Department of Interior 477 Program
477 Program Description
The main objective of the 477 Demonstration Initiative is to create a pool of funds from various Federal programs for the purpose of simplifying fund dispersal
and reporting requirements. This reduces the administrative burden Tribes face without reducing accountability. This initiative targets employment education
and training programs.
There are no separate funds under this Initiative – instead all money is money that Tribes would otherwise receive from a variety of programs. The main benefit
for Tribes is that instead of redundant review processes and applications a Tribe only has to submit one application to one agency.
The initiative is built around three key elements: combining funds from twelve different agencies into one program, a single plan to implement needed services,
and a single reporting structure to replace twelve different reporting structures.
Long-Term Benefits
The long-term benefits of this program included being able to provide economic and educational services to more recipients for the same budget as prior to
developing a 477 plan.
Entities that successfully join the program can remain in the program as long as they exhibit success under the program. Normally an entity must re-apply every
two years but 477 participants can receive a waiver as long as they are successful with their programs.
Short-Term Benefits
If an entity currently receives funding from one or more of the twelve Federal programs that participate in the 477 Demonstration Initiative that entity can use
those funds as the basis for the 477 plan. This will allow the entity to merge reporting structure and increase the efficiency in the delivery of the programs as
each individual budget gets merged into one master budget.
For additional information, please contact
Lynn Forcia, Chief, Division of Workforce Development, Office of Indian Energy and Economic Development,
U.S. Department of the Interior, at (202) 219-5270.
* The reason we support this program is because it helps Tribes streamline their Federally funded program reporting requirements and it helps Tribes use
funds to train a workforce for their economic development projects.