Congress gives Cherokee tribe historic Tennessee lands back
H.R. 226 — Eastern Band of Cherokee Historic Lands Reacquisition Act · Filed by Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN) · Introduced Jan 7, 2025 · Passed chamber
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What it does
The bill gives about 76 acres of land to the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. The land is in Tennessee near Tellico Reservoir. It includes the Sequoyah Museum and memorials to old Cherokee cities. The tribe can use the land for events and learning. The tribe can also rebury Cherokee remains there. The TVA keeps control of water, flooding, and power.
Who it affects
The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians gains control of old lands. The TVA keeps its power and water duties. The tribe cannot run gaming on the land.
One thing to notice
The tribe controls the land for events and learning. But the TVA can still flood it and send workers there. The tribe must pay the TVA if building reduces power.
From the analysis of the bill text, linked under Primary records below.
Where it stands
- Jan 7, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Jan 7, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Natural Resources and Senate Committee on Indian Affairs · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources”
- Feb 4, 2025 — Passed the House · Congress.gov: “Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection”
- Feb 4, 2025 — Floor vote scheduled · Congress.gov: “Mr. Westerman moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
Words to know
- TVA — Tennessee Valley Authority, a government agency that manages dams, water, and power
- gaming — Gambling or casino games
- rebury — To bury remains again in a new place
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (11,749 characters) on Aug 20, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 14,342 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
As of — page rendered 2026-09-18.
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