Tillis Asks DOJ to Probe Cherokee Cannabis Operations, EBCI Cites Full Compliance

9 October 2025

North Carolina Senator asks DOJ to review Cherokee cannabis operations as tribe defends compliance

Sen. Thom Tillis asked Attorney General Pam Bondi during an October 7 Senate Judiciary Committee hearing to investigate the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians’ cannabis program. He cited advertisements featuring seasonal flavors, promotional materials from the Great Smoky Cannabis Company, and an ordering app, and questioned whether marketing could be aimed at youth and whether cannabis is transported across nontribal land, where it would be illegal to move under federal law.

Bondi said she was not familiar with the business but pledged a review. She added that transporting marijuana through jurisdictions where it is prohibited would be illegal under federal law.

EBCI Principal Chief Michell Hicks disputed Tillis’s allegations, saying the tribe’s cannabis operations are fully compliant with federal and tribal law and do not endanger children. He said the remarks mischaracterized the tribe’s program.

The tribe opened its dispensary in 2024 on the Qualla Boundary, a 57,000-acre area about 50 miles west of Asheville. Cannabis remains illegal under North Carolina law off tribal land. Tillis referenced billboard advertising in Charlotte and asked how product travels from farm to the dispensary if routes cross noncontiguous areas outside tribal jurisdiction. He also said a national framework is needed for cannabis, including standards on flavorings and taxation.

Hicks linked Tillis’s criticism to broader political friction surrounding federal recognition efforts by the Lumbee Tribe, which the EBCI has opposed. Tillis has publicly backed the Lumbee.

The Justice Department’s review, which Bondi said her team would conduct, could influence how tribal cannabis operations are evaluated in states that prohibit marijuana outside tribal jurisdictions.

• For consumers, the situation underscores that cannabis purchased legally on EBCI land becomes illegal once it leaves the boundary under North Carolina law.