On Saturday, Oct. 18, Alaska Congressman Nick Begich III delivered his first address to the Alaska Federation of Natives (AFN) since being sworn in this year.
Begich III spent much of his 14-minute speech touting what he believes to be economic benefits that Native communities will reap from the budget reconciliation bill, also known as the One Big Beautiful Bill. He said it puts Alaska front and center in the country’s energy conversation.
“It requires four new lease sales in the 10-02 area of the North Slope over the next decade, and five lease sales in the NPR-A,” Begich said. “For the first time, Alaska will receive 70% of revenues from these sales and product royalties, production royalties up from 50% ensuring our communities benefit more than they ever have before.”
The bill also makes major changes to Medicaid, cutting about a trillion dollars from the program over the next decade, and instituting work and volunteer requirements. Alaska Native people are exempt from the work requirements. After his speech, Begich III said he expects the exemption process will be automatic for Alaska Natives who use the Indian Health Service, or IHS.
“The IHS system, I believe, will remain the system of record,” Begich III said. “So for folks who are enrolled in IHS, I don't expect there to be any material changes for them.”
Moments before Begich III’s speech, AFN delegates unanimously supported a resolution that opposed changes the congressman has floated to the federal Marine Mammal Protection Act.
Begich III called the proposed changes a “discussion draft” and said he’s still hearing different perspectives from a variety of stakeholders.
“I want to make sure that the bill is reflective of preserving the rights and capacities of the Alaska Native people to continue to subsist and utilize these marine mammals in their traditional ways,” Begich III said. “And if the bill does not do that, then we're not going to continue with the bill.”
The Alaska Federation of Natives convention concluded on Oct. 18 in Anchorage. Sen. Dan Sullivan spoke to the convention on Oct. 17, while Sen. Lisa Murkowski spoke after Begich III on the last day of the convention.
