Councilwoman Dorothy Wait has been chosen to serve on the Administration for Children and Families’ (ACF) Tribal Advisory Committee.The ACF TAC’s purpose is to strengthen the government-to-government relationships and provide advice on opportunities; ensuring that ACF programs benefit American Indians and Alaska Natives. Councilwoman Wait was selected to serve as the primary delegate for California. Her term of service began in April and ends in December 2025.The ACF TAC holds six meetings per year that include three in-person or virtual meetings for approximately two days each and three virtual meetings for 1.5 hours each. ACF will support Councilwoman Wait’s per diem and travel expenses to attend in-person meetings in accordance with standard Government Travel Regulations.#placement_573654_0_i{width:100%;max-width:550px;margin:0 auto;}var rnd = window.rnd || Math.floor(Math.random()*10e6);var pid573654 = window.pid573654 || rnd;var plc573654 = window.plc573654 || 0;var abkw = window.abkw || '';var absrc = 'https://ads.empowerlocal.co/adserve/;ID=181918;size=0x0;setID=573654;type=js;sw='+screen.width+';sh='+screen.height+';spr='+window.devicePixelRatio+';kw='+abkw+';pid='+pid573654+';place='+(plc573654++)+';rnd='+rnd+';click=CLICK_MACRO_PLACEHOLDER';var _absrc = absrc.split("type=js"); absrc = _absrc[0] + 'type=js;referrer=' + encodeURIComponent(document.location.href) + _absrc[1];document.write('');The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) was created on April 15, 1991, following the merger of the Office of Human Development Services, the Family Support Administration, and the Maternal and Child Health Block Grant Program. ACF is one of 12 operating divisions of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and oversees programs to address the needs, strengths, and abilities of communities—including tribal communities.ACF is comprised of 19 offices, including the Office of Regional Operations, which represents 10 regional offices around the country, that provide funding, grants support, and work with state, tribal, and local agencies and other non- profit organizations.Tolowa Dee-ni’ Nation Tribal Council Chairperson, Jeri Lynn Thompson wrote, “Dorothy’s contributions to Tolowa Dee-ni’ Nation and our Family Wellness Department, and by extension Indian families overall, are unmatched. Her contributions include securing more than seven million dollars of competitive grant funds as well as establishing and maintaining block grant programs such as Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), Child Care Development Fund (CCDF) and Family Violence Preventions Services Act (FVPSA) funds. Dorothy was also the leader and essential driver to Tolowa Dee-ni’ Nation becoming the first Tribe in California to receive approval for federally funded, direct Title IV-e child and family services.”The ACF TAC approved the following priorities and is currently working on their strategic plan.PRIORITY AREA 1: The ACF/Tribal Relationship1. Establish tribal priorities for specific ACF programs2. Identify and leverage regional ACF opportunities3. Collaborate with other HHS Tribal Advisory Committees to advocate for tribes within HHS4. Develop a tribal engagement strategy for ACF5. Initiate outreach to Native communities about ACF’s programsPRIORITY AREA 2: Funding Opportunities1. Increase ACF funding to Native American communities2. Develop recommendations to address fiscal issues impacting tribal recipients3. Improve technical assistance to lower-capacity tribes/underserved Native American communities to enhance their competitiveness for ACF funding opportunities4. Improve coordination of ACF resources for tribes/Native American CommunitiesPRIORITY AREA 3: Economic Development1. Assess for Administration initiatives related to economic development2. Identify potential collaborations among federal programs that support economic development3. Hold a tribal economic development summit to inform federal and tribal programs4. Establish a collaborative federal demonstration pilot on tribal economic developmentPRIORITY AREA 4: Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons1. Ensure implementation of the ACF Framework on Missing and Murdered Native Americans2. Establishing an ACF Implementation Strategy for the Framework3. Establish ACF, HHS, and external partnerships to advance the Framework4. Monitor and assess progress on the FrameworkPRIORITY AREA 5: Tribal Flexibility1. Identify areas of flexibility within existing ACF programs for program consideration2. Identify areas for potential 477 expansion for ACF consideration3. Hold two ACF events on Tribal self-governance (a roundtable with senior ACF officials and TAC delegates and a Consultation Session focused on self-governance at ACF)4. Complete an analysis on the viability of tribal self-governance at ACF5. Identify an ACF self-governance demonstration pilotPRIORITY AREA 6: Indian Child Welfare googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('ad-1515727'); });