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Title 25, IndiansRelease 119-110

§47 Employment of Indian Labor and Purchase of Products of Indian Industry; Participation in Mentor-protege Program

Title 25 › CHAPTER 2 — OFFICERS OF INDIAN AFFAIRS › § 47

Last updated Sep 22, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Health and Human Services must use Indian labor and may buy products from Indian industry in open market contracts unless doing so is impractical or unreasonable. Participation in the Mentor‑Protege Program (see 10 U.S.C. 4902(c) and the NDAA program note) or getting help under that program does not make a firm ineligible. If a mentor helps a protege under a mentor‑protege agreement, that help cannot be used to say the mentor controls or is affiliated with the protege. Key terms: "Indian economic enterprise" is defined in 48 C.F.R. 1480.201 (or successor rules); "mentor firm" and "protege firm" are defined in 10 U.S.C. 4902(c); "Secretaries" means the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Health and Human Services. The two Secretaries must reach out to Indian businesses, give training, write matching procurement rules with 48 C.F.R. part 1480 where possible, collect regional compliance data, include this work in procurement reviews, and consult tribes and stakeholders. Not later than 1 year after December 30, 2020, and at least once every 2 years after that, each Secretary must send a report to the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs and the House Committee on Natural Resources. Each report must cover each fiscal year and include which agencies used the rules, regional summaries of purchases and contracts with Indian economic enterprises, year‑to‑year changes in dollars and counts, how contracting officers searched for Indian firms, summaries of any procurement deviations (see 48 C.F.R. 1480.403) and their dollar values, totals and dollar values of awards, comparisons of purchases from Indian versus non‑Indian firms, any barriers and recommended fixes, and, by region, the total spent on Indian firms and how that compares to likely non‑Indian spending. Each agency must set an annual minimum percentage goal for procurement under these rules.

Full Legal Text

Title 25, §47

Indians, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Definitions
In this section: (1) Indian economic enterprise
(2)Mentor firm; protege firm
The terms “mentor firm” and “protege firm” have the meanings given those terms in section 4902(c) of title 10.
(3)Secretaries
The term “Secretaries” means—
(A)the Secretary of the Interior; and
(B)the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
(b)Enterprise Development
(1)In general
Unless determined by one of the Secretaries to be impracticable and unreasonable—
(A)Indian labor shall be employed; and
(B)purchases of Indian industry products (including printing and facilities construction, notwithstanding any other provision of law) may be made in open market by the Secretaries.
(2)Mentor-protege program
(A)In general
Participation in the Mentor-Protege Program established under section 831(a) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1991 (10 U.S.C. 2302 note; Public Law 101–510) or receipt of assistance under a developmental assistance agreement under that program shall not render any individual or entity involved in the provision of Indian labor or an Indian industry product ineligible to receive assistance under this section.
(B)Treatment
For purposes of this section, no determination of affiliation or control (whether direct or indirect) may be found between a protege firm and a mentor firm on the basis that the mentor firm has provided, or agreed to provide, to the protege firm, pursuant to a mentor-protege agreement, any form of developmental assistance described in section 831(f) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1991 (10 U.S.C. 2302 note; Public Law 101–510).
(c)Implementation
In carrying out this section, the Secretaries shall—
(1)conduct outreach to Indian industrial entities;
(2)provide training;
(3)promulgate regulations in accordance with this section and with the regulations under part 1480 of title 48, Code of Federal Regulations (or successor regulations), to harmonize the procurement procedures of the Department of the Interior and the Department of Health and Human Services, to the maximum extent practicable;
(4)require regional offices of the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Indian Health Service to aggregate data regarding compliance with this section;
(5)require procurement management reviews by their respective Departments to include a review of the implementation of this section; and
(6)consult with Indian Tribes, Indian industrial entities, and other stakeholders regarding methods to facilitate compliance with—
(A)this section; and
(B)other small business or procurement goals.
(d)Report
(1)In general
Not later than 1 year after December 30, 2020, and not less frequently than once every 2 years thereafter, each of the Secretaries shall submit to the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives a report describing, during the period covered by the report, the implementation of this section by each of the respective Secretaries.
(2)Contents
Each report under this subsection shall include, for each fiscal year during the period covered by the report—
(A)the names of each agency under the respective jurisdiction of each of the Secretaries to which this section has been applied, and efforts made by additional agencies within the Secretaries’ respective Departments to use the procurement procedures under this Act;
(B)a summary of the types of purchases made from, and contracts (including any relevant modifications, extensions, or renewals) awarded to, Indian economic enterprises, expressed by agency region;
(C)a description of the percentage increase or decrease in total dollar value and number of purchases and awards made within each agency region, as compared to the totals of the region for the preceding fiscal year;
(D)a description of the methods used by applicable contracting officers and employees to conduct market searches to identify qualified Indian economic enterprises;
(E)a summary of all deviations granted under section 1480.403 of title 48, Code of Federal Regulations (or successor regulations), including a description of—
(i)the types of alternative procurement methods used, including any Indian owned businesses reported under other procurement goals; and
(ii)the dollar value of any awards made pursuant to those deviations;
(F)a summary of all determinations made to provide awards to Indian economic enterprises, including a description of the dollar value of the awards;
(G)a description or summary of the total number and value of all purchases of, and contracts awarded for, supplies, services, and construction (including the percentage increase or decrease, as compared to the preceding fiscal year) from—
(i)Indian economic enterprises; and
(ii)non-Indian economic enterprises;
(H)any administrative, procedural, legal, or other barriers to achieving the purposes of this section, together with recommendations for legislative or administrative actions to address those barriers; and
(I)for each agency region—
(i)the total amount spent on purchases made from, and contracts awarded to, Indian economic enterprises; and
(ii)a comparison of the amount described in clause (i) to the total amount that the agency region would likely have spent on the same purchases made from a non-Indian economic enterprise or contracts awarded to a non-Indian economic enterprise.
(e)Goals
Each agency shall establish an annual minimum percentage goal for procurement in compliance with this section.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

This Act, referred to in subsec. (d)(2)(A), is act
June 25, 1910, ch. 431, § 23, 36 Stat. 861, known as the Buy Indian Act, which is classified to this section. Codification Section is based on proviso of first sentence of section 23 of act of
June 25, 1910. Remainder of first sentence of section 23 was classified to section 93 of this title prior to repeal by act Oct. 10, 1940, ch. 851, § 4, 54 Stat. 1112.

Prior Provisions

Provisions similar to those in this section were contained in act Apr. 30, 1908, ch. 153, 35 Stat. 71, making appropriations for the Indian Department.

Amendments

2022—Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 117–263 substituted “section 4902(c) of title 10” for “section 831(c) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1991 (10 U.S.C. 2302 note; Public Law 101–510)”. 2020—Pub. L. 116–261, § 4, amended section generally. Prior to amendment, section related to employment of Indian labor and purchase of products of Indian industry and participation in Mentor-Protege Program. 1994—Pub. L. 103–435 inserted at end “Participation in the Mentor-Protege Program established under section 831 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1991 (10 U.S.C. 2301 note) or receipt of assistance pursuant to any developmental assistance agreement authorized under such program shall not render Indian labor or Indian industry ineligible to receive any assistance authorized under this section. For the purposes of this section— “(1) no determination of affiliation or control (either direct or indirect) may be found between a protege firm and its mentor firm on the basis that the mentor firm has agreed to furnish (or has furnished) to its protege firm pursuant to a mentor-protege agreement any form of developmental assistance described in subsection (f) of section 831 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1991 (10 U.S.C. 2301 note); and “(2) the terms ‘protege firm’ and ‘mentor firm’ have the meaning given such terms in subsection (c) of such section 831.” 1988—Pub. L. 100–581 inserted “(including, but not limited to printing, notwithstanding any other law)” after “products”.

Executive Documents

Transfer of Functions

For

Transfer of Functions

of other officers, employees, and agencies of Department of the Interior, with certain exceptions, to Secretary of the Interior, with power to delegate, see Reorg. Plan No. 3 of 1950, §§ 1, 2, eff. May 24, 1950, 15 F.R. 3174, 64 Stat. 1262, set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organization and Employees.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

25 U.S.C. § 47

Title 25, Indians

Last Updated

Sep 22, 2026

Release point: 119-110