The U.S. Department of Education (ED) will conduct two Tribal Consultations on the Interagency Implementation of ED’s Fiscal Year 2027 Grantmaking Priorities and Fiscal Year 2028 Budget Priorities in coordination with the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI). On Thursday, August 27, 2026, from 2:30-5:30 p.m. ET, the Departments will consult on ED’s FY 2027 grantmaking priorities. On Friday, August 28, 2026, from 2:30-5:30 p.m. ET, the Departments will consult on ED’s FY 2028 Budget Request to the President.

The purpose of these consultations is to receive meaningful input from American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian communities to ensure that Tribal leader views inform the implementation of both topics within the current interagency framework. Each Department remains committed to upholding the federal trust responsibility as set forth in the Constitution of the United States, Treaties, Executive Orders, and decisions of the U.S. Courts. Both consultations will be conducted by the Office of Indian Education (OIE) and facilitated by the Tribal Consultation Official for ED.

Background

On February 10, 2026, from 1:30-5:30 p.m. ET, the U.S. Departments of Education, Interior, and Labor conducted consultation on the Interagency Agreements (IAAs) with elected Tribal leadership in Washington, D.C., at the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI). The Departments heard from leadership from all corners of Indian Country, chairmen, governors, principal chiefs, and designated proxies. On June 9, 2026, ED published both a summary and transcript of the consultation on interagency partnerships (Final Report). The Final Report found that a majority of both written and verbal comments called for consultation to be ongoing and regionally accessible throughout implementation—not limited to a single national event. These consultations demonstrate an interagency commitment to conduct ongoing consultation.

Since the founding of the United States, the legal foundations and scope of each trust relationship between the federal government and Indian Tribes, Alaska Native Villages, and/or Native Hawaiian Organizations have been statutorily unique. There are currently 575 federally recognized Indian Tribes, approximately 370 of which have treaties with the federal government that remain good law. Indian Tribes did not engage in treaty-making at the Department-level; they engaged in treaty-making from one Nation to another to ensure the prosperity of their descendants. The Departments look forward to continuing this work in genuine partnership with Indian Tribes, Alaska Native Villages, and/or Native Hawaiian Organizations, and to demonstrating through action that the federal trust and treaty responsibility will be honored throughout the implementation of the Interagency Agreements.

Consultation #1: Fiscal Year 2027 Grantmaking Priorities

To maintain online security, each attendee must register individually, and registration cannot be transferred to or used by others. Once you have completed registration, an individualized access link will be provided. This consultation is a closed press event.

Written public comments for the Consultation on FY27 Grantmaking Priorities will be collected through the TribalConsultation@ed.gov email address. The comment period is now open and will close at 11:59 p.m. ET on September 28, 2026. Please include “FY27 Grantmaking Priorities” in the subject line of your submission.

An Indian Tribe may designate information provided during the consultation as "sensitive" and request non-disclosure of the information to the public. Certain federal laws, including the Freedom of Information Act, may require disclosure of information designated sensitive by a Tribal government. Questions about this notice can be sent to TribalConsultation@ed.gov.

Background

Contingent upon availability of funding appropriated by Congress, ED can exercise discretion to conduct a grant competition for any of the following programs:

Consultation Questions

The Departments invite Tribal leaders to provide input on the following:

  1. ED has established seven Secretary’s Supplemental Priorities (SSPs) through the published five Notices of Final Priorities and Definitions for use in any ED discretionary grant competition. ED may choose to use one or more priorities in a grant competition to highlight areas of national importance in alignment with the underlying program. The priorities for grant competitions are clearly identified in the Application Notice and Instructions (ANI) for the competition that is posted on Grants.gov. If ED were to apply any of these priorities to the programs listed above, please name the program of interest and rank order their importance to your community (1 being the most important and 7 being the least important): A. Promoting Evidence-Based Literacy (90 FR 43514); B. Expanding Education Choice (90 FR 43514); C. Returning Education to the States and Tribes (90 FR 43514); D. Meaningful Learning Opportunities (91 FR 6625); E. Career Pathways and Workforce Readiness (91 FR 18780); F.  Advancing Artificial Intelligence in Education (91 FR 18774); G. Promoting Patriotic Education (91 FR 30291)
  2. As each priority could relate to each of the programs listed above differently, please share your comments on the potential strengths, opportunities, and challenges with applying a proposed priority to a specific program.
  3. Are there any other priority areas not covered under the Secretary's Supplemental Priorities that should be considered for the programs listed above?
  4. What suggestions do you have for how ED can improve the design and administration of these grant programs to better meet the unique educational and culturally related needs of Native students?

Consultation 2: Fiscal Year 2027 Budget Priorities

To maintain online security, each attendee must register individually, and registration cannot be transferred to or used by others. Once you have completed registration, an individualized access link will be provided. This consultation is a closed press event.

Written public comments for Consultation on FY28 Budget Priorities will be collected through the TribalConsultation@ed.gov email address. The comment period is now open and will close at 11:59 p.m. ET on September 29, 2026. Please include “FY28 Budget Priorities” in the subject line of your submission.

An Indian Tribe may designate information provided during the consultation as "sensitive" and request non-disclosure of the information to the public. Certain federal laws, including the Freedom of Information Act, may require disclosure of information designated sensitive by a Tribal government. Questions about this notice can be sent to TribalConsultation@ed.gov.

Background

The purpose of this consultation is to receive input from Tribal Leaders on the development of the Departments' budget for FY 2028, which begins on October 1, 2027, and ends on September 30, 2028. The following resources can be used to help Tribal leaders prepare for the upcoming consultation:

Further detailed information is available on the Department's website at: https://www.ed.gov/about/ed-overview/annual-performance-reports/budget/budget-requests. In addition to this overall budget request, the Department also produces detailed budget justifications for Congress to explain the use and importance of the funds requested.

Consultation Questions

The Departments invite Tribal leaders to provide input on the following:

  1. What have been your most critical education needs in the last year? Which programs currently meet, or attempt to meet, those education needs?
  2. How do you believe the Departments can better prioritize meeting these needs?
  3. Each year, the Departments write budget justifications for Congress to explain the use and importance of funding for each Department. ED's summaries for FY 2027 are posted at: https://www.ed.gov/about/ed-overview/annual-performance-reports/budget/…. Given how the FY 2027 request describes programs with Tribal implications, are there changes that should be considered in the FY 2028 budget request?
  4. The Departments use data to inform its budget and grantmaking decisions. What sources of information or data on the performance and needs of Native American students, teachers, and schools do you believe should inform budget development at each Department?
  5. What suggestions do you have regarding how we can improve the Departments' presentations of budget information for programs with Tribal implications?

Thank you in advance for your input and participation. We look forward to visiting and consulting with Indian Tribes, Alaska Native Villages, and Native Hawaiian Organizations and their leadership to empower high-quality education for all students.

Session

  • Session 1

    Virtual

    Fiscal Year 2027 Grantmaking Priorities
    Categorization
    Consultation
    Date
    Thursday, August 27, 2026
    Time
    2:30pm - 5:30pm Eastern
    Click to Register
  • Session 2

    Virtual

    Fiscal Year 2027 Budget Priorities
    Categorization
    Consultation
    Date
    Friday, August 28, 2026
    Time
    2:30pm - 5:30pm Eastern
    Click to Register