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Happy New Year! The USDA Office of Tribal Relations closed out 2024 with many stakeholder engagements, and we begin 2025 with gratitude for our nation-to-nation relationships.
In December, about 200 USDA staff participated in the Intertribal Agriculture Council’s Annual Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada. For several days prior to the conference, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) hosted a gathering of its Regional Tribal Conservation Advisory Councils to collaborate with Tribal members to better serve Tribes and Tribal producers. On December 9, the Food and Nutrition Service held a consultation with the Tribal Leaders Consultation Working Group on the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR). On December 10-11, the Office of Tribal Relations convened the Tribal Advisory Committee for its fourth and final meeting of 2024. Throughout the conference, USDA leaders and Tribal liaisons shared information on numerous programs, often alongside partners from the Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs. That same week, USDA Rural Development staff joined the National American Indian Housing Council’s Legal Symposium, and NRCS staff joined the Intertribal Buffalo Council’s annual meeting.
Also on December 9, 2024, the White House Council on Native American Affairs hosted its annual Tribal Nations Summit. The Council unveiled two new cutting-edge trainings on Tribal Consultation and Tribal Treaty and Reserved Rights. These training modules will be rolled out to federal employees across the federal government. More information about those training modules is available at https://www.bia.gov/tns/2024. Additionally, the USDA featured many accomplishments in the White House’s 2024 Tribal Nations Summit Progress Report.
In the coming weeks, USDA will publish outcomes from these and other 2024 events on our refreshed website. Consultation report-outs will soon be available for the full 2024 calendar year at the OTR Consultation web page. The Tribal Advisory Committee’s report of recommendations to USDA and Congress is available at the Tribal Advisory Committee web page, and the 2025 schedule of public meetings is forthcoming. Many USDA agencies published new and enhanced resources for Tribal nations at the close of the year.
In this newsletter, we are highlighting several new USDA resources for Tribal nations, a new public interest waiver for Tribes receiving federal financial assistance, the USDA-BIA’s joint training plan for 2025, USDA’s annual report on Joint Secretarial Order 3403, and the Agricultural Marketing Service’s new grant for bison marketing. In 2025, the OTR newsletter will shift to a quarterly publication schedule. In the meantime, you can subscribe to receive USDA updates on a range of topics at the USDA website.
Best regards,
Betsy Rakola
Acting
Office of Tribal Relations
 USDA Central Plans Tribal College Liaison Kellen Palmer presents to youth at the Intertribal Agriculture Council (IAC) conference in December 2024.
 OTR Acting Director Betsy Rakola speaks during the closing panel of the Intertribal Agriculture Council annual conference on December 12, 2024.
 Members of the USDA Tribal Advisory Committee, both virtual and in person, gather on December 11, 2024, in Las Vegas, Nevada for a public meeting with officials from USDA and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Tribal Advisory Committee Meeting
The next meeting of the Tribal Advisory Committee (TAC) will be held virtually on February 18, 2025. Register to join the meeting either in listening mode or to deliver public comments on the OTR website.
USDA is saddened at the passing of Dr. Charles “Monty” Roessel, who served as a member of the TAC in 2024 and a partner to the USDA Tribal Colleges and Universities program through his presidency at Diné College since 2017. Dr. Roessel was a leader in higher education, serving in both federal and Tribal positions related to Native education for many years. A remembrance of Dr. Roessel is available in the Navajo Times.
Multi-Agency Tribal Public Interest Waiver
On January 11, 2025, multiple federal agencies published a “General Applicability Waiver to Indian Tribes” regarding Section 70914 of the Build America, Buy America Act (BABA). The waiver will apply through January 9, 2030, for Indian Tribes, including their governmental arms and instrumentalities, Tribal organizations, Tribal entities, and Native Hawaiian organizations (as determined by each program’s regulatory and statutory authority), for all types of federal financial assistance. Download the waiver to learn more about the conditions where the waiver applies.
USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Issues Tribal Relations Strategy
In November 2024, Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) released a new Tribal Relations Strategy, demonstrating the agency’s commitment to honoring its federal trust relationship with the 574 federally recognized Tribes and Alaska Native Villages that have sovereign interest in more than 119 million acres of land across the United States.
The strategy is based on feedback from Tribal Nations, including recommendations made to Chief Terry Cosby at the 2021, 2022, and 2023 National Tribal Consultations, and in-depth collaboration that took place at seven Regional Tribal Conservation Advisory Council meetings.
Its six action items include:
- Hiring a Tribal Relations Director to establish an NRCS Office of Tribal Relations within the Office of the Chief.
- Filling positions dedicated to Tribal conservation.
- Providing housing assistance on Tribal lands (in partnership with the Department of the Interior).
- Implementing a Tribal knowledge training plan.
- Creating an advanced Tribal development program.
- Recording correctly Tribal conservation data.
This strategy builds on many years of listening, working and consulting with Tribes to address their natural resources concerns. NRCS is committed to carrying out its federal trust responsibilities by ensuring that the agency has tribal operations built into its organizational structure. Read and download the NRCS strategy.
New Farm Service Agency Resources for Tribal Nations
In December 2024, the USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) published new resource guides for Tribal Nations. FSA’s goal is to make USDA farm and conservation programs and services more meaningful and accessible to Tribal nations and citizens on more than 64 million acres of Tribal and allotted trust land used for farming, grazing by livestock and wild game, and forestry. By connecting Tribal Nation leaders, land managers, agricultural producers, and citizens with USDA programs and services, USDA seeks to better fulfill its commitment and government-to-government responsibilities to Tribal Nations and promote opportunities for land access, indigenous representation, conservation partnerships, and support for tribal food sovereignty.
The Tribal Partnerships Guide for Tribal Nations contains information about how USDA supports Tribal Nations in farm programs, loans and access, conservation, and Tribal food sovereignty. The resources also highlight ways to provide Tribal input to USDA. FSA’s new Tribal guide was developed to help federally recognized Tribal governments manage the eligibility paperwork needed to participate in USDA farm production and conservation programs. Read and download these resources using the link below.
For more resources on USDA farm and conservation programs and services, visit the Partnership with Tribal Nations website.
USDA-Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Joint Training
In November 2024, the USDA and the BIA extended their Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) titled, “Planning and Implementing Certain United States Department of Agriculture Programs on Indian Lands.” Originally signed in November 2019, this MOU established a foundation for improved coordination, planning, and implementation of federal programs on lands held in trust for Indians in an environmentally, culturally, and economically sound manner. With the extension of the MOU, the federal government committed to deepen that coordination through improved communication, collaboration, and consultation.
Later this year, the two agencies will conduct internal joint training in Cherokee, North Carolina. The purpose of the training is to increase mutual understandings of the two agencies’ programs, with the goal of streamlining requirements for efficient service delivery to Indian Country. Comments from Tribal consultations and the Tribal Advisory Committee regularly highlight duplicative or conflicting requirements for agriculture, conservation, and range management as barriers to program access for Tribal citizens and Tribal nations. Following a BIA-hosted joint training in June 2024, this session will build on cross-agency partnerships to improve customer service.
View the MOU and its extension at Farmers.gov.
2024 Annual Report on Joint Secretarial Order 3403
On November 15, 2021, Agriculture Secretary Thomas J. Vilsack and the Interior Secretary Deb Haaland signed Joint Secretarial Order 3403 (JSO 3403) “Fulfilling the Trust Responsibility to Indian Tribes in the Stewardship of Federal Lands and Waters” (joined by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in November 2022). The Order directs the Departments to ensure that their decisions relating to federal stewardship of lands, waters, and wildlife include consideration of how to safeguard the treaty, spiritual, subsistence, and cultural interests of Tribes.
The USDA Forest Service’s 2024 Annual Report on JSO 3403 highlights major achievements in implementing the Order. Three Tribal land transfers show how USDA has been working with Tribes and other federal agencies to restore Tribal homelands. The fiscal year 2024 investments of $113 million in 121 grants and agreements with Tribes and Alaska Native Corporations, with more than half of these focused on co-stewardship of the National Forest System, show a comprehensive approach to natural resource management, often incorporating multiple elements of importance to Tribes. Read and download the report on the OTR website.
Bison Production and Marketing Grant Program, Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS)
The USDA AMS requests applications for the fiscal year (FY) 2025 Bison Production and Marketing Grant Program (BPMGP). The BPMGP is designed to strengthen and enhance the production and marketing of bison and bison products in the United States through business and resource development, and the advancement of innovative solutions or approaches to support the long-term growth of the Bison sector. The program will be implemented through the award of one or more grants to entities who will make subawards to implement the goals of the program. Up to $2 million is available, and applications are due on March 26, 2025.
USDA Hall of Tribal Nations
USDA Requests your Tribal Flag for the Hall of Tribal Nations!
In recognition of the diplomatic nation-to-nation relationship, between Tribes and the federal government, USDA is proud to host a Hall of Tribal Nations, akin to our sister agency, the Department of Interior’s Bureau of Indian Affairs. Agriculture Secretary Vilsack shared a video dedicating this new space during the November 2021 White House Tribal Nations Conference.
USDA invites more Tribal Nations to contribute flags to this growing collection. Please contact Tribal.Relations@usda.gov to learn more. You may send your 3 ft. x 5 ft. tribal flag to:
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Attention: Tribal Flags/Office of Tribal Relations
1400 Independence Avenue SW
Room 501-A Whitten Building
Washington, DC 20250
USDA Initiatives
News
Jan. 16 – USDA Announces Grant Funding to Support the Production and Marketing of Bison and Bison Products
Jan. 14 - USDA Finalizes Third New Regulation Under the Biden-Harris Administration to Create Fairness and Transparency for Contract Farmers
Jan. 13, 2025 - USDA Announces 2025 Enrollment Periods for Crop and Dairy Safety-Net Programs
Jan. 10 - Navajo Tribal Utility Authority, Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana, and Nevada Tribal Nations to Benefit from USDA investments in Clean Energy Projects
Jan. 8 - Fact Sheet: Biden-Harris Administration Advances Agricultural Exports in Support of the U.S. Economy
Jan. 7 - USDA Celebrates President Biden’s Sáttítla Highlands Monument Designation
Jan. 7 - Register to hear comments on the Scientific Report of the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee
Dec. 30 - Biden-Harris Administration Proposes Protections for Ruby Mountains
Dec. 26 - Biden-Harris Administration Finalizes Protections for the Pactola Reservoir—Rapid Creek Watershed
Dec. 23 - Biden-Harris Administration Launches New Program to Support Wood Processing Facilities and Help Reduce Wildfire Threats
Dec. 19 – New USDA Pacific Nutrition Hub to Focus on Native Populations
Dec. 11- Biden-Harris Administration announces nearly $335M in grants to support private forestland management and conservation as part of President Biden’s Investing in America Agenda
Dec. 10 - USDA Announces Availability of $1.13 Billion for Local Food Programs
Dec. 9 - USDA Updates Watershed Programs to Improve Access for Tribal Communities
Dec. 4 - USDA Forest Service announces new monitoring policy
USDA Indian Country Blogs
Preserving an Indigenous Food Source
Planting the Seed: Forest Restoration Helps Preserve Tribal Traditions
Together We’re Reducing Wildfire Risk to Communities Across the Country
From Engagement to Impact: Empowering Rural Communities and Tribes in the Pacific Northwest
Fort Hall Indian Reservation Soil Survey Unearths New Soil Series and Partnership
Sustaining the Land: Tribal Land Management and Conservation at Fort Belknap
Finding a Solution to Erosion in a Native Alaskan Community
Tribal Beef Cattle Herds Improving through University of Idaho Extension Program
USDA Funding Supports Northeast Native Americans
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