42 U.S.C. § 9911: Payments to Indian tribes

receives a request from the governing body of an Indian tribe or tribal organization within the State that assistance under this chapter be made directly to such tribe or organization; and determines that the members of such tribe or tribal organization would be better served by means of grants made directly to provide benefits under this chapter, The Secretary shall reserve for the purpose of subsection (a) from amounts that would otherwise be allotted to such State, not less than 100 percent of an amount that bears the same ratio to the State allotment for the fiscal year involved as the population of all eligible Indians for whom a determination has been made under subsection (a) bears to the population of all individuals eligible for assistance through a community services block grant made under this chapter in such State. The sums reserved by the Secretary on the basis of a determination made under subsection (a) shall be made available by grant to the Indian tribe or tribal organization serving the individuals for whom such a determination has been made. In order for an Indian tribe or tribal organization to be eligible for a grant award for a fiscal year under this section, the tribe or organization shall submit to the Secretary a plan for such fiscal year that meets such criteria as the Secretary may prescribe by regulation. The terms “Indian tribe” and “tribal organization” mean a tribe, band, or other organized group recognized in the State in which the tribe, band, or group resides, or considered by the Secretary of the Interior, to be an Indian tribe or an Indian organization for any purpose. The term “Indian” means a member of an Indian tribe or of a tribal organization.