Jason Giles-Please see the memo by general counsel. ESJ - I want to Thank Vice Chairman Yellow Bird-Stevens for holding us accountable. Mark Macarro to move forward with name change to Indian Gaming Association, seconded by Kevin Killer. Motion passed without opposition. 9. New Business a. Sovereign Gaming Nations Award Andy Ebona - From the first announcement of the COVID-19 National Public Health Emergency, the National Indian Gaming Association team sprang into action. Congress was considering what to do in March 2020, and our Team requested: • Tribal Government inclusion in State-Local-Tribal Government Grant Relief, • Grants for Impacted Businesses; and • Low or No Interest Loans for Impacted Businesses. Indian Gaming Association approached the Senate, House and Administration on a Bi-Partisan Basis. Together with our sister organizations, we also promoted Federal Emergency Funding for BIA, IHS, FEMA and Transportation programs. In the Senate, Republicans promoted the Paycheck Protection Program—Small Business Relief through SBA and Indian Gaming Association promoted inclusion for Tribal Businesses. Congress included an Expanded Eligibility Rule for “Any Tribal Business” with up to 500 employees. Hotels were treated as separate businesses if they had separate management, yet, upon implementation, SBA declared that it would limit PPP to businesses that earned no more than 33% of their revenue from legal gambling. Our National Indian Gaming Team protested because the expanded rule of eligibility that Congress enacted to deal with National Public Health Emergency said: “Any Tribal Business.” Ultimately, our Team rallied Indian country Governors, Senators, and Congressman and the Treasury Department worked with the SBA to drop the limitation regarding legalized gambling in the Paycheck Protection Program. As a result, our Member Nations and Tribes were able to access the PPP funds for small Indian gaming facilities. With the public health closures caused by COVID-19, the PPP funds were important to maintain employees and facilities until they could re-open. In the House, our National Indian Gaming Team coordinated with NCAI to promote the $20 Billion Tribal Government Set-Aside from the State-Local-Tribal COVID-19 Relief Fund. Speaker Pelosi put forward a proposal for SLT Relief that included $10 Billion for COVID-19 funding. Led by Chairman Stevens, Executive Director Giles, and Deputy Director Danielle Her Many Horses, our National Indian Gaming Association Team sprang into action to promote retaining the full $10 Billion for our Tribal Governments in the CARES Act. Over the course of the coming days, working together with our Member Tribes and our sister organizations, the National Indian Gaming Team was successful in securing $8 Billion in funding for Tribal Governments in the CARES Act. In a surprise maneuver, without consultation, the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs promoted treatment of Alaska Native Corporations as Indian Tribes and Tribal Governments. Our Team objected
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