2020-21 Resolution

Res #: Committee: Submitted by: Title:                                 Pass → Yes No Amended/Tabled To NCAI
2020-21 Natural Resources Taylor Aalvik Protecting NW Rivers & Streams X


https://atnitribes.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Res-2020-22-.pdf

2020-20 Resolution

Res #: Committee: Submitted by: Title:                                 Pass → Yes No Amended/Tabled To NCAI
2020-20 Health Laura Platero Streamline Covid-19 Funding And Resources To Tribes And IHS/Tribal Health Clinics X


https://atnitribes.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Res-2020-20-.pdf

2020-19 Resolution

Res #: Committee: Submitted by: Title:                                 Pass → Yes No Amended/Tabled To NCAI
2020-19 Health Laura Platero Opposition To Expansion Of 100% FMAP To Non-IHS/Tribal Medicaid Providers Without A Care Coordination Agreement Or Tribal FQHC Contract X


https://atnitribes.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Res-2020-19.pdf

2020-18 Resolution

Res #: Committee: Submitted by: Title:                                 Pass → Yes No Amended/Tabled To NCAI
2020-18 Health Laura Platero Increase Telehealth Access And Funding In Tribal Communities X


https://atnitribes.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Res-2020-18.pdf

2020-17 Resolution

Res #: Committee: Submitted by: Title:                                 Pass → Yes No Amended/Tabled To NCAI
2020-17 Executive Board Executive Board General Assistance Program Grant FY 2021-2024 X


https://atnitribes.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Res-2020-17.pdf

Sen. McCoy received a Master of Public Administration honorary degree from The Evergreen State College

June 27th, 2020

Dear Friends of Sen. John McCoy;

On June 12th, 2020, Sen. McCoy received a Master of Public Administration honorary degree from The Evergreen State College during commencement. Earlier that day, he also received the 2020 Public Official of the Yearaward from the college’s Master of Public Administration program. Finally, to ensure that Sen. McCoy’s legacy of supporting Native student education continues, we are currently working to endow a scholarship in the senator’s name to support future MPA Tribal Governance students.

While presenting the honorary degree during commencement, Evergreen President Dr. George Bridges referenced the senator’s extraordinary educational leadership in Native education throughout the state, including passage of the Since Time Immemorial Legislation, legislation establishing tribal compact schools in Washington state and co-founding the Tribal Leaders Congress in Education.

Sen. McCoy, the Tulalip Tribes, and the Muckleshoot Tribe helped establish the Advanced Studies in Tribal Governance program in Evergreen’s Master of Public Administration program, which Faculty Emeriti Alan Parker (Chippewa Cree) and Linda Moon Stumpff (Apache) co-founded in 2000.

The 10th MPA Tribal Governance class graduated this past June. Our alumni of Tribal Students have played a lead role in transformative change as they have filled key positions throughout Indian Country. President Joe DeLaCruz of the Quinault Indian Nation, a visionary leader of the past generation, saw such a goal when he called upon Parker and Stumpff to design and teach this program.

We are creating an endowed scholarship fund that will allow the Senator’s educational and public service leadership to continue to impact current and future generations.  We plan to begin distributing scholarships during the upcoming academic year with individual donations to launch the program, while we build an endowment to provide scholarships in perpetuity.

“When I first came home and started to work on building the Tribe’s resources, one of those resources was getting our Tribal students educated. Getting them educated was very important so that we could build on our resources and help our people grow.” –Sen. John McCoy (Tulalip)

For more information on the Sen. John McCoy Endowed Scholarship, please contact Tina Kuckkahn-Miller, J.D. (Ojibwe), Vice President for Indigenous Arts, Education and Tribal Relations, at (360) 918-1817 or by email at kuckkaht@evergreen.edu.

We invite you to join us by making an online contribution here: Senator McCoy Scholarship

Respectfully,

Tina Kuckkahn-Miller, J.D. (Citizen, Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Ojibwe)

Vice President for Indigenous Arts, Education and Tribal Relations

The Evergreen State College

Olympia WA 98505

Alan R Parker, J.D. (Citizen, Chippewa Cree Tribal Nation)

Adjunct Faculty, The Maori Indigenous University and

Faculty Emeritus, The Evergreen State College

HUD Region X Webinar “Mitigating COVID-19 with Tribal Healthy Homes”: HUD Resources and Project Examples”

HUD Region X Webinar“Mitigating COVID-19 with Tribal Healthy Homes”: HUD Resources and Project Examples” 
Friday, June 19, 2020 at 9am Alaska Time/10am Pacific Time
Region X Administrator, Jeff McMorris will introduce Michelle Miller, Deputy Director, HUD’s Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes (OLHCHH). AJ Salkoski, HUD Tribal Healthy Homes Program Analyst, will talk about the importance of healthy homes in tribal communities, and HUD’s Tribal Healthy Homes Production Grant Program, and Greg Stuckey, Administrator, Alaska Office of Native American Programs (ONAP) will talk about other HUD ONAP programs which can fund healthy homes activities.
Finally, Portland Field Office Director, Tony Ramirez, will talk about another upcoming Region X Healthy Homes webinar in July.   We hope you’ll join us.Join us via AT&T web meeting:
Web meetingwebmeeting.att.com
Meeting Number: 1-877-336-1828Access code: 3059548
OR Teleconference:Call in: 1-877-336-1828Conference code: 3059548# 
Please contact Ann Gravier at ann.y.gravier@hud.gov, if you have any questions or comments.

ATNI 2.5 GHz Rural Tribal Window Webinar

ATNI 2.5 GHz Rural Tribal Window Webinar
Friday, June 19th 10:00AM
You are invited to join the ATNI hosted webinar to discuss the 2.5 GHz Rural Tribal Window. This window is a unique opportunity for Tribes in rural areas to directly access unassigned spectrum over their Tribal lands, subject to buildout requirements. The 2.5 GHz band is suitable for both mobile coverage and fixed point-to-point uses, and is currently used to provide broadband service by legacy educational licensees and commercial providers that lease the spectrum. Depending on your needs, it can play an important role in the deployment of broadband and other advanced communications services on your Tribal lands.
The Rural Tribal Priority Window opened Monday, February 3, 2020, and closes on Monday, August 3, 2020 at 6PM EDT. Click the 2.5 GHz Rural Tribal Window Submitted Applications link under Related Links to view a list of submitted applications.
REGISTER TODAY!
When: Jun 19, 2020 10:00 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada) Topic: ATNI: Tribal Eligibility for the 2.5 GHz Rural Tribal Priority Window 
Register in advance for this webinar:https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_UCI7lL9xRXW99elQLR_Phg 

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

ATNI Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Webinar

ATNI Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Webinar
June 18, 2020 01:00 PM Pacific Time
You are invited to join the ATNI hosted webinar to discuss the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF). The RDOF will provide up to $20.4 billion over 10 years to communications providers for communities that are unserved or underserved by broadband internet. 
The RDOF auction includes a tribal lands bidding preference to include more eligible tribal locations in this opportunity. This webinar will provide an overview of the RDOF auction, discussion from tribal practitioners, and a Question & Answer session between the FCC and attendees.  Nearly 80 percent of the $20.4 billion is available in Phase I, which is scheduled to begin October 2020. The deadline for letters of interest for Phase I is Wednesday, July 15, 2020.
REGISTER TODAY!
When: Jun 18, 2020 01:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada) Topic: ATNI: Rural Digital Opportunity Fund 
Register in advance for this webinar:https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_6ZLLThqmR9qgfxbwtnwk-A 

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

“No-action alternative”; as the preferred alternative in the Tongass National Forest, Alaska Roadless Rulemaking process.

May 27, 2020
Sonny Perdue, Secretary of Agriculture
U.S. Department of Agriculture
1400 Independence Avenue
SW Washington, DC 20250


Dear Honorable Secretary Perdue,


The Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians (ATNI) requests the U.S. Forest Service to fully protect
designated roadless areas in the Tongass National Forest. ATNI stands in support and solidarity
with the Organized Village of Kake and several other Southeast Alaska Tribes, which have made it
very clear that any rule that weakens or eliminates Roadless Rule protections within Tribal
traditional territory of the Tongass National Forest will substantially affect Southeast Tribes’
inherent Tribal rights to traditional and customary uses of the land.
During ATNI’s Annual Convention on October 10, 2019, nearly 50 member Tribes from SE Alaska,
Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, and Northern California passed resolution #19-58, which
supported the ‘no-action alternative’ as the preferred alternative in the Tongass National
Forest, Alaska Roadless Rulemaking process.


On October 15, 2019, the United States Forest Service (USFS) released the Draft Tongass Rule
that proposed granting a complete exemption to the 2001 National Roadless Conservation Rule.
The USFS is advancing the Tongass Roadless final rule review even though a state of national
emergency has been declared in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Organized Village of
Kake and other Southeast Alaska Tribes have raised serious concerns about the USFS closing a
cooperator review input period for the draft final rule one week after the national emergency was
declared. This is an unconscionable act without any consideration of the good faith efforts of
Tribes trying to protect their customary and traditional lands. 


President Trump issued an executive order declaring a state of national emergency on March 13,
2020, in response to the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States.  Since then, numerous U.S.
governmental organizations, including the U.S. Supreme Court and the Internal Revenue Service,
have announced extensions of normal filing deadlines because of ongoing public health concerns
relating to COVID-19.  Additionally, Alaska Governor Dunleavy has instituted numerous restrictions
limiting the public’s ability to gather, work, and travel. Southeast Tribal communities are exhausting
all available resources to prepare and address this health crisis in their communities. All of these
restrictions make it extremely challenging, if not impossible, to engage in federal rulemaking.
Around March 7, 2020, the Forest Service sent Southeast Alaska Tribal cooperators a pre-public
draft, final environmental impact statement, and requested feedback by March 21, 2020. The
Forest Service did not suspend this process or extend this deadline even though a national
pandemic emergency had been declared in the interim. 


Southeast Tribes involved in Forest Service planning processes, like most communities, are
entirely focused on the COVID-19 crisis and are unable to devote the time and attention to
participate meaningfully during this declared national emergency health crisis.  Tribes and Tribal
leaders are working hard to keep their respective communities and families healthy and safe while
complying with the extraordinary restrictions being implemented to contain and limit the spread of
the disease.  COVID-19 has disrupted normal working, schooling, and living conditions, impairing
the ability of many parents, elders, and members of the general public to go about their daily
routines and conduct regular business, much less weigh in on Forest Service actions.  


In-person meetings that are essential for high-quality Tribal participation and consultation in
planning processes cannot take place, as Tribes must maintain the recommended or mandated
health standards and “social distancing” required to protect vulnerable populations. Virtual
meetings and other online tools cannot meet the requirements of a robust discussion that would
inform a Tribal position on draft documents. Many Tribal communities do not have the technology,
internet resources, or bandwidth necessary to enable participation in virtual meetings or to review
of large documents. This problem is compounded by the closures of Forest Service offices and
local libraries, preventing access to online or hard copies of planning documents.  Any existing
digital platforms and networks, especially in remote, rural areas, are being overwhelmed with
increased demands at this time, which will further impede connection and participation.  
The fact is the COVID-19 pandemic will continue to create significant challenges for Southeast
Alaska Tribal communities and all of Indian Country. Until Tribes can fully participate, ATNI
requests that USDA/USFS suspend the roadless review process and retroactively suspend the
cooperator review timeframe, until the national emergencies concluded.  


After the national emergency has been lifted, Southeast Alaska Tribes will be able to meaningfully
fulfill their role as cooperators and provide a comprehensive review of the pre-public rule
documents at that time.  Such action would be consistent with the President’s emergency
declaration to improve public engagement and build goodwill with many stakeholders during these
unprecedented and challenging times.


Sincerely, 

Terri Parr
Executive Director