The report, authored by the think tank Brookings Institution, says Native communities nationwide could lose $24.5 billion in total – temporarily or permanently. Oklahoma would be among the most affected states, ranking only behind Arizona.
The federal government is obligated to issue funding to tribes annually because of treaties and legally binding agreements dating to the United States' infancy. Since 2018, the U.S. has provided around $93 billion in grants and cooperative agreements for more than 1,700 tribal governments and Native-owned businesses and non-profits, according to Brookings.
In January, Trump's Office of Management and Budget ordered a halt on all federal grants, throwing trillions of dollars into question.
The administration claimed the freeze would be temporary and would only impact entities that violated executive orders targeting federally-funded diversity programs, climate initiatives and other programs not in line with the Trump White House's policy agenda.
But the White House quickly rescinded the order, which awaits consideration from a federal appeals court in New York v. Trump. That case will determine whether such executive orders violated federal law. A ruling in Trump's favor could violate historical treaties, according to Brookings.
"When the federal government withholds funding from Tribes and Native American people, it's not just a policy change," the report authors wrote. "It's a violation of those commitments – putting essential services at risk and undermining Tribal governing capacity."
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