Indian Health Service Grant: Tribal Self-Governance Program Planning Cooperative Agreement

A. Be an "Indian Tribe" as defined in 25 U.S.C. § 450b(e); a "Tribal Organization" as defined in 25 U.S.C. § 450b(l); or an "Inter-Tribal Consortium" as defined at 42 C.F.R. § 137.10. However, Alaska Native Villages or Alaska Native Village Corporations are not eligible if they are located within the area served by an Alaska Native regional health entity already participating in the Alaska Trial Health Compact of 1998. See Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2012, Pub. L. No. 112-74. By statute, the Native Village of Eyak, Eastern Aleutian Tribes, and the Council for Athabascan Tribal Governments have also been deemed Alaska Native regional health entities. Those Alaska Tribes not represented by a Self-Governance Tribal consortium Funding Agreement within their area may still be considered to participate in the TSGP.

B. Submit a Tribal resolution from the appropriate governing body of each Indian Tribe to be served by the ISDEAA Compact authorizing the submission of the Planning Cooperative Agreement application. Tribal consortia applying for a TSGP Planning Cooperative Agreement shall submit Tribal Council resolutions from each Tribe in the consortium. Tribal resolutions can be attached to the electronic online application. Draft resolutions can be submitted with the application in lieu of an official signed resolution; however an official signed Tribal resolution must be received by the Division of Grants Management (DGM) prior to the Objective Review. If the DGM does not receive an official signed resolution by the Review Date listed under the Key Dates section on page one of this announcement, then the application shall be considered incomplete and ineligible for review or further consideration.

Official signed resolutions can be mailed to the DGM, Attn: Mr. John Hoffman, 801 Thompson Avenue, TMP Suite 360, Rockville, MD 20852. Applicants submitting Tribal resolutions after or aside from the online electronic application submission must ensure that the information is received by the IHS, DGM. It is highly recommended that the documentation be sent by a delivery method that includes delivery confirmation and tracking. Please contact Mr. John Hoffman by telephone at (301) 443-5204 prior to the Review Date regarding submission questions.

C. Demonstrate, for three fiscal years, financial stability and financial management capability. The Indian Tribe must provide evidence that, for the three years prior to participation in Self-Governance, the Indian Tribe has had no significant and material audit exceptions in the required annual audit of the Indian Tribe’s Self-Determination Contracts or Self-Governance Funding Agreements with any Federal agency. See 25 U.S.C. § 458aaa-2; 42 C.F.R. §§ 137.15-23.

For Tribes or Tribal organizations that expended $300,000 or more ($500,000 for FYs ending after December 31, 2003) in Federal awards, the OTSG shall retrieve the audits directly from the Federal Audit Clearinghouse database.

For Tribes or Tribal organizations that expended less than $300,000 ($500,000 for FYs ending after December 31, 2003) in Federal awards, the Tribe or Tribal organization must provide evidence of the program review correspondence from IHS or Bureau of Indian Affairs officials. See 42 C.F.R. §§ 137.21-23.

The planning phase helps Tribes to make informed decisions about which PSFAs to assume and what organizational changes or modifications are necessary to support those PSFAs. A thorough planning phase improves timeliness and efficiency of negotiations. The planning phase also helps to identify issues in advance and ensures that the Tribe is fully prepared for the transfer of IHS PSFAs to the Tribal health program.

The receipt of a Planning Cooperative Agreement is not a prerequisite to enter the TSGP. A Tribe may use its own resources to meet the planning requirement. Tribes that receive a Planning Cooperative Agreement are not obligated to participate in the TSGP and may choose to delay or decline participation or expansion in the TSGP based on their planning activities.