[114th Congress Public Law 244]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[[Page 130 STAT. 981]]
Public Law 114-244
114th Congress
An Act
To establish the Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on
Native Children, and for other purposes. <<NOTE: Oct. 14, 2016 - [S.
246]>>
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled, <<NOTE: Alyce Spotted
Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on Native Children Act.>>
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter
Soboleff Commission on Native Children Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Commission.--The term ``Commission'' means the Alyce
Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on Native Children
established by section 3.
(2) Indian.--The term ``Indian'' has the meaning given the
term in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education
Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b).
(3) Indian tribe.--The term ``Indian tribe'' has the meaning
given the term in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and
Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b).
(4) Native child.--The term ``Native child'' means--
(A) an Indian child, as that term is defined in
section 4 of the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 (25
U.S.C. 1903);
(B) an Indian who is between the ages of 18 and 24
years old; and
(C) a Native Hawaiian who is not older than 24 years
old.
(5) Native hawaiian.--The term ``Native Hawaiian'' has the
meaning given the term in section 7207 of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7517).
(6) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of the Interior.
(7) Tribal college or university.--The term ``Tribal College
or University'' has the meaning given the term in section 316(b)
of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1059c(b)).
SEC. 3. COMMISSION ON NATIVE CHILDREN.
(a) <<NOTE: Establishment.>> In General.--There is established a
commission in the Office of Tribal Justice of the Department of Justice,
to be known as the ``Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission
on Native Children''.
(b) <<NOTE: Consultations.>> Membership.--
(1) In general.--The Commission shall be composed of 11
members, of whom--
[[Page 130 STAT. 982]]
(A) <<NOTE: President.>> 3 shall be appointed by
the President, in consultation with--
(i) the Attorney General;
(ii) the Secretary;
(iii) the Secretary of Education; and
(iv) the Secretary of Health and Human
Services;
(B) 3 shall be appointed by the Majority Leader of
the Senate, in consultation with the Chairperson of the
Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate;
(C) 1 shall be appointed by the Minority Leader of
the Senate, in consultation with the Vice Chairperson of
the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate;
(D) 3 shall be appointed by the Speaker of the House
of Representatives, in consultation with the Chairperson
of the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of
Representatives; and
(E) 1 shall be appointed by the Minority Leader of
the House of Representatives, in consultation with the
Ranking Member of the Committee on Natural Resources of
the House of Representatives.
(2) Requirements for eligibility.--
(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), each
member of the Commission shall have significant
experience and expertise in--
(i) Indian affairs; and
(ii) matters to be studied by the Commission,
including--
(I) health care issues facing Native
children, including mental health,
physical health, and nutrition;
(II) Indian education, including
experience with Bureau of Indian
Education schools and public schools,
tribally operated schools, tribal
colleges or universities, early
childhood education programs, and the
development of extracurricular programs;
(III) juvenile justice programs
relating to prevention and reducing
incarceration and rates of recidivism;
and
(IV) social service programs that
are used by Native children and designed
to address basic needs, such as food,
shelter, and safety, including child
protective services, group homes, and
shelters.
(B) Experts.--
(i) Native children.--1 member of the
Commission shall--
(I) meet the requirements of
subparagraph (A); and
(II) be responsible for providing
the Commission with insight into and
input from Native children on the
matters studied by the Commission.
(ii) Research.--1 member of the Commission
shall--
(I) meet the requirements of
subparagraph (A); and
[[Page 130 STAT. 983]]
(II) have extensive experience in
statistics or social science research.
(3) Terms.--
(A) In general.--Each member of the Commission shall
be appointed for the life of the Commission.
(B) Vacancies.--A vacancy in the Commission shall be
filled in the manner in which the original appointment
was made.
(c) Operation.--
(1) <<NOTE: Deadline.>> Chairperson.--Not later than 15
days after the date on which all members of the Commission have
been appointed, the Commission shall select 1 member to serve as
Chairperson of the Commission.
(2) Meetings.--
(A) In general.--The Commission shall meet at the
call of the Chairperson.
(B) <<NOTE: Deadline.>> Initial meeting.--The
initial meeting of the Commission shall take place not
later than 30 days after the date described in paragraph
(1).
(3) Quorum.--A majority of the members of the Commission
shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser number of members may
hold hearings.
(4) Rules.--The Commission may establish, by majority vote,
any rules for the conduct of Commission business, in accordance
with this Act and other applicable law.
(d) Native Advisory Committee.--
(1) Establishment.--The Commission shall establish a
committee, to be known as the ``Native Advisory Committee''.
(2) Membership.--
(A) Composition.--The Native Advisory Committee
shall consist of--
(i) 1 representative of Indian tribes from
each region of the Bureau of Indian Affairs who is
25 years of age or older; and
(ii) 1 Native Hawaiian who is 25 years of age
or older.
(B) Qualifications.--Each member of the Native
Advisory Committee shall have experience relating to
matters to be studied by the Commission.
(3) Duties.--The Native Advisory Committee shall--
(A) serve as an advisory body to the Commission; and
(B) <<NOTE: Recommenda- tions. Determination.>>
provide to the Commission advice and recommendations,
submit materials, documents, testimony, and such other
information as the Commission determines to be necessary
to carry out the duties of the Commission under this
section.
(4) <<NOTE: Establishment.>> Native children
subcommittee.--The Native Advisory Committee shall establish a
subcommittee that shall consist of at least 1 member from each
region of the Bureau of Indian Affairs and 1 Native Hawaiian,
each of whom shall be a Native child, and have experience
serving on the council of a tribal, regional, or national youth
organization.
(e) Comprehensive Study of Native Children Issues.--
(1) <<NOTE: Evaluation.>> In general.--The Commission shall
conduct a comprehensive study of Federal, State, local, and
tribal programs that serve Native children, including an
evaluation of--
[[Page 130 STAT. 984]]
(A) the impact of concurrent jurisdiction on child
welfare systems;
(B) the barriers Indian tribes and Native Hawaiians
face in applying, reporting on, and using existing
public and private grant resources, including
identification of any Federal cost-sharing requirements;
(C) the obstacles to nongovernmental financial
support, such as from private foundations and corporate
charities, for programs benefitting Native children;
(D) the issues relating to data collection, such as
small sample sizes, large margins of error, or other
issues related to the validity and statistical
significance of data on Native children;
(E) the barriers to the development of sustainable,
multidisciplinary programs designed to assist high-risk
Native children and families of those high-risk Native
children;
(F) cultural or socioeconomic challenges in
communities of Native children;
(G) any examples of successful program models and
use of best practices in programs that serve children
and families;
(H) the barriers to interagency coordination on
programs benefitting Native children; and
(I) the use of memoranda of agreement or interagency
agreements to facilitate or improve agency coordination,
including the effects of existing memoranda or
interagency agreements on program service delivery and
efficiency.
(2) Coordination.--In conducting the study under paragraph
(1), the Commission shall, to the maximum extent practicable--
(A) to avoid duplication of efforts, collaborate
with other workgroups focused on similar issues, such as
the Task Force on American Indian/Alaska Native Children
Exposed to Violence of the Attorney General; and
(B) to improve coordination and reduce travel costs,
use available technology.
(3) Recommendations.--Taking into consideration the results
of the study under paragraph (1) and the analysis of any
existing data relating to Native children received from Federal
agencies, the Commission shall--
(A) <<NOTE: Plans.>> develop recommendations for
goals, and plans for achieving those goals, for Federal
policy relating to Native children in the short-, mid-,
and long-term, which shall be informed by the
development of accurate child well-being measures,
except that the Commission shall not consider or
recommend the recognition or the establishment of a
government-to-government relationship with--
(i) any entity not recognized on or before the
date of enactment of this Act by the Federal
Government through an Act of Congress, Executive
action, judicial decree, or any other action; or
(ii) any entity not included in the list
authorized pursuant to the Federally Recognized
Indian Tribe List Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 479a et
seq.);
(B) make recommendations on necessary modifications
and improvements to programs that serve Native children
[[Page 130 STAT. 985]]
at the Federal, State, and tribal levels, on the
condition that the recommendations recognize the
diversity in cultural values, integrate the cultural
strengths of the communities of the Native children, and
will result in--
(i) improvements to the child welfare system
that--
(I) reduce the disproportionate rate
at which Native children enter child
protective services and the period of
time spent in the foster system;
(II) increase coordination among
social workers, police, and foster
families assisting Native children while
in the foster system to result in the
increased safety of Native children
while in the foster system;
(III) encourage the hiring and
retention of licensed social workers in
Native communities;
(IV) address the lack of available
foster homes in Native communities; and
(V) reduce truancy and improve the
academic proficiency and graduation
rates of Native children in the foster
system;
(ii) improvements to the mental and physical
health of Native children, taking into
consideration the rates of suicide, substance
abuse, and access to nutrition and health care,
including--
(I) <<NOTE: Analysis.>> an analysis
of the increased access of Native
children to Medicaid under the Patient
Protection and Affordable Care Act
(Public Law 111-148) and the effect of
that increase on the ability of Indian
tribes and Native Hawaiians to develop
sustainable health programs; and
(II) <<NOTE: Evaluation.>> an
evaluation of the effects of a lack of
public sanitation infrastructure,
including in-home sewer and water, on
the health status of Native children;
(iii) improvements to educational and
vocational opportunities for Native children that
will lead to--
(I) increased school attendance,
performance, and graduation rates for
Native children across all educational
levels, including early education, post-
secondary, and graduate school;
(II) localized strategies developed
by educators, tribal and community
leaders, and law enforcement to prevent
and reduce truancy among Native
children;
(III) scholarship opportunities at a
Tribal College or University and other
public and private postsecondary
institutions;
(IV) increased participation of the
immediate families of Native children;
(V) coordination among schools and
Indian tribes that serve Native
children, including in the areas of data
sharing and student tracking;
(VI) accurate identification of
students as Native children; and
(VII) increased school counseling
services, improved access to quality
nutrition at school, and safe student
transportation;
[[Page 130 STAT. 986]]
(iv) improved policies and practices by local
school districts that would result in improved
academic proficiency for Native children;
(v) increased access to extracurricular
activities for Native children that are designed
to increase self-esteem, promote community
engagement, and support academic excellence while
also serving to prevent unplanned pregnancy,
membership in gangs, drug and alcohol abuse, and
suicide, including activities that incorporate
traditional language and cultural practices of
Indians and Native Hawaiians;
(vi) taking into consideration the report of
the Indian Law and Order Commission issued
pursuant to section 15(f) of the Indian Law
Enforcement Reform Act (25 U.S.C. 2812(f)),
improvements to Federal, State, and tribal
juvenile justice systems and detention programs--
(I) to provide greater access to
educational opportunities and social
services for incarcerated Native
children;
(II) to promote prevention and
reduce incarceration and recidivism
rates among Native children;
(III) to identify intervention
approaches and alternatives to
incarceration of Native children;
(IV) to incorporate families and the
traditional cultures of Indians and
Native Hawaiians in the juvenile justice
process, including through the
development of a family court for
juvenile offenses; and
(V) to prevent unnecessary
detentions and identify successful
reentry programs;
(vii) expanded access to a continuum of early
development and learning services for Native
children from prenatal to age 5 that are
culturally competent, support Native language
preservation, and comprehensively promote the
health, well-being, learning, and development of
Native children, such as--
(I) high quality early care and
learning programs for children starting
from birth, including Early Head Start,
Head Start, child care, and preschool
programs;
(II) programs, including home
visiting and family resource and support
programs, that increase the capacity of
parents to support the learning and
development of the children of the
parents, beginning prenatally, and
connect the parents with necessary
resources;
(III) early intervention and
preschool services for infants,
toddlers, and preschool-aged children
with developmental delays or
disabilities; and
(IV) professional development
opportunities for Native providers of
early development and learning services;
(viii) the development of a system that
delivers wrap-around services to Native children
in a way that is comprehensive and sustainable,
including through increased coordination among
Indian tribes, schools,
[[Page 130 STAT. 987]]
law enforcement, health care providers, social
workers, and families;
(ix) more flexible use of existing Federal
programs, such as by--
(I) providing Indians and Native
Hawaiians with more flexibility to carry
out programs, while maintaining
accountability, minimizing
administrative time, cost, and expense
and reducing the burden of Federal
paperwork requirements; and
(II) allowing unexpended Federal
funds to be used flexibly to support
programs benefitting Native children,
while taking into account--
(aa) the Indian Employment,
Training and Related Services
Demonstration Act of 1992 (25
U.S.C. 3401 note; 106 Stat.
2302);
(bb) the Coordinated Tribal
Assistance Solicitation program
of the Department of Justice;
(cc) the Federal policy of
self-determination; and
(dd) any consolidated grant
programs; and
(x) <<NOTE: Determination.>> solutions to
other issues that, as determined by the
Commission, would improve the health, safety, and
well-being of Native children;
(C) <<NOTE: Records.>> make recommendations for
improving data collection methods that consider--
(i) the adoption of standard definitions and
compatible systems platforms to allow for greater
linkage of data sets across Federal agencies;
(ii) the appropriateness of existing data
categories for comparative purposes;
(iii) the development of quality data and
measures, such as by ensuring sufficient sample
sizes and frequency of sampling, for Federal,
State, and tribal programs that serve Native
children;
(iv) the collection and measurement of data
that are useful to Indian tribes and Native
Hawaiians;
(v) the inclusion of Native children in
longitudinal studies; and
(vi) tribal access to data gathered by
Federal, State, and local governmental agencies;
and
(D) identify models of successful Federal, State,
and tribal programs in the areas studied by the
Commission.
(f) Report.--Not later than 3 years after the date on which all
members of the Commission are appointed and amounts are made available
to carry out this Act, the Commission shall submit to the President, the
Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives, the
Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate, and the Committees on
Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Senate, a report
that contains--
(1) a detailed statement of the findings and conclusions of
the Commission; and
(2) <<NOTE: Recommenda- tions.>> the recommendations of the
Commission for such legislative and administrative actions as
the Commission considers to be appropriate.
(g) Powers.--
(1) Hearings.--
[[Page 130 STAT. 988]]
(A) In general.--The Commission may hold such
hearings, meet and act at such times and places, take
such testimony, and receive such evidence as the
Commission considers to be advisable to carry out the
duties of the Commission under this section, except that
the Commission shall hold not less than 5 hearings in
Native communities.
(B) Public requirement.--The hearings of the
Commission under this paragraph shall be open to the
public.
(2) Witness expenses.--
(A) In general.--A witness requested to appear
before the Commission shall be paid the same fees and
allowances as are paid to witnesses under section 1821
of title 28, United States Code.
(B) Per diem and mileage.--The fees and allowances
for a witness shall be paid from funds made available to
the Commission.
(3) Information from federal, tribal, and state agencies.--
(A) In general.--The Commission may secure directly
from a Federal agency such information as the Commission
considers to be necessary to carry out this section.
(B) Tribal and state agencies.--The Commission may
request the head of any tribal or State agency to
provide to the Commission such information as the
Commission considers to be necessary to carry out this
Act.
(4) Postal services.--The Commission may use the United
States mails in the same manner and under the same conditions as
other agencies of the Federal Government.
(5) Gifts.--The Commission may accept, use, and dispose of
gifts or donations of services or property related to the
purpose of the Commission.
(h) Commission Personnel Matters.--
(1) Travel expenses.--A member of the Commission shall be
allowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of
subsistence, at rates authorized for an employee of an agency
under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code,
while away from the home or regular place of business of the
member in the performance of the duties of the Commission.
(2) Detail of federal employees.--
(A) In general.--On the affirmative vote of \2/3\ of
the members of the Commission--
(i) the Attorney General, the Secretary, the
Secretary of Education, and the Secretary of the
Health and Human Services shall each detail,
without reimbursement, 1 or more employees of the
Department of Justice, the Department of the
Interior, the Department of Education, and the
Department of Health and Human Services; and
(ii) with the approval of the appropriate
Federal agency head, an employee of any other
Federal agency may be, without reimbursement,
detailed to the Commission.
[[Page 130 STAT. 989]]
(B) Effect on detailees.--Detail under this
paragraph shall be without interruption or loss of civil
service status, benefits, or privileges.
(3) Procurement of temporary and intermittent services.--
(A) In general.--On request of the Commission, the
Attorney General shall provide to the Commission, on a
reimbursable basis, reasonable and appropriate office
space, supplies, and administrative assistance.
(B) No requirement for physical facilities.--The
Administrator of General Services shall not be required
to locate a permanent, physical office space for the
operation of the Commission.
(4) Members not federal employees.--No member of the
Commission, the Native Advisory Committee, or the Native
Children Subcommittee shall be considered to be a Federal
employee.
(i) Termination of Commission.--The Commission shall terminate 90
days after the date on which the Commission submits the report under
subsection (f).
(j) Nonapplicability of FACA.--The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5
U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the Commission, the Native Advisory
Committee, or the Native Children Subcommittee.
(k) Effect.--This Act shall not be construed to recognize or
establish a government-to-government relationship with--
(1) any entity not recognized on or before the date of
enactment of this Act by the Federal Government through an Act
of Congress, Executive action, judicial decree, or any other
action; or
(2) any entity not included in the list authorized pursuant
to the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 1994 (25
U.S.C. 479a et seq.).
Approved October 14, 2016.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY--S. 246:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
HOUSE REPORTS: No. 114-722 (Comm. on Natural Resources).
SENATE REPORTS: No. 114-39 (Comm. on Indian Affairs).
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD:
Vol. 161 (2015):
June 1, considered and passed
Senate.
Vol. 162 (2016):
Sept. 12, considered and passed
House, amended.
Sept. 29, Senate concurred in House
amendment.
DAILY COMPILATION OF PRESIDENTIAL DOCUMENTS (2016):
Oct. 14, Presidential statement.
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