In the most recent management advisory regarding the U.S. Department of the Interior's (DOI) implementation of the land consolidation portion of the Cobell v. Salazar settlement, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) addressed the proper use of funding agreements with tribes participating in the land consolidation program. This management advisory is a part of OIG's ongoing effort to monitor and evaluate the funding appropriated to DOI in the settlement.
In November 2011, OIG issued a report identifying both the challenges and efficiencies presented by Federal and tribal government involvement in implementing Cobell's land consolidation provisions. In the report, we discussed challenges in the areas of data access, data integrity, and privacy concerns. We also acknowledged the administrative and technological benefits provided by Federal involvement and the outreach and incentive benefits provided by tribal involvement.
In this current report, OIG addressed a number of important issues to consider when providing funding to tribes for Indian land consolidation. These issues included selecting the funding instrument, whether that be a grant, cooperative agreement, or procurement agreement; drafting the scope of work; defining inherently governmental activities and single-source determination; soliciting legal review when necessary; and monitoring requirements for Federal financial assistance programs. The advisory included sources for further guidance on these matters to assist in effort toward funding participating tribes to implement portions of the land consolidation program.