1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Tribal Recognition Act of 2017 . 2. Findings Congress finds as follows: (1) Article I, section 8, clause 3 of the Constitution (commonly known as the Indian Commerce Clause ) gives Congress authority over Indian affairs. (2) Such authority is plenary and exclusive. (3) Such authority may not be exercised by the executive branch, except as expressly delegated by an Act of Congress (or by a treaty ratified by the Senate before March 1871). 3. Definitions As used in this Act: (1) Assistant Secretary The term Assistant Secretary means the Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs, or that officer’s authorized representative. (2) Autonomous The term autonomous means the exercise of political influence or authority independent of the control of any other Indian governing entity. Autonomous must be understood in the context of the history, geography, culture and social organization of the petitioning group. (3) Community The term Community means any group of people which can demonstrate that consistent interactions and significant social relationships exist within its membership and that its members are differentiated from and identified as distinct from nonmembers. Community must be understood in the context of the history, geography, culture and social organization of the group. (4) Continental United States The term continental United States means the contiguous 48 States and Alaska. (5) Continuously or continuous The term continuously or continuous means extending from first sustained contact with non-Indians throughout the group’s history to the present substantially without interruption. (6) Documented petition The term documented petition means the detailed arguments made by a petitioner to substantiate its claim to continuous existence as an Indian tribe, together with the factual exposition and all documentary evidence necessary to demonstrate that these arguments address the mandatory criteria. (7) Historically, historical or history The term historically, historical or