for federal oversight and enforcement of people's constitutional right to vote. In the 1950s, the federal government began to press what is known as the Indian termination policy, based on its perception that some tribes were assimilated enough not to need a special relationship with the government. It terminated the government of the Catawba in 1959. This cut off federal benefits, and communal property was allocated to individual households. The people became subject to state law. The Catawba decided that they preferred to be organized as a tribal community. Beginning in 1973, they applied to have their government federally recognized. Gilbert Blue served as their chief until 2007. They adopted a constitution in 1975 that was modeled on their 1944 version. In addition, for decades the Catawba pursued various land claims against the government for the losses due to the illegal treaty made by South Carolina in 1840 and the failure of the federal government to protect their interests. This culminated in South Carolina v. Catawba Indian Tribe, Inc. where the United States Supreme Court ruled that the tribe's land claims were subject to a statute of limitations which had not yet run out. In response, the Catawba prepared to file 60,000 lawsuits against individual landowners in York County to regain ownership of their land. On October 27, 1993, the U.S. Congress enacted the Catawba Indian Tribe of South Carolina Land Claims Settlement Act of 1993 (Settlement Act), which reversed the "termination", recognized the Catawba Indian Nation and, together with the state of South Carolina, settled the land claims for $50 million, to be applied toward economic development for the Nation. On July 21, 2007, the Catawba held their first elections in more than 30 years. Of the five members of the former government, only two were reelected. In the 2010 census, 3,370 people identified as having Catawba ancestry. Catawba Indian Nation Land Trust The Catawba Reservation () is located in two disjointed sections in York County, South Carolina, east of Rock Hill. Covering a total of , it reported a 2010 census population of 841 inhabitants. It also has a congressionally established service area in North Carolina, covering Mecklenburg, Cabarrus, Gaston, Union, Cleveland, and Rutherford counties. The Catawba also own a site in Kings Mountain, North Carolina, which they will develop for a gaming casino and mixed-use entertainment complex. Today the Catawba earn most of their revenue from Federal/State