H.R. 3654 — TERRA Act

This section authorizes the Secretary, upon approving a proposed plan submitted by an Indian Tribe, to permit the tribe to (1) integrate funding from eligible federal programs (referred to as integrated federal programs), including any waivers granted under section 107; (2) carry out core services and activities otherwise provided through those programs, in accordance with the plan's designated purposes; (3) reallocate, reprogram, consolidate, or rebudget those funds among plan services and activities, without a section 107 waiver; (4) if appropriate, reallocate, reprogram, consolidate, or rebudget some or all of those funds to community-driven relocation costs, in accordance with the plan's designated purposes; and (5) submit a single annual report based on the model under section 201(b), in lieu of other reporting, recordkeeping, auditing, or similar requirements for the integrated programs, without a section 107 waiver.

This section establishes criteria for a federal program to be eligible for integration into a Plan by an Indian Tribe. To qualify, (1) the Tribe must plan to implement the program to address environmental resiliency through purposes that include climate resilience, mitigation, or community-driven relocation; disaster relief, preparedness, or prevention; environmental remediation; housing; infrastructure maintenance or development; economic development; land management (including purchasing, leasing, and fee-to-trust); capacity building; real estate services; natural resources management or development; energy or utility services; public health or welfare; or any purpose supporting those listed; and (2) the program's funding must be provided to the Tribe based on (A) eligibility under a statutory or administrative formula or due to the Tribe's or members' status as Indians; (B) a noncompetitive process or specific designation; (C) a competitive process designating Tribes as eligible recipients; or (D) block grants to the Tribe.

This section authorizes federal funding integrated into a Plan to be expended—including through reallocating, reprogramming, consolidating, or rebudgeting—for (1) core services or activities consistent with those otherwise provided under the integrated federal programs or (2) community-driven relocation.

This section establishes requirements for a plan submitted by an Indian Tribe to the Secretary for approval, including (1) identification of federal programs to integrate; (2) consistency with the Act's purpose; (3) at tribal option, descriptions of environmental threats to reservation or tribal lands and, if applicable, community-driven relocation strategies with general locations and geospatial summaries of proposed areas and environmental, cultural, or historic resources; (4) description of integration, consolidation, and delivery of federal funds and services; (5) identification of land-into-trust needs for environment-related purposes; (6) projected expenditures in a single budget; (7) identification of required federal environmental or historic preservation reviews, permits, or authorizations, including under NEPA or §306108 of title 54, United States Code (National Historic Preservation Act); (8) identification of statutory, regulatory, or administrative waivers needed; and (9) approval by tribal governing body resolution. This section requires confidentiality of Traditional Ecological Knowledge in plans (i.e., information on natural, cultural, and historical resources), exempting it from disclosure under FOIA (§552(b)(3) of title 5, U.S. Code), FACA (ch. 10 of title 5, U.S. Code), the OPEN Government Data Act (title II of P.L. 115-435), NEPA, and similar statutes.

This section requires the Secretary, at the request of an Indian Tribe, to provide technical assistance for any phase or aspect of a Plan, including (1) project planning and design to develop a proposed Plan and (2) review of a draft proposed Plan to identify issues or missing information that may prevent approval, with follow-up assistance to resolve such issues. The section specifies that such review does not constitute an official federal determination and directs the Secretary, as requested or appropriate, to consult with affected or participating federal agencies, which must provide related assistance on waiver requests, streamlined funding frameworks, and coordinated project scheduling.

This section establishes procedures for Indian tribes to submit proposed plans to the Secretary, requiring (1) written notification of intent to prepare a plan; (2) consultation by the Secretary, upon receipt of such notice, to identify federal programs for potential integration and any necessary waivers of statutory, regulatory, or administrative requirements; and (3) compliance of submitted plans with this Act.

This section establishes waiver authority enabling an Indian Tribe, as part of a proposed Plan, to request that the head of an affected agency waive statutory, regulatory, or administrative requirements—including matching requirements, competition procedures, formula funding limitations, repayment obligations, state/local partnership requirements, deadlines, and certain federal funding restrictions—necessary for efficient Plan implementation. Affected agencies must grant such waivers unless inconsistent with the Act's purpose or Indian-specific statutory authority. It requires affected agencies to determine waiver requests within 45 days (with deemed approval if no timely written notice), provides for Secretary-initiated interagency dispute resolution within 30 days (with final authority residing in the agency head), and requires notice to the tribe within 10 days of resolution—including the final determination and right to civil action.

This section establishes the Secretary's sole authority to approve or deny Indian tribal plans to integrate federal programs, with a presumption of approval and a requirement to decide within 90 days of receipt (deemed approved if no decision, subject to a one-time 90-day extension with tribal consent). Upon approval, the Secretary must transfer associated funds; denials require specific findings supported by legal authority, with options for partial approval (including for waiver-related issues pending resolution under section 107), technical assistance, and an optional hearing on the record. This section further authorizes Indian tribes to bring civil actions in U.S. district court against the Secretary or agency heads for denials or noncompliance—without exhausting administrative remedies—for injunctive relief or other appropriate remedies, including attorneys' fees if the tribe substantially prevails; final departmental appeals must be decided by a higher-level official.

This section establishes reduced reporting requirements for an Indian Tribe with a plan approved by the Secretary under section 108 by (1) requiring a single annual report based on a model report developed by the Secretary, in accordance with the tribe's plan; and (2) superseding reporting, recordkeeping, auditing, and similar requirements of affected agencies and integrated federal programs. The section further directs the Secretary to (1) develop and make available to tribes a model report describing all services, activities, and expenditures under a plan; (2) develop and use a single monitoring and oversight system for plans that records annual tribal reports, streamlined funding frameworks under section 204(b)(2)(B), and coordinated project schedules (including environmental review timetables) under section 202(c)(2)(B); and (3) maintain and make available to tribes lists of federal programs approved or denied for integration into plans and waiver requests granted or denied under section 107. The model report must contain information sufficient to determine tribal compliance with plan requirements and non-superseded, non-waived statutory and regulatory requirements of integrated programs but shall not require reporting expenditures by fund source or agency code.

This section establishes a streamlined federal permitting and review process for services or activities under an approved tribal Plan, with the Department of the Interior as lead agency. It requires the Secretary, within 60 days of Plan approval, in consultation with the tribe and participating agencies, to develop a coordinated project schedule—including agency roles, mitigation strategies, outreach plans, and an environmental review timetable not exceeding 1 year overall (to the maximum extent practicable and consistent with federal law, such as NEPA)—updated at least every 6 months. Participating agencies, designated automatically unless they opt out within 14 days, must conduct concurrent reviews; issue required determinations within 90 days of receiving necessary information; and, if delayed, respond to Secretary notifications with compliance measures. (Thus, the process integrates reviews under NEPA and the National Historic Preservation Act, among others, without expanding agency jurisdiction.)

This section establishes an expedited fee-to-trust process for Indian Tribes implementing a Plan. (a) It requires the Secretary of the Interior, on tribal request, to take specified land into trust if the tribe acquired it using Plan-distributed funds or if the Secretary determines the tribe faces imminent environmental risk necessitating community-driven relocation to that land. (b) It authorizes the Secretary, on tribal request, to take into trust any other tribe-owned land intended for Plan use—regardless of acquisition date—using streamlined procedures under 25 C.F.R. part 151 (as in effect on enactment): (1) tribes are exempt from standard documentation but must provide sufficient information via the Plan or subsequent consultation; and (2) the Secretary must evaluate requests as on-reservation (per 25 C.F.R. §151.9(c)) or initial acquisitions (per §151.12(c)) regardless of location, conduct any required environmental review under section 202, and decide within the section 108 timeframe for Plan approval or denial. (As background, fee-to-trust acquisitions place land under federal trust for tribal benefit, limiting state jurisdiction and enabling sovereign uses such as housing or economic development.)

This section designates the Secretary, in consultation with the applicable Indian Tribe, as the lead federal agency to develop and implement a streamlined funding framework for each Plan detailing efficient transfer of funding from integrated federal programs to the Department for distribution to the Tribe. Each framework must include (1) a list of affected agencies and their roles and responsibilities and (2) a funding timetable specifying dates for fund apportionment to agencies and transfer to the Secretary for tribal disbursement per section 205, with annual updates required. Affected agencies must prioritize ease of tribal use of funds, develop coordination mechanisms with other agencies, and carry out Plan-related obligations concurrently with others unless it impairs separate statutory duties.

This section establishes procedures for the transfer and distribution of funds covered by an approved plan to Indian Tribes. Specifically, it (1) requires the Secretary to receive such funds and distribute them to the applicable Tribe within 45 days; (2) authorizes affected agencies to set aside at least 10% of funds from administered Federal programs; (3) directs affected agencies to transfer apportioned funds to the Secretary within 30 days via nonexpenditure transfer; (4) requires distribution, on tribal request, pursuant to an existing contract, compact, or funding agreement under the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (ISDEAA); and (5) authorizes the Secretary to provide limited interim funding to Tribes before plan approval.

This section authorizes Indian Tribes with an approved Plan to reallocate, reprogram, consolidate, or rebudget transferred funds to further Plan purposes without additional federal approval or waivers. It further (1) eliminates requirements for separate records, expenditure allocations, program-specific audits, or underlying program reporting (replacing them with a single annual Plan report); (2) allows carryover of unobligated funds without fiscal year limitation or additional documentation; (3) entitles tribes to recover 100% of indirect costs; (4) treats transferred funds as non-federal for meeting matching requirements under other federal laws; and (5) permits tribes to retain all interest earned on such funds without reduction in authorized amounts. (Thus, these provisions reduce administrative burdens and enhance tribal flexibility in managing consolidated federal funds.)

This section prohibits any reduction in the amount of federal funds available to an Indian tribe seeking to propose a plan under section 106 due to enactment of this Act or approval or implementation of the tribe's plan. It further provides that integrating a federal program into such a plan does not (1) affect the program's eligibility for contracting under the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (ISDEAA); or (2) eliminate the applicability of ISDEAA provisions to that program.

This section requires the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs to lead federal partners in negotiating and entering into an interdepartmental memorandum of agreement (MOA), following tribal consultation, not later than 180 days after enactment of this Act to implement the Act. The MOA must include provisions for (1) interagency cooperation on procedures for the Secretary's approval of plans under §108 and waivers by affected agencies under §107; (2) establishment of a Tribal working group to advise federal partners on program management and implementation; and (3) an annual meeting between federal partners and the Tribal working group. The MOA must not (1) add criteria for federal program eligibility; (2) limit the Department of the Interior's role as lead agency; or (3) restrict the Secretary's sole decisionmaking authority for federal actions under the Act, including program eligibility determinations for integration into tribal plans. This section exempts the Tribal working group from the Federal Advisory Committee Act and authorizes non-reimbursable detailing of federal employees to the Department without loss of civil service status or privileges.

This section requires the Secretary, in consultation with affected agencies and representatives of Indian Tribes, to submit to the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs and the House Committee on Natural Resources a report on the status of implementation of this Act not later than two years after the date of enactment.