You are using an unsupported browser. This web site is designed for the current versions of Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, or Safari.
The Office of the Federal Register publishes documents on behalf of Federal agencies but does not have any authority over their programs. We recommend you directly contact the agency associated with the content in question.
If you have comments or suggestions on how to improve the www.ecfr.gov website or have questions about using www.ecfr.gov, please choose the 'Website Feedback' button below.
If you would like to comment on the current content, please use the 'Content Feedback' button below for instructions on contacting the issuing agency
Enhanced content is provided to the user to provide additional context.
This content is from the eCFR and is authoritative but unofficial.
Navigate by entering citations or phrases (eg: 1 CFR 1.1 49 CFR 172.101 Organization and Purpose 1/1.1 Regulation Y FAR).
Choosing an item from citations and headings will bring you directly to the content. Choosing an item from full text search results will bring you to those results. Pressing enter in the search box will also bring you to search results.
Background and more details are available in the Search & Navigation guide.
89 FR 100245, Dec. 11, 2024, unless otherwise noted.
This content is from the eCFR and may include recent changes applied to the CFR. The official, published CFR, is updated annually and available below under "Published Edition". You can learn more about the process here.
Subscribe to: 25 CFR Part 1000 Subpart O - Annual Trust Evaluation
View the most recent official publication:
These links go to the official, published CFR, which is updated annually. As a result, it may not include the most recent changes applied to the CFR. Learn more.
Information and documentation can be found in our developer resources.
The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is the official legal print publication containing the codification of the general and permanent rules published in the Federal Register by the departments and agencies of the Federal Government. The Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (eCFR) is a continuously updated online version of the CFR. It is not an official legal edition of the CFR.
Learn more about the eCFR, its status, and the editorial process.
A trust evaluation is an annual review and evaluation of trust functions performed by a Tribe/Consortium to ensure that the functions are performed in accordance with trust standards as defined by Federal law. Trust evaluations address trust functions performed by the Tribe/Consortium on its own behalf as well as trust functions performed by the Tribe/Consortium for the benefit of individual Indians or Alaska Natives.
(a) Each year the Secretary's designated representative(s) will conduct an evaluation of trust PSFAs for each funding agreement. The Secretary's designated representative(s) will coordinate in writing with the leadership of the Tribe/Consortium, with a copy to the designated Tribe's/Consortium's representative(s), to arrange the evaluation of trust PSFAs and throughout the trust evaluation, including the written report required by § 1000.1940.
(b) This section describes the general framework for trust evaluations. However, each Tribe/Consortium may develop, with the appropriate bureau, an individualized trust evaluation method to allow for the Tribe's/Consortium's unique history, circumstances, trust resources and assets, and the terms and conditions of its funding agreement. An individualized trust evaluation must, at a minimum, contain the measures in paragraph (d) of this section.
(c) To facilitate the trust evaluation so as to mitigate costs and maximize efficiency, each Tribe/Consortium must provide access to all records, plans, and other pertinent documents relevant to the trust PSFAs under review not otherwise available to the Department.
(d) The Secretary's designated representative(s) will:
(1) Review trust transactions;
(2) Conduct on-site inspections of trust resources and assets, as appropriate, at a time to be coordinated between the parties;
(3) Review compliance with applicable statutory and regulatory requirements;
(4) Review compliance with the trust provisions and standards as may be negotiated and included in the funding agreement;
(5) Ensure that the same level of trust services is provided to individual Indians as would have been provided by the Secretary;
(6) Document deficiencies in the performance of trust PSFAs discovered during the trust evaluation in the final report which the Department will submit to the Tribe/Consortium pursuant to § 1000.1940; and
(7) Ensure the fulfillment of the Secretary's trust responsibility to Tribes and individual Indians by documenting the existence of:
(i) Systems of internal controls;
(ii) Trust standards; and
(iii) Safeguards against conflicts of interest in the performance of trust PSFAs.
Yes, if the parties agree in writing to such additional reviews.
Yes, unless review methods are otherwise provided by Federal law, the Secretary's designated representative will negotiate review methods at the request of the Tribe/Consortium for inclusion in a funding agreement as provided in § 1000.1930(b).
The Secretary's representative(s) must prepare a written report documenting the results of the trust evaluation within 60 days of the Department's completion of an on-site and/or desk review.
(a) The Secretary's representative(s) will provide the Tribe/Consortium representative(s) with a copy of the report for review and comment before finalization.
(b) The Secretary's representative(s) will attach to the report any Tribal/Consortium comments that the representative receives.
(c) The Secretary's representative(s) must respond to the Tribe's/Consortium's comments as part of the final trust evaluation report.
No, Tribes/Consortia are under the same obligation as the Secretary to perform trust PSFAs and related activities in accordance with trust protection standards and principles whether managing Tribally or individually owned trust resources and assets. The Department's process for conducting the annual evaluation of Tribal/Consortium performance of trust PSFAs on behalf of individual Indians is the same as that used in evaluating performance of Tribal trust PSFAs.
(a) When the annual trust evaluation by the Secretary reveals a deficient performance of trust PSFAs by a Tribe/Consortium due in part to the action or inaction of a bureau, it will trigger an evaluation by the Department of the Secretary's inherent Federal functions and any retained trust PSFAs pertaining to the bureau's action or inaction.
(b) The appropriate Department officials will be notified in writing by the Secretary's representative of the need for corrective action. A copy of such written notice shall be sent by the Secretary's representative to the Tribe/Consortium. The review of the Secretary's trust PSFAs shall be based on the standards in Federal law.
(a) A finding of imminent jeopardy to a trust asset, natural resource, or public health and safety that is caused by an act or omission of the Tribe/Consortium and that arises out of a failure by the Tribe/Consortium to carry out the compact or funding agreement, triggers the Federal reassumption process (see subpart M of this part), unless the conditions in paragraph (b) of this section are met.
(b) The reassumption process will not be triggered if the Secretary's designated representative determines that the Tribe/Consortium:
(1) Can cure the conditions causing jeopardy within 60 days; and
(2) Will not cause significant loss, harm, or devaluation of a trust asset, natural resources, or the public health and safety.
Where problems not rising to the level of imminent jeopardy are caused by Tribal/Consortium action or inaction, the conditions must be:
(a) Documented in the Department's annual trust evaluation report;
(b) Reported to the Secretary; and
(c) Reported in writing to:
(1) The governing body of the Tribe; and
(2) In the case of a Consortium, to the governing body of each Tribe on whose behalf the Consortium is performing the trust PSFAs.
The Tribe/Consortium is primarily responsible for identifying and implementing corrective actions for matters contained in the funding agreement, but the Department may also suggest possible corrective measures for Tribal/Consortium consideration.
A report summarizing the results of the trust evaluation will be prepared by the Secretary's designated representative(s) and copies provided to the Tribe/Consortium within the time frame specified in § 1000.1940. The annual trust evaluation report must:
(a) Be written objectively, concisely, and clearly;
(b) Present information accurately and fairly, including only relevant and adequately supported information, findings, and conclusions; and
(c) Include a written response from the Tribe/Consortium to the draft report provided to the Tribe/Consortium by the Secretary's representative(s).
(a) Yes, if the Department receives information that it concludes rises to the level of a threat of imminent jeopardy to a trust asset, natural resource, or the public health and safety, caused by an act or omission of a Tribe/Consortium and arises out of a failure to carry out a compact or funding agreement, the Department, as trustee, may conduct a preliminary investigation. The Department:
(1) Shall promptly contract the Tribe/Consortium to discuss the nature of the threat;
(2) Will follow up with notification to the Tribe/Consortium in writing, and
(3) May conduct an on-site inspection upon 2 days' advance written notice to the Tribe/Consortium.
(b) If the preliminary investigation shows that appropriate, sufficient data are present to indicate there may be imminent jeopardy, the Secretary's designated representative shall follow the reassumption procedures in accordance with subpart M of this part.