Hearing marks new Secretary's first testimony in front of Indian Affairs Committee
On Wednesday, May 15 at 2:30 PM, Chairwoman Maria Cantwell (D-WA) will hold a U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs oversight hearing to examine Interior Secretary Sally Jewell's perspective on the challenges facing Indian Country. The hearing will mark Secretary Jewell's first appearance in front of the Indian Affairs Committee.
The hearing - entitled "To Receive the Views and Priorities of Interior Secretary Jewell with Regard to Matters of Indian Affairs" - comes one month after Jewell was sworn in as head of the Department of the Interior. The Department of the Interior is the principal agency charged with upholding the federal government's trust obligations to American Indian Tribes.
As Secretary of the Interior, Jewell coordinates the government-to-government relationship that exists between the U.S. and American Indian Tribes. Within that relationship, the Department of the Interior is responsible for providing safety, education, general welfare, and natural resource services to Indian communities, while also promoting Tribal self-governance and self-determination.