AN ACT to grant state recognition to the Skaroreh katenuaka nation (tuscarora nation of indians).

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  Chapter 71A of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read:

§ 71A‑7.3.  Skaroreh Katenuaka Nation of North Carolina (Tuscarora Nation of Indians); rights, privileges, immunities, obligations, and duties.

The Indians now residing in small communities in various North Carolina counties, who in 1718 were granted a 56,000‑acre tract of reservational lands on the Roanoke River in what is now Bertie County and who are of the same linguistic stock as the other tribes of the Iroquois Confederacy of New York and Canada, shall, from and after July 1, 2021, be designated and officially recognized as the Skaroreh Katenuaka Nation of North Carolina (Tuscarora Nation of Indians), and they shall continue to enjoy all their rights, privileges, and immunities as an American Indian Tribe with a recognized tribal governing body carrying out and exercising substantial governmental duties and powers similar to the State, being recognized as eligible for the special programs and services provided by the United States to Indians because of their status as Indians.

SECTION 2.  This act becomes effective July 1, 2021.