The United States Congress first authorized the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to develop the Multi-Media Assistance Program and was subsequently enacted as the "Indian Environmental General Assistance Program Act of 1992." In 1993, EPA promulgated program specific grant regulations that govern the award of the General Assistance Program (GAP) grants (58 Federal Register 63878, Dec 2, 1993; 40 CFR Part 35, Subpart Q). EPA also developed revised GAP guidelines dated March 9, 2000 outlining the award and management of GAP agreements.
Objective: The principle objective of ITEC's GAP program continues to focus on providing opportunities for its member Tribes to assess, evaluate and develop plans to address environmental and public health issues. Technical assistance is available to develop multi-media programs addressing environmental issues pertinent to the ITEC member Tribes.
The ITEC GAP program is comprised of four main components identified as:
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Infrastructure Development
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Skills and Training Development
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Needs Assessment
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Environmental Program Development