American Indian Culture and Research Journal

There is a long history of conflict between states and Indian tribes. In recent years, considerable progress has been made in reducing this conflict in some areas, but service delivery remains an issue of growing tension. Since the 1990s the federal government has reduced funding for some Indian programs; funding has increased in a few programs but has not kept up with increases in demand. As a result, tribes are forced to rely ever more on state and local services to make up the difference. These new demands come at a time when many states are dealing with tight budgets. Some states have resisted this growing need for their services, despite the fact that Indians living on reservations are entitled to all the same services and benefits as any other citizen of a state. These disagreements are an important part of the very complex and convoluted relationship between states and tribes. This necessity for state and local service delivery on Indian reservations is having a dramatic impact on the American federalist system and changing the relationship between state, local, and tribal governments. There are 562 federally recognized Indian tribes, with 55.7 million acres of Indian trust land. Clearly, Indian tribes are an important part of the federalist system. The delivery of services to Indian people, especially those living on trust land, is a critical aspect of that system. Changes in both the demand and the delivery of state services have engendered considerable political conflict.