Examining the COVID-19 Response in Native Communities (S. Hrg. 117-70, May 12, 2021)
Summary
Transcript of S. Hrg. 117-70, "Examining the COVID-19 Response in Native Communities: Native Tourism Economies One Year Later," a May 12, 2021 hearing of the Committee on Indian Affairs chaired by Brian Schatz, the third in the Committee's COVID-19 Response series. Witnesses were Dennis Alvord of the U.S. Economic Development Administration, Anthony Rodman of the Office of Indian Economic Development, John De Fries of the Hawaii Tourism Authority, Sherry Rupert of the American Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association and Russell Dick of Huna Totem Corporation. Chairman Schatz says many Native communities imposed lockdowns and closed borders after COVID-19 hit. The appendix holds responses to written questions from Senator Schatz.
Summary drafted by a model from the document's text below and checked by script against that text before publication. It is a navigation aid, not a reading of what the document proves. Where AI is used
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“Examining the COVID-19 Response in Native Communities (S. Hrg. 117-70, May 12, 2021).”
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[Senate Hearing 117-70]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
S. Hrg. 117-70
EXAMINING THE COVID-19 RESPONSE IN NATIVE
COMMUNITIES: NATIVE TOURISM ECONOMIES
ONE YEAR LATER
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HEARING
BEFORE THE
COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
__________
MAY 12, 2021
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Indian Affairs
[GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
__________
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
45-580 PDF WASHINGTON : 2021
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COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS
BRIAN SCHATZ, Hawaii, Chairman
LISA MURKOWSKI, Alaska, Vice Chairman
MARIA CANTWELL, Washington JOHN HOEVEN, North Dakota
JON TESTER, Montana JAMES LANKFORD, Oklahoma
CATHERINE CORTEZ MASTO, Nevada STEVE DAINES, Montana
TINA SMITH, Minnesota MIKE ROUNDS, South Dakota
BEN RAY LUJAN, New Mexico JERRY MORAN, Kansas
Jennifer Romero, Majority Staff Director and Chief Counsel
T. Michael Andrews, Minority Staff Director and Chief Counsel
C O N T E N T S
----------
Page
Hearing held on May 12, 2021..................................... 1
Statement of Senator Cortez Masto................................ 4
Statement of Senator Hoeven...................................... 35
Statement of Senator Murkowski................................... 2
Statement of Senator Schatz...................................... 1
Witnesses
Alvord, Dennis, Acting Assistant Secretary for Economic
Development, U.S. Economic Development Administration, U.S.
Department of Commerce......................................... 5
Prepared statement........................................... 7
De Fries, John, President/CEO, Hawaii Tourism Authority.......... 16
Prepared statement........................................... 17
Dick, Russell, President/CEO, Huna Totem Corporation............. 24
Prepared statement........................................... 26
Rodman, Anthony, Acting Director, Office of Indian Economic
Development, U.S. Department of the Interior................... 12
Prepared statement........................................... 13
Rupert, Sherry, CEO, American Indian Alaska Native Tourism
Association.................................................... 19
Prepared statement........................................... 21
Appendix
Response to written questions submitted by Hon. Brian Schatz to:
Dennis Alvord................................................ 39
John De Fries................................................ 39
Anthony Rodman............................................... 42
Sherry Rupert................................................ 41
EXAMINING THE COVID-19 RESPONSE IN
NATIVE COMMUNITIES: NATIVE TOURISM ECONOMIES ONE YEAR LATER
----------
WEDNESDAY, MAY 12, 2021
U.S. Senate,
Committee on Indian Affairs,
Washington, DC.
The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 2:36 p.m. in room
628, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Brian Schatz,
Chairman of the Committee, presiding.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. BRIAN SCHATZ,
U.S. SENATOR FROM HAWAII
The Chairman. Good afternoon.
Today's oversight hearing, the third in this Committee's
COVID-19 Response series, will focus on the pandemic's impact
on Native tourism economies.
Native communities across the Country have diversified
their economies with domestic and international tourism to
create jobs for community members, boost tribal government
revenue, and improve living conditions. But after COVID-19 hit,
many Native communities imposed lockdowns and closed their
borders and businesses to outside visitors.
The temporary closure of tribal businesses, including
tourism-driven enterprises, disrupted a major revenue source
for funding tribal government services, and caused a ripple
effect through adjacent non-Native communities, many of which
rely on tribal enterprise to boost their own economies.
Congress responded by providing funding through the
American Rescue Plan act to help Native communities rebuild
their economies. This included $20 billion in recovery funds
and additional funding for programs like the EDA grants for
tourism. Yes, help is here, but many Native communities need
particular resources to regroup, revitalize and expand their
own tourism economies.
The Native American Tourism and Improving Visitor
Experience Act, or NATIVE Act, would help Native communities to
do just that. Enacted in 2016, the NATIVE Act empowers Native
communities to shape their own tourism economies and provide
unique, sustainable cultural tourism opportunities within the
United States. Successful implementation of the NATIVE Act can
help drive economic recovery in all Native communities.
Expanding tourism in Native communities requires
infrastructure to ensure that their guests have an enjoyable
experience. Poor road conditions often make attractive tourist
destinations inaccessible, inadequate sanitation can't support
large tour groups, and those groups often have to spend their
dollars elsewhere.
The United States must fulfill its responsibility to Native
Hawaiians, Alaska Natives and tribal communities to ensure that
they have the infrastructure to build back better for a robust
tourism economy. As vaccines become more readily available to
the public, many Native communities are reopening their
businesses, including tourism enterprises. That is welcome
news. But the long-term impacts of COVID-19 to tribal and
Native tourism economies and what it will take to return to
pre-COVID visitor levels has not yet been examined.
So I look forward to hearing from the Administration and
Native tourism experts on these impacts and the Federal
resources and infrastructure needed to get Native tourism
economies back on track.
Before I turn to the Vice Chair, I would like to extend my
aloha to Mr. De Fries and extend my thanks to our witnesses for
joining us today.
Vice Chair Murkowski?
STATEMENT OF HON. LISA MURKOWSKI,
U.S. SENATOR FROM ALASKA
Senator Murkowski. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you
for this very important hearing this afternoon. Tsu haa k t
?eiwa.aa. I will look at our witness here to correct
pronunciation, but this is classic Tlingit greeting meaning,
the daylight broke on us again. Again, these are greetings that
convey more than a simple hello.
I think it is perhaps very fitting that as we are seeing
the impact from the vaccine, we are hoping to emerge from this
pandemic, that we are focusing on some of the sectors in our
economy that have been particularly hard-hit, and that is
clearly the area of tourism.
I think there is a good sense of hope for the future of
tourism in our Native communities, even though this is kind of
an unsettling and an uncertain time. Native tourism touches on
so many extraordinary aspects of Indian Country and Alaska
Native communities, our Native Hawaiians, vibrant cultures, its
languages, its economic empowerment, resiliency, the
opportunity to share Native history and traditions, and
perpetuate Native culture for future generations.
The positive impacts that we have seen in providing local
jobs, growing tribal economies, I think we recognize that
Native tourism is perhaps still really in its infancy. But
there is tremendous growth projected. One indication of this is
before the pandemic, visitor volume to American Indian
communities from overseas more than doubled between 2007 and
2019, to nearly 1.9 million, according to the U.S. Department
of Commerce.
In Alaska, we know firsthand the importance of tourism to
our State's economy. We are really struggling right now. Mr.
Chairman, you come from a State that gets it in terms of the
tourist traffic that comes to you.
Most tourists who come to Hawaii come by plane. Most that
come to Alaska come by plane, but in fairness, we have a
significant potion that come to us through the cruise lines;
1.3 million tourists arrived in Alaska by cruise ship in 2019.
Then when COVID hit, we had 48, not 48,000, but 48 passengers
who came.
So when you think about the impact to your communities,
whether they are the community of Skagway, Hoonah, Seward,
Anchorage, up in the interior, out to Unalaska to the west, all
have been negatively impacted. Our rail-built communities have
been impacted by the loss of cruise ships, because these folks
book excursions into Denali and to Fairbanks. The loss that we
have seen in this past year and a half now has been
considerable.
In 2020 alone, the cancellation of the cruise ship season
has caused an estimated revenue loss of over $90 million to the
State, $98 million to local governments, over $1 billion in
lost revenue for local businesses. We are looking now at a
season that is pretty much on the rocks, if you will, when we
talk about the 2021 cruise season. This is the effort that
several of us have made to alleviate the Passenger Vessel
Services Act restriction that prevents cruise ships from
transporting passengers between Washington State and Alaska.
Unfortunately, we have a foreign country that intervenes
between our next closest continental United States. It has
effectively, between the CDC and Canada, closed all cruise
activities. So the opportunity to hear today from one of our
witnesses, and it is wonderful to have you here in person,
Russell Dick is the President and CEO of the Huna Totem
Corporation. Hoonah is a port community, and it is directly
impacted by these no-sail orders.
I think we will hear from Mr. Dick's testimony today what
this means to a small community. How we are able to support
Native tourism going forward is going to be considerable. It is
going to be important. It is going to take many different
forms.
In Alaska, the contours of Native tourism and economic
development are shaped by our unique Federal Indian policy in
the State. You have heard me speak many, many times of ANCSA,
the Native Claims Settlement Act, and how our ANCs, our Alaska
Native Corporations, along with sovereign tribes and tribal
non-profits, provide this wide array of services for our Native
people. Well, the Huna Totem Corporation, which Mr. Dick
represents, is a Native village corporation formed under the
terms of ANCSA. Since its incorporation, it has advanced the
economic aspirations and culture of the Xunaa Kaawu, meaning
the people of Hoonah.
Many of the tribal enterprises in the lower 48 who are
engaged in hospitality and tourism provide revenue directly to
tribal governments. ANCs provide economic and social benefits
directly to Native individuals mandated by ANCSA, and these
benefits come in many, many different forms, whether they be
dividends, employment, cultural preservation, or the like.
The opportunity to hear again the impact on Native tourism,
what we are seeing in Alaska, the impact to this small
community of Hoonah, as we will hear today, is powerful
testimony. In fact, it is so strong that when I read it last
night I thought, this needs to get out beyond just the Indian
Affairs Committee. I provided a copy this morning to Secretary
Mayorkas and Dr. Walensky at the CDC. Because I think it speaks
directly to the impact, when you have a Federal law like PVSA
which limits your ability to provide for jobs and economy for a
small Native community, the community of Hoonah, but the
broader opportunities to the Native people within the regions
that are provided through our ANC and our village corporations.
So we will hear that from Mr. Dick.
I look forward to our other witnesses talking about what
you have raised, Mr. Chairman, the NATIVE Act, and the
considerable benefits that they provide as well. So I look
forward to the conversation today and the opportunity to hear
from our witnesses.
The Chairman. Thank you, Vice Chair Murkowski. I think we
have Senator Cortez Masto wishing to make an opening statement.
STATEMENT OF HON. CATHERINE CORTEZ MASTO,
U.S. SENATOR FROM NEVADA
Senator Cortez Masto. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank
you to the Ranking Member. I appreciate your holding a hearing
on this important topic. And thank you to all of the witnesses
for being here.
The impact that COVID-19 has had on tourism is one of the
most important issues facing my State of Nevada. I am excited
to hear from our witnesses today about how we can address
declines in travel and tourism in Native communities.
I am also very excited to introduce Sherry Rupert, who is
here today as one of our panelists. Ms. Rupert has served as
the CEO of the American Indian Alaska Native Tourism
Association since 2019. She has been a strong advocate for
travel and tourism as an economic driver for tribal
communities. Prior to become CEO, she served as president of
the board of directors.
She has also worked in Nevada State government. She has
been in Nevada government almost three decades, including
serving as our executive director of the Nevada Indian
Commission from 2005 to 2019. I have had the opportunity to
work with Ms. Rupert in Nevada, and was so pleased that not
only was she there, but her compassion and her ability to
really bring for the issues that impacting the Native community
and work on behalf of the tribes in Nevada.
Her work has been crucial in Nevada, and I am so pleased
that she is part of this panel. We miss her, welcome her,
though, to this Committee, and all of the work she continues.
Thank you.
The Chairman. Thank you, Senator Cortez Masto.
Are there any other members online wishing to make an
opening statement? If not, we will move on to our witnesses. I
will introduce them in order.
First, we have Dennis Alvord, Acting Assistant Secretary
for Economic Development, from the Economic Development
Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce. Anthony Rodman,
Acting Director, Office of Indian Economic Development, U.S.
Department of the Interior. John De Fries, President and CEO,
Hawaii Tourism Authority. Sherry Rupert, CEO, American Indian
Alaska Native Tourism Association. And in person, Russell Dick,
President and CEO, Huna Totem Corporation.
I want to remind our witnesses that we have your full
written testimony, which will be made part of the official
hearing record. Please keep your statements to no more than
five minutes, so that our members have time for questions. We
do have a 3:30 vote, which we will juggle as usual. But to the
extent that you can confine your remarks to five minutes, that
will be very, very helpful.
Acting Assistant Alvord, before you begin, I need to note
that the Committee's Rule 4(b) states that if the Federal
witness misses the Committee's 48-hour deadline for submission
of testimony, the witness must state on the record why the
testimony was late. So please begin your testimony with an
explanation of why you were unable to comply with the
Committee's rule. Mr. Alvord, please proceed.
STATEMENT OF DENNIS ALVORD, ACTING ASSISTANT
SECRETARY FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, U.S.
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION, U.S.
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Mr. Alvord. Thank you, Chairman.
We were delayed in delivering the testimony due to
extensive interagency coordination to make sure that we
fulsomely compiled all of the different equities from across
the Department to share with the Committee today. Our apologies
for that; we will strive to do better in the future.
Chairman Schatz, Vice Chair Murkowski, thank you for the
opportunity to testify on behalf of the Department of Commerce
and the Economic Development Administration. At EDA, we are
cognizant of the unique challenges and opportunities that exist
to support American Indians, Indian tribes, Alaska Natives,
Native Hawaiians and other Native communities across the United
States through our economic development grant programs.
Since Fiscal Year 2010, EDA has invested $143.4 million in
696 awards to tribal communities, including close to $11.3
million of its CARES Act appropriation in 51 awards to tribal
communities. Importantly, EDA's organic statute provides unique
authorization that allows tribal entities to be eligible for a
100 percent grant rate.
We are also keenly aware of the special relationship the
government has with tribes. In fact, earlier this year,
President Biden signed the Presidential Memorandum on Tribal
Consultation and Strengthening Nation to Nation Relationships,
reaffirming its importance. Within the Department of Commerce,
we are committed to strengthening tribal sovereignty, self-
governance, fulfillment of tribal trust responsibilities and
treaty obligations to tribal nations. We welcome this
opportunity to discuss this work we have carried out with our
tribal partners and grantees.
While I am here representing EDA, I am proud to acknowledge
the work of several of EDA's sister bureaus within the
Department. At NTIA, three new grant programs totaling $1.585
billion have been established: the Tribal Broadband
Connectivity Program, Broadband Infrastructure Program and
Connecting Minority Communities Pilot Program. NTIA held three
national tribal consultations and is working toward releasing
the process and application for these funds expeditiously.
Given the importance of broadband to economic development,
EDA has worked closely with NTIA to coordinate on broadband
related matters and is exploring how our funding may be
complementary.
ITA's U.S. Commercial Service has longstanding
relationships with Tribal Nations and tribal-owned businesses
through its broad program offerings that help firms export
their goods and services around the globe.
MBDA has a long tradition of serving American Indian,
Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian business enterprises and
recently redesigned its service delivery model to address
unique business challenges in the community. In fiscal year
2020, MBDA invested $3.6 million across 13 projects that
provide a range of support in Indian Country. The projects
reported nearly 3,600 minority business enterprises served
including training that specifically addressed business impacts
from the pandemic.
At NOAA, the Consolidated Appropriations Acts of 2021
includes $30 million for federally impacted by COVID-19. NOAA
Fisheries held two tribal consultations and is working toward
releasing the process for the application for these funds soon.
The Census Bureau works closely with the American Indian
and Alaska Native tribal nations on a government-to-government
basis. In the 2020 Census, more than 200 tribes established a
Tribal Complete Count Committee to encourage participation and
highlight the ease, safety and importance of the Census. The
Census Bureau continues communication and tribal consultations
as we prepare for the release of the 2020 American Indian and
Alaska Native data products.
EDA's Fiscal Year 2020 appropriations included $1.5 billion
in supplemental funding from the CARES Act to respond to
economic injury due to COVID-19. EDA's role is to facilitate
communities' long-term economic recovery planning,
reconstruction, redevelopment and resiliency. To date, awards
included assistance to 51 tribal planning organizations to aid
economic recovery coordination.
While we are proud of the work we have already accomplished
under the CARES Act to support our tribal partners, we are
aware the pandemic has caused and will continue to cause deep
economic injury to indigenous communities in devastating and
unprecedented ways. The American Rescue Plan allocates
supplemental funding of $3 billion to EDA to assist communities
nationwide, including our tribal partners, in advancing their
Coronavirus recovery and resiliency strategies.
EDA is finalizing its implementation plan for this funding.
One of the pillars of that execution will focus on pursuing a
comprehensive approach to advancing equity by focusing on
populations in underserved communities that have been denied a
full opportunity to participate in aspects of economic
prosperity, including tribal entities.
Recently, EDA conducted two tribal consultations with
tribal leaders from across the Country to receive feedback on
proposed regulatory changes that would broaden EDA's tribal
eligibility to for-profit organizations which are wholly owned
by and established for the benefit of the tribe, which is
currently prohibited by EDA regulation. The goal of this change
is to potentially make EDA's development assistance more
accessible to a wider range of tribal entities as we support
long-term economic development in more communities.
As we seek to recover from the devastating impacts of the
pandemic, partnership, collaboration, and fulfilling the
Federal trust responsibilities and treaty obligations to tribal
nations has never been more important. We are aware of our
vital role in ensuring the funds entrusted to us are invested
in an equitable and impactful manner, and that we are reaching
the communities most in need of our assistance.
I look forward to answering any questions you may have.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Alvord follows:]
Prepared Statement of Dennis Alvord, Acting Assistant Secretary for
Economic Development, U.S. Economic Development Administration, U.S.
Department of Commerce
Introduction
Chairman Schatz, Vice Chairwoman Murkowski, and members of the
committee, thank you for this opportunity to testify on behalf of the
Department of Commerce (DOC) and the Economic Development
Administration (EDA). EDA's mission is to lead the federal economic
development agenda by promoting innovation and competitiveness and
preparing American regions for growth and success in the worldwide
economy.
At EDA, we are cognizant of the unique challenges and opportunities
that exist to support American Indians, Indian tribes, Alaska Natives,
Native Hawaiians and other Native communities across the United States
through our economic development grant programs. Since FY2010, EDA has
invested $143.4 million in 696 awards to tribal communities, including
close to $11.3 million of its Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic
Security Act (CARES Act) appropriation in 51 awards to tribal
communities. Importantly, EDA's organic statute, the Public Works and
Economic Development Act of 1965 (PWEDA) provides an important and
unique authorization that allows Tribal entities to be eligible for a
100 percent grant rate, across all of EDA's PWEDA programs. No other
category of eligible entity is provided such broad comparable
flexibility.
We are also keenly aware of the special relationship the Government
has with the Tribes. As many of you know, earlier this year, President
Biden signed the Presidential Memorandum on Tribal Consultation and
Strengthening Nation to Nation Relationships. It directed federal
agencies to work with Tribal Nations for the implementation of
Executive Order 13175, Consultation and Coordination with Indian Tribal
Governments (November 6, 2000). Within the Department of Commerce, we
are committed to strengthening Tribal sovereignty, self-governance,
fulfillment of federal trust responsibilities and treaty obligations to
Tribal Nations and we welcome this opportunity to discuss the work
we've carried out with our Tribal partners and grantees. While I am
here representing EDA, I am proud to acknowledge the work of several of
EDA's sister bureaus with the Department. Below represents ongoing
programs and initiatives within the Department:
National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA)
The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 provided for the
establishment of three new grant programs totaling $1.585 billion to be
administered by NTIA: Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program, the
Broadband Infrastructure Program, and Connecting Minority Communities
Pilot Program. Under the Tribal Broadband Connectivity program,
infrastructure, training, devices, and subsidized services, as well as
telehealth applications, remote work, and distance learning are all
eligible for funding under this program. The Broadband Infrastructure
program will focus on rural and unserved areas. Finally, the Connecting
Minority Community Pilot program will serve Historically Black Colleges
and Universities, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and Native Hawaiian
Serving Institutions. The program will provide funding for broadband
Internet access service or equipment, information technology personnel
for remote educational instruction and learning. NTIA held three
national tribal consultations and is working towards releasing the
process and application for these funds expeditiously. Given the
importance of broadband to economic development, EDA has worked closely
with NTIA to coordinate on broadband-related matters at the national
and regional levels and is exploring how our funding may be
complementary.
International Trade Administration (ITA)
ITA's U.S. Commercial Service has longstanding relationships with
Tribal Nations and Native-owned businesses from Alaska to New Mexico
and Oklahoma to New England through its broad program offerings that
help these firms export their goods and services around the globe. To
deepen its efforts, ITA recently launched a one-year pilot project in
its Northern California Export Assistance Centers to more closely
examine the ways to engage Native American enterprises and develop best
practices to improve its outreach. Part of this work involved
organizing a series of webinars this Spring designed to address
concepts primarily around digital strategy; the idea being that the
pandemic has resulted in a worldwide shift to online engagements by
companies and industries across the board. ITA continues to collaborate
with other Commerce agencies and partner with Native American
organizations, such as the American Indian Alaska Native Tourism
Association (AIANTA) and the Yurok Tribe Economic Development
Corporation, to extend its outreach to these business communities and
help them grow internationally.
Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA)
MBDA has a long tradition of serving American Indian, Alaska Native
and Native Hawaiian (AIANNH) business enterprises. With the expertise
and guidance of the Office of Native American Business Development,
MBDA redesigned the service delivery model and introduced pilot and
demonstration projects that allowed for innovative proposals to address
unique business challenges in the AIANNH business community. MBDA has
funded the Office of Native American Business Development and hired a
tribal expert appointee to engage tribal entities and Native American
businesses, review research, and advise MBDA on upcoming AIANNH
programs based on tribal engagement. In Fiscal Year 2020, MBDA invested
$3.6 million across thirteen AIANNH projects that currently provide a
range of support in Indian Country, including access to capital,
business training, federal procurement training, broadband through
public-private partnership, and entrepreneurial education through
Tribal colleges. During the pandemic, some AIANNH projects were able to
transition services to phone and other virtual consultations. The
projects reported nearly 3,600 minority business enterprises served
including training that specifically addressed business impacts from
the pandemic. Several projects reported providing assistance with
Paycheck Protection Plan loans that resulted in securing more than $2M
in financing for AIANNH clients. In Fiscal Year 2021 MBDA plans to
invest $3.9 million in AIANNH projects.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 includes $30 million for
Federally recognized tribes in any of the Nation's coastal States,
Great Lakes States and territories for direct and indirect fishery
economic related losses as well as subsistence, cultural and ceremonial
impacts related to COVID-19. Specifically, ``federally recognized
Tribes in any of the Nation's coastal States and territories, and
federally recognized Tribes in any of the Nation's Great Lakes States
with fisheries on the Tribe's reservation or ceded or usual and
accustomed territory'' are potentially eligible. NOAA Fisheries held
two national tribal consultations and is working towards releasing the
process and application for these funds soon. In addition, Section
12005 of the CARES Act provided $300 million to support states, tribes,
and territories with coastal and marine fishery participants who have
been negatively affected by COVID-19. NOAA Fisheries allocated over $6
million to federally recognized tribes on the West coast and federally
recognized tribes with tribally managed fisheries in Alaska in May
2020. Tribal fishers were also able to apply for assistance from their
state throughout the country. NOAA Fisheries held tribal consultations
on the administration of those funds.
U.S. Census Bureau
The Census Bureau works closely with American Indian and Alaska
Native (AIAN) tribal nations on a government-to-government basis. Our
goal was to complete an accurate 2020 census that includes counting
tribal populations on and off reservations in coordination with tribal
governments. To better address issues and achieve a more accurate count
for 2020, we began working with tribes earlier in the decade. Since
2015, the Bureau conducted 17 tribal consultations and one national
webinar with federal, state recognized tribal governments and Alaska
Native Regional and Village Corporations to discuss planning,
operations and communications for the 2020 census.
More than 200 tribes established a Tribal Complete Count Committee.
These committees encouraged participation in the 2020 Census and
informed their tribal community that the 2020 census is easy, safe and
important. The Census Bureau also worked with organizations that
support AIAN populations living on and off tribal lands, including the
Alaska Federation of Natives, National Indian Education Association,
Native American Rights Fund, National Congress of American Indians, and
the National American Indian Housing Council.
The Census Bureau continues communication and tribal consultations
as we prepare for the release of the 2020 American Indian and Alaska
Native data products. The Census Bureau is now researching the use of
Administrative tribal data for future censuses and surveys to achieve
the best accurate and complete count of the AIAN community.
Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act
EDA's FY 2020 appropriations included $1.5 billion in supplemental
funding from the CARES Act (P.L. 116-136) to respond to economic injury
due to COVID-19. EDA's role in these recovery efforts is to facilitate
delivery of federal economic development assistance to communities for
long-term economic recovery planning, reconstruction, redevelopment and
resiliency.
Because of the unusual and compelling urgency of the economic
dislocations caused by the coronavirus pandemic, EDA determined that
the public interest would be best served by using a portion of its
supplemental CARES Act funding to expeditiously make awards to existing
high-performing EDA grant recipients with unique capacities to respond
rapidly to the situation, including to its Economic Development
Districts, University Centers, and 51 Tribal Planning Organizations.
The awards fund the cost of economic recovery coordination and
technical assistance activities to support recovery from the pandemic
within the geographic area served by these organizations. These
investments also helped develop a pipeline of infrastructure and
workforce projects that EDA funded with its remaining CARES Act funds
and will use to source projects for upcoming American Rescue Plan (ARP)
Act (P. L. 117-2) competitions.
Our CARES Act investments are supporting a variety of critical
economic development strategies that are helping communities recover
and set a course for future prosperity and, I am pleased to note that
EDA has awarded more than $1 billion in CARES Act grants and met this
important and significant milestone in less than one year from the
enactment of the CARES Act. EDA's work continues and, as of April 26,
2021, EDA has invested more than $1.1 billion in CARES Act funding
across 1028 awards to communities across the country.
I am proud of the fortitude shown by our grantee partners in
responding to this crisis, particularly Native communities that were
disproportionately impacted by the health and economic impacts of the
pandemic; and, I am inspired by the dedication that EDA's exemplary
staff has shown in meeting the challenge of quickly and responsibly
awarding this critical funding.
Below are representative examples of EDA's concerted effort in
support of economic development and recovery in Tribal communities,
including economic development projects that support the creative
economy:
Native Village of Napaimute
In FY 2019, EDA awarded $589,000 in Economic Adjustment
Assistance funds to the Native Village of Napaimute for the
acquisition of vital equipment needed to transport harvested
wood products. Prior to the EDA investment, transportation has
been limited and movement of lumber had to occur on ice roads
which had become increasingly difficult to travel.
Alternatives, such as commercial barge service, were also
limited or sporadic, leaving the village with no economically
viable way to move its product to market. This EDA investment
enables the village to safely and efficiently deliver its
product to customers and stabilize market accessibility for its
wood products. In addition, the village has also been able to
expand its market to include the production of log home
packages, helping provide affordable housing to residents of an
economically disadvantaged area of Alaska's vast Unorganized
Borough.
Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head Aquinnah (CARES Act)
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Wampanoag Tribe of
Gay Head Aquinnah identified a need to diversify their regional
economy beyond tourism to sustain a resilient economy. In April
2021, EDA awarded $120,000 in CARES Act funds to support the
Tribe with preparing a wastewater feasibility study that will
include data collection and assessment, development of
alternatives, and a cost benefit analysis, to aid in
determining necessary upgrades and expansion work for the
existing wastewater treatment plant and will produce a timeline
for implementing the recommended economic development strategy.
Once completed, the project will help the region diversify the
existing economy, attract private investment, and advance
economic resiliency throughout the region.
Coquille Indian Tribe
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Alaska Indians and
Alaska Natives continue to face persistent disparities in
health and healthcare including high uninsured rates, barriers
to obtaining care, and poor health status. In FY 2020, EDA
awarded $1.4 million in CARES Act funds to support the Coquille
Indian Tribe with constructing the Ko-Kwel Wellness Center to
improve medical and dental services to American Indians and
Alaska Native (AI/AN) populations living throughout coastal
southern Oregon. This EDA investment will help individuals find
a provider, reduce wait times, and allow the community to
access the healthcare system without travelling long distances.
The new center will be located on the Kilkich Reservation, a
designated Opportunity Zone, to help bolster job creation,
attract private investment and strengthen the regional economy.
Lower Sioux Indian Community
In May 2018, an external Feasibility Study was completed to
determine the best plan for stimulating and growing the local
economy within the Lower Sioux Indian Community. The study
validated the untapped market potential for native arts in the
region, nationally and internationally as well as the high
level of artistic skills within the Lower Sioux community. In
FY 2018, EDA awarded $4.4 million in Public Works funds to
construct the Lower Sioux Intergenerational Cultural Incubator,
a facility with training and production space for tribal
entrepreneurs working in pottery, quilting, media/graphic arts,
culinary arts, and mixed-artistic media such as quilling,
beading, and regalia making. This EDA investment will broaden
access to workforce training and business development
opportunities, expanding capacity for entrepreneurship, access
to capital, and exports while preserving and promoting the
cultural heritage and cultural skill transfer and succession
throughout the region.
Indian Pueblo Cultural Center
To address an existing gap in access to economic development
resources in central New Mexico, in FY 2019, EDA awarded $1
million in Economic Adjustment Assistance funds to the Indian
Pueblo Cultural Center, to build a maker space in Bernalillo
County, to provide critical access for Native communities to
pursue entrepreneurial opportunities. This EDA investment will
help the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center serve artists and
entrepreneurs by providing access to cutting edge equipment,
skills training, and technical support in areas such as
woodworking, jewelry-making and graphic design so they can
start and grow businesses and create jobs in their community,
which will help drive economic growth.
Catawba Indian Nation
To address the challenges aligning workforce training with
economic opportunity in the region, in FY 2016, EDA awarded
$188 thousand in Local Technical Assistance funds to Catawba
Indian Nation, to assist in the creation of a strategic plan
for development of 123 acres of Tribal land in South Carolina.
This EDA investment supported the Catawba Indian Nation with
developing a plan to collect, analyze, and compile data to
determine the best use of the land, helped identify trends in
local and traded industry clusters, and provided legal insight
into Tribal organizational structures and partnership
agreements to create regional development. The project has
helped the Tribe have a better understanding of financing and
incentives associated with sovereign property to focus on
multifaceted film, tourism, retail/hospitality and education
development in the area.
Artspace Projects Inc.
In 2011, the Establishing a Creative Economy: Arts as an
Economic Engine in Native Communities study was conducted to
examine the Native arts economy with a focus on the Pine Ridge
Indian Reservation. The study was completed using data
collected from the 2011 American Indian Creative Economy Market
Study Project, which surveyed 143 Native artists to examine
their household economics, infrastructure needs, and social
networks. The study demonstrated that art is a driver of local
Native economies and that it is a critical component of
creating sustainable and vibrant communities and estimated that
30 percent of Native people on the Pine Ridge Reservation are
artists of some sort and most of them live below the poverty
line. In FY 2015, EDA awarded $750,000 in Public Works funds to
construct the Oglala Lakota Arts and Business Incubator on the
Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in Kyle, South Dakota. This EDA
investment supported the Artspace Projects Inc. with offering
incubator space and entrepreneur education and support
programming to new and emerging Oglala Lakota artisan
businesses and Reservation-based entrepreneurs in the area. The
project created a centrally located, fixed structure where
Native artists have access to studio space, computers for
digital work and electronic marketplace access, classroom and
gallery space, and a hub to establish connections with other
arts and cultural activities across the geographically vast
reservation. Additionally, the project has helped establish
connections with other arts and cultural activities and
institutions on the Reservation and in Western South Dakota,
which will be a catalyst for business acceleration throughout
the region, promoting economic diversification, resiliency, and
opportunities for job creation.
Northern Arizona University
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a supply chain breakdown
occurred in Flagstaff, Arizona and food/supplies were limited
within the local Tribal Community. In March 2021, EDA awarded
$182,522 in CARES Act funds to the Arizona Board of Regents on
behalf of Northern Arizona University, to develop and implement
a Diversification Strategy to concentrate on four areas: Green
House Development Plan, Food Cooperative Initiative, Farm-to-
School Program and Food Security/Supply Chain study. This EDA
investment is designed to help increase underserved White
Mountain Apache communities' access to healthy, affordable, and
locally sourced food. In addition, the project will provide
technical assistance to support food enterprise development,
business strategy, and supply chain components of the food
system to get more healthy food into the Tribal communities
with limited access, focusing on local and regional sourcing.
Once implemented, the project will create jobs, provide
economic incentives to Apache farmers and ranchers, preserve
Apache traditions and cultural lifeways and increase long-term
economic sustainability, which will strengthen the regional
economy and advance economic resiliency throughout the region.
Future Work To Support Tribal Partners
While we are proud of the work we have already accomplished under
CARES Act to support our Tribal partners, we are also aware the
pandemic has caused, and will continue to cause, deep economic injury
to indigenous communities in devastating and unprecedented ways.
On March 11, President Joseph Biden signed the American Rescue Plan
into law. This historic and sweeping legislation provides additional
relief to address the continued impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the
economy, public health, State and local governments, individuals, and
businesses. The ARP allocates supplemental funding of $3 billion to EDA
to assist communities nationwide, including our Tribal partners, in
advancing their coronavirus recovery and resiliency strategies.
Though EDA is still finalizing its implementation plan for this
funding, the execution will focus on: (1) bringing back the American
workforce and industries that have been hardest hit, such as travel and
tourism and manufacturing, through programs that support economic
growth and diversification, creating talent pipelines to address
industry needs, and fostering higher-skill, higher-wage job
opportunities for all; (2) capitalizing on American ingenuity to build
regions of the future by focusing on innovation-led economic
development, including planning, infrastructure, workforce development,
and business financing; and (3) pursuing a comprehensive approach to
advancing equity by focusing on populations and underserved communities
that have been denied a full opportunity to participate in aspects of
economic prosperity, including Tribal entities.
To guide not only our ARP portfolio, but all EDA program funding,
we've established new EDA Investment Priorities. Notably, `Equity' has
been added to the top of the investment priority list. EDA is committed
to working with populations and underserved communities, including
Tribal partners, that have been denied a full opportunity to
participate in aspects of economic prosperity in the past.
Just last month, EDA also conducted two Tribal Consultations with
Tribal Leaders from across the country. The purpose of these
consultations was to seek feedback on a proposed regulatory change that
would broaden EDA's tribal eligibility to include for-profit
organizations, which are wholly owned by and established for the
benefit of the Tribe, which is currently prohibited by EDA regulation.
The goal of this change is to potentially make EDA's development
assistance more accessible to a wider range of Tribal entities as means
to support long-term economic development through more communities.
Conclusion
As we seek to recover from the devastating impacts of the pandemic,
partnership, collaboration and fulfilling the federal trust
responsibilities and treaty obligations to Tribal Nations has never
been more important. As EDA grows in budget and size, we are further
entrusted to take on a greater and more prominent role in supporting
communities recovering from sudden economic disruption and dislocation.
We are aware of our important role in ensuring the funds entrusted to
us are invested in an equitable, fair and impactful manner and that we
are reaching the communities most in need of our assistance. I look
forward to answering any questions you may have.
The Chairman. Thank you very much, Mr. Alvord.
Next we have Anthony Rodman, Acting Director of the Office
of Indian Economic Development at the Department of Interior.
STATEMENT OF ANTHONY RODMAN, ACTING DIRECTOR,
OFFICE OF INDIAN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, U.S.
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Mr. Rodman. Good afternoon, Chairman Schatz, Vice Chair
Murkowski, and members of the Committee. Thank you for the
invitation to appear on behalf of Indian Affairs at the
Department of Interior to discuss COVID-19 impacts on Native
tourism.
My name is Anthony Rodman, and I am Cherokee of Osage from
Oklahoma, and I am currently in Oklahoma within the boundaries
of the Cherokee Nation. For the past two years, I have been
serving as the Acting Director of the Office of Indian Economic
Development, which is one of the offices that supports the
implementation of the Native American Tourism and Improving
Visitor Experience Act, otherwise known as the NATIVE Act.
Never has the goal of the NATIVE Act been more timely than
it is now. COVID-19 has rattled the foundations of tribal
economies over the past year and one of the hardest-hit sectors
has been the tribal tourism industry. Under normal
circumstances, tribal tourism is a multi-billion dollar
industry and a prime space for tribal economic development.
However, from the beginning of March 2020 to the end of 2020,
the U.S. Travel Association has estimated $492 billion in total
losses for the U.S. travel economy. In planning for the return
of tourism, Indian Affairs seeks to leverage every aspect of
the NATIVE Act.
The NATIVE Act encourages full participation of tribes,
tribal organizations and Native Hawaiian organizations in the
tourism industry by, one, integrating and accounting for Native
American equities in Federal agencies' tourism programs; two,
providing grants, loans, and technical assistance to tribes,
tribal organizations, and Native Hawaiian organizations to spur
economic development through tourism.
Indian Affairs has implemented the NATIVE Act through a
national, regional, and local approach, offering technical
assistance to tribes through universities and non-profits with
backgrounds in tribal tourism. These universities and non-
profits have focused on developing an enabling environment that
cultivates long-term businesses and strategic development for
tribal tourism.
The model for the regional tourism efforts in North and
South Dakota, Montana, and Virginia, is able to be replicated
for other areas of the Country. North Dakota in particular is a
great example of how the work of the NATIVE Act is paying off.
An organized tourism alliance has developed with all the tribes
in North Dakota, and after two years of work, this organization
will be testing tour packages as the tribes start to reopen
this year with full operations expected next year.
Indian Affairs' cooperative agreement with the American
Indian and Alaska Native Tourism Association, otherwise known
as AIANTA, seeks to address some of the national concerns and
issues facing Native American tourism. AIANTA has conducted
national tourism trainings and seminars with tribes, tribal
organizations and Native Hawaiian organizations. Indian Affairs
will be working with AIANTA over the next few weeks to finalize
AIANTA's budget for activities justified by the NATIVE Act.
The American Rescue Plan also benefits tribal tourism due
to its focus on infrastructure. Inadequate infrastructure is
the biggest barrier to robust economic development in Indian
Country. This includes tourism. As it is often said in the
tourism industry, a nice place to visit is a nice place to
live. In other words, good roads, clean water and sanitation,
energy transmission, broadband, public safety, workforce
development and other key components of good infrastructure
create an enabling environment for tourism and economic
development.
Looking ahead, Indian Affairs will be announcing in the
next few weeks its new tribal tourism grant program, which is a
competitive grant for tribes funding feasibility studies and
business plans for tourism proposals. Indian Affairs is also
collaborating with the Office of Native Hawaiian Relations at
DOI to award grants to Native Hawaiian organizations to conduct
feasibility studies and business plans for tourism projects
benefitting the Native Hawaiian community.
Indian Affairs will also announce financial support for
tribes to perform infrastructure and/or workforce development
needs assessments for tourism-related economic development.
Regarding interagency coordination in tourism efforts, Indian
Affairs will leverage the new reformed White House Council on
Native American Affairs. Lastly, Indian Affairs is working on
submitting a repot to Congress soon, as mandated by the NATIVE
Act.
Tribal tourism continues to face one of its greatest
challenges with the COVID-19 pandemic. The team at Indian
Affairs and the Department of Interior is committed to working
with Native American, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian
organizations on achieving a prosperous and resilient
indigenous tourism economy once again.
Thank you, Chairman Schatz, Vice Chair Murkowski, and
members of the Committee. I look forward to answering your
questions.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Rodman follows:]
Prepared Statement of Anthony Rodman, Acting Director, Office of Indian
Economic Development, U.S. Department of the Interior
Good afternoon Chairman Schatz, Vice Chair Murkowski, and Members
of the Committee. Thank you for the invitation to appear on behalf of
Indian Affairs at the Department of Interior. I appreciate the
opportunity to discuss COVID-19 impacts on Native tourism.
COVID-19 has rattled the foundations of Tribal economies over the
past year--and one of the hardest hit sectors has been the Tribal
tourism industry. While the extent of the economic damage is still
being quantified, every tourism project funded by Indian Affairs has
reported significant challenges over the past year. Many Reservations
were closed to visitors, travel stopped, and tribal offices were shut
down for extended periods of time. As the country focused on the
immediate health and safety concerns of the COVID-19 pandemic--a
pandemic with a disproportionate impact in Indian Country--Tribal
economies and, specifically, the Tribal tourism industry were hit hard.
Tribal tourism is a multi-billion dollar industry and a prime space
for Tribal economic development that has steadily increased over the
last decade. In 2012, Tribal businesses reported over $38.8 billion
dollars in receipts. \1\ In 2016, approximately 1.96 million oversea
travelers visited Indian Country, which resulted in 41,000 new U.S.
jobs. \2\ While the pandemic has significantly slowed this economic
momentum, Native American, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian tourism
entities and Indian Affairs are striving to quickly recharge the Tribal
tourism sector.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ https://www.census.gov/newsroom/blogs/random-samplings/2016/
08/american-indian-and-alaska-native-owned-businesses-move-past-the-
quarter-million-mark.html
\2\ https://www.aianta.org/resources/economic-impact/
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
In planning for the return of increased tourism, Indian Affairs has
worked with awardees of cooperative agreements and contracts to pivot
and focus on opportunities for virtual tourism and distance training
for Tribal staff, capacity building for Tribes' tourism departments and
offices, and alliance building among industry organizations, state, and
local tourism departments. George Washington University International
Institute of Tourism Studies and the Pamplin College of Business at the
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University have led trainings
with Native cultural entrepreneurs from South Dakota, North Dakota, and
Montana to develop and launch live online tourism experiences on
platforms such as Airbnb and Eventbrite. Some of these Native
entrepreneurs have then hosted online virtual classes with paying
participants to learn about cultural activities like Native fashion and
star quilt making. \3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ https://tribalbusinessnews.com/sections/arts-and-culture/13337-
indigenous-entrepreneurs-experiment-with-airbnb-online-
experiences?fbclid=IwAR0NtzSvaJN5RXPH8plceYmRbMOlkKP3tcuXUlwz_pyD6acQ-
GzJJO-_Fmo
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Indian Affairs is prepared to leverage the resources provided by
the Native American Tourism and Improving Visitor Experience (NATIVE)
Act to support indigenous tourism. This will include a focus on inter-
agency coordination to ensure strategic and culturally appropriate
federal investments for Tribal tourism.
Indian Affairs NATIVE Act Implementation
Since the passage of the NATIVE Act in 2016, the subsequent
appropriations starting in FY 2018, and every fiscal year since, Indian
Affairs has sought to build tribal tourism capacity through a national,
regional, and local approach. \4\ This includes cooperative agreements,
grants, and contracts with universities and non-profit organizations.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ https://www.bia.gov/information-detail/current-indigenous-
tourism-projects
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Office of Indian Economic Development--Indian Affairs (OIED-IA)
received $3.4M in appropriations for FY 2018, FY 2019, and FY 2020, and
$500,000 in FY 2021. The Division of Transportation (DOT) in the Office
of Indian Services (OIS)--Indian Affairs received $1M for FY 2018, FY
2019, FY 2020, and FY 2021. Through these combined appropriations,
Indian Affairs has provided technical assistance, promoted capacity-
building, strategic development, and fostered inter-tribal,
agricultural, and cultural tourism opportunities.
Technical Assistance: Technical assistance for Tribes, Tribal
organizations, and Native Hawaiians to promote full
participation in the tourism industry is provided pursuant to a
performance-based cooperative agreement with the American
Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association (AIANTA). This work
focuses on identifying and accessing federal programs that
support tribal capacity building.
Capacity-Building and Strategic Development: Capacity-
building, strategic development and planning are promoted, and
subject-matter expertise on tourism are strengthened with
tribes in South Dakota and North Dakota pursuant to a contract
with George Washington University. These activities have
focused on strengthening the North Dakota Native Tourism
Alliance (NDNTA) as a regional tourism organization; developing
tourism products and experiences around main events at several
Tribal locations in North Dakota; establishing the South Dakota
Native Tourism Network (SDNTN), which includes all nine of the
state's federally recognized tribes; and developing a regional
native tourism plan for South Dakota.
Inter-Tribal Tourism: Inter-tribal tourism in Montana and
Virginia is fostered through a cooperative agreement with
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia
Tech). These activities support the Montana Tribal Tourism
Development Project, which is working to promote strategic,
culturally appropriate, sustainable tourism development in
Montana's eight tribal communities, and the Virginia Tribal
Tourism Development Project which is assessing tourism
potential with respect to the Virginia Tribes that have
recently been federally recognized. These projects will
identify the Tribes' tourism assets, provide guidance on their
best use, and build human capital to increase visitation.
Agricultural-Tourism: Agricultural-tourism and food-based
visitation is promoted through a cooperative agreement with the
Taos Community Economic Development Corporation (TCEDC).
Through this agreement Tribal staff are trained on how farmers'
markets, restaurants and catering companies operated by Native
growers and entrepreneurs can attract and serve visitors and
boost Tribal employment; in conjunction with the U.S.
Department of Agriculture, classes on produce farming,
commercial kitchen and food pantry operation, and use of
portable slaughter facilities are offered to Tribal members
from Virginia, Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota; and
Virginia Tribal members are trained on leasing farms and
operating farm stands and farmers' markets as part of the
tourism experience.
Cultural-Tourism: Tourism centered on the Navajo Nation's
sheep and woolen culture is developed through a cooperative
agreement with a Native vendor in Navajo Nation.
Indian Affairs Native Tourism Priorities Moving Forward
In addition to continuing the projects described above, Indian
Affairs is committed to implementing its plans to focus on Tribal
economic recovery through a number of efforts.
First, through the new Tribal Tourism Grant Program, a competitive
grant for Native American and Alaska Native Tribes, Indian Affairs will
fund 20-30 feasibility studies and business plans for Tribal tourism
proposals. Feasibility studies and business can be a gateway to
accessing capital for projects.
Second, Indian Affairs will enter into an agreement with the Office
of Native Hawaiian Relations at the Department of Interior to award
grants to Native Hawaiian Organizations to conduct feasibility studies
and business plans for tourism projects benefiting the Native Hawaiian
community.
Third, Indian Affairs will announce a new round of competitive
grants for Tribes to perform infrastructure and/or workforce
development needs assessments for tourism-related economic development.
These studies will help identify gaps in infrastructure or workforce
capacity helping to determine priorities, allocate resources and make
organizational improvements in support of tourism and economic
development. This will help inform the Federal Government on how to
better support tourism development in Indigenous communities in
coordination with other transportation and economic development
programs.
Fourth, Indian Affairs will leverage the newly reformed White House
Council on Native American Affairs to improve inter-agency coordination
to support Tribal tourism between the Department of Transportation,
Department of Commerce, Department of Energy, Department of Health and
Human Services, and the Small Business Administration to focuses on
economic development, energy, and infrastructure.
Finally, Indian Affairs will make the Office of Indian Economic
Development the center of its efforts to support Tribal tourism to
ensure greater efficiencies and to give Tribes one place to go for
NATIVE Act and tourism questions.
Conclusion
Native American, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian cultures cannot
be replicated. They are unique and dynamic, full of life and
complexity. The NATIVE Act recognizes, as does Indian Affairs, the need
for Tribes to tell their stories and share their cultures on their own
terms. Tribal tourism continues to face one of its greatest challenges
with the COVID-19 pandemic. The team at Indian Affairs and the whole of
the Department of Interior is committed to working with Native
American, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian organizations on achieving
a prosperous and resilient Indigenous tourism economy once again.
Chairman Schatz, Vice Chairman Murkowski, and Members of the
Committee, thank you again for the invitation to appear today. I look
forward to answering your questions and our continued partnership
strengthening the Indigenous tourism industry for Tribes, Alaska Native
and Native Hawaiians organizations. Thank you again for your
leadership.
The Chairman. Thank you very much.
It is now my pleasure and honor to introduce my friend,
John De Fries, the President and CEO of the Hawaii Tourism
Authority.
STATEMENT OF JOHN DE FRIES, PRESIDENT/CEO, HAWAII TOURISM
AUTHORITY
Mr. De Fries. My apologies to the Committee for violating
the deadline for submittal which totally falls in my lap
because of my misunderstanding of the deadline itself. So for
that, I apologize.
Aloha, Mr. Chair, Madame Vice Chair and honorable members
of the Committee. In the world of the Native Hawaiian, all life
forms and living systems are interconnected and interrelated,
be it the earth and sky, oceans and forests, flora and fauna,
our ancestors and descendants, be it the people within our
communities and/or peoples we host from around the world.
We are islanders who can source our genealogical origins to
the cosmos and to the molten core of Planet Earth. We are
Native Hawaiian. And, while Hawaii may be the single-most
isolated land mass on our planet, we are connected to all other
islands and continents by Moananuiakeaor, the vast ocean that
surrounds us.
For these reasons we appreciate the opportunity presented
by this Committee to look back at the effects of the past year
for lessons that will guide us forward into the next century,
where future pandemics may arise along with the daunting
challenges related to climate change, sea level rise,
environmental pollution, and population growth, just to name a
few.
Charged with the mission of managing Hawaii tourism in a
sustainable manner, the Board of Directors of the Hawaii
Tourism Authority adopted a new strategic plan in January 2020,
pre-pandemic, that is comprised of four pillars. Number one,
natural resources; two, Hawaiian culture; three, community; and
four, brand marketing. Relative to the pandemic and its
lingering effects, this strategic plan, with its heightened
awareness and comprehensive approach, is serving as a critical
foundation upon which to rebuild Hawaii's economic recovery
with the tourism industry as the lead driver and a potent
catalyst for economic diversification
Additionally, we bear the responsibility of collaborating
with leaders in multiple communities in resolving specific
hotspot locations throughout our State, where consistent
overcrowding is occurring in the absence of appropriate public
policy and effective management systems.
In the four years that preceded the COVID-19 pandemic, an
annual average of 48,682 Native Hawaiians worked in the
tourism-intensive industries per year, accounted for 19.8
percent of the total workers in these industries, and 36.5
percent of the Native Hawaiian workers in all industries. The
top five occupations for Native Hawaiian workers in the tourism
sector were in sales, transportation and material moving, food
preparation and serving, office administration, and management.
While the exact number of Native Hawaiians who were forced
into unemployment due to the pandemic are not available; a fair
estimate would be in the range of 30,000 to 35,000. Restoring
employment opportunities within our visitor industry is a
priority for us at HTA.
However, when we use the term and/or classification of
Native Hawaiian, we are referencing a place as much as we are
describing a people. During the past year of the pandemic, we
were reminded of Hawaii's distinct competitive advantage as a
world-class center of learning and a place of discovery and
rediscovery, with emphasis in the following fields of study:
earth, ocean, and atmospheric sciences; indigenous knowledge
and traditional practices; renewable energy and sustainable
technologies; conflict resolution, civility, compassion, and
the making of peace; conservation, sustainability, health, and
well-being; astronomy, geology, volcanology, forestry, and
botany; Hawaiian culture, multicultural diversity, and cross-
cultural exchange.
Across the spectrum of these specific disciplines, there is
an array of public-private partnerships and associations at
work in Hawaii, with Native Hawaiian leaders at the forefront
who are aligned with the global agenda put forth by the United
Nations and other international organizations who seek a
sustainable future for all of humanity. As we look forward to
the continued economic recovery and tourism's role within it,
we are working to ensure Native communities and our indigenous
ways of knowing are not left behind and forgotten
We have arrived at a crossroads where we must work to
ensure that Native Hawaiians are leading Hawaii's tourism
recovery and reimagination, one that is predicated on ancestral
wisdom and utilizes modern technology to create a regenerative
tourism model that will empower Native Hawaiians and all
peoples of Hawaii to prosper and thrive.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for this opportunity, and I look
forward to answering questions.
[The prepared statement of Mr. De Fries follows:]
Prepared Statement of John De Fries, President/CEO, Hawaii Tourism
Authority
Aloha Mr. Chairman, Madame Vice Chair and Honorable Members of this
Committee:
In the world of the Native Hawaiian, all life forms and living
systems are inter-connected and inter-related; be it the earth and sky,
oceans and forests, flora and fauna, our ancestors, and descendants, be
it the people within our communities and/or peoples we host from around
the world. We are islanders who can source our genealogical origins to
the cosmos and to the molten core of Planet Earth. We are Native
Hawaiian.
And, while Hawaii may be the single-most isolated land mass on our
planet, we are connected to all other islands and continents by
Moananuiakea or, the vast ocean that surrounds us. For these reasons we
appreciate the opportunity presented by this committee, to look back at
the affects of the past year, for lessons that will guide us forward
into the next century; where future pandemics may arise, along with the
daunting challenges related to climate change, sea level rise,
environmental pollution, and population growth--to name a few.
Charged with the mission of managing Hawaii tourism in a
sustainable manner, the Board of Directors of the Hawaii Tourism
Authority adopted a new strategic plan in January 2020 (pre-pandemic)
that is comprised of four pillars: (1) Natural Resources; (2) Hawaiian
Culture; (3) Community; (4) Brand Marketing. Relative to the pandemic
and its lingering effects, this strategic plan--with its heightened
awareness and comprehensive approach, is serving as a critical
foundation upon which to rebuild Hawaii's economic recovery with the
tourism industry as the lead driver and a potent catalyst for economic
diversification.
Additionally, we bear the responsibility of collaborating with
leaders in multiple communities in resolving specific ``hotspot-
locations'' throughout our State, where consistent overcrowding is
occurring in the absence of appropriate public policy and effective
management systems.
In the four years that preceded the COVID-19 pandemic, an annual
average of 48,682 Native Hawaiians worked in the tourism intensive
industries per year, accounted for 19.8 percent of the total workers in
these industries, and 36.5 percent of the Native Hawaiian workers in
all the industries. The top five occupations for Native Hawaiian
workers in the tourism sector were sales, transportation and material
moving, food preparation and serving, office administration, and
management. While the exact number of Native Hawaiians who were forced
into unemployment due to the pandemic are not available; a fair
estimate would be in the range of 30,000-35,000. Restoring employment
opportunities within our visitor industry is a priority.
However, when we use the term and/or classification of ``Native
Hawaiian'', we are referencing a place as much as we are describing a
people. During this past year of the pandemic, we were reminded of
Hawaii's distinct competitive advantage as a world-class center of
learning and a place of discovery and rediscovery; with emphasis in the
following fields of study:
Earth, ocean, and atmospheric sciences
Indigenous knowledge and traditional practices
Renewable energy and sustainable technologies
Conflict-resolution, civility, compassion, and peace
Conservation, sustainability, health, and well-being
Astronomy, geology, volcanology, forestry, and botany
Hawaiian culture, multicultural diversity, and cross-
cultural exchange
Across the spectrum of these specific disciplines, there is an
array of public-private partnerships and associations at work in
Hawaii; with Native Hawaiian leaders at the forefront, who are aligned
with the global agenda put forth by the United Nations and other
international organizations who seek a sustainable future for all of
humanity.
As we look forward to the continued economic recovery and tourism's
role within it, we are working to ensure Native communities and our
indigenous ways of knowing are not left behind and forgotten. We have
arrived at a crossroads where we must work to ensure that Native
Hawaiians are leading Hawaii's tourism recovery and reimagination. One
that is predicated on ancestral wisdom and utilizes modern technology
to create a regenerative tourism model that will empower Native
Hawaiians and all peoples of Hawaii to prosper and thrive.
Appendix
According to the Hawai`i Department of Business, Economic
Development and Tourism's Native Hawaiians in Hawai`i's Tourism
Sector--2021 Update, published in January 2021:
``Between 2015 and 2019, an average of 48,682 Native
Hawaiians worked in the tourism intensive industries per year,
accounted for 19.8 percent of the total workers in these
industries.''
``The top five occupations for Native Hawaiian workers in
the tourism sector were sales, transportation and material
moving, food preparation and serving, office administration,
and management.''
``Compared with all the employees in the tourism intensive
industries, Native Hawaiian workers were generally younger,
more single, more with a high school diploma (but less with
bachelor's degree or higher), and the average wage was lower
than the state level for these industries.''
The initial Native Hawaiians in Hawai`i's Tourism Sector report was
published in April 2017, and it stated:
``Between 2011 and 2015, an average of 37,386 Native
Hawaiians worked in the tourism intensive industries per year,
accounted for 16 percent of the total workers in those
industries.''
``The top five occupations for Native Hawaiian workers in
the tourism sector were sales, office administration, food
preparation, transportation, and building maintenance.''
``Compared with all the employees in the tourism intensive
industries, Native Hawaiians workers were generally younger,
more females, more singles, more with high school diploma, but
less with bachelor's degree or higher, and the average wage was
lower than the state level for these industries.''
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Hawai`i's resident population
was 1,415,872 as of July 1, 2019, with 10.1 percent identifying as
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander (NHPI). When broken down by
county, 12.8 percent identified as NHPI in Hawai`i County, 10.6 percent
in Maui County, 9.6 percent in Honolulu County, and 9.1 percent in
Kaua`i County. (*Demographic data from the 2020 Census is not available
yet.)
Additional information:
HTA's Strategic Plan 2020-2025
At the start of 2020, HTA introduced a strategic plan to guide our
vision and our responsibilities in support of Hawai`i tourism through
2025. HTA has been reorganized around four interacting ``Pillars''
(Natural Resources, Hawaiian Culture, Community, and Brand Marketing)
supported by research and other administrative functions. This plan
establishes a general goal for each Pillar.
www.hawaiitourismauthority.org/media/4286/hta-strategic-plan-2020-
2025.pdf
Destination Management Action Plans (DMAP)
The purpose of the DMAPs is to rebuild, redefine and reset
tourism's direction over a three-year period through a collaborative
process. It's a way to engage Hawai`i's visitor industry, communities,
and other sectors, while identifying areas of need that require
management for proactive mitigation planning.
Kaua`i DMAP
www.hawaiitourismauthority.org/media/6771/hta-kauai-dmap.pdf
Maui Nui DMAP
www.hawaiitourismauthority.org/media/6860/hta-maui-action-plan.pdf
Hawai`i Island DMAP
https://www.hawaiitourismauthority.org/media/7040/hta-hawaii-
island-action-plan.pdf
*O`ahu's DMAP process is still underway.
Hawai`i Green Growth and the Aloha+ Challenge
The Aloha+ Challenge builds on island culture and values and is
Hawai`i's locally-driven framework to implement the United Nations 2030
Sustainable Development Goals. HTA is working to promote visitor
industry alignment with the Aloha+ Challenge. www.hawaiigreengrowth.org
`Aina Aloha Economic Futures
The HTA Board of Directors adopted the `Aina Aloha Economic Futures
declaration during its board meeting in June 2020. The initiative is
made up of guiding principles and a community engagement process that
integrates Native Hawaiian values into Hawai`i's economic recovery.
www.ainaalohafutures.com
DBEDT's Native Hawaiian Entrepreneurs report
https://files.hawaii.gov/dbedt/economic/reports/
Hawaii_Native_Hawaiian_Entrepreneurs.pdf
DBEDT's Native Hawaiian-Owned Firms in Hawai`i's Tourism Sector report
https://files.hawaii.gov/dbedt/economic/reports/
Native_Hawaiian_Owned_Business_in_Tourism.pdf
The Chairman. Thank you, Mr. De Fries.
Next we have Sherry Rupert, CEO of American Indian Alaska
Native Tourism Association.
STATEMENT OF SHERRY RUPERT, CEO, AMERICAN INDIAN ALASKA NATIVE
TOURISM ASSOCIATION
Ms. Rupert. Chairman Schatz, Vice Chairwoman Murkowski, and
members of the Committee, thank you for the opportunity to
provide testimony on behalf of the American Indian Alaska
Native Tourism Association, or AIANTA.
I am the CEO of AIANTA, and I am a proud Paiute and Washoe,
born and raised in Nevada. Prior to becoming CEO of AIANTA, I
was the executive director of the State of Nevada's Indian
Commission. AIANTA is a tribally-led, national non-profit
headquartered in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and is the only
organization specifically dedicated to advancing cultural
tourism in Native nations and communities across the United
States. AIANTA is the organization that has been designated to
serve as a facilitator as named in the NATIVE Act.
Prior to COVID-19, tourism was a leading opportunity for
jobs and economic development in Native nations and
communities. In some rural communities, it is the only viable
opportunities for household income. According to the Department
of Commerce, in 2019, approximately 1.9 million overseas
visitors traveled to an American Indian Community. The economic
devastation caused by the pandemic cannot be understated.
According to the U.S. Travel Association, the pandemic has
impacted travel economies in every State and territory, with
Hawaii suffering the most of any State, with visitor spending
declining by 60 percent in year to year comparisons. Just to
put this into perspective, in 11 States represented by the
members of this Committee, the impact of COVID-19, travel
restrictions and closures, has resulted in nearly $69 billion
in lost visitor spending, and nearly $8 billion lost in tax
revenue.
The Cherokee Nation, the largest tribal nation in the
United States, with more than 390,000 citizens, has an annual
economic impact of more than $2.2 billion and serves as one of
the largest employers in northeastern Oklahoma, with nearly
11,500 employees. The COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced the
importance and need for tribal communities to have reliable
high-speed internet to support tele-medicine, culture, tourism,
and language initiatives.
According to the National Indian Gaming Association, nearly
every one of the 524 Native American casinos closed last year,
resulting in a loss of 296,000 jobs and $1.5 billion in lost
gaming revenue. COVID-19 restrictions have had a dramatic and
far-reaching effect, crippling Native American economies well
beyond tourism, devastating programs such as health and safety,
infrastructure, education, and food programs.
More critically, programs not considered essential,
including cultural heritage activities, museums, cultural
centers, language programs, events, and even sacred observances
came to a halt in 2020 as resources were channeled into
programs considered more critical. Tribal museums and cultural
centers also closed last year. These facilities create jobs and
generate revenue for local communities, serving to perpetuate
indigenous cultures, which were already in jeopardy of being
permanently lost prior to the pandemic.
In Albuquerque, New Mexico alone, one of the largest
powwows, the Gathering of Nations, was canceled in 2020. The
Gathering of Nations powwow is a huge source of revenue, with
an economic impact of $22 million annually. The cancellation of
this powwow and all powwows across the Nation resulted in
significant lost visitor spending, impacting hotels,
restaurants and businesses.
We encourage you to support investments in tourism
infrastructure, training, marketing and program development for
Native nations and communities. We encourage you to support
full implementation of the NATIVE Act.
AIANTA appreciates this Committee's support and hard work
to address the impact of COVID-19. We stand ready to help this
Committee ensure that tourism and economies of Native
Hawaiians, Alaska Natives and American Indians are strengthened
and enhanced through these critical Federal investments.
This concludes my remarks today, and I want to thank you,
Chairman Schatz, Vice Chair Murkowski, and members of the
Committee. I am happy to answer any questions.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Rupert follows:]
Prepared Statement of Sherry Rupert, CEO, American Indian Alaska Native
Tourism Association
Chairman Schatz, Vice-Chairwoman Murkowski and members of the
committee, thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony on behalf
of the American Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association, Inc.
(AIANTA). This testimony will focus on the devastating impact we are
facing from COVID-19 and to encourage you to support FY2022 funding
needs for American Indians, Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiians engaged
in tourism. We also encourage you to support full implementation of the
Native American Tourism and Improving Visitor Experience (NATIVE) Act.
Prior to COVID-19, tourism was a leading opportunity for jobs and
economic development in Indian Country. In some rural and remote
communities, it is one of the only viable opportunities for household
income. According to U.S. Department of Commerce, approximately 1.9
million overseas visitors traveled to an American Indian Community in
2019. These visitors are good for the Native Nations and communities
they visit and for the entire tourism economy because they stay longer
in the U.S. than the average overseas traveler and visit more
destinations (2019 U.S. Travel and Tourism Statistics, National Travel
and Tourism Office, U.S. Dept of Commerce). As we emerge from the
devastating impact of COVID-19, tourism to American Indian, Alaska
Native and Native Hawaiian tourism destinations has a bright future
that lies in the more than one billion leisure travelers in the world,
and the interest of domestic travelers and international visitors in
the American Native cultures and what their communities offer--
memorable and unique experiences, warm hospitality and unusual
landscapes.
AIANTA is the only organization specifically dedicated to advancing
Indian Country tourism across the United States. AIANTA helps tribes
develop, sustain and grow tourism destinations through technical
assistance, training, experiential learning opportunities and
resources. Our mission is to define, introduce, grow and sustain
American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Tourism that honors
traditions and values.
COVID-19
The economic devastation caused by the pandemic cannot be
understated. According to the U.S. Travel Association, the pandemic has
impacted travel economies in every state and territory, with Hawai'i
suffering the most of any state (-60 percent y/y). In Alaska, with the
cancellation of the 2020/2021 cruise ship season, the losses are
impacting the entire state, including Native Alaskans along the
panhandle forced to shutter cultural tourism operations decreasing much
needed revenue and jobs for the region and for the State's economy. The
impact is estimated at $3 billion in gross product loss for each year
the cruise season is not in operation. (Office of Governor Mike
Dunleavy, Report to White House: Alaska Economy Devastated by CDC
Decision on Cruise Ships, April 8, 2021)
Further, from March-December 2020, the pandemic resulted in $492
billion in cumulative losses for the U.S. travel economy, equating to a
daily loss of approximately $1.6 billion for the past 10 months. These
losses also represent $64 billion lost in federal, state, and local tax
revenue since March 1, 2020.
In general, the travel and tourism industry in the United States
generated more than $1.87 trillion in economic impact in 2019,
according to the U.S. Travel Association. Additionally, tourism
supports 9.2 million direct U.S. jobs and accounts for 2.8 percent of
the entire U.S. GDP.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, two thirds of all U.S. jobs lost were
supported by travel, also according to the U.S. Travel Association. In
particular, the franchise lodging sector, a model frequently used by
Indian Country hoteliers, lost more than 200,000 jobs last year.
Research commissioned in early 2020 by the National Indian Gaming
Association found that nearly every one of the 524 Native American
casinos closed last year, resulting in a loss of 296,000 jobs and $1.5
billion in lost gaming revenue.
These lost jobs and decimated gaming revenues have had a dramatic
and far-reaching affect, crippling Native American economies well
beyond tourism, in return devastating programs such as health and
safety, infrastructure, education and food programs across Indian
Country.
More critically, programs not considered essential or lifesaving,
such as cultural heritage activities, museums and cultural centers,
language programs, cultural events, and even sacred observances became
all but extinct in 2020 as decimated budgets were channeled into
programs considered most critical.
Nearly every tribal museum and cultural center closed last year.
Not only do these facilities create jobs and generate incremental
tourism revenues for local communities, but they also serve to
perpetuate indigenous cultures, which were already in jeopardy of being
permanently lost prior to the pandemic.
The concern over the loss of indigenous culture is so critical, the
issue has been defined by the United Nations as one of the six mandated
areas of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.
Rebuilding the tourism economy for American Indian, Alaska Native
and Native Hawai'ians across the United States is critical to the
broader pandemic recovery efforts--particularly in rural areas
suffering from chronic under-investment in infrastructure, data
collection and analysis, technical support and economic development
opportunities. This under-investment has real and devastating effects
including economic devastation and catastrophic health implications.
For example: Navajo Nation has been overwhelmed by the virus with over
30,000 positive cases of COVID-19 and 1,284 confirmed deaths--for a
total population of 180,462. Navajo Nation, to protect their Nation,
made difficult decisions to close the reservation to outside visitors,
implemented a shelter in place order and instituted daily curfews.
Navajo Nation is just one example of many across Indian Country.
Tribal governments and communities put their people first during these
trying times and they will need support to shore-up their systems (many
of which are dependent on revenue generated from tourism) and address
the underlying inequities caused by lack of investment to support
economic opportunities and business development, including for tourism.
American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawai'ian owned
hospitality related businesses (according to the U.S. Census) receipts
from hospitality sector businesses in 2012 equaled $7.681 billion. This
thriving sector of many Native Nations' economies are suffering from
lost revenue and jobs including native owned destination/tourism
destinations to individually owned tribal business/tourism companies.
These closures and decreased visitor traffic will have severe
economic impact on all native communities, especially small, rural
destinations across the United States. When you consider, most American
Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian tourism operations and
destinations are not supported by local, regional or national
destination marketing organizations and/or the tourism industry because
they are not included in the fees and tax support structures that fund
tourism development and growth. Further, American Indians, Alaska
Natives and Native Hawaiians are disproportionately unbanked, resulting
in lack of access to financial tools to assist with recovery.
In a recent AIANTA tourism sentiment survey, 77 percent of
respondents feel that tourism has weakened greatly in their region in
the past year and only 5 percent believed tourism improved greatly.
Further, nearly one in four respondents had to close their business
during the COVID-19 pandemic. (AIANTA's State of Indian Country
Tourism, Spring 2021).
The findings of this year's survey are in sharp contrast to survey
responses pre-pandemic in 2019 with nearly 75 percent of respondents
indicating they believed tourism would increase greatly (28 percent) or
somewhat (47 percent) in the coming year and 33 percent of respondents
expected to increase tourism employment in the coming year. (AIANTA's
State of Indian Country Tourism, Spring 2019).
When done well, tourism provides social and economic stability to
the most remote rural communities and mainstream city neighborhoods,
complementing the effort of American Indian, Alaska Native and Native
Hawaiian enterprises, businesses, organizations, and agencies working
to build economies and contribute to the growth of the U.S. tourism
industry. For example, by investing in Native agritourism, you are also
investing in sustainable practices, water protection and equitable
distribution of resources while addressing food insecurity caused by
reliance on the greater food distribution system for access to healthy
and abundant food supplies. Tourism, including agritourism, brings
revenue to Native Nations and communities providing jobs, localized
investments and the perpetuation of cultural practices.
Request for Support to Address the Impact of COVID-19 and Chronic
Under-Investment
Funding is immediately needed to accelerate and fully implement the
Native American Tourism and Visitor Experience Act (NATIVE Act). The
NATIVE Act is designed to ``enhance and integrate Native American
Tourism, empower Native American communities, increase coordination and
collaboration between Federal Tourism assets, and expand heritage and
cultural tourism opportunities in the United States.'' We have seen the
impact of initial investments in the NATIVE Act including AIANTA's work
to identify and provide technical assistance and training with 2020
seeing some of our largest participation levels in our programming.
Another example of impact can be seen in the swift investments made by
the U.S. Forest Service upon receiving NATIVE Act implementation
funding in cultural tourism infrastructure and projects across the
United States.
Implementation of the NATIVE Act
Priority Agency Investment Recommendations: Initiate agency wide
investments in implementation of the NATIVE Act through appropriation
requests across the federal departments and agencies as named in the
Act to begin to realize the purposes and intent of the Act. We urge the
committee to support full implementation in the intent and purpose of
the NATIVE Act. Through appropriations and support for technical
assistance and training, alongside direct investment at this critical
juncture in the COVID-19 recovery efforts, Native Nations and
communities will rebuild economic opportunities. Investments now will
also help address many of the underlying disparities from chronic
underinvestment exacerbated by COVID-19.
AIANTA's Role and Vision for Rebuilding the Future
AIANTA will work with American Indians, Alaska Natives and Native
Hawaiians to develop, grow and sustain cultural tourism enterprises,
businesses and organizations through technical assistance, training,
marketing and resources.
AIANTA will work with the U.S. Department of Interior to ensure
inclusion of Native Nations and communities in the department and
agency management plans;
AIANTA will work with the U.S. Department of Agriculture to support
recreation and rural development planning and initiatives;
AIANTA will work with the U.S. Department of Commerce and its
divisions: National Travel and Tourism Office, International Trade
Administration and Economic Development Administration to integrate
tribes into the research and development programs offered by Commerce.
AIANTA will work with the National Endowment for the Arts, National
Endowment for the Humanities, Institute for Museum and Library Science,
Administration for Native Americans, and in Smithsonian projects to
ensure tourism tribes are well represented in all federal grant
programs through technical assistance and training opportunities;
AIANTA will collaborate with the U.S. Department of Labor on data
collection and tourism workforce development;
AIANTA will collaborate with the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services to support investments in cultural tourism programming
and initiatives;
AIANTA will collaborate with the U.S. Department of Transportation
on infrastructure initiatives and investments that support cultural
tourism in Native Nations and communities; and
AIANTA stands ready to help rebuild Native Nations and communities
and support full implementation of the NATIVE Act as we move through
this crisis.
The following documents have been retained in the Committee files:
A. Travel Impact: AK
B. Travel Impact: HI
C. Travel Impact: KS
D. Travel Impact: MN
E. Travel Impact: MT
F. Travel Impact: NV
G. Travel Impact: NM
H. Travel Impact: NV
I. Travel Impact: OK
J. Travel Impact: SD
K. Travel Impact: WA
L. Office of Governor Mike Dunleavy, Report to White House: Alaska
Economy Devastated by CDC Decision on Cruise Ships, April 8, 2021
M. Research Fact Sheet--Travel: The Hardest Hit U.S. Industry
N. Case Studies in Tribal Agritourism
O. AITC 2020 Regional Meeting Summary
P. 2019 State of Indian Country Survey
Q. 2020 State of Indian Country/Cultural Heritage Tourism--Impact
of COVID-19
R. 2021 State of Indian Country Survey
S. Letter of Support--Burke
T. Letter of Support--Cherokee Nation
U. Letter of Support--Sun Tours
The Chairman. Thank you very much.
Next, we have Mr. Russell Dick, President and CEO, Huna
Totem Corporation, Juneau, Alaska.
STATEMENT OF RUSSELL DICK, PRESIDENT/CEO, HUMA TOTEM
CORPORATION
Mr. Dick. Thank you, sir. Good afternoon, Chairman Schatz,
Vice Chair Murkowski and members of the Committee. It is
certainly an honor and a pleasure to be here in person and to
see everybody. Thank you.
My name is Russell Dick. I serve as the President and CEO
of Huna Totem Corporation, the Alaska Native Village
Corporation for Hoonah, Alaska, a community of 760 people, and
my hometown. Huna Totem is owned by over 1,400 Alaska Native
tribal shareholders with aboriginal ties to what everyone now
refers to as Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve.
I think we can all attest to the fact that the last 14
months have been extremely challenging for everybody. That is
no different in our rural communities in Alaska and again, my
hometown of Hoonah. But we are resilient. And we have been
resilient because of the cooperative working relationship
Alaska Native Corporations have with their local tribal
organizations and communities in building what we refer to as
economic, social, and cultural infrastructure necessary for the
sustainability of our Alaska Native communities.
If you think about how unique we are in Alaska, just as in
Hawaii, economic opportunity is extremely, extremely limited.
Hoonah is remote. We are not connected to any other community
by a road system, so everything is transported by either plane
or boat. We run primarily off diesel power at a staggering
electricity rate of 54 cents a kilowatt hour.
But even with that, we have done what we believe the Alaska
Native Claims Settlement intended when Congress passed the Act
in 1971. Under that Act, Alaska Native Corporations are
established as for-profit corporations. But we do not have
simply an economic responsibility to our tribal member
shareholders. We have a deep, profound, social and cultural
responsibility as well.
Through our operations, we not only provide dividends to
our shareholders, but we provide employment opportunities,
internships, scholarships, we support our cultural preservation
perpetuation activities by funding language arts programs
through the school system, we provide funding through Hoonah
Heritage Foundation to support our way of life, and to teach
our kids about traditional harvesting activities.
One of our operations, Icy Strait Point, located in Hoonah,
is the only privately owned all-inclusive cruise ship
destination in the U.S., and hosts every major cruise line that
travels to Alaska. Since its opening in 2004, we have
contributed over $60 million directly to the community of
Hoonah. We are the largest private employer and single
contributor to local sales tax, representing 80 percent of the
community's tax base.
Unfortunately, the pandemic has had a devastating impact on
our operations in the community. As we all know, the CDC shut
down the cruise industry in the U.S., and to date, it is the
only, the only major industry not operating today. In 2020
alone, that shutdown meant the loss of at least half a million
guests and their economic contributions of nearly $10 million
to our community.
Icy Strait Point normally employs over 250 people during
the season, with nearly 80 percent local and Alaska Native
hire, all in a community less than 800 people. All of those
jobs were non-existent in 2020 and all of those jobs are non-
existent today.
So it has been over 20 months since Alaska has seen a
cruise ship, and our 2021 Alaska cruise season is also in
peril, which will continue to devastate the communities
throughout Alaska, like Hoonah, that depend on tourism. A quick
restart to cruising in Alaska is absolutely critical.
Please remember, our season is only five months. We operate
from May through September. If we don't see a cruise ship in
2021, it will be 31 months without any economic opportunity in
our community. That is devastating socially and culturally.
As you can see the impacts of the pandemic on Native
tourism and the tourism economy more broadly, we have a few
additional suggestions outside of the CDC work that our Alaska
delegation is doing today. We support equitable funding for
Native American borrowers participating in the Bureau of Indian
Affairs loan guarantee program.
Last year, Congress enacted provisions in the CARES Act
that provided $17 billion to the SBA to pay principal, interest
and fees on SBA loan products. That assistance was for a period
of six months, which was then extended by Congress at the end
of 2020.
But for whatever reason, Congress has declined to provide
any relief to the BIA program's Native American borrowers, even
though the BIA program was intended to reduce the disparities
between Native and non-Native businesses.
Finally, the Passenger Vessel Services Act needs to be
reformed to support American jobs. To avoid violating the PVSA,
foreign-built ships have to visit a foreign port at some point
during their voyage. For cruises for Alaska, that means a stop
in Canada. The problems associated with the PVSA have been
exacerbated by the pandemic, during which time Canada has
closed its port to cruise ships.
The price is paid in Alaska, in our region, and to our
village. To me personally, Mr. Chair, and Madam Vice Chair, as
an indigenous community in the United States of America, having
another Country dictate our economic prosperity has to be
completely unacceptable.
What matters most for us today is the next steps to salvage
the 2021 season and return to normal operations in 2022. We all
agree that public health is our common priority, but economic
health is intertwined with that goal. They need not and should
not be mutually exclusive.
[Phrase in Native tongue.] Thank you for the opportunity to
comment today.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Dick follows:]
Prepared Statement of Russell Dick, President/CEO, Huna Totem
Corporation
Good afternoon Chairman Schatz, Vice Chair Murkowski, and members
of the Committee. Thank you for the opportunity to testify before you
today.
My name is Russell Dick. I serve as President & CEO of Huna Totem
Corporation, the Alaska Native village corporation for the village of
Hoonah, Alaska. Huna Totem Corporation has worked for nearly 20 years
to develop our port, Icy Strait Point, as a premier destination for the
cruise ship industry. To our knowledge, Icy Strait Point is the only
Indigenous-owned, all-inclusive cruise ship port in the United States.
Icy Strait Point is located near the community of Hoonah, approximately
35 miles west of Juneau and 22 miles from Glacier Bay National Park and
Preserve, which is our ancestral homeland. Icy Strait Point drives our
local economy and provides enormous economic, social, and cultural
benefits for our people. The impacts of COVID-19 on our Native tourism
economy cannot be overstated. It is critical that our tourism economy
be restored as quickly as possible, which means among other things
taking every necessary step to ensure that cruise ship services return
to Southeast Alaska as early this summer as possible.
Our Corporation
Huna Totem Corporation is owned by over 1,400 shareholders whose
aboriginal ties are to the Village of Hoonah and what is now Glacier
Bay National Park and Preserve, in Southeast Alaska. The Corporation
was formed under the terms of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act
(ANCSA), enacted by Congress on December 18, 1971. Huna Totem
Corporation was incorporated on November 9, 1973.
ANCSA paved the way for the formation of 12 Alaska Native regional
corporations and approximately 200 village corporations spread
throughout 12 regions in Alaska. Under ANCSA, Huna Totem Corporation
received one township (23,040 acres) of land.
Alaska Native corporations operate as for-profit entities for the
benefit of their owners, but they are not typical corporations. Huna
Totem Corporation has business interests in tourism, investment
management, federal contracting, and natural resources. As contemplated
under ANCSA, these interests enable us to return important economic,
social, and cultural benefits to our community. Beyond the dividends we
return to our shareholders, we provide internships and employment, and
support our cultural preservation and perpetuation activities through
the Huna Heritage Foundation and Alaska Native Voices Educational
Institute. We support our elders with firewood deliveries, our schools
with computers and broadband access, and our community with food
supplies. In short, our mission is holistic in our contributions to the
community, as was originally intended under ANSCA.
Our Community
Hoonah is located on Chichagof Island. We, as members of the Xuna
Kaawu, have thrived in the area for thousands of years. Our community
is remote; it is not connected to any other community by a road system,
runs significantly on diesel power, and has limited economic
opportunity. Economic activities that largely defined our economy in
the twentieth century--timber and fishing--are at a low ebb. However,
we are a resilient people, and we are fortunate to have had an
opportunity to develop a sustainable tourism-based economy for our
village.
Ground was broken at Icy Strait Point in 2001. We invested in
ourselves, making significant renovations and modern additions to
Hoonah's historic salmon cannery. The Celebrity cruise ship MV Mercury
made the inaugural call to Icy Strait Point in 2004. Through bold
leadership, strategic investment, and historic resolve, we brought Icy
Strait Point to life, ushering in a new era of economic opportunity for
the community of Hoonah and our shareholders, providing employment,
financial contributions, and a strong tax base to support the
community.
Since that first ship call in 2004, we have built two cruise ship
piers, along with extensive uplands facilities, 30 tours and
excursions, three waterfront restaurants, 100 percent Alaska-owned
retail shops, the world's largest zipline, and Alaska's first high-
speed gondola system. Icy Strait Point is now renowned as a world-class
cruise ship destination and we are proud to have won Seatrade's 2020
Global Port of the Year award, which recognized Icy Strait Point for
incorporating not only the beauty of Alaska, but the authentic and
unique culture and values of the Xuna Kaawu.
For over 16 years, Huna Totem has been on a journey to develop Icy
Strait Point into a world-class destination. Since opening in 2004, we
have hosted over two million passengers, and received ships calls from
every major cruise line traveling to Alaska. We are the single largest
employer and contributor to local sales tax in Hoonah, having
contributed over $60 million directly to the community over that 16-
year period.
The pandemic has affected us all. For Hoonah, the pandemic has
meant the loss of at least a half million guests and the concomitant
economic contribution to our community. Icy Strait Point will return,
not because we are a corporation per se, but because we are the
corporation--the village corporation--that Congress created to serve
our people. But we need the Federal Government's help and cooperation
now to do that.
Economic Impact of the Pandemic
The shutdown of the cruise industry has profoundly disrupted our
local economy, as 80 percent of our local tax base comes from tourism.
Icy Strait Point normally employs over 250 people during the cruise
ship season, with nearly 80 percent local and Alaska Native hire. All
of this occurs in a village of less than 800 residents.
Icy Strait Point is a great example of what Alaska Native village
corporations can do for their communities. Beyond the tax contributions
to our community, the jobs and the infusion of dollars into the local
economy, the heart of our business is truly the families and their
children who own our business and are empowered by it. During the 2019
season, Icy Strait Point employed 27 of the 32 students from the high
school in Hoonah. Think about that: we exist to create opportunity for
our kids in their own community. Isn't that the core of what parents
want for their children in their hometowns? This is what Congress
intended when it created Alaska Native corporations.
But we have faced an enormous challenge as a consequence of the
pandemic. Where in 2019 we received 167 ship calls carrying roughly
270,000 visitors, the 2020 season was cancelled. In 2020, Icy Strait
Point expected to receive 212 ship calls carrying over 440,000
passengers and employ over 250 people with a direct economic
contribution of over $10 million to the community of Hoonah. At this
time, over 20 months have passed since Alaska has seen a cruise ship.
The result has been closed local businesses, the loss of hundreds of
jobs, a slowdown in economic activity, an increase in food insecurity,
lost ferry service, and decreased funding to the City of Hoonah,
amongst other negative effects. As you know, the 2021 season is now
imperiled. The loss or further delay of the 2021 summer cruise season
will continue to devastate the communities throughout Alaska, like
Hoonah, that depend on tourism. A quick restart to cruising in Alaska
is critical. Leadership from the City of Hoonah, the community, and Icy
Strait Point are all eager for cruise ships to return.
Our Concerns with the Ongoing Federal Approach to Tourism
We believe that a balanced approach to the pandemic, looking
forward, must consider both the direct health issues of COVID-19
coupled with the need to avoid devastating impacts on our village
economy. As a port, we hold ourselves to the highest standards in
hygiene, safety, and environmental protection, serving as our village's
economic engine while keeping our guests, staff, elders, and community
members safe. We would like to see the Federal Government take a
balanced approach as well.
We are deeply concerned with the handling of the pandemic and of
our industry by the Federal Government and, in particular, the Centers
for Disease Control (CDC). As we wrote to the CDC last January, five
long months ago, the next steps to be undertaken by the CDC regarding
cruising are of great interest to us. Cruising has safely resumed in
other parts of the world, with multiple levels of prevention proving
successful. We are ready to move forward.
In Alaska, we are well-prepared to regulate and manage local
operations, working together with industry and our local and state
authorities. The community of Hoonah has been proactive and successful
in managing the pandemic, with 100 percent of locals and visitors
tested upon arrival, weekly wastewater testing, and currently zero
active cases (with only 4 cases total throughout the pandemic).
Icy Strait Point developed a COVID-19 response plan back in April
of 2020. We have initiated and are committed to the GBAC STAR facility
accreditation program, from the Global Biorisk Advisory Council, a
Division of ISSA--The Worldwide Cleaning Industry Association, to
prevent and respond to outbreaks, and to deliver a clean, healthy, and
safe environment. This is a third-party validation of safety and
documented systems.
We have been actively communicating with the state of Alaska, City
of Hoonah, Juneau, and other ports in southeast Alaska, and with cruise
line operators expected to visit Icy Strait Point. We have explored
various technologies in sanitation; and our policies and procedures
meet or exceed current cruise line operational protocols, including the
Vessel Sanitation Program, as well as existing CDC COVID-19 guidance.
To date, the CDC's singular focus on the cruise industry, the overly
prescriptive details in its Conditional Sale Order and accompanying
guidance, and its one-size-fits-all policies that do not fit rural
Alaska, have proven preclusive to an actual 2021 season.
Combining strong vaccination programs with adherence to the 74
recommendations developed by the Healthy Sail Panel will provide for a
safe resumption of sailing. The plain truth is that our village, our
corporation, our part of Alaska, the cruise lines, and the CDC all have
the same goal, which is to safely sail.
We suggest that the CDC should limit its oversight to on-board or
at-sea issues and leave onshore issues to existing CDC regulations and
local control, as it does for other tourism operations, hospitality,
and other industries. We would ask that CDC continue to review and
revise its technical instructions to ensure that Alaska can have as
much of a 2021 season as possible. After a long delay, we understand
CDC is now working to ensure cruise lines can return to operation.
CDC's continued commitment to this goal is critical to us and it must
be held to account. Cruise ships can move their operations to any
region of the world but we cannot. We need the CDC to work with the
cruise lines to ensure they can return to Alaska as soon as possible
this summer.
How Congress Can Help: Provide Relief to Bureau of Indian Affairs Loan
Guarantee Program Borrowers
As Congress considers the impacts of the pandemic on Native tourism
and the tourism economy more broadly, we have a few suggestions. For
starters, we strongly urge Congress to provide equitable funding to
support Native American borrowers participating in the Bureau of Indian
Affairs (BIA) Loan Guarantee Program.
Last year, Congress enacted provisions in the CARES Act that
provided $17 billion to the Small Business Administration (SBA) to pay
the principal, interest, and fees on all preexisting SBA loan products
issued under SBA's Section 7(a) loan guarantee, 504, and microloan
programs. The legislation directed SBA to provide this assistance for a
period of six months on behalf of small businesses impacted by COVID-
19. Congress extended this coverage under the Aid to Hard-Hit Small
Businesses, Nonprofits, and Venues Act, signed into law on December 27,
2020. Congress should provide similar relief to Native-owned businesses
participating in the BIA Loan Guarantee Program; the failure thus far
to extend equal relief to the BIA Program's Native American borrowers
is inequitable on its face.
Native-owned businesses around the country are struggling to stay
afloat. This is particularly true for businesses in the tourism and
hospitality sectors, for which the COVID-19 emergency has been
particularly damaging. One of the programs already in place to support
Native-owned businesses is the BIA Loan Guarantee Program, established
pursuant to Section 201 of the Indian Financing Act of 1974.
This program supports Native-owned businesses that contribute to
the economy of an Indian reservation or a Tribal service area. Native-
owned businesses across Indian Country participate in this program,
including businesses in New Mexico, Arizona, Alaska, Oklahoma, Nevada,
Montana, Washington, Wisconsin, North Dakota, and South Dakota.
Congress should extend relief to Native-owned businesses participating
in the BIA Loan Guarantee Program, which would help these businesses
survive long enough to get back on track financially. The BIA Loan
Guarantee Program is small, and relief would cost a small fraction of
the relief already extended to other SBA program borrowers.
Specifically, we suggest that Congress should provide funding to
BIA to aid Native-owned businesses based on relative economic need,
with a six-month base period for all borrowers (consistent with the
CARES Act relief for SBA borrowers), and additional funding available
to allow BIA to extend the relief period for up to 18 months to
individual borrowers based on the relative economic impact of COVID-19
to their respective businesses.
It is inequitable that financial assistance has not already been
extended to borrowers participating in the BIA Loan Guarantee Program.
As BIA points out on its website, ``Congress passed the Indian
Financing Act of 1974 . . . to reduce the disparity between business
capital available to Indian and non-Indian businesses.'' As noted by
the Treasury Department's Native American CDFI Assistance Program,
Native communities face unique challenges to economic growth, including
heightened barriers to accessing capital and basic financial services.
Congress should help BIA Loan Guarantee Program borrowers, just as it
has done for SBA borrowers.
How Congress Can Help: Fund the Maritime Transportation System
Emergency Relief Program
We recommend that Congress support an appropriate level of FY 2022
funding for the Maritime Transportation System Emergency Relief
program, as established in Section 3505 of the FY 2021 National Defense
Authorization Act. Section 3505, the Maritime Transportation System
Emergency Relief Act, was designed to ``provide relief to those in the
maritime industry during a national emergency such as the ongoing
COVID-19 pandemic or natural disasters.''
The new program, if appropriately funded, will provide broad
assistance to ports and public and private entities engaged in
``support activities'' for marine transportation. Huna Totem
Corporation suggests that the Maritime Administration should give
priority to marine transportation and port entities based on relative
loss of income experienced because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
How Congress Can Help: Amend the Passenger Vessel Safety Act to Protect
American Jobs
Huna Totem urges Congress to reform the Passenger Vessel Safety Act
(PVSA) in a manner that will best support American jobs. Congress needs
to recognize that large passenger ships have not been built in the
United States for over 60 years. As it pertains to large cruise ships,
the PVSA's mandated use of U.S.-built vessels is protectionism for an
industry that simply does not exist. The price is paid here in Alaska,
in our region, and in our village.
The problems associated with the PVSA have been exacerbated by the
pandemic, during which Canada has closed its ports to cruise ships,
making it currently impossible for Alaskan cruises to carry on even
after the Federal Government has signed off on cruising.
To avoid violating the PVSA, ships that do not meet its
requirements must visit a foreign port at some point during their
voyage. For cruises to Alaska, that means a stop in Canada. But
Canada's ports currently are off-limits to cruise ships through
February 2022--making visits to Alaska by such vessels impossible
without a change in the statute or administrative waiver, which is also
proving difficult to obtain.
The reality is that our community currently faces a situation in
which we might have no economy this summer to support our employees--80
percent of whom are local and Native hire--because Congress has not
dealt with the PVSA. This is not Canada's fault; this is the Federal
Government's fault. Let me be clear: the PVSA right now is preventing
us from hiring Americans in an American community that desperately
needs those jobs. The U.S. Congress is responsible for this problem.
Conclusion
The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on our community and our
corporation have been extreme. They have been compounded by the
complexity and slowness of the CDC's response, a terribly outdated
federal law, and a failure to extend benefits made available to SBA
Loan Guarantee Program borrowers to BIA Loan Guarantee Program
borrowers. The loss of jobs and tax base have been profound. What
matters most for us today is the next steps to salvage a 2021 season
and return to normal operations in 2022. We all agree that public
health is our common priority, but economic health is inextricably
intertwined with that goal. They need not, and should not, be mutually
exclusive. The time to move forward is now. We are looking to you for
help. Thank you.
The Chairman. Thank you very much for your compelling
testimony. I am going to try to go very quick because we do
have votes coming up.
Mr. Alvord, I spoke with Secretary Raimondo to share my
disappointment that the Department had failed to implement the
NATIVE Act over the last four years. How is the Department
going to move forward, specifically?
Mr. Alvord. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for the question. I am
aware that the Department had not provided some of the reports
called for under the Act and has been slow to implement some of
the other provisions, including putting in place a memorandum
of understanding, and various forms of interagency coordination
and prioritization around our grant funding.
As I hope I have expressed in my testimony here today, the
Department has strong equities and I think a lot of policies,
programs, data and information that we can bring to bear to aid
the implementation of that Act. You have our full commitment to
doing so moving forward.
The Chairman. We will be checking in just about monthly,
not to create a sort of reporting requirement that costs you a
lot of time, but just to know where we are. We can go to
quarterly or even annually if I feel sufficiently confident
that it is being implemented. But for at least the time being,
I would like to understand at a somewhat granular level how you
are moving along.
Speaking of granular level of implementation, Mr. Rodman,
you mentioned the $12 million provided by Congress to BIA. I
wonder what the time frame is for deploying those dollars.
Mr. Rodman. Thank you, Senator Schatz. We are looking for
the tribal tourism grant to go out within the month, hopefully
sooner than that. And that soon right on the heels of that
would be the Native Hawaiian Organization grants as well. So it
is one of the next grants that we are going to churn out, the
tourism grants.
The Chairman. Thank you.
Ms. Rupert, how can the Federal Government use the NATIVE
Act to increase support for Native tourism, and are there any
Federal agencies that you believe should serve as a model for
NATIVE Act implementation?
Ms. Rupert. Sure. We work with several agencies within the
Federal system. There are some agencies that have considered
their management plans and have included tribes in that. Most
recently, Congress appropriated $1 million to the U.S. Forest
Service. I have seen the projects that they are funding, and
they are all across the Country in every region.
So we would love to see more of that, with the Federal
agencies working closely with us, with AIANTA, and through the
NATIVE Act. It provides a number of opportunities for tribes to
be more involved at the Federal level. We would be happy to
assist in any manner that we can.
The Chairman. Thank you very much.
Mr. De Fries, I have a couple of questions for you. First
of all, thank you for being willing to serve in the government,
and thanks for your leadership on these issues.
The NATIVE Act seeks to empower Native Hawaiians to tell
their own stories. I am wondering what you think HTA can do to
ensure Native Hawaiians play a role in defining the contours of
tourism going forward. I am particularly interested, I am sort
of merging two of my questions, in the balance that you have to
strike between presenting an authentic version of the State of
Hawaii, but still dealing in numbers, dealing in the objectives
around maybe 10 million visitors annually is too many. But
certainly you are looking at millions of people and trying to
provide an authentic experience to them.
How do you do that and maintain authenticity when it is in
the millions, when you are allowing people to visit places and
cultures and people that want to tell their own stories, and
yet it is unsustainable at the cultural level, sometimes at the
environmental level, to have that many people interacting in
that way? I am wondering how you strike that balance.
Mr. De Fries. We are in the process of trying to learn how
to strike that balance, to be quite honest. When we ended year
2019 at 10,400,000 visitors, it was a banner year, first time
Hawaii had ever surpassed that 10 million mark. But it
produced, in certain areas, a lot of tension in terms of
overcrowding and what we have come to know as over-tourism.
What is going to help that is some of the management
systems that we are working together with, DLNR, Department of
Land and Natural Resources, to try and manage the flow of
people, especially giving them information as to what peak
periods they should avoid.
On a macro level, what we have done is we have taken the
conversation to every island and every community and basically
invited, over the last 14 months, each of the islands to
convene a very diverse steering committee that sets a framework
in place for a larger community discussion, and giving voice
and definition to what a sustainable tourism model looks like
in their community, on their island specifically.
So we are on a steep learning curve to try and understand
that. Question number one every week for me is someone saying,
how do we cap the number of air seats, how do we cap the number
of rental cars, all of that. Frankly, you are aware that there
is Federal legislation that keeps us from being able to do
that.
So the best we can do is to try and manage this flow
seasonally and throughout the various islands, and as best we
can prevent this over centralization of human activity in
certain hot spots throughout the State.
The Chairman. Thank you. I appreciate the two thoughts.
First, you are right, we would have to amend the Constitution
to be able to stop people from coming in, which would be quite
a challenge. The other thing I want to recognize is the
humility with which you approach this inherently difficult
challenge. We do want people visiting, we want to welcome them.
But there is such a thing as too much of a good thing, and
I think 10,400,000 was well beyond too much of a good thing.
But now we don't have enough of a good thing and we have tens
of thousands of people wanting to go back to work. So striking
that right balance in whatever it is that is the new
equilibrium is at least partly your job, and I appreciate it.
Vice Chair Murkowski.
Senator Murkowski. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I am smiling because we are living that same scenario in
Alaska. We are not at 10 million, we thought 1.3 was pretty
significant. But how you do achieve that balance is so
important.
Mr. Dick, thank you for your testimony, the compelling
story. I think you have outlined in a very clearly articulated
way how, with the promise of ANCSA we really have seen an
economic and cultural empowerment. You have described the jobs
that have been created in a small community, 760 people, and a
recognition that the contribution to the tax base there, 80
percent of the tax base comes from the tourist base that you
have built.
It was not too many years ago that I was in Hoonah. Not
only did Hoonah not have a bank at that time, they didn't even
have a cash machine. So the only way that you could get money
is if you flew to Juneau, or actually the store there would
cash a check. But our reality is what Huna Totem has put in
place has been an economic lifeline that you have created
there. I think it is extraordinarily significant.
Thirty-one months, we are hoping that it will not be 31
months where we do not have a tourist season. We are hoping, we
are doing everything possible again, beginning with
communicating with the Secretary of Homeland just this morning
on PVSA and what we might be able to do on that. Explain to the
Committee, though, if you don't have tourism, what economic
opportunity does the community of Hoonah have right now in
Alaska?
Mr. Dick. Thank you for that question, Vice Chair
Murkowski. I don't think there is much opportunity at all. If
you look at some of the other communities in Alaska, some in
the interior, communities like Juneau or Ketchikan, you may
still have the opportunity for independent travelers. Not to
the extent that you used to have them, but you still have that
opportunity.
In Hoonah, we don't have that opportunity. We don't have
that infrastructure. Our infrastructure is built around cruise
ships and cruise ship travelers.
Senator Murkowski. Could people fly Alaska Airlines into
Hoonah?
Mr. Dick. You can get a Cessna and a Caravan into our
airport. Nothing bigger than that, Senator.
Senator Murkowski. So let me ask, then, because you noted
that CDC focuses absolutely on health and safety as is their
mission. We understand that. Can you describe the COVID
response plan, the safety protocols that you have put in place
in order to provide for this level of opportunity so that folks
can come in? I think there are some who are saying, we will at
all costs just open the doors because we need the economic
revenues.
But just describe very briefly the third party validation
of the safety systems, what you have put in place to make sure
that not only the passengers are in a safe place, but also the
entire community of Hoonah, and the efforts they have made.
Mr. Dick. Thank you, Senator. I think I will answer that in
a couple of ways. In the first way is how we have built out Icy
Strait Point. It is built a mile and a half away from the
community of Hoonah. So we are able to keep guests relatively
contained there, though we do have guests that come up into
town.
The city of Hoonah has done an extraordinary job, through
Hoonah Indian Association, the local tribe, in basically
monitoring COVID in and out of the community. So everybody, 100
percent of all travelers who come into the community by plane
or by boat, or otherwise, I don't know how otherwise you might
get there, maybe swimming, they do 100 percent testing. Based
on that testing, they will have people quarantined if they test
positive; if not, they continue on with their daily lives.
In the community of Hoonah, they have had a total of six
cases of COVID over the last 14 months. They have done an
extraordinary job themselves.
For us at Icy Strait Point, we have an individual who has a
Masters in public health. From day one, in early April, we have
had protocols put in place around sanitation, hygiene, how we
are going to control the flow of passengers, what kinds of
protocols we are going to put in place in terms of mask-
wearing, indoors, outdoors. That has been in place since April
of last year.
We have updated that plan based on the Health Sales Panel
74 recommendations that came out of the work that Royal
Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Line did. We have continued to
update that based on the guidance that the CDC has put out.
So we feel extremely confident about our ability to safely
manage guests at our port and ensure the protection of our
elders and our community members.
Senator Murkowski. One last quick question for you. You
have had an opportunity to listen to Mr. Alvord with EDA as
well as Mr. Rodman with BIA, a discussion about what is
available through EDA in terms of funding opportunities as well
as competitive grants for tribes that Mr. Rodman mentioned
through BIA.
You have articulated, I think very well, and it is a good
reminder to us that with the BIA loan guarantee program,
allowing that to provide relief to Native-owned businesses,
that is a very important suggestion to the Committee. Do you
see, either through EDA, or the BIA grants that Mr. Rodman is
speaking to, that these could be helpful within Native tourism?
Mr. Dick. Thank you, Senator. We hadn't seen that to date.
Of course, given the current definition of their programs, we
will certainly go back and take a look to see if those can work
for Alaska Native Corporations.
I know the issue through EDA has always been money going to
communities and to tribes, and not necessarily to Alaska Native
Corporations who have made the kind of investment that we have
in a place like Icy Strait Point.
Senator Murkowski. Again, I think you have outlined very
well how those benefits that come through the ANC then are
spread out, whether it is to the 1,400 shareholders there at
Huna Totem, or more broadly.
Mr. Chairman, thank you so much.
The Chairman. Senator Cortez Masto.
Senator Cortez Masto. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Again, thank
you to all the panelists.
Mr. Alvord, let me start with you. I noticed in your
testimony you are still working through the funding
availability notice for the total $3 billion in the American
Rescue Plan as well as how to implement the 25 percent carveout
for tourism support. Can you please talk about the metrics that
EDA will be using to ensure that the funding is prioritized for
the communities that have suffered the greatest impact of the
tourism decline?
Mr. Alvord. Absolutely, Senator, and thank you for that
question. I should start by saying that EDA is acutely aware
that even before the pandemic that Native communities were
underserved and among the most economically distressed
communities that are eligible for EDA assistance. The pandemic
only exacerbated that situation. These same communities were
then among the most impacted from a health and economic
development standpoint.
As a result, we have taken a number of actions as part of
our program designed to make sure that we are in a very strong
position to be able to serve those needs. One action that we
have taken already is that we have revised our investment
priorities. These serve as a guideline for how EDA will
undertake its investment activity. We have made equity among
the principal priorities through which we will be viewing our
investment portfolio, for the ongoing work under the CARES Act,
for the new work that we will be initiating under the American
Rescue Plan, and for the entirety of EDA's economic development
assistance program.
So we believe that will be very helpful in ensuring that we
are guiding our investments toward those types of
opportunities.
Among the principal metrics that we use to look at how we
are doing, we evaluate how many jobs we are helping to create
or retain as a result of our current investments, as well as
the additional private and public investment that is being
leveraged.
Senator Cortez Masto. Let me be a little bit more specific.
Are you going to make it clear that tourism marketing is an
eligible and worthwhile investment? That was something that I
really fought for in the ARP, because our tourism and travel
industry had been so hard hit.
I want to make sure that that carveout that was focused on
tourism is also a metric that many of our communities know is
available for funding. Is that something you are going to
highlight with them?
Mr. Alvord. Absolutely, Senator. We definitely view
marketing as a critical component to helping the tourism
economy to bounce back quickly at this time. We believe that
will align very well with our traditional metrics, because it
is going to help to retain jobs, it is going to help to bring
jobs back very quickly. So within that $750 million industry
specific set-aside within the American Rescue Plan, marketing
activities will be eligible, and we will be certain to make
that clear.
Senator Cortez Masto. Okay, thank you.
Ms. Rupert, in your testimony you note that destination
marketing organizations don't always market tribal
destinations, because they aren't included in the fee
structure. Do you think tourism promotion is key to getting
visitors to come back to tribal communities? How can we better
target investments to those who need that support?
Ms. Rupert. Definitely yes. Every tribal destination
attraction needs to be marketed. We do our best with the
limited amount of funding that we have. But for tribes and
Native-owned businesses to be marketed by their own State would
be so helpful to them, as well as through Brand USA, our
marketing of the United States. It is very important for tribes
to be included in that as well.
So the issue is that when tribes are located within a
certain State but don't, on their tribal lands, especially in
Nevada, none of our tribes have lodging establishments. So
therefore, they are not putting into the lodging tax that goes
to the State for promotion of the State. So our tribes don't
get promoted in that way.
Senator Cortez Masto. Thank you. That is why, to the
Chairman and members of the Committee, the work that I have
done and will continue to do is, how do we ensure that our
tribal communities have the support they need at the Federal
level to incentivize their economic development, whether that
is around tourism or travel or other things that we can help
them with.
But I think it is so important. I know just in the State of
Nevada, and what Sherry said is, our tribes, we don't have
tribal gaming. Many of the tribes cannot compete with the
gaming that is on the Las Vegas strip or in Reno. So we have to
figure out other ways that we can continue to incentivize
economic development, and tourism or travel. Outdoor recreation
s also an important part of this as well.
Thank you to the panel members, and thank you for this
important hearing.
The Chairman. Senator Hoeven.
STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN HOEVEN,
U.S. SENATOR FROM NORTH DAKOTA
Senator Hoeven. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Director Rodman, for you as the Country and of course the
tribes work to come out of the COVID pandemic, obviously you
face many challenges. One is to get their economy going again.
Specifically, how do you help them jump start their
economies and get them going, particularly in regard to
tourists?
Mr. Rodman. Thank you, Senator Hoeven. With regard to
tourism, we are hoping to get our funding out very quickly for
grants and for the technical assistance component. The grants
that we have done typically are feasibility studies based; not
all, but mostly. So that really scopes out the viability of a
project. For these particular grants, they will be
accommodating or considering tourism businesses that have
really been impacted by COVID-19, which is pretty much all of
them. So how do they bounce back from that. Those will be
individually based.
We are also working with our technical assistance teams in
certain regions for a regional approach. That is really
leveraging the cooperation of all the tribes in a given State,
and the State tourism departments, and the local infrastructure
to get a big boost, and for tribes to get more visibility. Some
of the tourism promotion that is going on in States, in North
Dakota, that is right on the cusp of taking off from the work
that we have done.
Then working with AIANTA to identify more nationally the
technical assistance needs, then figuring out how to deliver
those most effectively to tribal communities which will inform
our Federal policies on how to best address those technical
assistance needs. So it is really national, regional, and we
have some local projects as well.
Senator Hoeven. So in terms of lessons learned, what are
the lessons learned in terms of COVID and how you can really
make a difference?
Mr. Rodman. I think, sir, in talking to our technical
assistance experts, one of the areas that they are focusing on
and working with the tribal teams now is resiliency. I know
that we talk a lot about resiliency. But I think this COVID-19
was, everyone was using the word unprecedented, but that is
really what happened here. So the experts that we are working
with at George Washington University and Virginia Tech are
working with the tribal teams to ensure there are ways to
pivot.
So in this case there was a lot of online, a lot of things
went to line. We looked at online tourism, and we went to
Airbnb and Eventbrite. There were certain sessions where people
could pay and learn about star quilt making or Native fashion
or other cultural elements, to learn about that. But then there
were also some where artisans could sell some of the products
as well.
So we are trying to factor that in moving forward, we have
to, given COVID-19, it is that resiliency type of methodology.
Senator Hoeven. Thank you.
Ms. Rupert, how do public-private partnerships like Brand
USA as well as other organizations work with tribes to help
them with jobs and their economy, particularly in regard to
tourism?
Ms. Rupert. Here at AIANTA, we do partner with Brand USA.
We partner with them on fan tours. We bring international
groups over, specifically Italian, the Italian market, tour
operators and travel agents. And we bring them to different
parts of the Country, into different tribes annually. Usually
that is prior to IPW, which is the largest travel trade show in
North America.
We actually work with the tribes to build the itinerary. We
take these tour operators, media and travel agents with us
there, and they get to learn all about those tribes and find
out which destinations and attractions they can participate in,
or add to their tours. So we partner with them, and that way,
they usually come to our annual American Indian Tourism
conference, and talk about the different initiatives that they
are doing, inviting the tribes to participate in that.
There definitely needs to be, as I mentioned earlier, there
definitely needs to be more of that going on in Indian Country.
Senator Hoeven. Thank you very much. Thank you, Mr.
Chairman.
The Chairman. Thank you.
I will now turn to Vice Chair Murkowski for some concluding
remarks.
Senator Murkowski. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I know we do have votes that have begun. I want to thank
our witnesses for their contributions here today. I think we
recognize that we have seen an unprecedented amount of Federal
funding that has been directed to provide assistance for our
tribes, for our Native people, whether it is the CARES Act last
year, the end of year package, the Rescue package this year and
there is more than is being discussed.
But I think we recognize that it is not just about
directing the dollars. It is making sure that those directed
dollars are able to get to a place and in a way that addresses
those that have been most significantly impacted. I think we
have heard some stories today about the extraordinary economic
impact.
The story of Hoonah is clearly one that is pretty powerful,
a community of 760 people, and the economic activity that comes
with what Huna Totem has created through the tourism industry,
to be able to provide 250 jobs in that community, to be able to
be 80 percent of your tax base, to be able to put 27 of the 32
high school students to work on a summer job, give them those
job skills.
I think we recognize that how we can work to facilitate
ensuring that the level of response is really in these areas
that have been significantly impacted, we want to be able to do
that. But we also know that it is not just the Federal dollars.
Sometimes it is the Federal Government and our regulations that
hold us back from achieving what it is that has been built and
worked so hard to facilitate over the years. That is exactly
what has happened in this situation.
Russell, your comment that as an indigenous person,
basically the economic livelihood of the people in your home
village is being dictated by Canada right now, which is
effectively what we are dealing with, with the PVSA, this is
something that we need to address, we must address, and we will
address it. We need to do it now, so that there is some
semblance of a season, even if it is just a couple of months,
it will be better than a kick in the rear, which is what the
region has seen.
So know that we are going to work with you. Mr. Chairman, I
really appreciate that we have held this hearing today. You
pulled together a good panel of folks to talk about these
issues.
I agree with you, I think we need to make sure that there
is a level of accountability within the Department of Interior
as well. So know that I am going to be looking forward to
getting the updates on that report about the NATIVE Act and its
implementation as well.
Thank you.
The Chairman. Thank you very much. I want to thank our
excellent and diverse panelists for presenting their views.
If there are no more questions for our witnesses, members
may also submit follow-up written questions for the record. The
hearing record will be open for two weeks.
I want to thank all the witnesses for their time and their
testimony today. This hearing is adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 3:45 p.m., the hearing was adjourned.]
A P P E N D I X
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Brian Schatz to
John De Fries
Question. What can the Federal Government do to provide the most
effective assistance to Native tourism operations in states like
Hawai`i, where travel, tourism, and hospitality sector revenues have
suffered so greatly as a result of the pandemic?
Answer. The Hawai`i Tourism Authority is operating today with the
understanding that Hawai`i's future is in regenerative tourism--tourism
that gives back more than it takes. Native tourism operations in
Hawai`i and across the nation draw upon generations of ancestral
stewardship that followed similar paradigms of prioritizing
reinvestment in community, natural, and cultural resources.
For that reason, we recognize Native tourism's role in the vanguard
of regenerative tourism that will address the immediate recovery of
travel, tourism, and hospitality sector businesses, while also setting
a course for a sustainable future. This recognition is reflected in the
Hawai`i Tourism Authority's 2020-2025 Strategic Plan, which is guiding
our efforts to build tourism back better.
Mr. Chairman, the Federal Government has a great role to play in
this recovery. Drawing upon consultation and conversation with a
diverse group of community members, I respectfully submit the following
recommendations:
1.) First and foremost, pursue the fullest potential of the
Native American Tourism and Improving Visitor Experience Act,
passed under your leadership in 2016. Many of Hawai`i's largest
visitor attractions and most significant historic and cultural
sites are under federal stewardship. Updating management plans
and tourism initiatives to more fully embrace Native tourism
will be a significant step forward for Native tourism
operations nationwide.
2.) Utilizing existing federal pathways like the Small Business
Administration, enhance the availability of technical
assistance, capacity building, financial support, and training
for Native entrepreneurs starting new ventures or growing
existing businesses. This technical assistance and financial
support should also include digital modernization efforts to
help Native tourism operations become more competetive and
sustainable.
3.) With county, state, and federal level taxes combined,
Hawai`i has one of the highest tax burdens for small business
owners. Consider federal income tax relief for small business
owners with an emphasis on Native business owners.
4.) Consider mechanisms for impact fees levied on various
levels, from individuals (e.g. access fees for federally-funded
highways that traverse environmentally-sensitive areas) to
large international companies (e.g. surcharges based on visitor
counts) that could fund Native-led stewardship efforts.
I thank the Committee for the opportunity to share this response.
The Hawai`i Tourism Authority stands ready to assist in advancing any
of these recommendations. Mahalo for your consideration.
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Brian Schatz to
Dennis Alvord
Question 1. COVID-19 has devastated Native tourism economies in
Hawaii, in Alaska, and in Indian Country. Your written testimony states
that the American Rescue Plan allocated $3 billion in supplemental
funding to the Economic Development Administration (EDA) to assist
communities nationwide, including Native communities, in economic
related pandemic recovery efforts. What programs at the Department of
Commerce will help Tribes revive Native tourism efforts and spur
economic recovery?
Answer. For over 50 years, EDA has partnered with Tribal
communities throughout the United States to help foster long-term job
creation and attract private investment. EDA grants have helped remove
economic barriers and attract capital to Indian country, addressing a
broad array of needs from construction to non-construction, technical
assistance, and revolving loan fund projects.
EDA provides Partnership Planning grants to Tribes to develop
Comprehensive Economic Development Strategies (CEDS) that articulate
and prioritize their economic development goals--including objectives
specific to tribal tourism. Each year, EDA funds approximately 50
Native American planning organizations that are leading these efforts
across the country. These investments are focused on Tribally-developed
economic development strategies that are specific to each Tribe's
unique assets, needs, and opportunities.
Beyond planning, EDA's Local Technical Assistance and Short-Term
Planning programs can help Tribes analyze tribal assets and undertake
more focused planning efforts to help set the stage for new activities
focused on tourism. EDA's Public Works and Economic Adjustment
Assistance (EAA) program can be used to implement newly planned, or
revitalized, tourism-related efforts through infrastructure
construction. In addition, EAA assistance can also be used to
capitalize (or recapitalize) tribal financing efforts focused on
tourism.
In addition, as outlined in my written testimony, EDA's sister
bureaus within the Department, including the International Trade
Administration, the Minority Business Development Agency, the National
Telecommunications and Information Administration, and the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are also actively working to
help Tribes boost Native tourism and economic recovery in Tribal
communities.
Question 1a. And how will supplemental funding enacted as part of
the American Rescue Plan Act help?
Answer. EDA's $3 billion in supplemental American Rescue Plan
funding allocated 25 percent ($750 million) to assist communities that
have suffered economic injury because of job losses in the travel,
tourism, or outdoor recreation sectors. The Department is finalizing
implementation plans for this funding, which will include opportunities
to help Native communities recover from the pandemic's impacts on their
travel and tourism industries.
Additionally, EDA recently announced a new set of Investment
Priorities, which provide an overarching framework to ensure its grant
investment portfolio--ranging from planning to infrastructure
construction--contributes to local efforts to build, improve, or better
leverage economic assets that allow businesses to succeed and regional
economies to prosper and become more resilient. EDA's first Investment
Priority is focused on advancing equity in economic development across
the nation, including for Indigenous and Native American populations. A
description of this EDA Investment Priority follows:
Equity: Economic development planning or implementation projects
that advance equity across America through investments that directly
benefit 1) one or more traditionally underserved populations, including
but not limited to women, Black, Latino, and Indigenous and Native
American persons, Asian Americans, and Pacific Islanders or 2)
underserved communities within geographies that have been systemically
and/or systematically denied a full opportunity to participate in
aspects of economic prosperity such as Tribal Lands, Persistent Poverty
Counties, and rural areas with demonstrated, historical underservice.
For more information on these populations and geographies see: https://
www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/20/
executive-order-advancing-racial-equity-and-support-for-underserved-
communities-through-the-federal-government/
Question 2. Your written testimony also mentioned conducting Tribal
consultations on a proposed regulatory change that would broaden EDA's
Tribal eligibility to include for-profit organizations that are wholly
owned by and established for the benefit of the Tribe. When does EDA
expect to publish that regulatory change?
Answer. EDA is considering making a regulatory change that would
broaden EDA's regulatory definition of ``Indian Tribe''. See 13 C.F.R.
300.3. To inform this proposal, in April 2021, EDA conducted two
Tribal Consultations with Tribal Leaders from across the country to
seek feedback on the possible regulatory change. Based on that
feedback, EDA is currently working on updating the proposal to ensure
any change is impactful, clear, and supports the economic development
objectives of Tribes across the country. EDA is also cognizant that
there is ongoing litigation before the Supreme Court that addresses
tribal eligibility under the CARES Act (see Janet L. Yellen, Secretary
of the Treasury, Petitioner v. Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis
Reservation, et al.). While EDA does not anticipate the decision in
this case impacting EDA's proposed rule change, EDA is ensuring that
the decision, likely to be issued this month, is integrated into the
proposal, as necessary.
Question 3. Prior to the hearing, the Department of Commerce
informed my staff that a report on the NATIVE Act was sent last year.
We have not received a copy of that report and request a copy as soon
as possible. Who will be the point of contact for the report and when
can we expect to receive it?
Answer. A copy of the NATIVE Act report with attachments as
completed and submitted by the prior Administration is attached. *
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
* The information referred to has been retained in the Committee
files.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Brian Schatz to
Sherry Rupert
Question. How can the Federal Government utilize the framework of
the NATIVE Act to increase support for Native tourism and enhance the
opportunities visitors have to learn about Native American history,
culture, traditional foods, language, and arts?
Answer. The Tourism and Recreation sector are powerful economic
drivers for the U.S. economy. The infrastructure for tourism is
developed around fees, taxes and general fund investments that provide
the foundation for tourism and recreation to thrive. These systems
support tourism and, as the U.S. recovers from COVID-19, provides the
assistance needed to rebuild and grow back quickly. Due to the unique
nature of Native Nations and communities' land status and lack of
inclusion in local, regional and national systems, they are largely
left out of the tourism and recreation support structures. Further,
federal, corporate and foundational funding is not typically dedicated
to tourism infrastructure--because it is paid for by taxes, fees and
general fund monies.
For grant funds that are available, they are frequently project
based, rather than long-term investments. Many also require match
funds. This is problematic as there are few resources available for
Native Nations and organizations to secure the match. This is
especially true for federal funding opportunities where the application
process is frequently more onerous, and the match cannot include
federal funds. Again, due to the unique nature of Native Nations and
communities, funding they do receive frequently stems from federal
sources, creating a situation where they do not have resources for the
dedicated staff to complete the application process for the grants they
may be eligible for, and they do not have the resources to provide the
match.
Tourism and recreation revenue in Native Nations and communities
are frequently cycled back into paying for essential services including
housing, food access, education and healthcare; economic demands that
are not placed on their non-Native tourism and recreation counterparts.
This reliance on revenue from business enterprises to fund essential
services and underlying social structures means revenue is not readily
available to reinvest in tourism development and growth. COVID-19 has
put unprecedented strain on the tourism and recreation systems world-
wide. This strain is compounded for Native Nations and communities
because they do not have access to a fully developed tourism network of
support to rebuild.
As the U.S. economy recovers from the pandemic in 2022, the
hospitality/tourism sector will be a crucial and significant driver for
job growth and revenue as domestic travel continues to grow and
international visitors return. Now is the time to make significant
investments in sustainable cultural tourism infrastructure and
initiatives in Indigenous communities, address underlying inequities,
strengthen the economic structures we all rely on and build on
sustainable practices.
Funding is immediately needed to accelerate and fully implement the
Native American Tourism and Improving Visitor Experience Act (NATIVE
Act). The NATIVE Act provides the framework for inclusion in tourism
planning, alongside support for technical assistance, training and
branding enhancement. We have already seen the impact of initial
investments in the NATIVE Act, including AIANTA's work to identify and
provide technical assistance and training, with 2020 seeing some of our
largest participation levels in our programming.
Priority Agency Investment Recommendations: Initiate agency-wide
investments in implementation of the NATIVE Act through appropriations
across the federal departments and agencies, as named in the Act, to
begin to realize the purposes and intent of the NATIVE Act by bringing
much needed support to build, enhance and grow sustainable cultural
tourism at this critical juncture as we address the COVID-19 recovery
efforts, build economic opportunities and address many of the
underlying disparities from chronic underinvestment in Native Nations
and communities.
By focusing on the agencies named in the act, alongside consistent
and long-term investments in the identification and delivery of
technical assistance and training, cultural tourism can rebuild and
support the economic goals and cultural perpetuation in Native Nations
and communities. This can be achieved using the framework of the NATIVE
Act: inclusion in planning, consultation, training, branding
enhancement and dedicated funding support.
For example, pursuant to PL 114-221, resources could be allocated
to the Department of Interior through the Bureau of Indian Affairs to
establish a set-aside specific to the national organization as
authorized under section 4(d)(3) to fulfill the role as intended under
section 4 (d)(1-2) of Public Law 114-221 alongside set-asides for grant
programs related to travel, recreation and tourism pursuant to sections
2(6) and 5(b).
For other agencies named in the NATIVE Act, including the
Department of Commerce, pursuant to PL 114-221, NATIVE Act liaison
positions (Sections 2-5) could be created; long-term, dedicated support
could be allocated for delivery of technical assistance and training
for recreation and tourism planning by a national organization (Section
4(d)(3)); and targeted grant programs for Native Nations and
communities could be established without match requirements specific to
travel, recreation and/or tourism pursuant to sections 2(6) and 5(b).
AIANTA supports agency-wide investments in implementation of the
NATIVE Act through appropriations requests across the federal
departments and agencies as named in the Act to begin to realize the
purposes and intent of the Act. We urge the committee to support full
implementation in the intent and purpose of the NATIVE Act. Through
appropriations and support for technical assistance and training,
alongside direct investment at this critical juncture in the COVID-19
recovery efforts, Native Nations and communities will rebuild economic
opportunities. Investments now and in the longer-term will also help
address many of the underlying disparities from chronic underinvestment
exacerbated by COVID-19.
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. Brian Schatz to
Anthony Rodman
Question 1. In your testimony, you stated that Indian Affairs will
announce a round of competitive grants for Tribes to perform
infrastructure and/or workforce development needs assessments for
tourism-related economic development. COVID-19 exacerbated the need for
infrastructure investment in Native communities. What are the major
infrastructure needs faced by Native communities that limit the
potential growth of Native tourism?
Answer. The major infrastructure challenges that inhibit the
potential growth of tourism include road improvements, workforce
development for Native communities that focus on the hospitality and
tourism industry, and access to affordable and reliable broadband.
Tribes have identified more than $70 billion in transportation needs
over the next 20 years, which translates to approximately $3.5 billion
per year. Overall, the tourism industry adage of ``a nice place to
visit is a nice place live'' is helpful in illustrating that successful
Native tourism relies on adequate infrastructure of all kinds: roads
and bridges, workforce development, broadband, and access to clean
water.
The American Jobs Plan will invest in infrastructure to build and
repair roads, bridges, and water systems, and provide investments for
Native communities to recover from the effect of COVID-19 and help
build back better.
Question 2. What assistance will the American Jobs Plan provide to
drive a Native tourism recovery?
Answer. The American Jobs Plan will help drive Native tourism by
investing in equitable workforce development and job training programs;
bridging the digital divide by achieving 100 percent coverage of high-
speed broadband; supporting clean and safe drinking water; doubling the
Transportation Program; expanding and rehabilitating Indian Housing;
fixing rural bridges; strengthening community resilience for
communities at risk for climate-driven disasters; and plugging orphan
wells and cleaning up abandoned mines.
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