Persons claiming Menominee Indian blood have until September 17 for filing applications to have their names added to the present tribal roll, Acting Secretary Fred G. Aandahl said today. Applications should be filed with the Menominee Tribe, in care of the Superintendent, Neopit, Wisconsin.
Under Public Law 399, approved June 17, the Menominee tribal roll was limited to persons living at midnight of that day and no child born thereafter is eligible for enrollment. Persons believing that their names should be added to the roll, however, are given three months after enactment in which to file applications with the tribe. Following this the tribe is given three months in which to consider these applications. Then individuals whose applications are not approved by the tribe are given an additional three-month period which to file appeals with the Secretary of the Interior.
To be eligible for enrollment on the tribal roll, an applicant must, under a recently adopted Federal regulation, fall into one of the following three categories:
(a) Persons born prior to June 15, 1934 of an enrolled parent or parents residing on the Menominee Reservation at the time of the birth of such person.
(b) Persons possessing one-fourth or more Menominee Indian blood, born on or subsequent to June 15, 1934, of parents residing at the time of the birth of such person upon the Menominee Reservation at least one of whom is an enrolled member of the tribe.
(c) Persons of one-fourth or more Menominee Indian blood, derived from an ancestor other than one who participated in the half-breed payment of 1849, who have been or may be adopted into membership of the tribe.
Only enrolled members of the tribe are eligible under Public Law 399 to participate in benefits from the management or disposition of tribal assets. The law provides for termination of Federal trusteeship over Menominee property and affairs by the end of 1958.
