Copyright © 2002 NLThomas
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OKLAHOMA CITY - The Cherokee Nation made history Monday by becoming the first Indian Nation to enter into an agreement with the State of Oklahoma regarding the issuance and recognition of tribal motor vehicle tags. The Joint Committee on State and Tribal Relations approved the compact, which had already been signed by Principal Chief Chad Smith and Governor Frank Keating. The Cherokee Nation has committed itself, under its own law, to provide funding for public schools, roads and local law enforcement out of tag revenues, but this compact formalizes the agreement with the state. The Cherokee Nation Tribal Council previously authorized the compact.

“Automobile tags are a symbol of the Cherokee Nation’s sovereignty and governmental authority,” said Chad Smith, Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation. “As a government, we use the revenues to educate the children in our public schools and to make the roads that our people drive on safer.”

As part of the agreement, the state agrees to enter Cherokee Nation tags into a national motor vehicle information database, which protects tribal members and assists law enforcement. Currently, no other tribal tags are entered into the national database.

“This provides an additional level of security for our tribal members,” Smith said. “They know that their tags will be recognized by law enforcement nationwide.”

The Cherokee Nation has been issuing motor vehicle tags since October 29 of last year, and has set aside 38% of gross revenues from the tags for schools that teach Indian children. The Cherokee Nation also has committed to appropriate money for roads equal to 20% of the gross revenue.

The tag revenues will add to the Cherokee Nation’s contribution to the infrastructure of northeastern Oklahoma. The Cherokee Nation has spent more than $30 million on completed roads projects within its boundaries, and has committed another $50 million to current roads projects.

“Good roads and good schools benefit everyone in northeastern Oklahoma,” Smith said. “This compact symbolizes the constructive working relationship that is developing between the Cherokee Nation and the state.” The state treats tribal tags as out-of-state tags, and Cherokees who sell their cars to non-Cherokees are not subject to back taxes.

The Cherokee Nation, the largest Indian tribe in Oklahoma, sells motor vehicle tags only to its citizens living within the boundaries of its 14-county jurisdictional area. The tags are sold from the Cherokee Nation Tag Office, located 3 miles south of Tahlequah on U.S. 62, behind the Restaurant of the Cherokees.

The tag office is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. To purchase a tag, Cherokee Nation tribal members must bring their tribal membership card (commonly known as the blue card) and proof of residence (such as a utility bill) as well as the usual documents required for automobile registration. The proof of residence shows the Cherokee citizen lives within the boundaries of the Cherokee Nation. Tribal members must live within the Cherokee Nation’s 14-county jurisdictional area to be eligible to purchase a tag. The original land base of the Cherokee Nation in Indian Territory was established and confirmed by fee patents exchanged with the United States in 1839 and 1846. This area encompasses all or part of 14 counties in northeastern Oklahoma and under modern federal Indian law is referred to as an “Indian Reservation” or as “Indian Country.” Within these boundary lines, the Cherokee Nation has sole jurisdiction over Indian lands. Those boundary lines define the area in which the Cherokee Nation government can exercise its sovereignty by levying taxes and enforcing the law.

To draw a parallel, an American citizen that takes up residency in Canada must tag their vehicle with a valid Canadian car tag. Similarly, although a person may have been born and raised in Oklahoma and may consider himself a native Oklahoman in every respect, if he moves to California he must obtain a California tag. The same rules apply to tribal tags. Under the compact, the Cherokee Nation will only issue automobile license plates (car tags) to tribal members residing within the Cherokee Nation, which is the fourteen-county area in northeastern Oklahoma.

Cherokee Nation car tags cost $75 for a new car, with rates dropping as low as $10 for cars that are more than 17 years old. Tribal members with vehicles registered with Oklahoma or another state will not by required to pay registration tax when registering that vehicle with the Cherokee Nation. Tribal members will only pay excise tax when purchasing a vehicle. Cherokee Nation tags are about $10 cheaper than Oklahoma tags.

To purchase a car tag, Cherokee citizens must present:

1. Proof of residence within the 14-county area of the Cherokee Nation (example: utility bill)
2. Blue tribal membership card (not CDIB)
3. Valid certificate of title to the vehicle in the name of the applicant
4. Valid certificate of title properly assigned over to the name of the applicant along with a bill of sale (or proof of purchase price if purchased from an individual)
5. Certificate of Origin (MSO) if purchased new from a dealership and a copy of bill of sale or sales contract
6. Valid Oklahoma Driver’s License showing applicant’s residence within the Reservation Boundaries of the Cherokee Nation
7. Proof of current liability insurance
8. Name, address, city, state and zip of Lien Holder (if any)
9. Lien Release if satisfied