Title 25—Indians--Volume 1
PART 167—NAVAJO GRAZING REGULATIONS
§ 167.1   Authority.
It is within the authority of the Secretary of the Interior to protect Indian tribal lands against waste. Subject to regulations of this part, the right exists for Indian tribes to authorize the granting of permits upon their tribal lands and to prescribe by appropriate tribal action the conditions under which their lands may be used.
§ 167.2   General regulations.
Part 166 of this subchapter authorizes the Commissioner of Indian Affairs to regulate the grazing of livestock on Indian lands under conditions set forth therein. In accordance with this authority and that of the Navajo Tribal Council, the Central Grazing Committee and the District Grazing Committees, the grazing of livestock on the Navajo Reservation shall be governed by the regulations in this part.
§ 167.3   Objectives.
It is the purpose of the regulations in this part to aid the Navajo Indians in achievement of the following objectives:
(a) The preservation of the forage, the land, and the water resources on the Navajo Reservation, and the building up of those resources where they have deteriorated.
(b) The protection of the interests of the Navajo Indians from the encroachment of unduly aggressive and anti-social individuals who may or may not be members of the Navajo Tribe.
(c) The adjustment of livestock numbers to the carrying capacity of the range in such a manner that the livestock economy of the Navajo Tribe will be preserved.
(d) To secure increasing responsibility and participation of the Navajo people, including tribal participation in all basic policy decisions, in the sound management of one of the Tribe's greatest assets, its grazing lands, and to foster a better relationship and a clearer understanding between the Navajo people and the Federal Government in carrying out the grazing regulations.
(e) The improvement of livestock through proper breeding practices and the maintenance of a sound culling policy. Buck and bull pastures may be established and maintained either on or off the reservation through District Grazing Committee and Central Grazing Committee action.
§ 167.4   Regulations; scope; exceptions.
The grazing regulations in this part apply to all lands within the boundaries of the Navajo Reservation held in trust by the United States for the Navajo Tribe and all the trust lands hereafter added to the Navajo Reservation. The regulations in this part do not apply to any of the area described in the Executive order of December 16, 1882, to individually owned allotted lands within the Navajo Reservation nor to tribal purchases, allotted or privately owned Navajo Indian lands outside the exterior boundaries of the Navajo Reservation.
§ 167.5   Land management districts.
The Commissioner of Indian Affairs has established and will retain the present land management districts within the Navajo Indian Reservation, based on the social and economic requirements of the Navajo Indians and the necessity of rehabilitating the grazing lands. District boundary changes may be made when deemed necessary and advisable by the District Grazing Committees, Central Grazing Committee and Tribal Council, with approval by the Superintendent, Area Director, and the Commissioner of Indian Affairs.
§ 167.6   Carrying capacities.
(a) The Commissioner of Indian Affairs on June 26, 1943, promulgated the authorized carrying capacity for each land management district of the Navajo Reservation.
(b) Recommended adjustments in carrying capacities shall be referred by the Superintendent to District Grazing Committee, Central Grazing Committee, and the Navajo Tribal Council for review and recommendations prior to presentation to the Area Director and the Commissioner of Indian Affairs for approval.
(c) Upon the request of the District Grazing Committee, Central Grazing Committee and Navajo Tribal Council to the Superintendent; recommendations for future adjustments to the established carrying capacities shall be made by Range Technicians based on the best information available through annual utilization studies and range condition studies analyzed along with numbers of livestock and precipitation data. The recommendations of the Range Technicians shall be submitted to the Superintendent, the Area Director and the Commissioner of Indian Affairs.
(d) Carrying capacities shall be stated in terms of sheep units yearlong, in the ratio of horses, mules, and burros 1 to 5; cattle 1 to 4; goats 1 to 1. The latter figure in each case denotes sheep units. Sheep, goats, cattle, horses, mules, and burros one year of age or older shall be counted against the carrying capacity.
§ 167.7   Records.
The District Grazing Committee, the Superintendent, and his authorized representatives shall keep accurate records of all grazing permits and ownership of all livestock. Master files shall be maintained by the Superintendent or his authorized representatives.
(a) The District Grazing Committee shall be responsible for and assist in organizing the sheep and goat dipping and horse and cattle branding program and obtaining the annual live- stock count.
(b) In order to obtain true records of ownership the permittee shall personally appear at the dipping vat or tallying point designated by the Grazing Committee with his or her sheep and goats and at branding and tallying points for cattle and horses. Should the permittee be unable to appear personally he or she shall designate a representative to act for and in his or her behalf. The sheep and goats will be dipped and the cattle and horses will be branded and recorded in the name of the permittee.
(c) The Superintendent shall prepare and keep current a register containing the names of all permittees using the range, the number of each class of stock by age classes grazed annually and the periods during which grazing shall be permitted in each part thereof. An annual stock census will be taken to insure that the carrying capacity is not exceeded. All classes of livestock twelve months of age or over will be counted against range use and permitted number, except that yearling colts will not be counted against permitted numbers on all permits with less than six horses. (Cross Reference § 167.9.)
§ 167.8   Grazing rights.
(a) The Superintendent shall determine grazing rights of bona fide live-stock owners based on recommendations of District Grazing Committees. Grazing rights shall be recognized for those permittees having ownership records as established in accordance with § 167.7 or who have acquired grazing rights by marriage, inheritance, purchase or division of permits. Whenever the permitted number of sheep units within a district is less than the carrying capacity, new permits to the carrying capacity limit may be granted as provided in § 167.9.
(b) All enrolled members of the Navajo Tribe over 18 years of age are eligible to acquire and hold grazing permits. Minors under 18 years of age can get possession of grazing permits only through inheritance or gift, and in each case Trustees must be appointed by the Tribal Courts to manage the permits and livestock of such minors until they become 18 years of age and can hold grazing permits in their own right.
(c) No person can hold a grazing permit in more than one district on the Navajo Reservation.
(d) Determination of rights to grazing permits involved in cases of divorce, separation, threatened family disruption, and permits of deceased permittees shall be the responsibility of the Navajo Court of Indian Offenses under existing laws, rules, and regulations.
§ 167.9   Grazing permits.
(a) All livestock grazed on the Navajo Reservation must be covered by an authorized grazing permit issued by the Superintendent based upon the recommendations of the District Grazing Committee. All such grazing permits will be automatically renewed annually until terminated. District Grazing Committees shall act on all grazing permit changes resulting from negotiability within their respective Districts. The number of livestock that may be grazed under each permit shall be the number originally permitted plus or minus any changes as indicated by Transfer Agreements and Court Judgment Orders.
(b) Any permittee who has five or more horses on his current permit will be required to apply any acquired sheep units in classes of stock other than horses. If the purchaser wishes more than his present number of horses, he must have his needs evaluated by the District Grazing Committee. Yearling colts will be counted against permitted number on all permits with six or more horses. Yearling colts will not be counted against permitted number on all permits with less than six horses. In hardship cases the District Grazing Committee may reissue horses removed from grazing permits through negotiability to permit holders who are without sufficient horses on their present permits to meet minimum needs.
(c) No permittee shall be authorized to graze more than ten head of horses or to accumulate a total of over 350 sheep units.
(d) Upon recommendation of the District Grazing Committee and with the approval of the Superintendent, grazing permits may be transferred from one permittee to another in accordance with instructions provided by the Advisory Committee of the Navajo Tribal Council, or may be inherited; provided that the permitted holdings of any individual permittee shall not exceed 350 sheep units or the equivalent thereof. Should inheritance or other acquisition of permits increase the holdings of any permittee to more than 350 sheep units, said permittee shall dispose of all livestock in excess of 350 sheep units not later than November 15 following date of inheritance or other acquisition, and that portion of his or her permit in excess of 350 sheep units within one year from date of inheritance.
(e) By request of a permittee to sublet all or a part of his or her regular grazing permit to a member of his family or to any person who would receive such permit by inheritance, such subletting of permits may be authorized by the District Grazing Committee and the Superintendent or his authorized representative.
§ 167.10   Special grazing permits.
The problem of special grazing permits shall be settled by the Bureau of Indian Affairs working in cooperation with the Tribal Council, or any Committee designated by it, with a view to terminating these permits at a suitable date and with the least hardship to the Indians concerned.
§ 167.11   Tenure of grazing permits.
(a) All active regular grazing permits shall be for one year and shall be automatically renewed annually until terminated. Any Navajo eligible to hold a grazing permit as defined in § 167.8 may become a livestock operator by obtaining an active grazing permit through negotiability or inheritance or both.
(b) In many Districts, and portions of all districts, unused grazing permits or portions of grazing permits are beneficial in aiding range recovery. Each District Grazing Committee will handle each matter of unused grazing permit or portions of grazing permits on individual merits. Where ample forage is available operators will be encouraged to fill their permits with livestock or dispose of their unused permits through negotiability. In those areas where forage is in need of rehabilitation permittees will not be encouraged to stock to their permitted numbers until the range has sufficiently recovered to justify the grazing of additional livestock.
§ 167.12   Grazing fees.
Grazing fees shall not be charged at this time. 1
1 Grazing Committees were organized in May 1953. These committees have not had ample time to fully acquaint themselves or the stockmen in their respective districts with all of the various items of range administration and range management. Also the drought of several years has not broken. The Navajo Tribe therefore requests that the matter of establishing regulations regarding the adoption of grazing fees be deferred until such a time as a full understanding of the advantages of fees can be had by the majority of the stockmen in all Districts. The assessment of grazing fees will not aid materially in obtaining proper range use. At this time it is more important that other sections of these grazing regulations be adopted and enforced. Resolution of Navajo Tribal Council No. CJ-22-54 of June 9, 1954.
§ 167.13   Trespass.
The owner of any livestock grazing in trespass in Navajo Tribal ranges shall be subject to action by the Navajo Court of Indian Offenses as provided in part 11 of this chapter, however, upon recommendations of the District Grazing Committee, first offenses may be referred to the Central Grazing Committee and the Superintendent or his authorized representative for proper settlement out of court. The following acts are considered as trespass:
(a) Any person who sells an entire permit must dispose of all his livestock or be in trespass. Any person selling a portion of his permit must not run more stock than covered by his remaining permit, or be subject to immediate trespass.
(b) All persons running livestock in excess of their permitted number must by April 25, 1959, either obtain permits to cover their total livestock numbers or reduce to their permitted number, or be in trespass. Additional time may be granted in unusual individual cases as determined and approved by the District Grazing Committee, General Grazing Committee, and the Superintendent or his authorized representative.
(c) Failure to comply with the provisions in § 167.9, shall be considered as trespass.
(d) Any person who willfully allows his livestock to drift from one district to another shall be subject to trespass action. The grazing of livestock in customary use areas extending over District Boundary lines, when such customary use areas are defined and agreed upon by the District Grazing Committees involved, shall not be considered as willful trespass.
(e) The owner of any livestock who violates the customary or established use units of other permittees shall be subject to trespass action.
§ 167.14   Movement of livestock.
Annually, prior to the normal lamb buying season, the Central Grazing Committee after consultation with District Grazing Committees shall issue regulations covering the buying period and the procedures and methods to be used in moving livestock to market. All movements of livestock other than trucking from buying areas to loading or shipping points must be authorized by Trailing Permits issued by the District Grazing Committees on the approved forms. Failure to comply with this section and with annual lamb buying regulations will be considered as trespass.
§ 167.15   Control of livestock disease and introduction of livestock.
(a) The District Grazing Committees with the approval of the Superintendent shall require livestock to be dipped, vaccinated, inspected and be restricted in movement when necessary to prevent the introduction and spread of contagious or infectious disease in the economic interest of the Navajo stock owners. Upon the recommendation of the District Grazing Committee livestock shall be dipped annually when such dipping is necessary to prevent the spread of contagious diseases. These annual dippings shall be completed on or before September 1st each year. Livestock, however, may be dipped at other times when necessary. The Superintendent or his authorized representative and the District Grazing Committee may also require the rounding up of cattle, horses, mules, etc., in each District for the purpose of inspection for disease, vaccinating, branding and other related operations.
(b) No livestock shall be brought onto the Reservation without a permit issued by the Superintendent or his authorized representative following inspection, in order to safeguard Indian livestock from infections and contagious disease and to insure the introduction of good quality sires and breeding stock.
(c) Any unusual disease conditions beyond the control measures provided herein shall be immediately reported by the District Grazing Committee to the Chairman of the Navajo Tribal Council and the Superintendent who shall attempt to obtain specialists and provide emergency funds to control and suppress the disease.
§ 167.16   Fences.
Favorable recommendation from the District Grazing Committee and a written authorization from the Superintendent or his authorized representative must be secured before any fences may be constructed in non-agricultural areas. The District Grazing Committee shall recommend to the Superintendent the removal of unauthorized existing fences, or fences enclosing demonstration areas no longer used as such, if it is determined that such fences interfere with proper range management or an equitable distribution of range privileges. All enclosures fenced for the purpose of protecting agricultural land shall be kept to a size commensurate with the needs for protection of agricultural land and must be enclosed by legal four strand barbed wire fence or the equivalent.
§ 167.17   Construction near permanent livestock water developments.
(a) The District Grazing Committee shall regulate the construction of all dwellings, corrals and other structures within one-half mile of Government or Navajo Tribal developed permanent livestock waters such as springs, wells, and charcos or deep reservoirs.
(b) A written authorization from the District Grazing Committee must be secured before any dwellings, corrals, or other structures may be constructed within one-half mile of Government or Navajo Tribal developed springs, wells and charcos or deep reservoirs.
(c) No sewage disposal system shall be authorized to be built which will drain into springs or stream channels in such a manner that it would cause contamination of waters being used for livestock or human consumption.