Senator Barrasso Urges COVID-19 Support for Tribes

U.S. Senator John Barrasso of Wyoming recently joined Senator Jerry Moran of Kansas, and 10 other senators in calling for greater flexibility and additional resources for tribal governments to address the COVID-19 pandemic.

Across the United States, tribal communities have been hit disproportionately hard by the pandemic. In Wyoming, a substantial amount of COVID-19 cases and deaths have been members of the Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone tribes on the Wind River Reservation.

In a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and U.S. House of Representatives Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, the senators urge the congressional leaders to include priorities for tribal governments in a future COVID-19 relief package. They also highlight the need for increased flexibility for tribal governments in how they use funds provided in the CARES Act.

The Coronavirus Relief Fund, created in Section 601 of the CARES Act, provides tribes and each state funding to address the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. In Wyoming, the Eastern Shoshone Tribe received more than $12.3 million in funding and the Northern Arapaho Tribe received more than $27 million in funding.