Navajo tribal government officials say they’re trying to speed up road construction on the Navajo Nation by eliminating some red tape.
Tribal officials say that right now, most road projects on the Navajo Nation require two environmental clearances by federal agencies in order to move forward.
The Navajo transportation Director Garret Silversmith told federal officials that adds several years to the completion of road projects.
Under the proposed agreement, authority for road projects would move under the country’s transportation department rather than the Department of the Interior.
Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez wrote on Twitter the tribe’s reservation has 1,700 miles of paved roads and 10,000 miles of dirt roads that need improvement.