The Bureau of Indian Education's (BIE) mission is to provide quality education to approximately 41,000 students at 183 schools it funds on or near Indian reservations in 23 states. About two-thirds of these schools are operated by tribes and the remaining third are operated by BIE. In March 2020, all BIE schools closed their buildings in response…

Analyzes the Supreme Court's decision of the case Merrion v. Jicarilla Apache Tribe, concerned with the power to tax non-Indians doing business on the reservation. (ERB)

A Senate hearing received testimony on amendments to the Buy Indian Act, which allows the federal government to give preference to Indian businesses when awarding contracts on reservations. The legislation focuses on reservation economic development, sets aside for small businesses all contracts below $1 million, addresses the prompt payment…

This document contains the report of the Committee on Education and Labor on bill H.R. 2908 to amend Title XI of the Education Amendments of 1978 relating to Indian education programs. The document contains a summary of the legislation, a description of the need for the legislation, its legislative history, a cost estimate, and a…

Treaties have been upheld in the U.S. Constitution as "the supreme law of the land". U.S. courts have repeatedly recognized Indian nations as sovereign and, consequently, treaties between Indian nations and the United States have the dignity as well as the full force and effect of any other international agreement. While many treaties…

The major portion of this report is devoted to the Anglo and American Indian testimony from the 1973 Commission on Civil Rights Hearings on Navajo economic development, employment, education, and health care. Among the major recommendations cited are those calling for: (1) legal recognition of the Navajo Tribal Council to provide for favorable tax…

In October 1991, a Congressional committee heard testimony on proposals to expand and extend the Tribal Self-Governance Demonstration Project. Originally authorized in 1988, the project allows participating tribes to negotiate the transfer of Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) programs and services to the tribes through compacts of self-governance and…

This transcript presents testimony and prepared statements regarding H.R. 3826, which proposes to amend Title 18 of the United States Code to make felonious sexual molestation of a minor an offense within American Indian country. Representative Rick Boucher, author of the legislation, indicated that, while the bill would extend to Indians the same…

An appeal to the Supreme Court addressd the question whether federal law preempts a state (New Mexico) tax imposed on the gross receipts that a non-Indian construction company (Lembke Construction Company) receives from a tribal school board (Ramah Navajo School Board) for the construction of a school for Navajo children on the reservation. The…

Over 100 of the nation's 400 Indian tribes are overlooked in the administration of Indian trust responsibility. Senate Bill 2375 establishes administrative procedure to be followed by the Department of the Interior in acknowledging a federal relationship with certain Indian tribes. On April 18, 1978 testimony was conducted before the Senate Select…

As well as analyzing the Supreme Court "Oliphant" decision, the article discusses three issues related to the decision: (a) the history of law enforcement on Indian reservations; (b) the jurisdiction of Indian legal agencies over non-Indians; and (c) the effect of determination on legal authorities of Indian police agencies. (Author/SB)

The purpose of the oversight hearing was to hear from administration and tribal witnesses on the implementation of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (Public Law 93-638), which was signed into law on January 4, 1975. The hearing focused on five concerns of the legislation: (1) the new draft regulations pending publication…

Based on the Constitution and By-Laws of the Blackfeet Tribe, approved by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior in 1935, the Blackfeet Tribal Council has the authority to make civil and criminal laws and procedures to protect the peace, tranquility, and dignity of all persons residing within the Blackfeet Indian Reservation; to protect the…

This report provides background information on Senate Bill 184, the Utah Schools and Lands Improvement Act of 1993, under which the federal government would acquire over 200,000 acres of land and mineral rights from the state of Utah in exchange for federal land, certain mineral resources, or a portion of federal mineral receipts in that state. At…

The joint committees met to examine the long-term care problems faced by the Indian elderly and to consider various proposals to resolve those problems. Four expert panels and 10 government and tribal representatives presented testimony on the health problems of the Indian elderly. One expert panel consisted of representatives of the Bureau of…