[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 13 (Friday, January 22, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6664-6665]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-01401]
[[Page 6664]]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
[CBP Dec. 21-03]
Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative: Designation of an Approved
Native American Tribal Card Issued by the Muscogee (Creek) Nation as an
Acceptable Document To Denote Identity and Citizenship for Entry in the
United States at Land and Sea Ports of Entry
AGENCY: U.S. Customs and Border Protection, DHS.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: This notice announces that the Commissioner of U.S. Customs
and Border Protection is designating an approved Native American tribal
card issued by the Muscogee (Creek) Nation to U.S. and Canadian citizen
tribal members as an acceptable travel document for purposes of the
Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. The approved card may be used to
denote identity and citizenship of Muscogee (Creek) Nation members
entering the United States from contiguous territory or adjacent
islands at land and sea ports of entry.
DATES: This designation will become effective on January 22, 2021.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Adele Fasano, Executive Director,
Planning, Program Analysis, and Evaluation, Office of Field Operations,
U.S. Customs and Border Protection, via email at
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative
Section 7209 of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention
Act of 2004 (IRTPA), Public Law 108-458, as amended, required the
Secretary of Homeland Security (Secretary), in consultation with the
Secretary of State, to develop and implement a plan to require U.S.
citizens and individuals for whom documentation requirements have
previously been waived under section 212(d)(4)(B) of the Immigration
and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(d)(4)(B)) to present a passport or
other document or combination of documents as the Secretary deems
sufficient to denote identity and citizenship for all travel into the
United States. See 8 U.S.C. 1185 note. On April 3, 2008, the Department
of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of State promulgated a
joint final rule, effective on June 1, 2009, that implemented the plan
known as the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) at U.S. land
and sea ports of entry. See 73 FR 18384 (the WHTI Land and Sea Final
Rule). The rule amended various sections in the Code of Federal
Regulations (CFR), including 8 CFR 212.0, 212.1, and 235.1. The WHTI
Land and Sea Final Rule specifies the documents that U.S. citizens and
nonimmigrant aliens from Canada, Bermuda, and Mexico are required to
present when entering the United States at land and sea ports of entry.
Under the WHTI Land and Sea Final Rule, one type of citizenship and
identity document that may be presented upon entry to the United States
at land and sea ports of entry from contiguous territory or adjacent
islands \1\ is a Native American tribal card that has been designated
as an acceptable document to denote identity and citizenship by the
Secretary of Homeland Security, pursuant to section 7209 of IRTPA.
Specifically, 8 CFR 235.1(e), as amended by the WHTI Land and Sea Final
Rule, provides that upon designation by the Secretary of Homeland
Security, of a United States qualifying tribal entity document as an
acceptable document to denote identity and citizenship for the purposes
of entering the United States, Native Americans may be permitted to
present tribal cards upon entering or seeking admission to the United
States according to the terms of the voluntary agreement entered
between the Secretary of Homeland Security and the tribe. It provides
that the Secretary of Homeland Security will announce, by publication
of a notice in the Federal Register, documents designated under this
paragraph. It further provides that a list of the documents designated
under this section will also be made available to the public.
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\1\ ``Adjacent islands'' is defined in 8 CFR 212.0 as ``Bermuda
and the islands located in the Caribbean Sea, except Cuba.'' This
definition applies to 8 CFR 212.1 and 235.1.
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A United States qualifying tribal entity is defined as a tribe,
band, or other group of Native Americans formally recognized by the
United States Government which agrees to meet WHTI document standards.
See 8 CFR 212.1.\2\ Native American tribal cards are also referenced in
8 CFR 235.1(b), which lists the documents U.S. citizens may use to
establish identity and citizenship when entering the United States. See
8 CFR 235.1(b)(7).
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\2\ This definition applies to 8 CFR 212.1 and 235.1.
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The Secretary has delegated to the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and
Border Protection (CBP) the authority to designate certain documents as
acceptable border crossing documents for persons arriving in the United
States by land or sea from within the Western Hemisphere, including
certain United States Native American tribal cards. See DHS Delegation
Number 7105 (Revision 00), dated January 16, 2009.
Tribal Card Program
The WHTI Land and Sea Final Rule allows U.S. federally recognized
Native American tribes to work with CBP to enter into agreements to
develop tribal identification cards that can be designated as
acceptable to establish identity and citizenship when entering the
United States at land and sea ports of entry from contiguous territory
or adjacent islands. CBP has been working with various U.S. federally
recognized Native American tribes to facilitate the development of such
cards.\3\ As part of the process, CBP will enter into one or more
agreements with a U.S. federally recognized tribe that specify the
requirements for developing and issuing WHTI-compliant Native American
tribal cards, including a testing and auditing process to ensure that
the cards are produced and issued in accordance with the terms of the
agreements.
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\3\ The Native American tribal cards qualifying to be a WHTI-
compliant document for border crossing purposes are commonly
referred to as ``Enhanced Tribal Cards'' or ``ETCs.''
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After production of the cards in accordance with the specified
requirements, and successful testing and auditing by CBP of the cards
and program, the Secretary of Homeland Security or the Commissioner of
CBP may designate the Native American tribal card as an acceptable
WHTI-compliant document for the purpose of establishing identity and
citizenship when entering the United States by land or sea from
contiguous territory or adjacent islands. Such designation will be
announced by publication of a notice in the Federal Register. More
information about WHTI-compliant documents is available at www.cbp.gov/travel.
The Pascua Yaqui Tribe of Arizona became the first Native American
tribe to have its Native American tribal card designated as a WHTI-
compliant document by the Commissioner of CBP. This designation was
announced in a notice published in the Federal Register on June 9, 2011
(76 FR 33776). Subsequently, the Commissioner of CBP announced the
designation of several other Native American tribal cards as WHTI-
compliant documents. See, e.g., the Puyallup Tribe of Indians, 84 FR
[[Page 6665]]
67278 (December 9, 2019); the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community, 84 FR
70984 (December 26, 2019); and the Confederated Tribes of the Colville
Reservation, 85 FR 31796 (May 27, 2020).
Muscogee (Creek) Nation WHTI-Compliant Native American Tribal Card
Program
The Muscogee (Creek) Nation has voluntarily established a program
to develop a WHTI-compliant Native American tribal card that denotes
identity and U.S. or Canadian citizenship. On March 28, 2016, CBP and
the Muscogee (Creek) Nation entered into a Memorandum of Agreement
(MOA) to develop, issue, test, and evaluate tribal cards to be used for
border crossing purposes. Pursuant to this MOA, the cards are issued to
members of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation who can establish identity,
tribal membership, and U.S. or Canadian citizenship. The cards
incorporate physical security features acceptable to CBP as well as
facilitative technology allowing for electronic validation by CBP of
identity, citizenship, and tribal membership.\4\
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\4\ CBP and the Muscogee (Creek) Nation entered into a Service
Level Agreement (SLA) on April 27, 2017, concerning technical
requirements and support for the production, issuance, and
verification of the Native American tribal cards. CBP and the
Muscogee (Creek) Nation also entered into an Interconnection
Security Agreement in November 2016, with respect to individual and
organizational security responsibilities for the protection and
handling of unclassified information.
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CBP has tested the cards developed by the Muscogee (Creek) Nation
pursuant to the above MOA and related agreements, and has performed an
audit of the tribe's card program. On the basis of these tests and
audit, CBP has determined that the Native American tribal cards meet
the requirements of section 7209 of the IRTPA and are acceptable
documents to denote identity and citizenship for purposes of entering
the United States at land and sea ports of entry from contiguous
territory or adjacent islands.\5\ CBP's continued acceptance of the
Native American tribal cards as a WHTI-compliant document is
conditional on compliance with the MOA and related agreements.
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\5\ The Native American tribal card issued by the Muscogee
(Creek) Nation may not, by itself, be used by Canadian citizen
tribal members to establish that they meet the requirements of
section 289 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) [8 U.S.C.
1359]. INA Sec. 289 provides that nothing in this title shall be
construed to affect the right of American Indians born in Canada to
pass the borders of the United States, but such right shall extend
only to persons who possess at least 50 per centum of blood of the
American Indian race. While the tribal card may be used to establish
a card holder's identity for purposes of INA Sec. 289, it cannot,
by itself, serve as evidence of the card holder's Canadian birth or
that he or she possesses at least 50% American Indian blood, as
required by INA Sec. 289.
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Acceptance and use of the WHTI-compliant Native American tribal
cards is voluntary for tribe members. If an individual is denied a
WHTI-compliant Native American tribal card, he or she may still apply
for a passport or other WHTI-compliant document.
Designation
This notice announces that the Commissioner of CBP designates the
Native American tribal card issued by the Muscogee (Creek) Nation in
accordance with the MOA and all related agreements between the tribe
and CBP as an acceptable WHTI-compliant document pursuant to section
7209 of the IRTPA and 8 CFR 235.1(e). In accordance with these
provisions, the approved card, if valid and lawfully obtained, may be
used to denote identity and U.S. or Canadian citizenship of Muscogee
(Creek) Nation members for the purposes of entering the United States
from contiguous territory or adjacent islands at land and sea ports of
entry.
The Senior Official Performing the Duties of the Commissioner Mark
A. Morgan, having designated the Native American tribal card issued by
the Muscogee (Creek) Nation as an acceptable WHTI-compliant document
pursuant to section 7209 of the IRTPA and 8 CFR 235.1(e), and having
reviewed and approved this notice, is delegating the authority to
electronically sign this notice to Robert F. Altneu, who is the
Director of the Regulations and Disclosure Law Division for CBP, for
purposes of publication in the Federal Register.
Dated: January 15, 2021.
Robert F. Altneu,
Director, Regulations & Disclosure Law Division, Regulations & Rulings,
Office of Trade, U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
[FR Doc. 2021-01401 Filed 1-19-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9111-14-P