An Act to provide for the division of the tribal assets of the Ponca Tribe of Native Americans of Nebraska among the members of the tribe, and for other purposes.
PL 87-629 (S.3174), enacted 09/05/1962

76 STAT. ] 
PUBLIC LAW 87-629-SEPT. 5, 1962 
429 
Public Law 87-629 
AN ACT 
To provide for the division of the tribal assets of the Ponca Tribe of Native 
Americans of Nebraska among the members of the tribe, and for other 
purjKtses. 
September S, 1962 
[S. 3174] 
Be it enacted hy the Senate and House of Representatives 
of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled^ That the Secretary 
of the Interior shall, with the advice and assistance of the Ponca 
Tribe of Native Americans of Nebraska and pursuant to such regula-
tions as he may prescribe, prepare a roll of the members of the tribe 
and record thereon persons whose names appeared on the census roll 
of April 1, 1934, and the supplement thereto of January 1, 1935, and 
their descendants of not less than one-quarter degree Indian blood 
of the Ponca Tribe, regardless of place of residence, who are living 
on the date of this Act. He shall provide a reasonable opportunity 
for any person to protest against the inclusion or omission of any name 
on or from the roll and his decision on such protests shall be final and 
conclusive. After all protests are disposed of, the roll shall be pub-
lished in the Federal Register. The Secretary shall thereupon give 
the adult members of the tribe whose names appear on the roll an 
opportunity to indicate their agreement or disagreement with a divi-
sion of tribal assets in accordance with the provisions of this Act. If 
a majority of those indicating agreement or disagreement are favor-
able to such division, the Secretary shall publish in the Federal 
Register a notice of the fact and the roll prepared by him shall there-
upon become final and the following sections of this Act shall become 
effective. 
SEC. 2. Each member whose name appears on the final roll of the 
tribe as published in the Federal Register shall be entitled to receive 
in accordance with the provisions oi this Act an equal share of the 
tribe's assets that are held in trust by the United States. This right 
shall constitute personal property which may be inherited or 
bequeathed, but it shall not otherwise be subject to alienation or 
encumbrance. 
SEC. 3. (a) All property of the United States used for the benefit 
of the Ponca Tribe of Native Americans of Nebraska is hereby 
declared to be a part of the assets of the tribe, and all of the tribe s 
assets shall be distributed in accordance with the provisions of this 
section. The distribution shall be completed within three years from 
the date of this Act, or as soon thereaiter as practicable. 
(b) The tribe shall designate any part of the tribe's property that 
is to be set aside for church, park, playground, or cemetery purposes, 
and the Secretary is authorized to convey such property to trustees 
or agencies designated by the tribe for that purpose and approved by 
the Secretary. 
(c) Each member may select for homesite purposes and receive title 
to not to exceed five acres of tribal land that is being used for home-
site purposes by such member. The member shall pay the current 
market value of the homesite selection excluding any improvements 
or repairs constructed by such member, his wife, children, or ancestor, 
as determined by the Secretary of the Interior. 
(d) All assets of the tribe that are not selected and conveyed to 
members shall be sold by competitive bid at not less than the current 
market value, and any member shall have the right to purchase 
property offered for sale for a price not less than the highest accept-
able bid therefor. If more than one member exercises such right, the 
property shall be sold to the member exercising the right who offers 
the highest price. 
Indians. 
Ponca Tribe. 
Division of 
tribal assets. 
Publication in 
F. R. 
Distribution of 
430 
PUBLIC LAW 87-629-SEPT. 5, 1962 
[76 STAT. 
Sale of lands. 
Surveys. 
Claims. 
Taxation. 
Expenses. 
(e) The net proceeds of all sales of tribal property, and all other 
tribal funds, shall be used to pay, as authorized by the Secretary, 
any debts of the tribe. 
The remainder of such proceeds and funds 
shall be divided equally among the members whose names are on the 
final roll, or their heirs or legatees. Any debt owed by a member, 
heir, or legatee to the tribe or to the United States may be set ofl as 
authorized by the Secretary against the distributive share of such 
person. Any member of the tribe who purchases tribal property in 
accordance with this section may apply on the purchase price his 
share of the proceeds of all sales of tribal property, and the Secretary 
of the Interior shall adopt sales procedures that permit such action. 
SEC. 4. (a) The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to partition 
or to sell the complete interest (including any unrestricted interest) 
in any land in which an undivided interest is owned by a member 
of the Ponca Tribe of Native Americans of Nebraska in a trust or 
restricted status, provided the partition or sale is requested by the 
owners of a 25 per centum interest in the land, and the partition or 
sale is made within three years from the da.& of this Act. 
Any such 
sale shall be by competitive bid, except that with the concurrence of 
the owners of a 25 per centum interest in the land any owner of an 
interest in the land shall have the right to purchase the land within 
a reasonable time fixed by the Secretary of the Interior prior to a 
competitive sale at not less than its current market value. 
If more 
than one preference right is exercised, the sale shall be by competitive 
bid limited to the persons entitled to a preference. 
If the owners 
of a 25 per centum interest in the land so request, mineral rights 
may be reserved to the owners in an unrestricted status. The Secre-
tary of the Interior may represent for the purposes of this section 
any Indian owner who is a minor, or who is non compos mentis, and, 
after giving reasonable notice of the proposed partition or sale by 
publication, he may represent an Indian owner who cannot be located. 
(b) All restrictions on the alienation or taxation of interests in land 
that are owned by members of the Ponca Tribe of Native Americans 
of Nebraska three years after the date of this Act shall be deemed 
removed by operation of law, and an unrestricted title shall be vested 
in each such member. 
SEC. 5. The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to make such 
land surveys and to execute such conveyancing instruments as he deems 
necessary to convey marketable and recordable title to the individual 
and tribal assets disposed of pursuant to this Act. 
Each grantee 
shall receive an unrestricted title to the property conveyed. 
SEC. 6. Nothing in this Act shall affect any claims heretofore filed 
against the United States by the Ponca Tribe of Native Americans 
of Nebraska. 
SEC. 7. Nothing in this Act shall affect the rights, privileges, or 
obligations of the tribe and its members under the laws of Nebraska. 
SEC. 8. No proi)erty distributed under the provisions of this Act 
shall at the time of distribution be subject to any Federal or State 
income tax. Following any distribution of property made under the 
provisions of this Act, such property and income derived therefrom by 
the distributee shall be subject to the same taxes. State and Federal as 
in the case of non-Indians: Provided^ 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 grantee. 
SEC. 9. Such amounts of tribal funcfe as may be needed to meet the 
expenses of the tribe under this Act, as approved by the Secretary of 
the Interior, shall be available for expenditure. There is authorized to 
be appropriated out of any moneys in the Treasury not otherwise 
appropriated such sums as may be necessary to reimburse the tribe for 
76 STAT. ] 
PUBLIC LAW 87-630-SEPT. 5, 1962 
431 
such expenditures, and carry out the responsibilities of the Secretary 
under the provisions of this Act. 
SEC. 10. When the distribution of tribal assets in accordance with 
the provisions of this Act has been completed, the Secretary of the 
Interior shall publish in the Federal Kegister a proclamation declar-
ing that the Federal trust relationship to such tribe and its members 
has terminated. Thereafter, the tribe and its members shall not be 
entitled to any of the special services performed by the United States 
for Indians or Indian tribes because or their Indian status, all statutes 
of the United States that affect Indians or Indian tribes because of 
their Indian status shall be inapplicable to them, and the laws of the 
several States shall apply to them in the same manner they apply to 
other persons or citizens within their jurisdiction. Nothmg in this 
Act, however, shall affect the status of any Indian as a citizen of the 
United States. 
Approved September 6, 1962. 
Publication 
In F. R. 
Public Law 87-630 
A N A C T 
Septembers, 1962 
To amend the Act of September 16, 1959 (73 Stat. 561; 43 U.S.C. 615s), relating 
^^- ^°°^J 
to the construction, operation, and maintenance of the SiK>kane Valley project. 
tion project, 
Wash.-Idaho. 
43 u s e 371 
note. 
Be it enacted hy the Senate and House of Representatives 
of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled^ That the Act of 
spokane vaiiey 
September 16, 1959 (73 Stat. 561, 43 U.S.C. 615s), be amended as ^,*l*:;l,f„*=/^°-
follows: 
"" "*" ""* 
(a) By substituting in section 1 thereof the words "seven thousand 
two hundred and fifty" for the words "ten thousand three hundred" 
and by inserting the words "and for domestic, municipal, and indus-
trial uses" after the words "the State of Idaho" in this same section. 
(b) By amending section 2 to read as follows: "In constructing, 
operating, and maintaining the Spokane Valley project, the Secretary 
shall be governed by the Federal reclamation laws (Act of June 17, 
1902, 32 Stat. 388, and acts amendatory thereof or supplementary 
thereto), except that (1) interest on the unpaid balance of the alloca-
tion to domestic, municipal, and industrial water supply shall be at a 
rate determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, as of the beginning 
of the fiscal year in which construction is initiated, on the basis of 
the computed average interest rate payable by the Treasury upon its 
outstanding marketable public obligations which are neither due nor 
callable for redemption for fifteen years from date of issue; and 
(2) the remaining cost of the project beyond the amount to be reim-
bursed or returned by the water users shall be accounted for in the 
same manner as provided in item (c) of section 2 of the Act of July 
27,1954 (68 Stat. 568), and power and energy required for irrigation 
pumping for the Spokane Valley project shall be made available in 
the same manner as provided for therein. The amount to be repaid 
by the irrigators shall be collected by the contracting entity through 
a^inual assessments based upon combination turnout and acreage 
charges and through the use of such other^ methods as it and the 
Secretary "may agree upon." 
(c) By deleting from section 3 thereof the figure "$5,100,000" and 
inserting in lieu thereof the figure "$7,232,000". 
Approved September 6, 1962.