within five working days from date of receipt, the case may be referred to the Department of Justice for appropriate action.

(f) Impoundment and disposal. Unauthorized livestock remaining on trust or restricted Indian or Government lands which are not removed therefrom within the period prescribed in § 166.24(c) may be impounded and disposed of by the Superintendent as provided herein:

(1) A written notice of intent to impound shall be sent by certified mail, return receipt requested, or personally delivered to the owner, or his agent, and a copy of the notice shall be sent to any known lien holder. Any time after five days of delivery of the notice, the unauthorized livestock may be impounded.

(2) Where the owner or his agent is unknown, or a known owner or his agent refuses to accept delivery of the notice, a notice of intent to impound shall be published in a local newspaper, posted at the nearest community building and tribal council headquarters, and at a post office near the Indian or Government lands involved. Any time after five days of posting of the notice, the unauthorized livestock may be impounded.

(3) Unauthorized livestock that are owned by persons given notice under paragraphs (f) (1) and (2) of this section may be impounded without further notice any time within the 12month period following the effective date of a notice given under this subsection.

(4) Where there is imminent danger that trespassing livestock will severely injure a growing or harvestable crop or substantially destroy the range forage, the livestock may be impounded immediately.

(g) Notice of public sale. Following the impoundment of unauthorized livestock, a notice of sale of impounded livestock shall be published in a local newspaper, posted at the nearest community building and tribal council headquarters, and at a post office near the Indian or Government lands involved. The notice will describe the livestock and specify the date, time and place of sale. The date set shall be at least five days after the publication

and posting of such notice. Any known owners or agents and known lien holders shall be notified in writing by certified mail, return receipt requested, or by personal delivery of the sale, and the procedure by which the impounded livestock may be redeemed prior to the sale as described in § 166.24(h).

or

(h) Redemption. Any owner known lien holder of the impounded livestock may redeem them at any time before the time set for the sale by submitting proof of ownership and the settlement of all obligations described in § 166.24(d).

(i) Sale. If the livestock are not redeemed before the time fixed for their sale, they shall be sold at public sale to the highest bidder. If a satisfactory bid is not received, the livestock may be reoffered for sale, condemned and destroyed, or otherwise disposed of. When livestock are sold by the Superintendent pursuant to these regulations, he shall furnish the purchaser a bill of sale or other written instrument evidencing the sale.

(j) Distribution of proceeds. The net proceeds of the sale, after deduction of the prescribed penalty and the deduction of the necessary costs and expenses of the Secretary of the Interior as provided in § 166.24(d), shall be paid to the owner of the animal upon satisfactory proof of ownership submitted within six months of the date of the sale. Net proceeds of the sale of an animal, not paid to the owner, shall be deposited in the United States Treasury to the credit of the landowners where the trespass occurred.

[45 FR 69446, Oct. 21, 1980. Redesignated at 47 FR 13327, Mar. 30, 1982]

§ 166.25 Control of livestock diseases.

Whenever livestock on Indian lands become infected with contagious or infectious diseases, or have been exposed thereto, such livestock must be treated and the movement thereof restricted in accordance with applicable Federal and State laws and tribal ordinances.

in achievement of the following objectives:

(a) The preservation of the forage, the land, and the water resources on the Navajo Reservation, and the building up of those resources where they have deteriorated.

(b) The protection of the interests of the Navajo Indians from the encroachment of unduly aggressive and antisocial individuals who may or may not be members of the Navajo Tribe.

(c) The adjustment of livestock numbers to the carrying capacity of the range in such a manner that the livestock economy of the Navajo Tribe will be preserved.

(d) To secure increasing responsibility and participation of the Navajo people, including tribal participation in all basic policy decisions, in the sound management of one of the Tribe's greatest assets, its grazing lands, and to foster a better relationship and a clearer understanding between the Navajo people and the Federal Government in carrying out the grazing regulations.

(e) The improvement of livestock through proper breeding practices and the maintenance of a sound culling policy. Buck and bull pastures may be established and maintained either on or off the reservation through District Grazing Committee and Central Grazing Committee action.

§ 167.4 Regulations; scope; exceptions.

The grazing regulations in this part apply to all lands within the boundaries of the Navajo Reservation held in trust by the United States for the Navajo Tribe and all the trust lands hereafter added to the Navajo Reservation. The regulations in this part do not apply to any of the area described in the Executive order of December 16, 1882, to individually owned allotted lands within the Navajo Reservation nor to tribal purchases, allotted or privately owned Navajo Indian lands outside the exterior boundaries of the Navajo Reservation.

[34 FR 14599, Sept. 19, 1969. Redesignated at 47 FR 13327, Mar. 30, 1982]

§ 167.5 Land management districts.

The Commissioner of Indian Affairs has established and will retain the present land management districts within the Navajo Indian Reservation, based on the social and economic requirements of the Navajo Indians and the necessity of rehabilitating the grazing lands. District boundary changes may be made when deemed necessary and advisable by the District Grazing Committees, Central Grazing Committee and Tribal Council, with approval by the Superintendent, Area Director, and the Commissioner of Indian Affairs.

§ 167.6 Carrying capacities.

(a) The Commissioner of Indian Affairs on June 26, 1943, promulgated the authorized carrying capacity for each land management district of the Navajo Reservation.

(b) Recommended adjustments in carrying capacities shall be referred by the Superintendent to District Grazing Committee, Central Grazing Committee, and the Navajo Tribal Council for review and recommendations prior to presentation to the Area Director and the Commissioner of Indian Affairs for approval.

(c) Upon the request of the District Grazing Committee, Central Grazing Committee and Navajo Tribal Council to the Superintendent; recommendations for future adjustments to the established carrying capacities shall be made by Range Technicians based on the best information available through annual utilization studies and range condition studies analyzed along with numbers of livestock and precipitation data. The recommendations of the Range Technicians shall be submitted to the Superintendent, the Area Director and the Commissioner of Indian Affairs.

§ 167.7 Records.

The District Grazing Committee, the Superintendent, and his authorized representatives shall keep accurate records of all grazing permits and ownership of all livestock. Master files shall be maintained by the Superintendent or his authorized representatives.

(a) The District Grazing Committee shall be responsibile for and assist in organizing the sheep and goat dipping and horse and cattle branding program and obtaining the annual livestock count.

(b) In order to obtain true records of ownership the permittee shall personally appear at the dipping vat or tally. ing point designated by the Grazing Committee with his or her sheep and goats and at branding and tallying points for cattle and horses. Should the permittee be unable to appear personally he or she shall designate a representative to act for and in his or her behalf. The sheep and goats will be dipped and the cattle and horses will be branded and recorded in the name of the permittee.

(c) The Superintendent shall prepare and keep current a register containing the names of all permittees using the range, the number of each class of stock by age classes grazed annually and the periods during which grazing shall be permitted in each part thereof. An annual stock census will be taken to insure that the carrying capacity is not exceeded. All classes of livestock twelve months of age or over will be counted against range use and permitted number, except that yearling colts will not be counted against permitted numbers on all permits with less than six horses. (Cross Reference § 167.9.)

§ 167.8 Grazing rights.

(a) The Superintendent shall determine grazing rights of bona fide livestock owners based on recommendations of District Grazing Committees. Grazing rights shall be recognized for those permittees having ownership records as established in accordance with § 167.7 or who have acquired grazing rights by marriage, inheritance, purchase or division of permits.

Whenever the permitted number of sheep units within a district is less than the carrying capacity, new permits to the carrying capacity limit may be granted as provided in § 167.9.

(b) All enrolled members of the Navajo Tribe over 18 years of age are eligible to acquire and hold grazing permits. Minors under 18 years of age I can get possession of grazing permits only through inheritance or gift, and in each case Trustees must be appointed by the Tribal Courts to manage the permits and livestock of such minors until they become 18 years of age and can hold grazing permits in their own right.

(c) No person can hold a grazing permit in more than one district on the Navajo Reservation.

(d) Determination of rights to grazing permits involved in cases of divorce, separation, threatened family disruption, and permits of deceased permittees shall be the responsibility of the Navajo Court of Indian Offenses under existing laws, rules, and regulations.

§ 167.9 Grazing permits.

(a) All livestock grazed on the Navajo Reservation must be covered by an authorized grazing permit issued by the Superintendent based upon the recommendations of the District Grazing Committee. All such grazing permits will be automatically renewed annually until terminated. District Grazing Committees shall act on all grazing permit changes resulting from negotiability within their respective Districts. The number of livestock that may be grazed under each permit shall be the number originally permitted plus or minus any changes as indicated by Transfer Agreements and Court Judgment Orders.

(b) Any permittee who has five or more horses on his current permit will be required to apply any acquired sheep units in classes of stock other than horses. If the purchaser wishes more than his present number of horses, he must have his needs evaluated by the District Grazing Committee. Yearling colts will be counted against permitted number on all permits with six or more horses. Yearling colts will not be counted against per

mitted number on all permits with less than six horses. In hardship cases the District Grazing Committee may reissue horses removed from grazing permits through negotiability to permit holders who are without sufficient horses on their present permits to meet minimum needs.

(c) No permittee shall be authorized to graze more than ten head of horses or to accumulate a total of over 350 sheep units.

(d) Upon recommendation of the District Grazing Committee and with the approval of the Superintendent, grazing permits may be transferred from one permittee to another in accordance with instructions provided by the Advisory Committee of the Navajo Tribal Council, or may be inherited; provided that the permitted holdings of any individual permittee shall not exceed 350 sheep units or the equivalent thereof. Should inheritance or other acquisition of permits increase the holdings of any permittee to more than 350 sheep units, said permittee shall dispose of all livestock in excess of 350 sheep units not later than November 15 following date of inheritance or other acquisition, and that portion of his or her permit in excess of 350 sheep units within one year from date of inheritance.

(e) By request of a permittee to sublet all or a part of his or her regular grazing permit to a member of his family or to any person who would receive such permit by inheritance, such subletting of permits may be authorized by the District Grazing Committee and the Superintendent or his authorized representative.

§ 167.10 Special grazing permits.

The problem of special grazing permits shall be settled by the Bureau of Indian Affairs working in cooperation with the Tribal Council, or any Committee designated by it, with a view to terminating these permits at a suitable date and with the least hardship to the Indians concerned.

§ 167.11 Tenure of grazing permits.

(a) All active regular grazing permits shall be for one year and shall be automatically renewed annually until ter

minated. Any Navajo eligible to hold a grazing permit as defined in § 167.8 may become a livestock operator by obtaining an active grazing permit through negotiability or inheritance or both.

(b) In many Districts, and portions of all districts, unused grazing permits or portions of grazing permits are beneficial in aiding range recovery. Each District Grazing Committee will handle each matter of unused grazing permit or portions of grazing permits on individual merits. Where ample forage is available operators will be encouraged to fill their permits with livestock or dispose of their unused permits through negotiability. In those areas where forage is in need of rehabilitation permittees will not be encouraged to stock to their permitted numbers until the range has sufficiently recovered to justify the grazing of additional livestock.

§ 167.12 Grazing fees.

Grazing fees shall not be charged at this time.1

§ 167.13 Trespass.

The owner of any livestock grazing in trespass in Navajo Tribal ranges shall be subject to action by the Navajo Court of Indian Offenses as provided in Part 11 of this chapter, however, upon recommendations of the District Grazing Committee, first offenses may be referred to the Central Grazing Committee and the Superintendent or his authorized repre

'Grazing Committees were organized in May 1953. These committees have not had ample time to fully acquaint themselves or the stockmen in their respective districts with all of the various items of range administration and range management. Also the drought of several years has not broken. The Navajo Tribe therefore requests that the matter of establishing regulations regarding the adoption of grazing fees be deferred until such a time as a full understanding of the advantages of fees can be had by the majority of the stockmen in all Districts. The assessment of grazing fees will not aid materially in obtaining proper range use. At this time it is more important that other sections of these grazing regulations be adopted and enforced. Resolution of Navajo Tribal Council No. CJ-22-54 of June 9, 1954.

sentative for proper settlement out of court. The following acts are considered as trespass:

(a) Any person who sells an entire permit must dispose of all his livestock or be in trespass. Any person selling a portion of his permit must not run more stock than covered by his remaining permit, or be subject to immediate trespass.

(b) All persons running livestock in excess of their permitted number must by April 25, 1959, either obtain permits to cover their total livestock numbers or reduce to their permitted number, or be in trespass. Additional time may be granted in unusual individual cases as determined and approved by the District Grazing Committee, General Grazing Committee, and the Superintendent or his authorized representative.

(c) Failure to comply with the provisions in § 167.9, shall be considered as trespass.

(d) Any person who willfully allows his livestock to drift from one district to another shall be subject to trespass action. The grazing of livestock in customary use areas extending over District Boundary lines, when such customary use areas are defined and agreed upon by the District Grazing Committees involved, shall not be considered as willful trespass.

(e) The owner of any livestock who violates the customary or established use units of other permittees shall be subject to trespass action.

[22 FR 10578, Dec. 24, 1957, as amended at 24 FR 1178, Feb. 17, 1959. Redesignated at 47 FR 13327, Mar. 30, 1982]

§ 167.14 Movement of livestock.

Annually, prior to the normal lamb buying season, the Central Grazing Committee after consultation with District Grazing Committees shall issue regulations covering the buying period and the procedures and methods to be used in moving livestock to market. All movements of livestock other than trucking from buying areas to loading or shipping points must be authorized by Trailing Permits issued by the District Grazing Committees on the approved forms. Failure to comply with this section and with annual