On many Indian reservations the transition to welfare reform has been haphazard, and some tribal governments still do not fully understand the impact welfare reform may have on their communities. Many American Indian advocates are concerned about questions the welfare law raised about state authority over tribal governments. Currently, state governments run most welfare programs on reservations. Usually the state allows tribal governments to run welfare systems on reservations through cooperative agreements, intergovernmental memos of understanding or contracts. But in some cases, particularly where there have been antagonistic relationships with the state, reservations are faced with inadequate services.
Jobs are a particular concern on many reservations.
According to Norm Deweaver of the Center for Community Change working with the Cook Inlet Tribal Council in Alaska, in many cases where there are few job opportunities, either the tribal governments will create community service positions to meet work requirements or the state will ignore enforcement. The welfare law, however, did give tribal governments the option of running their own welfare programs. So far only 10 reservations and a consortium of tribes in Southern California have chosen to run their own programs. Otherwise, tribal governments are faced with having to do more with less. While in Oregon a cooperative relationship led to the state match, it took heavy lobbying in California to get state funding.