Savanna’s Act

Summary: Savanna's Act This bill requires the Department of Justice (DOJ) to update the online data entry format for federal databases relevant to cases of missing and murdered Indians to include a new data field for users to input the victim's tribal enrollment information or affiliation. In addition, DOJ must:   make standardized law enforcement and justice protocols that serve as guidelines for law enforcement agencies with respect to missing and murdered Indians, develop protocols to investigate those cases that are guided by the standardized protocols, meet certain requirements to consult with Indian tribes, and  provide tribes and law enforcement agencies with training and technical assistance relating to the development and implementation of the law enforcement and justice protocols.  Federal law enforcement agencies that investigate and prosecute crimes related to missing and murdered Indians must modify their law enforcement and justice protocols to comply with the standardized protocols.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as ``Savanna's Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) On some reservations, Indian women are murdered at more 
        than 10 times the national average.
            (2) American Indians and Alaska Natives are 2.5 times as 
        likely to experience violent crimes--and at least 2 times more 
        likely to experience rape or sexual assault crimes--compared to 
        all other races according to the National Congress of American 
        Indians.
            (3) More than 4 in 5 American Indian and Alaska Native 
        women, or 84.3 percent, have experienced violence in their 
        lifetime according to the National Institute of Justice.
            (4) More than 4 in 5 American Indian and Alaska Native men, 
        or 81.6 percent, have experienced violence in their lifetime 
        according to the National Institute of Justice.
            (5) According to the Centers for Disease Control and 
        Prevention, homicide is the third leading cause of death among 
        American Indian and Alaska Native women between 10 and 24 years 
        of age and the fifth leading cause of death for American Indian 
        and Alaska Native women between 25 and 34 years of age.
            (6) Investigation into cases of missing and murdered Indian 
        women is made difficult for Tribal law enforcement agencies due 
        to a lack of resources, such as--
                    (A) necessary training, equipment, or funding;
                    (B) a lack of interagency cooperation; and
                    (C) a lack of appropriate laws in place.
            (7) The complicated jurisdictional scheme that exists in 
        Indian country--
                    (A) has a significant negative impact on the 
                ability to provide public safety to Indian communities;
                    (B) has been increasingly exploited by criminals; 
                and
                    (C) requires a high degree of commitment and 
                cooperation among Tribal, Federal, and State law 
                enforcement officials.
    (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are--
            (1) to clarify the responsibilities of Federal, State, 
        Tribal, and local law enforcement agencies with respect to 
        responding to cases of missing and murdered Indians;
            (2) to increase coordination and communication among 
        Federal, State, Tribal, and local law enforcement agencies, 
        including medical examiner and coroner offices;
            (3) to empower Tribal governments with the resources and 
        information necessary to effectively respond to cases of 
        missing and murdered Indians; and
            (4) to increase the collection of data related to missing 
        and murdered Indian men and women and the sharing of 
        information among Federal, State, and Tribal officials 
        responsible for responding to and investigating cases of 
        missing and murdered Indians.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Databases.--The term ``databases'' means--
                    (A) the National Crime Information Center database;
                    (B) the Combined DNA Index System;
                    (C) the Next Generation Identification System; and
                    (D) any other database relevant to responding to 
                cases of missing and murdered Indians, including that 
                under the Violent Criminal Apprehension Program and the 
                National Missing and Unidentified Persons System.
            (2) Indian.--The term ``Indian'' means a member of an 
        Indian Tribe.
            (3) Indian country.--The term ``Indian country'' has the 
        meaning given the term in section 1151 of title 18, United 
        States Code.
            (4) Indian land.--The term ``Indian land'' means--
                    (A) Indian lands, as defined in section 3 of the 
                Native American Business Development, Trade Promotion, 
                and Tourism Act of 2000 (25 U.S.C. 4302); and
                    (B) land owned by a Regional Corporation or Village 
                Corporation, as such terms are defined in section 3 of 
                the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 
                1602).
            (5) Indian tribe.--The term ``Indian Tribe'' has the 
        meaning given the term ``Indian tribe'' in section 4 of the 
        Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 
        U.S.C. 5304).
            (6) Law enforcement agency.--The term ``law enforcement 
        agency'' means a Tribal, Federal, State, or local law 
        enforcement agency.

SEC. 4. IMPROVING TRIBAL ACCESS TO DATABASES.

    (a) Tribal Enrollment Information.--The Attorney General shall 
provide training to law enforcement agencies regarding how to record 
the Tribal enrollment information or affiliation, as appropriate, of a 
victim in Federal databases.
    (b) Consultation.--
            (1) Consultation.--Not later than 180 days after the date 
        of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General, in cooperation 
        with the Secretary of the Interior, shall complete a formal 
        consultation with Indian Tribes on how to further improve 
        Tribal data relevance and access to databases.
            (2) Annual consultation.--Section 903(b) of the Violence 
        Against Women and Department of Justice Reauthorization Act of 
        2005 (34 U.S.C. 20126) is amended--
                    (A) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the 
                following:
            ``(2) enhancing the safety of Indian women from domestic 
        violence, dating violence, sexual assault, homicide, stalking, 
        and sex trafficking;'';
                    (B) in paragraph (3), by striking the period at the 
                end and inserting ``; and''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(4) improving access to local, regional, State, and 
        Federal crime information databases and criminal justice 
        information systems.''.
    (c) Notification.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall--
            (1) develop and implement a dissemination strategy to 
        notify United States citizens of the National Missing and 
        Unidentified Persons System; and
            (2) conduct specific outreach to Indian Tribes regarding 
        the ability to publicly enter information, through the National 
        Missing and Unidentified Persons System or other non-law 
        enforcement sensitive portal, regarding missing persons, which 
        may include family members and other known acquaintances.

SEC. 5. GUIDELINES FOR RESPONDING TO CASES OF MISSING AND MURDERED 
              INDIANS.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date on which 
the consultation described in section 4(b)(1) is completed, the 
Attorney General shall direct United States attorneys with jurisdiction 
to prosecute crimes in Indian country under sections 1152 and 1153 of 
title 18, United States Code, or any other provision of law, as part of 
the annual consultations on sexual violence by United States attorneys 
with Indian Tribes and Federal partners, to develop guidelines to 
respond to cases of missing and murdered Indians that shall include--
            (1) guidelines on inter-jurisdictional cooperation among 
        law enforcement agencies at the Tribal, Federal, State, and 
        local levels, including inter-jurisdictional enforcement of 
        protection orders and detailing specific responsibilities of 
        each law enforcement agency;
            (2) best practices in conducting searches for missing 
        persons on Indian land;
            (3) standards on the collection, reporting, and analysis of 
        data and information on missing persons and unidentified human 
        remains, and information on culturally appropriate 
        identification and handling of human remains identified as 
        Indian, including guidance stating that all appropriate 
        information related to missing and murdered Indians be entered 
        in a timely manner into applicable databases;
            (4) guidance on which law enforcement agency is responsible 
        for inputting information into appropriate databases under 
        paragraph (3) if the Tribal law enforcement agency does not 
        have access to those appropriate databases;
            (5) guidelines on improving law enforcement agency response 
        rates and follow-up responses to cases of missing and murdered 
        Indians; and
            (6) guidelines on ensuring access to culturally appropriate 
        victim services for victims and their families.
    (b) Consultation.--United States attorneys shall develop the 
guidelines required under subsection (a) in consultation with Indian 
Tribes and other Federal partners, including--
            (1) the Department of Justice;
            (2) the Federal Bureau of Investigation;
            (3) the Bureau of Indian Affairs;
            (4) Tribal, State, and local law enforcement agencies;
            (5) medical examiners;
            (6) coroners; and
            (7) Tribal, State, and local organizations that provide 
        victim services.
    (c) Compliance.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 60 days after the next 
        sexual violence response annual consultation occurs in each 
        region after the date of enactment of this Act, the United 
        States attorneys shall modify the sexual violence response 
        guidelines to incorporate the guidelines developed under 
        subsection (a) and implement such modified guidelines.
            (2) Modification.--Each Federal law enforcement agency 
        shall modify the guidelines, policies, and protocols of the 
        agency to incorporate the guidelines developed under subsection 
        (a).
            (3) Determination.--Not later than the end of each fiscal 
        year beginning after the date the guidelines are established 
        under this section and incorporated under this subsection, the 
        Attorney General shall determine whether each Tribal, State, 
        and local law enforcement agency has incorporated guidelines 
        into their respective guidelines, policies, and protocols.
            (4) Preference.--For each of fiscal years 2019 through 
        2023, for the fiscal year in which a grant was solicited, the 
        Attorney General shall give affirmative preference to all 
        National Institute of Justice and Office for Victims of Crime 
        discretionary grant applications of a Tribal, State, or local 
        law enforcement agency, or applications submitted on behalf of 
        such law enforcement agencies by a local, State, or Tribal 
        government, if the Attorney General has determined under 
        paragraph (3) that the agency has incorporated the guidelines.
    (d) Accountability.--Not later than 30 days after compliance 
determinations are made each fiscal year in accordance with subsection 
(c)(3), the Attorney General shall--
            (1) disclose and publish, including on the website of the 
        Department of Justice, the name of each Tribal, State, or local 
        law enforcement agency that the Attorney General has determined 
        has not incorporated guidelines in accordance with subsection 
        (c)(3); and
            (2) if a law enforcement agency described in paragraph (1) 
        subsequently receives a determination of compliance, the 
        Attorney General shall--
                    (A) immediately correct the applicable record; and
                    (B) not later than 3 days after the determination, 
                remove the record from the website of the Department of 
                Justice and any other location where the record was 
                published.
    (e) Training and Technical Assistance.--The Attorney General shall 
use the National Indian Country Training Initiative to provide training 
and technical assistance to Indian Tribes and law enforcement agencies 
on--
            (1) implementing the guidelines developed under subsection 
        (a) or developing and implementing locally specific guidelines 
        or protocols for responding to cases of missing and murdered 
        Indians; and
            (2) using the National Missing and Unidentified Persons 
        System and accessing program services that will assist Indian 
        Tribes with responding to cases of missing and murdered 
        Indians.

SEC. 6. ANNUAL REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) Annual Reporting.--Beginning in the first fiscal year after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall include in 
its annual Indian Country Investigations and Prosecutions report to 
Congress information that--
            (1) includes known statistics on missing Indians in the 
        United States, available to the Department of Justice, 
        including--
                    (A) age;
                    (B) gender;
                    (C) Tribal enrollment information or affiliation, 
                if available;
                    (D) the current number of open cases per State;
                    (E) the total number of closed cases per State each 
                calendar year, from the most recent 10 calendar years; 
                and
                    (F) other relevant information the Attorney General 
                determines is appropriate;
            (2) includes known statistics on murdered Indians in the 
        United States, available to the Department of Justice, 
        including--
                    (A) age;
                    (B) gender;
                    (C) Tribal enrollment information or affiliation, 
                if available;
                    (D) the current number of open cases per State;
                    (E) the total number of closed cases per State each 
                calendar year, from the most recent 10 calendar years; 
                and
                    (F) other relevant information the Attorney General 
                determines is appropriate;
            (3) maintains victim privacy to the greatest extent 
        possible by excluding information that can be used on its own 
        or with other information to identify, contact, or locate a 
        single person, or to identify an individual in context; and
            (4) includes--
                    (A) an explanation of why the statistics described 
                in paragraph (1) may not be comprehensive; and
                    (B) recommendations on how data collection on 
                missing and murdered Indians may be improved.
    (b) Compliance.--
            (1) In general.--Beginning in the first fiscal year after 
        the date of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, for 
        the purpose of compiling accurate data for the annual report 
        required under subsection (a), the Attorney General shall 
        request all Tribal, State, and local law enforcement agencies 
        to submit to the Department of Justice, to the fullest extent 
        possible, all relevant information required, as determined by 
        the Attorney General.
            (2) Disclosure.--The Attorney General shall disclose and 
        publish annually, including on the website of the Department of 
        Justice, the name of each Tribal, State, or local law 
        enforcement agency that the Attorney General has determined has 
        not submitted the information requested under paragraph (1) for 
        the fiscal year in which the report was published.
            (3) Preference.--For each of fiscal years 2019 through 
        2023, for the fiscal year in which a grant was solicited, the 
        Attorney General shall give affirmative preference to all 
        Department of Justice discretionary grant applications of a 
        Tribal, State, or local law enforcement agency, or applications 
        submitted on behalf of such law enforcement agencies by a 
        local, State, or Tribal government, that would aid in the 
        implementation of the guidelines developed under section 5 or 
        help address the issue of missing and murdered Indians, if the 
        Attorney General has determined the agency has submitted the 
        information requested under paragraph (1) for the fiscal year 
        in which the report was published.
    (c) Inclusion of Gender in Missing and Unidentified Persons 
Statistics.--Beginning in the first calendar year after the date of 
enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Federal Bureau of 
Investigation shall include gender in its annual statistics on missing 
and unidentified persons published on its public website.

            Passed the Senate December 6, 2018.

            Attest:

                                                             Secretary.
115th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                                S. 1942

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

   To direct the Attorney General to review, revise, and develop law 
 enforcement and justice protocols appropriate to address missing and 
               murdered Indians, and for other purposes.