90-11-101. Legislative policy. The legislature finds and declares that:

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(1)a considerable portion of the citizens of the state of Montana are American Indians;

(2)since statehood, Indian citizens of the state of Montana have lived on reservations set apart for those purposes by the United States of America, and by virtue of their isolation and supervision by the federal government, great problems of economic and social significance have arisen and presently exist;

(3)the best interests of Montana Indian tribes will be served by engaging in government-to-government relationships designed to recognize the rights, duties, and privileges of full citizenship that Indians are entitled to as citizens of this state;

(4)because the tribes are domestic dependent nations, agencies of the federal government retain jurisdiction and a fiduciary duty throughout the state of Montana for the administration of economic, social, health, education, and welfare programs for Indians;

(5)unique differences exist between the tribes, their reservations, customs, and treaties, and their respective relationships with the federal government, all of which influence the relationships among tribes and between the tribes and the state;

(6)there are sizeable numbers of off-reservation enrolled and unenrolled Indians residing in our state whose needs for social, environmental, educational, and economic assistance are borne in part by state and local agencies;

(7)programs of the state of Montana should not duplicate those supported by agencies of the federal government or tribal governments with regard to jurisdiction of Indian people, because state responsibility includes off-reservation Indians and because those Indians require assistance to coordinate their affairs with various tribal groups and federal agencies where they have no official recognition;

(8)the state and the tribes working together in a government-to-government relationship and engaging in compacts and other cooperative agreements for the benefit of Indian and non-Indian residents will promote economic development, environmental protection, education, social services support, and enduring good will;

(9)to facilitate the discussion and resolution of issues and concerns that Indian tribes have in relation to the state, the federal government, and among themselves, the state director of Indian affairs, established in 2-15-217, shall:

(a)maintain effective tribal-state communications;

(b)assess tribal and individual Indian concerns and interests to seek ways and means of communicating these concerns and interests to relevant state agencies and to the legislature and actively assist in organizing these efforts; and

(c)act as a liaison for tribes and Indian people, whether the Indian people reside on or off reservations, whenever assistance is required;

(10)the state director of Indian affairs shall endeavor to assist tribes to seek agreements between the state and tribes and to work toward a consensus among the tribes and other parties on shared goals and principles.