U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) has co-sponsored legislation that would eliminate the 50% blood quantum requirement for members of federally recognized tribes in order to move freely between the U.S. and Canada. 

Gillibrand and Senator Steve Daines (R-MT) reported their bipartisan Tribal Border Crossing Parity Act.

For over 70 years, federally-recognized tribes near the Canada border have been required to carry proof, obtained through the Department of the Interior (DOI), that they are at least 50% Native American when exercising their right to freely cross between the U.S. and Canada.

The bipartisan legislation would eliminate the outdated 50% blood quantum requirement and allow tribal members to solely show their tribal ID to cross the U.S.-Canada border, ending the lengthy process of gathering information to secure a DOI blood quantum certificate and eliminating confusion for Customs and Border Protection and Canadian border authorities. 

Obtaining a certificate to prove an individual’s Native American heritage through DOI can often be extremely challenging and complicated for tribal members. The process to obtain a certificate requires information and records many tribal members may not have, especially those whose ancestors were displaced.

The blood quantum requirement also violates tribal sovereignty by interfering with a tribe’s right to determine its membership.  

“For far too long, our border tribal communities have had to deal with the outdated, unjust requirement to prove their heritage just to travel across the border,” said Senator Gillibrand.

“It is time to change this outdated policy and make it easier for tribal members to exercise their treaty right to travel across the border. That’s why I’m proud to announce the Tribal Border Crossing Parity Act alongside Senator Daines to simplify border travel for Native Americans and protect them from discrimination, detainment, and harassment. I look forward to working with my colleagues to get this important bill passed.”