Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke, right, greets Chairman Alvin Not Afraid, Jr. of the Crow Tribe prior to a Senate Committee on Indian Affairs hearing in Washington, D.C., on March 8, 2017. Photo by Indianz.Com (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)

Environment | National | Politics

Crow Tribe is subject of another critical look at federal funds

Wednesday, October 3, 2018

The Crow Tribe is again being questioned about its use of federal funds.

A report issued by the Office of the Inspector General at the Department of Interior on Tuesday uncovered problems with the tribe's handling of two contracts with the Bureau of Reclamation (USBR). According to the audit, the tribe misused $4.8 million and can't account for additional $7.8 million.

"We found that the tribe did not track and report its use of federal funds in accordance with the contract terms, applicable federal laws and regulations, and USBR guidelines, and that the USBR did not oversee the contracts in accordance with applicable Federal laws and regulations and USBR guidelines," a letter to Mike Black, the Great Plains regional director at the agency, states. "These issues caused us to question $12,808,434 in costs claimed under the contracts."

The tribe was awarded the contracts in order to implement its water rights settlement, The Billings Gazette reported. Of $260 million in federal funding that's being provided by USBR, the tribe has received about $45 million as of March 2017, the paper said.

The settlement was signed into law in December 2010. A major component is a water system being overseen by USBR.

This summer, another audit found questionable spending of transportation funds in a government-to-government agreement with the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Nearly $14.5 million in federal funds has gone unaccounted, according to the report.