To provide for the acknowledgment of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina, and for other purposes.

February 14, 2003

Mrs. DOLE introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs

To provide for the acknowledgment 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 Acknowledgment Act of 2003'.

SEC. 2. LUMBEE ACKNOWLEDGMENT.

The Act of June 7, 1956 (70 Stat. 254, chapter 375), is amended to read as follows:

`SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

`This Act may be cited as the `Lumbee Acknowledgment Act'.

`SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

`Congress finds that--

`(1) many Indians living in Robeson County, North Carolina, and adjoining counties in the State are descendants of a once large and prosperous tribe that occupied the land along the Lumbee River at the time when the earliest European settlements were established in the area;

`(2) when the members of that tribe first made contact with the settlers, the members were a well-established and distinctive people living in European-style houses, tilling the soil, owning slaves and livestock, and practicing many of the arts and crafts of European civilization;

`(3) tribal legend, a distinctive appearance and manner of speech, and the frequent recurrence among tribal members of family names (such as Bullard, Chavis, Drinkwater, Locklear, Lowery, Oxendine, and Sampson) that were found on the roster of the earliest English settlements, provide evidence that the Indians now living in the area may trace their ancestry back to both--

`(A) European settlers; and

`(B) certain coastal tribes of Indians in the State, principally the Cheraw Tribe;

`(4) the Lumbee Tribe has remained a distinct Indian community since European settlers first made contact with the community;

`(5) the members of the Tribe--

`(A) are naturally and understandably proud of their heritage; and

`(B) seek to establish their social status and preserve their ancestry;

`(6) the State has acknowledged the Lumbee Indians as an Indian tribe since 1885;

`(7) in 1956, Congress acknowledged the Lumbee Indians as an Indian tribe but withheld from the Tribe the benefits, privileges, and immunities to which the Tribe and members of the Tribe would have been entitled by virtue of status as an acknowledged Indian tribe; and

`(8)(A) the Tribe is entitled to full Federal acknowledgment; and

`(B) the programs, services, and benefits that accompany that status should be extended to the Tribe and members of the Tribe.

`SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

`In this Act:

`(1) ACKNOWLEDGMENT- The term `acknowledgment' means acknowledgment by the United States that--

`(A) an Indian group is an Indian tribe; and

`(B) the members of the Indian group are eligible for the programs, services, and benefits (including privileges and immunities) provided by the United States to members of Indian tribes because of the status of those members as Indians.

`(2) INDIAN- The term `Indian' means a member of an Indian tribe or Indian group.

`(3) INDIAN GROUP- The term `Indian group' means any Indian band, pueblo, village, or community that is not acknowledged.

`(4) INDIAN TRIBE- The term `Indian tribe' has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b).

`(5) SECRETARY- The term `Secretary' means the Secretary of the Interior.

`(6) SERVICE POPULATION- The term `service population' means the population of the Tribe eligible to receive the programs, services, and benefits

described in section 5(a), as determined by the Secretary under section 5(c).

`(7) STATE- The term `State' means the State of North Carolina.

`(8) TRIBAL ROLL- The term `tribal roll' means a list of individuals who have been determined by the Tribe to meet the membership requirements of the Tribe established in the constitution of the Tribe adopted November 11, 2000.

`(9) TRIBE- The term `Tribe' means the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina, located in Robeson County, North Carolina, and adjoining counties in the State.

`SEC. 4. ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF LUMBEE TRIBE.

`(a) ACKNOWLEDGMENT-

`(1) IN GENERAL- The Tribe is acknowledged.

`(2) APPLICABLE LAW- All laws (including regulations) of the United States of general applicability to Indians and Indian tribes shall apply to the Tribe and members of the Tribe.

`(b) PETITION- Any Indian group located in Robeson County, North Carolina (or any adjoining county), the members of which are not members of the Tribe as determined by the Secretary under section 5(c), may submit to the Secretary a petition in accordance with part 83 of title 25, Code of Federal Regulations (or a successor regulation), for acknowledgement.

`SEC. 5. SERVICES.

`(a) IN GENERAL- Beginning on the date of enactment of this section, the Tribe and members of the Tribe are eligible for all programs, services, and benefits (including privileges and immunities) provided by the Federal Government to Indian tribes and members of Indian tribes.

`(b) RESERVATION-

`(1) PROGRAMS, SERVICES, AND BENEFITS- For the purpose of providing any program, service, or benefit described in subsection (a) to the Tribe or a member of the Tribe, the Tribe, and any member of the Tribe residing in the county of Robeson, Cumberland, Hoke, or Scotland in the State, shall be considered to be residing on or near an Indian reservation.

`(2) FEDERAL LAW- Beginning on the date of enactment of this section, Robeson County, North Carolina, shall be considered to be the reservation of the Tribe for the purpose of any Federal law applicable to the Tribe.

`(3) NO EFFECT ON FEE OWNERSHIP- Nothing in this subsection affects the ownership status of any fee land within the State, or the status of any right or easement in the State, in existence as of the date of enactment of this section.

`(c) DETERMINATION OF SERVICE POPULATION-

`(1) IN GENERAL- Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this section, the Secretary shall--

`(A) using the tribal roll in existence as of the date of enactment of this section, verify the population of the Tribe; and

`(B) determine the population of the Tribe eligible to receive the programs, services, and benefits described in subsection (a).

`(2) VERIFICATION- The Secretary shall base a verification under paragraph (1)(A) only on a confirmation of compliance of members of the Tribe with membership criteria established in the constitution of the Tribe adopted November 11, 2000.

`(d) NEEDS OF TRIBE-

`(1) IN GENERAL- On determination of the service population, the Secretary and the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall develop, in consultation with the Tribe--

`(A) a determination of the needs of the Tribe; and

`(B) a recommended budget required to serve the Tribe.

`(2) SUBMISSION OF BUDGET REQUEST- For each fiscal year after determination of the service population, the Secretary or the Secretary of Health and Human Services, as appropriate, shall submit to the President a recommended budget for programs, services, and benefits provided by the United States to members of the Tribe because of the status of those members as Indians (including funding recommendations for the Tribe that are based on the determination and budget described in paragraph (1)) for inclusion in the annual budget submitted by the President to Congress in accordance with section 1108 of title 31, United States Code.

`SEC. 6. JURISDICTION.

`(a) IN GENERAL- Except as provided in subsection (b), the State shall exercise jurisdiction over all criminal offenses that are committed on, and all civil actions that arise on, land located in the State that is owned by, or held in trust by the United States for the benefit of, the Tribe or any member of the Tribe.

`(b) TRANSFER OF JURISDICTION-

`(1) IN GENERAL- After consultation with the Attorney General, the Secretary may accept, on behalf of the United States, any transfer by the State to the United States of all or any portion of the jurisdiction of the State described in subsection (a).

`(2) AGREEMENT- A transfer of jurisdiction under paragraph (1)--

`(A) shall be subject to an agreement entered into by the Tribe and the State relating to the transfer; and

`(B) shall not take effect until at least 2 years after the date on which the agreement is entered into.

`(c) NO EFFECT ON INDIAN CHILD WELFARE ACT AGREEMENTS- Nothing in this section affects the application of section 109 of the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 1919).

`SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

`There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary to carry out this Act.'.

END