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Dear USET/USET SPF Family,
Treasury has issued a general applicability waiver of the Build America, Buy America Act (BABA) provisions for Tribal Nations receiving Local Assistance and Tribal Consistency Fund (LATCF) support. Treasury has also announced that it will extend the submission deadline for Tribal Nations to submit LATCF applications to Tuesday, February 28, 2023 at 11:59pm AKT (Wednesday, March 1, 2023 at 3:59am ET). Tribal Nations applying for the LATCF need to complete payment information, sign program terms and conditions, and submit a certification related to the Tribal Nation’s economic conditions in the Treasury Submission Portal.
Treasury will also be hosting Tribal consultations on the general applicability waiver
of BABA provisions for Tribal Nations. Information regarding this Tribal consultation is as follows—
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (P.L. 117-58) included provisions of BABA that required certain metals, manufactured products, and construction materials used in federally funded infrastructure projects to be produced in the United States. On October 20, 2022, USET SPF submitted comments to the White House Council on Native American Affairs stating concerns that Tribal Nations would be disproportionately affected by BABA requirements due to issues with the U.S. supply chain and inflation. We are pleased that Treasury has issued this general applicability waiver of BABA for Tribal Nations so that we can address our infrastructure priorities.
For more information regarding this Tribal consultation, including Framing Questions, please view the Dear Tribal Leader Letter by clicking here. Comments to Treasury are due Friday, March 31, 2023 at 11:59pm AKT (April 1, 2023 at 3:59pm ET)
and should be sent to tribal.consult@treasury.gov. Questions regarding this Tribal consultation should be directed to tribal.consult@treasury.gov.
For more information, please contact Brian Howard, USET SPF Senior Policy Analyst, at bhoward@usetinc.org.
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