Xavier Becerra United States Secretary of Health and Human Services | Official Website
The U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), Treasury, and Interior, in partnership with the Executive Office of the President, have released a report detailing findings from the Tribal CX Pilot for Post-Award Reporting project. This report provides an overview of piloted solutions to assist with grant reporting compliance and outlines future focus areas to support agencies in creating effective policies for the economic growth of Tribal Nations.
Tribal Nations receive critical federal funding for various essential services, including health care, education, housing, public safety, and infrastructure. However, Tribes often face challenges complying with grant reporting requirements due to unreliable broadband access, high costs associated with submitting performance reports, and limited staff capacity.
In alignment with Executive Orders 14112 and 14058 aimed at reforming federal funding for Tribal Nations and transforming federal customer experience respectively, the interagency Tribal CX Pilot team worked to identify barriers to compliance reporting for Tribal grant recipients. The team then developed and tested improvements focused on enhancing customer experience to lessen burdens and support Tribal reporting in rural and underserved areas.
“We want to make it as easy as possible for communities to receive and implement grants. That’s why we have been working across the government to alleviate the burden on Tribal Nations,” said HHS Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Financial Resources Lisa Molyneux. “We now have real solutions that provide greater grant data transparency and simplified reporting tools.”
“This project is a step in the right direction to reduce friction and barriers,” stated U.S. Treasurer Chief Lynn Malerba. “Giving them streamlined access will pay dividends on growing capacity and preserving capital.”
Interior Department Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Wizipan Garriott added: “The pilot project focused on ways to improve technology gaps related to grant reporting with the goal of reducing burden.”
The pilot identified five key needs of Tribes that must be addressed collectively:
1. An offline compliance report template designed by Treasury’s Office of Tribal and Native Affairs partnered with SLFRF.
2. A searchable public dashboard by HHS called Federal Grant Systems Hub.
3. Reduced recipient reporting burden analyzed by IHS.
4. Improved identity verification options through direct engagement with providers.
Treasury has led efforts across the Biden-Harris Administration deploying historic support through initiatives like ARP funding $20 billion in SLFRF awarded to Tribal governments – marking a significant federal investment into Indian Country.
Additionally, over $500 million has been allocated under ARP's SSBCI initiative supporting small business financing among Tribes – representing an expansive one-time investment.
The full report can be viewed here.
