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Osage Nation preparing for potential federal funding freeze

Principal Chief Geoffrey Standing Bear believes this isn’t the last time tribal nations could see confusion over federal funding. He said the Nation isn’t taking any chances and is preparing.

The Office of Management and Budget, one of the more powerful agencies in Washington, D.C., that oversees trillions of dollars, abruptly tightened its purse strings on Jan. 28 with a stroke of a pen.

An agency memo titled, “Federal Aid Pause M-25-13,” was sent out late Monday night that said agency grants, loans and other financial assistance worth trillions of dollars would temporarily pause. The freezing of these funds would take effect at 5 p.m. ET on Jan. 28. The order was decried as illegal and unconstitutional. The order set off confusion and panic.

The order was first blocked by a federal judge in Washington minutes before it was to go into effect. The White House later rescinded the order.

The pause, according to the agency, was to make sure spending was in line with President Trump’s executive orders to undo directives on transgender rights, environmental justice and diversity, equity and inclusion or DEI initiatives. Trump explained that the pause was temporary while they reviewed all federal programs.

Principal Chief Geoffrey Standing Bear said the Nation did what a lot of other tribal nations did in response to the order: take an inventory of all programs funded by tribal and federal dollars. The Nation also drew down money before the deadline to make sure all monies were available.

Standing Bear said he and other tribal leaders throughout Indian Country are making preparations, in case something like this happens again.

“This is not over, you cannot convince us, this is not over,” Standing Bear said of the possibility that another directive to pause federal dollars could happen.

Standing Bear also directed the Nation’s gaming enterprise to be ready to make funds available. He said that as of now, no programs have experienced disruption.

This isn’t the first time a federal funding pause has taken place. The last one occurred during the Nixon administration. President Nixon, after he was re-elected in 1972, attempted to claw back money on spending programs he didn’t approve of – which is why the Impoundment Control Act of 1974 was passed.

One of those programs involved funds for Indian Education, according to Kirke Kickingbird, of the law firm Hobbs, Strauss, Dean and Walker. He explained the President doesn’t have control over funds that have already been appropriated. That power lies with Congress and may even be in violation of the ICA. He and another lawyer, John Ghostbear, filed a lawsuit.

We won in that case,” Kickingbird said. 

“We got an injunction requiring the U.S. Office of Education to spend those monies, primarily because there was language in the appropriation acts that said the money shall be spent. It was a mandatory thing. There was no discretion allowed,” he said.

A temporary pause on funding would have affected programs related to everything from adoption assistance, cancer prevention, and foster care programs to Native American business development to housing programs.

“We’re not a DEI initiative,” said Standing Bear. He explained the freeze could’ve affected the Nation’s ability to help with utility assistance and child care programs.

Standing Bear said very few of the Nation’s programs are funded completely with federal funds, but those that the Nation supplements would have been impacted. He and other tribal leaders are talking about how to prepare for this.

“We’re in the inventory stage right now, but I did alert our people that we may have to have a special appropriation from our legislature,he said.

Standing Bear and other tribal leaders are also speaking with the Oklahoma congressional delegation, to make sure the new administration knows how crucial these funds are.

Kickingbird also echoed what Standing Bear said about funding for tribal nations being caught up in the backlash of DEI initiatives.

“There’s a lack of understanding about the government-to-government relationship, the lack of understanding about the treaty obligations,” he said.

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Allison Herrera
Allison Herrerahttps://osagenews.org
Title: Freelance Reporter
Languages spoken: English

Allison Herrera is a radio and print journalist who's worked for PRX's The World, Colorado Public Radio as the climate and environment editor and as a freelance reporter for High Country News’ Indigenous Affairs Desk. Herrera recently worked on Bloomberg and iHeart Media's In Trust with Rachel Adams-Heard, an investigative podcast about Osage Headrights. She currently works for KOSU as their Indigenous Affairs Reporter. Herrera’s Native ties are from her Xolon Salinan tribal heritage. In her free time, she likes buying fancy earrings, running and spending time with her daughter.
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