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Government-to-Government Consultation Approach for ITEM79-Q3 (Tribal Nation Lands and Federal Infrastructure)

v1.0 · Created May 7, 2026 for v3.2.2 (consultation framework supporting actual government-to-government engagement per ITEM79-Q3 in the Open Issues Registry; intended for use rather than reference reading) · Jason Robertson · Ohio · 2026

# Purpose

This document provides a framework for conducting government-to-government consultation with tribal nations regarding the platform's federal infrastructure components, particularly the Federal Infrastructure Fee (FIF) telecommunications-build commitments. ITEM79-Q3 in the Open Issues Registry identifies tribal-nation-lands handling as the only OPEN finding within the Item 79 response framework that cannot be closed through desk research; resolution requires actual consultation with tribal governments. This framework specifies how to conduct that consultation responsibly.

The framework respects the principle that tribal consultation is dialogue rather than approval-seeking. The platform's lead author does not have authority over federal infrastructure deployment decisions; consultation here is preparatory to ensure the platform's architecture reflects tribal governmental concerns when those decisions are made. The platform commits to documenting consultation outcomes (what was raised, what was incorporated, what was not incorporated and why) in a manner consistent with EO 13175 documentation standards.

# Background: ITEM79-Q3 And Platform Position

The Federal Infrastructure Fee architecture commits to federal funding for nationwide broadband deployment, including deployment to currently-unserved tribal lands. Historical federal infrastructure deployment on tribal lands has produced substantial documented harm: rights-of-way granted without meaningful consent, infrastructure routes through culturally significant sites, telecommunications towers and lines on lands held in trust without adequate consultation. The platform's response framework acknowledges this history and commits to consultation-respectful deployment.

The platform's existing position (documented in the Item 79 Response Framework section) draws on multiple legal authorities establishing tribal consultation requirements: Executive Order 13175 (Consultation and Coordination With Indian Tribal Governments, 2000) requiring federal agencies to engage in regular and meaningful consultation; the National Historic Preservation Act's historic preservation review process for federal undertakings affecting historic properties (including tribal cultural sites); the National Environmental Policy Act tribal consultation requirements; the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act framework supporting tribal governmental capacity; the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) framework as one model of explicit federal-tribal jurisdictional respect.

# Consultation Principles

## Government-to-government respect

Tribal nations are sovereign governments under federal law. Consultation is between governments, not between private actors and tribal members. Communications, briefings, and meetings should be addressed to tribal governmental offices (chairperson, council, or designated consultation officer) rather than individual tribal members. Even when individual tribal members express interest, the consultation channel is governmental.

## Free, prior, and informed dialogue

Consultation works when tribal governments have time to consider the platform without pressure (free), have access to relevant information before the conversation begins (prior), and have access to the platform's substantive content and the lead author's analytical reasoning (informed). The framework's logistics support these principles: written briefing materials are sent before any meeting; meetings are scheduled with at least four weeks of advance notice; tribal governments are not pressured to respond on any particular timeline; tribal governments may decline to engage entirely without further follow-up.

## Consultation as dialogue, not approval-seeking

The platform's lead author is not seeking tribal approval for the platform; the platform will exist and be advanced regardless of any single tribal government's response. Consultation seeks tribal governmental perspective on whether the platform's architecture, as currently specified, has handled tribal-sovereignty considerations adequately. Tribal governmental response may be substantive critique, suggested specification changes, or acknowledgment that the platform's existing treatment is approximately right.

## Documentation and accountability

All consultation interactions are documented (with tribal governmental consent on attribution): what was raised, what was discussed, what platform changes resulted, what platform changes did not result and why. Documentation is shared back with the consulting tribal government for accuracy review before incorporation into the platform's record. Tribal governments are explicitly acknowledged in subsequent platform iterations unless they request otherwise.

# Why Consultation Now

The platform is architecturally specified but not yet enacted. Consultation now (during platform development) is preferable to consultation later (during enactment or implementation) because changes the platform makes during development are low-cost; changes during enactment require rewriting legislative text; changes during implementation require regulatory action and infrastructure adjustment. Tribal governments have a stronger position influencing platform architecture during development than they would have responding to settled federal policy.

Specific architectural questions where tribal consultation is most valuable: (one) the FIF deployment commitment to tribal lands and how it interacts with existing tribal telecommunications operations (some tribal nations have established telecommunications utilities; deployment by federal program must respect existing tribal infrastructure); (two) the consultation process specification for federal-program deployment decisions affecting specific tribal lands (what counts as adequate consultation, who within tribal government must be consulted, on what timeline); (three) the right-of-way and access framework for federal-program infrastructure on trust lands (compensation framework, easement durations, removal obligations); (four) the cultural-site protection framework for federal-program deployment activities (how cultural-site identification works, who has authority over identified sites, what protection mechanisms apply).

# Suggested Approach

## Stage one: introduction via national tribal organization

Initial outreach should not go directly to individual tribal governments. Initial outreach goes through national tribal organizations whose mission includes federal-tribal coordination: the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), founded 1944, primary tribal-government coordination body; the National Indian Gaming Association (NIGA) for tribes with gaming operations; the United South and Eastern Tribes (USET) for southeastern tribes; the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians (ATNI) for Pacific Northwest tribes; the National American Indian Housing Council for housing-infrastructure matters. National-organization introduction provides tribal governments with vetted source confirmation that the outreach is genuine and respectful of consultation norms.

## Stage two: written briefing to national organization

Send a written briefing (under fifteen pages) to the appropriate national organization explaining the platform, the FIF deployment commitment, the specific consultation questions, and the request for the organization to either provide direct organizational response or to facilitate introduction to interested tribal governments. The briefing emphasizes that the request is for governmental dialogue, that no decision-making is occurring, and that tribal governments may decline without follow-up.

## Stage three: tribal-government direct outreach (after introduction)

Following national-organization introduction, direct outreach to specific tribal governments goes through the tribe's designated consultation channel (consultation officer where one exists, council secretary otherwise). The materials package includes the briefing document plus the relevant FIF excerpts and Item 79 response framework excerpts. Communication is formal: respectful in salutation and tone; explicit about the limited scope of the request (consultation only); clear about response options (substantive engagement, suggested specification changes, decline).

## Stage four: meeting (if invited)

If tribal governments accept consultation, meeting format follows the tribal government's preference: in-person meeting at tribal headquarters; virtual meeting at tribal government convenience; written exchange. The meeting agenda is set by the tribal government in coordination with the platform lead author. Meeting documentation is by tribal government preference (recorded, transcribed, summary-only); the platform's documentation reflects tribal preference.

## Stage five: documentation and incorporation

Following consultation, document the discussion (per tribal government documentation preferences). Incorporate substantive feedback into platform iterations with explicit acknowledgment of the tribal government's contribution. Where tribal-suggested changes are not incorporated, document why explicitly (typically: out of scope for the platform; conflicts with another commitment requiring trade-off; or insufficient lead-author capacity to implement at appropriate quality and the suggestion is noted for subsequent iteration). Share documentation back with the tribal government before final incorporation.

# Suggested Initial Consultation Partners

Following national-organization introduction, the following tribal governments are reasonable candidates for direct outreach because of their existing telecommunications-related capacity, their established federal-relations infrastructure, and their geographic representation. The list is suggestive rather than definitive; national-organization introduction may surface other tribes for whom this consultation is timely.

## Geographic and capacity-based suggestions

Pacific Northwest: Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation (established telecommunications utility); Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs (federal-relations capacity). Southwest: Navajo Nation (largest U.S. tribal nation; substantial telecommunications operations; federal-program deployment experience); Hopi Tribe (established federal-relations infrastructure). Plains: Standing Rock Sioux Tribe (federal-program engagement history); Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe (telecommunications-deployment context). Eastern: Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (established federal-relations capacity; broadband-deployment experience); Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation (federal-relations capacity).

Geographic representation matters because tribal governmental priorities vary substantially by region (treaty status, land base, telecommunications-infrastructure status, gaming-revenue capacity for federal-relations work). Initial consultation across multiple regions surfaces concerns that single-region consultation would miss. The platform's architecture must hold across all U.S. tribal lands; consultation should accordingly span regional variation.

# Materials Package

Materials sent to tribal governments are a focused subset of platform documentation rather than the complete platform. Sending the complete platform (~ninety documents) communicates lack of consideration for the recipient's time. Sending a focused package signals respect for limited tribal-government capacity to engage with external materials.

## Briefing document

A standalone briefing document (created in v3.2.3 as 02_Tribal_Consultation_Briefing_Document.docx) explaining: who Jason Robertson is and the platform's status (private analytical work, not yet in legislative form); what the platform proposes regarding federal infrastructure deployment broadly and tribal-lands handling specifically; the specific consultation questions; the consultation process this framework establishes; explicit acknowledgments and limitations. Length: under fifteen pages. Tone: governmental and respectful; assumes recipient familiarity with federal-tribal consultation history but not with this specific platform.

## Platform excerpt: FIF Architecture

Excerpt from the Federal Infrastructure Fee Architecture document covering (one) the deployment commitment scope including tribal lands; (two) the existing FIF Tribal Sovereignty and Government-to-Government Consultation section added in v3.1.1 per PERSONA-SIG-2 mitigation; (three) the rights-of-way and easement architecture as currently specified.

## Platform excerpt: Item 79 Response Framework

Excerpt from the Item 79 Response Framework: Tribal Nation Lands and Federal Infrastructure section in the Open Issues Registry covering the three architectural elements drawing on EO 13175 / the NHPA's historic preservation review provisions / NEPA / Indian Self-Determination Act / ICWA; the specific gaps the platform's lead author has not yet been able to fill without consultation.

## Discussion questions

Specific questions for tribal governmental response: (one) does the FIF architecture's existing tribal sovereignty section (v3.1.1) reflect adequate respect for sovereignty principles, or are there substantive gaps; (two) what consultation process specifications would be considered adequate for federal-program deployment decisions affecting specific tribal lands; (three) what right-of-way and easement framework would be appropriate for federal-program infrastructure on trust lands; (four) what cultural-site protection mechanisms would be appropriate; (five) are there tribal-specific deployment priorities or concerns the platform's existing FIF treatment fails to address; (six) what is the tribal government's preferred communication channel for ongoing consultation if engagement continues.

# Sample Initial Outreach Letter to National Organization

Below is a sample letter to the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) executive director, illustrating the tone and structure for stage-one outreach. Adapt for the specific organization being approached.

[Date]

Executive Director, [Name] · National Congress of American Indians · Embassy of Tribal Nations · Washington, DC

Dear Executive Director [Name],

I am writing as the lead author of an integrated federal policy proposal called the We The People Platform. The platform commits to federal infrastructure deployment including nationwide broadband, with explicit acknowledgment that infrastructure on tribal lands requires tribal-government consultation in a manner the platform has not yet specified at adequate depth. I am seeking NCAI's guidance on how to approach this consultation responsibly.

The platform is private analytical work, not yet in legislative form. I am asking for consultation now (during architectural development) rather than later (during enactment or implementation) because changes during development are low-cost and tribal-government input has greater leverage on platform architecture at this stage. I am the platform's only author; this is not an organizational outreach.

What I would value from NCAI: (one) guidance on whether NCAI itself would be willing to provide organizational-level response on the platform's federal-infrastructure-deployment treatment of tribal lands, or whether NCAI's view is that consultation should proceed directly with individual tribal governments; (two) if direct tribal-government consultation is appropriate, whether NCAI would facilitate introduction to a small number of tribal governments whose telecommunications-infrastructure interests make this consultation timely; (three) any guidance on consultation norms specific to telecommunications and federal-program-deployment contexts.

I have attached a fifteen-page briefing document explaining the platform, the federal-infrastructure architecture, and the specific consultation questions. The briefing is intended to be sufficient context for NCAI to evaluate the request without requiring engagement with the full platform materials (which run to roughly ninety documents).

I commit to documenting consultation outcomes, sharing documentation back with consulting parties for accuracy review, and acknowledging contributing tribal governments and NCAI by name in subsequent platform iterations unless they request otherwise. I commit to no specific timeline; tribal governments and NCAI may engage at whatever pace they prefer or decline to engage entirely without further follow-up.

I appreciate your consideration. Please feel free to share this letter with any colleague whose perspective might be useful.

Respectfully, [Your Name] · [contact]

# Cross-References

This framework is the operational extension of ITEM79-Q3 in the Open Issues Registry and the Tribal Sovereignty and Government-to-Government Consultation section of the FIF Architecture document (added in v3.1.1 per PERSONA-SIG-2 mitigation). Companion documents in this iteration: 05_Academic_Outreach_Letter_Templates.docx (Tier 2 #7 from the actionable items list) and 05_Combined_Reform_Model_Audit_Scope.docx (Tier 3 #11 from the actionable items list). The follow-on deliverable to this framework is the actual briefing document was generated in v3.2.3 and is available as 02_Tribal_Consultation_Briefing_Document.docx in the platform's 02_Vision_and_Communication folder.