Background & Purpose
The Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (ISDEAA) was the legislative embodiment of President Nixon's 1970 Special Message to Congress, which declared the end of the termination era and called for a new federal policy of self-determination without termination.
Before ISDEAA, federal programs for Indian Country were administered directly by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and Indian Health Service (IHS) — with little or no tribal input. Tribes were essentially clients of the federal bureaucracy, not decision-makers. ISDEAA reversed this by allowing tribes to contract directly with the federal government to administer programs that the BIA or IHS would otherwise run.
The Act declared that "the prolonged Federal domination of Indian service programs has served to retard rather than enhance the progress of Indian people" and that "the Indian people will never surrender their desire to control their relationships both among themselves and with non-Indian governments."
Key Provisions
Title I — Self-Determination Contracts ("638 Contracts")
Tribes can contract with BIA and IHS to take over administration of federal programs. The federal government must approve the contract unless it makes specific written findings of tribal incapacity — and even then, the tribe can appeal. The contract comes with the federal funding that would have been spent on the program.
Title II — Education Assistance
Grants tribes authority over Indian education programs, including the ability to contract for school operations, establish tribal education departments, and direct federal education funding to tribally controlled institutions.
Title IV — Self-Governance (added 1994)
Goes beyond 638 contracting: qualifying tribes receive block grants covering multiple programs and can redesign, consolidate, or redirect funds as they see fit. Tribes become true self-governing entities, not just contractors. Over 400 tribes now participate in self-governance compacts.
Contract Support Costs
The federal government must pay tribes the indirect costs of administering contracted programs (overhead, accounting, insurance). The Supreme Court confirmed in Salazar v. Ramah Navajo Chapter (2012) that these costs are mandatory, not discretionary.
Key Statutory Language
"Congress declares its commitment to the maintenance of the Federal Government's unique and continuing relationship with, and responsibility to, individual Indian tribes and to the Indian people as a whole through the establishment of a meaningful Indian self-determination policy."
"The Indian people will never surrender their desire to control their relationships both among themselves and with non-Indian governments, organizations, and persons."
"True self-determination in any society of people is dependent upon an educational process which will insure the development of qualified people to fulfill meaningful leadership roles."
How ISDEAA Supports ATN's Self-Governance
ISDEAA is the statutory backbone of ATN's right to self-govern. It transforms the federal trust relationship from paternalistic control to a partnership where tribes administer their own programs with federal funding.
- 1. 638 contracting for law enforcement and courts. ATN can contract with the BIA to administer law enforcement and tribal court programs on the Mendocino Reservation — bringing federal funding to build tribal justice infrastructure. Los Coyotes v. Jewell confirms the BIA has funding obligations even in P.L. 280 states.
- 2. Cannabis regulation as self-governance. ISDEAA's self-governance framework supports ATN's position that tribal regulatory programs (including cannabis licensing) are exercises of self-determination — not violations of federal law. The Act's policy favors tribal control over tribal affairs.
- 3. Education and workforce development. ISDEAA Title II supports ATN's D-Q University partnership and tribal education programs — building the "qualified people to fulfill meaningful leadership roles" the Act envisions.
- 4. Self-governance compacts. Title IV self-governance compacts give ATN maximum flexibility: block grants that can be redesigned and redirected to meet tribal priorities. Over 400 tribes participate — ATN can join this framework.
- 5. Strengthens Bracker preemption. ISDEAA creates the kind of "comprehensive federal regulatory program" that supports Bracker preemption of state authority. Ramah Navajo's successful preemption relied partly on the ISDEAA contracting framework.
Related Cases & Authorities
- Nixon's 1970 Special Message to Congress — The policy declaration that ISDEAA implemented
- Ramah Navajo School Board v. Bureau of Revenue (1982) — ISDEAA contracting supports Bracker preemption of state tax
- Los Coyotes Band v. Jewell (2013) — BIA has funding obligations for tribal law enforcement in P.L. 280 states
- Morton v. Mancari (1974) — Tribal classifications are political, not racial — the constitutional foundation for ISDEAA's tribal preference
- DOJ Office of Tribal Justice Memo — Federal policy confirming concurrent tribal authority