§5615 Effect of subchapter

Summary

The rules and any approved Indian trust asset management plan do not by themselves change who is responsible for losses when an Indian trust asset is managed. The United States or a tribe that joins a project keeps the same liability unless other parts of the subchapter say otherwise. The United States is not responsible for losses that happen because a plan lets someone manage a trust asset with a lower standard than the Secretary would normally require. That still applies even if the plan is later ended or canceled. Except for limited exceptions elsewhere in the subchapter, these rules do not replace or change any treaty, law, regulation, or Executive order that applies to Indian trust assets. They also do not limit a tribe’s right to make agreements under the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act. A tribe that is not using a trust asset management plan may send tribal rules about forest land management to the Secretary for review and approval. Nothing here changes the United States’ trust responsibility to tribes or individual Indians.