North Carolina HB 600: Recognition of the Tuscarora.

Bill Text

GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2025
H 2
HOUSE BILL 600
Committee Substitute Favorable 7/1/26

Short Title: Recognition of the Tuscarora. (Public)
Sponsors:
Referred to:
April 1, 2025
*H600-v-2*
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
AN ACT TO RESTORE OFFICIAL RECOGNITION TO THE TUSCARORA AND TO 2
PROVIDE THEM REPRESENTATION ON THE COMMISSION OF INDIAN AFFAIRS. 3
Whereas, the passage of Senate Bill 642 by the 1971 General Assembly created the 4
North Carolina Commission of Indian Affairs, recognizing the existence within the State of 5
certain named Indian tribes and also acknowledged the fact that members of other Indian tribes 6
reside within the State; and 7
Whereas, the Tuscarora were recognized through treaties with the North Carolina 8
government, but were not among those tribes recognized in 1971; and 9
Whereas, the Tuscarora were a powerful tribe at the time of the English settlement of 10
the land that became North Carolina and Virginia and their prominent role in the early history of 11
both states is well-documented; and 12
Whereas, the Tuscarora and the Cherokee are the only tribes to hold treaties with the 13
North Carolina government; and 14
Whereas, the King of the Tuscarora was the signatory of the 1712 General Articles of 15
Peace and the 1714 Sun and Moon Peace Treaty and these treaties helped establish a lasting and 16
prosperous peace between the Tuscarora and the government and citizens of North Carolina; and 17
Whereas, the Tuscarora signed a stand-alone Treaty in 1717 with Governor Eden that 18
reserved 56,000 acres of historic Tuscarora territory in Bertie County exclusively for the 19
Tuscarora known as Indian Woods and in 1748, legislation reestablished the official boundaries 20
and drew a map of its proximities; and 21
Whereas, for two centuries, parcels of Indian Woods were allotted to descendants of 22
the Tuscarora Tribe and they have persisted as communities of Tuscarora People since that time 23
and have reorganized and incorporated into The Tuscarora Indians of Kahtenuaka Territories and 24
appointed a tribal council to represent all North Carolina Tuscarora; and 25
Whereas, a review of historical documents and testimony confirmed the current Tribal 26
Council of The Tuscarora Indians of Kahtenuaka Territories consists of descendants of the 27
historical Tuscarora Tribe; and 28
Whereas, the Tuscarora and its descendants contributed and continue to contribute to 29
the settlement and growth of the State of North Carolina, have maintained their ethnic 30
background, original language and culture and number among themselves families with names 31
well-known throughout the area and the State; Now, therefore, 32
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 33
SECTION 1. Chapter 71A of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new 34
section to read: 35

General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
Page 2 House Bill 600-Second Edition
"§ 71A-7.3. The Tuscarora Indians of Kahtenuaka Territories; rights, privileges, 1
immunities, obligations, and duties. 2
The Indians who comprise The Tuscarora Indians of Kahtenuaka Territories, whose ancestors 3
signed treaties with the government of North Carolina and were granted the Indian Woods 4
Reservation on the Roanoke River in Bertie County, shall, from and after July 1, 2026, be 5
designated and officially recognized as The Tuscarora Indians of Kahtenuaka Territories, and 6
they shall continue to enjoy all their rights, privileges, and immunities as an American Indian 7
Tribe with a recognized tribal governing body carrying out and exercising substantial 8
governmental duties and powers similar to the State. The Tuscarora Indians of Kahtenuaka 9
Territories shall be recognized as eligible for the special programs and services provided by the 10
United States to Indians because of their status as Indians. The Tuscarora shall maintain 11
individual enrollment criteria, providing an opportunity for all North Carolina Tuscarora 12
descendants to enroll and shall govern themselves in a manner that will benefit and unify all 13
Tuscarora that come under their governance." 14
SECTION 2. G.S. 143B-407 reads as rewritten: 15
"§ 143B-407. North Carolina State Commission of Indian Affairs – membership; term of 16
office; chairman; compensation. 17
(a) The State Commission of Indian Affairs shall consist of two persons appointed by the 18
General Assembly, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the Assistant Secretary of 19
Commerce in charge of the Division of Employment Security, the Secretary of Administration, 20
the Secretary of Environmental Quality, the Commissioner of Labor or their designees and 21 23 21
representatives of the Indian community. These Indian members shall be selected by tribal or 22
community consent from the Indian groups that are recognized by the State of North Carolina 23
and are principally geographically located as follows: the Coharie of Sampson and Harnett 24
Counties; the Eastern Band of Cherokees; the Haliw