Investing in A New Vision for the Environment and Surface Transportation in America Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. RUIZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this en bloc amendment, which includes my bill turned into an amendment to authorize the construction of an access road to the Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center in Hemet, California, in my district.

The Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center is the only Indian Health Service youth treatment center in the entire State of California. The only way to get to the facility, however, is by traversing a dirt road that cracks in the heat and washes out in the rain.

The Indian Health Service wasn't able to secure the right-of-way to pave the access road, so my amendment would give the Indian Health Service the authority to improve and pave the access road to give Tribal youth safe and secure passage to this facility so they can receive treatment and individual counseling in a culturally appropriate way that they need to reach their full potential.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for his support of my amendment to improve the infrastructure of the Indian Health Service facility in my district and for his work on H.R. 2, the Moving Forward Act.

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Mr. RUIZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the en bloc amendment and urge support for my two amendments that are included.

My first amendment would take land in the San Jacinto and Santa Rosa Mountains into trust for the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians to fulfill an agreement between the Agua Caliente and the Bureau of Land Management. This bill would help consolidate the checkerboard pattern of land ownership and allow the Tribe to better manage their ancestral lands which contain numerous significant cultural sites, trails, and other elements of their history.

My second amendment, the Tribal Internet Advancement Act, would expand broadband access in Indian Country by adding Tribal lands as a priority for broadband expansion under the FCC's Universal Service Fund.

Last year, the FCC issued a report in response to my bill, the Tribal Broadband Deployment Act, which showed that Tribal nations lag far behind the rest of the population in broadband access. This lack of access to broadband is a significant barrier to economic advancement, education, and, as now evident, telemedicine during the pandemic, and well-being.

So, Mr. Speaker, I urge support for my amendment and H.R. 2, the Moving Forward Act, in order to close the digital divide in Indian Country.

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