Native News
Native News Weekly (April 12, 2026): D.C. Briefs
WASHINGTON — In addition to articles already covered by Native News Online, here is a roundup of other news released from Washington, D.C. that impacts Indian Country recently. Congress was on break due Easter and Passover.
HUD Announces $1.1 Billion in Tribal Housing Grants Amid NAHASDA Anniversary
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced more than $1.1 billion in Indian Housing Block Grant (IHBG) funding for American Indian Tribes, Alaska Native Villages, and Tribally Designated Housing Entities, supporting affordable housing in nearly 600 Tribal communities.
HUD Secretary Turner said the funding will help expand access to quality, affordable housing and strengthen partnerships with Tribal nations.
The IHBG program provides formula-based grants for housing development, modernization, services, and safety initiatives.
The announcement coincides with the 30th anniversary of the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act (NAHASDA), which has supported the construction, acquisition, and rehabilitation of more than 160,000 homes in Tribal communities.
Please see the full list of IHBG awards here.
If passed, Trump’s Budget Would Force Closure of Tribal Colleges & Universities
The budget proposal released last week calls for cuts to Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs), as well as to two schools operated by the Bureau of Indian Education—Haskell Indian Nations University in Kansas and the Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute in New Mexico. Students at both institutions sued the BIE last year over funding and staffing reductions.
“If this budget was to pass, our TCUs would be forced to close within a year,” said Ahniwake Rose, president of the American Indian Higher Education Consortium.
The proposal also reduces billions in federal funding for housing, business, and infrastructure programs that support Native communities.
About three dozen TCUs operate across the United States, primarily serving rural areas and offering lower-cost education for tribal citizens. Most rely heavily on federal funding, a commitment rooted in the federal government’s trust and treaty obligations to tribes.
Last year, the administration also cut funding for TCUs, including grants through agencies such as the U.S. Department of Agriculture that support tribal education. Funding for minority-serving institutions was reduced and partially reallocated to historically Black colleges and universities and TCUs.