Statement by Secretary Haaland on the President’s FY22 Discretionary Funding Request
Identifies Resources to Strengthen Tribal Nations, Promote Racial Justice and Equity, and Create Jobs in a Clean Energy Economy
WASHINGTON – The Biden-Harris Administration today submitted to Congress the President’s priorities for fiscal year 2022 discretionary spending.
The funding request advances key Interior Department priorities, including honoring our government-to-government relationships with Tribal Nations, addressing racial inequity, and tackling the climate crisis. The request also follows the passage of the American Rescue Plan, the historic relief package that contains several provisions that fund Interior initiatives and benefit the communities we directly serve.
“As our country faces the interlocking challenges of a global pandemic, economic downturn, racial injustice, and the climate crisis, Interior is committed to an all-of-government approach to build back better,” said U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland. “President Biden’s funding request provides much-needed resources to Tribal Nations, prioritizes racial justice and equity, and invests in healthy lands, waters, and a clean energy economy that will create good-paying jobs.”
The FY 2022 discretionary request includes the President’s commitment to the following priorities:
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Honoring Our Commitments to Tribal Nations. Strengthening the nation-to-nation relationship with Tribal Nations is a top priority for the Biden administration. The discretionary request provides $4 billion, more than $600 million over the 2021 enacted level, to fund a range of Interior Tribal programs, including for teachers and students in Tribal schools, clean energy development, and Tribal law enforcement and court programs to improve safety. These investments will directly enhance the educational opportunities of over 46,000 K-12 students in Bureau of Indian Education-funded schools, support the effective management of the 56 million acres of lands held in trust for the benefit of Tribal Nations – the largest land trust in the world – and strengthen self-determination and self-governance programs to bolster Tribal sovereignty. These investments will also complement the American Rescue Plan’s substantial investments in Indian Country, as well as other investments in the discretionary request, to support and strengthen Tribal communities.
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Promoting Racial Justice and Equity for Underserved Communities. The discretionary request will embed environmental justice and racial equity goals into programs across the Department, with discrete investments in key areas. For example, the request includes an additional $20 million to expand access to the over 70 national park units that preserve and tell the story of historically underrepresented and marginalized groups, and to increase support to local and state efforts to preserve sites that document the struggle for equal opportunity. The investments also include funding for a voting rights center that honors the legacy of Civil Rights leaders, including that of the late Representative John Lewis, at the Selma Interpretive Center.
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Tackling the Climate Crisis, Including Addressing Climate Impacts on Public Lands. The Administration is taking decisive action to address the existential threat of climate change. The discretionary request provides an additional $550 million over 2021 enacted levels to decrease climate pollution, accelerate clean energy deployment, and expand efforts around climate adaptation and ecosystem resilience among all the Department’s land management agencies. These investments will directly benefit Americans by helping to limit climate-induced disruptions, including for coastal communities, the outdoor recreation economy, and people whose lives and livelihoods are intertwined with Interior-managed lands and resources.
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These discretionary investments reflect only one element of the President’s broader agenda. In the coming months, the Administration will release the President’s Budget, which will present a unified, comprehensive plan to address the overlapping crises we face in a fiscally and economically responsible way.
For more information, see The President’s FY 2022 Discretionary Request.
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