Here are some of the issues which CEQ has specifically requested input from Tribes (this link provides page numbers for both the CEQ website and the Federal Register): Specific Issues on which CEQ Invites Comment in Phase 2 rules regarding Tribes.docx

§ 1500.2(d) (p. 24). Appropriate Level of NEPA Review (§ 1501.3)
§ § 1501.3(d)(2)(iv) (p. 44). CEQ proposes to make a clarifying edit to the factor in 40 CFR 1501.3(b)(2)(iv) relating to actions that may violate Federal, State, Tribal, or local law by adding reference to “other requirements.” CEQ also proposes to include inconsistencies with policies designed for protection of the environment because agencies should not necessarily limit their inquiry to statutory requirements. Of course, it may be appropriate to give relatively more weight to whether the action threatens a law imposed for environmental protection as opposed to a policy, but policies imposed for the protection of clean air, clean water, or species conservation, for example, may nonetheless be relevant in evaluating intensity.

§ 1501.3(d)(2)(x) (p. 46). CEQ proposes to add paragraph (d)(2)(x) to include effects upon the
rights of Tribal Nations reserved through treaties, statutes, or Executive Orders. This proposed addition would clarify that agencies should consider how an action may impact the reserved rights of Tribal Nations. Tribes’ ability to exercise these rights often depends on protection of the resources that support the rights, and agencies should consider impacts to such resources. CEQ specifically seeks comments from Tribes on this proposed addition.

Lead Agency; Cooperating Agencies (§§ 1501.7 and 1501.8)

§ 1501.7(b) (p. 60). CEQ proposes to retitle § 1501.7 “Lead Agency” to align with section 107(a) of NEPA. CEQ proposes to revise paragraph (b) regarding joint lead agencies for consistency with section 107(a)(1)(B) of NEPA to clarify that the participating Federal agencies may designate a Federal, State, Tribal, or local agency as a joint lead agency upon invitation to and acceptance by such agency. CEQ includes Federal agencies in the list of potential joint lead agencies because there are circumstances in which having another agency serving as a joint lead agency will enhance efficiency. CEQ does not read the text in section 107(a)(1)(B) of NEPA as precluding this approach, but rather Congress specified that State, Tribal, and local agencies may serve as joint lead agencies because they are ineligible to serve as the lead agency. CEQ invites comment on whether it should make additional changes to this paragraph.

§ 1501.8(a) (p. 62). CEQ proposes an addition to § 1501.8 to clarify the meaning of the phrase “special expertise.” Paragraph (a) provides that a lead agency may request an agency with special expertise to serve as a cooperating agency. CEQ proposes to clarify in paragraph (a) that special expertise can include Indigenous Knowledge.

This proposed change helps ensure that Federal agencies respect and benefit from unique knowledge that Tribal governments may bring to the environmental review process. CEQ notes that the Office of Science and Technology Policy and CEQ have issued a Guidance Memorandum for Federal Departments and Agencies on Indigenous Knowledge but does not define Indigenous Knowledge. CEQ invites comment on whether it should include such a definition in the regulations.

 

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the Jemez Principles for Democratic Organizing and the Defend the Sacred AK Principles

We recognize that we work throughout the unceded territories of the Indigenous Peoples of Alaska. Our offices are located on the traditional territories of the lower Tanana Dene Peoples and the Dena'ina Peoples. We acknowledge and honor the ancestral & present land stewardship and place-based knowledge of the peoples of these territories.