This chapter shall be known as the "NHBP Tribal Government Records and Public Access Code" and shall be codified as Title I, Chapter 1.2, of the NHBP Tribal Code; short title, this may also be known as the "Government Records Code."
A. 
The indigenous and inherent sovereign power to govern the NHBP Indian Tribe is vested in the NHBP Tribal Council under the NHBP Constitution. The NHBP Tribal Council has the authority to safeguard and promote the peace, safety, morals, and general welfare of the members of the Tribe by regulating the behavior of all persons within the jurisdiction of the Tribe, and by providing for the enactment and enforcement of laws of the Tribe. This authority includes the authority to adopt laws regulating the procedures of tribal agencies and tribal officials.
B. 
In addition, Article VII, Section 3, of the Tribal Constitution requires all government bodies of the Tribe to keep records of all of their official actions and further requires the Tribal Council to enact legislation providing procedures by which members of the Tribe may be afforded reasonable access to official records of government bodies.
The purpose of this chapter is to establish a legal framework for the receipt, care, custody, and administration of the official records of the Tribe. In addition, this chapter sets forth the policies and procedures regarding the definition, management of, and access to official records. It is hereby declared to be the policy of the Tribe to provide for efficient, economical and effective controls over the creation, distribution, organization, maintenance, use, and disposition of all official records through a comprehensive system of integrated procedures for the management of records from their creation to their ultimate disposition, consistent with the requirements of this code and accepted records management practice.