The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) manages trust lands and provides educational services to American Indians. It was established in 1824 and has evolved to manage all aspects of reservation life. The agency’s ability to manage its duties has been questioned, and it was suggested to operate independently. The agency’s website was shut down in 2001 due to the Cobell Litigation, which alleges mishandling of assets held in trust for American Indians. The BIA has several offices, and laws relating to its relationship with tribal governments are ambiguous. The outcome of the Cobell litigation remains to be seen.
The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) is an agency of the United States federal government that operates under the Department of the Interior. Its intended purpose is the administration and management of trust lands for American Indians and to provide educational services to American Indians. The office has officially existed since 1824 and was originally called the Office of Indian Affairs. At the time of the agency’s official formation, it was a division of the United States War Department, but was transferred to the Department of the Interior in 1849 and has operated under its current name since 1947.
Prior to the development of an official agency, similar bureaus existed in early American history. Prior to the Revolutionary War, government officials were tasked with developing and managing relationships and treaties with Indian chiefs and tribes to ensure neutrality during wartime. From the official inception of the Office of Indian Affairs to the current office, the agency and its adapted roles have been questioned many times.
Throughout the bureau’s history, the roles filled by the bureau have evolved to include managing all aspects of the reservation life. The agency’s ability to diligently manage and administer its duties has been repeatedly under scrutiny. At one point, it was suggested that the Bureau of Indian Affairs operate as an independent government agency rather than a division of the Department of Home Affairs, but no progress has been made towards that outcome since 2007.
The agency’s website was actively shut down in 2001 due to the ongoing Cobell Litigation, the largest ongoing class action lawsuit against the United States government, which began in 1996 as Cobell v. Babbitt. The litigation alleges that the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which operates as a division of the Department of the Interior, mishandled the accounting of assets held in trust for American Indians.
Currently, there are several offices within the Bureau of Indian Affairs including Law Enforcement Services, Economic Development, and Facilities Management and Construction. Many laws relating to the relationship between the agency and the tribal governments of various American Indian reservations are ambiguous. The final outcome of the Cobell litigation remains to be seen, although a court order requiring the filing of accounting records relating to the trust in question was issued in January 2008.
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