Catawba Tribe Bill Tightens Membership Rules, Requiring Both Lineage and 'Political Relationship'

This legislation amends the Catawba Indian Tribe of South Carolina Land Claims Settlement Act of 1993, specifically targeting who can enroll as a member of the Tribe in the future. Essentially, the bill removes an old restriction but replaces it with a new, much tighter set of requirements. It’s a classic example of policy giving with one hand and taking with the other.

The New Gatekeeping: Lineage Plus Loyalty

Before this change, there was a restriction on future membership, but this bill swaps it out for something more specific. Moving forward, if you want to join the Tribe, you must meet two non-negotiable criteria. First, you must be a direct descendant of someone who was on the Tribe’s final base membership roll. That’s the lineage requirement, which is pretty standard for tribal enrollment. The second requirement is where things get interesting: you must have “kept up their political relationship with the Tribe.” This means that simply having the right family tree won't be enough; you also need to prove an ongoing connection to the Tribe's political life.

What Does 'Political Relationship' Even Mean?

This is the provision that raises eyebrows because it’s vague—and vagueness in policy often means significant discretion for the people enforcing the rule. The bill doesn't define what “kept up their political relationship” actually entails. Does it mean attending meetings? Voting in tribal elections? Being geographically close? Paying dues? Since there are no objective standards laid out, the current tribal leadership gets to decide what counts. For descendants of Catawba members who moved away for work, joined the military, or simply live far from the reservation—the kind of life choices millions of American families make—this could be a massive hurdle. They might have the required lineage but get locked out because they haven't maintained a formal, defined political tie.

Who Feels the Impact?

This change primarily affects future generations of Catawba descendants. While current members who wish to maintain the current size or composition of the tribal roll might see this as a benefit, it creates a new barrier for those who meet the blood quantum or lineage requirements but have become geographically or politically disconnected. Imagine a young professional whose grandparent was on the original roll. If that professional has been focused on building a career 500 miles away and hasn't been back to participate in tribal politics, they could be deemed ineligible for membership, even though they meet the family requirement. This provision gives tribal authorities significant, undefined power to limit who gets to join, potentially excluding eligible descendants based on subjective criteria.