[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 233 (Thursday, December 4, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64232-64234]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-31747]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Indian Affairs


Lower Sioux Indian Community of Minnesota

AGENCY: Bureau of Indian Affairs, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice is published in accordance with authority 
delegated by the Secretary of the Interior to the Assistant Secretary--
Indian Affairs by 209 DM 8, and in accordance with the Act of August 
15, 1953, 67 Stat. 586, 18 U.S.C. 1161, as interpreted by the Supreme 
Court in Rice v. Rehner, 463 U.S. 713 (1983). I certify that the Lower 
Sioux Indian Community of Minnesota Liquor Control Ordinance was duly 
adopted and certified by Resolution No. 39-97 of the Lower Sioux Indian 
Community Council on March 25, 1997. The ordinance provides for the 
regulation, sale possession and use of alcoholic liquor and beer within 
the Tribe's jurisdiction.

DATES: This ordinance is effective as of December 4, 1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jerry Cordova, Office of Tribal 
Services, 1849 C Street, N.W., MS 4641 MIB, Washington, D.C. 20240-
4401; telephone (202) 208-4401.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Lower Sioux Indian Community of 
Minnesota Liquor Ordinance is to read as follows:

Lower Sioux Indian Community in Minnesota

[Resolution No. 39-97]

    Be it resolved that the following LIQUOR CONTROL ORDINANCE is 
hereby adopted by the Lower Sioux Community Council.
    I certify that Resolution No. 39-97 was duly adopted by the Lower 
Sioux Community Council at a meeting held on the 25th day of March , 
1997, a quorum being present, by a vote of 4 in favor, 0 opposed, and 0 
abstaining.
Betty Lee,
Secretary.

Liquor Control Ordinance; Lower Sioux Indian Community in Minnesota

Section 1. Requirement of License

    No person shall sell alcoholic beverages within the Indian Country 
that lies within the jurisdiction of the Lower Sioux Indian Community, 
unless such sale meets the requirements of this Ordinance and takes 
place pursuant to a license issued by the Lower Sioux Community Council 
under this Ordinance.

Section 2. Definitions

    For purposes of this Ordinance, the following terms have the 
meanings given them.
    Subd. 1. ``Alcoholic beverage'' shall mean any beverage containing 
more than one-half of one percent alcohol by volume.
    Subd. 2. ``Community'' shall mean the Lower Sioux Indian Community 
in Minnesota.
    Subd. 3. ``Community Council'' shall mean the Community Council of 
the Lower Sioux Indian Community in Minnesota.
    Subd. 4. ``Community Court'' shall mean the Court of the Lower 
Sioux Indian Community.

Section 3. Licenses

    Subd. 1. On-Sale Licenses. Licenses for the sale of alcoholic 
beverages for consumption on the premises of sale within the Indian 
Country that lies within the jurisdiction of the Community may be 
issued by the Community Council only to an organization wholly owned by 
the Community, to a subordinate organization of the Community chartered 
under the provisions of Article V, section (n) of the Community 
Constitution, or to a person under

[[Page 64233]]

contract with the Community or such a subordinate organization.
    Subd. 2. Off-Sale Licenses. Not more than two licenses for the sale 
of alcoholic beverages for consumption off the premises of sale within 
the Indian Country that lies within the jurisdiction of the Community 
may be issued by the Community Council; and such licenses, if issued, 
shall be only to an organization wholly owned by the Community, to a 
subordinate organization of the Community chartered under the 
provisions of Article V, section (n) of the Community Constitution, or 
to a person under contract with the Community or such a subordinate 
organization.

Section 4. Applications: Required Information

    Applications for a license to sell alcoholic beverages under this 
Ordinance shall be submitted in writing to the Community Council, on a 
form prepared by the Community Council. The application shall contain 
the following information:
    Subd. 1. Name and Address. The application shall set forth the name 
and address of the applicant.
    Subd. 2. Relationship to Community. The application shall set forth 
whether the applicant is an organization wholly owned by the Community, 
a subordinate organization of the Community chartered under the 
provisions of Article V, section (n) of the Community Constitution, or 
a person under contract with the Community or such an organization.
    Subd. 3. Proposed Location. The application shall describe 
specifically the land or building where the applicant will sell 
alcoholic beverages.
    Subd. 4. State Law Requirements. The application shall contain an 
acknowledgment that the applicant conforms to the requirements of the 
laws of the State of Minnesota as they relate to the obtaining of 
liquor licenses elsewhere in the State of Minnesota, and that the 
applicant will conform to the requirements of the State of Minnesota as 
they relate to transactions involving alcoholic beverages elsewhere in 
the State of Minnesota.
    Subd. 5. Signature. The application shall be dated and signed by 
the applicant, if the applicant is a natural person, or by the person 
authorized to legally bind the applicant to compliance with the terms 
of this Ordinance, if the applicant is an organization, and such 
signature shall constitute an acknowledgment that the provisions of 
this Ordinance shall apply to any license issued hereunder.

Section 5. Finding Prerequisite to License Issuance

    Licenses for the sale of alcoholic beverages may be issued by the 
Community Council if the Community Council finds, in its sound 
discretion, on the basis of the facts disclosed by the application and 
by such additional information as the Community Council may deem 
relevant, that such issuance is in the best interests of the Community, 
and that the licensing requirements of the State of Minnesota have been 
met by the applicant. The Community Council may reject any application 
for a license, or for a renewal of a license, if the applicant 
previously has committed acts which have resulted in the suspension or 
revocation of a license under this Ordinance or under the laws of the 
State of Minnesota, or if the Community Council is of the view, in its 
sound discretion, that granting the application would not be in the 
best interests of the Community. The Community Council shall state, in 
writing, its reasons for granting or denying each application.

Section 6. Requirements Contained in Licenses

    Licenses for the sale of alcoholic beverages shall contain the 
following requirements:
    Subd. 1. Conformance to Community and State Law. Each license shall 
require its holder to conform its operations to the laws of the State 
of Minnesota that relate to the sale or possession of alcoholic 
beverages, and the continued effectiveness of each license shall be 
expressly conditioned upon the compliance of its holder with all 
provisions of this Ordinance and the laws of the State of Minnesota 
that relate to the sale or possession of alcoholic beverages.
    Subd. 2. Terms; Renewals. Each license shall state the term of its 
effectiveness. No license shall be effective for a term of more than 
three years from the date of its issuance, and each renewal thereof 
shall be subject to the same procedures that apply to the initial 
issuance of a license.

Section 7. Inspection of Premises

    The Community Council, and its officers and agents designated in 
writing for such purposes, shall have the authority, with or without 
notice, to inspect the premises of any licensee under this Ordinance 
during normal business hours.

Section 8. Suspension and Revocation--Procedures

    The Community Council shall have the authority to suspend or revoke 
any license issued under this Ordinance, under the following 
procedures:
    Subd. 1. Written Notice to Licensee. Upon receiving information 
giving the Community Council probable cause to conclude that a licensee 
under this Ordinance may have violated the terms of the license or 
applicable law, the Community Council shall give the licensee written 
notice of the apparent violation and, if the Community Council so 
determines, that the Community Council intends to suspend or revoke the 
licensee's license. Such notice shall specify the grounds for the 
proposed suspension or revocation, and shall be served personally upon 
the licensee, or sent by certified mail to the licensee, return receipt 
requested.
    Subd. 2. Temporary Emergency Suspension. If, in the judgment of the 
Community Council, the actions of a licensee pose an immediate threat 
of irreparable harm to the Community or the public, the Community 
Council may, by issuing the written notice required by this section, 
immediately suspend the licensee's license. The written notice shall 
state the reasons which justify such immediate suspension.
    Subd. 3. Right to Request Hearing; Effect of Failure to Request 
Hearing. Any licensee who receives notice of a proposed suspension or 
revocation may request a hearing by the Community Council by sending a 
written request therefor, certified mail, return receipt requested, to 
the Chairman of the Community Council within seven days of the 
licensee's receipt of the Community Council's notice. If after receipt 
of a notice of a proposed suspension or revocation, a licensee fails to 
timely request a hearing, the Community Council may without a hearing 
suspend or revoke the licensee's license, and the licensee shall have 
no right to any further review of such action by the Community Court 
under Section 9 of this Ordinance.
    Subd. 4. Time of Hearing. Upon receipt of a timely request for 
hearing under this Ordinance, the Community Council shall set a date 
for a hearing on the revocation or suspension of a license, which date 
shall be not later than thirty days from the date of the Community 
Council's receipt of the hearing request, provided that if the license 
has been the subject of an emergency suspension, the hearing shall be 
held not later than seven days from the date of the Community Council's 
receipt of the hearing request.
    Subd. 5. Evidence at Hearing. At a hearing held under this 
Ordinance, the licensee shall be permitted to present evidence with 
respect to its compliance

[[Page 64234]]

with the terms of its license and applicable law. In reaching its 
decision, the Community Council may consider such evidence, together 
with all other evidence it deems relevant. Following a hearing, if in 
the judgment of the Community Council the licensee has not complied 
with the terms of its license and applicable law, the Community Council 
shall suspend or revoke its license; and if in the judgment of the 
Community Council the terms of the license and applicable law have been 
complied with, the proceedings shall be dismissed. Decisions of the 
Community Council to suspend or revoke a license, or to dismiss 
suspension or revocation proceedings, shall be in writing, and shall be 
subject to review only under the provisions of Section 9 of this 
Ordinance.
    Subd. 6. Suspension or Revocation Sole Community Sanction. 
Suspension or revocation of a license shall be the sole sanction which 
the Community Council shall impose for a licensee's noncompliance with 
this Ordinance. No civil or criminal penalties shall be imposed by the 
Community Council upon a licensee under this Ordinance.

Section 9. Review of Community Council Decisions

    Any person or organization which has applied for a license or a 
renewal of a license and to which a license has been denied under 
Section 5 of this Ordinance, and any licensee whose license has been 
suspended or revoked by the Community Council after a hearing under 
Section 8 of this Ordinance, may seek review of the decision of the 
Community Council by filing a civil action in the Community Court 
within thirty days after the decision is rendered. Such actions shall 
be heard under the provisions of the Judicial Code of the Community, 
and the Community herewith waives its sovereign immunity from 
unconsented suit as to such actions. The jurisdiction of the Community 
Court to review decisions of the Community Council under this Ordinance 
shall be exclusive of all other courts.
    Subd. 1. Standard of Review. The Community Court shall reverse the 
decision of the Community Council only if clear and convincing evidence 
supports the conclusion that the Community Council abused its 
discretion, or denied the licensee due process or equal protection of 
the laws in contravention of the Indian Civil Rights Act of 1988, 25 
U.S.C. Sec. 1302.
    Subd. 2. Effect of Decision Pending Appeal. The decision of the 
Community Council denying, suspending, or revoking a license shall be 
effective pending appeal from the decision, unless the Community Court 
decides, following an evidentiary hearing, that it is highly likely 
that the appellant will succeed on the merits of the appeal and issues 
an order accordingly.

    Dated: November 19, 1997.
Kevin Gover,
Assistant Secretary--Indian Affairs.
[FR Doc. 97-31747 Filed 12-3-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-02-P