Lumbee Recognition Act - Extends federal recognition to the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina, which makes its members eligible for the services and benefits provided to Indians because of their status as members of a federally recognized tribe.
Deems members of the Tribe residing in Robeson, Cumberland, Hoke, and Scotland Counties in North Carolina to be within the delivery area for such services.
Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to take land into trust for the Tribe.
Prohibits the Tribe from conducting gaming activities.
Requires North Carolina to exercise jurisdiction over all criminal offenses committed, and all civil actions that arise, on North Carolina lands owned by, or held in trust for, the Lumbee Tribe or any dependent Indian community of the Tribe.
[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 27 Introduced in House (IH)]
112th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 27
To provide for the recognition of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina,
and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 5, 2011
Mr. McIntyre (for himself, Mr. McDermott, Mr. Smith of Washington, Mr.
Peterson, Mr. Ruppersberger, Mr. Price of North Carolina, Mr. Langevin,
Mr. Becerra, Mr. Doggett, Mr. Serrano, and Ms. DeGette) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural
Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for the recognition of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina,
and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Lumbee Recognition Act''.
SEC. 2. PREAMBLE.
The preamble to the Act of June 7, 1956 (70 Stat. 254), is amended
as follows:
(1) By striking ``and'' at the end of each clause.
(2) By striking ``: Now, therefore,'' at the end of the
last clause and inserting a semicolon.
(3) By adding at the end the following new clauses:
``Whereas the Lumbee Indians of Robeson and adjoining counties in North Carolina
are descendants of coastal North Carolina Indian tribes, principally
Cheraw, and have remained a distinct Indian community since the time of
contact with white settlers;
``Whereas since 1885 the State of North Carolina has recognized the Lumbee
Indians as an Indian tribe;
``Whereas in 1956 the Congress of the United States acknowledged the Lumbee
Indians as an Indian tribe, but withheld from the Lumbee Tribe the
benefits, privileges and immunities to which the Tribe and its members
otherwise would have been entitled by virtue of the Tribe's status as a
federally recognized tribe; and
``Whereas the Congress finds that the Lumbee Indians should now be entitled to
full Federal recognition of their status as an Indian tribe and that the
benefits, privileges and immunities that accompany such status should be
accorded to the Lumbee Tribe: Now, therefore,''.
SEC. 3. FEDERAL RECOGNITION.
The Act of June 7, 1956 (70 Stat. 254), is amended as follows:
(1) By striking the last sentence of the first section.
(2) By striking section 2 and inserting the following new
sections:
``Sec. 2. (a) Federal recognition is hereby extended to the Lumbee
Tribe of North Carolina, as designated as petitioner number 65 by the
Office of Federal Acknowledgement. All laws and regulations of the
United States of general application to Indians and Indian tribes shall
apply to the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina and its members.
``(b) Notwithstanding the first section, any group of Indians in
Robeson and adjoining counties, North Carolina, whose members are not
enrolled in the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina as determined under
section 3(c), may petition under part 83 of title 25 of the Code of
Federal Regulations for acknowledgement of tribal existence.
``Sec. 3. (a) The Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina and its members
shall be eligible for all services and benefits provided to Indians
because of their status as members of a federally recognized tribe. For
the purposes of the delivery of such services, those members of the
Tribe residing in Robeson, Cumberland, Hoke, and Scotland counties in
North Carolina shall be deemed to be residing on or near an Indian
reservation.
``(b) Upon verification by the Secretary of the Interior of a
tribal roll under subsection (c), the Secretary of the Interior and the
Secretary of Health and Human Services shall develop, in consultation
with the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina, a determination of needs to
provide the services to which members of the Tribe are eligible. The
Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Health and Human
Services shall each submit a written statement of such needs to
Congress after the tribal roll is verified.
``(c) For purposes of the delivery of Federal services, the tribal
roll in effect on the date of the enactment of this section shall,
subject to verification by the Secretary of the Interior, define the
service population of the Tribe. The Secretary's verification shall be
limited to confirming compliance with the membership criteria set out
in the Tribe's constitution adopted on November 16, 2001, which
verification shall be completed within 2 years after the date of the
enactment of this section.
``Sec. 4. (a) The Secretary may take land into trust for the Lumbee
Tribe pursuant to this Act. An application to take land located within
Robeson County, North Carolina, into trust under this section shall be
treated by the Secretary as an `on reservation' trust acquisition under
part 151 of title 25, Code of Federal Regulation (or a successor
regulation).
``(b) The tribe may not conduct gaming activities as a matter of
claimed inherent authority or under the authority of any Federal law,
including the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.) or
under any regulations thereunder promulgated by the Secretary or the
National Indian Gaming Commission.
``Sec. 5. (a) The State of North Carolina shall exercise
jurisdiction over--
``(1) all criminal offenses that are committed on; and
``(2) all civil actions that arise on, lands located within
the State of North Carolina that are owned by, or held in trust
by the United States for, the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina,
or any dependent Indian community of the Lumbee Tribe of North
Carolina.
``(b) The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to accept on
behalf of the United States, after consulting with the Attorney General
of the United States, any transfer by the State of North Carolina to
the United States of any portion of the jurisdiction of the State of
North Carolina described in subsection (a) pursuant to an agreement
between the Lumbee Tribe and the State of North Carolina. Such transfer
of jurisdiction may not take effect until 2 years after the effective
date of the agreement.
``(c) The provisions of this section shall not affect the
application of section 109 of the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 (25
U.S.C. 1919).
``Sec. 6. There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are
necessary to carry out this Act.''.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
Referred to the Subcommittee Indian and Alaska Native Affairs.
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