III.

Current Programs

Programs of the Bureau of Indian Affairs fall into the general categories of education, technical assistance, economic development, and trust protection. It builds, maintains, and staffs schools on large reservations where public schools are inaccessible. It also sponsors vocational training and employment programs for adults on reservations and in urban areas. To tribal governments, the bureau offers technical advice and service on administrative procedures, construction, and economic development projects. It maintains a loan fund to assist individual and tribal businesses. The bureau also oversees the preservation and use of land and other valuable natural resources that are held in trust for tribes by the federal government. Public Law 93-638 (passed in 1975) offers new employment opportunities to tribes by permitting them to take over some bureau programs and services under federal contracts.

Elected tribal governments enjoy certain sovereign rights in their relations with the federal government. The challenge facing the Bureau of Indian Affairs is to implement congressional policy mandates without infringing on these rights.