An Act to provide for the termination of Federal supervision over the property of the Klamath Tribe of Indians located in the State of Oregon and the individual members thereof, and for other purposes
PL 83-587 (S.2745), enacted 08/13/1954

718 
PUBLIC LAW 587-AUG. 13, 1954 
[68 ST 
A T . 
August 13, 1954 
[S. 2745] 
Public Law 587 
CHAPTER 732 
AN ACT 
To provide for the termination of Federal supervision over the property of the 
Klamath Tribe of Indians located in the State of Oregon and the individual 
members thereof, and for other purposes. 
Klamath Indians. 
Te rm ina tion of 
F e d e r a l 
super-
vision. 
Definitions. 
Tribal roll. 
P u b l i c a t i o n 
in 
FR. 
Appeals. 
Final roll. 
P u b l i c a t i o n in 
FR. 
Personal p r o p -
erty rights. 
M a n a g e m e n t 
specialists. 
Duties. 
Be it enacted hy the Senate and House of Representatives 
of the 
United States of Atnerica in Congress assembled^ That the purpose of 
this Act is to provide for the termination of Federal supervision over 
the trust and restricted property of the Klamath Tribe of Indians 
consisting of the Klamath and Modoc Tribes and the Yahooskin Band 
of Snake Indians, and of the individual members thereof, for the dis-
position of federally owned property acquired or withdrawn for the 
administration of the affairs of said Indians, and for a termination of 
Federal services furnished such Indians because of their status as 
Indians. 
SEC. 2. For the purposes of this Act: 
(a) "Tribe" means the Klamath Tribe of Indians consisting of the 
Klamath and Modoc Tribes and Yahooskin Band of Snake Indians. 
(b) "Secretary" means the Secretary of the Interior. 
(c) "Lands" means real property, interests therein, or improve-
ments thereon, and include water rights. 
(d) "Tribal property" means any real or personal property, includ-
ing water rights, or any interest in real or personal property, that 
belongs to the tribe and either is held by the United States in trust 
for the tribe or is subject to a restriction against alienation imposed 
by the United States. 
(e) "Adult" means a member of the tribe who has attained the age 
of twenty-one years. 
SEC. 3. At midnight of the date of enactment of this Act the roll of 
the tribe shall be closed and no child born thereafter shall be eligible 
for enrollment: Provided, That the tribe shall have a period of six 
months from the date of this Act in which to prepare and submit to 
the Secretary a proposed roll of the members of the tribe living on the 
date of this Act, which shall be published in the Federal Register. 
If 
the tribe fails to submit such roll within the time specified in this sec-
tion, the Secretary shall prepare a proposed roll for the tribe, which 
shall be published in the Federal Register. 
Any person claiming 
membership rights in the tribe or an interest in its assets, or a repre-
sentative of the Secretary on behalf of any such person, may, within 
ninety days from the date of publication of the proposed roll, file an 
appeal with the Secretary contesting the inclusion or omission of the 
name of any person on or from such roll. 
The Secretary shall review 
such appeals and his decisions thereon shall be final and conclusive. 
After disposition of all such appeals, the roll of the tribe sliall be pub-
lished in the Federal Register, and such roll shall be final for the pur-
poses of this Act. 
SEC. 4. Upon publication in the Federal Register of the final roll as 
provided in section 3 of this Act, the rights or beneficial interests in 
tribal property of each person whose name appears on the roll shall 
constitute personal property which may be inherited or bequeathed, 
but shall not otherwise be subject to alienation or encumbrance before 
the transfer of title to such tribal property as provided in section 6 of 
this Act without the approval of the Secretary. 
Any contract made in 
violation of this section shall be null and void. 
SEC. 5. (a) The Secretary is authorized and directed to select and 
retain by contract, at the earliest practicable time after the enactment 
of this Act and after consultation with the tribe at a general meeting 
called for that purpose, the services of qualified management special-
ists who shall— 
68 STAT.] 
PUBLIC LAW 587-AUG. 13, 1954 
719 
(1) cause an appraisal to be made, within not more than twelve 
months after their employment, or as soon thereafter as prac-
ticable, of all tribal property showing its fair market value by 
practicable logging or other appropriate economic units; 
(2) give each adult member of the tribe, immediately after 
the appraisal of the tribal property, an opportunity to elect for 
himself, and, in the case of a head of a family, for the members 
of the family who are minors, to withdraw from the tribe and 
have his interest in tribal property converted into money and 
paid to him, or to remain in the tribe and participate in the 
tribal management plan to be prepared pursuant to paragraph 
(5) of this subsection; 
(3) determine and select the portion of the tribal property 
which if sold at the appraised value would provide sufficient 
funds to pay the members who elect to have their interests con-
verted into money, arrange for the sale of such property, and 
distribute the proceeds of sale among the members entitled thereto: 
Provided^ That whenever funds have accumulated in the amount 
of $200,000 or more, such funds shall be distributed pro rata to the 
members who elected to take distribution of their individual 
shares, and thereafter similar pro rata distribution shall be made 
whenever funds have accumulated in the amount of $200,000 or 
more until all of the property set aside for sale shall have been 
sold and the proceeds distributed: Provided further^ That any 
such member shall have the right to purchase any part of such 
property for not less than the highest oner received by competitive 
bid, and to apply toward the purchase price all or any part of the 
sum due him from the conversion of his interest in tribal property: 
Provided further^ That when determining and selecting the por-
tion of the tribal property to be sold, due consideration shall be 
given to the use of such property for grazing purposes by the 
members of both groups of the tribe; 
;; 
: 
(4) cause such studies and reports to be made as may be 
deemed necessary or desirable by the tribe or by the Secretary 
in connection with the termination of Federal supervision as 
provided for in this Act; and 
(5) cause a plan to be prepared in form and content satisfac-
tory to the tribe and to the Secretary for the management of tribal 
property through a trustee, corporation, or other legal entity. 
(b) Such amounts of Klamath tribal funds as may be required for thoK^ldf""'*^ ^"" 
the purposes of this section shall be available for expenditure by the 
Secretary: Provided^ That the expenses incident to the sale of prop-
erty and the distribution of proceeds of sale pursuant to paragraph 
(3) of this subsection sJiall be charged exclusively to the interests of 
the members who withdraw from the tribe, and the expenses incurred 
under paragraphs (4) and (5) of this subsection shall be charged 
exclusively to the interests of the members who remain in the tribe, 
and all other expenses under this section shall be charged to the 
interests of both groups of members. 
SEC. 6. (a) The Secretary is authorized and directed to execute anv 
Tribal property. 
• '
•
, 
i. iTL. 
i. • 
' J. 
J. 
Transfer proce-
conveyancmg mstrument that is necessary or appropriate to convey dure, 
title to tribal property to be sold in accordance with the provisions of 
paragraph (3) of subsection (a) of section 5 of this Act, and to 
transfer title to all other tribal property to a trustee, corporation, or 
other legal entity in accordance with the plan prepared pursuant to 
paragraph (5) of subsection (a) of section 5 of this Act. 
(bj It is the intention of the Congress that all of the actions 
completion date, 
required by sections 5 and 6 of this Act shall be completed at the 
earliest practicable time and in no event later than four years from 
the date of this Act. 
720 
PUBLIC LAW 587-AUG. 13, 1954 
[68 S T A T . 
Non-members of 
tribe. 
Claims. 
P e r 
c a p i t a 
payments. 
50 Stat. 872. 
Property of in-
dividuals. 
Sales re s t r i c -
tions, etc. 
Removal. 
Sub s u r f a c e 
rights. 
Land owned by 
more than one. 
Partition. 
Sale. 
Election to pur-
chase. 
Unlocated own-
ers. 
Deposit of pro-
ceeds. 
Approval of trib-
al exchanges, etc. 
Deceased mem-
bers. 
25 u s e 373. 
(c) Members of the tribe who receive the money value of their 
interests in tribal property shall thereupon cease to be members of the 
tribe: Provided^ That nothing shall prevent them from sharing in 
the proceeds of tribal claims against the United States. 
SEC. 7. The Secretary is authorized and directed, as soon as practi-
cable after the passage of this Act, to pay from such funds as are 
deposited to the credit of the tribe in the Treasury of the United States, 
$250 to each member of the tribe on the rolls of the tribe on the date of 
this Act. Any other person whose application for enrollment on the 
rolls of the tribe is subsequently approved, pursuant to the terms of 
section 3 hereof, shall, after enrollment, be paid a like sum of $250: 
Provided^ That such payments shall be made first from the capital 
reserve fund created by the Act of August 28, 1937 (25 U. S. C , Sec. 
530). 
SEC. 8. (a) The Secretary is authorized and directed to transfer 
within four years from the date of this Act to each member of the tribe 
unrestricted control of funds or other personal property held in trust 
for such member by the United States. 
(b) All restrictions on the sale or encumbrance of trust or restricted 
land owned by members of the tribe (including allottees, heirs, and 
devisees, either adult or minor) are hereby removed four years after the 
date of this Act, and the j)atents or deeds under which titles are then 
held shall pass the titles in fee simple, subject to any valid encum-
brances: Provided^ That the provisions of this subsection shall not 
apply to subsurface rights in such lands, and the Secretary is directed 
to transfer such subsurface rights to one or more trustees designated by 
him for management for a period not less than ten years. The titles 
to all interests in trust or restricted land acquired by members of 
the tribe by devise or inheritance four years or more after the date of 
this Act shall vest in such members in fee simple, subject to any valid 
encumbrance. 
(c) Prior to the time provided in subsection (b) of this section 
for the removal of restrictions on land owned by more than one mem-
ber of a tribe, the Secretary may— 
(1) upon request of any of the owners, partition the land and 
issue to each owner a patent or deed for his individual share that 
shall become unrestricted four years from the date of this Act; 
(2) upon request of any of the owners, and a finding by the 
Secretary that partition of all or any part of the land is not 
practicable, cause all or any part of the land to be sold at not less 
than the appraised value thereof and distribute the proceeds of 
sale to the owners: Provided^ That any one or more of the owners 
may elect before a sale to purchase the other interests in the land 
at not less than the appraised value thereof, and the purchaser 
shall receive an unrestricted patent or deed to the land; and 
(3) if the whereabouts of none of the owners can be ascertained, 
cause such lands to be sold and deposit the proceeds of sale in the 
Treasury of the United States for safekeeping. 
(d) The Secretary is hereby authorized to approve— 
(1) the exchange of trust or restricted land between the tribe 
and any of its members; 
(2) the sale by the tribe of tribal property to individual mem-
bers of the tribe; and 
(3) the exchange of tribal property for real property in fee 
status. 
Title to all real property included in any sale or exchange 
as provided in this subsection shall be conveyed in fee simple. 
SEC. 9. (a) The Act of June 25, 1910 (36 Stat. 855), the Act of 
February 14, 1913 (37 Stat. 678), and other Acts amendatory thereto 
shall not apply to the probate of the trust and restricted property of 
68 S T A T . ] 
PUBLIC LAW 587-AUG. 13, 1954 
721 
the members of the tribe who die six months or more after the date 
of this Act. 
(b) The laws of the several States, Territories, possessions, and the 
District of Columbia with respect to the probate of wills, the deter-
mination of heirs, and the administration of decedents' estates shall 
apply to the individual property of members of the tribe who die six 
months or more after the date of this Act. 
(c) Section 5 of the Act of June 1, 1938 (52 Stat. 605), is hereby 
repealed. 
SEC. 10. The Secretary is authorized, in his discretion, to transfer 
to the tribe or any member or group of members thereof any federally 
owned property acquired, withdrawn, or used for the administration 
of the affairs of the tribe which he deems necessary for Indian use, or 
to transfer to a public or nonprofit body any such property which he 
deems necessary for public use and from which members of the tribe 
will derive benefit. 
SEC. 11. No property distributed under the provisions of this Act 
shall at the time of distribution be subject to Federal or State income 
tax. 
Following any distribution of property made under the pro-
visions of this Act, such property and any income derived therefrom 
by the individual, corporation, or other legal entity shall be subject to 
the same taxes, State and Federal, as in the case of non-Indians: Pro-
vided^ That, for the purpose of capital gains or losses the base value 
of the property shall be the value of the property when distributed 
to the individual, corporation or other legal entity. 
SEC. 12. Sections 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 of the Act of August 28, 1937 (50 
Stat. 872, 873), and section 2 (a) of the Act of August 7,1939 (53 Stat. 
1253), are repealed effective on the date of the transfer of title to tribal 
property to a trustee, corporation, or other legal entity pursuant to 
section 6 of this Act. 
All loans made from the reimbursable loan fund 
established by section 2 of the Act of August 28, 1937 (50 Stat. 872), 
and all other loans made from Klamath tribal funds, including loans 
of livestock made by the tribe repayable in kind, shall be transferred 
to the tribe for collection in accordance with the terms thereof. 
SEC. 13. (a) That part of section 5 of the Act of August 13, 1914 
(35 Stat. 687; 43 U. S. C. 499), which relates to the transfer of the 
care, operation, and maintenance of reclamation works to water users 
associations or irrigation districts shall be applicable to the irriga-
tion works on the Klamath Reservation. 
(b) Effective on the first day of the calendar year beginning after 
the date of the proclamation provided for in section 18 of this Act, the 
deferment of the assessment and collection of construction costs pro-
vided for in the first proviso of the Act of July 1,1932 (47 Stat. 564; 
25 U. S. C. 386a), shall terminate with respect to any lands within 
irrigation projects on the Klamath Reservation. The Secretary shall 
cause the first lien against such lands created by the Act of March 
7, 1928 (45 Stat. 200, 210), to be filed of record in the appropriate 
county office. 
(c) There is hereby authorized to be appropriated out of any funds 
in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated the sum of $89,212 for pay-
ment to the Klamath Tribe with interest at 4 per centum annually as 
reimbursement for tribal funds used for irrigation construction oper-
ation and maintenance benefiting nontribal lands on the Klamath 
Reservation, such interest being computed from the dates of disburse-
ment of such funds from the United States Treasury. 
(d) The Secretary is authorized to adjust, eliminate, or cancel all or 
any part of reimbursable irrigation operation and maintenance costs 
and reimbursable irrigation construction costs chargeable against 
Indian owned lands that are subject to the provisions of this Act, 
Probate of wills, 
etc. 
Repeal. 
25 u s e S55. 
Federal property 
disposal. 
Taxes. 
Repeals. 
25 u s e 531-535. 
25 u s e 542ra;. 
Loan transfer. 
25 u s e 531. 
Klamath 
Reser-
v a t i o n irrigation 
works. 
38 Stat. 687. 
Klamath Reser-
v a t i o n irrigation 
projects. 
C o n s t r u e t i on 
costs, etc. 
R e imbiir 
s e me 
nt. 
39777 O—55—pt. 1-
-48 
722 
PUBLIC LAW 587-AUG. 13, 1954 
[68 
S T A T . 
Water rights. 
Fishing rights. 
Gu a r d i a n s for 
minors, etc. 
Advances. 
Patents, deeds, 
etc. 
F e d e r a l 
trust 
termination. 
P u b l i c a t i o n in 
FR. 
Citizenship sta-
tus. 
Termination of 
powers. 
and all or any part of assessments heretofore or hereafter imposed 
on account of such costs, when he determines that the collection thereof 
would be inequitable or would result in undue hardship on the Indian 
owner of the land, or that the administrative costs of collection would 
probably equal or exceed the amount collected. 
(e) Nothing contained in any other section of this Act shall affect 
in any way the laws applicable to irrigation projects on the Klamath 
Reservation. 
SEC. 14. (a) Nothing in this Act shall abrogate any water rights 
of the tribe and its members, and the laws of the State of Oregon 
with respect to the abandonment of water rights by nonuse shall not 
apply to the tribe and its members until fifteen years after the date 
of the proclamation issued pursuant to section 18 of this Act. 
(b) Nothing in this Act shall abrogate any fishing rights or privi-
leges of the tribe or the members thereof enjoyed under Federal 
treaty. 
SEC. 15. Prior to the transfer of title to, or the removal of restric-
tions from, property in accordance with the provisions of this Act, 
the Secretary shall protect the rights of members of the tribe who are 
minors, non compos mentis, or in the opinion of the Secretary in need 
of assistance in conducting their affairs, by causing the appointment 
of guardians for such members in courts of competent jurisdiction, 
or by such other means as he may deem adequate. 
SEC. 16. Pending the completion of the property dispositions pro-
vided for in this Act, the funds now on deposit, or hereafter deposited, 
in the United States Treasury to the credit of the tribe shall be avail-
able for advance to the tribe, or for expenditure, for such purposes as 
may be designated by the governing body of the tribe and approved 
by the Secretary. 
SEC. 17. The Secretary shall have authority to execute such patents, 
deeds, assignments, releases, certificates, contracts, and other instru-
ments as may be necessary or appropriate to carry out the provisions 
of this Act, or to establish a marketable and recordable title to any 
property disposed of pursuant to this Act. 
SEC. 18. (a) Upon removal of Federal restrictions on the property 
of the tribe and individual members thereof, the Secretary shall pub-
lish in the Federal Eegister a proclamation declaring that the Federal 
trust relationship to the affairs of the tribe and its members has termi-
nated. 
Thereafter individual members of the tribe shall not be 
entitled to any of the services performed by the United States for 
Indians because of their status as Indians and, except as otherwise 
provided in this Act, all statutes of the United States which affect 
Indians because of their status as Indians shall no longer be appli-
cable to the members of the tribe, and the laws of the several States 
shall apply to the tribe and its members in the same manner as they 
apply to other citizens or persons within their jurisdiction. 
(b) Nothing in this Act shall affect the status of the members of 
the tribe as citizens of the United States. 
SEC. 19. Effective on the date of the proclamation provided for in 
section 18 of this Act, all powers of the Secretary or other officer of 
the United States to take, review, or approve any action under the 
constitution and bylaws of the tribe are hereby terminated. 
Any 
powers conferred upon the tribe by such constitution which are in-
consistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby terminated. 
Such 
68 S T A T . ] 
PUBLIC LAW 587-AUG. 13, 1954 
723 
termination shall not affect the power of the tribe to take any action 
under its constitution and bylaws that is consistent with this Act with-
out the participation of the Secretary or other officer of the United 
States. 
SEC, 20. The Secretary is authorized to set off against any indebted-
ness payable to the tribe or to the United States by an individual 
member of the tribe or payable to the United States by the tribe, any 
funds payable to such individual or tribe under this Act and to deposit 
the amounts set off to the credit of the tribe or the United States as 
the case may be. 
SEC. 21. Nothing contained in this Act shall deprive the tribe or its 
constituent parts of any right, privilege, or benefit granted by the 
Act of August 13,1946 (60 Stat. 1049). 
SEC. 22. Nothing in this Act shall abrogate any valid lease, permit, 
license, right-of-way, lien, or other contract heretofore approved. 
Whenever any such instrument places in or reserves to the Secretary 
any powers, duties, or other functions with respect to the property 
subject thereto, the Secretary may transfer such functions, in whole 
or in part, to any Federal agency with the consent of such agency and 
may transfer such functions, in whole or in part to a State agency with 
the consent of such agency and the other party or parties to such 
instrument. 
SEC. 23. The Secretary is authorized to issue rules or regulations 
necessary to effectuate the purposes of this Act, and may in his dis-
cretion provide for tribal referenda on matters pertaining to manage-
ment or disposition of tribal assets. 
SEC. 24. All Acts or parts of Acts inconsistent with this Act are 
hereby repealed insofar as they affect the tribe or its members. 
Effec-
tive on the first day of the fiscal year beginning after the date of the 
proclamation provided for in section 18 of this Act, section 2 of the 
Act of August 19, 1949 (63 Stat. 621, ch. 468) shall become inappli-
cable to the unrecouped balance of funds expended in cooperation 
with the school board of Klamath County, Oregon, pursuant to said 
Act. 
SEC. 25. If any provision of this Act, or the application thereof to 
any person or circumstance, is held invalid, the remainder of the Act 
and the application of such provision to other persons or circum-
stances shall not be affected thereby. 
SEC. 26. Prior to the issuance of a proclamation in accordance with 
the provisions of section 18 of this Act, the Secretary is authorized to 
undertake, within the limits of available appropriations, a special pro-
gram of education and training designed to help the members of the 
tribe to earn a livelihood, to conduct their own affairs, and to assume 
their responsibilities as citizens without special services because of 
their status as Indians. 
Such program may include language train-
ing, orientation in non-Indian community customs and living stand-
ards, vocational training and related subjects, transportation to the 
place of training or instruction, and subsistence during the course of 
training or instruction. 
For the purposes of such program the Secre-
tary is authorized to enter into contracts or agreements with any 
Federal, State, or local governmental agency, corporation, association, 
or person. 
Nothing in this section shall preclude any Federal agency 
from undertaking any other program for the education and training 
of Indians with funds appropriated to it. 
Approved August 13, 1954. 
I n d i v i d u a l in-
debtedness. 
Use of payment. 
25 u s e 70-70V. 
Valid lease per-
mit, etc. 
Tra n s f er 
o f 
powers, etc. 
Rules and regu-
lations. 
Repeals. 
Klamath County, 
Ore., school board. 
Separability. 
Education, etc.