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69-657: The Bureau of Indian Affairs ( BIA ), also known as Indian Affairs ( IA ), is a United States federal agency within the Department of the Interior . It is responsible for implementing federal laws and policies related to Native Americans and Alaska Natives , and administering and managing over 55,700,000 acres (225,000 km) of reservations held in trust by the U.S. federal government for indigenous tribes . It renders services to roughly 2 million indigenous Americans across 574 federally recognized tribes. The BIA

138-477: A close relationship with that company's owner, John Jacob Astor , started hearings with the aim to abolish the factory system and open the fur trade for uninhibited private enterprise and profit-making . Among the system's defenders were the future Vice President Richard Mentor Johnson and the future President Martin Van Buren . Nevertheless, Congress abolished the government fur trade factories in 1821, giving

207-485: A difficult task as the BIA is known by many Indians as playing a police role in which the U.S. government historically dictated to tribes and their members what they could and could not do in accordance with treaties signed by both. Commissioners and assistant secretaries of Indian Affairs include: List of United States federal agencies [REDACTED] [REDACTED] Legislative definitions of an agency of

276-470: A federally recognized tribe possessed. The bills excluded any splinter groups, political factions, and any groups formed after December 31, 2002. In 2013 the Bureau was greatly affected by sequestration funding cuts of $ 800 million, which particularly affected the already-underfunded Indian Health Service . The Bureau of Indian Affairs has been sued four times in class action overtime lawsuits brought by

345-532: A group of around 500  American Indians with the AIM took over the BIA building, the culmination of their Trail of Broken Treaties walk. They intended to bring attention to American Indian issues, including their demands for renewed negotiation of treaties, enforcement of treaty rights and improvement in living standards. They occupied the Department of Interior headquarters from November 3 to 9, 1972. The BIA

414-578: A major class action case related to trust lands, was settled in December 2009. The suit was filed against the U.S. Department of Interior, of which the BIA is a part. A major responsibility has been the management of the Indian trust accounts. This was a class-action lawsuit regarding the federal government's management and accounting of more than 300,000 individual American Indian and Alaska Native trust accounts. A settlement fund totaling $ 3.4 billion

483-504: A means of making the Native Americans adopt a sedentary lifestyle. Once settled as agriculturalists they would be willing to sell surplus land not needed for hunting. On several occasions, Jefferson wrote to various officials that the job of the trading posts was to encourage indebtedness beyond the leading men's personal ability to pay thereby goading them into surrender land to get rid of the debt. Several treaties ceding land to

552-631: Is governed by a director and overseen by the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, who answers to the Secretary of the Interior . The BIA works with tribal governments to help administer law enforcement and justice; promote development in agriculture, infrastructure, and the economy; enhance tribal governance; manage natural resources; and generally advance the quality of life in tribal communities. Educational services are provided by Bureau of Indian Education —the only other agency under

621-819: Is the bicameral legislature of the United States government, and is made up of two chambers: the United States Senate (the upper chamber) and the United States House of Representatives (the lower chamber). Together, the two chambers exercise authority over the following legislative agencies: The legislature also oversees the Library of Congress (LOC), a national library dedicated to national records, which administers various programs, agencies, and services including: The federal judiciary consists of courts established under Article Three of

690-435: Is to be distributed to class members. This is to compensate for claims that prior U.S. officials had mismanaged the administration of Indian trust assets. In addition, the settlement establishes a $ 2 billion fund enabling federally recognized tribes to voluntarily buy back and consolidate fractionated land interests. The bureau is currently trying to evolve from a supervisory to an advisory role. However, this has been

759-635: The American Indian Movement  (AIM) worried the U.S. government; the FBI responded both overtly and covertly (by creating COINTELPRO and other programs) to suppress possible uprisings among native peoples. As a branch of the U.S. government with personnel on Indian reservations , BIA police were involved in political actions such as: The occupation of BIA headquarters in Washington, D.C., in 1972 : On November 3, 1972,

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828-682: The Executive Residence (EXR) maintained by the Office of Administration (OA). To effectively run the country's affairs, the President also maintains councils regarding various issues, including: United States Government Fur Trade Factory System The factory system was set up on the initiative of George Washington who thought it would neutralize the influence of British traders doing business on United States territory. As an honest alternative to private trade it would also further

897-673: The Federation of Indian Service Employees , a union which represents the federal civilian employees of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Bureau of Indian Education, the assistant secretary of Indian affairs and the Office of the Special Trustee for Indian Affairs. The grievances allege widespread violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act and claim tens of millions of dollars in damages. Cobell vs. Salazar ,

966-723: The Government in the Sunshine Act . These further cloud attempts to enumerate a list of agencies. The executive branch of the federal government includes the Executive Office of the President and the United States federal executive departments (whose secretaries belong to the Cabinet ). Employees of the majority of these agencies are considered civil servants . The majority of the independent agencies of

1035-851: The Non-Intercourse Act of 1809 made it more difficult for private traders to acquire foreign goods. British traders avoided that problem as their import from England went to Montreal and from there to Pittsburgh, down the Ohio and up the Mississippi. The merchandise included blankets, strouds , siamoise cotton, mammoodies cotton, calamanco , Bocking bay , pullicats , rumals , shalloons , guns, gunpowder, lead, axes, knives, gorgets , kettles, tin cups, cowbells, maul rings, hoes, frying pans, arm bands, shirts, earbobs, silk stock, tinsel hatbands, Jew's harps, side-saddles, wampum, trinkets, coffee, and food items. Transportation of merchandise to

1104-540: The United States Government Fur Trade Factory System . The post was held by Thomas L. McKenney from 1816 until the abolition of the factory system in 1822. The government licensed traders to have some control in Indian territories and gain a share of the lucrative trade. The abolition of the factory system left a vacuum within the U.S. government regarding Native American relations. The Bureau of Indian Affairs

1173-562: The federal government of the United States are varied, and even contradictory. The official United States Government Manual offers no definition. While the Administrative Procedure Act definition of "agency" applies to most executive branch agencies, Congress may define an agency however it chooses in enabling legislation, and through subsequent litigation often involving the Freedom of Information Act and

1242-429: The principal sum but gave no profit. An annual amount of $ 8,000 was allotted for maintenance of the physical assets. The law was limited to two years plus the duration of Congress. When the law of 1796 expired on March 4, 1799, the factories continued in operation anyway. In 1802, President Jefferson pointed out that the enabling act had become invalid and Congress subsequently renewed it until March 4, 1803. In 1803,

1311-572: The 1831 court case Cherokee Nation v. Georgia . The Supreme Court originally refused to hear the case, because the Cherokee nation was not an independent state and could not litigate in the federal court. It was not until the court case Worcester v. Georgia , when Chief Justice John Marshall allowed Native American tribes to be recognized as "domestic dependent nations." These court cases set precedent for future treaties, as more Native tribes were recognized as domestic and dependent nations. This period

1380-564: The Assistant Secretary for Indian affairs—while health care is the responsibility of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services through its Indian Health Service . The BIA is one of the oldest federal agencies in the U.S., with roots tracing back to the Committee on Indian Affairs established by Congress in 1775. First headed by Benjamin Franklin , the committee oversaw trade and treaty relations with various indigenous peoples, until

1449-506: The BIA is headed by a bureau director who reports to the assistant secretary for Indian affairs. The current assistant secretary is Bryan Newland . The BIA oversees 574 federally recognized tribes through four offices: Agencies related to Native Americans originated in 1775, when the Second Continental Congress created a trio of Indian-related agencies. Benjamin Franklin and Patrick Henry were appointed among

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1518-429: The BIA. In particular, problems in enforcing treaties, handling records and trust land incomes were disputed. In 2002 Congress worked with the Bureau to prepare bill S.1392, which established procedures for tribal recognition. A separate bill S. 1393 ensured full and fair participation in decision-making processes at the Bureau via grants. Both bills addressed what services, limitations, obligations, and responsibilities

1587-502: The Illinois Territory presented criticism that originated with the fur trader Auguste Chouteau of St. Louis. The gist of it was that the factor's lack of profit interest made them lax businessmen. In addition, the federal appointees were ignorant of Native American ways and languages. Supporters of the government's involvement in the fur trade were usually found among philanthropists, government officials and among most of

1656-526: The Indian country. As it would protect Native Americans from fraud and deceit it would enhance the prestige of the United States among them. The Department of the Treasury optimistically reported in 1800 that the Indian Nations were pleased with the government trading houses because through them they were sure to find a buyer for their furs as well as a fair treatment. Sale of alcohol was prevented and

1725-463: The Jay Treaty. But now, when that treaty was superseded and the law kept alien fur traders away there was nothing that motivated government factories. Instead, the system proved the inherent unfitnes of the federal government to conduct commercial business. It was full of undetected abuse. Trade goods provided by the government did not meet the needs of its Native American customers. The merchandise

1794-559: The Native Americans through illegal whiskey. In 1821, Thomas Hart Benton of Missouri , chairman of the Committee on Indian Affairs , started hearings with the aim to abolish the factory system and open the fur trade for uninhibited private enterprise. Benton claimed that as a citizen of a frontier state he had a better understanding than most of the systems supporters of how it worked. However, other motives can also be found. Among his constituents were several powerful fur traders. Benton

1863-417: The Office of Indian Trade, while the agents were in tender harmony with the fur traders they licensed. The newly appointed Indian Agent John Biddle affirmed "the uselessness" of the factory system. Superintendent McKenney argued for the factory system while admitting some of the claims made by Benton. Congress required his office to procure trade goods on the home market, thereby putting a severe handicap on

1932-576: The Secretary of War estimates of merchandise needed by the factories. When he died in 1804, George Ingels, Military Storekeeper at Philadelphia was appointed Acting Superintendent of Military Stores and Acting Agent for the Indian Factories. In 1805, William Davy was appointed Principal Agent for Indian Factories. He was to handle both the purchase of merchandise for the factories and the disposal of goods received from them, thereby also assuming

2001-584: The Senate Committee on the Indian Affairs made the final settlement in 1850. This settlement, "supported the position of the Cherokee that the cost of maintaining the tribesman during their removal and the years upkeep after their arrival West should be paid by the federal government, and the expense of the removal agents should be paid as well." In 1832 Congress established the position of Commissioner of Indian Affairs . In 1849 Indian Affairs

2070-708: The Superintendent in his assessment of the negative effects of the private fur trade. Madison's administration did not share the trust in private business expressed by many critics of the factory system. In 1816, Secretary of the Treasury, William H. Crawford proposed more stringent regulations for private fur traders. Nor did the Monroe administration trust the unselfishness of private interests. Secretary of War, John C. Calhoun urged stricter licence requirements for private fur traders in 1818. According to him, aliens and other dishonest fortune hunters were debauching

2139-517: The Superintendent of Indian Trade. Some of the witnesses that faulted the factory system and its employees were individual traders and Indian agents that were eager to remove competition, while others were employees of John Jacob Astor. Ramsay Crooks was the general manager of the American Fur Company, while Indian Agent Benjamin O'Fallon had been appointed on the recommendation of Astor. Antagonism existed between Indian agents and

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2208-544: The U.S. government's prevailing policy of forced assimilation of native peoples and the annexation of their land; beginning with the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act of 1975, the BIA has increasingly emphasized tribal self-determination and peer-to-peer relationships between tribal governments and federal government. Between 1824 and 1977, the BIA was led by a total of 42 commissioners, of whom six were of indigenous descent. Since

2277-611: The United States Constitution . These are the The United States bankruptcy courts , while not established as Article III courts, are legally designated as "units of the district courts." The judicial branch includes the following agencies: The President of the United States is the chief executive of the federal government. He is in charge of executing federal laws and approving, or vetoing, new legislation passed by Congress. The President resides in

2346-526: The United States also clearly state that the Indian Nations were selling in order to get rid of debts run up at a federal factory. At the very beginning, the Purveyor of Public Supplies was in charge of buying the merchandise to be sold at the government factories and also for selling the furs and other items received in trade. Military agents of the War Department usually handled transportation of

2415-604: The United States government are also classified as executive agencies (they are independent in that they are not subordinated under a Cabinet position). There are a small number of independent agencies that are not considered part of the executive branch, such as the Congressional Research Service and the United States Sentencing Commission , which are legislative and judicial agencies, respectively. The U.S. Congress

2484-404: The appropriate governors . The licenses were issued for one year periods only and cost $ 500 per period. A bond of $ 5,000 had to be given to ensure compliance with alcohol and firearms rules. Subsequent Nonintercourse Acts of 1790, 1793, 1796 and 1802 modified these laws. Licence fees were eliminated, lighter penalties were introduced for non-observance of regulations and the moral character clause

2553-464: The bill became law on March 31, 1821. A year was allowed to liquidate the operations. Benton managed to pass a supplementary bill that prevented the current officeholders from taking part in the closing down process. George Gorham was subsequently placed in charge of the liquidation of the Office of Indian Trade and the government factories. It was not fully completed until 1830. Government factories were usually situated at military posts. The army aided

2622-498: The business of the North West Company , the largest Montreal trading firm, was cut short. In a message to Congress in 1802, Jefferson claimed that the government factories undersold private and foreign interest, driving them away and thereby ridding the Indian country of a class of men that undermined the United States in the eyes of the Native Americans. Recommending an expansion of the factory system, he portrayed it as

2691-583: The creation of the position of Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs in 1977, all thirteen occupants up to the present day have been Indigenous, including Bay Mills Indian Community's Bryan Newland, appointed and confirmed to the position in 2021. As of 2020, the majority of BIA employees are American Indian or Alaska Native, the most at any time in the agency's history. Headquartered in the Main Interior Building in Washington, D.C. ,

2760-540: The early commissioners to negotiate treaties with Native Americans to obtain their neutrality during the American Revolutionary War . In 1789, the U.S. Congress placed Native American relations within the newly formed War Department. By 1806 the Congress had created a Superintendent of Indian Trade , or " Office of Indian Trade " within the War Department, who was charged with maintaining

2829-508: The establishment of the Bureau of Indian Affairs by Secretary of War John C. Calhoun in 1824. The BIA gained statutory authority in 1832, and in 1849 was transferred to the newly created Department of the Interior. Until the formal adoption of its current name in 1947, the BIA was variably known as the Indian office, the Indian bureau, the Indian department, and the Indian Service. The BIA's mission and mandate historically reflected

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2898-426: The factories received furs, skins, beeswax, tallow, bear oil, feathers and other products. Soldiers, private traders, travelers and others paid in cash. The trade goods were shipped to New Orleans, St. Louis and Detroit. Some items were sold there, but most of it was shipped to Philadelphia and later Georgetown. Merchandise was sold at a 68% markup over market costs. Non-Native Americans were charged 10% more. Business at

2967-571: The factories reflected the general economic situation in the country. After the War of 1812 there was a steady rise in the volume of business until the Panic of 1819 . The factory at Green Bay, Wisconsin showed a decline in business already in 1818, as a result of the establishment of the American Fur Company in the area. The factory system was routinely denounced by its rivals in the private sector. It happened that private traders told Native Americans that

3036-525: The factories was a costly, laborious and many times inefficient procedure, often requiring several transshipments. Merchandise bought at Philadelphia, and later Georgetown, was received by forwarding agents in New Orleans, St. Louis or Detroit who distributed them to the factories by boats, wagons or pack horses. The merchandise was primarily sold at the factories, but the factors also sent out traders to reach Native Americans who lived far away. In trade,

3105-457: The factors themselves. Its existence was upheld by several Congress committees and of Congress itself. The Superintendent of Indian Trade, Thomas McKenney, was the most vigorous defender of the factory system. He regarded private traders as the root of most evil in the Indian country and wanted the factory system to be a means for "civilizing" Native Americans. George C. Sibley , a vehement critic of fur traders and fur trading companies agreed with

3174-519: The factory system. Much merchandise had been bought during or just after the War of 1812, when the prices were two-fold or threefold the current. The prices charged Native Americans were not outrageous when considering freight and haulage. McKenney claimed that intrigues of the American Fur Company harmed the official trade to the extent that the posts at Chicago and Green Bay was about to be closed down. Indian Agents were intimidated by threats of removal through

3243-518: The fur trade other than in a subordinate capacity. In his 1793 State of the Union Address , President Washington suggested that a scheme of trading without profit with the Indian Nations would gain their friendship and fealty. The president repeated his idea in the next annual message to Congress and in 1795 a bill was passed for a limited test of the plan in the form of a $ 50,000 appropriation for trade goods to be sold at locations decided by

3312-434: The goods sold at the factories were intended to be gifts from the government, but that the factors sold them for their own personal gain. The frontier press regularly censured the factory system and prominent businessmen added their political influence to its detractors. The American Fur Company was hurt by competition from the government trading houses and began a campaign to have them closed down. In 1815, Governor Edwards of

3381-543: The goods. In 1796, John Harris, the Keeper of Military Stores in Philadelphia, took over the reception and selling of goods obtained in trade. The Purveyor of Public Supplies continued to buy merchandise for the factories. In 1801, William Irvine , Superintendent of Military Stores, was appointed Agent for the fur trading factories in addition to the office he already held. He was to receive and sell goods received and give

3450-539: The government one year to liquidate the system. The United States had inherited the concept of government regulation of Indian trade from Britain. Continental Congress outlawed unlicensed trade with the Indian Nations in 1776 and the Confederation Congress added stricter regulations in 1786. Indian agents were only to issue licenses to citizens whose moral characters were vouched for by

3519-491: The job previously done by the Purveyor of Public Supplies. In 1806, John Shee was appointed Superintendent of Indian Trade, in charge of both the purchase of merchandise for the factories and the disposal of goods received from them. At first his office was called "Office of the Superintendent of Indian Trade" but from 1808 "Office of Indian Trade" or "Indian Trade Office". The office was first established in Philadelphia, but

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3588-495: The law was extended for another two years plus the duration of Congress. In 1805 the act again expired, regardless of which Congress appropriated an additional $ 100,000 for setting up several new fur trade posts. The law was again renewed in 1806, now also authorizing the President to establish factories on both side of the Mississippi River . The capital was set to $ 260,000 and an annual allocation of $ 13,000 for staffing

3657-505: The market became oversupplied and the prices low. President Washington insisted that government trade with the Indian Nations be free of fraud and extortion, supply merchandise plentifully and without delay and provide a market for Native American goods at fair and stable prices. The merchandise was limited to products of the domestic market and hence not always of the highest quality. They were often inferior to products imported from England by private merchants. The Embargo Act of 1807 and

3726-587: The political influence of Mr. Astor. As proof of this, he claimed that John Kinzie , an agent of the American Fur Company, had been found selling alcohol to Native Americans in Milwaukee, but no actions against him had been taken. Finally, the Committee on Indian Affairs reported a bill abolishing the factory system. In the debate in the Senate, the existing system was defended by Henry Johnson , Richard Mentor Johnson , Martin Van Buren and Walter Lowrie . But

3795-520: The president. The following year a definite system was established by law. The president was to appoint factors residing at government trading posts and selling goods in the Indian country . They were prohibited from trading on their own behalf and had to give account of all money, goods and furs received and sold. An additional funding of $ 150,000 gave a total capital of $ 200,000 to the factory system. The trade goods were to be sold at prices that maintained

3864-475: The prestige of the United States among Native Americans. Thomas Jefferson shared Washington's expectations, but was also hoping that leading men of the Indian Nations would go into debt and be forced to cede land to pay it off. Private interests generally criticized the factory system. American Fur Company was hurt by competition from the government's trading houses and began a campaign to have them closed down. In 1821, Senator Benton of Missouri , who stood in

3933-417: The several factories. They received merchandise which they traded in exchange for Native American goods, mostly furs and skins. Other employees of the factory system, many on a part-time-basis, handled purchasing and transportation in Philadelphia, New York, New Orleans, Savannah, Albany and St. Louis. The furs received in trade at the factories were from 1806 to 1809 sold at public auction . This ended because

4002-400: The southern, midwestern and western United States. These superindenents were authorized to negotiate with tribes and oversaw Indian agents in their assigned region. The bureau was eventually reorganized in 1878, with superintendencies removed. These were eventually replaced with regional offices, which continue today. The BIA's goal to protect domestic and dependent nations, was reaffirmed by

4071-414: Was designed by its agents to decrease the power of American Indian leaders. The bureau was renamed from Office of Indian Affairs to Bureau of Indian Affairs in 1947. With the rise of American Indian activism in the 1960s and 1970s and increasing demands for enforcement of treaty rights and sovereignty, the 1970s were a particularly turbulent period of BIA history. The rise of activist groups such as

4140-538: Was encompassed by westward expansion and the removal of Native Nations. In 1833 Georgians fought for the removal of the Cherokee Nation from the state of Georgia. Despite the rulings of Worcester v. Georgia, President Jackson and John C. Calhoun created a plan for removal. The removal of the Cherokee Nation occurred in 1838 and was accompanied by the Treaty of 1846. When reparations from the treaty were unfulfilled,

4209-600: Was formed on March 11, 1824, by Secretary of War John C. Calhoun , who created the agency as a division within his department, without authorization from the United States Congress . He appointed McKenney as the first head of the office, which went by several names. McKenney preferred to call it the " Indian Office ", whereas the current name was preferred by Calhoun. The Bureau was initially organized by region, with commissions for Superintendents of Indian Affairs granted to prominent citizens in each region of

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4278-401: Was given. In 1809, the capital was increased to $ 300,000 with further appropriations for clerks and factors. In 1811, a year before the formal expiration of the 1809 act, the law was renewed. Renewals of the act then took place in 1815, 1817, 1818, 1819, 1820 and 1821. Washington recommended the factory system to Congress because he believed it would undercut the influence of British traders in

4347-541: Was implicated in supporting controversial tribal presidents, notably Dick Wilson , who was charged with being authoritarian; using tribal funds for a private paramilitary force, the Guardians of the Oglala Nation (or "GOON squad"), which he employed against opponents; intimidation of voters in the 1974 election; misappropriation of funds, and other misdeeds. Many native peoples continue to oppose policies of

4416-631: Was on a retainer from the American Fur Company as their lawyer and acted as John Jacob Astor's spokesperson in the Senate, while that role in the House was filled by John Floyd of Virginia . At this point in time he was also in considerable pecuniary difficulties due to a bank failure in Missouri. Benton argued that the factory system had been established to contest the influence of the British fur traders that made business on United States territory under

4485-671: Was purchased at excessive costs at inconvenient locations from eastern businessmen, when suitable articles could have been found at lower prices in Pittsburgh or St. Louis thereby also saving on transportation costs. The sale of furs at Georgetown meant that the government received lower prices than if they had been sold in St Louis. The matter was referred to the Indian Affairs Committee which heard testimony from interested parties, fur traders, Indian agents, factors and

4554-498: Was removed. Jay Treaty of 1794 gave British subjects the right to acquire licenses for trading on United States territory. Treaty of Ghent 1815 did not renew the right of the British to follow the trade across the international border and the guaranteed access to the Mississippi River that was granted them in the Jay Treaty. Through the lobbying of John Jacob Astor, Congress in 1816 outright banned foreigners from

4623-568: Was required by law to move to the District of Columbia. Shee were not willing to move with it and John Mason was appointed Superintendent and the Office was moved to Georgetown. In 1816, Mason was replaced by Thomas L. McKenney . The Office of Superintendent of Indian Trade was under the supervision of the Secretary of the Treasury until 1811 when it was moved from the Treasury to the War Department . Factors were in immediate charge of

4692-423: Was to train students in the proper behavior according to prevailing standards of "civilization." That way they could assimilate into American society and not be permanently trapped in reservations. The boarding schools prohibited students from using their indigenous languages, practices, and cultures. Another force for assimilation and Euro-American control was the Bureau of Indian Affairs tribal police force. This

4761-525: Was transferred to the newly established U.S. Department of the Interior. In 1869, Ely Samuel Parker was the first Native American to be appointed as commissioner of Indian affairs. One of the most controversial policies of the Bureau of Indian Affairs was the late 19th to early 20th century decision to educate native children in separate boarding schools , such as the Carlisle Indian Industrial School . The goal

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