Interior Funds Will Improve Indian Tribes' School Facilities

The U.S. Department of the Interior is allocating more than $277 million for school construction, repairs and improvements for Indian tribes across the nation.

U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar says the funding is part of $500 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 that will go to the Bureau of Indian Affairs to support federally recognized tribes.

The Interior Department will earmark $134.6 million to replace aging and deteriorating school facilities funded by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. An additional $143.1 million will be used "to repair building structure and system components that are necessary to sustain and prolong the useful life of Bureau-funded education buildings."