Tribal Organizations, Including Native Forward Scholars Fund, Urge Administration to Respect Tribal Sovereignty and Uphold Trust and Treaty Obligations Amid Executive Actions

WASHINGTON, Feb. 3, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- A coalition of Tribal organizations, representing Tribal Nations and their citizens and communities, is calling on the Administration to ensure that recent executive actions do not undermine the unique sovereign political status of Tribal Nations as sovereign nations with which the federal government has trust and treaty obligations, or disrupt federal funding that flows from those relationships for essential Tribal programs.

Following the issuance of multiple executive orders and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) directives, concerns arose over freezes on federal funding that Tribal Nations and Tribal organizations, including urban Indian organizations, rely on to provide critical healthcare, economic development, education, and social services to Tribal communities. While OMB has since rescinded the initial memorandum, questions remain about how federal agencies will interpret and implement the Administration's executive orders and policies moving forward.

Tribal Nations are not special interest groups—they are sovereign governments with a unique legal and political relationship with the United States and with their own Tribal communities. The trust and treaty obligations of the federal government are political and debt-based in nature.  Tribal Nations' sovereignty and the federal government's delivery on its trust and treaty obligations must not become collateral damage in broader policy shifts.

The coalition emphasizes that federal funding for Tribal programs is not discretionary, but rather a legal mandate owed under the United States' trust and treaty obligations and the many statutes that carry them out. The organizations urge the Administration to explicitly recognize Tribal sovereignty and trust and treaty obligations in the implementation of all executive orders and priorities and to ensure that federal agencies provide clear guidance that protects Tribal programs from unnecessary disruption.

As the Administration advances its priorities, it must do so in a way that respects Tribal sovereignty, strengthens self-determination, and delivers on trust and treaty obligations. We stand ready to work with federal partners to ensure that all policies and decisions uphold the government-to-government relationship between the U.S. and Tribal Nations.

The coalition will continue to advocate for Tribal sovereignty and fulfillment of the trust and treaty obligations and ensure that the voices of Indian Country are heard in Washington. A full copy of the sign-on letter can be found here: https://qrco.de/letter2225.

For media inquiries, please contact: Bryson Gillette, Jacqueline Lee Rivera, Senior Director, Email: [email protected], Cell: (817) 917-5741

List of National Tribal Organizations

American Indian Higher Education Consortium

Association on American Indian Affairs

Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians

California Tribal Chairpersons Association

Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council

Great Plains Tribal Chairmans Association

Indian Gaming Association

Inter-Tribal Association of Arizona

Midwest Alliance of Sovereign Tribes

Native American Finance Officers Association

National American Indian Court Judges Association

Native American Rights Fund

National Association of Tribal Historic Preservation Officers

Native Forward Scholars Fund

National Congress of American Indians

National Council for Urban Indian Health

National Indian Child Welfare Association

National Indian Education Association

National Indian Health Board

Northern California Tribal Chairperson's Association

Rocky Mountain Tribal Leaders Council

Self-Governance Communication & Education Tribal Consortium

Southern California Tribal Chairmen's Association

United South and Eastern Tribes

SOURCE Native Forward Scholars Fund