Native American Programs

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ICDBG Grantees Must Exclude Service-Connected Disability Compensation When Calculating Income

On January 20, 2026, Congress passed the Disabled Veterans Housing Support Act, Public Law 119-70. The law requires Indian tribes receiving Indian Community Development Block Grants (ICDBG) to exclude any service-connected disability compensation received from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) from a person’s income when determining whether the person is a person of low and moderate income (LMI). The law was designed to prevent disabled veterans from losing their eligibility for ICDBG assistance due to earned disability benefits. 

Accordingly, moving forward, all Indian tribes and tribal organizations administering an ICDBG grant must ensure that this form of income is excluded from a household’s income when determining whether the household is LMI, and is therefore eligible to receive ICDBG-funded assistance. 

When an Indian tribe is determining whether an activity benefits a particular area where at least 51 percent of the residents are LMI under the Area benefit category in 24 CFR 1003.208(a), the Indian tribe may continue to use Census-based data even though the Census definition does not exclude VA service-connected disability compensation. However, if an Indian tribe believes that this area is close to the threshold of having 51 percent of the residents being LMI, the Indian tribe should consider conducting an income survey under 24 CFR §1003.208(a)(3), which must exclude VA service-connected disability compensation from all income calculations. HUD especially encourages Indian tribes with areas with high concentrations of veterans to consider conducting such surveys if the area is just below the 51 percent LMI threshold. 

ONAP will be providing further guidance soon. In the meantime, please ensure that service-connected disability compensation from the VA is excluded from income under ICDBG. 

This change will also apply to other grants subject to the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974, such as PRICE grants received by Tribal grantees. 

Please note that this change to the ICDBG program is similar to the income exclusion that already exists for programs subject to section 4(9)(C) of NAHASDA, including the Indian Housing Block Grant program, Title VI Loan Guarantee program, and the Tribal HUD-VASH program. This change now adds a similar statutory income exclusion under the ICDBG program.

Radon Analysis Extension

HUD has published a Notice (CPD-2026-006 ) that extends the effective date of Notice CPD-23-103, which established a departmental policy for addressing radon in the environmental review process, for Tribes, Tribally Designated Housing Entities (TDHEs), and Department of Hawaiian Home Lands. The effective date has been extended by an additional 60 days to July 10, 2026. A copy of the Notice can be found here.

Tribal HUD-VASH Bootcamp

Tuesday, June 9 & Wednesday, June 10, 2026

HUD’s Office of Native American Programs and Office of Public and Indian Housing, in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is proud to announce a two-day training focused on the Tribal HUD-VASH program. The goals of the training are to develop a better understanding of the flexibilities and best practices in Tribal HUD- VASH, to increase knowledge and expertise in administering Tribal HUD-VASH to increase referrals and housing placements and improve positive outcomes for eligible Veterans utilizing Tribal HUD-VASH.

 A wide range of topics will be covered including:

• Providing participants with a foundational understanding of the administrative requirements of the Tribal HUD-VASH program
• Developing effective strategies to administer Tribal HUD-VASH
• Streamlining processes across TDHEs
• Formulating strategies to create and expand housing opportunities
• Expanding knowledge on developing effective partnerships.

This training is aimed at both seasoned Tribal HUD-VASH administrators as well as newly funded grantees. Up to 2 staff may be registered for this training. Click the link below for DETAILS, REGISTRATION & to make your HOTEL & TRAVEL reservations on or before Saturday, May 9, 2026.

CLICK HERE to REGISTER for the meetings. After you register for the meetings, Click here to register for a hotel room at the government rate: https://bit.ly/HotelReservationTribalHUDVASHBootcamp2026 (If you are having issues clicking the link above, please copy and paste it into your browser.)

The hotel reservation link will close on *Saturday, May 9, 2026.

General inquiries about the Tribal-VASH Bootcamp may be submitted to meetings@tacinc.org.

We look forward to seeing you in Oklahoma City on June 9th! 

Thank you, 

The Tribal HUD-VASH Bootcamp planning team 

NEW! FY 2026 Indian Housing Block Grant Formula Final Allocation

The purpose of this Dear Tribal Leader letter is to inform Tribes and Tribally Designated Housing Entities (TDHE) of their Indian Housing Block Grant (IHBG) Final Allocation for Fiscal Year (FY) 2026. HUD is posting the following information on-line at: https://ihbgformula.com/final-allocation-forms-fy-2026/:

• FY 2026 IHBG Allocation and Formula Data Sheets
• FY 2026 Correction/Challenge Log showing changes to the IHBG database between May 6, 2025, and March 6, 2026.

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