Summary

• Check out IFAI’s Blog Post about USDA’s Secretarial Memo concerning the department’s unique government-to-government and political relationship “Indian Tribes, American Indian Tribal citizens and Alaska Natives, and the Native Hawai’ian Community.” 

• The Bureau of Indian Affairs is holding a series of Tribal consultations from May 20 – June 12 to receive input on federal staffing and efficiencies proposed in Executive Order 14210. Check out an IFAI background briefing document and comment template here. 

• The U.S. Small Business Administration is holding a Tribal consultation about efficiencies and effectiveness of 8(a) Programs on June 13.  

• There are seven Congressional hearings this week that including House and Senate appropriations hearings on the Interior Department budget, House Natural Resources on Tribal Forestry, and more.  

• The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is accepting nominations for its Tribal Intergovernmental Advisory Committee – due before July 18. 

• USDA announced in the federal register the termination of seven federal advisory committees and the rescission of SNAP changes to civil rights data collection methods.  

Calendar

Tribal Consultation/Listening Sessions/Advisory Committee Meetings

Title of Event: Indian Affairs Workforce Efficiency and Productivity – EO14210 

About: The U.S. Department of Interior Indian Affairs will conduct a series of Tribal consultations 

with federally recognized Tribes to receive formal input on how the Department and its agencies (including the Bureau of Indian Affairs) can implement operational improvements. The consultations vary in format: virtual and/or in-person.  

Date(s), Time, and Location: 

• • May 20, 2025, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Alaska Time – Alaska Register Here 

• • May 22, 2025, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Pacific Time – California Register Here 

• • May 27, 2025, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Mountain Time – Albuquerque Register Here 

• • May 29, 2025, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Central Time – Minnesota Register Here 

• • May 30, 2025, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time – Virtual Register Here 

• • June 3, 2025, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Central Time – Oklahoma Register Here 

• • June 5, 2025, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time – Washington, DC Register Here 

• • June 6, 2025, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time – Virtual Register Here 

Written comments must be submitted by July 7, 2025 either by email to consultation@bia.gov or by mail to the Department of the Interior, Office of Regulatory Affairs and Collaborative Action, 1001 Indian School Road NW, Suite 229, Albuquerque, NM 87104. 

About: The U.S. Small Business Administration is hosting a Tribal consultation to seek feedback about how the 8(a) program is working in terms of efficiency and reducing regulatory burden. The link to the Federal Register Notice is here. 

• Date(s), Time, and Location: 

• • June 13, 2025, from 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. Alaska  

• Consultation will be held in person at Z.J. Loussac Public Library, 3600 Denali Street, Anchorage, AK 99503 

• Pre-registration deadline is June 6, 2025 

• Send pre-registration requests to attend and/or testify to Diane Cullo, Assistant Administrator, Office of Native American Affairs, U.S. Small Business Administration, 409 3rd Street SW, Washington DC 20416; or by email to Diane.Cullo@sba.gov; or Facsimile to (202) 481-2177. 

• Information about virtual attendance: TBD 

Congressional Sessions:

Looking back: 

Hearing: House Committee on Agriculture – May 13, 2025 

Topic: SNAP Integrity and Farm Security Full Committee Markup 

Highlights: The session focused on proposed changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and agricultural funding as part of the Fiscal Year 2025 budget reconciliation process. 

Hearing: Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry – May 13, 2025 

Topic: Perspectives from the Field, Part 4: Conservation. 

Highlights: The hearing focused on the role of conservation in U.S. agriculture and how the upcoming Farm Bill can support voluntary, locally led conservation practices that benefit both producers and the environment. 

Hearing: House Committee on Natural Resources – May 15, 2025 

Topic: Improving land management. 

Highlights: The hearing reflected a bipartisan consensus on the urgency of wildfire mitigation. There is support for empowering local, state, and Tribal entities to act more quickly and effectively. The Fix Our Forests Act is seen as a solid foundation, but many believe it must be paired with funding, workforce development, and regulatory reform to be fully effective. 

Looking ahead:

Hearing: House Appropriations Committee– May 20, 2025, at 10 a.m. eastern 

Topic: Interior Department Budget 

Hearing: House Natural Resource Committee – May 20, 2025, at 10:15 a.m. eastern 

Topic: Tribal Forest Management Activities 

Hearing: House Natural Resources Committee– May 21, 2025, at 10 a.m. eastern 

Topic: Pending Legislation 

• H.R. 2130 – Tribal Trust Land Homeownership Act of 2025 

• H.R. 2388 – Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe Project Lands Restoration Act 

• H.R. 2815 – Cape Fox Land Entitlement Finalization Act of 2025 

• H.R. 3073 – Shivwits Band of Paiutes Jurisdictional Clarity Act 

Hearing: Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee– May 21, 2025, at 10:30 a.m. eastern 

Topic: Nomination hearing- Agriculture Undersecretary for marketing and regulatory programs, agriculture undersecretary for research, education and economics. 

Hearing: Senate Appropriations Committee- May 21, 2025, at 10:30 a.m. eastern 

Topic: Interior Department Budget Fiscal Year 2026 

Hearing: House Natural Resources Committee- May 21, 2025, at 2:00 p.m. eastern 

Topic: Federal Lands/ American Technology Innovation 

Hearing: Senate Appropriations Committee– May 22, 2025, at 10:30 a.m. eastern 

Topic: Food and Drug Administration Budget Fiscal Year 2026 

Nominations:

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Tribal Intergovernmental Advisory Committee– due before July 18, 2025. 

Regulatory/Rulemaking Actions

Title: Notice of Termination of Seven Discretionary Federal Advisory Committees 

• USDA is terminating seven discretionary federal advisory committees because of a February 19, 2025, Executive Order called “Commencing the Reduction of the Federal Bureaucracy”.  

• The Secretary of USDA determined that the seven advisory committees should include Advisory Committee on Agriculture Statistics, National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection, and the National Wildlife Services Advisory Committee.  

• Inquiries may be sent to Cikena Reid, USDA Committee Management Officer at cikena.reid@usda.gov  

Posted: Week of May 19, 2025 

Title: Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Rescission of Changes to Civil Rights Data Collection Methods 

• USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service is proposing to rescind a final rule issued on December 14, 2023, about regulatory language that removed “visual observation” as an example of when State agencies might collect race and ethnicity data when SNAP participants do not voluntarily provide race and ethnicity information on the application form.  

• This proposed rule is expected to have little impact on States and local governments.  

• Comments must be received by June 16, 2025 

Posted: Week of May 19, 2025 

Title: Child and Adult Care Food Program: Rescission of Obsolete Data Collection Requirements 

• USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) has finalized a rule that will rescind an obsolete data collection requirement in regulations regarding Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP).  

• Effective May 2, 2007, FNS implemented a final rule called “Data Collection Related to the Participation of Faith-Based and Community Organizations”.  

• The rule required State agencies that administer CACFP to collect and report data related to participating institutions for each fiscal year from 2006 to 2009, ceasing in 2010.  

• The final rule to rescind this data collection requirement is effective July 11, 2025. 

Posted: Week of May 12, 2025 

• The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is extending the comment period for a proposed rule originally published on January 16, 2025.  

• The proposed rule requires certain nutrient information to be displayed on the principal display panel of the product packaging.  

• FDA would also like to align certain nutrient content claims with current nutrition science. 

• The new deadline for comment submission is May 16, 2025. 

Posted: Week of May 12, 2025 

• USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) is seeking public comments about a revision to the reporting and recordkeeping burden related to the State Supplemental Nutrition Programs Agreement or Form FNS-339.  

• FNS-339 is an annual contract between USDA and each State, Territory, and Indian Tribal Government agency that wish to operate nutrition programs such as the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) and the Seniors Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program (SFMNP). 

• This revision requested is about the burden hours due to Program adjustments that primarily reflect expected changes in the number of WIC, FMNP, and/or SFMNP State agencies from year to year. 

• Comments submitted by June 30, 2025, will be considered.  

Posted: Week of May 5, 2025