The Tribal Action Plan (TAP) Technical Assistance (TA)

As alcoholism and other drug abuse continues to impact American Indians and Alaska Natives, all of our Federal partners are committed to support a holistic framework that can reinforce the belief that the mind, body, and spirit are all connected to health and that Tribes know best how to solve their own problems through prevention activities, community partnerships, and collaborating with other agencies in prevention and treatment efforts.

The Indian Alcohol and Substance Abuse (IASA) partner agencies, in the spirit of collaboration and cooperation, are committed to providing technical expertise to Tribes in support of the development of their TAP. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's (SAMHSA) Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) resources, for example, can provide technical expertise to Tribes at different stages of TAP development and prevention program implementation, using a variety of model frameworks that may be useful for Tribal communities when planning and implementing their TAP.

Any TAP may, among other things, provide for:

  • An assessment of the scope of the problem of alcohol and drug abuse for the Tribe which adopted the resolution or other equivalent enactment,
  • The identification and coordination of available resources and programs relevant to alcohol and drug abuse prevention and treatment,
  • The establishment and prioritization of the goals and the efforts to meet those goals and the
    • identification of community stakeholders and family roles in any of the efforts undertaken as part of the TAP,
  • The establishment of procedures for amendment and revision of the plan, as may be determined necessary by the Tribal Coordinating Committee, at the local level, and
  • An evaluation component to measure the success of efforts

The detailed SAMHSA's Collaborative for the Application of Prevention Technologies (CAPT) and the Native American Center for Excellence (NACE) Support for Tribes Pursuing Tribal Action Plans under the Tribal Law and Order Act (TLOA), as well as the Tribal Action Plan Guidelines 2011, may be found on the following link: www.samhsa.gov/TLOA

SAMHSA's TA providers can leverage resources to provide access to relevant prevention materials; tools (including needs assessment and evaluation tools) via their websites; collaborative workshops at major conferences; and an opportunity to create "Learning Communities" that provide a platform for transmission of learning from one member and community to another or engage in meaningful dialogues and exchanges about the creation of TAPs.

SAMHSA/CSAP resources can provide technical expertise to Tribes at different stages of TAP development and prevention program implementation. CSAP's resources, however, do not cover the full spectrum of resources and TA that the 565 federally recognized Tribes will need to develop and implement a TAP. The Office of Indian Alcohol and Substance Abuse (OIASA) will be able to assist interested Tribes in identifying resources from other IASA Federal agencies to supplement these SAMHSA/CSAP resources in support of Tribes developing TAPs.

The SAMHSA's Collaborative for the Application of Prevention Technologies (CAPT) and the Native American Center for Excellence (NACE) Support for Tribes Pursuing Tribal Action Plans under the Tribal Law and Order Act (TLOA) may serve our other Federal partners (IHS, DOI/BIA, DOI/BIE, DOJ/OJP) well as a template for how to best identify and leverage agency resources in support of the development of TAPs.

Finally, Tribes are encouraged to send their official Tribal Resolutions to SAMHSA's Office of Indian Alcohol and Substance Abuse at the address below. The Office will, in turn, coordinate with the appropriate interdepartmental coordinating workgroups on your respective TAPs.

For more information on SAMHSA's IASA activities, information and resources available, please contact:

Office of Indian Alcohol and Substance Abuse
1 Choke Cherry Road,
Room Rockville, MD 20857
Office: (240) 276-2400
E-mail: IASA@samhsa.hhs.gov
Website: www.samhsa.gov/tloa

Last updated: 06/20/2012