Secretarial Review is a part of the
Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 (IRA). According to this law,
Native American tribes were expected to write constitutions loosely resembling the
United States Constitution. These IRA constitutions provided for a
Tribal Council elected by the population and a chair person for the tribe; the chair person was either elected
at-large
At large (''before a noun'': at-large) is a description for members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent a whole membership or population (notably a city, county, state, province, nation, club or association), rather than ...
, or was chosen from among the members of the council.
There was generally no provision for a Tribal
Judiciary
The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...
. In the section of the tribal constitutions pertaining to the powers of the Tribal Council, there was generally a paragraph entitled "Manner of Review" which stated, "
y resolution or
ordinance which by the terms of this Constitution, is subject to review by the
Secretary of the Interior, shall be presented to the Superintendent of the
reservation __NOTOC__
Reservation may refer to: Places
Types of places:
* Indian reservation, in the United States
* Military base, often called reservations
* Nature reserve
Government and law
* Reservation (law), a caveat to a treaty
* Reservation in India, ...
who shall, within ten days thereafter, approve or disapprove of the same."
As Tribal leaders engage in constitutional reform, the review by the Secretary of Interior is often removed from the constitution.
[See amendments to ''Constitution of the Zuni Tribe, Zuni Reservation'', ]Zuni Pueblo, New Mexico
Zuni Pueblo (also Zuñi Pueblo, Zuni: ''Halona Idiwan’a'' meaning ‘Middle Place’) is a census-designated place (CDP) in McKinley County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 6,302 as of the 2010 Census. It is inhabited largely by ...
, ''Constitution of the Tohono O'odham Nation''. See also more recent Tribal Constitutions: ''Constitution of the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe
Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan ( oj, Ziibiwing Anishinaabek) is a federally recognized band of Chippewa (a.k.a. Ojibwe) located in central Michigan in the United States.
The tribal government offices are located on the Isabella Indian ...
of Michigan
Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...
'', ''Constitution of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation.''
References
Native American law
United States Bureau of Indian Affairs
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