I 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2761 

To sever United States Government relations with the Cherokee Nation of 

Oklahoma until such time as the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma restores 

full tribal citizenship to the Cherokee Freedmen disenfranchised in the 

March 3, 2007, Cherokee Nation vote and fulfills all its treaty obligations 

with the Government of the United States, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 8, 2009 

Ms. WATSON (for herself, Ms. NORTON, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mrs. CHRISTENSEN, 

Mr. BUTTERFIELD, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. CLAY, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. 

TOWNS, Mr. AL GREEN of Texas, and Mr. FATTAH) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, 

and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be 

subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 

of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To sever United States Government relations with the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma until such time as the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma restores full tribal citizenship 

to the Cherokee Freedmen disenfranchised in the March 

3, 2007, Cherokee Nation vote and fulfills all its treaty 

obligations with the Government of the United States, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) In the 1830s, members of the Cherokee Na4 tion were removed from their lands in the south5 eastern United States and forced to migrate to 

6 Oklahoma along a route known as the Trail of 

7 Tears. Among those persons forced to migrate were 

8 the Black slaves of Cherokees, free Blacks married 

9 to Cherokees, and the children of mixed-race fami10 lies, known now as the ‘‘Black Cherokees’’. 

11 (2) In 1861, the Cherokee Nation executed a 

12 treaty with the Confederate States of America, 

13 thereby severing its relations with the United States 

14 Government. Members of the Cherokee Nation held 

15 positions in the Congress and military of the Con16 federate States of America and waged war against 

17 the United States during the Civil War. 

18 (3) Following the Civil War, the United States 

19 reestablished relations with the Cherokee Nation 

20 through the Treaty of 1866. The Treaty of 1866 de21 clared that the Black Cherokees, also known as 

22 ‘‘Cherokee Freedmen’’, were to be made citizens of 

23 the Cherokee Nation and to have all the rights of 

24 Cherokees. 

25 (4) The Treaty of 1866 further guarantees the 

26 following: 


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1 (A) Laws ‘‘shall be uniform throughout 

2 said nation’’ and that if ‘‘any law, either in its 

3 provisions or in the manner of its enforcement, 

4 in the opinion of the President of the United 

5 States, operate unjustly in [the Freedmen] dis6 trict, he is hereby authorized and empowered to 

7 correct such evil.’’. 

8 (B) The Cherokee Freedmen are given the 

9 right to elect officials and to representation 

10 ‘‘according to numbers’’ on the national council. 

11 (5) Following the Treaty of 1866, the Cherokee 

12 National Council amended its constitution to guar13 antee the Cherokee Freedmen full rights as citizens 

14 of the Cherokee Nation. 

15 (6) Also following the Treaty of 1866, the 

16 Courts upheld the Cherokee Freedmen’s treaty 

17 rights, including— 

18 (A) in 1895, the Court of Claims held that 

19 the Cherokee Freedmen were entitled to share 

20 in the tribe’s land sale proceeds and the Cher21 okee Nation’s sovereignty could not be exercised 

22 in a manner that breached the nation’s treaty 

23 obligations to the United States (Whitmire, 

24 Trustee for the Cherokee Freedmen v. Cherokee 


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1 Nation, 30 CT Cl. 138, 180 (CT Cl. 1895)); 

2 and 

3 (B) in 1906, the Supreme Court noted 

4 that the Cherokee Freedmen are citizens of the 

5 Cherokee Nation entitled to the same property 

6 rights as other members of the Cherokee Na7 tion under the Treaty of 1866 (Red Bird v. 

8 United States, 203 U.S. 76, 84). 

9 (7) In a December 19, 2006, ruling in Vann v. 

10 Kempthorne, the United States District Court for 

11 the District of Columbia found that in 1906, the 

12 Dawes Commission registered members of the Cher13 okee Nation under separate categories: the ‘‘Freed14 men Roll’’ for the Black Cherokees and the ‘‘Blood 

15 Roll’’ for other Cherokees. Individuals possessing Af16 rican blood were placed on the Freedmen Roll, where 

17 no levels of Indian blood were recorded. Those pos18 sessing no African blood were placed on the Blood 

19 Roll, where levels of Indian blood were recorded. The 

20 Dawes Commission declared that persons recorded 

21 on the Freedmen Roll were on equal footing with 

22 those on the Blood Roll. 

23 (8) In 1970, Congress passed the ‘‘Principal 

24 Chiefs Act’’ requiring the Chickasaw, Choctaw, 

25 Creek, Seminole, and Cherokee Nations to obtain 


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1 approval for their voting laws for selection of the 

2 principal chief. The Department of the Interior 

3 drafted a policy stating that it was not necessary 

4 that each of these groups have identical or similar 

5 regulations, but that three conditions are deemed 

6 fundamental to the democratic selection of a prin7 cipal tribal official. One of the three conditions stip8 ulated by the Department is that voter qualifications 

9 of the Cherokees must be broad enough to include 

10 the enrolled Cherokee Freedmen citizens. 

11 (9) In May 2003, the Cherokee Nation held an 

12 election for its officers and ratification of a new con13 stitution. The vote proposed to amend the 1999 con14 stitution of the Cherokee Nation by removing the re15 quirement that the United States Department of the 

16 Interior and Bureau of Indian Affairs approve 

17 amendments to the Cherokee Nation Constitution. 

18 The Cherokee Freedmen were not permitted to vote 

19 or run for office. The election violated the Treaty of 

20 1866, the 13th Amendment to the United States 

21 Constitution, the Principal Chiefs Act of 1970, and 

22 the Department of the Interior’s guidance on the 

23 ratification of a new constitution. 

24 (10) In May 2003, the Cherokee Nation held an 

25 election for its officers and the ratification of a new 


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1 constitution. The new constitution removed the re2 quirement that the United States Department of the 

3 Interior and the Bureau of Indian Affairs approve 

4 amendments to the Cherokee Nation constitution. 

5 The Cherokee Freedmen were not permitted to vote 

6 in this election. The election violated the Treaty of 

7 1866, the 13th Amendment to the United States 

8 Constitution, and the Principal Chiefs Act of 1970. 

9 (11) The Department of the Interior has not 

10 recognized the May 2003 vote to amend the Cher11 okee Nation’s constitution. The Cherokee Nation has 

12 subsequently removed its request for approval from 

13 the Department of the Interior. 

14 (12) Currently, the Cherokee Nation operates 

15 under a Principal Chief elected in violation to the 

16 1970 Principal Chiefs Act and Treaty of 1866, a 

17 National Council constituted without Cherokee 

18 Freedmen representatives in violation of the Treaty 

19 of 1866, and a Constitution not approved by the 

20 United States pursuant to article XV, section 10 of 

21 the 1975 Cherokee Nation Constitution. 

22 (13) In May 2003, the Cherokee Nation re23 named its highest court, formerly named the Judi24 cial Appeals Tribunal and newly renamed the Su25 preme Court, after the Judicial Appeals Tribunal 


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1 ruled in a 2–1 decision that the Cherokee Freedmen 

2 were entitled to citizenship pursuant to the 1975 

3 Cherokee Nation constitution. Pursuant to the new 

4 May 2003 constitution, which still has not been ap5 proved by the Department of the Interior, the ille6 gally elected Principal Chief appointed two addi7 tional judges to the Supreme Court. The panel of 

8 five Supreme Court judges ruled in a 3–2 decision 

9 that the Cherokee Nation could hold a vote on the 

10 tribal status of the Cherokee Freedmen. 

11 (14) Operating under the unapproved Constitu12 tion, the Cherokee Nation held an election in March 

13 2007, to remove the Cherokee Freedmen from the 

14 Cherokee Nation. In a vote of less than 4 percent of 

15 the total Cherokee Nation population, the voters 

16 elected to remove Cherokee Freedmen not on the 

17 Dawes blood rolls from the Nation. 

18 (15) In May 2007, the Cherokee Nation leader19 ship determined that it would allow registered 

20 Freedmen to vote in the June 23, 2007, election for 

21 tribal officers. Despite the Cherokee Nation’s deci22 sion to allow Freedmen to vote, Freedmen’s rights 

23 as members of the Cherokee Nation are severely re24 stricted: Freedmen are not allowed to run for office 

25 in the June 2007 election in violation of the Treaty 


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1 of 1866; the registration of Freedmen entitled to 

2 Cherokee citizenship under the 1906 Dawes Rolls 

3 has been halted; and the election is to be held under 

4 provisions of an unapproved constitution and in vio5 lation of the 1970 Principal Chiefs Act that requires 

6 the Cherokee leadership to submit its voting require7 ments for the election to the Secretary of the Inte8 rior for his approval. Further, the actions of the 

9 Cherokee Nation in halting citizenship application 

10 processing and voter registration of Freedmen have 

11 disproportionately reduced the number of Freedmen 

12 voters that can participate in the election. 

13 (16) The manner in which the Cherokee Nation 

14 is conducting the relationship between the United 

15 States and the tribal entity is not in the best inter16 est of the United States Government, citizens of the 

17 Cherokee Nation, and violates existing treaties and 

18 laws governing the relationship between the United 

19 States Government and the Cherokee Nation. 

20 (17) Current efforts of the Cherokee Nation to 

21 expel members of the Cherokee Freedmen from the 

22 tribal rolls and abolish Department of the Interior 

23 oversight are being pursued in violation of the treaty 

24 rights extended to the Cherokee Freedmen in a trea25 ty agreement between the United States and CherVerDate Nov 24 2008 22:30 Jun 09, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2761.IH H2761

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1 okee Nation in the 1866 Treaty and in violation of 

2 Freedmen citizenship under the federally approved 

3 Cherokee Nation constitution of 1975. 

4 (18) The Department of the Interior has failed 

5 to uphold its fiduciary responsibility by recognizing 

6 the May 2003 Cherokee Nation election for Prin7 cipal Chief in which Freedmen were not allowed to 

8 vote in violation of the Principal Chiefs Act and the 

9 Treaty of 1866 and by failing to take any adminis10 trative action against the Cherokee Nation leader11 ship for its decision to sanction a referendum in 

12 March 2007 in which the Freedmen were expelled 

13 from the Cherokee Nation. 

14 SEC. 2. SEVERANCE OF RELATIONS WITH THE CHEROKEE 

15 NATION. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—The United States hereby severs 

17 all relations with the Cherokee Nation, including all finan18 cial obligations or otherwise, until such time as the Cher19 okee Nation is meeting all of its treaty obligations and 

20 other federal statutory obligations (including all obliga21 tions of the Treaty of 1866, the Principal Chiefs Act, hold22 ing elections for tribal leaders that are in compliance with 

23 the Act, and has restored the rights of all Cherokee Freed24 men disenfranchised from the Cherokee Nation in the 


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1 March 3, 2007, Cherokee Nation vote), as determined by 

2 a final certification under section 2(d). 

3 (b) COMPLIANCE WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE

4 ACT.—The Secretary shall coordinate with all depart5 ments and agencies of the United States Government to 

6 ensure that every effort is being made by the United 

7 States Government to comply with this Act. 

8 (c) REPORTS.— 

9 (1) FEDERAL AGENCIES.—Not later than 30 

10 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and 

11 continuing annually until the final certification as 

12 determined under section 2(d), all departments and 

13 agencies under the jurisdiction of the United States 

14 Government shall submit a report to the Secretary 

15 describing— 

16 (A) all Federal programs under their juris17 diction that provide financial assistance and 

18 other services to the Cherokee Nation; and 

19 (B) the efforts that are being undertaken 

20 comply with all requirements of this Act. 

21 (2) STATUS REPORTS.—Until the Secretary cer22 tifies to Congress that the Cherokee Nation is in 

23 compliance with its treaty obligations, the Secretary 

24 shall submit monthly public reports to Congress on 

25 the status of the United States Government’s efforts 


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1 to ensure that all departments and agencies of the 

2 Federal Government are in compliance with the re3 quirements of this Act. 

4 (3) OTHER FREEDMAN INDIANS.—Not later 

5 than 6 months after the date of the enactment of 

6 this Act, the Secretary shall issue a public report to 

7 Congress on the status of freedmen in the Cherokee, 

8 Choctaw, Chickasaw, Muscogee (Creek), and Semi9 nole Nations of Oklahoma. The report shall address 

10 whether each of those Indian tribes is complying 

11 with all treaty obligations and Federal laws with re12 spect to its freedmen members, the level of partici13 pation of freedmen in tribal leadership positions, 

14 tribal benefits received by the freedmen, and pre15 vious or current efforts on the part of those Indian 

16 tribes to disenfranchise its freedmen members. 

17 (d) CONGRESSIONAL CERTIFICATION.—After the 

18 Secretary has certified to Congress that the Cherokee Na19 tion is in full compliance with all its treaty obligations and 

20 Congress approves the Secretary’s certification by a vote 

21 taken on a resolution introduced in both chambers of Con22 gress certifying that the Cherokee Nation is in full compli23 ance with its treaty obligations, the final certification of 

24 the Cherokee Nation’s treaty compliance shall take effect. 


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1 SEC. 3. SUSPENSION OF RIGHT TO CONDUCT GAMING OP2 ERATIONS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Cherokee Nation’s authority 

4 to conduct gaming regulated under the Indian Gaming 

5 Regulatory Act and to administer any funds from such 

6 gaming are suspended until such time that the Cherokee 

7 Nation is in compliance with all treaty and other obliga8 tions with the United States, as determined by a final cer9 tification under section 2(d). 

10 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 30 days after the date 

11 of the enactment of this Act, the National Indian Gaming 

12 Commission shall submit a report to Congress detailing 

13 the actions that have been taken to enforce subsection (a). 

14 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 

15 (a) ‘‘CHEROKEE’’ AND ‘‘CHEROKEE NATION’’.—The 

16 terms ‘‘Cherokee’’ and ‘‘Cherokee Nation’’ mean the Cher17 okee Nation of Oklahoma. 

18 (b) ‘‘CHEROKEE FREEDMEN’’, ‘‘FREEDMEN’’, AND

19 ‘‘BLACK CHEROKEES’’.—The terms ‘‘Cherokee Freed20 men’’, ‘‘Freedmen’’, and ‘‘Black Cherokees’’ refer to indi21 viduals who can trace their ancestry to individuals listed 

22 on the 1906 Dawes Commission Roles for the Cherokee 

23 Freedmen. 

24 (c) ‘‘OTHER FREEDMAN INDIANS’’.—The term 

25 ‘‘Other Freedmen Indians’’ refers to individuals who can 

26 trace their ancestry to the 1906 Dawes Commission Rolls 


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1 who are members of the Choctaw, Chickasaw, Muscogee 

2 (Creek), and Seminole Nations. 

3 (d) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the 

4 Secretary of the Interior. 

5 SEC. 5. NONCOMPLIANCE. 

6 (a) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Notwithstanding any deci7 sion by Congress under section 2(d) of this Act, the provi8 sions of this Act shall again take effect if at any future 

9 date the Secretary certifies to Congress that the Cherokee 

10 Nation of Oklahoma is not in full compliance with its trea11 ty obligations or Federal statutes that govern its relations 

12 with the United States Government. 

13 (b) PRIVATE ACTION.—Any Cherokee Freedmen 

14 shall have a private right to bring actions for injunctive 

15 relief, declaratory relief, or monetary damages against the 

16 Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, officials of the Cherokee 

17 Nation of Oklahoma, or Federal officials for noncompli18 ance with this Act or for violations of the terms of the 

19 Treaty of 1866, the 13th Amendment to the United States 

20 Constitution, or the Indian Civil Rights Act of 1968. The 

21 appropriate Federal courts shall have exclusive jurisdic22 tion over actions brought under this subsection. 

23 SEC. 6. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE. 

24 The Attorney General shall issue a finding on wheth25 er the Federal civil rights of the Cherokee Freedmen have 


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1 been violated by either the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma 

2 or the Department of the Interior, or both. Individual 

3 Freedmen shall also have a private right of action to com4 pel the Attorney General to investigate federal civil rights 

5 violations and provide a determination of whether a viola6 tion has occurred within 180 days of submitting a com7 plaint describing the violation in writing. 

8 SEC. 7. GAO REPORT ON EXPENDITURE OF FEDERAL 

9 FUNDS. 

10 The Government Accountability Office shall issue a 

11 public report to Congress detailing for each of the 5 years 

12 ending immediately before the report was completed the 

13 Cherokee Nation’s expenditure of all Federal funds. The 

14 report shall include an analysis of Federal funds allocated 

15 by the Cherokee Nation’s leadership for its member bene16 fits and services and for administrative and other pur17 poses. The report shall determine whether or not the Cher18 okee Nation is in full compliance with all Federal regula19 tions and laws regarding the management and disburse20 ment of Federal funds. 

Æ 


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