BIA not responsible for tribe membership determination.
In Williams v. Gover, the Ninth Circuit upheld the dismissal of a suit against the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). At the heart of the dispute was the downgrading of the membership of certain member of the Moorehead Rancheria Indian tribe. However, the actions undertaken to reclassify certain members as "adoptee members” was an action taken by the tribe, not the BIA. A tribe has the right to determine its membership.
