Little Shell Tribe Federal Recognition

45394 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 141 / Friday, July 21, 2000 / Notices reduced impacts and a concomitant increase in conservation. We provide this notice pursuant to section 10(a) of the Endangered Species Act and the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 regulations (40 CFR 1506.6). We will evaluate the applications, associated documents, and comments submitted thereon to determine whether the applications meets the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act regulations and section 10(a) of the Endangered Species Act. We will issue permits to the Applicants for incidental take of those species for which the permit issuance criteria are met. Our final permit decisions will be made no sooner than 60 days from the date of this notice. Dated: July 17, 2000. Elizabeth H. Stevens, Deputy Manager, California/Nevada Operations Office, Sacramento, California. [FR Doc. 00–18485 Filed 7–20–00; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4310–55–P DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Indian Affairs Proposed Finding for Federal Acknowledgment of the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians of Montana AGENCY: Bureau of Indian Affairs, Interior. ACTION: Notice of proposed finding. SUMMARY: Pursuant to 25 CFR 83.10(h), notice is hereby given that the Assistant Secretary—Indian Affairs proposes to acknowledge that the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians of Montana, P.O. Box 1384, Great Falls, Montana 59403, exists as an Indian tribe within the meaning of Federal law. This notice is based on a determination that the petitioner meets the requirements for a government-to-government relationship with the United States. DATES: As provided by 25 CFR 83.10(i), any individual or organization wishing to comment on the proposed finding may submit arguments and evidence to support or rebut the proposed finding. This material must be submitted within 180 calendar days from the date of publication of this notice. As stated in the regulations, 25 CFR 83.10(i), interested and informed parties who submit arguments and evidence to the Assistant Secretary must also provide copies of their submissions to the petitioner. The names and addresses of commenters on the proposed finding will be available for public review. Commenters wishing to have their name and/or address withheld must state this request prominently at the beginning of their comments. Such a request will be honored to the extent allowable by law. ADDRESSES: Comments on the proposed finding or requests for a copy of the report which summarizes the evidence and analyses that are the basis for this proposed finding should be addressed to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Branch of Acknowledgment and Research, 1849 C Street NW, Mailstop 4660–MIB, Washington, D.C. 20240. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: R. Lee Fleming, Chief, Branch of Acknowledgment and Research, (202) 208–3592. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice is published in accordance with authority delegated by the Secretary of the Interior to the Assistant Secretary by 209 DM 8. Documentation for this proposed finding was submitted by the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians of Montana (Little Shell, or petitioner) or obtained by the independent research of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), Branch of Acknowledgment and Research (BAR). The evidence shows that a substantial portion of the petitioner’s members have ancestry from either the historical Pembina Band of Chippewa Indians prior to a treaty of 1863, or from a successor, the Turtle Mountain Band. The petitioner asserts to have its origins in a Chippewa band which had been led by a succession of three hereditary chiefs, all known as Little Shell. The petitioner is a combination of historical Me^´tis, or ‘‘mixed blood,’’ groups. Before 1870, many of the petitioner’s ancestors were part of the Me^´tis populations along the Red River of the north at the Red River Settlement (now Winnipeg) in Canada and at Pembina and St. Joseph in North Dakota. These Me^´tis populations of the mid-19th century were described by contemporary observers as socially and culturally distinct from both the European settlers and tribal Indians in the same area, but also as being related to and sometimes acting together with Indian tribes. In the early 1890’s, some ancestors were listed on censuses of the Turtle Mountain Band. In Montana, the petitioner’s ancestors settled originally in two regions, migrating there by different routes between the 1860’s and 1930’s. One settlement region was north-central Montana, including both the Lewistown area and the Highline, the area along the railroad line from Wolf Point to Havre. Some ancestors of the petitioner’s members began settling this region as early as the late 1860’s and early 1870’s. The other settlement region was the Front Range, the area along the eastern edge of the northern Rocky Mountains. Those ancestors of the petitioner who settled in this region arrived mostly after the failure of the Me^´tis rebellion led by Louis Riel in Saskatchewan in 1885. The petitioner’s ancestors settled originally in rural areas of Montana. Beginning in the 1910’s and continuing into the depression of the 1930’s, some of them began moving into neighborhoods on the fringes of the rural towns on the Front Range and along the Highline, or into Great Falls and Helena. Many of the petitioner’s ancestors lived in segregated areas of these towns at some time before the mid-1950’s or early 1960’s. Those areas were not limited to the petitioner’s ancestors, except on the Front Range, and other Me^´tis and Indians also lived in these neighborhoods. An organization was formed in 1927 in Hays, the petitioner’s first formally organized predecessor in Montana. Joseph Dussome was elected in 1927 to lead the organization formed that year, and to lead organizations of different names in 1935, 1939, and 1949. The consistent leadership of Dussome and the consistent geographical region represented by his officers and area representatives demonstrate continuity from these organizations to the petitioning group. From the mid-1930’s until the mid-1950’s, two organizations advocated on behalf of the Montana Me^´tis. Dussome’s organization, known as the Landless Indians of Montana after 1939, largely drew support from the Highline and Lewistown area, while the Montana Landless Indians largely drew its support from urban areas and the Front Range. Since approximately 1955, the petitioner’s members and ancestors have been part of the common political process of a single organization. The Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians of Montana adopted its current organizational name and its current constitution in 1977. Its membership requirements provide membership eligibility to individuals who can trace their ancestry to the Roe Cloud Roll, a list of unenrolled Indians in Montana which was prepared by the Office of Indian Affairs about 1938. The Little Shell petitioner had 3,893 members as of 1992. Its members are now geographically dispersed, mostly within Montana. The petitioner currently maintains an office in Great Falls, Montana. The petitioner has not provided substantial evidence of unambiguous previous Federal acknowledgment. The evidence available for this finding does VerDate 11<MAY>2000 16:57 Jul 20, 2000 Jkt 190000 PO 00000 Frm 00041 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 E:\FR\FM\21JYN1.SGM pfrm03 PsN: 21JYN1