I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4957 

To amend the Indian Child Protection and Family Violence Prevention Act. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 31, 2019 

Mr. GALLEGO (for himself and Mr. COOK) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To amend the Indian Child Protection and Family Violence 

Prevention Act. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Native American Child 

5 Protection Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. INDIAN CHILD PROTECTION AND FAMILY VIOLENCE 

7 PREVENTION ACT AMENDMENTS. 

8 The Indian Child Protection and Family Violence 

9 Prevention Act (25 U.S.C. 3202 et seq.) is amended as 

10 follows: 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 4957 IH

1 (1) By amending section 403(3)(A) (25 U.S.C. 

2 3202(3)(A)) to read as follows: 

3 ‘‘(A) in any case in which— 

4 ‘‘(i)(I) a child is dead or exhibits evi5 dence of skin bruising, bleeding, malnutri6 tion, failure to thrive, burns, fracture of 

7 any bone, subdural hematoma, soft tissue 

8 swelling; and 

9 ‘‘(II) such condition is not justifiably 

10 explained or may not be the product of an 

11 accidental occurrence; 

12 ‘‘(ii) psychological or verbal abuse 

13 that causes serious emotional or mental in14 jury to a child; or 

15 ‘‘(iii) a child is subjected to sexual as16 sault, sexual molestation, sexual exploi17 tation, sexual contact, or prostitution;’’. 

18 (2) In section 409 (25 U.S.C. 3208)— 

19 (A) in subsection (a)— 

20 (i) by striking ‘‘The Secretary of 

21 Health and Human Services, acting 

22 through the Service and in cooperation 

23 with the Bureau’’ and inserting ‘‘The Serv24 ice, in cooperation with the Bureau’’; and 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 4957 IH

1 (ii) by striking ‘‘sexual abuse’’ and in2 serting ‘‘abuse or neglect’’; 

3 (B) in subsection (b) through the end of 

4 the section, by striking ‘‘Secretary of Health 

5 and Human Services’’ each place it appears and 

6 inserting ‘‘Service’’; 

7 (C) in subsection (b)(1), by inserting after 

8 ‘‘Any Indian tribe or intertribal consortium’’ 

9 the following: ‘‘, on its own or in partnership 

10 with an urban Indian organization,’’; 

11 (D) in subsections (b)(2)(B) and (d), by 

12 striking ‘‘such Secretary’’ each place it appears 

13 and inserting ‘‘the Service’’; 

14 (E) by amending subsection (c) to read as 

15 follows: 

16 ‘‘(c) CULTURALLY APPROPRIATE TREATMENT.—In 

17 awarding grants under this section, the Service shall en18 courage the use of culturally appropriate treatment serv19 ices and programs that respond to the unique cultural val20 ues, customs, and traditions of applicant Indian Tribes.’’; 

21 (F) in subsection (d)(2), by striking ‘‘the 

22 Secretary’’ and inserting ‘‘the Service’’; 

23 (G) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub24 section (f); 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 4957 IH

1 (H) by inserting after subsection (d) the 

2 following: 

3 ‘‘(e) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the date 

4 of the enactment of the Native American Child Protection 

5 Act, the Service shall submit a report to Congress on the 

6 award of grants under this section. The report shall con7 tain— 

8 ‘‘(1) a description of treatment and services for 

9 which grantees have used funds awarded under this 

10 section; and 

11 ‘‘(2) any other information that the Service re12 quires.’’; and 

13 (I) by amending subsection (f) (as so re14 designated by subparagraph (G) of this para15 graph), to read as follows: 

16 ‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

17 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

18 $30,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2026.’’. 

19 (3) In section 410 (25 U.S.C. 3209)— 

20 (A) in the heading— 

21 (i) by inserting ‘‘NATIONAL’’ before 

22 ‘‘INDIAN’’; and 

23 (ii) by striking ‘‘CENTERS’’ and in24 serting ‘‘CENTER’’; 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 4957 IH

1 (B) by amending subsections (a) and (b) to 

2 read as follows: 

3 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than one year 

4 after the date of the enactment of the Native American 

5 Child Protection Act, the Secretary shall establish a Na6 tional Indian Child Resource and Family Services Center. 

7 ‘‘(b) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the date 

8 of the enactment of the Native American Child Protection 

9 Act, the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bu10 reau of Indian Affairs, shall submit a report to Congress 

11 on the status of the National Indian Child Resource and 

12 Family Services Center.’’; 

13 (C) in subsection (c)— 

14 (i) by striking ‘‘Each’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘The’’; and 

16 (ii) by striking ‘‘multidisciplinary’’; 

17 (D) in subsection (d)— 

18 (i) in the text before paragraph (1), 

19 by striking ‘‘Each’’ and inserting ‘‘The’’; 

20 (ii) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and 

21 inter-tribal consortia’’ and inserting ‘‘inter22 tribal consortia, and urban Indian organi23 zations’’; 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
6 

•HR 4957 IH

1 (iii) in paragraph (2), by inserting 

2 ‘‘urban Indian organizations,’’ after ‘‘tribal 

3 organizations,’’; 

4 (iv) in paragraph (3)— 

5 (I) by inserting ‘‘and technical 

6 assistance’’ after training; and 

7 (II) by striking ‘‘and to tribal or8 ganizations’’ and inserting ‘‘Tribal or9 ganizations, and urban Indian organi10 zations’’; 

11 (v) in paragraph (4)— 

12 (I) by inserting ‘‘, State,’’ after 

13 ‘‘Federal’’; and 

14 (II) by striking ‘‘and tribal’’ and 

15 inserting ‘‘Tribal, and urban Indian’’; 

16 and 

17 (vi) by amending paragraph (5) to 

18 read as follows: 

19 ‘‘(5) develop model intergovernmental agree20 ments between Tribes and States, and other mate21 rials that provide examples of how Federal, State, 

22 and Tribal governments can develop effective rela23 tionships and provide for maximum cooperation in 

24 the furtherance of prevention, investigation, treat25 ment, and prosecution of incidents of family violence 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
7 

•HR 4957 IH

1 and child abuse and child neglect involving Indian 

2 children and families.’’; and 

3 (E) in subsection (e)— 

4 (i) in the heading, by striking ‘‘MUL5 TIDISCIPLINARY TEAM’’ and inserting 

6 ‘‘TEAM’’; 

7 (ii) in the text before paragraph (1), 

8 by striking ‘‘Each multidisciplinary’’ and 

9 inserting ‘‘The’’; and 

10 (iii) by amending subsections (f), (g), 

11 and (h) to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘(f) CENTER ADVISORY BOARD.—The Secretary 

13 shall establish an advisory board to advise and assist the 

14 National Indian Child Resource and Family Services Cen15 ter in carrying out its activities under this section. The 

16 advisory board shall consist of 12 members appointed by 

17 the Secretary from Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, 

18 and urban Indian organizations with expertise in child 

19 abuse and child neglect. Members shall serve without com20 pensation, but may be reimbursed for travel and other ex21 penses while carrying out the duties of the board. The ad22 visory board shall assist the Center in coordinating pro23 grams, identifying training and technical assistance mate24 rials, and developing intergovernmental agreements relat25 ing to family violence, child abuse, and child neglect. 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
8 

•HR 4957 IH

1 ‘‘(g) APPLICATION OF INDIAN SELF-DETERMINA2 TION ACT TO THE CENTER.—The National Indian Child 

3 Resource and Family Services Center shall be subject to 

4 the provisions of the Indian Self-Determination Act. The 

5 Secretary may also contract for the operation of the Cen6 ter with a nonprofit Indian organization governed by an 

7 Indian-controlled board of directors that have substantial 

8 experience in child abuse, child neglect, and family vio9 lence involving Indian children and families. 

10 ‘‘(h) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

11 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

12 $3,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2026.’’. 

13 (4) In section 411 (25 U.S.C. 3210)— 

14 (A) in subsection (d)— 

15 (i) in paragraph (1)— 

16 (I) in subparagraph (A), by strik17 ing ‘‘abuse and child neglect’’ and in18 serting ‘‘abuse, neglect, or both’’; 

19 (II) in subparagraph (B), by 

20 striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; and 

21 (III) by inserting after subpara22 graph (C), the following: 

23 ‘‘(D) development of agreements between 

24 Tribes, States, or private agencies on the coVerDate Sep 11 2014 17:23 Nov 10, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4957.IH H4957

pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
9 

•HR 4957 IH

1 ordination of child abuse and neglect preven2 tion, investigation, and treatment services; 

3 ‘‘(E) child protective services operational 

4 costs including transportation, risk and protec5 tive factors assessments, family engagement 

6 and kinship navigator services, and relative 

7 searches, criminal background checks for pro8 spective placements, and home studies; and 

9 ‘‘(F) development of a Tribal child protec10 tion or multidisciplinary team to assist in the 

11 prevention and investigation of child abuse and 

12 neglect;’’; 

13 (ii) in paragraph (2)— 

14 (I) in subparagraph (A), by in15 serting ‘‘in culturally appropriate 

16 ways’’ after ‘‘incidents of family vio17 lence’’; and 

18 (II) in subparagraph (C), by in19 serting ‘‘that may include culturally 

20 appropriate programs’’ after ‘‘training 

21 programs’’; and 

22 (iii) in paragraph (3)— 

23 (I) in subparagraph (A), by in24 serting ‘‘and neglect’’ after ‘‘abuse’’; 

25 and 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
10 

•HR 4957 IH

1 (II) in subparagraph (B), by 

2 striking ‘‘cases, to the extent prac3 ticable,’’ and inserting ‘‘and neglect 

4 cases’’; 

5 (B) in subsection (f)— 

6 (i) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘de7 velop, in consultation with Indian tribes, 

8 appropriate caseload standards and staff9 ing requirements which are comparable to 

10 standards developed by the National Asso11 ciation of Social Work, the Child Welfare 

12 League of America and other professional 

13 associations in the field of social work and 

14 child welfare’’ and inserting ‘‘develop, not 

15 later than one year after the date of the 

16 enactment of the Native American Child 

17 Protection Act, in consultation with Indian 

18 Tribes, appropriate caseload standards and 

19 staffing requirements’’; 

20 (ii) in paragraph (3)(D), by striking 

21 ‘‘sexual abuse’’ and inserting ‘‘abuse and 

22 neglect, high incidents of family violence,’’; 

23 (iii) in paragraph (4)— 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
11 

•HR 4957 IH

1 (I) in subparagraph (A), by strik2 ing ‘‘tribe’’ and inserting ‘‘Indian 

3 Tribe’’; and 

4 (II) in subparagraph (B), by 

5 striking ‘‘level of assistance for which 

6 an Indian tribe qualifies’’ and insert7 ing ‘‘Indian Tribe’’; and 

8 (iv) in paragraph (5), by striking 

9 ‘‘tribes’’ and inserting ‘‘Indian Tribes’’; 

10 (C) by amending subsection (g) to read as 

11 follows: 

12 ‘‘(g) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the date 

13 of the enactment of the Native American Child Protection 

14 Act, the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bu15 reau of Indian Affairs, shall submit a report to Congress 

16 on the award of grants under this section. The report shall 

17 contain— 

18 ‘‘(1) a description of treatment and services for 

19 which grantees have used funds awarded under this 

20 section; and 

21 ‘‘(2) any other information that the Secretary 

22 of the Interior requires.’’; and 

23 (D) by amending subsection (i) to read as 

24 follows: 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
12 

•HR 4957 IH

1 ‘‘(i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

3 $60,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2026.’’. 

Æ 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS