[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4180 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4180

  To prohibit the withdrawal of acknowledgement or recognition of an 
  Indian tribe or Alaska Native group or of the leaders of an Indian 
        tribe or Alaska Native group, absent an Act of Congress.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 12, 1994

   Mr. Thomas of Wyoming (for himself, Mr. Richardson, Mr. Young of 
  Alaska, and Mr. Boehlert) introduced the following bill; which was 
             referred to the Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To prohibit the withdrawal of acknowledgement or recognition of an 
  Indian tribe or Alaska Native group or of the leaders of an Indian 
        tribe or Alaska Native group, absent an Act of Congress.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. PROHIBITION ON WITHDRAWAL OF RECOGNITION.

    (a) Prohibition.--The Federal recognition or acknowledgement of an 
Indian tribe or Alaska Native Group may not be withdrawn, except by an 
Act of Congress.
    (b) Leaders.--(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), the Federal 
recognition of the duly elected, appointed, or chosen leaders of an 
Indian tribe or Alaska Native group may not be withdrawn, except by an 
Act of Congress.
    (2) Paragraph (1) does not apply in the case of a change in 
leadership brought about pursuant to--
            (A) the election process specified in the constitution or 
        bylaws of a tribe subject to a constitution or bylaws, or
            (B) the process traditionally relied upon by a tribe which 
        does not have an election process specified in a constitution 
        or bylaws of the tribe.

SEC. 2. PETITION.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of the Interior may submit a 
petition to the committees and Members of Congress referred to in 
subsection (b) to withdraw the Federal acknowledgment or recognition of 
an Indian tribe or the Federal recognition of the leaders of an Indian 
tribe.
    (b) Committees and Members.--
            (1) Committees.--The committees referred to in subsection 
        (a) are the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of 
        Representatives and the Committee on Indian Affairs of the 
        Senate.
            (2) Members.--The Members of Congress referred to in 
        subsection (a) are--
                    (A) each Member of the House of Representatives in 
                whose district the Indian tribe is located; and
                    (B) the Senators of the State in which the Indian 
                tribe is located.

SEC. 3. DEFINITION.

    For the purposes of this Act, the term ``Indian tribe'' means any 
Indian tribe, band, nation, pueblo, or other organized group or 
community, including any Alaska Native village or regional corporation 
as defined in or established pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims 
Settlement Act, which is recognized as eligible for the special 
programs and services provided by the United States to Indians because 
of their status as Indians.

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