OPA

The Indians --with their traditional independence, resourcefulness, and close ties to nature --provide the United States with its unique character, some authorities say. Now their relationship to the land, their neighbor, states, and local governments, is the subject of a book, "The States and Their Indian Citizens," just published by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, U. S. Department of the Interior.

"This study comes at a time of critical review of the relationship between the various governments in our Federal system and makes a significant contribution to our understanding," Secretary of the Interior Rogers C. B. Morton says in the foreword of this book.

The author is Dr. Theodore W. Taylor, former Deputy Commissioner of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. He did most of the research and writing on the book while a Federal Executive Fellow at the Brookings Institution, Washington, D.C.

The Secretary continues: "The conflict in the Indian community as to the desirability of special Federal services to urban Indians is explored. Indeed, the general policies and philosophies discussed in this study may significantly contribute to a greater understanding of the relationship between ethnic minorities and the general population as well as to options available for future growth of our Federal system in general.

"Taylor discusses the nature of self-determination in relationship to trust responsibility, whether the non-Indian society has a perpetual obligation to the original Americans, the impact of subsidies, and the responsibilities residing with Indian, State, and Federal Governments."

The appendix contains an analysis of the special messages on Indians to the Congress by both President Johnson and President Nixon and a table that shows by State the acres of Indian land, population, and whether Indian children are educated by public or Federal schools.

Governor Robert Lewis of the Zuni Pueblo writes in his introduction to the book that "This book will help those (Indians) who want to help themselves think through what they want to do. It presents insights into some of the complex history and problems we Indians face along with our non-Indian neighbors which I think will be helpful to Indians and non-Indians alike."

The book is illustrated and has a 26" x 36" map in color that shows the Federal and state reservations.

The book may be purchased for $2.25 in paper cover from the Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402. Order by catalog number l20.2:ST2/3.

Review copies are available on request from the Office of Communications, Bureau of Indian Affairs, and 1951 Constitution Avenue N.W., Washington, D.C. 20242.

After consulting with representatives of the Indian community, Richard S. Bodman, Assistant Secretary--Management and Budget, today announced several steps to improve the operations of the Bureau of Indian Affairs in the U. S. Department of the Interior.

Immediate measures being taken are:

1. Realign the Bureau of Indian Affairs Central Office functions in all its locations (principally Washington, Albuquerque and Denver) to accomplish the following purposes:

1. Transfer daily operational activities from the Central Office to area and agency offices;
2. Reduce non-essential support staff in the Central Office; and Focus attention on the need for carrying out our trust responsibilities and for providing policy guidance for delivery of other services to Indians.
3. Focus attention on the need for carrying out our trust responsibilities and for providing policy guidance for delivery of other services to Indians.

2. Use existing authority to transfer all responsibility for Indian affairs to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs as a first line officer reporting directly to the Secretary and propose legislation to upgrade the position of Commissioner to that of Assistant Secretary.

3. Include in next year's program and budget request an appropriation for BIA block grants to federally-recognized Indian tribes and propose supporting authorization legislation.

In realigning the operations of the Bureau, Bodman said daily operational activities presently performed in the Central Office would be transferred to area and agency offices. "This will place increased reliance on area and agency offices with headquarters removed from all direct operations," he said.

"Second, as a result of this transfer, we plan to reduce the number of authorized positions in the Central Office to a commensurate level. We estimate that the revised workload of the Central Offices can be carried out by an authorized permanent employment level of 715 people --approximately 600 positions fewer than authorized in the fiscal 1973 budget. In addition, we intend to transfer 50 positions out of the Central Office to the field.

As our actual employment is now substantially less than our authorized ceiling, actual employment in the Bureau will be reduced by about 285 persons.

Mr. Bodman said the positions provided to the field offices would enhance capability in the area of tribal operations, real property management, and comprehensive planning. The funding for the positions abolished in headquarters will remain available to the Bureau and will be used for direct services to the Indian people.

"Third, we plan to separate responsibility for carrying out our Indian Trust obligations from responsibility for carrying out delivery of services to the Indian community. To do so, we will establish separate offices to carry out each of these duties," he added.

Mr. Bodman said Secretary Morton, using existing authorities, is transferring the responsibility for Indian affairs formerly held by the Assistant Secretary for Public Land Management, now held by the Assistant Secretary--Management and Budget, to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs. "This will establish the Commissioner of Indian Affairs as a first line officer reporting directly to the Secretary," he added.

At the same time, the Secretary will propose new legislation to Congress to upgrade the position of Commissioner to Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs.

Continuing, Bodman said as another important step in the implementation of President Nixon's July 1970 proposals to Congress, legislation will soon be submitted to the Congress to enable the Bureau of Indian Affairs to provide block grants to federally-recognized tribes to carry out development projects as provided in tribally-prepared plans.

"Included in the proposed Bureau 1974 program and budget request is an appropriation of $25 million for this purpose," he said. These funds are to be used for projects such as: water, sewer and other utility systems; industrial and commercial parks and facilities; streets and access road construction; water pollution control facilities for treatment of industrial waste; tourist and recreational facilities; harbor facilities; education and training facilities; health, community and cultural centers; airport facilities; and natural resource and related human resource development.

"This program will replace the program for Indians which has been carried out by the Economic development Administration (EDA) of the Department of Commerce in the past, but will only affect new starts. Current EDA commitments will be honored." Mr. Bodman said.

Theodore B. White, 52, an enrolled member of the Oglala Sioux and Oneida Indian tribes, has been named Chief Tribal Operations Officer in the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Washington, D. C., the Department of White has already assumed the duties of the Interior announced today his office.

He came to the Washington, D.C.,office from the post of Superintendent of the San Carlos Agency of the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Arizona. This agency has jurisdiction over the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation.

White has a masters in social work from Loyola University in Chicago, and a B.A. in sociology from Lipscomb College, Nashville, Tenn. He has also attended the University of Wisconsin and Pepperdine College.

He began his career in the Bureau of Indian Affairs in 1955 as a relocation officer with the Shiprock Agency in Arizona. Two years later he accepted a similar post in the Los Angeles Field Office and moved from Los Angeles to Chicago as a supervisor of this same kind of work. He remained in this field of work at the Rosebud Agency (1959), Dallas Field Office (1960), Cleveland Field Office (1961), and Chicago Field Office (1962).

He became a community living guidance specialist in Washington, D.C.) in 1966, and superintendent of the San Carlos Agency in 1967.

He served four years in the Air Force in World War II. He is married and the father of two sons. He and his family make their home in Fairfax, Va.

The Department of the Interior has approved a contract between three New Mexico Pueblos and the Pojoaque Valley Irrigation District to operate and maintain a proposed dam and reservoir in northern New Mexico, Marvin L Franklin, Assistant to the Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs, announced today.

“Approximate1y 1,000 Indians from San Ildefonso, Nambe, and Pojoaque Pueblos and 750 non-Indian land owners with a total of almost 3,000 acres of irrigab1e land will benefit from the water stored in the reservoir" Franklin said. "The contract approval culminates several years of community efforts between the Indians and non-Indians in the area to join together to solve mutual water shortage problems," he added.

The Pojoaque Valley Irrigation District will operate the Pojoaque Tributary Unit --dam and reservoir --which will be located on the Nambe Indian Reservation.

This project, through the use of controlled storage, will bring into full productivity the irrigable Indian and non-Indian lands using the limited water supply available. By storing excess flows of the Rio Nambe during non-irrigation periods, releases can be made during the periods of low flow to meet irrigation needs. The Pojoaque Tributary Unit will also enhance fishery resources and will provide additional recreation opportunities.

Construction of the dam and reservoir is expected to begin this fiscal year following an election by the Pojoaque Valley Irrigation District to vote approval of the contract.

The Pojoaque Tributary Unit is the first of four planned tributary units in the San Juan-Chama Project. Largely a cooperative effort between the pueblos and the non-Indian Pojoaque Valley Irrigation District, the project has received technical assistance from the Bureau of Reclamation, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the State of New Mexico.

Regulations have been published in the Federal Register to govern distribution of $13.2 million awarded the Osage Indian Tribe of Oklahoma by the Indian Claims Commission, largely for fair payment for triba11ands taken many years ago, the Interior Department's Bureau of Indian Affairs announced today.

The new regulations specify procedures to be followed by eligible persons in order for them to share in the distribution of judgment funds.

All claims for per capita shares by heirs of Osage Indian blood must be filed with the Superintendent of the Osage Agency, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Pawhuska, Okla. 74056 not later than April 27, 1974. The claimant must identify, by name and allotment number, each allottee in whose share the individual claims an interest, in order that the Superintendent may notify the individual when the Order of Distribution for such allottee is made. 1£ a claim is not filed, an individual may not receive the notice of distribution.

The award is a result of a compromise settlement which disposed of four Indian Claims Commission dockets containing claims for:

No. 105: Additional payment for about 12.3 million acres of land in Missouri and Arkansas ceded under the Treaty of November 10, 1808 (7 Stat.l07).

No. 106: Additional payment for about 2 million acres of land in Oklahoma and Arkansas ceded under the Treaty of September 25, 1818 (7 Stat.183).

No. 107: Additional payment for about .13 million acres of land in Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, and Arkansas ceded under the Treaty of June 2, 1825 (7 Stat. 240).

No. 108: Attorney fees and expenses paid from Osage funds to prevent ratification of the proposed Drum Creek Treaty of 1865. Settlement was negotiated on the basis that the Indian lands had an average value of about 50 cents an acre when they went into non-Indian hands and that consideration for the lands according to the treaties signed at the time exceeding a million dollars.

The Indian Claims Commission, an independent agency of Government, decided the case, and the Congress then appropriated the money to make payment of the award.' It next passed the Act of October 27,1972 (P.L. 92-586, 86 Stat. 1296) to provide for the disposition of the money to members of the Osage Tribe by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. According to this Act, the Secretary of the Interior is authorized to prescribe rules and regulations to carry out the provisions of the Act.

The Act provides for the distribution of funds to allottees and heirs of Osage Indian blood of deceased allottees.

The superintendent shall put aside one per capita share for each allottee for distribution in this manner:

1. One share to go to each allottee who is living on the date the Order for Distribution for that share is issued; and

2. One share for distribution to the heir or the heirs of Osage Indian blood of each allottee who is deceased on the date the Order of Distribution for the share is issued, to be divided among such heirs in such proportions as shall be computed in accordance with other parts of the regulations.

Commissioner of Indian Affairs Morris Thompson pointed yesterday to this Administration's "solid record of achievement" in achieving restorations of land to Indian tribes in an address to the National Tribal Chairmen's Association in Phoenix, Ariz., December 6.

The National Tribal Chairmen's Association, which includes the heads of each American Indian tribe recognized by the United States government and entitled to services of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, is holding its annual meeting in Phoenix December 5 - 8.

''Native Americans have received increasingly large restorations of land," he said, He cited return of 48,000 acres of land to the Taos Pueblo in New Mexico, 21,000 acres of land including part of Mount Adams to the Yakima Tribe in the State of Washington, and 40,000,000 acres of land that will go to Alaska Natives in the State of Alaska under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act.

"Still pending in the Congress, in varying stages of progress but not yet enacted into law are seven pieces of Indian legislation," he continued. "One of my jobs will be to push hard for the passage of these bills. If they were all passed next week, we would be further ahead in self-determination than we have been in 150 years.

"As a matter of fact, we propose to enlist the help of Congressional leaders in getting this legislation through the mill -- as a Bicentennial present to our Nation's first Americans," he told the leaders of the American Indian tribes of this country.

He told the group that assembled to hear his talk: "In a nutshell, here is the Federal Government's policy today: it offers self-determina­tion and self-government to Indian people as rapidly as Indians want it and can assume responsibility for it. In other words, tribes have the option of assuming control of their own Federal programs whenever they wish to do so. Furthermore, they will not be cut off from Federal support; they need only demonstrate strong and responsible tribal government and the ability to handle programs on their own."

Appointment of a four member Ad Hoc Hearings and Appeals Board to decide appeals as to qualifications of Village Corporations and other matters under appeals as to qualifications of Village Corporations and other matters under Interior Rogers C. B. Morton.

Chairman of the Board, which will be headquartered in Anchorage, Alaska, will be Judith M. Brady, 32, of Anchorage; Alaska. Mrs. Brady has been editor of the Alaska Native Management Report published by the Alaska Native Foundation.

Other members of the Board are: Albert P. Adams, 32, of Anchorage, director of rural development assistance for the State of Alaska; District Judge John Waller of Kodiak, Alaska; and Abigail Dunning an attorney with the Army Corps of Engineers at Elmendorf Air Force Base near Anchorage, Alaska.

"The ad hoc Board which I am appointing has the vital function of review­ing and settling disputes concerning village eligibility for making land selec­tions under the Alaska Native Claims Act," Secretary Morton said. "I am pleased that most of its members have direct familiarity with Native village life and all are well qualified to handle the Board's functions fairly and to make key decisions equitably for all concerned."

The Alaska Native Claims Act provides for the selection of lands under the Act by eligible village corporations. The Director of the Juneau Area Office of the Bureau of Indians Affairs is empowered under the Act to make final decisions on the eligibility of villages unless appeals of its decisions are made to the ad hoc Board established by the Secretary.

Creation of the Board was requested by representatives of the Native villages in meetings held with Assistant Secretary Laurence E. Lynn Jr. and members of his staff in May 1973. The Board was authorized by regulations governing Alaska Native land selections published in the Federal Register by the Bureau of Land Management of the Department May 30, 1973, which became effective July 2, 1973.

A contract amounting to nearly $2.4 million has been awarded to Nielson's, Inc. of Dolores, Colorado, to build slightly more than 12 miles of road and a bridge over a wash on the Navajo Indian reservation about 10 miles south of Shiprock, New Mexico, Commissioner of Indian Affairs Morris Thompson announced today.

­­ When completed the project will give all-weather access to the otherwise isolated community of Burnham, New Mexico, the Navajo Irrigation Project, the proposed El Paso Gasification Plant, Chaco Canyon National Monument, and to medical and recreational facilities. It will also serve as a route for school buses and will eventually connect with New Mexico State Road 371.

"Roads on Indian reservations enable the economy of the reservation to expand," Commissioner Thompson said. "They enable children to be bussed to school instead of being transported to boarding school away from their families. They provide a social lifeline that keeps a community healthy and viable. I am proud to announce that this stretch of road will be built by the Bureau of Indian Affairs."

The contract calls for the construction of 12.178 miles of bituminous highway beginning approximately 3.5 miles north of Newcomb from U.S. Highway 666 and extending easterly to Burnham, New Mexico, and constructing 603.5 feet of pre-stressed concrete bridge over Chaco Wash.

To participate in the Energy Conservation Program, Bureau of Indian Affairs Area Directors have been authorized to extend Christmas vacation in any school under their jurisdiction 14 days -- or until January 21, Morris Thompson, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, announced today.

Time lost if a school is closed until January 21 is to be made up by extending the school year, week, or day, Thompson indicated, adding that he must be informed of whatever program a school that remains closed an added 14 days elects to compensate for time lost.

At least one Indian tribe -- the Navajo -- bas told the Bureau of in Affairs that 10 percent of the year's supply of fuel in schools reservation can be saved by extending the Christmas holiday 14,” Thompson said. “On the basis of the Navajo’s wish to conserve, we decided to give the option of closing to all BIA schools.”

The Bureau of Indian Affairs operates 200 schools in 17 states on Indian reservations and in remote areas throughout the country. They report to 12 Area Directors. Of the 200 BIA schools, 77 are boarding schools with a total enrollment of almost 36,000 and 123 are day schools with a total enrollment of more than 16,000. Fifty-three of the day schools are located in Alaska.

In addition, the Bureau operates one Indian junior college, one post­secondary art institute, and one post-secondary polytechnic institute.

Total enrollment in all Indian schools operated by the Bureau repre­sents approximately 25 percent of the almost 207,000 Indian children of school age living on or near reservations in the United States.

Plans for the use and distribution of $4.9 million awarded by Indian Claims Commission to the Western Apache Indians are being published in the Federal Register, Commissioner of Indian Affairs Morris Thompson announced today.

The award, for lands taken by the United States without compensation between 1873 and 1902, will be divided equally between the White Mountain Apache Tribe and the San Carlos Apache Tribe as present-day successors of the Western Apaches.

The plans for both tribes, approved by Congress and made effective December 3, 1975, provide for 80 percent of each tribe’s share to be paid on a per capita basis to enrolled members, with remaining 20 percent to be programmed for projects of continuing benefit to the tribes.

The programmed funds for the White Mountain Apache Tribe will be used to curb juvenile delinquency by providing recreational facilities and programs for the youth of the reservation.

The San Carlos Apache Tribe will emphasize economic development in the use of their programmed funds. They will also set aside a portion of the funds for educational purposes and for a funeral program.