days prior to the date fixed for the sale unless for good cause a shorter period is authorized by the Secretary.

(b) The notice of sale will include (1) terms, conditions, place, date, hour, and methods of sale, including explanation of auction procedure as set out in § 121.27(b)(2) if applicable; (2) where and how bids shall be submitted; (3) a statement warning all bidders against violation of 18 U.S.C. 1860 prohibiting unlawful combination or intimidation of bidders or potential bidders; and (4) description of tracts, all reservations to which title will be subject and any restrictions and encumbrances of record with the Bureau of Indian Affairs and any other information that may improve sale prospects.

Advertised sales shall be by sealed bids except as otherwise provided herein.

(a) (1) Bids, conforming to the requirements set out in the advertisement of sale, along with a certified check, cashier's check, money order, or U.S. Treasury check, payable to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, for not less than 10 percent of the amount of the bid, must be enclosed in a sealed envelope marked as prescribed in the notice of sale. A cash deposit may be submitted in lieu of the above-specified negotiable instruments at the bidder's risk. Tribes submitting bids pursuant to this paragraph may guarantee the required 10 percent deposit by an appropriate resolution; (2) the sealed envelopes containing the bids will be publicly opened at the time fixed for sale. The bids will be announced and will be appropriately recorded.

(b) The policy of the Secretary recognizes that in many instances a tribe or a member thereof has a valid interest in acquiring trust or restricted lands offered for sale.

(1) With the consent of the owner and when the notice of sale so states, the tribe or members of such tribe shall have the right to meet the high bid.

(2) Provided the tribe is not the high bidder and when one or more acceptable sealed bids are received and when

so stated in the notice of sale, an oral auction may be held following the bid opening. Bidding in the auction will be limited to the tribe, and to those who submitted sealed bids at 75 percent or more of the appraised value of the land being auctioned. At the conclusion of the auction the highest bidder must increase his deposit to not less than 10 percent of his auction bid.

§ 121.28 Action at close of bidding.

(a) The officer in charge of the sale shall publicly announce the apparent highest acceptable bid. The deposits submitted by the unsuccessful bidders shall be returned immediately. The deposit submitted by the apparent successful bidder shall be held in a special account.

(b) If the highest bid received at an advertised sale is less than the appraised fair market value of the land, the Secretary with the consent of the owner may accept that bid if the amount bid approximates said appraised fair market value and in the Secretary's judgment is the highest price that may be realized in the circumstances.

(c) The Secretary shall award the bid and notify the apparent successful bidder that the remainder of the purchase price must be submitted within 30 days.

(1) Upon a showing of cause the Secretary may, in his discretion, extend the time of payment of the balance due.

(2) If the remainder of the purchase price is not paid within the time allowed, the bid will be rejected and the apparent successful bidder's 10 percent deposit will be forfeited to the landowner's use.

(d) The issuance of the patent or delivery of deed to the purchaser will not be authorized until the balance of the purchase price has been paid, except that the fee patent may be ordered in cases where the purchaser is obtaining a loan from an agency of the Federal Government and such agency has given the Secretary a commitment that the balance of the purchase price will be paid when the fee patent is issued.

§ 121.29 Rejection of bids; disapproval of sale.

The Secretary reserves the right to reject any and all bids before the award, after the award, or at any time prior to the issuance of a patent or delivery of a deed, when he shall have determined such rejection to be in the best interests of the Indian owner.

§ 121.30 Bidding by employees.

Except as authorized by the provisions of Part 251 of this chapter, no person employed in Indian Affairs shall directly or indirectly bid, make, or prepare any bid, or assist any bidder in preparing his bid. Sales between Indians, either of whom is an employee of the U.S. Government, are governed by the provisions of Part 251 of this chapter (see 25 U.S.C. 68 and 441).

§ 121.31 Cost of conveyance; payment.

Pursuant to the Act of February 14, 1920 (41 Stat. 415), as amended by the Act of March 1, 1933 (47 Stat. 1417; 25 U.S.C. 413), the Secretary may in his discretion collect from a purchaser reasonable fees for work performed or expense incurred in the transaction. The amount so collected shall be deposited to the credit of the United States as general fund receipts, except as stated in paragraph (b) of this section.

(a) (1) The amount of the fee shall be $22.50 for each transaction.

(2) The fee may be reduced to a lesser amount or may be waived, if the Secretary determines circumstances justify such action.

(b) (1) If any or all of the costs of the work performed or expenses incurred are paid with tribal funds, an alternate schedule of fees may be established, subject to approval of the Secretary, and that part of such fees deemed appropriate may be credited to the tribe.

(2) When the purchaser is the tribe which bears all or any part of such costs, the collection of the proportionate share from the tribe may be waived.

§ 121.32 Irrigation fee; payment.

Collection of all construction costs against any Indian-owned lands within Indian irrigation projects is deferred as long as Indian title has not been extinguished. (Act of July 1, 1932 (47 Stat. 564; 25 U.S.C. 386a).) This statute is interpreted to apply only where such land is owned by Indians either in trust or restricted status.

(a) When any person whether Indian or non-Indian acquires Indian lands in a fee simple status that are part of an Indian irrigation project he must enter into an agreement, (1) to pay the pro rata share of the construction of the project chargeable to the land, (2) to pay all construction costs that accrue in the future, and (3) to pay all future charges assessable to the land which are based on the annual cost of operation and maintenance of the irrigation system.

(b) Any operation and maintenance charges that are delinquent when Indian land is sold will be deducted from the proceeds of sale unless other acceptable arrangements are made to provide for their payment prior to the approval of the sale.

(c) A lien clause covering all unpaid irrigation construction costs, past and future, will be inserted in the patent or other instrument of conveyance issued to all purchasers of restricted or trust lands that are under an Indian irrigation project.

CROSS-REFERENCE: See Part 128 and Part 129 and cross-references thereunder in this chapter for further regulations regarding sale of irrigable lands.

the competent heirs for their shares and trust patents to be issued to the incompetent heirs for the lands respectively or jointly set apart to them, the trust period to terminate in accordance with the terms of the original patent or order of extension of the trust period set out in said patent. (Act of May 18, 1916 (39 Stat. 127; 25 U.S.C. 378).) The authority contained in the Act of May 18, 1916, is not applicable to lands authorized to be sold by the Act of May 14, 1948, nor to land held in restricted fee status.

(b) Application for partition. Heirs of a deceased allottee may make written application, in the form approved by the Secretary, for partition of their trust or restricted land. If the Secretary finds the trust lands susceptible of partition, he may issue new patents or deeds to the heirs for the portions set aside to them. If the allotment is held under a restricted fee title (as distinguished from a trust title), partition may be accomplished by the heirs executing deeds approved by the Secretary, to the other heirs for their respective portions.

MORTGAGES AND DEEDS OF TRUST TO
SECURE LOANS TO INDIANS

§ 121.34 Approval of mortgages and deeds of trust.

Any individual Indian owner of trust or restricted lands, may with the approval of the Secretary execute a mortgage or deed of trust to his land. Prior to approval of such mortgage or deed of trust, the Secretary shall secure appraisal information as he deems advisable. Such lands shall be subject to foreclosure or sale pursuant to the terms of the mortgage or deed of trust in accordance with the laws of the State in which the lands are located. For the purpose of foreclosure or sale proceedings under this section, the Indian owners shall be regarded as vested with unrestricted fee simple title to the lands (Act of March 29, 1956.

(70 Stat. 62; 25 U.S.C. 483a)).

§ 121.35 Deferred payment sales.

When the Indian owner and purchaser desire, a sale may be made or approved on the deferred payment

plan. The terms of the sale will be incorporated in a memorandum of sale which shall constitute a contract for delivery of title upon payment in full of the amount of the agreed consideration. The deed executed by the grantor or grantors will be held by the Superintendent and will be delivered only upon full compliance with the terms of sale. If conveyance of title is to be made by fee patent, request therefor will be made only upon full compliance with the terms of the sale. The terms of the sale shall require that the purchaser pay not less than 10 percent of the purchase price in advance as required by the Act of June 25, 1910 (36 Stat. 855), as amended (25 U.S.C. 372); terms for the payment of the remaining installments plus interest shall be those acceptable to the Secretary and the Indian owner. If the purchaser on any deferred payment plan makes default in the first or subsequent payments, all payments, including interest, previously made will be forfeited to the Indian owner.

act of June 4, 1920 (41 Stat. 751), and upon application shall determine whether those persons whose names now or hereafter appear on the incompetent roll shall be reclassified as competent and their names placed on the competent roll.

§ 122.3 Application form.

The application form shall include, among other things: (a) The name of the applicant; (b) his age, residence, degree of Indian blood, and education; (c) his experience in farming, cattle raising, business, or other occupation (including home-making); (d) his present occupation, if any; (e) a statement concerning the applicant's financial status, including his average earned and unearned income for the last two years from restricted leases and from other sources, and his outstanding indebtedness to the United States, to the tribe, or to others; (f) a description of his property and its value, including his allotted and inherited lands; and (g) the name of the applicant's spouse, if any, and the names of his minor children, if any, and their ages, together with a statement regarding the land, allotted and inherited, held by each.

§ 122.4 Factors determining competency. Among the matters to be considered by the Commissioner of Indian Affairs in determining competency are the amount of the applicant's indebtedness to the tribe, to the United States Government, and to others; whether he is a public charge or a charge on friends and relatives, or will become such a charge, by reason of being classed as competent; and whether the applicant has demonstrated that he possesses the ability to take care of himself and his property, to protect the interests of himself and his family, to lease his land and collect the rentals therefrom, to lease the land of his minor children, to prescribe in lease agreements those provisions which will protect the land from deterioration through over-grazing and other improper practices, and to assume full responsibility for obtaining compliance with the terms of any lease.

When used in the regulations in this part the following words or terms shall have the meaning shown below:

(a) "Secretary" means the Secretary of the Interior.

(b) "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Indian Affairs.

(c) "Superintendent" means the superintendent of the Osage Agency.

(d) "Person" means an unallotted member of the Osage Tribe of less than one-half Indian blood who has not received a certificate of competency.

§ 123.2 Preparation of competency roll.

The superintendent shall cause a roll to be compiled of all persons who have attained the age of 21 years, and shall add thereto the names of minors as they attain the age of 21 years. The

roll shall include the names, last known address, date of birth, and the total quantum of Osage blood and non-Osage Indian blood of each person listed thereon.

§ 123.3 Determination of age and quantum of Indian blood.

(a) The date of birth as shown by the census records of the Osage Agency shall be accepted as prima facie evidence in determining the age of a person.

(b) The total quantum of Indian blood of a person shall be computed and determined as follows:

(1) When the parents of a person are enrolled members, or when one parent is an enrolled member and the other parent is a descendant of an enrolled member, or when both parents are descendants of enrolled members, or when one parent is an enrolled member of descendant of an enrolled member of the Osage Tribe, and the other parent is of non-Indian blood, the Osage Agency register of Indian families for the year ending December 31, 1901, shall be accepted as prima facie evidence of the quantum of Indian blood.

(2) When one parent of a person is an enrolled member, or the descendant of an enrolled member of the Osage Tribe, and the other parent is of non-Osage blood, the Osage Agency register of Indian families for the year ending December 31, 1901 shall be accepted as prima facie evidence in determining the quantum of Osage Indian blood.

(3) When one parent of a person is of non-Osage Indian blood, the certification of the superintendent or other officer in charge of the Indian Agency having jurisdiction over the affairs of the tribe of which the non-Osage Indian parent is a member or descendant of a member, as to such parent's quantum of Indian blood, shall be accepted as prima facie evidence in determining the quantum of non-Osage Indian blood.

(4) When the non-Osage parent of a person is alleged to be of Indian blood, and the superintendent or other officer in charge of the Indian agency having jurisdiction over the affairs of the tribe of which such parent is an al

§ 123.4 Notification; disagreement and decision.

When the superintendent shall have determined that a person, 21 years or over, is of less than one-half Indian blood, he shall notify such person of his finding and inform him that if objection is not received within 20 days from the date of notification, a certificate of competency will be issued. If the person claims to be of one-half or more Indian blood and that a certificate of competency should not be issued, he should submit to the superintendent two affidavits or other evidence in support of his claim. The claim, affidavits or other evidence of the person as to his quantum of blood shall be submitted to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs for a ruling before the certificate of competency is issued. § 123.5 Issuance of certificate of competency.