Whereas access to reliable, clean drinking water is an essential human need that is critical to the public health, well-being, educational attainment, and economic development of all communities in the United States; Whereas many countries, along with the United Nations, have recognized the urgency of water access by passing laws or resolutions relating to the human right to water, including recognition of this right among indigenous peoples and establishing aggressive targets for achieving universal access to this basic right; Whereas, in the United States, access to reliable, clean drinking water has long been a significant problem in many Native communities, such that nearly 1/2 of all Native households in the continental United States still do not have access to reliable water sources or clean drinking water, and Native households are significantly more likely than White households to lack indoor plumbing; Whereas reliable, clean drinking water may be unavailable to Native households for many reasons, including because— (1) there is no piped water system connecting to the house; (2) the water available to the household does not meet minimum protective standards; (3) the water infrastructure is deteriorating or insufficient; or (4) Indian Tribes, Alaska Native Villages, and Native Hawaiian communities are unable to support the operation and maintenance needs of existing water infrastructure; Whereas many Native communities have significant unresolved claims for federally reserved water rights, many of which have been unresolved for decades and which may not be resolved for many years to come, due in part to the complex and significant issues typically involved in water rights adjudication and settlements; Whereas the development of water infrastructure on Federal Indian reservations, in particular, has frequently been conditioned on the settlement of Tribal reserved water rights and has been prevented or delayed by— (1) continuing uncertainty over the status of Tribal water rights