NCAI: Congress deals setback to tribal justice

According to studies, Indian reservations nationwide face violent crime rates more than 2.5 times the national rate, and some reservations face more than 20 times the national rate of violence.



WASHINGTON – Leaders of the National Congress of American Indians said the U.S. Congress has leveled a major setback to Indian tribes in need of critical resources to combat the highest crime rates in the country.

Congress’s decision to cut more than $90 million from proposed funding for Department of Justice measures in Indian Country leaves tribal law enforcement and federal personnel with far too few resources to fight crime on tribal lands, NCAI officials said.

Signed into law in 2010 with bipartisan support, the Tribal Law & Order Act sets out to reduce crime in Indian Country by making improvements to the way criminal justice is administered on tribal lands and reauthorizing critical tribal justice programs.

On Nov. 14, Congress released the fiscal year 2012 Appropriations Conference Report for Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies. The report shows funding cuts for tribal justice programs across the board and did not include a proposed 7 percent tribal set-aside for all discretionary Office of Justice Programs.

The report also proposes $15 million cuts to both the COPS Tribal Resources Grant Program and the Tribal Youth Program. Funding for tribal assistance within OJP was also cut, receiving only $38 million – $62 million short of the approximate $100 million initially proposed in President Barack Obama’s FY 2012 budget request.

NCAI officials said the funding cut is a failure of significant proportions and will make the act’s intended goals difficult to attain.

“We understand these are tight budget times but this is a failure of the worst kind. Tribes and the federal government were finally working together to tackle major crime and security issues. Now the House and Senate have irresponsibly cut crime fighting efforts in communities that need it the most,” said Jefferson Keel, NCAI president and a member of the Indian Law and Order Commission – an independent commission established by the TLOA. “NCAI urges Congress to immediately restore tribal law enforcement funding levels and reinstate the 7 percent tribal set-aside of OJP programs.” 

According to studies, Indian reservations nationwide face violent crime rates more than 2.5 times the national rate, and some reservations face more than 20 times the national rate of violence. Non-Native offenders, immune to tribal prosecution, are many times responsible for violent crimes, gang activity and drug trafficking on tribal lands.

NCAI leaders said the TLOA provides tribal and federal law enforcement officials the tools to work together to combat crime and prosecute these offenders. They added that initial programs are reducing crimes but implementation of the law is in its early stages and the cuts slash core funding at a critical time and chip away at the gains made since the TLOA was passed.



Founded in 1944, the NCAI is the oldest, largest and most representative American Indian and Alaska Native organization in the country. It advocates on behalf of tribal governments, promoting strong tribal-federal government-to-government policies.