A Navajo committee asks the tribal utility to hook up finished veteran homes first

A Navajo Nation Council committee has asked the tribal utility authority to put finished veteran homes first for hookups, the Office of the Speaker said.

The council's health, education and human services committee approved Legislation No. 0163-26 on Monday, according to a release dated July 15.

The legislation supports a request for the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority to prioritize electrical, water, wastewater and other essential utility connections, so that completed veteran homes can be occupied without unnecessary delays.

It was sponsored by committee Chair Vince James and originally drafted in support of the Northern Navajo Veterans Organization, the release said. The measure was amended to cover all Navajo veterans organizations, across every agency of the Nation.

James said in the release: “Our veterans have earned the opportunity to live safely in the homes that have already been built for them.”

Council Delegate Helena Nez Begay said veterans in the Western Agency face similar delays, and that some have waited nearly a year for utility infrastructure despite having completed homes.

She asked that the legislation be broadened to include veterans throughout the Navajo Nation and joined the measure as a co-sponsor.