14-865: The Mi'kmaq Nation (formerly the Aroostook Band of Micmacs ) is a US federally recognized tribe of Mi'kmaq people , based in Aroostook County, Maine . Their autonym is Ulustuk . Of the 28 bands of Mi'kmaq people, the Mi'kmaq Nation is the only one in the United States. The Mi'kmaq Nation were the first non-US power to sign a treaty with the United States, the Treaty of Watertown , on 6 July 1776. The tribe has no reservation but owns 1,350 acres (5.5 km) of land. The United States Census Bureau listed 1,047 acres (4.236 km) of trust land in
28-475: A large Algonquian-speaking nation known as the Mi'kmaq. Their ancestral homeland reaches as far northeast as Newfoundland and historically includes Cape Breton Island , Nova Scotia , Prince Edward Island , a large part of New Brunswick , and a small part of Quebec in the Chaleurs Bay area. The band was federally recognized on November 26, 1991, after a long campaign. At the time of federal recognition,
42-661: The 2010 United States Census , located at 46°55′13″N 67°53′15″W / 46.92028°N 67.88750°W / 46.92028; -67.88750 in the Town of Limestone . An official population of 197 inhabitants was counted on the trust lands. The band is headquartered in Presque Isle . The governing council consists of nine members that serve four-year terms with the tribal chief and vice chief, along with three tribal council seats elected together and four other tribal council seats elected two years later. They form part of
56-707: The United States , the Native American tribe is a fundamental unit of sovereign tribal government. As the Department of the Interior explains, "federally recognized tribes are recognized as possessing certain inherent rights of self-government (i.e., tribal sovereignty)...." The constitution grants to the U.S. Congress the right to interact with tribes. More specifically, the Supreme Court of
70-452: The 1950s, the BIA in 1978 published final rules with procedures that groups had to meet to secure federal tribal acknowledgment. There are seven criteria. Four have proven troublesome for most groups to prove: long-standing historical community, outside identification as Indians, political authority, and descent from a historical tribe. Tribes seeking recognition must submit detailed petitions to
84-457: The 574th tribe to gain federal recognition on December 20, 2019. The website USA.gov , the federal government's official web portal, also maintains an updated list of tribal governments . Ancillary information present in former versions of this list but no longer contained in the current listing has been included here in italic print. The Federal Register
98-561: The BIA's Office of Federal Acknowledgment. To be formally recognized as an Indian tribe, the US Congress can legislate recognition or a tribe can meet the seven criteria outlined by the Office of Federal Acknowledgment. These seven criteria are summarized as: The federal acknowledgment process can take years, even decades; delays of 12 to 14 years have occurred. The Shinnecock Indian Nation formally petitioned for recognition in 1978 and
112-494: The United States in United States v. Sandoval warned, "it is not... that Congress may bring a community or body of people within range of this power by arbitrarily calling them an Indian tribe, but only that in respect of distinctly Indian communities the questions whether, to what extent, and for what time they shall be recognized and dealt with as dependent tribes" (at 46). Federal tribal recognition grants to tribes
126-702: The United States. Of these, 228 are located in Alaska and 109 are located in California. 346 of the 574 federally recognized tribes are located in the contiguous United States. Federally recognized tribes are those Native American tribes recognized by the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs as holding a government-to-government relationship with the US federal government . For Alaska Native tribes, see list of Alaska Native tribal entities . In
140-710: The addition of six tribes in Virginia under the Thomasina E. Jordan Indian Tribes of Virginia Federal Recognition Act of 2017, signed in January 2018 after the annual list had been published. In July 2018 the United States' Federal Register issued an official list of 573 tribes that are Indian Entities Recognized and Eligible To Receive Services From the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs . The Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians of Montana became
154-458: The right to certain benefits, and is largely administered by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). While trying to determine which groups were eligible for federal recognition in the 1970s, government officials became aware of the need for consistent procedures. To illustrate, several federally unrecognized tribes encountered obstacles in bringing land claims ; United States v. Washington (1974)
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#1732780182962168-554: The tribe was known as the Aroostook Band of Micmacs. In January 2022, the tribe officially adopted the name Mi'kmaq Nation. List of federally recognized tribes This is a list of federally recognized tribes in the contiguous United States . There are also federally recognized Alaska Native tribes . As of January 8, 2024 , 574 Indian tribes were legally recognized by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) of
182-585: Was a court case that affirmed the fishing treaty rights of Washington tribes; and other tribes demanded that the U.S. government recognize aboriginal titles . All the above culminated in the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act of 1975 , which legitimized tribal entities by partially restoring Native American self-determination . Following the decisions made by the Indian Claims Commission in
196-673: Was recognized 32 years later in 2010. At a Senate Committee on Indian Affairs hearing, witnesses testified that the process was "broken, long, expensive, burdensome, intrusive, unfair, arbitrary and capricious, less than transparent, unpredictable, and subject to undue political influence and manipulation." The number of tribes increased to 567 in May 2016 with the inclusion of the Pamunkey tribe in Virginia who received their federal recognition in July 2015. The number of tribes increased to 573 with
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