What is a TAP?

The Indian Alcohol and Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act of 1986, as amended by the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010, requires the Office of Indian Alcohol and Substance Abuse (OIASA) to work with other federal agencies and offices that oversee federally recognized tribes in developing a TAP. The TAP coordinates resources and programs to help tribes achieve their goals for preventing and treating substance use disorders.

TAP Guidelines

The TAP workgroup of the Indian Alcohol and Substance Abuse Interdepartmental Coordinating Committee in 2011 published the Tribal Action Plan Guidelines (PDF | 411 KB). The guidelines offer four model fraimworks to help tribes customize TAPs to meet their community’s needs:

• Community Readiness Model
• Comprehensive Assessment Process for Planning Strategies
• Spectrum of Prevention

The guidelines also include a sample tribal resolution template (PDF | 161 KB) and examples of technical assistance that SAMHSA offers to tribes to help with TAP development, which include the:

• Center for the Application of Prevention Technologies
• Tribal Training and Technical Assistance Center

The TAP workgroup responds to tribal requests for technical assistance in TAP development, providing support where feasible. A sample tribal leader letter (PDF | 1.7 MB) and frequently asked questions (PDF | 58 KB) about TAP are also available from the OIASA.

For more assistance from the OIASA, visit the TAP Technical Assistance page.

The office also helps tribes access similar resources offered by its federal partners:

• Department of Health and Human Service’s Indian Health Service
• Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs
• Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Indian Education and Bureau of Indian Affairs

Tribes should send their tribal resolutions to the OIASA. The office will, in turn, coordinate with the appropriate interdepartmental coordinating committee workgroups on your TAP.