Tribal Business News

Tribal Business News

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Details: By Brian Edwards; Uncategorized; January 1, 2022

Tribes push Senate to restore food sovereignty pilot left out of House bill

7 June 2026 Chez Oxendine

The Native Farm Bill Coalition is urging senators to restore a tribal food purchasing pilot omitted from the House farm bill, warning that the program’s future could be in jeopardy if Congress fails to explicitly reauthorize it.

Grand Ronde advances mixed-use redevelopment at former Blue Heron mill site

06 Jun

The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde have begun the first major construction phase at tumwata village, a redevelopment effort on the former industrial property at Willamette Falls that tribal...

IN SERVICE | Ellen and Serena Harmon on entrepreneurship, community and building for the future

June 07

After their mother's death, Ellen and Serena Harmon and their four brothers pooled the proceeds from her life insurance policy to start a business on the Rosebud Reservation — the community their...

Lakota Funds joins USDA home loan program, gains $764,000 for Pine Ridge mortgages

June 07

The nation’s oldest Native community development financial institution will expand access to mortgage financing on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation after joining a U.S. Department of Agriculture...

Tribal heritage projects eligible for up to $100K in federal funding through NPS program

June 06

The National Park Service is providing grants of up to $100,000 for federally recognized tribes and Native Hawaiian Organizations working on cultural and historic preservation projects.

USDA opens $60M meat processing funding round to tribes, small processors

Tribes and tribal entities will be eligible to compete for a share of $60 million in new federal meat processing funding under a U.S. Department of Agriculture program aimed at expanding domestic...

Sponsored Storytelling

Kent Paul reflects on 25 years helping build Native American Bank

As Native American Bank nears 25 years, outgoing Board Chairman Kent Paul looks back on the tribally-owned bank's growth and mission.

DOT opens $19M tribal transit funding round for rural projects

Economic Development

The Department of Transportation is making about $19 million in competitive grants available for tribal transit projects in fiscal year 2026, continuing a federal program that helps tribes expand and operate transportation systems in rural communities.

From powwow concessions to a growing Native-owned hospitality brand

Indigenous Entrepreneurs

For many restaurant startups, a food truck is the first step toward opening a brick-and-mortar location. For Indigenous Eats, it happened in reverse.

PODCAST: The Treasurer Visits Blackfeet

Finance

U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach traveled to the Blackfeet Indian Reservation last week for his first visit to a Montana reservation since taking office — a trip that offered a firsthand look at the opportunities and barriers shaping economic development in Indian Country.

From the Crow Nation to the Courtroom: Celina Stops Makes History at Boyd School of Law

Sponsored Storytelling

LAS VEGAS, NV - When Celina Stops arrived at the William S. Boyd School of Law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, she was pursuing more than a law degree. She was stepping into territory that...

Tlingit & Haida opens casino amid federal review of Alaska tribal gaming policy

Gaming

The Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska held a soft opening this week for Two Coppers Casino on North Douglas Island, advancing a project that received federal authorization last year to operate Class II gaming on the site.

24 groups, including Native nonprofits, join lawsuit over canceled USDA grants

Food | Agriculture

A coalition of land trusts, local governments and Native organizations joined a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s cancellation of more than $127 million in USDA grants for farmland access, agricultural lending and farmer training projects.

Supreme Court declines Chinook bid for federal recognition through courts

Sovereignty

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear the Chinook Indian Nation’s petition on whether federal courts can recognize Indian tribes.

FHLBank Topeka opens $4M housing grant program for tribes in four states

Real Estate

Tribes and tribally designated housing entities in four states can compete for up to $500,000 each under a $4 million grant program aimed at supporting housing construction, rehabilitation and community development projects in Native communities.

How Section 105(l) is reshaping Tribal control of infrastructure and long-term funding

Sponsored Storytelling

The federal program is giving Tribes more control over the facilities their communities rely on, creating a more defined and predictable approach to funding, operations, and long-term infrastructure...

Eastern Shawnee Companies launches healthcare staffing subsidiary

Native Contracting

Eastern Shawnee Companies has launched a healthcare staffing subsidiary and hired an experienced management team as the tribal enterprise continues expanding its federal contracting operations.

Sundance Institute selects four filmmakers for 2026 Native Lab

Arts and Culture

The Sundance Institute selected four filmmakers for its 2026 Native Lab, a development program supporting Indigenous storytellers working on feature and episodic projects.

Tribal colleges eligible for share of $15M federal research infrastructure funding

Higher Education

Tribally controlled colleges and universities are eligible to compete for a share of up to $15 million in federal funding aimed at expanding research capacity and improving campus infrastructure.

As data becomes a strategic asset, Native leaders face a new sovereignty test

Sponsored Storytelling

Sponsored Storytelling. For more than a decade, Indigenous researchers and advocates have built frameworks to govern Native data.

Laguna Creek raises $6.3M to scale software for tribal tourism operators

Tourism

Gilbert, Ariz.-based Laguna Creek LLC has raised $6.3 million in a Series A round led by Tempe-based Dali Capital Partners to expand its software platform for tribal hospitality and tourism businesses, the company said.

DOE opens $3.5M microgrid funding opportunity for tribes, remote communities

Energy | Environment

The U.S. Department of Energy opened a new funding opportunity offering up to $2.5 million in direct project support and about $1 million in technical assistance to support microgrid development in remote and isolated regions, including tribal communities.

IHS launches tribal long-term care construction initiative with three projects

Health Care

The Indian Health Service has selected three tribal health organizations for the agency’s first-ever Long-Term Care Joint Venture Construction Program projects, marking a new federal effort to expand skilled nursing and elder care capacity in Indian Country.

Ten Years, Three Tribes

Opinion | Op-Ed

Guest Essay. Of the 55 tribes in the Intertribal Timber Council, only three have approved Indian Trust Asset Management Plans in the ten years since ITARA passed.

Tribal Leaders Focus on Risk, Revenue and Stewardship at Native Ag Summit

Sponsored Storytelling

Sponsored Storytelling. In a packed conference room filled with nearly 150 attendees — boots and jeans, cowboy hats and notebooks — tribal leaders, ranch managers and agriculture professionals...

Senators warn proposed FY2027 Native program cuts could strain federal obligations

Policy and Law

Proposed cuts to Native-serving programs, staffing losses across federal agencies and growing delays in tribal project approvals dominated a Senate Indian Affairs Committee budget hearing Wednesday, as lawmakers from both parties questioned whether the federal government can continue meeting its treaty and trust obligations to tribes.

Most Recent

IN SERVICE | Ellen and Serena Harmon on entrepreneurship, community and building for the future

Tribes push Senate to restore food sovereignty pilot left out of House bill

Tlingit & Haida opens casino amid federal review of Alaska tribal gaming policy

Lakota Funds joins USDA home loan program, gains $764,000 for Pine Ridge mortgages

Tribal heritage projects eligible for up to $100K in federal funding through NPS program