The question
Whether the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act requires the Indian Health Service to pay the contract support costs a tribe incurs when it collects and spends third-party program income to carry out the healthcare programs it assumed from IHS under a self-determination contract.
Becerra v. San Carlos Apache Tribe
What the Court decided
Affirmed. The San Carlos Apache Tribe won. The Court held that the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act requires IHS to pay the contract support costs a tribe incurs when it collects and spends program income to further the functions, services, activities, and programs transferred to it from IHS under a self-determination contract. Because a contract requires the tribe to use that program income to further the contract's purposes, the reasonable administrative and overhead costs of doing so are contract support costs eligible for reimbursement under the statute.
How the justices split
5-4The Court's opinion
Roberts, joined by Sotomayor, Kagan, Gorsuch, Jackson
The statute pegs contract support costs to the requirements of a self-determination contract. Every contract incorporates Section 5325(m)(1), which requires a tribe to use program income to further the contract's purposes, meaning the functions, services, activities, and programs transferred from IHS. When a tribe spends program income to carry out those transferred programs and incurs reasonable administrative and overhead costs, those costs are contract support costs under Section 5325(a)(2) and eligible for reimbursement as direct or indirect costs under Section 5325(a)(3)(A).
Dissenting
Kavanaugh, joined by Thomas, Alito, Barrett
Kavanaugh filed a dissenting opinion, joined by Thomas, Alito, and Barrett, disagreeing with the Court's conclusion that ISDA requires IHS to pay the contract support costs a tribe incurs when it collects and spends program income.
How we know · 5 sourced claims
The Court held that ISDA requires IHS to pay the contract support costs a tribe incurs when it collects and spends program income to further the functions, services, activities, and programs transferred to it from IHS in a self-determination contract.
Source: syllabus, Held
Section 5325(a)(2) defines contract support costs as the reasonable costs for activities which must be carried on by a tribal organization as a contractor to ensure compliance with the terms of the contract.
Source: syllabus, Held
Section 5325(m)(1) requires a contracting tribe to use program income earned in carrying out a self-determination contract to further the general purposes of the contract.
Source: syllabus, Held
Roberts delivered the opinion of the Court, joined by Sotomayor, Kagan, Gorsuch, and Jackson.
Source: syllabus, lineup
Kavanaugh filed a dissenting opinion, joined by Thomas, Alito, and Barrett.
Source: syllabus, lineup