13.1.3.030 Findings

The Council hereby finds and declares that:

(a) The Pueblo de San Ildefonso ("Pueblo") is a federally recognized Indian tribe eligible for the services provided to Indians by the Secretary of the Interior because of the Pueblo's status; and,

(b) The Pueblo advocates for students, ages 3 through high school, who are enrolled in, or eligible for enrollment in, a federally-recognized tribe and not attending or served by Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) schools, and who are currently being served from respective tribal jurisdiction boundaries and service areas; and,

(c) The JOM funding and the certified student count of 278,000 has been at its 1995 level even though, according to data collected by the U.S. Census Bureau in 2010, there are 798,486 American Indian and Alaska Native students in the age group eligible to receive JOM assistance, effectively leaving many students with unmet needs; and,

(d) JOM programs that foster specialized, culturally sensitive, and unique educational programs that develop leadership skills of future tribal leaders necessary to promote positive academic, social, and economic changes in Indian communities will cease to exist without continued and appropriate levels of annual funding from Congress.