Last week, President-Elect Joe Biden outlined his approach to help end the pandemic and revitalize the economy. His plan will consist of two major bills, a “rescue” bill expected to come first as a bipartisan COVID-19 relief package to address the nation’s immediate health and economic concerns, and a “recovery” bill to come later that will address other long-standing economic and social issues. The $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan outlined last night will focus on three main pillars:

• Mounting a national vaccine program to vaccinate the country, containing the virus, and reopening schools
• Delivering direct relief to working families, including $1400 stimulus checks, housing assistance, childcare assistance, healthcare access, and a federal minimum wage increase
• Supporting communities through small business assistance

Read more in NAFOA’s Latest Broadcast.

While the Emergency Rental Assistance Program advertised a soft close for applications from eligible grantees on January 12th 2021, they will still accept applications until a hard-close date of January 21, 2021. Tribal governments and Tribally Designated Housing Entities (TDHEs) are eligible for assistance from this program and $800 million of the $25 billion allocated to the program is set aside for tribes and TDHEs.

Eligible grantees are encouraged to submit their application as soon as possible. Information can be submitted here.

Please join the Center for Indian Country Development for a rescheduled National Tribal Listening Session on Community Reinvestment Act Modernization on January 21, 2021, at 2:00 p.m. CT.

The Federal Reserve System is working to reform CRA regulations, which encourage financial institutions to meet the credit needs of the communities they serve. The Center for Indian Country Development, housed at the Minneapolis Fed, is gathering feedback from tribal nations across the U.S. to make sure that a modernized CRA is responsive to the needs of tribal nations and Indigenous people. Tribes have enormous unmet capital needs, and the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated an already challenging landscape for financial access in Indian Country.

Your feedback on the modernization process is essential to ensure that CRA regulations are appropriate for and in proportion to the needs of Indian Country.

Learn more and register.

When Jim Thorpe crossed the finish line of the 1,500-meter race, the final event in the decathlon at the 1912 Olympic games, he not only became the first American Indian to win a gold medal for the U.S. – he brought home two gold medals more than a decade before American Indians were officially recognized as American citizens. Proclaimed “World’s Greatest Athlete” by King Gustav V of Sweden, Jim Thorpe – born Wa-Tho-Huk, translated as “Bright Path” – became an icon of Native American strength and resilience. This petition calls on the IOC to restore the record of Jim Thorpe as the sole champion in the pentathlon and decathlon events at the 1912 Olympic Games.

Show support by signing the petition.

The Financial Analyst role combines the financial oversight duties of an accounting professional and coordination of a project manager. The Financial Analyst (FA) will perform duties for our clients during the project lifecycle, including data gathering and analysis, underwriting, creating financial projections, cash flow monitoring/reporting, and working with team members to complete projects according to our clients’ needs and deadlines.

Learn more and apply.