Guidance on Awards of Grants to Indian
Tribes under Section 106 of the Clean
Water Act: For Fiscal Year 2007 and
Future Years
A proposed "Guidance on Awards of Grants to Indian Tribes under Section 106 of the Clean
Water Act" is intended to help Tribal water quality program managers, staff, and other Tribal
environmental decision makers design and implement effective and successful water quality
programs. The Guidance establishes procedures and guidelines (including reporting
requirements) for EPA Regions to consider when awarding and administering grants to federally
recognized Tribes. Reporting requirements and data management expectations for all Tribal
programs are a key component of the Guidance. Data collected as a result of the reporting
requirements will help EPA measure environmental results and comply with the Government
Performance and Results Act (GPRA) and other federal mandates.
Background
Section 106 of the Clean Water Act (CWA) authorizes annual appropriations of funds for federal
grants to assist state and interstate agencies in administering water pollution control programs.
Section 518(e) of the Clean Water Act authorizes EPA to treat a federally recognized Indian Tribe
as a State for the purposes of receiving funding under Section 106. A portion of the total Section
106 appropriation is set aside to fund Tribal water pollution control programs.
Over the past 10 years, EPA has increased funding available for Section 106 grants to Indian
Tribes from $3 million to $25 million per year. Although many Tribes have implemented
successful water quality programs using Section 106 grants, there is an opportunity to strengthen
the consistency of program management nationally and improve the quality and access to data
on the results of Tribal water quality grant investments.
Plans to develop the Guidance were initiated at a Tribal Senior Steering Committee meeting in
November 2004. An EPA Tribal Guidance Workgroup oversaw the development of the document
and carried out an extensive outreach plan that included Tribal input. Discussions about the draft
Guidance were held at many Tribal meetings including the River Rally in Keystone, CO and the
National Tribal Conference on Environmental Management (NTCEM) in Traverse City, Ml. EPA
Regions also informally distributed the Guidance to Tribes for comments.
About This Guidance Document
The proposed Guidance provides EPA and Tribes with a consistent framework of procedures and
guidelines for awarding and administering grants to federally recognized Tribes under the
authority of Section 106 of the Clean Water Act. Specifically, the draft Guidance will assist Tribal
water quality program managers, staff, and other Tribal environmental decision-makers in
designing and implementing an effective and successful water quality program utilizing Section
106 funds. It will apply to all water quality program grants issued by EPA Regional offices
beginning fiscal year 2007.
The Guidance provides an overview of water quality programmatic and technical requirements,
-------
discusses some common considerations across programs, and links to technical resources
available to develop Tribal programs. It is designed for Tribal water quality programs at all levels
of sophistication and development. For new programs, it explains how to successfully initiate and
develop a water quality program. For Tribes with well-established programs, it contains
information on expanding a water quality program. To meet the needs of Tribes at all levels of
development, the Guidance presents the basic steps a Tribe would take to collect the information
it will need to make effective decisions about its program, its goals, and its future direction.
One of the goals of this Guidance is to make it possible to aggregate data in a way that allows
EPA to assess national results associated with the Section 106 Tribal Grants Program, as well as
link funding to environmental results achieved. It identifies activities that EPA believes are critical
to developing successful water quality programs. EPA believes that Tribal environmental
programs conducting these activities will be able to identify and resolve water quality issues in
Indian Country.
In general, the Guidance is intended to promote a new understanding about how Tribes and the
Clean Water Act can work together to protect, restore and maintain the physical and biological
integrity of our nation's waters.
How to Get Additional Information
To obtain a copy of this Guidance, please contact Lena Ferris with the Office of Wastewater
Management at (202) 564-8831 or ferris.lena@epa.gov. The appropriate fax number is (202)
501-2399. Copies of this Guidance may also be obtained by contacting the EPA Regional Tribal
Coordinators, or by visiting http://www.epa.gov/owm/cwfinance/106tgg07.htm. To find the e-
Docket and comment on this action, please follow the instructions listed under the "Addresses"
section of the Federal Register Notice.
EPA-832-F-06-003
US ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
Office of Wastewater Management (Mail Code 4201M)
1200 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE, N.W.
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20460
March 2006
------- |