Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center Access Improvement Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 144) to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Indian Health Service, to acquire private land to facilitate access to the Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center in Hemet, California, and for other purposes.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

The text of the bill is as follows: S. 144

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center Access Improvement Act''. SEC. 2. ACCESS ROAD FOR DESERT SAGE YOUTH WELLNESS CENTER.

(a) Acquisition of Land.--

(1) Authorization.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Indian Health Service, is authorized to acquire, from willing sellers, the land in Hemet, California, upon which is located a dirt road known as ``Best Road'', beginning at the driveway of the Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center at Faure Road and extending to the junction of Best Road and Sage Road.

(2) Compensation.--The Secretary shall pay fair market value for the land authorized to be acquired under paragraph (1). Fair market value shall be determined--

(A) using Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land Acquisitions; and

(B) by an appraiser acceptable to the Secretary and the owners of the land to be acquired.

(3) Additional rights.--In addition to the land referred to in paragraph (1), the Secretary is authorized to acquire, from willing sellers, land or interests in land as reasonably necessary to construct and maintain the road as required by subsection (b).

(b) Construction and Maintenance of Road.--

(1) Construction.--After the Secretary acquires the land pursuant to subsection (a), the Secretary shall construct on that land a paved road that is generally located over Best Road to facilitate access to the Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center in Hemet, California.

(2) Maintenance.--The Secretary shall--

(A) maintain and manage the road constructed pursuant to paragraph (1); or

(B) enter into an agreement with Riverside County, California, to own, maintain and manage the road constructed pursuant to paragraph (1).

Mr. Speaker, S. 144 authorizes the Indian Health Service, or IHS, to purchase land in Hemet, California, for the purpose of constructing a paved road that facilitates access to the Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center. IHS will then maintain the road or enter into an agreement with Riverside County, California, to maintain the road.

This critical legislation will expand healthcare access to American Indian and Alaska Native youth in California by ensuring that the Desert Sage Youth Wellness Center can be reached by safe roadways.

Prior to 2016, indigenous youth in California experiencing substance use disorders were forced to travel to out-of-State facilities in order to receive care. Recognizing this added barrier to quality care, IHS built the Desert Sage Wellness Center in Hemet, California. The center is notable for providing culturally sensitive treatment to indigenous youth battling substance use disorders and can hold up to 32 patients at a time.

Unfortunately, during the center's construction, IHS was unable to reach an agreement with adjacent property holders on the pavement and maintenance of an access road to the facility. As a result, the center is currently accessible only by a dirt road that is often washed out from heavy rainfall or in a general state of disrepair.

The center remains the sole IHS youth regional treatment facility in the State, and it is a much-needed resource to California's American Indian and Alaska Native communities. However, the center's physical inaccessibility poses yet another obstacle to indigenous youth seeking care.

This bill will solve the issue by granting IHS the authority to acquire the necessary nearby land in order to build an operational access road to the center.

I thank Senator Feinstein for moving this important bill through the Senate, as well as our colleague, Representative Raul Ruiz, for championing the House version of the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I urge swift adoption of S. 144, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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