GENERAL SERVICES

The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) is the federal agency with primary responsibility for working with Indian tribal governments and Alaska Native communities. There are about 505 federally recognized tribes in the United States. This includes 197 Alaska Native village groups.

The BIA deals with Indian tribes in a government-to-government relationship. In accordance with the U. S. policy of Indian self-determination, the bureau's foremost responsibility is to promote maximum participation of Indian tribes in the government and education of their people.

Some BIA services are described in greater detail in under Education, Social Service Programs and Funeral Assistance.

Primarily, the BIA provides services in Indian Child Welfare Act cases, family counseling, adoption and foster home recruitment, individual counseling, elder assistance, energy assistance and general assistance. Some of these programs have income and/or age requirements for eligibility. Services available include:

1. Monitoring and case management of Indian Child Welfare cases regarding Alaska Native children who are in the custody of the state.
2. Adoption and foster care home recruitment for Alaska Native families that are interested in providing foster care or adoption to a child of Alaska Native descent.
3. Counseling services for Alaska Native families and individuals.
4. Elder assistance services to Alaska Native elders who are over the age of 65.
5. Low Income Energy Assistance Program for Alaska Native families in need of assistance with electricity or fuel bills. This program is based on income and is designed for families and individuals who are on low or fixed incomes.
6. General assistance-In Southeast Alaska, the following organizations have contracted delivery of these services from BIA. You must be enrolled in their organization and residing in their service area:

• Angoon Community Association
• Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska
• Douglas Indian Association
• Hoonah Indian Association
• Ketchikan Indian Corporation
• Chilkat Indian Village, Klukwan
• Organized Village of Kake
• Sitka Tribe of Alaska
• Yakutat Tlingit Tribe
  

BIA AREA OFFICES

If you need services or are denied services by an Indian organization that is contracting with BIA, you should contact the appropriate BIA office. Your correspondence should be addressed to:

Area Director, Bureau of Indian Affairs
(Follow with the address of the appropriate area office listed below.)

ALASKA
Federal Building
709 W. Ninth Street
PO Box 25520
Juneau, AK 99802-5520
(800) 645-8397
(907) 586-7177

PORTLAND AREA
Federal Building
911 NE 11th Ave.
Portland, OR 97232
(503) 231-6702

CALIFORNIA
2800 Cottage Way
Sacramento, CA 95825
(916) 978-6000

ARIZONA, NEVADA & UTAH
P.O. Box 10
Phoenix, AZ 85001
(602) 379-6600

NAVAJO RESERVATION only in ARIZONA, NEW MEXICO & UTAH
PO Box 1060
Gallup, NM 87305
(505) 863-8314

COLORADO & NEW MEXICO
PO Box 26567
Albuquerque, NM 87125
(505) 346-7590

MONTANA & WYOMING
316 North 26th St.
Billings, MT 59101
(406) 247-7943

NEBRASKA, NORTH DAKOTA & SOUTH DAKOTA
115 4th Ave., SE
Aberdeen, SD 57401
(605) 226-7343

KANSAS & WEST OKLAHOMA
WCD-Office Complex
PO Box 368
Anadarko, OK 73005
(405) 247-6673

EASTERN OKLAHOMA
101 N. 5th St.
Muskogee, OK 74401
(918) 687-2296

IOWA, MICHIGAN, MINNESOTA & WISCONSIN
One Federal Drive, Room 550
Minneapolis, MN 55111
(612) 713-4400

CONNETICUT, FLORIDA, LOUISIANA, MAINE, MISSISSIPPI, NEW YORK, NORTH CAROLINA & RHODE ISLAND
3701 North Fairfax Drive
MS 260 VA SQ
Arlington, VA 22203
(703) 235-2571