Status of federal grants remains uncertain

By Nicole Montesano and Katherine Warren

Smoke Signals staff writers

Clarity over which of the Tribe’s federal grants may be affected by the Trump administration’s funding freeze remains hard to come by, as so much remains in flux at the federal level.

Numerous lawsuits have been filed and may not be resolved for weeks or months. It is also unclear whether the Trump administration will abide by court orders.

Tribal Department heads and council members are keeping an eye on the news, and planning for how to proceed if funds are not forthcoming.

Two judges have ordered that the freeze be paused while lawsuits are ongoing. One of them, U.S. District Court Judge John McConnell, ordered the administration to comply with his earlier temporary restraining order, according to CBS News. Agencies were ordered to restore any funds that had been paused or withheld.

On Thursday, Feb. 6, the Tribe received a letter from Department of Health and Human Services Acting General Counsel Sean Keveney, stating that in late January, the Indian Health Service had asked whether the executive order imposing the funding freeze applied to programs serving American Indians and Alaska Natives. It does not, he said.

Keveney wrote that “First, the order, by its plain terms, does not apply to such programs. Second, it would be imprudent to read it as so applying given that Tribes are separate sovereigns. Third, the Supreme Court has consistently applied the Indian cannon of construction in favor of funding toward Tribes; application of that cannon here counsels against reading the EO as applying to (American Indians/Alaska Natives).”

Although the Tribe is largely self-funded, it has a number of federal grants in place, including ones for the ongoing environmental cleanup and restoration at tumwata village, construction of a new recreation center and Tribal Police.

For the Tribe’s Emergency Services Department, little is expected to change, since 95% of the department’s funding comes from the state, Chief Steve Warden said.

“We are fully operational and have not had communications indicative of any potential change in grant receipts,” Warden said in an email.

Natural Resources Department Manager Colby Drake said he does not expect the freeze to affect the Tribe’s wildland fire program either.

“Our wildland firefighters … are Tribal employees and are hired through the Tribal process,” Drake said in an email. “They are paid with Tribal funds when they work on Tribal lands or assist other state/federal agencies in fire suppression activities. The Tribe then sends all reimbursables to the Northwest Regional Office for the Bureau of Indian Affairs for reimbursements of funds related to wages/fringe, lodging, food and miscellaneous supplies. (It) takes a couple of years typically for it all to be reconciled.”

Drake said he was unsure whether the BIA, which is part of the Department of the Interior, might be affected. By Thursday, Feb. 20, the BIA had seen funds frozen and employees terminated.

In a press release, Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley said that he and Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine), the top Democrats on the subcommittees that oversee funding for the Department of the Interior, had demanded that the administration “immediately reinstate any terminated Indian Affairs employees, lift the hiring freeze, officially rescind the deferred resignation and early retirement offers, and instead work to strengthen and grow the Indian Affairs staff to best meet the needs of American Indians and Alaska Natives in accordance with our treaty and trust obligations.”

The letter to Interior Secretary Doug Bargum continued, “These damaging actions – implemented without Tribal consultation – violate congressional direction to implement programs and activities funded through appropriations…Without the necessary staff to fulfill federal obligations, Indigenous communities will face the loss of vital services, meaning services for law enforcement, Tribal courts, natural resource management, education, firefighters and road maintenance. These are services that are critical for any community to function effectively. … Any efforts to diminish already understaffed and underfunded programs further exacerbates already dire conditions in many Tribal communities who rely on services provided by Indian Affairs for their daily existence. When this is paired with the illegal freeze of federal funds that are owed to Tribes to reimburse them for services already performed and the inability of Tribes to draw down their funds, it jeopardizes the way of life and well-being of Native communities.”

The letter echoed some of the points made earlier on Sunday, Feb. 2, when a coalition of Tribal organizations sent a letter to the Trump administration and members of Congress, urging them to “recognize and protect the status of Tribal nations as political entities” in light of the federal government actions.

“Tribal nations are eager to work with the administration on multiple shared priorities. These include, among others, reducing unnecessary federal regulations, streamlining federal funding mechanisms for critical Tribal priorities and economic development, strengthening Tribal self-determination and addressing long-standing tax issues that are historic impediments to Tribal economic growth,” the letter stated.

However, it said that “Our unique political and legal relationship with the United States is rooted in our inherent sovereignty and recognized in the U.S. Constitution, in treaties, and is carried out by many federal laws and policies. When Congress is acting under its unique obligation toward Tribal nations and their citizens, they have legal status as a political class rather than a suspect racial class under the principles of constitutional legal analysis. The U.S. Supreme Court has consistently recognized and upheld the distinct legal and political status of Tribal nations and their citizens and communities. We call on the Trump administration to ensure the United States’ delivery on its trust and treaty obligations does not become collateral damage in the Trump administration’s implementation of its other priorities, such as limiting diversity, equity, inclusivity, and accessibility and environmental justice initiatives, and restricting the federal workforce.”

During the Tuesday, Feb. 18, Legislative Action Committee meeting, Chairwoman Cheryle A. Kennedy said the Tribe continues to monitor the situation.

“We’re just continuing to review all of the emails to check and see the direction that the administration of the United States is taking and the many positions that are being affected by the recent pause on funding and looking forward to the continuing resolution and how that will unroll,” Kennedy said. “So, there are things that we’re looking at trying to stay as vigilant as we can to make sure that the Tribe receives all of the funding that has been obligated to them and in the throes of writing letters and making sure that our voices are heard.”

Kennedy said Tribal leaders are praying, adding “I would ask all of our people to pray as well. This is a different time that we’re facing and we’re living in and we don’t really know all of the paths forward, but we are working diligently to make sure that the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde and other Tribes across the United States receive what has been promised to them.”

Tribal Council members Denise Harvey and Lisa Leno attended a conference in Washington, D.C. last week and said that a group of some 20 Tribal leaders had several meetings with Congressional representatives about funding issues.

“Everybody seems to be trying to focus on the importance of this major national issue for all of us,” Harvey said. “I do believe that the Tribes do have language in some of those agreements and that’s what they are; they’re agreements that the federal government made to us …  and there is language in there, I’m hoping, that we’re going to prevail.”

She noted that it may be some months before much is known.

“I feel very good about our Tribe, though,” Harvey said. “We’re very secure. We’re not totally reliant on grants, services from the federal government and our Elders before us kind of paved that path for us to protect us through times like this, and I think that we’re very grateful for that. There are many Tribes out there that are completely reliant on federal funding. … So just keep Indian Country in your prayers and I think Grand Ronde is in a good position. We’re strong and I think we’ll weather this fairly well. I’m just really concerned about some of the other Tribes that aren’t in the same situation that we are.”

Tribal Communications Director Sara Thompson weighed in as well.

“I hope the federal government honors its trust responsibility with all Tribal nations with the care and dedication that it deserves,” she said.