<P> Following the decisions made by the Indian Claims Commission, the BIA in 1978 published final rules with procedures that groups had to meet to secure federal tribal acknowledgment . There are seven criteria . Four have proven troublesome for most groups to prove: long - standing historical community, outside identification as Indians, political authority, and descent from a historical tribe . Tribes seeking recognition must submit detailed petitions to the BIA's Office of Federal Acknowledgment . Consequently, the Federal Acknowledgment Process can take years, even decades; delays of 12--14 years are not uncommon . The Shinnecock Indian Nation formally petitioned for recognition in 1978 and was recognized 32 years later, in 2010 . At a Senate Committee on Indian Affairs hearing, witnesses testified that the process was "broken, long, expensive, burdensome, intrusive, unfair, arbitrary and capricious, less than transparent, unpredictable, and subject to undue political influence and manipulation ." </P> <P> In January 2015 the United States' Federal Register issued an official list of 566 tribes that are Indian Entities Recognized and Eligible To Receive Services From the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs . The number of tribes increased to 567 in July 2015 with the federal recognition of the Pamunkey tribe in Virginia . The website USA.gov, the federal government's official web portal, also maintains a constantly updated list of tribal governments . Ancillary information present in former versions of this list but no longer contained in the current listing has been included here in italics print . </P> <Ul> <Li> Absentee - Shawnee Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma </Li> <Li> Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians of the Agua Caliente Indian Reservation, California </Li> <Li> Ak Chin Indian Community of the Maricopa (Ak Chin) Indian Reservation, Arizona </Li> <Li> Alabama - Coushatta Tribe of Texas (formerly the Alabama - Coushatta Tribes of Texas) </Li> <Li> Alabama - Quassarte Tribal Town, Oklahoma </Li> <Li> Alturas Indian Rancheria, California </Li> <Li> Apache Tribe of Oklahoma </Li> <Li> Arapahoe Tribe of the Wind River Reservation, Wyoming </Li> <Li> Aroostook Band of Micmac (formerly the Aroostook Band of Micmac Indians of Maine) </Li> <Li> Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck Indian Reservation, Montana </Li> <Li> Augustine Band of Cahuilla Indians, California (formerly the Augustine Band of Cahuilla Mission Indians of the Augustine Reservation, California) </Li> </Ul> <Li> Absentee - Shawnee Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma </Li>

Name three american indian tribes in the united states