‘‘(ii) HEARINGS.—If the Secretary 
terminates a compact or funding agree-
ment (or portion thereof) under clause (i), 
the Secretary shall provide the Indian tribe 
subject to the compact or agreement with 
a hearing on the record not later than 10 
days after the date of such termination. 
‘‘(E) BURDEN OF PROOF.—In any hearing 
or appeal involving a decision to terminate a 
compact or funding agreement (or portion 
thereof) under this paragraph, the Secretary 
shall have the burden of proof in demonstrating 
by clear and convincing evidence the validity of 
the grounds for the termination. 
‘‘(g) COST PRINCIPLES.—In administering funds re-
ceived under this section, an Indian tribe shall apply cost 
principles under the applicable Office of Management and 
Budget circular, except as modified by section 450j–1 of 
title 25, other provisions of law, or by any exemptions to 
applicable Office of Management and Budget circulars 
subsequently granted by the Office of Management and 
Budget. No other audit or accounting standards shall be 
required by the Secretary. Any claim by the Federal Gov-
ernment against the Indian tribe relating to funds received 
under a funding agreement based on any audit conducted 
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pursuant to this subsection shall be subject to the provi-
sions of section 450j–1(f) of title 25. 
‘‘(h) TRANSFER
OF FUNDS.—The Secretary shall 
provide funds to an Indian tribe under a funding agree-
ment in an amount equal to— 
‘‘(1) the sum of the funding that the Indian 
tribe would otherwise receive for the program, func-
tion, service, or activity in accordance with a funding 
formula or other allocation method established under 
this title or chapter 53 of title 49; and 
‘‘(2) such additional amounts as the Secretary 
determines equal the amounts that would have been 
withheld for the costs of the Bureau of Indian Af-
fairs for administration of the program or project. 
‘‘(i) CONSTRUCTION PROGRAMS.— 
‘‘(1) STANDARDS.—Construction projects car-
ried out under programs administered by an Indian 
tribe with funds transferred to the Indian tribe pur-
suant to a funding agreement entered into under 
this section shall be constructed pursuant to the con-
struction program standards set forth in applicable 
regulations or as specifically approved by the Sec-
retary (or the Secretary’s designee). 
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‘‘(2) 
MONITORING.—Construction 
programs 
shall be monitored by the Secretary in accordance 
with applicable regulations. 
‘‘(j) FACILITATION.— 
‘‘(1) SECRETARIAL INTERPRETATION.—Except 
as otherwise provided by law, the Secretary shall in-
terpret all Federal laws, Executive orders, and regu-
lations in a manner that will facilitate— 
‘‘(A) the inclusion of programs, services, 
functions, and activities (or portions thereof) 
and funds associated therewith, in compacts 
and funding agreements; and 
‘‘(B) the implementation of the compacts 
and funding agreements. 
‘‘(2) REGULATION WAIVER.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An Indian tribe may 
submit to the Secretary a written request to 
waive application of a regulation promulgated 
under this section with respect to a compact or 
funding agreement. The request shall identify 
the regulation sought to be waived and the 
basis for the request. 
‘‘(B) APPROVALS AND DENIALS.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 
days after the date of receipt of a written 
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request under subparagraph (A), the Sec-
retary shall approve or deny the request in 
writing. 
‘‘(ii) DENIALS.—The Secretary may 
deny a request under clause (i) only if the 
Secretary finds that the identified lan-
guage in the regulation may not be waived 
because the waiver is prohibited by Federal 
law. 
‘‘(iii) DEEMED
APPROVAL.—If the 
Secretary does not approve or deny a re-
quest submitted under subparagraph (A) 
on or before the last day of the 90-day pe-
riod referred to in clause (i), the request 
shall be deemed approved. 
‘‘(iv) FINALITY OF DECISIONS.—A de-
cision by the Secretary under this subpara-
graph shall be final for the Department. 
‘‘(k) DISCLAIMERS.— 
‘‘(1) EXISTING
AUTHORITY.—Notwithstanding 
any other provision of law, upon the election of an 
Indian tribe, the Secretary shall— 
‘‘(A) maintain current Federal Highway 
Administration Indian reservation roads pro-
gram and funding agreements; or 
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‘‘(B) enter into new agreements under the 
authority of section 202(b)(7). 
‘‘(2) LIMITATION
ON
STATUTORY
CONSTRUC-
TION.—Nothing in this section may be construed to 
impair or diminish the authority of the Secretary 
under section 202(b)(7). 
‘‘(l) APPLICABILITY OF INDIAN SELF-DETERMINA-
TION AND EDUCATION ASSISTANCE ACT.—Except to the 
extent in conflict with this section (as determined by the 
Secretary), the following provisions of the Indian Self-De-
termination and Education Assistance Act shall apply to 
compact and funding agreements (except that any ref-
erence to the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary 
of Health and Human Services in such provisions shall 
treated as a reference to the Secretary of Transportation): 
‘‘(1) Subsections (a), (b), (d), (g), and (h) of 
section 506 of such Act (25 U.S.C. 458aaa–5), re-
lating to general provisions. 
‘‘(2) Subsections (b) through (e) and (g) of sec-
tion 507 of such Act (25 U.S.C.458aaa–6), relating 
to provisions relating to the Secretary of Health and 
Human Services. 
‘‘(3) Subsections (a), (b), (d), (e), (g), (h), (i), 
and (k) of section 508 of such Act (25 U.S.C. 
458aaa–7), relating to transfer of funds. 
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‘‘(4) Section 510 of such Act (25 U.S.C. 
458aaa–9), relating to Federal procurement laws 
and regulations. 
‘‘(5) Section 511 of such Act (25 U.S.C. 
458aaa–10), relating to civil actions. 
‘‘(6) Subsections (a)(1), (a)(2), and (c) through 
(f) of section 512 of such Act (25 U.S.C. 458aaa– 
11), relating to facilitation, except that subsection 
(c)(1) of that section shall be applied by substituting 
‘transportation facilities and other facilities’ for 
‘school buildings, hospitals, and other facilities’. 
‘‘(7) Subsections (a) and (b) of section 515 of 
such Act (25 U.S.C. 458aaa–14), relating to dis-
claimers. 
‘‘(8) Subsections (a) and (b) of section 516 of 
such Act (25 U.S.C. 458aaa–15), relating to appli-
cation of title I provisions. 
‘‘(9) Section 518 of such Act (25 U.S.C. 
458aaa–17), relating to appeals. 
‘‘(m) DEFINITIONS.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—In this section, the fol-
lowing definitions apply (except as otherwise ex-
pressly provided): 
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‘‘(A) 
COMPACT.—The 
term 
‘compact’ 
means a compact between the Secretary and an 
Indian tribe entered into under subsection (c). 
‘‘(B) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘Depart-
ment’ means the Department of Transpor-
tation. 
‘‘(C) ELIGIBLE INDIAN TRIBE.—The term 
‘eligible Indian tribe’ means an Indian tribe 
that is eligible to participate in the program, as 
determined under subsection (b). 
‘‘(D) FUNDING
AGREEMENT.—The term 
‘funding agreement’ means a funding agree-
ment between the Secretary and an Indian tribe 
entered into under subsection (d). 
‘‘(E) INDIAN
TRIBE.—The term ‘Indian 
tribe’ means any Indian or Alaska Native tribe, 
band, nation, pueblo, village, or community that 
the Secretary of the Interior acknowledges to 
exist as an Indian tribe under the Federally 
Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 1994 (25 
U.S.C. 479a). In any case in which an Indian 
tribe has authorized another Indian tribe, an 
inter-tribal consortium, or a tribal organization 
to plan for or carry out programs, services, 
functions, or activities (or portions thereof) on 
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its behalf under this part, the authorized Indian 
tribe, inter-tribal consortium, or tribal organiza-
tion shall have the rights and responsibilities of 
the authorizing Indian tribe (except as other-
wise provided in the authorizing resolution or in 
this title). In such event, the term ‘Indian tribe’ 
as used in this part shall include such other au-
thorized Indian tribe, inter-tribal consortium, or 
tribal organization. 
‘‘(F) 
PROGRAM.—The 
term 
‘program’ 
means the tribal transportation self-governance 
program established under this section. 
‘‘(G) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ 
means the Secretary of Transportation. 
‘‘(H) TRANSPORTATION
PROGRAMS.—The 
term ‘transportation programs’ means all pro-
grams administered or financed by the Depart-
ment under this title and chapter 53 of title 49. 
‘‘(2) APPLICABILITY OF OTHER DEFINITIONS.— 
In this section, the definitions set forth in sections 
4 and 505 of the Indian Self-Determination and 
Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b; 458aaa) 
apply, except as otherwise expressly provided in this 
section. 
‘‘(n) REGULATIONS.— 
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‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.— 
‘‘(A) PROMULGATION.—Not later than 90 
days after the date of enactment of the Tribal 
Transportation Self-Governance Act of 2015, 
the Secretary shall initiate procedures under 
subchapter III of chapter 5 of title 5 to nego-
tiate and promulgate such regulations as are 
necessary to carry out this section. 
‘‘(B) PUBLICATION OF PROPOSED REGULA-
TIONS.—Proposed regulations to implement this 
section shall be published in the Federal Reg-
ister by the Secretary not later than 21 months 
after such date of enactment. 
‘‘(C) EXPIRATION
OF
AUTHORITY.—The 
authority to promulgate regulations under para-
graph (1) shall expire 30 months after such 
date of enactment. 
‘‘(D) 
EXTENSION
OF
DEADLINES.—A 
deadline set forth in paragraph (1)(B) or (1)(C) 
may be extended up to 180 days if the nego-
tiated rulemaking committee referred to in 
paragraph (2) concludes that the committee 
cannot meet the deadline and the Secretary so 
notifies the appropriate committees of Con-
gress. 
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‘‘(2) COMMITTEE.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—A negotiated rule-
making committee established pursuant to sec-
tion 565 of title 5 to carry out this subsection 
shall have as its members only Federal and 
tribal government representatives, a majority of 
whom shall be nominated by and be representa-
tives of Indian tribes with funding agreements 
under this title. 
‘‘(B) 
REQUIREMENTS.—The 
committee 
shall confer with, and accommodate participa-
tion by, representatives of Indian tribes, inter- 
tribal consortia, tribal organizations, and indi-
vidual tribal members. 
‘‘(C) ADAPTATION OF PROCEDURES.—The 
Secretary shall adapt the negotiated rulemaking 
procedures to the unique context of self-govern-
ance and the government-to-government rela-
tionship between the United States and Indian 
tribes. 
‘‘(3) EFFECT.—The lack of promulgated regu-
lations shall not limit the effect of this section. 
‘‘(4) EFFECT OF CIRCULARS, POLICIES, MANU-
ALS, 
GUIDANCE, 
AND
RULES.—Unless expressly 
agreed to by the participating Indian tribe in the 
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compact or funding agreement, the participating In-
dian tribe shall not be subject to any agency cir-
cular, policy, manual, guidance, or rule adopted by 
the Department of Transportation, except regula-
tions promulgated under this section.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for such 
chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating 
to section 206 the following: 
‘‘207. Tribal transportation self-governance program.’’. 
Æ 
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