In carrying out its treaty obligations with the Indian tribes, the Government is something more than a mere contracting party. Under a humane and self imposed policy which has found expression in many acts of Congress and numerous decisions of this Court, it has charged itself with moral obligations of the highest responsibility and trust. Its conduct, as disclosed in the acts of those who represent it in dealings with the Indians, should therefore be judged by the most exacting fiduciary standards.

Seminole Nation v. United States, 316 US 286, 86 L. Ed. 1480, 62 S. Ct. 1049 – Supreme Court, 1942

The bipartisan consensus on the pursuit of access to clean, safe drinking water on behalf of U.S. Native American Communities seems to be break down, according to a new report from the Initiative on Universal Access
to Clean Water for Tribal Communities:

As EPA’s Administrator has made clear, every American is entitled to clean air, land, and water. The necessity of, and entitlement to, clean water is nowhere more apparent than on Tribal lands. Not only is the need there the greatest, the federal government has specific responsibilities to Tribes to provide a permanent and livable homeland in exchange for the land concessions Tribes made in the last centuries. We cannot continue to ignore or gloss over this responsibility. Yet the FY 2026 proposals move in the opposite direction—Interior would eliminate BIA’s Tribal Community Resilience program; Reclamation would zero out the WaterSMART toolbox and cut the Native American Affairs Program; EPA would reduce SRF capitalizations to historic lows; and IHS would reduce the SFC program budget to $13.5 million—a reduction of 85% in the one funding stream that directly connects homes to water and sewer. The President’s proposed FY 2026 budget reflects his policy choices.

Key to the group’s argument,  however, is a reminder that the Administration proposes budgetary allocations, but the actual appropriations require action by Congress.

You know what to do.