25 U.S.C. § 450
Section 450 · Congressional statement of findings
This is § 2 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act of 1975
Amended 1 time on record
Applied in 209 court decisions — leading case White Mountain Apache Tribe v. Bracker (1980)
Most recently applied in Yvonne Ito v. Copper River Native Association (April 2024)
Applied most in the Tenth Circuit Circuit (35 decisions)
Cases citing this section usually also cite 25 U.S.C. § 1451 · 28 U.S.C. § 1346 · 25 U.S.C. § 461
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year.Markers show enactment, consequential amendments, and circuit splits over this section — watch for a citation surge after a change or a disagreement. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
The Congress, after careful review of the Federal Government's historical and special legal relationship with, and resulting responsibilities to, American Indian people, finds that—
(1) the prolonged Federal domination of Indian service programs has served to retard rather than enhance the progress of Indian people and their communities by depriving Indians of the full opportunity to develop leadership skills crucial to the realization of self-government, and has denied to the Indian people an effective voice in the planning and implementation of programs for the benefit of Indians which are responsive to the true needs of Indian communities; and
(2) the Indian people will never surrender their desire to control their relationships both among themselves and with non-Indian governments, organizations, and persons.
The Congress further finds that—
(1) true self-determination in any society of people is dependent upon an educational process which will insure the development of qualified people to fulfill meaningful leadership roles;
(2) the Federal responsibility for and assistance to education of Indian children has not effected the desired level of educational achievement or created the diverse opportunities and personal satisfaction which education can and should provide; and
(3) parental and community control of the educational process is of crucial importance to the Indian people.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Short Title of 1994 Amendment
Pub. L. 103–413, §1, Oct. 25, 1994, 108 Stat. 4250, provided that: “This Act [enacting part D (§458aa et seq.) of this subchapter and section 450l of this title, amending sections 450b, 450c, 450e, 450f, 450j to 450k, 450m, and 450m–1 of this title, and enacting provisions set out as notes under this section and section 458aa of this title] may be cited as the ‘Indian Self-Determination Act Amendments of 1994’.”
Pub. L. 103–413, title I, §101, Oct. 25, 1994, 108 Stat. 4250, provided that: “This title [enacting section 450l of this title and amending sections 450b, 450c, 450e, 450f, 450j to 450k, 450m, and 450m–1 of this title] may be cited as the ‘Indian Self-Determination Contract Reform Act of 1994’.”
Pub. L. 103–413, title II, §201, Oct. 25, 1994, 108 Stat. 4270, provided that: “This title [enacting part D (§458aa et seq.) of this subchapter and provisions set out as notes under section 458aa of this title] may be cited as the ‘Tribal Self-Governance Act of 1994’.”
Short Title of 1990 Amendment
Pub. L. 101–644, title II, §201, Nov. 29, 1990, 104 Stat. 4665, provided that: “This title [amending sections 450b, 450c, 450f, 450h, 450j, 450j–1, and 450k of this title and enacting provisions set out as a note under section 450h of this title] may be cited as the ‘Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act Amendments of 1990’.”
Short Title of 1988 Amendment
Pub. L. 100–472, title I, §101, Oct. 5, 1988, 102 Stat. 2285, provided that: “This Act [enacting sections 450j–1 and 450m–1 of this title, amending sections 13a, 450a to 450c, 450f to 450j, 450k, and 450n of this title, sections 3371 and 3372 of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees, sections 2004b and 4762 of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare, and section 456 of the Appendix to Title 50, War and National Defense, transferring section 450l of this title to section 450c(f) of this title, and enacting provisions set out as notes under this section and section 450f of this title] may be cited as the ‘Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act Amendments of 1988’.”
Short Title
Section 1 of Pub. L. 93–638 provided: “That this Act [enacting this subchapter, section 13a of this title, and section 2004b of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare, amending section 3371 of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees, section 4762 of Title 42, and section 456 of Title 50, Appendix, War and National Defense, and enacting provisions set out as notes under sections 450f, 455, and 457 of this title] may be cited as the ‘Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act’.”
Section 101 of title I of Pub. L. 93–638 provided that: “This title [enacting part A (§450f et seq.) of this subchapter and section 2004b of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare, and amending section 3371 of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees, section 4762 of Title 42, and section 456 of the Appendix to Title 50, War and National Defense] may be cited as the ‘Indian Self-Determination Act’.”
Section 201 of title II of Pub. L. 93–638 provided that: “This title [enacting part C (§458 et seq.) of this subchapter, sections 455 to 457 of this title, and provisions set out as a note under section 457 of this title] may be cited as the ‘Indian Education Assistance Act’.”
Savings Provisions
Pub. L. 100–472, title II, §210, Oct. 5, 1988, 102 Stat. 2298, provided that: “Nothing in this Act [see Short Title of 1988 Amendment note above] shall be construed as—
“(1) affecting, modifying, diminishing, or otherwise impairing the sovereign immunity from suit enjoyed by an Indian tribe; or
“(2) authorizing or requiring the termination of any existing trust responsibility of the United States with respect to Indian people.”
Severability
Pub. L. 100–472, title II, §211, Oct. 5, 1988, 102 Stat. 2298, provided that: “If any provision of this Act [see Short Title of 1988 Amendment note above] or the application thereof to any Indian tribe, entity, person or circumstance is held invalid, neither the remainder of this Act, nor the application of any provisions herein to other Indian tribes, entities, persons, or circumstances, shall be affected thereby.”
Government-to-Government Relations With Native American Tribal Governments
Memorandum of President of the United States, Apr. 29, 1994, 59 F.R. 22951, provided:
Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies
The United States Government has a unique legal relationship with Native American tribal governments as set forth in the Constitution of the United States, treaties, statutes, and court decisions. As executive departments and agencies undertake activities affecting Native American tribal rights or trust resources, such activities should be implemented in a knowledgeable, sensitive manner respectful of tribal sovereignty. Today, as part of an historic meeting, I am outlining principles that executive departments and agencies, including every component bureau and office, are to follow in their interactions with Native American tribal governments. The purpose of these principles is to clarify our responsibility to ensure that the Federal Government operates within a government-to-government relationship with federally recognized Native American tribes. I am strongly committed to building a more effective day-to-day working relationship reflecting respect for the rights of self-government due the sovereign tribal governments.
In order to ensure that the rights of sovereign tribal governments are fully respected, executive branch activities shall be guided by the following:
(a) The head of each executive department and agency shall be responsible for ensuring that the department or agency operates within a government-to-government relationship with federally recognized tribal governments.
(b) Each executive department and agency shall consult, to the greatest extent practicable and to the extent permitted by law, with tribal governments prior to taking actions that affect federally recognized tribal governments. All such consultations are to be open and candid so that all interested parties may evaluate for themselves the potential impact of relevant proposals.
(c) Each executive department and agency shall assess the impact of Federal Government plans, projects, programs, and activities on tribal trust resources and assure that tribal government rights and concerns are considered during the development of such plans, projects, programs, and activities.
(d) Each executive department and agency shall take appropriate steps to remove any procedural impediments to working directly and effectively with tribal governments on activities that affect the trust property and/or governmental rights of the tribes.
(e) Each executive department and agency shall work cooperatively with other Federal departments and agencies to enlist their interest and support in cooperative efforts, where appropriate, to accomplish the goals of this memorandum.
(f) Each executive department and agency shall apply the requirements of Executive Orders Nos. 12875 (“Enhancing the Intergovernmental Partnership”) and 12866 (“Regulatory Planning and Review”) [5 U.S.C. 601 notes] to design solutions and tailor Federal programs, in appropriate circumstances, to address specific or unique needs of tribal communities.
The head of each executive department and agency shall ensure that the department or agency's bureaus and components are fully aware of this memorandum, through publication or other means, and that they are in compliance with its requirements.
This memorandum is intended only to improve the internal management of the executive branch and is not intended to, and does not, create any right to administrative or judicial review, or any other right or benefit or trust responsibility, substantive or procedural, enforceable by a party against the United States, its agencies or instrumentalities, its officers or employees, or any other person.
The Director of the Office of Management and Budget is authorized and directed to publish this memorandum in the Federal Register.
William J. Clinton.