I 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4680 

To amend the National Labor Relations Act to ensure that Indian tribes 

and any organizations owned, controlled, or operated by Indian tribes 

are not considered employers for purposes of such Act. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 24, 2004 

Mr. HAYWORTH introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Education and the Workforce 

A BILL 

To amend the National Labor Relations Act to ensure that 

Indian tribes and any organizations owned, controlled, 

or operated by Indian tribes are not considered employers 

for purposes of such Act. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Tribal Labor Relations 

5 Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 
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1 (1) The United States Constitution recognizes 

2 Indian tribes as sovereign government entities. 

3 (2) Indian tribes have an inherent right to gov4 ern themselves. 

5 (3) Indian tribes and organizations owned, con6 trolled, or operated by Indian tribes engage in a va7 riety of government services and revenue raising ac8 tivities in a manner similar to State and local gov9 ernments. 

10 (4) The National Labor Relations Act (29 

11 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) exempts government entities 

12 from the Act’s definition of employer but does not 

13 expressly identify Indian tribal governments as in14 cluded within the government entity exemption. 

15 (5) For 30 years, the National Labor Relations 

16 Board has interpreted the general government entity 

17 exemption in the National Labor Relations Act to 

18 exempt Indian tribes and organizations owned, con19 trolled, or operated by Indian tribes, a precedent set 

20 forth in the Fort Apache Timber Company case in 

21 1976 and in the Southern Indian Health Council 

22 case in 1988 and affirmed by many Federal courts. 

23 (6) On May 28, 2004, the National Labor Rela24 tions Board issued a decision and order in the San 

25 Manuel Indian Bingo and Casino case that reversed 
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1 this 30-year National Labor Relations Board prece2 dent by holding that the National Labor Relations 

3 Act does not exempt Indian tribes. 

4 (7) The San Manuel Indian Bingo and Casino 

5 decision is an affront to longstanding Federal Indian 

6 policy and practice to treat Indian tribes as sov7 ereign governments in a manner consistent with the 

8 United States Constitution. 

9 (8) An Indian tribe or an organization owned, 

10 controlled, or operated by an Indian tribe has the in11 herent, sovereign right to choose whether or not to 

12 enter into labor agreements and should not be con13 sidered an employer for purposes of the National 

14 Labor Relations Act. 

15 SEC. 3. DEFINITION OF EMPLOYER. 

16 Section 2 of the National Labor Relations Act (29 

17 U.S.C. 152) is amended— 

18 (1) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘or any In19 dian tribe or any organization owned, controlled, or 

20 operated by an Indian tribe,’’ after ‘‘subdivision 

21 thereof,’’; and 

22 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(15) The term ‘Indian tribe’ means any Indian 

24 tribe, band, nation, pueblo, or other organized group or 

25 community which is recognized as eligible for the special 
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1 programs and services provided by the United States to 

2 Indians because of their status as Indians.’’. 

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