The White House is hosting the second Tribal Nations Summit of the Biden Administration this week and has announced a number of new actions, including a rulemaking effort by USACE proposing to rescind Appendix C:
The U.S. Army has historically used USACE Appendix C for actions affecting historic properties under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. Tribal Nations and Native Hawaiian communities have, for many years, complained that Appendix C does not comply with Section 106 procedures. USACE is announcing a rulemaking effort proposing to rescind Appendix C. USACE would instead rely on ACHP’s regulations and joint USACE/ACHP guidance for implementation of Section 106. The Army intends to coordinate closely with Tribal Nations and ACHP throughout this rulemaking effort.
USACE had previously conducted listening sessions on the topic, and ACRA submitted comments recommending it be rescinded as a part of the effort.
The new actions also include updated consultation training and guidebooks, additional tribal advisory committees and positions, and a number of economic and climate-related initiatives. A full list of the announced actions by the Administration is available here.