2024 -- S 2239 | |
======== | |
LC003869 | |
======== | |
STATE OF RHODE ISLAND | |
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY | |
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2024 | |
____________ | |
A N A C T | |
RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT -- RECOGNITION OF NATIVE | |
AMERICAN TRIBES | |
| |
Introduced By: Senators Quezada, Acosta, Cano, and Mack | |
Date Introduced: January 24, 2024 | |
Referred To: Senate Special Legislation and Veterans Affairs | |
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: | |
1 | SECTION 1. Title 42 of the General Laws entitled "STATE AFFAIRS AND |
2 | GOVERNMENT" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following chapter: |
3 | CHAPTER 166 |
4 | RECOGNITION OF NATIVE AMERICAN TRIBES |
5 | 42-166-1. Petition for recognition. |
6 | A Native American tribe may petition the state for recognition by providing the house of |
7 | representatives with the following documentation: |
8 | (1) A statement of facts establishing that the tribe has been identified from historical times |
9 | until the present on a substantially continuous basis as "American Indian" or "aboriginal"; |
10 | (2) Evidence that a substantial portion of the group inhabits a specific area or lives in a |
11 | community viewed as American Indian and that its members are descendants of an Indian tribe |
12 | which historically inhabited a specific area; |
13 | (3) Evidence that the tribe has maintained tribal political authority or influence over its |
14 | members as an autonomous entity throughout history until the present; |
15 | (4) A copy of the tribe's governing document, including membership criteria, or, if it does |
16 | not have a formal governing document, a description of its membership criteria and governing |
17 | procedures; |
18 | (5) An official membership list, any available former lists, and evidence that current |
| |
1 | members descend from a historic tribe or tribes that combined into a single autonomous political |
2 | entity; |
3 | (6) Evidence that the tribe consists mainly of people who are not members of an |
4 | acknowledged North American Indian tribe; and |
5 | (7) A statement that the tribe is not the subject of the congressional legislation that has |
6 | terminated or forbidden the federal trust relationship (pursuant to House Concurrent Resolution |
7 | 108 (HCR 108) of 1953). |
8 | 42-166-2. Legislative power. |
9 | The general assembly is granted the authority to forward a petition for state recognition to |
10 | the governor for enactment through legislation; provided, however, the general assembly has the |
11 | authority to impose restrictions on the following activities: |
12 | (1) Gaming licensure and/or permission to establish a casino; |
13 | (2) Creation of a state reservation or relinquishment of government land; and |
14 | (3) Approval for state sales tax-free economic development ventures. |
15 | SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage. |
======== | |
LC003869 | |
======== | |
| LC003869 - Page 2 of 3 |
EXPLANATION | |
BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL | |
OF | |
A N A C T | |
RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT -- RECOGNITION OF NATIVE | |
AMERICAN TRIBES | |
*** | |
1 | This act would provide a procedure for a Native American tribe to petition the state for |
2 | recognition. |
3 | This act would take effect upon passage. |
======== | |
LC003869 | |
======== | |
| LC003869 - Page 3 of 3 |