Committee hears bill to fund tribal school infrastructure, includes request for 4 Winds parking lot improvements

The House Education Committee on the record reopened consideration of House Bill 16-18, a proposal to appropriate funds to the Department of Public Instruction for tribal school infrastructure grants. Representative Lisa Finley DeVille, the bill’s primary sponsor, told the committee the bill would give DPI flexibility to award grants based on individual tribal schools’ priorities.

"If parking lot improvements are a critical need for the school, then those funds can be used to ensure that it becomes a safer and more functional space," Representative Lisa Finley DeVille said in introducing the bill.

Supporters, including Representative Colette Brown, described a direct request from Spirit Lake leadership to repair the parking lot at 4 Winds High School. Brown said the school receives a majority of its funding from the Bureau of Indian Education and that the parking lot has not been substantially improved in decades, creating safety and access problems for students, staff and buses.

Brown said the project estimate discussed with the committee totaled about $1.3 million and that Spirit Lake would cover roughly 20 percent of that cost; she gave the tribe’s share as $246,814 and characterized the state share as "something like a million" dollars. The committee did not adopt or vote on the bill or any appropriation at the hearing.

Committee members asked questions about whether 4 Winds High School received state per‑pupil payments and whether the school is tribally controlled or federally operated. Brown said the high school portion does receive some state funding, while other grades on the same campus are funded differently. Committee members also sought a written cost estimate and clarification of which portion of the campus would be eligible for grant funds.

The hearing record includes written estimates supplied by Spirit Lake leadership; witnesses said the tribe planned to contribute the stated 20 percent local share for the 4 Winds parking lot project. No committee motion or roll-call vote on House Bill 16-18 was recorded; the hearing was closed and the bill left pending.

Implementation and next steps remain conditional on future legislative action and any appropriation by the Legislature. The Department of Public Instruction would administer the grant program if the bill is enacted.