I
103D CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 2549
To establish administrative procedures to extend Federal recognition to
certain Indian groups.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JUNE 29, 1993
Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA (for himself and Mr. ABERCROMBIE) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources
A BILL
To establish administrative procedures to extend Federal
recognition to certain Indian groups.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. DEFINITIONS.
For purposes of this Act:
(1) The term ‘‘Assistant Secretary’’ means the
Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Indian Af-
fairs.
(2) The term ‘‘autonomous’’ means having its
own tribal council, internal process, or other organi-
zational mechanism which the Indian group has used
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(8) The term ‘‘Indian group’’ means any Indian
entity that—
(A) is located within any of the States of
the United States; and
(B) is not recognized by the Secretary of
the Interior to be an Indian tribe.
(9) The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ means any Indian
entity that—
(A) is located within any of the States of
the United States; and
(B) is recognized by the Secretary of the
Interior to be an Indian tribe.
(10) The term ‘‘Indian tribe acknowledgment
regulations’’ means part 83 of title 25, Code of Fed-
eral Regulations and former part 54 of title 25,
Code of Federal Regulations.
(11) The term ‘‘indigenous’’ means native to
the area that constitutes the continental United
States in that at least part of the group’s aboriginal
range extended into what is now the area that con-
stitutes the continental United States.
(12) The term ‘‘member of an Indian group’’
means an individual who is recognized by an Indian
group as meeting its membership criteria and who
consents to being listed as a member of that group.
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(13) The term ‘‘member of an Indian tribe’’
means an individual who—
(A) meets the membership requirements of
the Indian tribe, as set forth in its governing
document or recognized collectively by those
persons comprising the governing body of the
Indian tribe; and
(B) has continuously maintained tribal re-
lations with the Indian tribe or is listed on the
tribal rolls of that Indian tribe as a member, if
such rolls are maintained.
(14) The term ‘‘other party’’ means any af-
fected person or organization other than the peti-
tioner who submits comments or evidence in support
of, or in opposition to, a petition.
(15) The term ‘‘a petition’’ means a petition
submitted to the Secretary under section 3.
(16) The term ‘‘petitioner’’ means any entity
which has submitted, or submits, a petition to the
Secretary requesting recognition that the entity is an
Indian tribe.
(17) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary
of the Interior.
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SEC. 2. APPROVAL AND RATIFICATION OF PRIOR DECI-
SIONS.
All final decisions made prior to the date of enact-
ment of this Act under Indian tribe acknowledgment regu-
lations are hereby approved and ratified. Such approval
and ratification shall not prejudice the rights of any peti-
tioner or other party in any judicial review of such final
decision.
SEC. 3. PETITIONS FOR RECOGNITION.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Any Indian group that is indige-
nous and ethnically and culturally identifiable (including
any Indian group whose relationship with the Federal
Government was terminated by statute) may submit to the
Secretary, during the 6-year period beginning on the date
of enactment of this Act, a petition requesting that the
Secretary recognize that the Indian group is an Indian
tribe. The Secretary shall not recognize as an Indian tribe
any Indian group that does not submit such a petition
during such time period.
(b) APPLICABILITY.—The provisions of this Act shall
not apply to—
(1) any Indian tribe, organized band, pueblo or
community which is already recognized by the Sec-
retary to be an Indian tribe and is receiving services
from the Bureau;
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(2) any association, organization, corporation,
or group of any character formed in recent times,
except a group meeting the requirements of sub-
section (c) which has recently incorporated or other-
wise formalized its existing autonomous process;
(3) any splinter group, political faction, commu-
nity, or group of any character which separates from
the main body of an Indian tribe that, at the time
of such separation, is recognized as being an Indian
tribe by the Secretary, unless it can be clearly estab-
lished that the group, faction, or community has
functioned throughout history until the present as
an autonomous Indian tribal entity;
(4) any Indian group that, in any action in a
United States court to which the United States or
any recognized Indian tribe was a party, has pre-
viously attempted to establish its status as an Indian
tribe or as the successor-in-interest to an Indian
tribe that was a party to a treaty with the United
States; and—
(A) was determined by such court not to
be an Indian tribe;
(B) was determined by such court not to
be a successor-in-interest to an Indian tribe
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that was a party to a treaty with the United
States;
(C) was the subject of a determination by
such court that the group has not maintained
an organized tribal structure in a political
sense; or
(D) was the subject of findings of fact by
such court which, if made in the administrative
recognition process, would prevent the group
from satisfying one or more of the criteria for
recognition in this Act; and
(5) any Indian group that, prior to the date of
enactment of this Act, petitioned for, and was denied
or refused recognition or acknowledgment as an In-
dian tribe in a final determination made under In-
dian tribe acknowledgment regulations.
(c) REQUIREMENTS OF PETITION.—Any petition sub-
mitted under subsection (a) by an Indian group shall be
in a readable form which clearly indicates that it is a peti-
tion requesting the Secretary to recognize that the Indian
group is an Indian tribe and shall contain each of the fol-
lowing:
(1) A statement of facts establishing that the
petitioner has been identified from historical times
until the present, on a substantially continuous
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basis, as Indian or aboriginal. A petitioner shall not
fail to satisfy any requirement of this subsection
merely because of fluctuations of tribal activity dur-
ing various years. Evidence to be relied upon in de-
termining the substantially continuous Indian iden-
tity of the petitioner shall include one or more of the
following:
(A) Repeated identification of the peti-
tioner by Federal authorities.
(B) Longstanding relationships of the peti-
tioner with State governments based on identi-
fication of the petitioner as an Indian group.
(C) Repeated dealings of the petitioner
with a county, parish, or other local government
in a relationship based on the Indian identity of
the petitioner.
(D) Identification of the petitioner as an
Indian group by records in courthouses, church-
es, or schools.
(E) Identification of the petitioner as an
Indian group by anthropologists, historians, or
other scholars.
(F) Repeated identification of the peti-
tioner as an Indian group in newspapers and
books.
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its history until the present, has maintained tribal
political influence.
(5) A copy of the present governing document
of the petitioner or, in the absence of a written doc-
ument, a statement describing in full the member-
ship criteria of the petitioner and the procedures
through which the petitioner currently governs its
affairs and members.
(6) A list of all known current members of the
petitioner and a copy of each available former list of
members based on the petitioner’s own defined cri-
teria. The membership must consist of individuals
who have established, using evidence acceptable to
the Secretary, descendancy from an Indian group
which existed historically or from historical Indian
groups which combined and functioned as a single
autonomous entity. Evidence acceptable to the Sec-
retary of tribal membership for this purpose includes
(but is not limited to)—
(A) descendancy rolls prepared by the Sec-
retary for the petitioner for purposes of distrib-
uting claims money, providing allotments, or
other purposes;
(B) State, Federal, or other official records
or evidence identifying present members of the
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petitioner, or ancestors of present members of
the petitioner, as being an Indian descendant
and a member of the petitioner;
(C) church, school, and other similar en-
rollment records indicating membership in the
petitioner;
(D) affidavits of recognition by tribal el-
ders, leaders, or the tribal governing body as
being an Indian descendant of the Indian group
and a member of the petitioner; and
(E) other records or evidence identifying
the person as a member of the petitioner.
SEC. 4. NOTICE OF RECEIPT OF PETITION.
(a) NOTICE
AND PUBLICATION.—Within 30 days
after a petition is submitted to the Secretary under section
3(a), the Assistant Secretary shall—
(1) send an acknowledgment of receipt in writ-
ing to the petitioner; and
(2) have published in the Federal Register a no-
tice of such receipt including—
(A) the name, location, and mailing ad-
dress of the petitioner and other information
that identifies the petitioner;
(B) the date the petition was received by
the Secretary; and
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(C) the location where a copy of the peti-
tion may be examined.
(b) NOTICE
TO STATE.—The Assistant Secretary
shall notify, in writing, the Governor and attorney general
of any State in which a petitioner resides.
(c) NOTICE TO TRIBES.—The Assistant Secretary
shall notify, in writing, all federally recognized tribes lo-
cated within the State in which a petitioner resides.
(d) PUBLICATION IN NEWSPAPER.—The Assistant
Secretary shall publish notice of receipt of the petition in
a major newspaper of general circulation in the town or
city nearest the location of the petitioner.
(e) OPPORTUNITY FOR COMMENT.—(1) The notice
described in subsection (d) shall include, in addition to the
information described in subsection (a), notice of oppor-
tunity for other parties to submit evidence and factual or
legal arguments in support of, or in opposition to, the peti-
tion.
(2) Any submissions received by the Assistant Sec-
retary under paragraph (1) shall be made available to the
petitioner and the petitioner shall be provided an oppor-
tunity to respond prior to a determination on the petition
by the Assistant Secretary.
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SEC. 5. PROCESSING.
(a) APPLICABILITY OF ACT.—(1) Upon receipt of a
petition, the Assistant Secretary shall conduct a review to
determine whether, under the criteria set forth in section
3(b), the provisions of this Act are applicable to the peti-
tioner.
(2) If the Assistant Secretary determines that the
provisions of this Act are not applicable to the petitioner,
the Assistant Secretary shall, not later than 30 days after
the receipt of a petition—
(A) publish a summary of such determination
in the Federal Register;
(B) deliver a copy of such determination and
summary to the petitioner; and (c) (see next page)
(b) REVIEW.—(1) If the Assistant Secretary deter-
mines under subsection (a) that the provisions of this Act
are applicable to the petitioner, the Assistant Secretary
shall conduct a review to determine whether the petitioner
is entitled to be recognized as an Indian tribe.
(2) The review conducted under paragraph (1) shall
include consideration of the petition, supporting evidence,
and the factual statements contained in the petition.
(3) The Assistant Secretary may also initiate other
research for any purpose relative to analyzing the petition
and obtaining additional information about the petition-
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er’s status and may consider any evidence which may be
submitted by other parties.
(c) NOTIFICATION OF OBVIOUS DEFICIENCIES OR
OMISSIONS.—Prior to actual consideration of the petition
and by no later than the date that is three months after
the date on which the petition is submitted to the Sec-
retary, the Assistant Secretary shall notify the petitioner
of any obvious deficiencies, or significant omissions, that
are apparent upon an initial review of the petition and
provide the petitioner with an opportunity to withdraw the
petition for further work or to submit additional informa-
tion or clarification.
(d) PRIORITY OF PROCESSING.—(1) Except as other-
wise provided in this subsection, petitions shall be consid-
ered on a first come, first served basis, determined by the
date of the original filing of the petition with the Sec-
retary. The Assistant Secretary shall establish a priority
register including those petitions pending before the De-
partment.
(2) Petitions that are submitted to the Secretary by
Indian groups whose relationship with the Federal Gov-
ernment was terminated by a statute—
(A) shall receive priority consideration over pe-
titions submitted by any other Indian groups; and
(B) shall be considered on an expedited basis.
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(C) send to petitioner
(i) the date on which the petition was re-
ceived; and
(ii) the name, office address, and office
telephone number of the primary Bureau staff
member reviewing the petition, the backup to
this staff member, and the supervisor of this
staff member.
SEC. 6. PROPOSED FINDINGS AND DETERMINATION.
(a) PROPOSED FINDINGS.—(1) Not later than 1 year
after the petition is filed the Assistant Secretary shall
issue proposed findings on the petition and shall publish
such proposed findings in the Federal Register.
(2) The Assistant Secretary may delay making pro-
posed findings on a petition for 90 days upon a showing
of due cause to the petitioner.
(3) In addition to the proposed findings, the Assist-
ant Secretary shall prepare a report on each petition which
summarizes the evidence supporting the proposed find-
ings. Copies of such report and supporting evidence shall
be available to the petitioner and to other parties upon
written request.
(4) Upon publication of the proposed findings under
paragraph (1), any individual or organization wishing to
challenge the proposed findings shall have a response pe-
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riod of 120 days to present factual or legal arguments and
evidence to rebut the evidence upon which the proposed
findings are based. Upon a showing of good cause, the
Assistant Secretary may extend such response period for
not more than 30 additional days.
(b) DETERMINATION.—(1) After consideration of any
written arguments and evidence submitted to rebut the
proposed findings made under subsection (a)(1), the As-
sistant Secretary shall make a determination, on behalf
of the Secretary, of whether the petitioner is recognized
by the Secretary to be an Indian tribe.
(2) The determination required under paragraph (1)
shall be made, a summary of the determination published
in the Federal Register, and a copy of the determination
and summary delivered to the petitioner and other in-
volved parties, by no later than the date that is 60 days
after the close of the response period described in sub-
section (a)(4).
(3) A determination made under paragraph (1) shall
become final on the date that is 60 days after the date
on which the summary of the determination is published
under paragraph (2) unless the determination is appealed
under section 8.
(c) RECOGNITION AS INDIAN TRIBE.—(1) In making
the proposed findings and determination under this sec-