DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Tribal Consultation on the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law

The Department of the Interior will hold a series of Tribal consultations on the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The Interior Department received a $466 million investment for the Bureau of Indian Affairs for infrastructure projects and climate resiliency initiatives, as well as a historic investment of $2.5 billion to help the Department fulfill pre-existing settlements of Indian water rights claims in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The law also made Tribal communities eligible for additional Department programs to support building resilience to wildland fire and drought, restoring ecosystems, enabling fish passage and addressing legacy pollution from abandoned mine lands and orphan oil and gas wells. The law invests more than $13 billion directly in Tribal communities across the country to bolster community resilience, replace aging infrastructure, expand access to clean drinking water and help ensure that everyone has access to high-speed internet.

These sessions will focus on the implementation of:

• Tribal Climate Resilience programs;
• Water infrastructure and drought resilience programs;
• Indian water right settlement investments;
• Wildfire resilience programs;
• Ecosystem restoration programs;
• Legacy pollution programs; and
• U.S. Geological Survey infrastructure law programs.

The consultations will take place Jan. 26-28 and are closed to the public. Tribes are also invited to submit written comments to consultation@bia.gov by Feb. 4, 2022.