IHS Awards Nine Cooperative Agreements for Self-Governance Planning and Negotiation Activities

Today, the Indian Health Service (IHS) announced the recipients for the Fiscal Year 2018 Tribal Self-Governance Planning and Negotiation Cooperative Agreements administered by the Office of Tribal Self-Governance.

“These awards emphasize Indian Health Services’ commitment to tribal self-governance,” said IHS Acting Director Rear Adm. Michael D. Weahkee. “We continue to work with tribes interested in entering self-governance compacts in order to support the shared goal of providing quality health care to American Indian and Alaska Native people.”

These annual IHS cooperative agreement awards support tribes and tribal organizations with the planning and preparation necessary to assume responsibility for providing health care to their tribal members through the Tribal Self-Governance Program. Nine recipients received awards ranging from $48,000 to $120,000. Two received negotiation awards and seven received planning awards. The total amount of awards for 2018 is $840,000.

Planning Cooperative Agreement

The Planning Cooperative Agreement assists tribes with the planning phase of the self-governance program, which includes legal and budgetary research, internal tribal government planning, and organization preparation relating to the administration of health care programs. This year’s awardees include the following:

Tribe/Tribal Organization	City	State	Amount Awarded
Round Valley Indian Health Center, Inc.	Covelo	CA	$120,000
Shoshone-Bannock Tribes	Fort Hall	ID	$120,000
Pueblo of Santa Ana	Santa Ana Pueblo	NM	$120,000
Hopland Band of Pomo Indians	Hopland	CA	$120,000
Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska	White Cloud	KS	$120,000
Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe	Mashpee	MA	$72,000
Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians	Watersmeet	MI	$72,000

Negotiation Cooperative Agreement

The Negotiation Cooperative Agreement assists tribes to defray the costs related to preparing for and conducting self-governance program negotiations. Negotiations provide an opportunity for the tribal and federal negotiation teams to work together in good faith to enhance each self-governance agreement. This year’s awardees include the following:

Tribe/Tribal Organization	City	State	Amount Awarded
Ak-Chin Indian Community	Maricopa	AZ	$48,000
Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians	Corning	CA	$48,000

The IHS Tribal Self-Governance Program is an expression of the nation-to-nation relationship between the U.S. and the tribes. Strong federal-tribal partnerships are critical to the program’s success. Through the program, tribes have the option to assume IHS program funds and manage them to best fit the needs of their tribal communities.

The IHS Office of Tribal Self-Governance serves as the primary liaison and advocate for tribes participating in the Tribal Self-Governance Program. The office develops and oversees the implementation of tribal self-governance legislation and authorities within the IHS. They also provide information, technical assistance, and policy coordination in support of IHS self-governance activities, with input from IHS staff and workgroups, tribes and tribal organizations, and the IHS Tribal Self-Governance Advisory Committee.

The IHS, an agency in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services , provides a comprehensive health service delivery system for approximately 2.2 million American Indians and Alaska Natives. Follow the agency via social media on Facebook and Twitter .