FEMA unveiled a new strategic document on August 18 outlining the agency’s plan to develop its relationships with Tribal Nations. The “2022-2026 FEMA National Tribal Strategy” addresses FEMA’s responsibilities to federally recognized Tribal Nations and identifies actions the agency plans to take to build closer ties with these tribes, including improving disaster mitigation, response, and recovery efforts in tribal communities.
For any type of assistance to be provided by the agency following a disaster, FEMA requires that a disaster or emergency declaration be requested and approved by the President. Although the system has been in place for decades, Tribal Nations were only granted the ability to request such declarations independently from neighboring states in 2013. Even then, the process remained burdensome and included arbitrary requirements that blocked many tribes from receiving assistance after disasters, such as arbitrary minimum damage requirements that disqualified many tribal disasters from eligibility for assistance. Tribal representatives have been pushing for reforms to the disaster declaration system since that time.
The new roadmap from FEMA states that the agency will begin working on a variety of projects to improve relationships and the capacity of tribal emergency management. These include translating FEMA documents into Native American languages, reinforcing connections between FEMA and tribal leadership, providing cultural competency training for FEMA employees concerning the unique status of Tribal Nations, and providing technical assistance to tribes to help them access FEMA funds before and after disasters. The document also includes a commitment to “conduct an internal review of programs and policies that may inhibit equitable Tribal Nation access to FEMA programs and resources and commit to affecting legislative, regulatory, and policy changes that will enhance tribal access.”
The document follows the release of FEMA’s overall five-year plan late last year. That plan for the first-time prioritized equitable access to disaster assistance as a central goal.
Read the “2022-2026 FEMA National Tribal Strategy Plan” at: https://bit.ly/3K6emdV