Interior Office of Insular Affairs Announces Full and Final Allocation of $55 Million in Cares Act Funds to Insular Areas

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of the Interior’s Office of Insular Affairs (OIA) announces its final allocation of $55 million in Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act through the Technical Assistance Program (TAP) to the Insular Areas. The funds were distributed among the insular area governments to prepare for and address the impacts of the global coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Funds were also distributed to several non-government organizations in Guam, Hawai’i, and the mainland to assist insular area populations disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are pleased to support the Biden-Harris administration’s work with insular areas governments and nonprofit organizations as they work to protect families against the coronavirus pandemic and to address the ongoing health, economic, and social effects of the pandemic,” said Deputy Assistant Secretary Keone Nakoa. “Insular area communities in Guam, Hawai’i, and the continental United States have been among the most heavily impacted populations, and we applaud Congress for including funding to help meet the needs of these communities through the Office of Insular Affairs’ Technical Assistance Program.”

The CARES Act funds have and will be used in a variety of ways including the acquisition of medical equipment; distribution of testing kits and vaccines; distribution of protective gear, cleaning supplies, and food; quarantine expenses for repatriation of stranded individuals; construction of quarantine sites; and support for insular area populations in the United States who have been heavily impacted by the pandemic. The OIA TAP grant managers continue working with funding recipients to ensure that the funds are disbursed and utilized following the guidelines established under 2 Code of Federal Regulations Part 200: Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards.

Other partners in the federal government have provided important support to the insular areas to address the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic some of which have been compiled here for easy reference: https://www.doi.gov/oia/BeatingCovid19.

For more information about the Office of Insular Affairs, visit www.doi.gov/oia.

The Assistant Secretary of Insular and International Affairs and the Office of Insular Affairs (OIA) carry out the Secretary of the Interior’s responsibilities for the U.S. territories of American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Additionally, OIA administers and oversees federal assistance under the Compacts of Free Association to the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau. OIA also administers a discretionary Technical Assistance Program for all the insular areas. Find information about OIA and its work on www.doi.gov/oia, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.

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