Tribal Consultation Policies
2020 Presidential Memorandum on Tribal Consultation and Strengthening Nation-to-Nation Relationships
In a recent memorandum, President Biden reaffirms the policy announced in the 2009 Presidential Memorandum, which orders that each agency prepare and periodically update a detailed plan of action to implement the policies and directives of Executive Order 13175. President Biden directs that the head of each agency shall submit their detailed plans of action to the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), within 90 days of the date of this memorandum. The plan shall be developed after consultation by the agency with Tribal Nations and Tribal officials as defined in Executive Order 13175.
2009 Presidential Memorandum on Tribal Consultation
In a 2009 memorandum, President Obama declared his commitment to fulfilling the consultation requirements of Executive Order 13175, a directive originally issued by President Clinton on November 6, 2000. Executive Order 13175 calls for regular, meaningful consultation and collaboration with Tribal officials in the development of Federal policy. President Obama supports implementation of this policy and called on federal agencies to submit their detailed plans for implementation within 90 days from the issuance of his memorandum.
The National Congress of American Indians has a very helpful listing of Consultation Policies by agency.
Collaborations by Agency
Office of Tribal Justice
The Office of Tribal Justice (OTJ) was established to provide a single point of contact within the Justice Department for meeting the broad and complex federal responsibilities owed to Indian tribes. The Office facilitates coordination between Departmental components working on Indian issues, and provides a permanent channel of communication for federally recognized tribal governments and tribal organizations with the Department of Justice. OTJ represents the Department in its dealing with Indian tribes, federal agencies, Congress, state and local governments, professional associations, and public interest groups. Because Indian issues cut across so many entities within the Executive Branch, OTJ, in cooperation with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, serves to unify the federal response.
Contact:
Tracy Toulou, Director
Office of Tribal Justice
(202) 514-8812
The Department of Justice has established the Coordinated Tribal Assistance Solicitation (CTAS). CTAS combines the majority of DOJ’s existing Tribal Government–specific competitive solicitations into a single solicitation requiring only one application from each tribe or tribal consortium.
For up to date information on open grants please see: https://www.justice.gov/tribal/open-solicitations
For programmatic and general assistance with the requirements of the Coordinated Tribal Solicitation Assistance Solicitation, contact the Response Center via e-mail at tribalgrants@usdoj.gov.
On October 15, 2020, the Department of Justice grant making components―the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, the Office of Justice Programs, and the Office on Violence Against Women―launched a new grants management system (JustGrants) and payment management system (ASAP). For more information, please visit justicegrants.usdoj.gov. To access the Justice Grants System, please visit justgrants.usdoj.gov.
Contact;
Executive Assistant to Policy Office: Stella Campbell
O:(202) 616-5278 M:(202) 598-7385
Stella.R.Campbell@usdoj.gov
By Phone:
For programmatic and general assistance with the requirements of the Coordinated Tribal Solicitation Assistance Solicitation, contact the Response Center at 1–800–421–6770
The Response Center’s hours of operation are Monday-Friday (except U.S. federal government holidays) from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
Bureau of Indian Affairs
Programs administered through the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) include social services, natural resources management on trust lands representing 55 million surface acres and 57 million acres of subsurface minerals estates, economic development programs in some of the most isolated and economically depressed areas of the United States, law enforcement and detention services, administration of tribal courts, implementation of land and water claim settlements, housing improvement, disaster relief, replacement and repair of schools, repair and maintenance of roads and bridges, and the repair of structural deficiencies on high hazard dams, the BIA operates a series irrigation systems and provides electricity to a rural parts of Arizona.
Of note: Kevin Gover’s Apology (in his role at the time as Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Department of the Interior) to Native Americans for the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) at the ceremony acknowledging the 175th anniversary of the establishment of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) on September 8, 2000. (Text of Speech)
Contact:
Bryan Newland, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Indian Affairs
Indian Affairs
MS-4660-MIB1849 C Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20240
Telephone: (202) 208-7163
Fax: (202) 208-5320
Bureau of Justice Assistance
The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) is committed to preventing and controlling crime, violence, and substance abuse and improving the functioning of criminal justice systems in American Indian and Alaska Native communities. BJA works with tribes providing leadership, good management, and quality services in grant administration and policy development, and coordinates with other U.S. Department of Justice components and other agencies and organizations to ensure that limited federal funds are used to achieve the maximum possible benefit.
Bureau of Prisons
The Tribal Law and Order Act created a pilot program that authorized the Bureau of Prisons (Bureau or BOP) to house (for a period of four years) a limited number of certain offenders sentenced in Tribal Courts. The pilot program allowed any federally recognized tribe to request that the Bureau incarcerate a tribe member convicted under the terms of section 234 of the Act. By statute, the Bureau began to accept referrals on November 26, 2010, and the pilot program concluded on November 26, 2014.
Contact Us: Phone: (202) 307-3198
Email: GRA-DSC/TLOA~@bop.gov
Civil Rights Division
The Civil Rights Division Indian Working Group (IWG) is a part of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and is composed of members from throughout the Civil Rights Division. The mission and purpose of the IWG is to assist the Civil Rights Division in its law enforcement duties and responsibilities toward Native Americans. The IWG works to identify issues that affect Native Americans and to refer, coordinate, support and monitor enforcement and outreach activities involving Native Americans. The IWG has entered into an MOU with the Navajo Nation.
Contact: Phone- (202) 514-3847
Email: indianrights.workinggroup@usdoj.gov
Environmental Protection Agency
The EPA Tribal Portal was created as a gateway to EPA environmental information specifically related to tribal governments, such as environmental policies, practices and laws. The American Indian Environmental Office leads EPA’s efforts to protect human health and the environment of federally recognized Tribes by supporting implementation of federal environmental laws consistent with the federal trust responsibility, the government-to-government relationship, and EPA’s 1984 Indian Policy.
Check out EPA’s Policy on Consultation and Coordination with Indian Tribes
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Located within the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division, the Indian Country CrimesUnit (ICCU) is responsible for developing and implementing strategies, programs, and policies to address identified crime problems in Indian Country (IC) for which the FBI has responsibility.
Office of Justice Programs
American Indian & Alaska Native Affairs. The Department created the Coordinated Tribal Assistance Solicitation (CTAS) to respond to Tribal leaders’ requests to improve the grant-making process, and to strengthen tribal capacity for strategic community-based justice system planning. For more information, please follow the link to the Tribal Justice and Safety website.
Office for Victims of Crime
The Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) helps victims in Indian Country by providing much-needed resources, improving and increasing services, identifying promising practices, and adapting and replicating successful programs in tribal communities throughout the Nation. In addition, OVC collaborates with other federal agencies to fund demonstration programs that help tribes and tribal organizations serve victims more efficiently.
To contact the Office of Victims for Crime, please check out this link
Office on Violence Against Women
The Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) currently administers 21 grant programs designed to develop the nation’s capacity to reduce domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking by strengthening services to victims and holding offenders accountable for their actions. Tribal entities are generally eligible to apply for any OVW grant program where a comparable non-tribal entity is eligible. In addition, four of OVW’s programs are targeted to Native American populations and tribes.
To contact the Office on Violence Against Women regarding tribal affairs: OVW.TribalAffairs@usdoj.gov
For general information:
Office on Violence Against Women
202-307-6026
ovw.info@usdoj.gov
US Census Bureau
The Intergovernmental Affairs Office for Tribal Affairs — American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) is a section of the U.S Census Bureau. The Tribal Resource (AIAN) website highlights the Census Bureau’s relationship with tribal governments and provides important AIAN and tribal resources. Within the Intergovernmental Affairs Office, the Tribal Affairs Liaison works directly with tribal governments on matters of policy, legislative concerns and correspondence at the Census Bureau Director’s level to provide updates on Census Bureau products, programs, and initiatives.
Tribal Consultation Handbook-Background Materials for Tribal Consultations on the 2020 Census
Contact:
Intergovernmental Affairs Office
Dee A. Alexander, Intergovernmental Tribal Affairs Specialist
Office: (301) 763-9335
Fax: (301) 763-8327
Email: dee.a.alexander@census.gov
OCIA.TAO@census.gov
Office of Juveniles Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP)
OJJDP’s Tribal Youth Programs and Services helps tribal communities prevent victimization and juvenile delinquency, reduce violent crime, and improve tribal juvenile justice systems.
Contact:
Kara McDonagh
Program Manager
Programmatic, Training and Technical Assistance Contact
202-305-1456
Kara.McDonagh@usdoj.gov
Resources for Tribal-Federal Collaborations
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and U.S. Department of Interior (DOI) released the congressionally-mandated Long Term Plan to Build and Enhance Tribal Justice Systems (Tribal Justice Plan), which responds to sections 211, 241, and 244 of the Tribal Law and Order Act Long Term Plan to Build and Enhance Tribal Justice Systems
The National Congress of American Indians hosts a Tribal Law and Order Act page: http://tloa.ncai.org/
Improving the Relationship between the Federal Government, State Government and Tribes http://www.tribal-institute.org/articles/mou.htm
A Federal Commitment to Tribal Justice Systems by Janet Reno: http://www.tribal-institute.org/articles/reno.htm
Helpful Links
Tribal Participation in Fusion Centers: http://www.justice.gov/otj/pdf/tribal-fusion-centers.pdf
Law Enforcement Enterprise Portal: https://www.fbi.gov/services/cjis/leep and www.cjis.gov/static/CJISEAI/leep_trifold.pdf
Office for Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering and Tracking (SMART): http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/smart/indiancountry.htm
Native American Affairs Advisory Council, within the Administration for Children and Families: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/tribal/index.html
The Office of the United States Attorneyshas an Indian country specific page: www.justice.gov/usao/b riefing_room/ic/index.html