For the third Congress in a row, a House bill that would grant federal recognition to the state-recognized Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina has passed. By a vote of 311-96, the Lumbee Fairness Act (H.R. 1101) passed the U.S. House of Representatives, in the 118 Congress, on Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2024.

The bill was introduced on Feb. 17, 2023 by Rep. David Rouzer (R-N.C.) who said in a statement on Tuesday, "The Lumbee people are an integral part of our southeastern North Carolina community. They are our neighbors and friends. We attend church together. Our children go to school together. But, for generations, the Lumbee Tribe has been denied full federal recognition and tribal sovereignty. Today, I am proud the House of Representatives came together to pass my bill, the Lumbee Fairness Act, and help ensure the Lumbee people have the same rights and benefits as the other federally-recognized tribes across the country."

The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) has opposed Lumbee recognition for years. In a statement on Tuesday night, Ugvwiyuhi (Principal Chief) Michell Hicks noted, "The passage of this bill is a serious blow to the integrity of federal tribal recognition. By suspending the rules and eliminating meaningful discussion, Congress has chosen political expediency over the rigorous standards that have long protected tribal sovereignty and identity. If enacted, H.R. 1101 would create a dangerous precedent -- one that allows groups to achieve federal recognition without meeting the established requirements for historical, genealogical, and cultural evidence. Every other tribal nation that has sought recognition has had to meet these standards.

For decades, federally recognized tribes have fought to uphold the integrity of this process. The Lumbee group has not met these standards. They cannot identify which historical tribe they descend from, and recent genealogical and historical research has exposed significant flaws in their claims. Federal recognition is not an entitlement. It is a status earned through evidence, not politics."

Cherokee Nation Ugvwiyuhi Chuck Hoskin Jr. joined Ugvwiyuhi Hicks' sentiment in a statement. "Today, the U.S. House of Representatives chose stories over evidence and passed the Lumbee Fairness Act. I hope the Senate will again choose evidence over stories and stand up against this latest attempt to circumvent and erode the established federal recognition process."

Ugvwiyuhi Hicks said other tribes have the same standpoint as the EBCI and the Cherokee Nation. "This is not just an issue for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians -- it is an Indian Country issue. If Congress opens the door to recognition without evidence, other groups will follow. Groups with no legitimate claims to tribal identity or sovereignty will attempt to take advantage of this shortcut. The floodgates will open, and the burden will fall on every federally recognized tribe to defend their status, resources, and cultural heritage from encroachment.

The Senate has a choice to make. They can protect the integrity of federal recognition, or they can pave the way for groups to claim tribal status without evidence. I am calling on the Senate to do what is right. I urge them to reject H.R. 1101 and direct the Lumbee group to seek recognition through the established process at the Office of Federal Acknowledgment. This process exists for a reason -- to protect the sovereignty, culture, and legacy of true tribal nations."

Ugvwiyuhi Hicks added, "The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians stands alongside the United Indian Nations of Oklahoma, the Coalition of Large Tribes, the Great Plains Tribal Chairmen's Association, the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians, and tribal nations across the country in calling for fairness, transparency, and accountability in federal recognition decisions. The Senate must uphold the standards that protect all tribal nations from harm and injustice."

This issue has been before Congress before. Following are the results of Lumbee recognition bills from the past 10 Congresses alone.

Congressman Chuck Edwards (R-N.C.) spoke of the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives on Sept. 25 in opposition to the Lumbee Recognition Act and in favor of groups going through the OFA process.

"For over 40 years, the Department of the Interior has carried out a merit-based process, as set out by Congress and administered by the Office of Federal Acknowledgement (OFA), to make determinations on federal recognition of tribes. If the administration or Congress allows the Lumbee to bypass the OFA, it sends a clear message that other groups with dubious claims for tribal recognition can also avoid the deliberation and scrutiny that the OFA petition is designed to provide."

His remarks continued, "If there was actual merit behind the Lumbee case for federal recognition, they'd go through the OFA process as set out in the law. But, as they know, it won't hold up under a deliberative process, they've instead sought to get special treatment through other avenues, all in the face of credible opposition by multiple federally recognized tribes."

The Office of Federal Acknowledgement (OFA) is located within the Office of the Assistant Secretary - Indian Affairs. According to information from the OFA, "By applying anthropological, genealogical, and historical research methods, OFA reviews, verifies, and evaluates groups' petitions for federal acknowledgment as Indian Tribes."

As of Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2024, there are nine groups with petitions going through the OFA process including the following: Tuskarora Nation of Moratoc Indians (N.C.), Salinan Tribe of Monterey and San Luis Obispo Counties (Calif.), Tripanick Nansemond Family Indian Tribe (Kan.), Chihene Nde Nation of New Mexico (N.M.), Fernandeno Tataviam Band of Mission Indians (Calif.), Butte Tribe of Bayou Bourbeaux (La.), Schaghticoke Indian Tribe (Conn.), Muscogee Nation of Florida (Fla.), and the Piro/Manso/Tiwa Indian Tribe of the Pueblo of San Juan de Guadalupe (N.M.).

Cards bearing the logo of the United Indian Nations of Oklahoma (UINO) were distributed during a General Assembly meeting at the 81 Annual National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) Convention and Marketplace on Tuesday, Oct. 29 and caused a stir within the organization. The cards rebutted the history and recognition efforts of the state-recognized Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina.

The card reads as follows:

"The Dangers of Legislative Recognition for Lumbee

The card distributed at NCAI contains a QR Code linking to a study on UINO's website. The study, by Jean M. Kelley, M.A., is entitled "Analysis of Lumbee Historical and Genealogical Claims".

In the 19-page report, Kelley states, "The totality of Lumbee claims lacks properly attributed historical documentation and relies on speculative connections rather than verified facts."

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), who introduced the Lumbee Fairness Act (S.521) in the Senate, said in a statement on Tuesday, "I am dedicated to ensuring that Congress fulfills its six-decade-old promise to grant full federal recognition to the Lumbee people. We are now closer than ever to finally fulfilling that promise."

Sen. Tillis has blocked legislation (S.2088 - Wounded Knee Massacre Memorial and Sacred Site Act) that would place around 40 acres of land on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota into restricted fee status for the Oglala Sioux Tribe and Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe.

Basically, when passed, the bill would guarantee that no commercial development nor gaming could occur at the site of a major atrocity where the U.S. Army killed over 300 (numbers vary on total killed) Lakota men, women, and children on the icy morning of Dec. 29, 1890, at Wounded Knee Creek.

OJ Semans, executive director of C.O.L.T. (Coalition of Large Tribes), wrote a commentary along with his wife, Barb Semans, which appears in Native News Online. They wrote, "As with many other bills that purport to help Indian Country, Tillis blocked it from proceeding, trying to force his colleagues to address his Lumbee recognition bill, circumventing the Department of the Interior's standard administrative tribal recognition process.

I do not believe Senator Tillis contacted the Lumbee prior to blocking the Wounded Knee legislation, but I would be interested in the Lumbee leadership's stance on his actions. It is our descendants who are negatively affected by his actions. We believe the Lumbee need to respond in support or opposition to Tillis's use of their issue - at the expense of another Tribe - to meet his own political agenda. The Lumbee's silence is tacit support."

S.521 is currently going through the Senate and is in the Committee on Indian Affairs.