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Congresswoman McCollum's Statement on The Helping Expedite and Advance Responsible Tribal Homeownership (HEARTH) Act H.R. 205

Mister Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 205, the HEARTH Act.

Under current law, many Native Americans living on tribal land have to fight government bureaucracy to buy a home. Just like other Americans pursuing the American dream of homeownership, they find a house, get a mortgage approved, and make an offer. It’s at this point that the dream often turns into a nightmare for tribal members. Before they can close on a house, they have to get approval from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) to lease the land – and this approval process can take as long as two years. During this extremely long wait, the mortgage approval usually expires and sellers can rarely wait this long. With such a daunting and long process, it’s no wonder that tribal members give up and decide to move off the reservation and away from their families and communities, just to own a home.

The good news is that the bill before us today would allow tribal governments to lease the land directly, reducing the approval time and making this process much easier for Native Americans to buy homes on tribal land. The tribes would initially receive approval for their own leasing regulations from the Secretary of Interior, and could then process lease applications internally, rather than having them all be processed by the BIA. This leasing structure would also encourage community and economic development on tribal lands, and spur renewable energy development in Indian Country. Tribal governments will be able to control their own land and direct the necessary resources to construct community centers and fill commercial spaces. This tribal control is critical, and I wholeheartedly support it and encourage my colleagues to join me in voting yes.

This bill is badly needed so that Native Americans do not have to endlessly wait to pursue the American dream. As a member of the Congressional Native American Caucus, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 205.

Mister Speaker, I yield back my time.

Issues:Homeland Security & ImmigrationNative Americans