ROSEBUD – Recently, RST President Kathleen Wooden Knife wrote to the SD Congression Delegation urging them to reopen the government and to save SNAP, WIC and LIHEAP.
The October 17 letter also requested the RST PL 93-638 Indian self-determination programs be funded.
Excerpts of the letter are included in the following paragraphs.
“The Rosebud Sioux Tribe of the Rosebud reservation is composed of 38,000 tribal members located on 1,300,000 acres of land in South Central South Dakota and as you know we have urgent tribal government needs.
PLEASE SAVE SNAP AND WIC
As America’s largest food safety network SNAP helps 42 million Americans. For decades, Todd County on the Rosebud reservation has been the poorest or the second poorest county in America based upon per capita income. So, sixty to 70% of the Rosebud tribal members rely on SNAP due to extreme poverty,” President Wooden Knife wrote. She also requested for LIHEAP to be funded “The cold at Rosebud reaches -25° and despite our best efforts at economic development our poverty rate remains high.
“Unemployment is high, and our median income is low, much lower than the rest of America our people suffer poor housing, poor health status, and every year some of our local to people run out of propane for heat and use space heaters, kerosene, or wood stoves to burn whatever they can.
With our poor housing stock, we typically see plastic on windows and people have poor insulation in their homes so some people die from carbon monoxide poisoning and freezing. The low-income home energy assistance program is designed to help households with low incomes, especially those facing the highest energy burdens and manage the cost of home energy.
“LIHEAP’s main goals are to assist with heating and cooling bills, especially during extreme weather, provide crisis energy assistance, such as help to avoid power shut offs, fuel shortages, support weatherization efforts like improving insulation or repairing heating systems to reduce long-term energy cost.” She continued.
“American Indians and Alaska natives are most at risk nationwide from death due to the cold because of deficient housing and poor health conditions. LIHEAP is essential to keep our local people at Rosebud alive in the long cold winter months from October into April each year.
“Due to the shutdown the Rosebud Sioux Tribe has had to shift $120,000 from other priorities this month to address LIHEAP and keep assistance going to our Tribal members, the weather is starting to turn towards winter and we are concerned for peoples’ health and survival annually. LIHEAP provides 1.2 to 1.400,000 to our Rosebud tribal members for energy assistance. Please help the rope to try make our reservation a livable place in accordance with the 1868 treaty and help save a service help save us from freezing and injury please fully fund LIHEAP and end the government shut down. Wopila Tanka. Thank you.
Sicangu News 
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