Tribes brace for disruption as deadline looms
A federal government shutdown would cut off dozens of services to tribal nations, according to ICT. Tribal communities rely on federal programs for policing, health care, food, housing and other services.
“Government shutdowns affect Indian Country more quickly and more broadly than they do every day Americans because of our direct relationship with the federal government,” Holly Cook Macarro, Red Lake Ojibwe and a tribal advocate, was quoted as saying. The Indian Health Service will continue operating with prior year funds, but other programs, including tribal police departments and housing initiatives, face immediate impacts. “Indian Country can’t afford a shutdown,” said Liz Carr, Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians and vice president of intergovernmental affairs for the Cedar Rock Alliance, during a Sept. 29 National Congress of American Indians webinar.
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