREPARED STATEment of Kurt V. BLUE DOG, ATTORNEY, NATIVE AMERICAN RIGHTS FUND

My name is Kurt Blue Dog, and I am a Sioux Indian originally from South Dakota. I am a staff attorney for the Native American Rights Fund working out of our Boulder, Colorado office. The Native American Rights Fund is a national Indian interest law firm dedicated to protecting and preserving the rights of American Indian people from all across the nation.

On behalf of NARF and our clients, I thank you for this opportunity to offer our views on the operation of the Federal Acknowledgment Project of the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

NARF is governed by a 13-member steering committee composed of Indians from across the country. This all-Indian board charts the direction of NARF's activities under the priorities and policies they have established. When NARF was established nearly ten years ago, and continuing to this very day, one of the five original priorities of our efforts has been the preservation of tribal existence. In this context our office has assisted numerous tribal groups in their efforts to gain Federal recognition. We have assisted or plan to assist the following tribal groups: The Pascua Yaqui Tribe; the Siletz Tribe of Oregon; the Tewas of Tortugas, New Mexico; the Traditional Kickapoo Tribe of Texas; the Grand Traverse Band of Michigan; the Mashpee Tribe; the Narragansett Tribe; the Gayhead Wampanoags; the Alabama-Creeks; the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana; and others.

I am personally involved in the representation of the Traditional Kickapoo Tribe of Texas. I want to briefly describe the conditions of the Traditional Kickapoo Tribe of Texas for the purpose of illustrating the importance of efficient operation of the Federal recognition office.

These Kickapoos number approximately 600, and maintain two village sites, one at Nacimento, in northern Mexico, and the other underneath the International Bridge at Eagle Pass, Texas. A majority of the members reside at the Mexican village during the winter months, when religious ceremonies are held. During the summer, the members travel throughout the United States working as migrant laborers. A permanent population resides at Eagle Pass to maintain the village there, which is swelled during summer months by the migrant laborers. The Kickapoos were forced from their ancestral homes in Wisconsin and Michigan in the 1830s by the U.S. Cavalry. They have resided at Eagle Pass for approximately the last 140 years.

At present the Kickapoos at Eagle Pass reside in traditional woodlands structures made from wood and cardboard, pictures of which are attached and labeled Attachment 1. With few exceptions, none of these Kickapoos speak English, but they all speak their own Native language. The entire village shares one water fountain, one bathroom facility, and 3 large garbage cans. According to the Texas Department of Health, these conditions pose an imminent threat to the health of the Kickapoo community. (See Attachment 2.)

Yet despite these conditions, and the acknowledged needs of the Tribe, the Texas Attorney General has stated that it is unconstitutional for any agency of the State (including the Texas Indian Commission) to assist the Tribe. See Attachment 3, Attorney General Opinion No. MW-49, dated August 23, 1979. The Attorney General based his opinion on the fact that the Traditional Kickapoo Tribe of Texas is not Federally recognized by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

These Traditional Kickapoos desperately need the assistance of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and they need it as soon as possible. The message that I bring today to this Committee on behalf of the Traditional Kickapoo Tribe of Texas, the Native American Rights Fund, and on behalf of the numerous petitioning groups, is that the process must be speeded up. I have heard projections that at the pace under which the Acknowledgment Project is presently functioning, that it could take until the year 2003 for that office to process only the petitions which are now filed. This is entirely too slow. The Kickapoos, and I'm sure other tribal groups, can't wait 20 or more years for a process that is crucial to their survival. Even in this era of budgetary cutbacks and fiscal restraint, it is more important than ever that funding for the efficient operation of the Federal Acknowledgment Project must be increased. Its stature on the list of priorities at the Bureau of Indian Affairs must be dramatically raised.

I am available for any questions which the Committee may have for me.