Nygren vetoes key line items in $694 million
fiscal 2026 budget
WINDOW ROCK
The Council has certified a $694 million budget for fiscal 2026, but President Buu Nygren on Sept. 15 exercised his line-item veto authority, cutting select appropriations he argued lacked accountability and fiscal discipline. The action highlights the president’s unique constitutional authority in financial matters – an authority the Council cannot override under Navajo law.
The budget resolution (CS-44-25), passed unanimously by the Council on Sept. 4, directs $55.4 million into statutory set-asides, including $34.3 million for the Permanent Fund, $11.4 million for the Veterans Trust Fund, $5.7 million for the Land Acquisition Trust Fund and $2 million each for the Capital Outlay Match Fund and Water Rights Claims Fund.
From there, $524.3 million is appropriated to the Executive Branch, $19.9 million to the Legislative Branch, and $19.2 million to the Judicial Branch, with $40.3 million reserved for fixed costs such as insurance, utilities, grazing official stipends and litigation expenses.
The Executive Branch received the largest share, supporting agencies such as the Department of Diné Education ($38.6 million), the Division of Human Resources ($122 million), the Division of Community Development and the Navajo chapters ($40 million combined), the Division of Public Safety ($25.2 million), the Division of Natural Resources ($39.9 million), the Division of Economic Development ($10.6 million), and the Division of General Services ($101.7 million).
The Judicial Branch’s $19.2 million allocation includes funding for the Supreme Court, 19 district courts, the Peacemaker Division, probation services, and new operations and maintenance costs for court facilities. The Legislative Branch’s $19.9 million covers the Council ($3 million), the Office of the Speaker ($2.2 million), Legislative Counsel ($1.5 million), Legislative Services ($1.9 million), the Auditor General ($1.5 million), the Election Administration ($1.8 million), and the Human Rights Commission ($730,000).
Nygren did not reject the entire budget. Instead, he invoked the line-item veto authority granted by Navajo voters in 2009 to target specific allocations. His action struck $16 million from the Legislative Branch’s general fund request and eliminated more than $2.2 million from its indirect cost recovery funding.
To read the full article, please see the Sept. 18, 2025, edition of the Navajo Times.
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