Letter to Representatives Young and Ruiz Re: Mandatory Appropriations for Contract Support Costs May 1, 2015 Page 2 of 2

Sent via fax: (202) 225-7094

May 1, 2015

The Honorable , Chairman The Honorable , Ranking Member Subcommittee on Indian, Insular and Subcommittee on Indian, Insular and Alaska Native Affairs Alaska Native Affairs U.S. House of Representatives U.S. House of Representatives 1337 Longworth House Office Building 1337 Longworth House Office Building Washington, DC 20515 Washington, DC 20515

Re: Mandatory Appropriations for Contract Support Costs

Dear Chairman Young and Ranking Member Ruiz:

I write on behalf of Self-Governance Communication and Education (SGCE) to express our clear and strong support for reclassification of Contract Support Costs (CSC) from discretionary to a mandatory appropriation within the Interior Appropriations for both the Indian Health Service (IHS) and the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). There are over 350 Tribes currently participating in the Self-Governance initiative, representing over half of Tribal governments nationwide.

The SGCE supports the President’s Budget request for Fiscal Year 2016 to reclassify CSC from discretionary to a mandatory appropriation, and we prefer that such reclassification be made permanently. We recommend that such reclassification not include the proposed amount of up to 2% for agency administrative costs, which has not garnered broad Tribal support. In the FY 2014 Consolidated Appropriations Act, Congress instructed the two agencies, IHS and BIA, to consult with Tribes to develop long term solutions for addressing the full payment of CSC. One of the primary recommendations that resulted from this Tribal consultation was to convert CSC from a discretionary to a mandatory appropriation.

We look forward to working with you over the coming months to accomplish mandatory appropriations for CSC. This will, at last, match federal budgetary policy with the legal requirement in the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (ISDEAA) to fully fund CSC obligations to Tribes.

Letter to Representatives Young and Ruiz Re: Mandatory Appropriations for Contract Support Costs May 1, 2015 Page 2 of 2

The Self-Governance Tribes appreciate your partnership and leadership to advance long-term solutions for funding CSC. If you would like to discuss further, please do not hesitate to call me at (360) 681-4621 or email me at [email protected] Thank you.

Sincerely,

W. Ron Allen, Chairman/CEO, Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe Chair, SGCE Board of Directors

Attachments (2): Draft legislative language and explanation for a CSC Mandatory Appropriations

Cc: Subcommittee Members The Honorable Dan Benishek (R-MI) The Honorable (R-AZ) The Honorable Doug LaMalfa (R-CA) The Honorable Jeff Denham (R-CA) The Honorable Paul Cook (R-CA) The Honorable (AS) The Honorable Madeline Bordallo (D-GU) The Honorable Gregorio Sablan (D-MP) The Honorable Pedro Pierluisi (D-PR) The Honorable (D-NM) The Honorable Raul Grijalva (D-AZ)