American Indian Culture and Research Journal

The self-determination of American Indian communities has been federal Indian policy since 1975, when Congress enacted the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act, Public Law 93-638. In sections two and three of the act, Congress stated its finding that federal domination of Indian affairs had deprived American Indians of leadership skills and had denied Indians an effective voice in planning and implementing programs. “True self-determination,’’ the Congress concluded, would depend upon an “educational process” which the act was intended to initiate. In initiating a new policy in Indian affairs, Congress stated its commitment to maintain the unique relationship which the United States has with Indian people, often expressed as the trust relationship. Title I of the act, which was denoted the Indian Self-Determination Act, directed the Secretaries of the Interior and of Health, Education, and Welfare (now Health and Human Services) to contract with Indian tribes, at the tribes’ request, to plan, conduct, and administer programs provided to tribal members under the authority of the Snyder Act of 1921, the Wheeler-Howard Act of 1934, and the Transfer Act of 1954.2 In addition, Title I authorized grants for strengthening tribal government, for training personnel, and for planning.