10 Tribal Members may receive a Charter of Cooperative Association (for specific purposes) from the Secretary of Interior; laws of the State of Oklahoma govern for those issues not covered by federal law or regulations issued by the Secretary. Act does not relate to Osage County, Oklahoma (does not affect the Osage Nation, which retained ownership of its own land) As issues arose, Department of Interior officials sought the opinion of its Solicitor General about the effects of this legislation. This correspondence is part of the agency records. As the Five Civilized Tribes began to reorganize and set up new governments, the question arose as to whether they could change their membership rules, specifically, to exclude the Freedmen. Each of the tribes had been required under terms of new 1866 treaties to extend citizenship to their Freedmen. In 1941, the Solicitor General noted that Congress had approved the law that enabled tribes to reconstitute their governments and, by extension, enabled them to create new constitutions and rules. It said that the tribes could pass new constitutions with new membership rules that limited membership to persons of Indian descent. While some of the tribes resisted providing Freedmen with full tribal benefits, they did not generally take action to exclude them as members until the late 20th century, at a time of increasing assertion of tribal sovereignty. Freedmen descendants have filed suit against the Cherokee and Creek tribes over such exclusion. See also Former Indian Reservations in Oklahoma References External links Cherokee Observer Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act "Federal Indian Policy", National Archives & Records Administration Digital Classroom] Native American history of Oklahoma United States federal Native American legislation Government of Oklahoma 1936 in Oklahoma 1936 in law Acts of the 74th United States Congress