Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas
| Named after | Lipan Apache people, State of Texas |
|---|---|
| Formation | Incorporated in 2007 |
| Type | |
| US Texas TIN 13311748407 EIN 33-1174840 | |
| Legal status | active |
| Purpose | To promote and preserve the cultural, social, educational, spiritual, linguistic, economic, health, and traditional needs |
| Location | |
Official language | English |
| Website | lipanapache |
The Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas is a state-recognized tribe and nonprofit organization in Texas. Members of the tribe descend from the Lipan Apache, a Southern Athabaskan Indigenous people. The Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas is headquartered in McAllen, Texas.
The Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas incorporated as a non-profit in 2007. In a lawsuit against the Department of the Interior (DOI) initiated by a Lipan tribe member, a ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit resulted in a settlement with the DOI, which granted over 400 Native American plaintiffs access to eagle feathers. The City of Presidio, Texas, and County of Presidio Texas transferred a historic Lipan Apache cemetery back to the Tribe. The Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas attend the yearly Apache Alliance summit meetings.
The Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas is not a federally recognized American Indian tribe. State recognition can take different forms that carry more or less legal weight, including state law recognition, administrative recognition, executive recognition, or legislative recognition. In lieu of any formal process, the Texas government has recognized the Tribe by concurrent resolution, a type of legislative recognition which is official but does not carry the force of law.