Tribal Law Gateway Home  |   Code & Constitution Directory Home  |   About the Fields

About the fields in the table: The A-Z List is an alternative way to find out what the library's most recent copy of a tribal code or constitution is. Each federally-recognized tribe is listed in an A-Z table.

About the fields:

  • ID# The number of the catalog record for this document in the library's online catalog, which can be used to request a copy of a document.
    • If ID# 11950 is used, this refers to a microfiche collection of codes published before 1988. Additional information about an earlier edition at the library may be provided.
  • Published: Reflects the date that the document was "published."
    • Sometimes a publication date is not stated on a tribal code or constitution, so the library infers the date of publication by reviewing the document for information about the last date of amendment or addition.
    • Sometimes tribal constitutions are included as a chapter in the tribe's code. The tribe's code may have been published in one year, but the constitution may have a separate earlier date. If this is the case, the publication statement will also include a "date" statement.
  • Received/cataloged: In general, this date reflects the year that the document was received by the library.
    • The library has recently begun to include this information in the catalog records, usually in the Notes field. For constitutions this is especially helpful information. A constitution may have been last amended in the 1970s but may still be the current version in use by the tribe.
    • If the Received/cataloged date states "1999," this may reflect one of two dates: (1) the date when the document was received or cataloged, or (2) the date of a software conversion for the library catalog.

Other Notes:

  • If we do not have a constitution for a particular tribe, charters or articles of incorporation are noted, if available.
  • If we have a partial code, the subject matter is listed in parenthesis.
  • To find all governance documents by tribe, or to search by subject, see search tips throughout the Tribal Law Gateway.
  • The tribal names used come from the list of federally-recognized tribes, from the Federal Register. Copy in PDF format.
  • Some non-federally recognized tribes are included when constitutions or other information is available.
  • Pueblos are in the "P" section.
  • Confederated tribes and Native villages are listed according to the distinguishing part of the tribe's name. For instance, "Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon" is found in the "W" section under "Warm Springs Confederated Tribes, Oregon."