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Chapter Eight The ira Before Congress Stalemate and Response Although Commissioner Collier had with good reason assumed that the reform omnibus bill would be approved quickly by Congress simply because it was endorsed by the Roosevelt administration, things did not turn out that way. Instead, after a few early hearings no progress toward passage occurred at all for several months, and it was apparent that the bill was in serious trouble. Under Collier’s leadership, the bia responded creatively to these unexpected difficulties. One important result of the stalemate was unprecedented consultation with Indians in a series of regional meetings, which resulted in more meaningful Native American input. Eventually the barriers to passage were overcome, although it was June before the Indian Reorganization Act became law. When incontrovertible proof that it had the personal support of Franklin Roosevelt was offered, ultimate passage was ensured, although the content of the bill was still in dispute. The Bill as Introduced The reform bill as it went to Congress contained four titles extending over several major areas of law. The summary of the bill offered here focuses on the provisions dealing with Indian self-government. But because it was intended as a comprehensive reform statute its other major features must be noted. Title I, “Indian Self-Government,” declared it to be the policy of Congress “to grant to those Indians living under Federal tutelage and control the freedom to organize for the purposes of local self-government and economic enterprise . . . and to provide for cooperation between the Federal Government, the States, and organized Indian communities for Indian welfare.”1 This title contained two other statements of policy: that “those functions of government now exercised over Indian reservations by the Federal Government . . . shall be gradually relinquished and transferred to the Indians of such reservations” and that the national government would “assist in the development of Indian 220 08-N1289 6/21/2000 5:13 PM Page 220 capacities for self-government and economic competence by providing for the necessary training of Indians, and by rendering financial assistance and cooperation in establishing Indian communities” (section 1). Specifically, Title I authorized the secretary of the Interior to issue charters to two types of Indian groups. First, on petition of one-fourth of the “adult Indians residing on any existing reservation,” the secretary could issue a charter to the Indians of the reservation or a “subdivision thereof,” which would go into effect only when approved by a three-fifths vote of “all adult Indians” residing within the relevant territory who voted in an election called to determine whether the charter should be approved. Second, if “a new Indian community” came into existence by secretarial action (an option outlined in Title III), the secretary was empowered to issue a charter without any formal means of approval by the members of the community other than through their acceptance of membership in it (section 2). “Supplements” to both kinds of charters were to be made by the secretary if “initiated or ratified” by a threefourths vote of adult Indians voting in an election (section 4). This procedure would have been optional for Indians living on reservations and would have been triggered by them, although only a quarter of the population could start the process. While the charter would have required approval by more than a majority vote, there was no requirement that Indians participate in determining the content of the powers granted by the charter. For “scattered” Indians the Bureau would have had more control over the charterissuing process; Indians could consent to a charter only in the sense that they could refuse to join the community if they could not accept the charter. In other words, there was a mixture of Indian control with Bureau control in this crucial first process. However, we know from the last chapter that the plan was that the Bureau would take the initiative to acquire land for landless Indians but that it intended to allow Indians living on reservations to decide whether a charter should be issued and what its content would be. Whether this novel process, if it had been approved, would have actually provided for the Indian control the drafters intended will never be known. We do know that the purpose of the procedure was to allow for flexibility, so that only those forms of organization actually desired by reservation Indians would be authorized by the charter. The question is whether the problem of Bureau arbitrariness in organizational...

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