PSA: Tribal Tags
This past week, the Eastern Shawnee Tribe became aware of allegations that tribal vehicle tags with registered addresses outside the Reservation possibly being ticketed as illegal. Our understanding is that as part of a traffic stop for a speeding violation, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol (“OHP”) also issued a $249.00 traffic citation for failure to pay Oklahoma state taxes on the motor vehicle driven by a Tribal citizen. According to OHP, because the Tribal citizen lived outside the Tribe’s Reservation, she was required to pay state motor vehicle taxes.
The Eastern Shawnee Tribe is paying close attention to this situation and will continue to communicate with you as updates develop. Please be advised that an officer must have reasonable suspicion that an offense has been committed to stop your vehicle. Simply having tribal plates, so long as they are validly issued and up to date, is not enough. Remember to obey all traffic laws, and we ask for your patience as the 39 Tribes in Oklahoma work together to address the continued challenges from the State of Oklahoma.
