25 Cfr 151

Bureau of Indian Affairs, Interior

§ 151.1

Titles and Records Offices are designated as Certifying Officers for this
purpose. When a copy or reproduction
of a title document is authenticated by
the official seal and certified by a Manager, Land Titles and Records Office,
the copy or reproduction shall be admitted into evidence the same as the
original from which it was made. The
fees for furnishing such certified copies
are established by a uniform fee schedule applicable to all constituent units
of the Department of the Interior and
published in 43 CFR part 2, appendix A.
§ 150.11 Disclosure of land records,
title documents, and title reports.
(a) The usefulness of a Land Titles
and Records Office depends in large
measure on the ability of the public to
consult the records contained therein.
It is therefore, the policy of the Bureau
of Indian Affairs to allow access to
land records and title documents unless such access would violate the Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C. 552a or other law restricting access to such records, or
there are strong policy grounds for denying access where such access is not
required by the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552. It shall be the
policy of the Bureau of Indian Affairs
that, unless specifically authorized,
monetary considerations will not be
disclosed insofar as leases of tribal
land are concerned.
(b) Before disclosing information
concerning any living individual, the
Manager, Land Titles and Records Office, shall consult 5 U.S.C. 552a(b) and
the notice of routine users then in effect to determine whether the information may be released without the written consent of the person to whom it
pertains.

PART 151—LAND ACQUISITIONS
Sec.
151.1 Purpose and scope.
151.2 Definitions.
151.3 Land acquisition policy.
151.4 Acquisitions in trust of lands owned in
fee by an Indian.
151.5 Trust acquisitions in Oklahoma under
section 5 of the I.R.A.
151.6 Exchanges.
151.7 Acquisition of fractional interests.
151.8 Tribal consent for nonmember acquisitions.

151.9 Requests for approval of acquisitions.
151.10 On-reservation acquisitions.
151.11 Off-reservation acquisitions.
151.12 Action on requests.
151.13 Title examination.
151.14 Formalization of acceptance.
151.15 Information collection.
AUTHORITY: R.S. 161: 5 U.S.C. 301. Interpret
or apply 46 Stat. 1106, as amended; 46 Stat.
1471, as amended; 48 Stat. 985, as amended; 49
Stat. 1967, as amended, 53 Stat. 1129; 63 Stat.
605; 69 Stat. 392, as amended; 70 Stat. 290, as
amended; 70 Stat. 626; 75 Stat. 505; 77 Stat.
349; 78 Stat. 389; 78 Stat. 747; 82 Stat. 174, as
amended, 82 Stat. 884; 84 Stat. 120; 84 Stat.
1874; 86 Stat. 216; 86 Stat. 530; 86 Stat. 744; 88
Stat. 78; 88 Stat. 81; 88 Stat. 1716; 88 Stat.
2203; 88 Stat. 2207; 25 U.S.C. 2, 9, 409a, 450h,
451, 464, 465, 487, 488, 489, 501, 502, 573, 574, 576,
608, 608a, 610, 610a, 622, 624, 640d–10, 1466, 1495,
and other authorizing acts.
CROSS REFERENCE: For regulations pertaining to: The inheritance of interests in
trust or restricted land, see parts 15, 16, and
17 of this title and 43 CFR part 4; the purchase of lands under the BIA Loan Guaranty,
Insurance and Interest Subsidy program, see
part 103 of this title; the exchange and partition of trust or restricted lands, see part 152
of this title; land acquisitions authorized by
the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act, see parts 900 and 276
of this title; the acquisition of allotments on
the public domain or in national forests, see
43 CFR part 2530; the acquisition of Native
allotments and Native townsite lots in Alaska, see 43 CFR parts 2561 and 2564; the acquisition of lands by Indians with funds borrowed from the Farmers Home Administration, see 7 CFR part 1823, subpart N; the acquisition of land by purchase or exchange for
members of the Osage Tribe not having certificates of competency, see §§ 117.8 and 158.54
of this title.
SOURCE: 45 FR 62036, Sept. 18, 1980, unless
otherwise noted. Redesignated at 47 FR 13327,
Mar. 30, 1982.

§ 151.1 Purpose and scope.
These regulations set forth the authorities, policy, and procedures governing the acquisition of land by the
United States in trust status for individual Indians and tribes. Acquisition
of land by individual Indians and tribes
in fee simple status is not covered by
these regulations even though such
land may, by operation of law, be held
in restricted status following acquisition. Acquisition of land in trust status
by inheritance or escheat is not covered by these regulations. These regulations do not cover the acquisition of

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§ 151.2

25 CFR Ch. I (4–1–06 Edition)

land in trust status in the State of
Alaska, except acquisitions for the
Metlakatla Indian Community of the
Annette Island Reserve or it members.
§ 151.2 Definitions.
(a) Secretary means the Secretary of
the Interior or authorized representative.
(b) Tribe means any Indian tribe,
band, nation, pueblo, community,
rancheria, colony, or other group of Indians, including the Metlakatla Indian
Community of the Annette Island Reserve, which is recognized by the Secretary as eligible for the special programs and services from the Bureau of
Indian Affairs. For purposes of acquisitions made under the authority of 25
U.S.C. 488 and 489, or other statutory
authority which specifically authorizes
trust acquisitions for such corporations, ‘‘Tribe’’ also means a corporation chartered under section 17 of the
Act of June 18, 1934 (48 Stat. 988; 25
U.S.C. 477) or section 3 of the Act of
June 26, 1936 (49 Stat. 1967; 25 U.S.C.
503).
(c) Individual Indian means:
(1) Any person who is an enrolled
member of a tribe;
(2) Any person who is a descendent of
such a member and said descendant
was, on June 1, 1934, physically residing
on a federally recognized Indian reservation;
(3) Any other person possessing a
total of one-half or more degree Indian
blood of a tribe;
(4) For purposes of acquisitions outside of the State of Alaska, Individual
Indian also means a person who meets
the qualifications of paragraph (c)(1),
(2), or (3) of this section where ‘‘Tribe’’
includes any Alaska Native Village or
Alaska Native Group which is recognized by the Secretary as eligible for
the special programs and services from
the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
(d) Trust land or land in trust status
means land the title to which is held in
trust by the United States for an individual Indian or a tribe.
(e) Restricted land or land in restricted
status means land the title to which is
held by an individual Indian or a tribe
and which can only be alienated or encumbered by the owner with the approval of the Secretary because of limi-

tations contained in the conveyance instrument pursuant to Federal law or
because of a Federal law directly imposing such limitations.
(f) Unless another definition is required by the act of Congress authorizing a particular trust acquisition, Indian reservation means that area of land
over which the tribe is recognized by
the United States as having governmental jurisdiction, except that, in the
State of Oklahoma or where there has
been a final judicial determination
that a reservation has been disestablished or diminished, Indian reservation
means that area of land constituting
the former reservation of the tribe as
defined by the Secretary.
(g) Land means real property or any
interest therein.
(h) Tribal consolidation area means a
specific area of land with respect to
which the tribe has prepared, and the
Secretary has approved, a plan for the
acquisition of land in trust status for
the tribe.
[45 FR 62036, Sept. 18, 1980, as amended at 60
FR 32879, June 23, 1995]

§ 151.3 Land acquisition policy.
Land not held in trust or restricted
status may only be acquired for an individual Indian or a tribe in trust status when such acquisition is authorized
by an act of Congress. No acquisition of
land in trust status, including a transfer of land already held in trust or restricted status, shall be valid unless
the acquisition is approved by the Secretary.
(a) Subject to the provisions contained in the acts of Congress which
authorize land acquisitions, land may
be acquired for a tribe in trust status:
(1) When the property is located
within the exterior boundaries of the
tribe’s reservation or adjacent thereto,
or within a tribal consolidation area;
or
(2) When the tribe already owns an
interest in the land; or
(3) When the Secretary determines
that the acquisition of the land is necessary to facilitate tribal self-determination, economic development, or
Indian housing.
(b) Subject to the provisions contained in the acts of Congress which
authorize land acquisitions or holding

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