This bill extends federal recognition to the United Houma Nation, a Native American tribe based in Louisiana, granting them the same legal status and access to federal services as other federally recognized tribes. The legislation affects the United Houma Nation and its members across six Louisiana parishes—St. Mary, Terrebonne, Lafourche, Jefferson, Plaquemines, and St. Bernard—making them eligible for federal health, education, housing, and other assistance programs typically provided to Native American tribes. The bill requires the tribe to submit a membership roll within one year of enactment and to adopt a formal tribal constitution within six months after that, with the federal government conducting a secret ballot election for tribal members to approve the constitution. The bill explicitly prohibits the tribe from conducting gaming activities like casinos, and it does not provide new funding but rather opens access to existing federal programs and allows the tribe to request that the federal government take tribal lands into trust as a future reservation.
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