Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (ISDEAA)

What happened

For much of the twentieth century, federal agencies ran Indian schools, clinics and other services directly. Public Law 93-638, approved January 4, 1975, changed who holds the controls. In its opening policy section, Congress recognized the obligation of the United States to respond to the strong expression of the Indian people for self-determination. It promised "maximum Indian participation" in directing federal services to Indian communities.

The Act turns that policy into a mechanism. Today's codified text directs the Secretary, "upon the request of any Indian tribe by tribal resolution," to enter into a self-determination contract with a tribal organization to plan, conduct and administer programs that the federal government would otherwise run. Congress also said it wanted an "orderly transition from the Federal domination of programs for, and services to, Indians" to effective participation by the Indian people.

The Act is about program control and money, not land title. It still matters in court. In Becerra v. San Carlos Apache Tribe (2024), the Supreme Court described the law as one that "enables an Indian tribe to enter into contracts with the Indian Health Service (IHS) to assume responsibility for administering the healthcare programs that IHS would otherwise operate for the tribe." The case concerned how the government must pay for tribes' administration of those programs.

The Act keeps the federal government's own relationship in place. Its policy section declares a commitment to the Federal Government's "unique and continuing relationship with, and responsibility to" tribes.

Good to know. The quoted sections are today's codified text, which has been amended since 1975.

Summarized with AI assistance from 4 sources and checked against their words; not yet reviewed by historians or by the nations. Report an error