National Congress of American Indians
November 2000 

FY2001 VA-HUD-EPA Appropriations Act 

On October 27, the President signed the FY2001 VA-HUD-EPA Appropriations Act into law as P.L. 106-377. This Priority Issue Memorandum provides the funding levels for Indian programs and focuses on the major legislative riders affecting Indian Country that are contained in the VA-HUD-EPA Appropriations Act. The Act is available online at "http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?c106:6:./temp/~c106g8ktq8::".   


Housing and Urban Development 

NAHASDA Block Grant - The Act provides the request of $650 million for NAHASDA block grants. Of this level, $6 million is allocated to a new section 601 loan guarantee demonstration program and $6 million is set aside for training and technical assistance activities.  

Tribal Colleges and Universities Initiative - The Act provides $3 million for tribal colleges and universities to partner with local entities to promote community and economic development.  

NAHASDA Funds For Law Enforcement Housing - Section 208 of the Act allows NAHASDA block grant recipients to use funds to provide housing and housing assistance to law enforcement officer on reservations or other Indian areas, provided that the officers are full-time employees of a federal, state, county, or tribal government. 

Prohibition On Funding To Support Sale of Tobacco Products - Section 209 of the Act prohibits the HUD Secretary from providing grants or other assistance to construct, operate, or otherwise benefit a facility (or a facility with a designated portion of that facility) which sells or intends to sell "predominantly" cigarettes or other tobacco products. "Predominant sale" under the provision means cigarette or tobacco sales that represent more than 35 percent of the annual total in-store, non-fuel sales. 

Empowerment Zones - The Act contains $100 million for funding a new round of empowerment zones, $25 million of which will be distributed to rural empowerment zones and $75 million will be distributed to urban empowerment zones. Note: If the New Markets tax incentives legislation, which has been stalled in the Senate for several weeks, passes in the final few days of the Congress, this funding would be boosted to $200 million. 

Environmental Protection Agency 

Cooperative Agreement Language - The Act includes language proposed in the Administration*s FY2001 budget that authorizes EPA to award cooperative agreements to federally-recognized Indian tribes or Intertribal consortia to assist the EPA in implementing federal environmental programs for Indian tribes.

Treasury Department  

Community Development Financial Institutions - The conference report (H.Rept. 106-988) includes $5 million, the amount requested in the Administration*s FY2001 budget, for an Indian Country set-aside within the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) program. While the budget request proposed the funds for a training and technical assistance program on eliminating barriers to capital access, the conference report provides the $5 million for loans, grants, and technical assistance to qualifying community development lenders, organizations with experience and expertise in Indian Country lending, and other appropriate organizations to benefit Native American communities. 

Funding Levels For Key Programs ($ in millions) 

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