89–010 

1The Bureau also supports post-secondary institutions in Indian Country, including two federally-operated post-secondary schools. 

Calendar No. 135 

116TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! SENATE 1st Session 116–54 

TO ALLOW TRIBAL GRANT SCHOOLS TO PARTICIPATE IN 

THE FEDERAL EMPLOYEE HEALTH BENEFITS PROGRAM 

JULY 9, 2019.—Ordered to be printed 

Mr. HOEVEN, from the Committee on Indian Affairs, 

submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany S. 279] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] 

The Committee on Indian Affairs, to which was referred the bill 

(S. 279) to allow tribal grant schools to participate in the Federal 

Employee Health Benefit program, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon without amendment and recommends that 

the bill do pass. 

PURPOSE

The bill is intended to improve the education of students by allowing Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) tribal grant school employees to be eligible for participation in the Federal Employee 

Health Benefits (FEHB) and the Federal Employees Group Life Insurance (FEGLI) programs. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

The BIE administers a school system that serves approximately 

47,000 elementary and secondary students attending 183 schools 

and dormitories located in 23 states.1 The BIE directly operates 54 

schools. Indian Tribes operate BIE ‘‘contract’’ schools through the 

Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act 


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2Pub. L. No. 93-638. 

3Pub. L. No. 100-297. 

4Legislative Hearing to receive testimony on S. 279, S. 790, & S. 832 Before the S. Comm. 

on Indian Affairs, 116th Cong. (2017) (statement of John Tahsuda, Princ. Deputy Assistant 

Sec’y of Indian Affairs, U.S. Dep’t of the Interior). 5Letter from Robert Butterfield, President, Nat’l Indian Education Association, to Sen.’s John 

Hoeven & Tom Udall, Chairman & Vice Chairman, S. Comm. on Indian Affairs (Apr. 30, 2019) 

(on file with S. Comm. on Indian Affairs). 6Supra note 2. 7 Id. 

8Letter from Victoria Kitcheyan, Chairperson, Nat’l Indian Health Board, to Sen. John Thune 

(Apr. 12, 2019) (on file with S. Comm. on Indian Affairs).; Letter from Jefferson Keel, President, 

Nat’l Congress of American Indians, to Sen.’s John Hoeven & Tom Udall, Chairman & Vice 

Chairman, S. Comm. on Indian Affairs (Apr. 29, 2019) (on file with S. Comm. on Indian Affairs). 

(ISDEAA) 2 and BIE ‘‘grant’’ schools through the Tribally Controlled Schools Act of 1988 (TCSA).3

In 2010, Congress added section 409 to the Indian Health Care 

Improvement Act (IHCIA). This new section authorizes Tribes with 

ISDEAA contracts and urban Indian organizations operating 

health programs under IHCIA Title IV to purchase FEHB and 

FEGLI coverage for their employees. Tribes and urban Indian organizations that participate in these two programs cover the full cost 

of the employer share and, as a result, the Federal government incurs no additional costs when eligible Tribal and urban Indian employers opt into these programs. 

However, IHCIA section 409 does not reference BIE grant 

schools in the list of eligible FEHB and FEGLI participants. As 

such, Tribally-operated BIE grant schools cannot equally access the 

benefits extended to Tribes under IHCIA section 409. The Department of the Interior’s Office of the Solicitor and the Office of Personnel Management confirmed that BIE grants are ineligible to 

participate without a change to the statute in 2012.4 According to 

the National Indian Education Association, the exclusion of BIE 

grant schools from IHCIA section 409 creates ‘‘inequity in 

healthcare access among employees at tribal schools within the 

same community and across the nation.’’ 5

Currently, all federally-operated BIE schools and four [of the 

five?] BIE contract schools participate in the FEHB and FEGLI 

programs.6 According to Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of 

Indian Affairs John Tahsuda, access to these programs results in 

budgetary and staffing benefits for these schools. He testified, ‘‘Participation in the FEHB Program reduced costs associated with providing employee benefits as well as aided organizations in their recruitment and retention efforts.’’ 7

Many BIE grant schools face challenges covering the cost of benefits for their employees because they do not have access to lowercost options through the FEHB and FEGLI. The National Congress 

of American Indians and the National Indian Health Board both 

note many BIE grant schools must then utilize a portion of their 

educational services funding to pay for health and life insurance 

plans.8 In turn, this extra cost burden reduces funding for other 

ISEP supported activities (e.g., textbooks, teacher’s aides, and extracurricular programs). 

Cecelia Firethunder, President of the Oglala Lakota Nation Education Coalition, testified in front of the Committee about the impacts of this cost burden on the six BIE grant schools located on 


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9Legislative Hearing to receive testimony on S. 279, S. 790, & S. 832 Before the S. Comm. 

on Indian Affairs, 116th Cong. (2017) (statement of Cecilia Firethunder, President, Oglala 

Lakota Nation Education Coalition). 

the Pine Ridge Reservation.9 She noted, ‘‘our schools, however, 

struggle to cover the costs of high health insurance premiums and 

deductibles . . . This, in turn, directly and adversely affects the 

consistency and quality of the educational services our students receive.’’ She estimated that access to FEHB would save one BIE 

grant school on the Pine Ridge Reservation, the Little Wound 

School, $1,000,000 per year. 

Because of the potential benefits of participation, the National 

Congress of American Indians, National Indian Health Board, National Indian Education Association, the All Pueblo Council of Governors, the Great Plains Chairmen’s Health Board, United Tribes 

of North Dakota, Saint Stephens Indian School Educational Association, the Santa Fe Indian School, and the Standing Rock Sioux 

Tribe support extending FEHB and FEGLI eligibility to BIE grant 

schools. 

SUMMARY OF THE BILL

The bill, S. 279, amends IHCIA section 409 to make tribally-operated BIE grant schools operating under the TCSA eligible to participate in the FEHB and FEGLI programs. 

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

On January 30, 2019, Senators Thune and Rounds introduced S. 

279, the Tribal School Federal Insurance Parity Act. Senators 

Udall, Heinrich, Barrasso, and Tester are cosponsors of the bill. On 

May 1, 2019, the Committee on Indian Affairs held a legislative 

hearing on S. 279. At this legislative hearing, John Tahsuda III, 

Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary—Indian Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior, and Cecelia Firethunder, President, Oglala 

Lakota Nation Education Coalition, testified in support of the bill. 

On May 15, 2019, the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate 

met at a duly called business meeting to consider three bills, including S. 279. No Committee Members filed amendments to S. 

279. The Committee passed all three bills, including S. 279, en bloc 

by voice vote and ordered the bills, without amendment, reported 

favorably. 

Congressman Dusty Johnson introduced a companion bill, H.R. 

895, the Tribal School Federal Insurance Parity Act, on January 

30, 2019. The House of Representatives referred the bill to the 

Committees on Natural Resources, Oversight and Reform, and Energy and Commerce, of the House of Representatives. On February 

15, 2019, H.R. 895, the Committee on Natural Resources referred 

the bill to the Subcommittee on Indigenous Peoples of the United 

States. Since receiving the referral, the Subcommittee has taken no 

action on the bill. 

During the 115th Congress, Senators Thune and Rounds introduced S. 3030, the Tribal School Federal Insurance Parity Act on 

June 7, 2018. The Senate referred the bill to the Committee on Indian Affairs. Senators Udall, Heitkamp, and Tester joined the bill 

as cosponsors on July 26th, August 2nd, and September 5th of 


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2018, respectively. After receiving the referral, the Committee took 

no action on the bill. 

On June 7, 2018, Representative Noem introduced a companion 

bill, H.R. 6030, the Tribal School Federal Insurance Parity Act in 

the House of Representatives, which referred the bill to the Committees on Natural Resources, Oversight and Government Reform, 

and Energy and Commerce. On June 12, 2018, H.R. 6030, the Committee on Natural Resources referred H.R. 6030 to the Subcommittee on Indian, Insular and Alaska Native Affairs. After receiving the referral, the Subcommittee took no action on the bill. 

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1. Short title 

Section 1 states S. 279 may be cited as the ‘‘Tribal School Federal Insurance Parity Act.’’ 

Section. 2. Amendment to the Indian Health Care Improvement Act 

Section 2 amends section 409 of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act by inserting ‘‘or the Tribally Controlled Schools Act of 

1988 (25 U.S.C. 2501 et seq.)’’ after ‘‘(25 U.S.C. 450 et seq.)’’. 

COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

The following cost estimate, as provided by the Congressional 

Budget Office, dated May 28, 2019, was prepared for S. 279: 

U.S. CONGRESS, 

CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE, 

Washington, DC, May 28, 2019. 

Hon. JOHN HOEVEN, 

Chairman, Committee on Indian Affairs, 

U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 279, the Tribal School Federal Insurance Parity Act. 

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased 

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Lori Housman. 

Sincerely, 

KEITH HALL, 

Director. 

Enclosure. 


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The Affordable Care Act, Public Law 111–148, allows certain Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and urban Indian organizations to 

purchase health insurance through the Federal Employees Health 

Benefits (FEHB) program for their employees. The Office of Personnel Management administers the program, but the tribes or 

tribal organizations purchase the insurance for their employees and 

must pay at least 70 percent of the premium. The employees pay 

the rest. 

S. 279 would allow tribal grant schools (as defined by the Tribally Controlled Schools Act of 1988) to participate in that arrangement. Because the schools would be paying the employer share of 

the premiums for FEHB health insurance for their employees, enacting the bill would not affect the federal budget. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Lori Housman. The estimate was reviewed by Leo Lex, Deputy Assistant Director for 

Budget Analysis. 

REGULATORY AND PAPERWORK IMPACT STATEMENT

Paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate requires each report accompanying a bill to evaluate the regulatory and paperwork impact that would be incurred in carrying 

out the bill. The Committee believes that S. 279 will have minimal 

impact on regulatory or paperwork requirements. 

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

The Committee has received no communications from the Executive Branch regarding S. 279. 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

On February 6, 2019, the Committee unanimously approved a 

motion to waive subsection 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing Rules 

of the Senate. In the opinion of the Committee, it is necessary to 


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dispense with subsection 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing Rules of 

the Senate to expedite the business of the Senate. 

Æ 


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