Tribal Justice and Safety|Gets $90M in U.S. Grants

(CN) - Uncle Sam awarded 192 grants, worth more than $90 million, to help law enforcement and prevent crime in needy American Indian tribal areas, as well as Alaska Native villages.

The funds will go to 110 American Indian tribes, Alaska Native villages, tribal consortia and tribal designated nonprofits, according to a report released Wednesday by the Justice Department.

Supported areas include "public safety and community policing; justice systems planning; alcohol and substance abuse; corrections and correctional alternatives; violence against women; juvenile justice; and tribal youth programs."

The Justice Department's Coordinated Tribal Assistance Solicitation (CTAS), a single application for tribal-specific grant programs, made the awards.

CTAS administered its first round of consolidated grants in September 2010, and has doled out 989 grants totaling more than $437 million since then.

Thirty U.S. attorneys from districts that include Indian country or one or more federally recognized tribes serve on the Native American Issues Subcommittee of the attorney general's Advisory Committee.

The NAIS focuses on criminal and civil Indian country issues, and makes policy recommendations to the attorney general.

Uncle Sam notes that its annual consultation on violence against native women is scheduled for Oct. 31 in Bismarck, N.D. That city will also host an Interdepartmental Tribal Justice, Safety and Wellness Session on Oct. 29-30.

There, tribal leaders can share their views on the department grants.

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