A bill to amend the Catawba Indian Tribe of South Carolina Land Claims Settlement Act of 1993 with respect to future membership in the Catawba Indian Nation.

In plain language: This bill revises tribal membership requirements for the Catawba Indian Nation (a tribe in South Carolina). The Catawba Indian Tribe of South Carolina Land Claims Settlement Act of 1993 explicitly restricted the tribe’s future membership to lineal descendants of people on the final base membership roll who maintained continuous political relations with the tribe. This bill removes these membership criteria and allows the tribe to determine its membership. (The tribe uses three base membership rolls and anyone who wants to be enrolled must prove lineal descent from someone listed on one of these base membership rolls.)

Provisional — our plain-language summary, pending review.

1. Feb 12, 2026Read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs.
2. Feb 12, 2026Introduced in Senate