• On Wednesday, the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee will review the USDA reorganization proposal that was dropped at the end of last week. IFAI is working on an analysis of the proposed reorganization and potential impact on Indian Country food and nutrition issues and will share in the coming weeks.
  • USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service is seeking public comments on the Special Milk Program for Children and the Federal-State Supplemental Nutrition Programs Agreement.
  • Last week was busy with Congressional hearings, but few had specific Indian Country food and agriculture issues. Senate Agriculture Committee held a nomination hearing for the administration’s FPAC nominee, Richard Fordyce, who was confirmed as Under Secretary on July 28 with a bipartisan vote of 19-4. A House Natural Resources committee hearing had some discussion on how emergency waivers for NEPA applications may have implications for Indian Country.

Calendar

Congressional Sessions:

Looking back: 

Hearing: House Committee on Natural Resources – July 22, 2025

Topic: Permitting Purgatory: Restoring Common Sense to NEPA Reviews

Highlights: The hearing covered National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and emergency waivers, with some discussion on possibilities these negatively impacting Tribal lands and consent on development in sacred sites.  

Hearing: Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee – July 23, 2025, at 3 p.m. eastern

Topic: The nomination of Richard Fordyce, of Missouri, to be Under Secretary of Agriculture Farm Production and Conservation

Highlights: Some of the issues raised during this nomination hearing included outreach to beginning farmers and ranchers producers, including access and communication for them in the entire FPAC mission area. There were no direct references to Tribal food and agriculture.

Looking ahead:

Hearing: Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee – July 29, 2025 at 3 p.m. eastern

Topic: Perspectives on Reauthorization of the U.S. Grain Standards Act (H.R. 4550)

Hearing: Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee – July 30, 2025 at 11 a.m. eastern

Topic: Review of the USDA Reorganization Proposal

Nominations:

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

Regulatory/Rulemaking Actions

• USDA’s Forest Service and the Department of Interior issued a final rule that revises subsistence taking of fish and shellfish for 2025-26 and 2026-27 regulatory years.  

• This final rule also updates the regulations on subsistence taking of wildlife, outlining harvest limits, types of taking, and open season time periods for animals such as bears, caribou, and moose.  

• The final rule outlines a table of proposed revisions to the Regulations for the Federal Subsistence Management Program.  

• A proposed rule was published on March 22, 2024, and closed on May 21, 2024.  

• The final rule took effect on July 18, 2025.  

Posted: Week of July 21, 2025 

• USDA’s Rural Housing Service has announced funding availability of $5 million for FY 2025 under the Rural Community Development Initiative (RCDI).  

• The initiative will assist qualified private, nonprofit, and public (including Tribal) Intermediary organizations in providing financial and technical assistance programs to improve housing, community facilities, and community and economic development projects in rural areas. 

• Federally recognized Tribes, including Tribally Dedicated Housing Entities (TDHE), are eligible recipients for this grant.  

• The minimum grant award per Intermediary organization is $50,000, and the maximum award is $500,000. 

• Electronic submissions are due on August 7, 2025; paper submissions are due on August 12, 2025. 

Posted: Week of July 21, 2025 

• Funds for the NCDFI Relending Demonstration Program are now available for FY 2025. 

• These loans are for NCDFI to relend to low- and very low-income recipients for the purpose of acquiring, building, rehabilitating, improving, or relocating dwellings on Tribal Land in rural areas. 

• The funding available for FY 2025 is $4.63 million. 

• This program increases homeownership opportunities for Native American Tribes, Alaska Native Communities, and Native Hawaiian communities in rural areas. The anticipated award date is September 30, 2025.  

• Deadline for submissions is August 29, 2025 

Posted: Week of July 21, 2025 

• USDA’s Farm Service Agency has issued a final rule announcing SDRP for calendar years 2023 and 2024. This program provides assistance to eligible producers for losses due to things such as wildfires, hurricanes, floods, and qualifying drought.  

• Assistance will be provided in two stages – Stage 1 and Stage 2. 

• This notice outlines eligibility requirements, application process, and SDRP payment calculations for Stage 1 only. Stage 2 will be announced in a later rule.  

• This final rule took effect on July 10, 2025 

Posted: Week of July 21, 2025 

• USDA published a final rule that, effective July 10, 2025, it will no longer utilize the designation “socially disadavantaged” to provide increased benefits based on race and sex in programs that include Pandemic Assistance Programs, Farm Loan Programs, Guaranteed Farm Loans, Conservation Reserve Program, and Agricultural Management Assistance.  

• This final rule affects programs in agencies such as the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Farm Service Agency. 

• With this final rule, “USDA will no longer apply race- or sex-based criteria in its decision-making processes, ensuring that its programs are administered in a manner that upholds the principles of meritocracy, fairness, and equal opportunity for all participants.”  

• USDA believes that it has addressed past injustices and taken substantial steps to reach comprehensive settlements, institutional reforms, and compensatory frameworks.  

Posted: Week of July 21, 2025