Tribal Transportation Across America Charles Dickson Associate Director Community Transportation Association of America

Tribal Characteristics 565 Federally Recognized Tribal Governments in the United States Self Governing Tribal Sovereignty Self Determination  Pass and Enforce Laws  Tax  Establish Criteria for Membership  Regulate Activities

Tribal Characteristics – Part 2 Demographics of the Indian Population About 2.9 million total population – slightly less than 1% of the total population of the U.S. About 50% of tribal population lives on, or near “American Indian Areas” formerly “reservations” Poverty rate of 26% compared to 12% for total U.S. population Overwhelmingly Rural

U.S. Government and Indian Tribes Sovereignty Recognized in the Constitution Supreme Court Rulings Executive Order Bureau of Indian Affairs Oversees government Indian Reservation Roads Program Indian Trust Funds

Tribal Transportation Programs Only a small number of tribes operate public transportation systems Operate under the same funding rules as other programs Obstacles to providing transportation include Lack of funds Remote locations of tribes Lack of coordination in using tribal resources

Rural Transit Funding in the US Federal funding from rural transit comes from the omnibus surface transportation act – SAFETEA-LU Section $250 million - $450 million Indian set aside $8 million - $15 million Section $90 million - $133 million Section $125 million - $165 million Section $78 million – 92 million

Other Sources of Funding For Tribal Mobility Head Start Programs Indian Health Service Medicaid Tribal Elder Programs Substance Abuse Programs Tribal Governments (casino revenue) Colleges and Universities

Examples of Tribal Transit Programs - Navajo Covers 27,000 square miles (70,000 square kilometers in southwest US Started in 1979 – one of the first tribal transportation programs Runs 7 fixed routes each from 50 to 100 miles long Funded by tribal revenues, federal government

Chickasaw Nation Transit A “non-reservation” tribe Covers 13 counties (7,600 square miles) in southern Oklahoma – only 70,000 acres are tribally owned Operates a general public system – tribal members only Has expanded and coordinate with non-tribal operations

Examples of Tribal Transit Programs - Zuni Zuni Pueblo – small town in western New Mexico 700 square miles, 10,000 population Public Transit Run by social service agency (ZEE) Demand-response within the pueblo Rides to work

Help for Tribes Tribal Technical Assistance Program Operated by the Community Transportation Association Funded by the Us Department of Agriculture Planning Assistance for: Facility Development Service Improvements System Start Up

Example: Sitka Tribe of Alaska Helped to: Identify Transportation Providers Conduct Needs Analysis Recognize key issues (medical, employment) Results: New Fixed Route Service Funding through Employment Transportation Program