Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 108 Part 3.djvu/401

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PUBLIC LAW 103-323—SEPT. 21, 1994 108 STAT. 2153 Great Depression it relied upon the State of Michigan to provide services to the Pokagon Band. Other Potawatomi bands, including the Forest County Potawatomi and the Hannahville Indian Community were provided services pursuant to the Indian Reorganization Act. (6) Agents of the Federal Government in 1939 made an administrative decision not to provide services or extend the benefits of the Indian Reorganization Act to any Indian tribes in Michigan's lower peninsula. (7) Tribes elsewhere, including the Hannahville Indian Community in Michigan's upper peninsula, received services from the Federal Government and were extended the benefits of the Indian Reorganization Act. (8) The Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians consists of at least 1,500 members who continue to reside close to their ancestral homeland in the St. Joseph River Valley in southwestern Michigan and northern Indiana. (9) In spite of the denial of the right to organize under the Indian Reorganization Act, the Pokagon Band has continued to carry but its governmental functions through a Business Committee and Tribal Council from treaty times until today. (10) The United States Government, the government of the State of Michigan, and local governments have had continuous dealings with the recognized political leaders of the Band from 1795 until the present. SEC. 2. FEDERAL RECOGNITION. 25 USC 1300J-1. Federal recognition of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indiems is hereby affirmed. Except as otherwise provided in this Act, all Federal laws of general application to Indians and Indian tribes, including the Act of June 18, 1934 (25 U.S.C. 461 et seq.; commonly referred to as the "Indian Reorganization Act"), shall apply with respect to the Band and its members. SEC. 3. SERVICES. 25 USC 1300J-2. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Band and its members shall be eligible, on and after the date of the enactment of this Act, for all Federal services and benefits furnished to federally recognized Indian tribes without regard to the existence of a reservation for the Band or the location of the residence of any member on or near an Indian reservation. SEC. 4. TRIBAL MEMBERSHIP. 25 USC 1300J-3. Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Band shall submit to the Secretary membership rolls consisting of all individuals eligible for membership in such Band. The qualifications for inclusion on the membership rolls of the Band shall be determined by the membership clauses in the Band's governing documents, in consultation with the Secretary. Upon completion of the rolls, the Secretary shall immediately pub- Federal lish notice of such in the Federal Register. The Bands shall ensure?ublfcation that such rolls are maintained and kept current. Records.^°"