vvEPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Office of Policy
(1807T)
November 2011
EPA-100-F-11-030
Evaluation of the Region 7 Tribal Grants Programmatic
Processes
Fact Sheet
http://www.epa.gov/evaluate
For more information on this and
other completed evaluations at
EPA or the Evaluation Support
Division, visit the above link.
Introduction
• There are nine tribal nations within the geographic boundaries of EPA Region 7,
seven of which currently receive EPA grants.
• Region 7 tribes have expressed concerns about the programmatic grants
processes, noting that requirements among the different media programs may be
conflicting or inefficient and that their priorities have not been sufficiently
recognized and addressed through programmatic grant processes.
• The Region 7 Tribal Program commissioned this evaluation to assess EPA's
internal processes from initial communications with tribes through submittal in
IGMS.
Evaluation Questions
1. How can Region 7 make its tribal grant processes more efficient, consistent, and
transparent across Regional program areas as well as tribes?
2. How can Region 7 improve its communication and coordination with tribes
throughout the entire grants process, from negotiation of grant applications to the
management of activities conducted under the grants?
3. Are there ways for the different Region 7 programs to coordinate and collaborate
for improved (e.g., consistent) grants management and tribal relations, while still
effectively utilizing their specific programmatic expertise?
Evaluation Methods
• Focus on four grants EPA issues to tribes: CAA 103, CWA 106, CERCLA 128(a),
and GAP
• Review of existing EPA Headquarters and Region 7 guidance documents related
to programmatic and administrative functioning of the tribal grant programs;
• Interviews with EPA Region 7 grants and programmatic personnel as well as
tribal environmental staff; and
• Developed program-specific organizational charts and process maps to illustrate
and organize information received from interviews and guidance documents.
Key Findings
Efficiency, Consistency, and Transparency
• For the most part, the grant programs evaluated follow the same steps in
administering tribal grants, but there are distinctions in how the programs
implement these steps.
• Issues that arise are generally attributable to the implementation of the steps
rather than the steps themselves.
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Efficiency, Consistency, and Transparency (cont.)
• Overall, the biggest "sticking point" in the process occurs around workplan negotiation.
• Different program responsibilities as well as budget and staffing realities directly motivate the regional program
offices' structures; distinctions in the organization can impact interactions internally or with the tribes.
Communication with the Tribes and Issues Affecting Workplan Negotiation
• Many of the issues identified had a common underlying theme: communication issues and personality
clashes between EPA and tribal personnel.
• Due to tribal environmental staff turnover, EPA staff often works with tribal staff who have limited
experience with grants management.
• Tribal staff cited the turnover of EPA project officers as contributing to delays in the workplan
negotiation position. Although newly-assigned EPA project officers may not be inexperienced in
grants management, they may lack experience in working with tribes.
• There is a need for more face-to-face or direct communication to improve the efficiency of the review
of workplan and QAPP submissions.
• Interviewees noted that more comprehensive and interactive training on working with tribes as
sovereign entities would benefit EPA staff.
Collaboration among Region 7 Programs
• There is no systematic procedure in place to review grants across programs. Some EPA program
representatives indicated that their grants' workplans are cross-checked by GAP PO, however this
occurs only on a periodic and ad hoc basis.
• Uncertainty exists over which activities can be funded under GAP. This is not unique to Region 7 and
is being addressed by the Agency as a whole.
Recommendations
• Implement grant programs as consistently as practicable by adhering to Best Management Practices
developed by the Regional and Tribal Communications Workgroup;
• Enhance transparency by sharing clear descriptions of the process with Tribes;
• Identify organizational design features that facilitate or hinder efficient operation of the grant program
and collaboration among programs;
• Increase direct and face-to-face meetings with Tribes, especially early on and if workplan negotiations
hit a snag. When not possible, use webinars and other electronic tools to facilitate communication;
• Better equip EPA staff to work effectively with Tribal staff through improved training;
• Include an assessment of EPA staffs effectiveness in working with Tribes as part of the annual
performance review process; and
• Formalize the internal process to review grants among programs to ensure that activities are funded
under the right grants and to limit duplication of effort without putting undue strain on any program
office.
Contact(s)
• Britta Johnson, Office of Policy, Evaluation Support Division, Johnson.britta@epa.qov
• Ashley Betts, EPA Region 7, Office of Policy and Management, betts.ashlev@epa.gov
• Heather Hamilton, EPA Region 7, Office of Tribal Affairs, hamilton.heather@epa.gov
Report Link: http://www.epa.gov/evaluate/reports.htm
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