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Coronavirus Relief Fund

Extension to December 31, 2022 of the Date by Which 

Costs Must Be Incurred by Tribal Governments

December 23, 2022

The Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF) established by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic 

Security Act (CARES Act) reserved $8 billion to make payments to Tribal governments. As of 

December 23, 2022, the House of Representatives and the Senate passed the Consolidated 

Appropriations Act, 2023, which includes the State, Local, Tribal, and Territorial Fiscal Recovery, 

Infrastructure, and Disaster Relief Flexibility Act which extends the period for which Tribal 

government recipients may incur eligible costs using payments from their CRF awards to 

December 31, 2022. The extension is only applicable to Tribal government recipients.

1 This 

extension will be effective when the President signs this bill into law. Tribal government recipients 

should continue to refer to Treasury’s guidance regarding use of CRF award funds, subject to the 

updates provided on December 14, 2021, which are available at 

https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/136/CRF-Guidance-Federal-Register_2021-00827.pdf and 

https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/136/CRF-Guidance_Revision-Regarding-CostIncurred.pdf.

Requirements related to the use of funds, reporting, and recordkeeping 

The CRF is subject to the restrictions on the use of funds provided in section 601(d) of the Social 

Security Act (42 U.S.C. § 801(d)), as added by the CARES Act, and guidance issued by 

Treasury. All Tribal governments are required to submit reports to Treasury with respect to the 

use of such funds. Treasury is extending the reporting and close-out deadlines to reflect the 

statutory extension of the date by which costs must be incurred. Recipients are expected to 

have completed all expenditures of CRF awards by March 31, 2023. Closeout of CRF 

awards is due in GrantSolutions no later than July 10, 2023.

As amended, the CARES Act only allows CRF payments for Tribal governments to cover expenses 

that: 

1. are necessary expenditures incurred due to the public health emergency with respect to the 

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID–19); 

2. were not accounted for in the government’s budget most recently approved as of March 

27, 2020 (the date of enactment of the CARES Act) ; and 

3. were incurred during the period that begins on March 1, 2020 and ends on December 31, 

2022.

1 See section 4, amending section 601(d)(3) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 801(d)(3)), On June 25, 2021, the 

Supreme Court held in Yellen v. Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation that Alaska Native regional and 

village corporations are considered Indian tribes under the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act.
2

Under the guidance adopted by Treasury on December 14, 2021, as updated to reflect the statutory 

extension, a cost associated with a necessary expenditure incurred due to the public health 

emergency shall be considered to have been incurred by December 31, 2022 in the case of Tribal 

governments if the recipient has incurred an obligation with respect to such cost by December 31,

2022. Treasury defines obligation for this purpose consistently with the Uniform Guidance 

definition in 2 C.F.R. 200.1 as an order placed for property and services and entry into contracts, 

subawards, and similar transactions that require payment. As stated above, Treasury expects CRF 

awards to have been expended to cover such obligations by March 31, 2023.

Tribal governments may elect to enter into new obligations up to December 31, 2022 or reimburse 

themselves for eligible costs that were incurred by December 31, 2022 and paid for by the Tribal 

government using its own funds. As discussed in FAQ B.11, recipients are permitted to use CRF 

award funds to cover expenses of an audit conducted under the Single Audit Act as implemented 

by 2 CFR Part 200, Subpart F.

Again, please note that closeout of CRF awards is due in GrantSolutions no later than July 

10, 2023.

Information about reporting and recordkeeping requirements related to CRF payments is available 

at https://oig.treasury.gov/cares-act.