Bureau of Indian Affairs 2015 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The United States has acquired approximately 1,553 acres of Federal land within the boundary of the former Badger Army Ammunition Plant near Baraboo, Wisconsin, in trust for the Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin. The acquisition was effectuated by the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2015. This notice provides a legal description of the property.

This rule revises regulations governing the process and criteria by which the Secretary acknowledges an Indian tribe. The revisions seek to make the process and criteria more transparent, promote consistent implementation, and increase timeliness and efficiency, while maintaining the integrity and substantive rigor of the process. For decades, the current process has been criticized as ``broken'' and in need of reform. Specifically, the process has been criticized as too slow (a petition can take decades to be decided), expensive, burdensome, inefficient, intrusive, less than transparent and unpredictable. This rule reforms the process by, among other things, institutionalizing a phased review that allows for faster decisions; reducing the documentary burden while maintaining the existing rigor of the process; allowing for a hearing on a negative proposed finding to promote transparency and integrity; enhancing notice to tribes and local governments and enhancing transparency by posting all publicly available petition documents on the Department's Web site; establishing the Assistant Secretary's final determination as final for the Department to promote efficiency; and codifying and improving upon past Departmental implementation of standards, where appropriate, to ensure consistency, transparency, predictability and fairness.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) is seeking comments on the renewal of Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval for the collection of information titled ``Reindeer in Alaska,'' authorized by OMB Control Number 1076-0047. This information collection expires September 30, 2015.

On December 10, 2013, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) approved the Ewiiaapaayp Band of Kumeyaay Indians leasing regulations under the HEARTH Act. With this approval, the Tribe is authorized to enter into the following type of leases without BIA approval: business leases.

On February 4, 2015, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) approved the Ho-Chunk Nation leasing regulations under the HEARTH Act. With this approval, the Tribe is authorized to enter into the following type of leases without BIA approval: Business, residential, and agricultural ordinances.

On January 22, 2015, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) approved the Cowlitz Indian Tribe leasing regulations under the HEARTH Act. With this approval, the Tribe is authorized to enter into the following type of leases without BIA approval: Business leases.

On April 8, 2014, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) approved the Mohegan Tribe of Indians of Connecticut leasing regulations under the HEARTH Act. With this approval, the Tribe is authorized to enter into the following type of leases without BIA approval: Business leases.

On November 10, 2013, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) approved the Ak-Chin Indian Community leasing regulations under the HEARTH Act. With this approval, the Tribe is authorized to enter into the following type of leases without BIA approval: Business leases.

On April 4, 2014, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) approved the Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe leasing regulations under the HEARTH Act. With this approval, the Tribe is authorized to enter into the following type of leases without BIA approval: Business leases.

On April 11, 2013 (amended November 24, 2014), the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) approved the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians leasing regulations under the HEARTH Act. With this approval, the Tribe is authorized to enter into the following type of leases without BIA approval: Residential leases.

On June 4, 2015, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) approved the Rincon Band of Luiseno Mission Indians leasing regulations under the HEARTH Act. With this approval, the Tribe is authorized to enter into the following type of leases without BIA approval: Business leases.

On April 8, 2014, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) approved the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes leasing regulations under the HEARTH Act. With this approval, the Tribe is authorized to enter into the following type of leases without BIA approval: Business leases.

This notice publishes amendments to the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation Liquor Code. This codification amends the existing Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation Liquor Code, enacted by the Board of Trustees of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, which was published in the Federal Register on February 22, 2012 (77 FR 10551).

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) is seeking comments on the renewal of Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval for the collection of information for the Indian Reservation Roads (IRR), authorized by OMB Control Number 1076-0161. This information collection expires September 30, 2015.

This publishes notice of the extension of the Class III gaming compact between the Yankton Sioux Tribe and the State of South Dakota.

The Assistant SecretaryIndian Affairs made a final agency determination to acquire approximately 410.23 +/- acres of land in trust for the Soboba Band of Luiseno Indians, California, for gaming and other purposes on May 19, 2015.

In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), as the lead Federal agency, with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), and the Moapa Band of Paiute Indians (Tribe) as Cooperating Agencies, has prepared a draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) for the proposed Aiya Solar Project on the Moapa River Indian Reservation (Reservation) in Clark County, Nevada. This notice announces that the DEIS is now available for public review and that BIA will hold public meetings to solicit comments on the DEIS.

The Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) published a notice in the Federal Register on March 25, 2015 (80 FR 15807), announcing the American Indian Education Study Group (Study Group) will conduct four consultation meetings with Indian tribes to obtain oral and written comments. Another Federal Register notice was published on April 17, 2015 (80 FR 21261) to announce BIE will conduct an additional consultation for a total of five consultation meetings with Indian tribes to obtain oral and written comments. This notice extends the comment deadline by 7 days and announces an additional meeting scheduled for May 15, 2015, making a total of 6 tribal consultation meetings.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) is seeking comments on the renewal of Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval for the collection of information for Data Elements for Student Enrollment in Bureau-funded Schools, authorized by OMB Control Number 1076-0122. This information collection expires August 31, 2015.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) is submitting to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a request for approval for the collection of information for the Law and Order on Indian ReservationsMarriage & Dissolution Applications, which concerns marriage and dissolution of a marriage in a Court of Indian Offenses. The information collection is currently authorized by OMB Control Number 1076-0094, which expires April 30, 2015.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) is seeking comments on the renewal of Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval for the collection of information for the Application for Admission to Haskell Indian Nations University (Haskell) and to Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute (SIPI), authorized by OMB Control Number 1076-0114. This information collection expires August 31, 2015.

This notice publishes the approval of the Tribal-State Compact for Regulation of Class III Gaming between the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians of Oregon (Tribe) and the State of Oregon (State), Amendment II.

The Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) will be conducting consultation meetings to obtain oral and written comments on the restructuring of the BIE. The consultation meetings are a continuation of tribal consultations conducted by the Department of the Interior and the Department of Education in 2014.

This proposed rule would add a new subpart to the Department of the Interior's (Department) regulations implementing the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), to improve ICWA implementation by State courts and child welfare agencies. These regulations complement recently published Guidelines for State Courts and Agencies in Indian Child Custody Proceedings, reflect recommendations made by the Attorney General's Advisory Committee on American Indian/Alaska Native Children Exposed to Violence, and address significant developments in jurisprudence since ICWA's inception. This publication also announces the dates and locations for tribal consultation sessions and public meetings to receive comment on this proposed rule.

This notice advises the public that the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), in cooperation with the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians (Tribe), intends to file a draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for the Tribe's application requesting a fee-to-trust transfer of land located within the municipal limits of the City of South Bend, Indiana, for the construction of a tribal housing, government facilities, and a Class III gaming facility. This notice also announces that the DEIS is available for public review and that a public hearing will be held to receive comments.