WASHINGTON — A federal tribal energy loan program that has never been used is getting bipartisan attention from the leaders of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee.
The Tribal Energy Loan Guarantee Program is intended to support tribal investment in energy-related projects by providing loan guarantees. It is estimated that 17,000 homes in Indian Country lack electricity with most being in the Southwest and in Alaska.
But after 18 years and millions of dollars in funding, the Department of Energy program established in 2005 has yet to fund a single energy project on Native American reservations, according to testimony at a March 29 hearing of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee.
