Federal Tort Claims Act: Claims History and Issues Affecting Coverage for Tribal Self-Determination Contracts

摘要

The Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act was passed in 1975 to encourage tribes to participate in and manage programs that for years had been administered on their behalf by the departments of the Interior and of Health and Human Services. The act authorizes tribes to take over the administration of such programs through contractual arrangements with the agencies that previously administered them: Interior's Bureau of Indian Affairs and Health and Human Services' Indian Health Service. For the Bureau, the programs that can be contracted by tribes include law enforcement, education, social services, road maintenance, and forestry, and for the Health Service, the programs include mental health, dental care, hospitals, and clinics.