- Details
- By Native News Online Staff
A Harvard University analysis of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) pandemic relief funding showed that 30 tribes received more than half the $20 billion set aside for tribes, according to a report in Tribal Business News.
The study by scholars with the Harvard Project on American Indian Economic Development (HPAIED) shows the distributions to more than 600 federally recognized tribes and tribal bands were vastly inequitable, largely because of formulaic choices made by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Tribes that were already wealthy, especially those with gaming, benefited due to inequitable Treasury Department formulas.
The Harvard Project team conducted the research using publicly available numbers on USAspending.gov, an open data source of federal spending information. The federal government uploaded complete and detailed tribal ARPA funding to the website on Oct. 6.
A dozen tribes each received more than $200 million, according to the analysis, including three — Navajo Nation, Cherokee Nation and the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma — that each received more than $1 billion.
The top 12 tribal recipients received a total $7.95 billion, or approximately 40 percent of the $20 billion in ARPA funds available to tribes through the Treasury.
Eighteen more tribes received between $100 million and $200 million, meaning that a total of 30 tribes received approximately 51.6 percent of the total funds available for tribes under ARPA.
On the other end of the spectrum, 375 tribes and tribal entities received less than $10 million, and 28 received a minimum amount of $1 million, according to the Tribal Business News report.
The news of the funding inequities follows recent reports that tribes were alarmed by the Treasury's handling of ARPA funding. That spurred a group of U.S. senators to write to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, urging her to quickly establish an Office of Tribal Affairs.
“The recent tribal consultations and interactions between Treasury and tribal nations underscore the need for sufficient, dedicated, in-house expertise at Treasury on tribal policy matters,” the letter said.
More Stories Like This
Q+A: Journalist Connie Walker Reflects on Season 3 of 'Stolen' Podcast Investigating Navajo Nation MMIP CasesNative Bidaské with Sarah Eagle Heart (Oglála Lakota) on the Indigenous Fashion Collective
Twelve Cherokee Nation Cyclists, 950 Miles: The 40th Annual Remember the Removal Bike Ride
Leona Carlyle-Kakar (Ak-Chin), Instrumental in Securing the 1st Water Rights Settlement in Indian Country, Walks On
California Moves Forward with Pilot MMIP Program
Native Perspective. Native Voices. Native News.
We launched Native News Online because the mainstream media often overlooks news that is important is Native people. We believe that everyone in Indian Country deserves equal access to news and commentary pertaining to them, their relatives and their communities. That's why the story you’ve just finished was free — and we want to keep it that way, for all readers. We hope you'll consider making a donation to support our efforts so that we can continue publishing more stories that make a difference to Native people, whether they live on or off the reservation. Your donation will help us keep producing quality journalism and elevating Indigenous voices. Any contribution of any amount — big or small — gives us a better, stronger future and allows us to remain a force for change. Donate to Native News Online today and support independent Indigenous-centered journalism. Thank you.
