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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2001

Assistant Secretary Neal McCaleb has told a House panel that no Bureau of Indian Affairs funds should be used to construct a museum that would honor tribes in his home state of Oklahoma.

In a statement read by an assistant, McCaleb told the House Resources Committee it would be "inappropriate" to use federal funds for a "non-federal" project, particularly in this time of fiscal need to fight terrorism. The project in question would create the Native American Cultural Center and Museum in Oklahoma City.

McCaleb says he supports the project, though. But he said funds should be drawn from other sources, such as grants from the National Endowment of the Humanities and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Several lawmakers and Oklahoma Indian leaders, including fellow Chicksaw Nation Gov. Bill Anoatubby, support a bill to dedicate $33 million in federal funds to the project.

Get the Story:
Oklahoman says no to bureau funds for museum (The Daily Oklahoman 10/18)