For Montana's Little Shell Tribe, Pressure Mounts as the CARES Act Spending Deadline Inches Closer

In December 2019, the U.S. Senate passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Included as a rider was the federal recognition bill for Montana's Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians. The passage of this law was a long-awaited victory for Little Shell tribal members, who had been fighting for federal recognition for more than a century.

However, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Little Shell's first year as a federally recognized tribe has been drastically different from what was originally expected.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, signed into law in March, allocated $8 billion in funding to tribal governments across the United States. The Little Shell Tribe qualified to receive $25 million in CARES Act funding, yet with this money comes a catch: it must be spent by the end of December.

https://nativenewsonline.net/sovereignty/for-montana-s-little-shell-tribe-pressure-mounts-as-the-cares-act-spending-deadline-inches-closer