Judge Orders Trump Administration To Give Tribes Their COVID-19 Relief Funds

[Lakhota]

A Navajo family wears masks to protect against the spread of COVID-19 in Monument Valley, Arizona.

The Treasury Department was planning to sit on $679 million in emergency aid that was due to go to tribal governments months ago.

WASHINGTON ― A federal judge on Monday ordered Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to distribute $679 million in emergency COVID-19 relief funds to Native American tribes that should have gotten it months ago, and he chided the agency for causing “irreparable harm” with its delays.

“Continued delay in the face of an exceptional public health crisis is no longer acceptable,” said U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta, who gave Mnuchin until Wednesday to disburse the funds.

Here’s a copy of Mehta’s opinion:

Judge Orders Trump Administration To Give Tribes Their COVID-19 Relief Funds

The Treasury Department was planning to sit on $679 million in emergency aid that was due to go to tribal governments months ago.

www.huffpost.com

Shameful and unconscionable to have withheld those funds - especially during a pandemic.

 

[C_Clayton_Jones]

‘Mnuchin had argued that he needs to hold on to the $679 million in the event the Treasury Department loses the case and needs to pay out more money to the tribe claiming it was underpaid. But Mehta said Monday that $679 million is “grossly disproportionate” to the amount of money that Treasury could have to pay out ― the tribe in the case claims it was underpaid by $7.65 million ― and there is no court order preventing the agency from releasing that money to tribes.’ ibid

So the Trump ‘administration’ is withholding the funds the consequence of its own incompetence.

Yet another compelling reason to vote Trump out of office.

 

[fncceo]

Can we just give them blankets? It's been done before.

 

[Snouter]

Unfortunately the "health" officials in the Navajo Nation are fucking up everyone there. Is the USPS even allowed in to deliver the checks?

https://www.navajo-nsn.gov/News%20Releases/NNDOH/2020/May/NDOH%20Public%20Health%20Emergency%20Order%202020-011%20Dikos%20Ntsaaigii-19.pdf

 

[Darkwind]

File an appeal and ignore it.

Its what the left does.