Committee tables HB43 after contentious testimony over tribal addresses and recognition

The State Planning & Community Affairs Committee heard long, often emotional testimony on HB43 (LC44-2156), a bill that would update codified names and mailing addresses for state‑recognized tribes and require council membership from each listed tribe. Representative Marvin Lim introduced the measure, saying it was refiled after passing the House in 2022 to ensure "practical recognition" and better outreach to tribes.

Several tribal leaders told the committee that changing the mailing address listed in state code could have dire consequences. "If you change our address it's effectively terminating us," said Richard Botts, who identified himself as chairman for the Georgia tribe of Eastern Cherokee. Botts said the tribe has used P.O. Box 1993 in Delano since 1993 and that replacing that address with P.O. Box 1323 would sever established contacts with federal agencies and programs. "We're not asking it to change our mailing address—we want to leave that exactly like it is," he said.

Committee members sought documentary proof of which party controls Box 1323 and whether a separate, incorporated group had requested the change. Donald Kirkland, vice chair of the Georgia Council on American Indian Concerns, told the panel the council's records include sworn testimony from a postmaster and court rulings suggesting Box 1993 did not exist in 1993 and that the record is complicated. Kirkland described the council's role as study and recommendation, not unilateral recognition: the legislature, he said, makes final recognition decisions under OCGA 44-12-300.

After extended back-and-forth about historical documents, postal records and competing incorporations, members debated whether to split the work—allowing tribes to amend names while preserving current addresses—and whether a fourth tribe should be formally recognized through the established review process. A motion to table HB43 was made and adopted to give the council and staff time to pursue documentation and to explore adding a fourth tribe by formal study.

Next steps: the committee moved HB43 off the active calendar pending staff and council follow-up; proponents urged the panel to consider a narrow amendment that would let tribes update their names while leaving their existing P.O. boxes unchanged.