Press Releases
Currently showing results related to Indian and Insular Affairs
Ranking Member Grijalva: Regardless of Who Picks Up the Tab, the Price of Trump’s Border Wall is Too High
Washington, D.C. - President Trump yesterday signed an executive order that pursues the construction of a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border - a project that would harm wildlife, erode tribal sovereignty, disrupt communities and perpetuate a humanitarian crisis. Despite repeated promises that "Mexico will pay," House Speaker Paul Ryan has said that American taxpayers will pay billions for Trump's wall. Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto reiterated in strong terms yesterday that his cou… Continue Reading
01.24.17
Natural Resources Committee Democrats Respond to Trump’s Advancement of the Keystone and Dakota Access Pipelines
Washington, D.C. - Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva and key members of the Committee released the following statement today on the announcement that President Donald Trump will advance the construction of the Keystone and Dakota Access pipelines through executive order. Grijalva - who published a Feb. 27, 2014, New York Times op-ed opposing the Keystone pipeline and who met with leaders at the Standing Rock Sioux camp opposed to Dakota Access early last year - has been a leading advocate f… Continue Reading
12.05.16
Grijalva Thanks Obama, Hails Announcement That Dakota Access Pipeline Will Be Subject to Full Environmental Impact Analysis
Washington, D.C. - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) today hailed the announcement that the Dakota Access Pipeline Project - the subject of months of demonstrations that included law enforcement spraying unarmed water protectors with high-pressure water hoses in freezing conditions - will be subject to a full Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) under the National Environmental Policy Act, which will include a public comment period and a full asse… Continue Reading
11.14.16
Grijalva on Army Corps Announcement of Continued Tribal Consultation on Dakota Access Pipeline: “Send DOJ Observers to the Area”
Washington, D.C. - Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) released the following statement on the Army Corps of Engineers' new announcement that it will continue consultations with the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe before making a final decision on the fate of the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline. "The Army Corps is right to continue consulting with the Standing Rock Sioux, and everyone who pushed against rubber-stamping this pipeline should feel a very real measure of success and vin… Continue Reading
10.11.16
Grijalva “Disappointed” by Court Ruling on DAPL; Calls on Dakota Access to Voluntarily Halt Construction Until Corps of Engineers Concludes Ongoing Review
Tucson, Ariz. - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) reacted to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit's rejection of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe's request for an injunction to halt construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL), a nearly 1,200-mile pipeline that would be built near sacred tribal land and put the reservation's main water supply at risk: "While I'm disappointed by the court's decision, I'm encouraged that… Continue Reading
10.11.16
Report Finds GOP Failure to Approve Water Rights Settlements is Devastating Indian Country Across the United States
Washington, D.C. - A new report from the House Natural Resources Committee Democrats titled "Water Delayed is Water Denied: How Congress Has Blocked Access to Water for Native Families" finds that nearly 48 percent of U.S. homes on Native American land - in contrast to less than 1 percent of U.S. homes overall - do not have access to reliable water sources, clean drinking water or basic sanitation, a problem exacerbated by the refusal of today's Republican congressional majority to approve water… Continue Reading
09.28.16
Grijalva, Polis Question GOP Commitment to Tribal Consultation as Majority Prevents Vote on Dakota Pipeline Amendment
Washington, D.C. - Republicans late yesterday blocked a House vote on an amendment to the Water Resources Development Act by Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colo.) that would have made completion of the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline dependent on the Army Corps of Engineers publishing a full environmental impact statement for the project. The amendment, originally offered on Monday, was technically "ruled out of order" by the majority of the House R… Continue Reading
09.08.16
Ranking Member Grijalva: I Join Tribes In Strongly Opposing Just-Passed Republican Bill That Politicizes Tribal Recognition Process
Washington, D.C. - Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva today highlighted Native American communities' strong opposition to Chairman Rob Bishop's (R-Utah) Tribal Recognition Act, officially designated H.R. 3764, which passed the Natural Resources Committee a few minutes ago largely along party lines. The bill eliminates the executive branch's longstanding ability to recognize a Tribe for the purpose of government-to-government relations, making an act of Congress the only way for the federal g… Continue Reading
08.17.16
Ranking Member Grijalva: EPA Should Make Navajo Community Whole in Resolving Gold King Mine Spill Cleanup
Washington, D.C. - Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva today said the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) first responsibility in resolving the newly announced Navajo Nation lawsuit over the 2015 Gold King Mine spill in Colorado must be to make the Navajo community whole and mitigate financial risk to Navajo tribal members. Grijalva urged EPA officials to consider a settlement as the best and fastest way to protect the interests of the Navajo Nation and the agency itself. Grijalva last y… Continue Reading
06.09.16
House Passes the PROMESA Act with Bipartisan Support
Washington, D.C. - The PROMESA Act (H.R. 5278), the bill aimed to help Puerto Rico restructure its debt and tackle the fiscal crisis, passed on the House Floor today with bipartisan support. "I'm relieved the PROMESA Act passed with bipartisan support, but I've been clear throughout this process that this is not the bill I or Democrats would have written," Grijalva said. "The legislation was a compromise, a bipartisan effort, aimed to provide the 3.5 million American citizens living in Puerto R… Continue Reading
04.13.16
Grijalva on the Postponement of the Puerto Rico Bill Markup
Washington, D.C. - Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) released the following statement after Chairman Rob Bishop (R-Utah) and the Committee elected to postpone the markup on H.R. 4900: The Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act. "The Chairman and I elected to postpone the markup on Puerto Rico and keep working on the bill," Grijalva said. "This is too important to rush through and make a mistake. The legislation continues to be a work in progress, with all s… Continue Reading
04.13.16
Ranking Member Grijalva’s Remarks on the Debt Crisis in Puerto Rico
Washington, D.C. - Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) delivered the following opening statement this morning at the Natural Resources Committee hearing on the “Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act,” also known as PROMESA Act (H.R. 4900), the Republican led bill that aims to address the island’s debt crisis. “Thank you Mr. Chairman. Today we are continuing the process towards passing legislation to help the people of Puerto Rico deal with a humanitarian crisi… Continue Reading
03.29.16
Grijalva on the Puerto Rico Discussion Draft: “Hopeful the Draft Bill Will Lead to a Substantive Bipartisan Discussion”
Tucson, Ariz. - Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) released the following statement on Chairman Rob Bishop's (R-Utah) Puerto Rico discussion draft bill. The draft legislation aims to address the Commonwealth's debt crisis. "I remain hopeful that the Puerto Rico discussion draft can lead to a substantive bipartisan discussion," Grijalva said. "As we begin negotiations, I urge my Republican colleagues to put the needs of American families first - children… Continue Reading
02.25.16
Hearing Wrap-up: House Dems Eager to Start Discussions on how to Tackle Puerto Rico’s Debt Crisis
Hearing Overview The hearing on Puerto Rico today featured a sole witness from the U.S. Treasury Department to present the Obama Administration's assessment of the U.S. territory's debt crisis, as well as their recommendation for a comprehensive legislative package to assist the island in avoiding what could become a humanitarian crisis. Witness Antonio F. Weiss, U.S. Department of Treasury Counselor to the Secretary Key Takeaways House Democrats are prepared to start immediate discus… Continue Reading
02.24.16
House Democrats Call on House Republicans to Begin Bipartisan Negotiations on Puerto Rico
Washington, D.C. - The House Natural Resources Committee is holding its third hearing on Puerto Rico's financial and economic crisis tomorrow. A representative from the U.S. Treasury Department will testify and present the Obama Administration's assessment of the Commonwealth's debt crisis. Democrats are calling for the Committee to begin bipartisan negotiations and draft a legislation that outlines a responsible solution to Puerto Rico's crisis by March 31st, the deadline set by House Speaker P… Continue Reading
02.02.16
Puerto Rico Control Board Hearing Wrap-up: Who is Congress Helping, Hedge Funds or American Citizens?
Hearing Wrap-up: February 2 Oversight Hearing on "The Need for the Establishment of a Puerto Rico Financial Stability and Economic Growth Authority" Further austerity, while profitable for some investors, is counterproductive for the families of Puerto Rico Witnesses The Honorable Anthony A. Williams, Former Mayor of Washington, D.C., 1999-2007, Senior Advisor, Dentons US LLP Mr. Carlos M. Garcia, Former Chairman and President of the Government Development Bank of Puerto Rico, Chief Executiv… Continue Reading
12.08.15
Native American Leaders Highlight Unfairness of Republican Push to Overhaul Tribal Recognition Process, Reject Push for H.R. 3764
Washington, D.C. - Native American leaders today highlighted their opposition to the premise of this morning's Natural Resources Committee hearing on H.R. 3764, introduced by Chairman Rob Bishop (R-Utah), which would make federal recognition of tribes dependent solely on congressional approval rather than Interior Department expert analysis. The bill opens the door to congressional reconsideration of nearly 40 years of federal trust and treaty obligations and politicizes a process that has tradi… Continue Reading
11.16.15
Grijalva on House Vote Rejecting Effort to Block Arizona Tribe From Building Casino: “Courts and Congress Agree – Let’s Move On”
Washington, D.C. - House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) released the following statement after the House failed to pass H.R. 308, a bill blocking the Tohono O'odham tribe from building a court-approved casino in Glendale, Ariz., under suspension of the rules. "Courts have consistently found this casino is legal and the Tohono O'odham have acted appropriately in developing it. It has already created construction jobs and is on the threshold of signif… Continue Reading
11.04.15
Grijalva Hosts Tribal Sovereignty Roundtable Today, Will Accept More Than 1 Million Petition Signatures on Protecting Sacred Land
Washington, D.C. - Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, the Ranking Member of the House Natural Resources Committee, will accept more than 1 million petition signatures from a broad coalition of activists at a roundtable today in favor of protecting the Oak Flat area of Arizona sacred to the Apaches, the Yavapai and other Native Americans. Because of a last-minute Republican addition to the 2014 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) forcing a federal land trade - which the House had failed to pass … Continue Reading
11.02.15
Roundtable on Protecting Tribal Land Chaired by Ranking Member Grijalva on Nov. 4 in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C. - Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, the Ranking Member of the House Natural Resources Committee, is hosting a roundtable with Native American leaders this Wednesday in Washington, D.C., to discuss federal efforts to protect sacred tribal land. The roundtable will focus on the dangerous precedent being set in Arizona at a location called Oak Flat, which is sacred to the San Carlos Apache Tribe, by a mining company called Resolution Copper. A Republican-sponsored bill became law late… Continue Reading