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Dear USET/USET SPF Family,
As was first announced during the 2021 White House Tribal Nations Summit, the Department of the Interior (DOI) recently began accepting nominations for its first-ever Secretary's Tribal Advisory Committee (STAC). According to DOI, the STAC, "will ensure Tribal leaders have direct and consistent contact and communication with the current and future Department officials to facilitate robust discussions on intergovernmental responsibilities, exchange views, share information and provide advice and recommendations regarding Departmental programs and funding that impact Tribal Nations."
The STAC will be comprised of a Tribal representative from each of the 12 Bureau of Indian Affairs Regions, and one alternate member. The members will be appointed on a staggered term for up to two years. The names of each nominated STAC member and alternate must be submitted to the Office of Intergovernmental and External Affairs via e-mail to oiea@ios.doi.gov in an official letter from the Tribal Nation by Monday, May 9, 2022, at 11:59 p.m. ET. For more information regarding additional requirements for nomination, please see the DOI press release linked above.
USET SPF supports the creation of the STAC as an opportunity for DOI to further build upon its relationship with Tribal Nations and its implementation of Tribal guidance. We anticipate that there will be broad interest among our Board of Directors in serving on the STAC, with several Tribal leaders seeking a letter of recommendation from USET SPF. With this in mind, we wanted to provide an example of how we have addressed multiple support requests from our Board in the past.
USET SPF plans to send a similar letter in support of all USET/USET SPF Tribal Leaders who wish to be nominated for the STAC. If you wish to be included in USET SPF's support letter, please contact Liz Malerba, USET SPF Director of Policy and Legislative Affairs, at lmalerba@usetinc.org no later than Friday, April 22, 2022.
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