The Department of the Interior has proposed regulations to simplify and standardize procedures for compiling Indian tribal rolls and disposing of enrollment appeals.
The new enrollment regulations would eliminate the need to issue and publish in the Federal Register procedures governing preparation of rolls each time the Secretary of the Interior is directed by Congress to prepare an Indian tribal roll. However, qualifications for enrollment would not be standardized under the proposed regulations.
The proposed new regulations on appeals establish uniform procedures by which persons may appeal exclusions from tribal rolls.
The changes are considered necessary because of the increasing roll-making activity in recent years, particularly in connection with determining eligibility of persons to share in distribution of Indian judgment funds. The proposed appeal procedures, setting forth clearly defined conditions and methods of appeal, should expedite the handling of appeals by the Secretary of the Interior, who is often, by law, designated final arbiter in enrollment disputes.
The proposed new regulations are being published in the Federal Register.
Interested persons may submit written comments, suggestions or objections concerning the proposed regulations to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Department of the Interior, Washington, D. C. 20240, within thirty days of the dates of publication of the notices in the Federal Register.
