FEMA Issues Its First-Ever Tribal Strategic Plan

We have often used the expression, particularly when discussing the differing services provided and communities served by grant programs, that one size definitely does not fit all. To this end, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has developed a first-ever plan to address the tribal-specific technical assistance and resources needed to support tribal emergency management programs.

Following outreach sessions with tribal nations, the agency recently issued the “2022-2026 FEMA National Tribal Strategy,” which provides FEMA with a roadmap to refine and elaborate on major strategic goals and objectives the agency is working to achieve to address the unique needs of the tribal community. Under this strategy, FEMA will launch a national study on tribal emergency management capacity and capabilities, develop a comprehensive FEMA guide of programs, develop tribal-specific technical assistance resources, regularly convene an annual meeting of national and regional tribal liaisons and expand training opportunities for tribal nations, and other related objectives.

“The FEMA workforce remains committed to ... instilling equity as the foundation of emergency management and always putting people first,” said FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell. “FEMA’s first-ever National Tribal Strategy will be key to achieving this ambitious goal, which represents a significant milestone for the agency and reflects our deep commitment to better partner with and serve all 574 federally recognized tribal nations.”

The tribal strategy follows the same structure as FEMA’s “2022-2026 FEMA Strategic Plan,” yet better aligns the agency’s capabilities to the needs of tribal governments to assist them be more prepared for and resilient against disasters.

While this document is the first strategic plan the agency has issued for tribal nations, FEMA has other guidance directly related to tribes. In 2019, FEMA updated its “Tribal Consultation Policy” to provide specific guidance on how the agency engages with tribal nations in regular and meaningful consultation and collaboration on actions that have tribal implications. In December 2020, FEMA updated its “FEMA Tribal Policy (Rev.2),” reaffirming its commitment to enhance its nation-to-nation relationships with tribal nations, and in full recognition of tribal sovereignty, self-governance, and its trust responsibility. The policy ensures FEMA works with tribal nations to build, sustain and improve capacity to prevent, protect against, mitigate, respond to and recover from all hazards.

Perhaps other federal agencies can learn from this specialized planning to release their own tribal-centered strategy documents going forward.

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