Today, Deputy Secretary Wally Adeyemo met virtually with Tribal leaders during a consultation to discuss the Treasury Department’s distribution of $20 billion in COVID relief funds to tribal governments under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARP). In the meeting of nearly 190 participants, including 20 Tribal Leaders, Deputy Secretary Adeyemo reiterated the importance of the nation-to-nation consultation process, and emphasized the need for equitable distribution of ARP funds to Indian country. Deputy Secretary Adeyemo also made clear that respecting the sovereignty of Tribal nations is critical to bringing Tribes the needed relief to rebuild and weather the pandemic. To help inform the Tribal allocations, the group discussed the allocation of funds; compliance and reporting; and communications, training, and technical assistance. Deputy Secretary Adeyemo was joined by Jacob Leibenluft, Counselor to the Secretary; Catherine Wolfram, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Climate and Energy Economics; Nancy Montoya, Tribal Affairs Program Coordinator; and Bryan Newland, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs for the Department of the Interior.
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