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Assistant Secretary - Indian Affairs

Assistant Secretary - Indian Affairs Blog

Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Affirms Status of Tejon Indian Tribe, Calif.

Corrected Letter sent to Tejon Indian Tribe, Calif. - January 06, 2012 - pdf 191kb

Press Release -  January 3, 2012 -  35 kb

ASIA Echohawk's response to the Honorable Doc Hastings inquiry into the reaffirmation of the Tejon Indian Tribe - April 25, 2012 - pdf 2mb

Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs' Progress of Empowerment Agenda

In a keynote address to the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) 2011 mid-year conference, Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs Larry Echo Hawk described the progress being made in a comprehensive agendea to restore integrity in U.S. government relations with American Indian and Alaska Native leaders, fulfill trust responsibilities to tribal members, and to work cooperatively to build stronger economies and safer tribal communities.

click here to download the document

 6/14/2011

Memorandum of Understanding between U.S. Department of the Interior and The Harvard Project on American Indian Economic Development John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University

The purposes of this Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) are to identify areas of possible future collaboration by which the respective parties can work together effectively to enhance practical knowledge concerning economic development for Indian tribes and tribal communities.

Download it here.

Brief Summary of the Office of the Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs

The Assistant Secretary–Indian Affairs assists and supports the Secretary of the Interior in fulfilling the United States’ trust responsibility to the Federally recognized American Indian and Alaska Native tribes and villages and individual Indian trust beneficiaries, as well as in maintaining the Federal-Tribal government-to-government relationship.

The AS-IA is supported by the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs; the Deputy Assistant Secretary-Management, whose area includes the Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO), the Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO), the Office of Human Capital Management (OHCM), the Office of Planning and Policy Analysis (OPPA), and the Office of Facilities, Environmental and Cultural Resources (OFECR); and the Deputy Assistant Secretary-Policy and Economic Development, who oversees the Office of Indian Energy and Economic Development (IEED), the Office of Indian Gaming (OIG), and the Office of Self-Governance (OSG). The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), which has the Office of Indian Services (OIS), the Office of Field Operations (OFO), the Office of Justice Services (OJS), and the Office of Trust Services (OTS); the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE); the Office of External Affairs, which is comprised of the Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs (OCLA) and the Office of Public Affairs (OPA); the Office of Federal Acknowledgment (OFA); and the Office of Regulatory Management (ORM) also report directly to the AS-IA.

There have been 11 AS-IAs since the post was established by DOI Secretarial order in 1977: Forrest J. Gerard, Blackfeet (1977-1980); Thomas W. Fredericks, Mandan-Hidatsa (1981); Kenneth L. Smith, Wasco (1981-1984); Ross O. Swimmer, Cherokee Nation (1985-1989); Dr. Eddie F. Brown, Tohono O’odham-Yaqui (1989-1993); Ada E. Deer, Menominee (1993-1997); Kevin Gover, Pawnee (1997-2001); Neal McCaleb, Chickasaw Nation (2001-2002); David W. Anderson, Lac Courte Oreilles Chippewa-Choctaw (2004-2005); Carl J. Artman, Oneida Tribe of Wisconsin (2007-2008); and Larry Echo Hawk, Pawnee (2009-2012).