Putting Tribal Sovereignty
Summary:
- There are no Congressional hearings scheduled this week.
- The FDPIR Tribal Leaders Consultation Work Group will hold its final government-to-government consultation of the year with USDA during the Intertribal Agriculture Council’s Annual Conference on Dec. 10, 2025, from 2:00-6:00 p.m. Pacific Time. Participants must register by Dec. 9 to participate virtually or in-person. A formal agenda is not yet available.
- IFAI is hosting an informational briefing session ahead of the FDPIR Tribal consultation. This session is for Tribal leaders and/or their proxies and staff, and will be held virtually on Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025, at 2:00 p.m. Central Time. Please register here.
- The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Tribal Advisory Committee (TAC) will hold its final meeting of the year on Monday, Dec. 8, 2025, from 9 AM to 5PM PST. This will be a hybrid meeting, with virtual and in-person options for attendance.
- The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) issued a final rule on Agricultural Disaster Indemnity Programs effective Nov. 18, 2025.
- The continuing resolution that ended the government shutdown included provisions that update the federal definition of hemp and establish new rules for hemp-derived cannabinoid products. Check out IFAI’s resource on this topic HERE.
Outreach Calendar
Title of Event: USDA Tribal Advisory Committee
About: The USDA Tribal Advisory Committee was created by the 2018 Farm Bill to advise the Secretary of Agriculture on issues relevant to Indian Country agriculture. This meeting, held both in-person and with virtual options, will be the last TAC meeting of 2025. There will be a public comment period where members of the public may speak to the committee and raise issues for the committee to consider. Individuals wishing to speak during this period should arrive by no later than 2 P.M. PST and will have five minutes to speak.
Date(s), Time, and Location:
- Dec. 8, 2025 (Monday) at 9 – 5 p.m. PST (Virtual and In-person)
Intertribal Agriculture Council (IAC) Annual Conference
Virgin Hotels Las Vegas
4455 Paradise Road
Las Vegas, NV 89169
Room: TBD
Participants should register HERE
Public Meeting Notice
Note: The agenda is yet to be published. When available, it will be listed on the USDA Office of Tribal Relations website.
Title of Event: FDPIR Tribal Leaders Consultation Work Group
About: This is the last consultation meeting of 2025 between USDA and the FDPIR Tribal Leaders Consultation Work Group.
Date, Time, and Location:
- Dec. 10, 2025 (Wednesday) at 2 – 6 p.m. PST (Virtual and In-person)
Intertribal Agriculture Council (IAC) Annual Conference
Virgin Hotels Las Vegas
4455 Paradise Road
Las Vegas, NV 89169
Room: Sage 3
All participants must register HERE by Dec. 9, 2025
Congressional Hearings:
There were no hearings relevant to Indian Country Food and Agriculture last week.
Looking Back:
Hearing: Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025.
Topic: Full Committee Hearing to Examine the BLM Land Use Planning Process under FLPMA
Highlights: The Committee discussed the issues regarding the BLM permitting process, which has become too complicated, with resource management plans being updated too frequently. The importance of Tribal consultation was raised by one of the Representatives.
Hearing: House Committee on Natural Resources Subcommittee on Indian and Insular Affairs on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025.
Topic: Legislative hearing to examine the following:
- H.R.4276 – To amend the Native American Tourism and Improving Visitor Experience Act to authorize grants to Indian tribes, Tribal organizations, and Native Hawaiian organizations, and for other purposes.
- H.R.5515 – “Indian Trust Asset Reform Amendment Act”
- H.R.5682 – To take certain land in the State of California into trust for the benefit of the Pechanga Band of Indians, and for other purposes.
- H.R.5696 – “Strengthening Tribal Real Estate Authority and Modernizing Land for Indigenous Nation Expansion Act” or the “STREAMLINE Act”
Highlights: IFAI tracks updates to H.R.5515, which amends the Indian Trust Asset Reform Act (ITARA). During this hearing, both the Chairman and Ranking Member highlighted the importance H.R.5515 in removing barriers towards Tribal sovereignty.
Hearing: Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, & Forestry on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025.
Topic: Hearing to examine the nomination of Michael Selig, of Florida, to be a Commissioner of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC)
Highlights: There were no direct references to Tribal food and agriculture. Mr. Selig is committed to working with the Committee in facilitating well-functioning markets; promoting competition and innovation; and ensuring CFTC remains world-class.
Looking Ahead:
There are no Congressional hearings scheduled this week.
Nominations:
Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization Consultive Committee
Description: The purpose of this body is to ensure that the interests of U.S. stakeholders are considered in the development of positions and policy relative to U.S. participation in the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO).
Deadline: Nominations will be accepted at any time.
Regulatory/Rule Making Actions:
Title: Agricultural Disaster Indemnity Programs
- Effective November 18, 2025, USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) issued a final rule to financially assist eligible quality losses under Stage 1of the Supplemental Disaster Relief Program (SDRP) and to start Stage 2 of SDRP: the On-Farm Stored Commodity Loss Program (OFSCLP), and the Milk Loss Program (MLP).
- SDRP provides payments for crops, trees, ushes, and vine losses due to disaster events that occurred in calendar year 2023 or 2024.
- OFSCLP provides payments to producers for uncompensated losses of harvested commodities stored in on-farm structures because of disasters such as wildfires, hurricanes, and floods, etc., that occurred in the calendar year 2023 or 2024.
Posted: Week of Nov. 24, 2025.
Read more HERE.