About the Senate Committee System

Jurisdiction and Authority of the Committee on Indian Affairs

Rules of the Committee

History of the Committee on Indian Affairs

Summary. In 1977, the Senate re-established the Committee on Indian Affairs, making it a temporary Select Committee [February 4, 1977, S. Res. 4, § 105, 95th Congress., 1st Sess. (1977), as amended]. The Select Committee was to disband at the close of the 95th Congress, but following several term extensions, the Senate voted to make the Committee permanent on June 6, 1984. The Committee has jurisdiction to study the unique problems of American Indian, Native Hawaiian, and Alaska Native peoples and to propose legislation to alleviate these difficulties. These issues include, but are not limited to, Indian education, economic development, land management, trust responsibilities, health care, and claims against the United States. Additionally, all legislation proposed by Members of the Senate that specifically pertains to American Indians, Native Hawaiians, or Alaska Natives is under the jurisdiction of the Committee.

History. Until 1946, when a legislative reorganization act abolished both the House and Senate Committees on Indian Affairs, the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs had been in existence since the early 19th century. After 1946, Indian affairs legislative and oversight jurisdiction was vested in subcommittees of the Interior and Insular Affairs Committees of the House of Representatives and the Senate. While this subcommittee arrangement may not have specifically reflected a diminishment of the consideration given Indian affairs by the Congress, the revised arrangement historically coincided with a 20-year hiatus in Indian affairs known as the "Termination Era" -- a period in which the prevailing policy of the United States was to terminate the Federal relationship with Indian tribes or transfer jurisdiction over tribal lands to the states.

By the mid-1960's, this Termination philosophy was in decline as a failed policy and the Congress began to include Indian tribes in legislation designed to rebuild the social infrastructure of the Nation and provide economic opportunities for economically-depressed areas. In the early 1970's the Termination era was decisively ended with the enactment of the Menominee Restoration Act of 1973. Although a number of important legislative initiatives affecting Indians were enacted in the early 1970's, it became clear that the existing subcommittee structure was not providing an adequate forum for legislating appropriate solutions to problems confronting Indian country. Legislative jurisdiction over Indian affairs was fragmented among a number of committees. Overall, more than 10 committees in the Congress were responsible for Indian affairs, a situation which resulted in a sometimes disjointed treatment of Indian affairs and in an often haphazard development of Federal Indian policy.

Re-Establishment of Committee. In 1973, Senator James Abourezk introduced Senate Joint Resolution No. 133 to establish a Federal commission to review all aspects of policy, law, and administration relating to affairs of the United States with American Indian tribes and people. The Senate and the House of Representatives both adopted S.J. Res. 133 and on January 2, 1975, the Resolution was signed into law by the President, thus establishing the American Indian Policy Review Commission [Public Law 93-580]. As the work of this Commission progressed, it became readily apparent that a full Senate committee with full legislative and oversight authority was needed to receive the report of the American Indian Policy Review Commission and to act upon its recommendations. Indeed, one of the final recommendations of the Commission was that a full-fledged Indian Affairs Committee be established in the Senate.

At the same time the Commission was formulating its recommendation for the establishment of an Indian Affairs Committee, the Senate was developing a far-reaching proposal for reorganization of the entire Senate committee system. Under this proposal, the Subcommittee on Indian Affairs under the Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs was to be abolished with its natural resource functions to be distributed among other newly formed Senate committees and its human resources functions to be transferred to the Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources. In view of the pending report of the American Indian Policy Review Commission and its anticipated recommendations, however, the Senate revamped its committee reorganization proposal to include the establishment of a temporary select committee to receive the Commission's report and to act on its recommendations. Thus, there was included within Senate Resolution 4 of February 4, 1977, the Committee System Reorganization Amendments of 1977, a provision to establish a Select Committee on Indian Affairs with full jurisdiction over all proposed legislation and other matters relating to Indian affairs. With the commencement of the 96th Congress, the Select Committee on Indian Affairs was to expire and jurisdiction over Indian matters was to be transferred to the Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources.

As the Select Committee on Indian Affairs grappled with the report of the American Indian Policy Review Commission and the many other Indian issues that were presented to it during the 95th Congress, it became increasingly evident that if the Congress was to continue to meet its constitutional, legal, and historical responsibilities in the area of Indian affairs, an ongoing legislative committee with adequate expertise and resources should be re-established in the Senate.

Senate Resolution 405, to make the Select Committee on Indian Affairs a permanent committee of the Senate, was introduced by Senator Abourezk on February 22, 1978. The measure was amended by the Rules Committee to extend the life of the committee for two years until January 2, 1981, and was agreed to by the Senate on October 14, 1978. In the 96th Congress, Senator John Melcher, who was at the time Chairman of the Select Committee, introduced S. Res. 448 to make it a permanent committee. The Resolution had 28 cosponsors, and was reported by the Rules Committee with an amendment to extend the select committee to January 2, 1984, and to expand the membership to seven members commencing in the 97th Congress. S. Res. 448 was adopted by the Senate on December 11, 1980.

Permanent Committee. On April 28, 1983, Senator Mark Andrews, Chairman of the Select Committee on Indian Affairs in the 98th Congress, introduced S. Res. 127 to make the committee a permanent committee. This Resolution had 28 cosponsors. On November 1, 1983, the Committee on Rules and Administration voted unanimously to report the Resolution without amendment, and the Resolution was so reported on November 2, 1983 (S. Rept. 98-294). On November 18, the last day of the first session of the 98th Congress, the Senate agreed to an extension of the select committee to July 1, 1984, in order to allow time for later debate. By the time the Resolution was brought to the floor for consideration there were 60 cosponsors. On June 4, 1984, the Select Committee on Indian Affairs was made a permanent committee of the Senate [S. Res. 127, 98th Congress, 2nd Sess.]. In 1993, the Select Committee on Indian Affairs was redesignated as the Committee on Indian Affairs [§ 25, S. Res. 71, 103rd Cong., 1st Sess.].

Number of Members. The number of members serving on the committee has expanded since its formation in 1977. At the time the committee was formed in the 95th Congress, there were five members. The membership remained at five in the 96th Congress, but grew to seven in the 97th Congress and the 98th Congress. The membership increased to nine in the 99th Congress, and by the 101st Congress, the committee membership grew to 10. In the 102nd Congress the membership of the Committee expanded to 16 members. A further increase occurred in the beginning of the 103rd Congress when the membership was expanded to 18. In the 104th Congress, the Senate named 17 of its members to serve on the Committee, and elected Senator John McCain as Chairman and Senator Daniel K. Inouye as Vice-Chairman.

Committee membership totaled 15 in the 105^th, 106^th, and 107^th Congress and Senator Campbell served as Chairman during that time. In May, 2001 Senator Jim Jeffords left the Republican party to become an Independent and Senator Inouye became Chairman, presiding over the 15-member Committee. As the Committee enters the 108^th Congress, there are 15 members, with new Republican members Senator Lisa Murkowski and Senator Gordon Smith added to its ranks.