A resolution recognizing the critical importance of access to reliable, clean drinking water for Native Americans and Alaska Natives and confirming the responsibility of the Federal Government to ensure such water access.

III 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. RES. 141 Recognizing the critical importance of access to reliable, clean drinking water for Native Americans and Alaska Natives and confirming the responsi- bility of the Federal Government to ensure such water access. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MARCH 25, 2021 Mr. BENNET (for himself, Mr. WYDEN, Ms. WARREN, Mrs. MURRAY, Mr. MERKLEY, Ms. CANTWELL, Mr. HEINRICH, Mr. KELLY, Mr. BOOKER, Mr. TESTER, and Mr. SCHATZ) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs RESOLUTION Recognizing the critical importance of access to reliable, clean drinking water for Native Americans and Alaska Natives and confirming the responsibility of the Federal Government to ensure such water access. Whereas access to reliable, clean drinking water is an essen- tial human need that is critical to the public health, well- being, educational attainment, and economic development of all communities in the United States; Whereas many countries, along with the United Nations, have recognized the urgency of water access by passing laws or resolutions regarding the human right to water, including recognition of these needs among indigenous VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:28 Mar 26, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR141.IS SR141 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •SRES 141 IS peoples and establishing aggressive targets for achieving universal access to this basic service; Whereas access to reliable, clean drinking water has long been a significant problem in many Tribal communities and in many Alaska Native Villages, such that nearly half of all Native American households still do not have access to reliable water sources, clean drinking water, and are significantly more likely than White households to lack indoor plumbing; Whereas reliable, clean drinking water may be unavailable to these households for a number of reasons, including be- cause— (1) there is no piped water system connecting to the house; (2) the water available to the household does not meet minimum protective standards; (3) the water infrastructure is deteriorating or insuf- ficient; or (4) Indian Tribes face challenges in supporting the operation and maintenance needs of existing water infra- structure; Whereas Federal programs administered through the Indian Health Service of the Department of Health and Human Services, the Environmental Protection Agency, the De- partment of Agriculture, and other Federal and State agencies have been unsuccessful in developing the infra- structure necessary to provide reliable, clean drinking water for some Tribal communities; Whereas many Indian Tribes have significant unresolved claims for federally reserved water rights, many of which have been unresolved for decades and which may not be resolved for many years to come, due in part to the com- VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:28 Mar 26, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR141.IS SR141 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •SRES 141 IS plex and significant issues typically involved in water rights adjudication and settlements; Whereas the development of water infrastructure in Tribal communities has frequently been conditioned on the set- tlement of such Tribal reserved water rights, and has been prevented or delayed by continuing uncertainty over the status of Tribal water rights, by the years-long proc- ess of Tribal water rights settlements, or by continued conflict over the quantification of Tribal reserved water rights in State water rights adjudications; Whereas the quantity of water that would be required to sup- ply reliable, clean drinking water to provide for the basic needs of the residents of Tribal communities and in Alas- ka Native Villages are typically only a small fraction of the total quantity of Tribal reserved water rights; Whereas the trust responsibility of the Federal Government to Tribal nations requires the Federal Government to en- sure the survival and welfare of Indian Tribes and peo- ple, and the failure to provide basic water service cannot be reconciled with this trust responsibility; Whereas the Indian Self-Determination and Education As- sistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.) affirmed the trust responsibility of the Federal Government to support Trib- al self-governance and self-determination, and these goals cannot be fully realized without addressing inequities such as ensuring access to reliable, clean drinking water for every Tribal community; Whereas the ongoing COVID–19 pandemic has had a dis- proportionate impact on Native American people due to factors including persistent economic disadvantages in Tribal communities and in Alaska Native Villages, racial VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:28 Mar 26, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR141.IS SR141 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •SRES 141 IS inequity, lack of access to adequate health care, and lack of public health infrastructure, including access to run- ning water; and Whereas the COVID–19 pandemic has provided a stark re- minder that access to reliable, clean drinking water to support basic hygiene is a matter of life or death for all citizens of the United States: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That— 1 (1) it is the sense of the Senate that— 2 (A) access to reliable, clean drinking water 3 in Tribal communities and in Alaska Native 4 Villages is an essential human need, is critical 5 to the health, well-being, and economic develop- 6 ment of people living on such communities and 7 in such villages, and is integral to maintaining 8 the public health of the entire United States; 9 (B) settlement or adjudication of Tribal 10 claims of reserved water rights is not and 11 should not be a prerequisite to the provision of 12 this basic human service to households located 13 in Tribal communities and in Alaska Native 14 Villages, nor should the provision of such basic 15 human services be used to leverage the resolu- 16 tion of Tribal reserved water rights and claims; 17 and 18 (C) the provision of reliable, clean drinking 19 water to support the domestic requirements of 20 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:28 Mar 26, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SR141.IS SR141 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •SRES 141 IS Tribal members and Tribal communities is an 1 essential component of the Federal trust re- 2 sponsibility to Indian Tribes; and 3 (2) the Senate— 4 (A) calls upon the Federal Executive 5 Branch to work in collaboration with Tribal 6 governments and with any relevant State and 7 local jurisdictions to expedite the planning, de- 8 sign, development, and operation of the infra- 9 structure necessary to provide reliable, clean 10 drinking water in Tribal communities and in 11 Alaska Native Villages, and to inform Congress 12 of further authorizations and expenditures that 13 may be necessary to meet this objective; 14 (B) calls upon the Federal Executive 15 Branch to employ a ‘‘whole of government’’ ap- 16 proach to ensure the provision of reliable, clean 17 drinking water to households in Tribal commu- 18 nities and in Alaska Native Villages and to cre- 19 ate an interagency task force consisting of high- 20 level representatives from departments and 21 agencies with authority to provide water infra- 22 structure that will work to remove barriers, op- 23 timize funding, and make immediate and tan- 24 gible progress on meeting this objective and re- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:28 Mar 26, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SR141.IS SR141 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •SRES 141 IS port annually to Congress on such progress; 1 and 2 (C) calls upon the Federal Executive 3 Branch, State governments, and affected water 4 agencies to affirmatively support de-coupling 5 the planning, design, development, and oper- 6 ation of such infrastructure from the settlement 7 or adjudication of Tribal reserved water rights, 8 and to support the development of that infra- 9 structure necessary to provide reliable, clean 10 drinking water in Tribal communities inde- 11 pendent of such settlements or adjudications. 12 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 18:28 Mar 26, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\SR141.IS SR141 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS