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The Law and American Indian Sacred Lands
Executive Order 13007--Indian Sacred Sites
May 24, 1996
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws
of the United States, in furtherance of Federal treaties, and in order to
protect and preserve Indian religious practices, it is hereby ordered:
Section 1. Accommodation of Sacred Sites.
(a) In managing Federal lands, each executive branch agency with statutory
or administrative responsibility for the management of Federal lands shall,
to the extent practicable, permitted by law, and not clearly inconsistent
with essential agency functions, (1) accommodate access to and ceremonial
use of Indian sacred sites by Indian religious practitioners and (2) avoid
adversely affecting the physical integrity of such sacred sites. Where
appropriate, agencies shall maintain the confidentiality of sacred sites.
(b) For purposes of this order:
"Federal lands" means any land or interests in land owned by the United
States, including leasehold interests held by the United States, except
Indian trust lands;
"Indian tribe" means an Indian or Alaska Native tribe, band, nation, pueblo,
village, or community that the Secretary of the Interior acknowledges to
exist as an Indian tribe pursuant to Public Law No. 103-454, 108 Stat. 4791,
and "Indian" refers to a member of such an Indian tribe; and
"Sacred site" means any specific, discrete, narrowly delineated location on
Federal land that is identified by an Indian tribe, or Indian individual
determined to be an appropriately authoritative representative of an Indian
religion, as sacred by virtue of its established religious significance to,
or ceremonial use by, an Indian religion; provided that the tribe or
appropriately authoritative representative of an Indian religion has
informed the agency of the existence of such a site.
Section 2. Procedures.
(a) Each executive branch agency with statutory or administrative
responsibility for the management of Federal lands shall, as appropriate,
promptly implement procedures for the purposes of carrying out the
provisions of section 1 of this order, including, where practicable and
appropriate, procedures to ensure reasonable notice is provided of proposed
actions or land management policies that may restrict future access to or
ceremonial use of, or adversely affect the physical integrity of, sacred
sites. In all actions pursuant to this section, agencies shall comply with
the Executive memorandum of April 29, 1994, "Government-to-Government
Relations with Native American Tribal Governments."
(b) Within 1 year of the effective date of this order, the head of each
executive branch agency with statutory or administrative responsibility for
the management of Federal lands shall report to the President, through the
Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, on the implementation of
this order. Such reports shall address, among other things,
any changes necessary to accomodate access to and ceremonial use of Indian
sacred sites;
any changes necessary to avoid adversely affecting the physical integrity of
Indian sacred sites; and
procedures implemented or proposed to facilitate consultation with
appropriate Indian tribes and religious leaders and the expeditious
resolution of disputes relating to agency action on Federal lands that may
adversely affect access to, ceremonial use of, or the physical integrity of
sacred sites.
Section 3. Nothing in this order shall be construed to require a taking of
vested property interests. Nor shall this order be construed to impair
enforceable rights to use of Federal lands that have been granted to third
parties through final agency action. For purposes of this order, "agency
action" has the same meaning as in the Administrative Procedures Act (5
U.S.C.551[13]).
Section 4. This order is intended only to improve the internal management of
the executive branch and is not intended to, nor does it, create any right,
benefit, or trust responsibility, substantive or procedural, enforceable at
law or equity by any party against the United States, its agencies officers,
or any person.
William J. Clinton
The White House
May 24, 1996
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