WASHINGTON, March 8 -- The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies released the following written testimony by Monique Martin, vice-president of intergovernmental affairs for the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, from a Feb. 27, 2025, public witness hearing on fiscal 2026 Indian Health Service budget: * * * My name is Monique Martin, and I serve as Vice-President of Intergovernmental Affairs for the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium (ANTHC). A  more

WASHINGTON, March 5 -- Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, issued the following news release: * * * Commerce Committee Leaders Reintroduce Bill to Ensure Coast Guard Personnel Are Paid In Event of Gov't Shutdown WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Ranking Member Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), and Sens. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), and Lisa Blunt Rocheste  more

WASHINGTON, March 5 -- Rep. Nicholas J. Begich III, R-Alaska, issued the following news release on March 3, 2025: * * * Congressman Nick Begich Celebrates the Official Start of the 2025 Iditarod Washington, D.C. - Today, Congressman Nick Begich (R-AK) released the following statement celebrating the start of the 2025 Iditarod: "Today marks the official start of the "Last Great Race on Earth", the Iditarod. For Alaskans, the Iditarod is more than a race--it is often considered the "pulse of A  more

WASHINGTON, March 4 -- Rep. Nicholas J. Begich III, R-Alaska, issued the following news release: * * * Congressman Nick Begich Invites Athena Fulton as Guest to Joint Session of Congress for Presidential Address WASHINGTON, D.C. - March 4, 2025, Congressman Nick Begich (R-AK) announced that Athena Fulton will join him today as his guest at the Presidential Address. Athena tragically lost her son to fentanyl poisoning in 2021 and has since been a strong advocate for increasing awareness of the  more

WASHINGTON, March 7 -- Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, vice chair of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, issued the following news release on March 6, 2025: * * * Indian Affairs Committee Advances 25 Bills To Full Senate Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, and U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Vice Chairman of the Committee, led a business meeting of the Senate Committee of Indian Affairs in Washington, DC, to consider  more

WASHINGTON, March 7 -- Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, chairwoman of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, issued the following news release: * * * INDIAN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE ADVANCES 25 BILLS TO FULL SENATE U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, and U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Vice Chairman of the Committee, led a business meeting of the Senate Committee of Indian Affairs in Washington, DC, to consider 25 bills before the Committee.   more

WASHINGTON, March 8 -- The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies released the following testimony by Cody Desautel, president of the Intertribal Timber Council, from a Feb. 27, 2025, public witness hearing on funding for tribal forests: * * * I am Cody Desautel, President of the Intertribal Timber Council (ITC) and Executive Director of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation in Washington State. The ITC is a 49-year-old association of fore  more

WASHINGTON, March 6 -- Sen. Angus S. King Jr., I-Maine, issued the following news release: * * * King Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Make it Easier for Rural Veterans to Access Health Care WASHINGTON, D.C. -- U.S. Senators Angus King (I-Maine), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), and Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), members of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee (SVAC) and Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), are introducing legislation aiming to help veterans in rural areas get transportation to health care  more

WASHINGTON, March 6 -- Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, issued the following news release: * * * Murkowski Questions FDA Nominee Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) today questioned the President's nominee to be Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Martin Makary, during his appearance before the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee. Murkowski raised the FDA's handling of the Vaccine Advisory Committee, the handling of clinical trials for  more

WASHINGTON, March 7 -- Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, issued the following news release: * * * Murkowski Supports Bipartisan, Bicameral Legislation to Ensure All VA Medical Centers Have Dedicated Nursing Spaces Washington, DC - Today, U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Jacky Rosen (D-NV) joined Representative Lauren Underwood (D-IL-14) in introducing legislation to ensure all Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical centers have designated nursing spaces. The bipartisan, bicameral Lac  more

WASHINGTON, March 8 -- The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies released the following testimony by Aurene Martin, a board member at the National Indian Child Welfare Association, from a Feb. 27, 2025, public witness hearing on funding recommendations for programs under the Bureau of Indian Affairs: * * * The National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) is a national American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) nonprofit organization. NICWA has been a l  more

WASHINGTON, March 8 -- The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies released the following written testimony by Jason Dropik, executive director of the National Indian Education Association, from a Feb. 27, 2025, public witness hearing on funding priorities for fiscal 2026: * * * On behalf of the National Indian Education Association (NIEA), and the students, educators, and Tribal Nations we serve, thank you for this opportunity to provide testimony regar  more

WASHINGTON, March 8 -- The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies released the following testimony by Anthony Locklear, interim chief executive officer of the National Indian Health Board, from a Feb. 27, 2025, public witness hearing on the Indian Health Service budget: * * * Chairman Simpson, Ranking Member Pingree, and the distinguished members of this Subcommittee, on behalf of the National Indian Health Board (NIHB) and the 574+ sovereign federally   more

WASHINGTON, March 6 -- Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, issued the following news release: * * * Senate Approves Coast Guard Authorization Act Unanimously WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, Ranking Member Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), and Sens. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) and Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), introduced the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2025, and it passed the Senate by unanimous consent. The bipartisan measure was agreed to at the end of l  more

WASHINGTON, March 7 -- Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, issued the following news release on March 6, 2025: * * * Senate Approves Coast Guard Authorization Act Unanimously Bipartisan bill advances to the House for consideration WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2025, which was introduced by U.S. Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Ranking Member Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), and Sens. D  more

WASHINGTON, March 3 -- Sen. Christopher Coons, D-Delaware, issued the following news release: * * * Senators Coons, Murkowski, colleagues introduce Justice for ALS Veterans Act WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Co-Chairs of the ALS Caucus, announced the introduction of the Justice for ALS Veterans Act. This bill, first introduced in January 2022, would guarantee that the surviving spouses of veterans receive all benefits due to them. Representative  more

WASHINGTON, March 8 -- The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies released the following testimony by Ileen Sylvester, executive vice president at the Southcentral Foundation, from a Feb. 27, 2025, public witness hearing on the improvement of tribal health services: * * * My name is Ileen Sylvester. I am the Executive Vice President for Executive and Tribal Services at the Southcentral Foundation, an enrolled as a tribal member of the Native Village of   more

WASHINGTON, March 3 -- Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, issued the following news release: * * * Sullivan Votes for Bill to Protect Women and Girls in Sports, Blocked by Senate Democrats WASHINGTON --U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) voted to advance the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, legislation that would protect hard-fought Title IX protections for women by prohibiting federal funds from going to schools and universities that allow biological males to compete against female at  more

WASHINGTON, March 7 -- Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, issued the following news release: * * * Sullivan, Hirono Introduce Legislation to Require VA Call Centers in Rural States WASHINGTON --U.S. Senators Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) and Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), both members of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee (SVAC), introduced the Representing VA with Accuracy (REP VA) Act to require the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to provide rural states, such as Alaska and Hawaii, with an in-state ca  more

WASHINGTON, March 6 -- Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, issued the following news release: * * * Sullivan, Murkowski Seek to Extend Alaska Native Vietnam-Era Veterans Allotment Program WASHINGTON --U.S. Senators Dan Sullivan and Lisa Murkowski (both R-Alaska) have re-introduced legislation to extend the Alaska Native Vietnam-Era Veterans Land Allotment Program for five additional years. Without such an extension, the program will expire in December 2025 and potentially leave well over a thousand   more

WASHINGTON, March 5 -- Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, issued the following news release: * * * Trump Touts Alaska LNG as a Top Priority of New Administration WASHINGTON --U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) today celebrated President Donald Trump's endorsement of the Alaska Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Project as a top priority of his new administration in the President's joint address to Congress last night. Sen. Sullivan has been a relentless advocate for the Alaska LNG Project as an opport  more