Stigler Act Amendments of 2018

Floor Speech

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Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Grijalva), my good friend, for yielding time and for his leadership on this and so many other important issues.

Mr. Speaker, I have no concerns with the underlying bill before us today, and I thank the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Cole), whom I have the great honor to serve with on the House Rules Committee, for his efforts on this bill.

However, I am very concerned--and I can't stress that enough, very concerned and disappointed--that this majority has refused to allow an important bipartisan bill affecting a Tribe in my home State of Massachusetts from coming to the floor today.

Mr. Speaker, I want to express my appreciation for all the hard work my fellow Massachusetts delegation members Joe Kennedy and Bill Keating have done to advance that bill.

The Federal Government formally recognized the Mashpee Wampanoag in 2010. In 2015, the previous administration agreed to hold several hundred acres of land in trust. Yet, despite these actions, the status of the Native American Tribe that greeted the Pilgrims landing on Plymouth Rock nearly 400 years ago is in question.

In September, the Department of the Interior unjustly reversed its prior decision to hold the Mashpee land in trust.

The review of the Department's prior decision came due to a quirk in a 1934 Federal law, but that minor quirk could have major implications for this Tribal community. Schools could be shuttered, healthcare access could be restricted, and its economic sovereignty could be limited.

H.R. 5244, the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Reservation Reaffirmation Act, was introduced by my good friend Bill Keating. This bill would reaffirm the Mashpee land as being held in trust in Massachusetts, effectively overturning this unjust decision by the Department of the Interior.

Mr. Speaker, Congress has acted time and again to correct unjust actions taken by our government with respect to Native American Tribes across the country. We must do so again to protect the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, and I urge my colleagues to bring this legislation that will do just that to the House floor for a vote as soon as possible.

Now, if that doesn't happen in the remaining hours of this Congress, I will look forward to working with the distinguished incoming chair of the Natural Resources Committee to make this bill a reality. This is the right thing to do, and, quite frankly, it is just inexcusable that this House hasn't moved this issue forward.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding the time.

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