By SCOTT MCKIE B.P.
One Feather Asst. Editor
Senators Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) and Ted Budd (R-N.C.) sent a letter to various state and federal officials on Friday, March 1 regarding the cannabis operation of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. Qualla Enterprises, LLC, an entity of the EBCI, operates a cannabis farm currently and is set to open the first dispensary in North Carolina on Saturday, April 20.
Totsie Welch, an elder of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, trims buds at the cannabis farm operated in Tsisqwohi (Birdtown) by Qualla Enterprises, LLC. (SCOTT MCKIE B.P./One Feather photo)
The letter was addressed to the following: Alejandro Merrick B. Garland, U.S. Attorney General; Ann Milgram, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration administrator; Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland; Andrea Gacki, U.S. Treasury FinCEN director; Ashley Hornsby Welch, District Attorney; Jeannie Hovland, National Indian Gaming Commission vice-chair; Swain County Sheriff Curtis A. Cochran, and Bob Schurmeier, N.C. State Bureau of Investigation director.
The letter begins, “In recent months, we have heard directly from North Carolinians who have communicated their concerns about the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and Qualla Enterprises, LLC establishing an operation to produce, cultivate, and sell marijuana. As our nation is facing an unprecedented drug crisis that is harming our communities, it is vital to learn what measures your departments and agencies are taking to uphold current federal and state laws.”
The letter asks 19 questions about various aspects of the cannabis operation. One question states, “If the Qualla Enterprises, LLC or EBCI is determined to have transported marijuana on a state road to the reservation, will you enforce the law?”
EBCI tribal officials issued a response to the letter on Wednesday, March 6 which states, “We are aware that on March 1, 2024, U.S. Senators Thom Tillis and Ted Budd of North Carolina sent a letter to federal, state, and local law enforcement officials expressing concerns about the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians’ cultivation and proposed sale of medical marijuana on Tribal lands. Unfortunately, this letter was replete with misinformation and inflammatory language that promote fear and misunderstanding. The Eastern Band is attempting to enter the medical marijuana field with careful and thorough consideration of all the legal and policy implications of this industry. We have been open about our efforts with law enforcement and regulatory bodies, as well as the public, about our intentions. The Eastern Band is establishing a model for safety and responsibility in an industry that is already legal in 36 states, the District of Columbia, and tribal lands across the United States.
It’s a shame that Senator Tillis and Senator Budd did not respectfully communicate their concerns directly to Eastern Band Cherokee leaders, instead choosing a frontal attack on Cherokee sovereignty.”
The EBCI established the Cannabis Control Board in August 2021 and Qualla Enterprises, LLC in July 2022.
During the 2023 EBCI General Election, voters approved a referendum by a vote of 2,464 (yes) to 1,057 (no) dealing with adult use of cannabis. The question stated, “Do you support legalizing the possession and use of cannabis for persons who are at least twenty-one (21) years old and require the EBCI Tribal Council to develop legislation to regulate the market?”
As of now, adult use is not yet legal in tribal law. The idea of a medical market versus an adult market was the impetus for a work session of Tribal Council on Wednesday, Feb. 28, 2024. The session was held to discuss Tabled Ord. No. 63 which seeks to amend Cherokee Code Chapter 17, which is currently titled ‘Medical Marijuana’, and changing it to be titled ‘Cannabis’ and making all of the changes within the ordinance to allow for adult use, sometimes referred to as recreational use, of cannabis.
Currently, Qualla Enterprises, LLC employs 69 people – 74 percent of whom are EBCI tribal members. That number increases to a whopping 91 percent of employees at the cannabis farm in Tsisqwohi (Birdtown) are EBCI tribal members.
