Financial Impact of State Groups on Federal Funds of Federally Recognized Tribes & Cost of Lumbee Recognition
Hundreds of millions of dollars intended to help legitimate tribal nations are being diverted to state corporations posing as Native tribes. Some of these groups have been proven to have zero native ancestry. Other groups, like Lumbee are seeking a permanent funding solution by going around the OFA process and asking Congress to acknowledge them as a tribal sovereign. Full Report
An analysis of just five groups highlights the scale and scope of the problem:
Indian Housing Block Grant (IHBG) Allocations FY 2024
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Total IHBG Allocation for USET Tribes: $39,110,406
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State-Recognized Groups: Received $36,055,254 in IHBG funds, marking a 20% increase in their funding share from 2021 to 2024.
Overall Impact: The increasing share of IHBG funding for state groups limits the amount available for housing programs benefiting federally recognized tribes. Full Report.
Title VI Indian Education Grants (SY 2022-2023)
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Total U.S. Title VI Funding: $109,856,047
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Funding for State Groups in North Carolina: $3,496,415 (3.2% of total U.S. funding), distributed across 14 districts and schools serving students from state-recognized groups.
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Significant Awards: Public Schools of Robeson County, NC, received the second-largest Title VI grant nationally, amounting to $2,466,763.
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Funding Competition: State-recognized groups increasingly compete with federally recognized tribes for limited federal resources through programs such as federal contracting, IHBG, and Title VI.
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Reduced Funding for Federally Recognized Tribes: These allocations result in fewer funds for services and programs that support the federal government’s trust obligations to federally recognized tribes.
Federal Contracting (2008-March 2024)
Lumbee Entities: Received federal contract awards over 35 times greater than the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) in FY 2022, and historically over 38 times greater.
Contracting Sources: Lumbee entities mainly received contracts from the U.S. Department of State and Department of Defense, while other state-recognized groups had no significant federal contracting activities. Full Report.
Costs of Lumbee Recognition
In 2012, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that federal recognition of the Lumbee Tribe would cost $846 million over the 2012–2016 period. Adjusting for inflation and membership growth since 2012, the estimated cost with 3.16% inflation rate for 60,000 Lumbees for the 2025–2029 period is approximately $1.407 billion.
Data Sources: Information is based on data from federal platforms, including the Federal Audit Clearinghouse, USAspending.gov, and the Department of Education.
List of Resolutions
Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians- 2022 Winter Convention
• September 18, 2022
o “Opposition to Federal or State Recognition of the groups claiming to be a tribal nations that seek to circumvent the Department of Interior’s Office of Federal Acknowledgement Process”
Inter-Tribal Council of Northeastern Oklahoma
• August 17, 2022
o Opposition to federal or state recognition of the “Lumbee Tribe,” “Mowa Band of Choctaw,” or any other group claiming to be a tribal nation that seeks to circumvent of the Department of the Interior’s Office of Federal Acknowledgement (OFA) Process
COLT: Coalition of Large Tribes
• August 16, 2022
o "Now therefore be it resolved, that the Coalition of Large Tribes (COLT) calls on Congressional Delegations to oppose the "Lumbee Recognition Act" (S.1364/H.R. 2758), the "MOWA Band of Choctaw Indians Recognition Act" (S.3443), and other federal and state actions that would circumvent the Department of Interior's Office of Federal Acknowledgment (OFA) process."
The Inter-Tribal Council of the Five Civilized Tribes
• July 15, 2022
o A Resolution opposing Federal or State Recognition of Groups to be Tribal Nations by Circumventing the Office of Federal Acknowledgment
Tri- Council of The United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians The Eastern Band of Cherokees Indians and Cherokee Nations
• June 23, 2022
o A resolution opposing federal or state recognition of groups that claim to be tribal nations and seek to avoid or circumvent the Department of Interior’s Office of Federal Acknowledgement Process
Letter on behalf of Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, Shawnee Tribe, Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, Fort Still Apache Tribe, Delaware Nation, Chickasaw Nation, Delaware Tribe of Indians, Fort Belknap Indian Community, Wichita and Affiliated Tribes, and United Indian Nations of Oklahoma Kansas, and Texas
• March 10, 2022
o “On behalf of the Tribal Nations and Organizations listed below, we respectfully request you defer consideration of groups seeking federal acknowledgment to the Department of the Interior’s Office of Federal Acknowledgement (OFA).”
Letter from Muscogee Creek Nation
• March 7, 2022
o “On behalf of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, I respectfully request that you defer consideration of groups seeking federal acknowledgment to the Department of the Interior’s Office of Federal Acknowledgement.”
Letter from Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians
• November 13, 2020
o Opposition to the “Lumbee Recognition Act”
Defend Native Cultures
Groups with no Native history are calling themselves Tribes and appropriating the culture, language, and history of Tribes with treaty and trust relationships with the United States. It is time that we stand together to Defend Native Cultures!