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103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 4783

To establish the National Indian Research Institute.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JULY 19, 1994

Mr. MARTINEZ introduced the following bill; which was referred jointly to the

Committees on Natural Resources and Education and Labor

A BILL

To establish the National Indian Research Institute.

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 ‘‘National Indian Re5 search Institute Act’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

7 (a) FINDINGS OF CONGRESS.—The Congress finds

8 that:

9 (1) The policy of the United States toward In10 dian and Alaska Native tribes which has emerged

11 over the course of 200 years of relationships is based

12 upon the following fundamental principles:
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1 (A) Federal-Indian policy is premised upon

2 the government-to-government relationship be3 tween the United States and Indian tribal gov4 ernments;

5 (B) the United States has a trust respon6 sibility to protect, maintain, and manage Indian

7 lands and related natural resources, including

8 water, fisheries, game and game habitat, and to

9 preserve permanent homelands for native people

10 within this Nation;

11 (C) tribal rights of self-government are

12 recognized under the United States Constitu13 tion and numerous treaties, intergovernmental

14 agreements, statutes and Executive orders, and

15 have been consistently upheld by the highest

16 courts of the United States;

17 (D) the goals of economic self-sufficiency

18 and improvement of the social well-being of

19 tribal communities, with the objective of achiev20 ing parity with the general United States popu21 lation as evidenced by national averages for

22 health care, per capita income and rates of em23 ployment and educational achievement, are rec24 ognized as the basis of numerous Federal stat25 utes and administrative policies;
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1 (E) the unique cultural heritage of tribal

2 people in the United States, including mainte3 nance of native language proficiency, the prac4 tice of traditional ceremonies, and religious and

5 artistic expression, is recognized in numerous

6 Acts of Congress as an irreplaceable national

7 heritage to be supported and protected; and

8 (F) for nearly two decades, the United

9 States has consistently endorsed and advanced

10 the principle of Indian self-determination, with

11 the objective of ending Federal domination of

12 programs affecting Indians and ensuring that

13 tribal governments are empowered to plan, con14 duct, and administer such programs themselves.

15 (2) Despite broad agreement on the underlying

16 principles of United States Indian policy, laws en17 acted by the Congress and regulations adopted by

18 Federal agencies do not invariably reflect such prin19 ciples owing to the large number of executive branch

20 agencies and the large number of congressional com21 mittees determining policy and owing to the absence

22 of an institutional resource from which agencies and

23 congressional committees might obtain objective and

24 reliable data, information, and analyses based upon
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1 the fullest knowledge of the underlying policy prin2 ciples.

3 (3) Performance of its trust responsibility to

4 American Indians consistent with the highest fidu5 ciary standards requires the United States to assure

6 that accurate and reliable information and scholarly

7 analyses are available to institutions shaping public

8 policy.

9 (4) Federal Indian policy impacts the lives and

10 property of all American citizens, Indian and non-In11 dian, living on or near reservations throughout In12 dian country.

13 (5) Establishment of an independent, non14 partisan, institute to provide data, information, and

15 analyses related to Indian issues would assist insti16 tutions in shaping sound and consistent public policy

17 and its establishment is warranted.

18 (6) The establishment of an institute is not in19 tended, nor should it be construed as, a delegation

20 of the responsibilities of the United States in formu21 lating and adopting public policy.

22 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

23 For purposes of this Act:

24 (1) The term ‘‘Indian’’ means any person who

25 is a member of an Indian tribe.
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1 (2) The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ means any tribe,

2 band, nation, or other organized group or commu3 nity of Indians including any Alaska Native village

4 which is recognized by the United States as eligible

5 for special programs and services provided by the

6 United States to Indians because of their status as

7 Indians.

8 (3) The term ‘‘Institute’’ means the National

9 Indian Research Institute established by this Act.

10 (4) The term ‘‘Board’’ means the Board of Di11 rectors of the Institute.

12 SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT OF INSTITUTE.

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is established a federally

14 chartered corporation to be known as the ‘‘National In15 dian Research Institute’’ which shall be under the control

16 of the Board of Directors established under section 7 of

17 this Act.

18 (b) SUCCESSION AND AMENDMENT OF CHARTER.—

19 The Federal corporation established by this Act shall have

20 succession, subject to the review provided for in subsection

21 (c), until dissolved by Act of Congress. The Congress shall

22 have exclusive authority to revise or amend the provisions

23 of this Act involving the establishment and operation of

24 such corporation.
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1 (c) REVIEW.—No later than 60 months after enact2 ment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United

3 States shall—

4 (1) review the activities and performance of the

5 Institute to determine whether amendments to this

6 Act are required; and

7 (2) submit a report to the Speaker of the

8 House of Representatives and the President pro

9 tempore of the Senate containing specific findings

10 and recommendations.

11 In carrying out such review and preparing such report,

12 the Comptroller General shall ensure that there is signifi13 cant opportunity for tribal input at all levels.

14 SEC. 5. FUNCTIONS.

15 (a) RESEARCH AND ANALYSIS.—The Institute shall,

16 at the request of institutions shaping policies affecting In17 dians (including Indian tribes, consortia of Indian tribes,

18 the executive branch of the Federal Government, and the

19 Congress) or upon its own initiative, conduct or commis20 sion research and analysis to be carried out, in accordance

21 with the highest standards of scholarship and independ22 ence, on issues related to the development of public policy

23 affecting Indians. The Institute shall adopt criteria and

24 procedures to guide the selection of research projects con25 sistent with section 7(f)(3). In conducting or commission-
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1 ing research and analysis on issues relating to the develop2 ment of public policy affecting Indians, the Institute shall

3 ensure that such research shall consider all factors affect4 ing Indian policy including the impact of such policy upon

5 other Americans.

6 (b) DATA AND INFORMATION CLEARINGHOUSE.—

7 The Institute shall establish a data base to make acces8 sible information and data maintained by Government

9 agencies, academic institutions, and Indian and other or10 ganizations, and shall develop computer and telecommuni11 cation networks to make such information recoverable by

12 policy makers and the public. Where it is determined that

13 developing a new and specific data base is required, the

14 Institute shall undertake to meet such need.

15 (c) FORUMS AND SYMPOSIA.—The Institute shall

16 conduct periodic public forums to identify and explore

17 emerging Indian policy issues and to identify needs for

18 data, information, or analyses, and shall conduct

19 symposia, when appropriate, to clarify options for policy

20 makers and to advance an understanding of complex and

21 interrelated public policy issues as they affect Indian peo22 ple and the formulation of Indian policy.

23 (d) PUBLIC INFORMATION.—(1) The Institute shall

24 publish and make available to the executive and legislative

25 branches of the Federal Government, tribal governments,
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1 tribal colleges, and the public, the products of its research

2 and reports of other activities by disseminating informa3 tion about such research and reports as deemed appro4 priate by the Board.

5 (2) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as prohibit6 ing any Indian tribal government from imposing any con7 dition, limitation, or other restriction on the use or dis8 semination of any information or other data made avail9 able by such tribal government to the Institute under this

10 Act.

11 SEC. 6. GENERAL POWERS OF INSTITUTE.

12 (a) POWERS OF INSTITUTE.—In carrying out the

13 provisions of this Act, the Institute shall have the power,

14 consistent with the provisions of this Act—

15 (1) to adopt, use and alter a corporate seal;

16 (2) to make, subject to the availability of funds,

17 agreements and contracts with persons, Indian tribal

18 governments, tribal organizations, and private or

19 governmental entities, and to make payments or ad20 vance payments under such agreements or contracts

21 without regard to the provisions of section 3324 of

22 title 31, United States Code;

23 (3) to sue and be sued in its corporate name

24 and to complain and defend in any court of com25 petent jurisdiction;
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1 (4) to represent itself, or to contract for rep2 resentation, in all judicial, legal, and other proceed3 ings;

4 (5) with the approval of the Federal agency

5 concerned and on a reimbursable basis, to make use

6 of services, facilities, and property of any board,

7 commission, independent establishment, or executive

8 agency or department of the Federal Government in

9 carrying out the provisions of this Act, and to pay

10 for such use;

11 (6) to solicit, accept, and dispose of gifts, be12 quests, devises of money, securities, and other prop13 erties of whatever character, for the benefit of the

14 Institute;

15 (7) to receive grants from, and subject to the

16 availability of funds, enter into contracts and other

17 arrangements with Federal, State, tribal, or local

18 governments, public and private agencies, organiza19 tions, institutions, and individuals;

20 (8) to acquire with funds other than Federal

21 funds, hold, maintain, use, operate, and dispose of

22 such real property, including improvements thereon,

23 personal property, equipment, and other items, as

24 may be necessary to enable the Institute to carry out

25 the provisions of this Act;
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1 (9) to obtain insurance or make other provi2 sions against losses;

3 (10) to use any funds or property received by

4 the Institute to carry out the purpose of this Act ex5 cept that any funds received by, or under the control

6 of the Institute that are not Federal funds shall be

7 accounted for separately from Federal funds; and

8 (11) to exercise all other lawful powers nec9 essarily or reasonably related to the establishment of

10 the Institute in order to carry out the provisions of

11 this Act and the exercise of the powers, purposes,

12 functions, duties, and authorized activities of the In13 stitute.

14 SEC. 7. BOARD OF DIRECTORS.

15 (a) COMPOSITION.—

16 (1) The Board of Directors of the Institute

17 shall consist of 13 members appointed by the Presi18 dent, by and with the advice and consent of the Sen19 ate, from among individuals who are representative

20 of a broad range of Indian policy expertise as evi21 denced by established credentials in the different

22 disciplines which make up the diverse field of Indian

23 policy, including degrees from recognized academic

24 institutions, leadership in public policy-making posi25 tions, or affiliation with public and private institu-
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1 tions which are known for their significant contribu2 tions to the public interest and shall include—

3 (A) 4 members appointed from among in4 dividuals nominated by the Speaker of the

5 House of Representatives; and

6 (B) 4 members appointed from among in7 dividuals nominated by the President pro tem8 pore of the Senate.

9 One of the 5 members appointed without regard to

10 subparagraphs (A) and (B) shall be designated by

11 the President, at the time of appointment, as the

12 chairman of the Board.

13 (2) In making appointments under paragraph

14 (1), the President shall—

15 (A) consult with Indian tribal governments

16 and tribal organizations;

17 (B) solicit nominations from Indian public

18 policy specialists, Indian tribal governments,

19 tribal colleges, other Indian organizations, aca20 demic institutions and public officials with In21 dian policy responsibilities; and

22 (C) ensure that a majority of appointments

23 are Indians who are broadly representative of

24 Indian country.
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1 (b) INTERIM BOARD.—The Planning Committee ap2 pointed pursuant to section 11 of Public Law 101–301

3 and composed of those individuals serving at the time of

4 enactment of this Act shall serve as the interim Board

5 until the appointments authorized in subsection (a)(1)

6 have been made. Their service shall terminate on the date

7 that all members authorized to be appointed under sub8 section (a)(1) are first appointed.

9 (c) TERMS OF OFFICE.—

10 (1) Except as otherwise provided in this section,

11 members of the Board of Directors appointed pursu12 ant to subsection (a)(1) shall be appointed for terms

13 of office of 3 years.

14 (2) Of the members first appointed under sub15 section (a)(1)—

16 (A) 1 member appointed under subpara17 graph (A) of such subsection, 1 member ap18 pointed under subparagraph (B) of such sub19 section, and 1 of the remaining members ap20 pointed without regard to subparagraphs (A)

21 and (B) of such subsection shall be appointed

22 for a term of office of 12 months;

23 (B) 1 member appointed under subpara24 graph (A) of such subsection, 1 member ap25 pointed under subparagraph (B) of such sub-
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1 section, and 1 of the remaining members ap2 pointed without regard to subparagraphs (A)

3 and (B) of such subsection shall be appointed

4 for a term of office of 24 months; and

5 (C) all other members shall be appointed

6 for a term of office of 36 months.

7 (3) The term of office assigned to each of the

8 initial members of the Board as provided under

9 paragraph (2) shall be determined by the President

10 at the time of appointment, except that no member

11 shall be eligible to serve in excess of 2 consecutive

12 terms, but may continue to serve until such mem13 ber’s successor is appointed.

14 (d) VACANCIES.—Any member of the Board ap15 pointed under subsection (a) to fill a vacancy occurring

16 before the expiration of the term to which such member’s

17 predecessor was appointed shall be appointed for the re18 mainder of such term.

19 (e) POWERS OF BOARD.—The Board is authorized

20 and directed to—

21 (1) formulate policy for the Institute and pro22 vide direction for its management;

23 (2) make such bylaws and rules as it deems

24 necessary for the administration of its functions
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1 under this Act, including the organization and oper2 ating procedures of the Board; and

3 (3) establish a process for independent peer re4 view of research proposals submitted to the Institute

5 based upon the research competence of the appli6 cant, the applicant’s knowledge of related research,

7 the utility or relevance of the research, and such

8 other criteria as the Board may identify for specific

9 projects.

10 (f) OFFICERS AND EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE.—The

11 Board shall establish an executive committee to be com12 prised of a vice chair, secretary, treasurer, and one at13 large member selected by the Board from among its mem14 bers, and the chairman of the Board. In accordance with

15 the bylaws of the Board, such members shall provide di16 rection for the Board, and serve in lieu of the Board on

17 matters requiring Board action, subject to review and ac18 tion by the Board as the members of the Board may deem

19 appropriate.

20 (g) COMMITTEES.—The Board may establish such

21 committees, task forces, and working groups as it deems

22 appropriate and necessary.

23 (h) COMPENSATION.—Members of the Board ap24 pointed under subsection (a)(1) shall, for each day they

25 are engaged in the performance of their duties, receive
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1 compensation at the rate of $125 per day, including travel

2 time. All members of the Board, while so serving away

3 from their homes or regular place of business, shall be

4 allowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of sub5 sistence.

6 SEC. 8. RESOURCE ADVISORY COUNCIL.

7 (a) RESOURCE ADVISORY COUNCIL.—There is estab8 lished the Resource Advisory Council to the National In9 dian Research Institute (hereafter referred to as the

10 ‘‘Council’’) which shall provide assistance in the develop11 ment and operations of the Institute.

12 (b) COMPOSITION.—The membership of the Council

13 is as follows:

14 (1) Secretary of Health and Human Services.

15 (2) Secretary of Interior.

16 (3) Secretary of Education.

17 (4) Secretary, Smithsonian Institution.

18 (5) Secretary of Commerce.

19 (6) Secretary of Labor.

20 (7) Administrator of the Environmental Protec21 tion Agency.

22 (8) Director, National Academy of Sciences.

23 (9) Librarian of Congress.

24 (10) Director, Office of Technology Assessment.

25 (11) Director, National Institutes of Health.
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1 (12) Chairman, Committee on Indian Affairs,

2 United States Senate.

3 (13) Chairman, Committee on Natural Re4 sources, United States House of Representatives.

5 (c) FUNCTIONS.—The Council, which is advisory only

6 and exercises no executive authority—

7 (1) shall make recommendations to the Board

8 of Directors regarding research procedures and or9 ganizational development;

10 (2) shall provide professional and technical as11 sistance upon request of the Board of Directors, in12 cluding staff support for the activities of the Coun13 cil;

14 (3) when biannual meetings are called by the

15 chairmen of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs

16 and the Committee on Natural Resources of the

17 House of Representatives, shall attend such meet18 ings or shall designate an individual or individuals to

19 attend on behalf of the Council; and

20 (4) may make reports and recommendations to

21 the Board of Directors and to the Congress as they

22 may from time to time request, or as the Council

23 may consider necessary to more effectively accom24 plish the purposes of this Act.
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1 SEC. 9. OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES.

2 (a) DIRECTOR.—The Board of Directors shall ap3 point a Director of the Institute. The Director may only

4 be removed from office by the Board in accordance with

5 the bylaws of the Institute.

6 (b) RESPONSIBILITY OF DIRECTOR.—Subject to the

7 direction of the Board, the Director shall have the respon8 sibility for carrying out the policies and functions of the

9 Institute, and shall have authority over all personnel and

10 activities of the Institute.

11 (c) EMPLOYEES.—The Director, with the approval of

12 the Board, shall have the authority to appoint and fix the

13 compensation and duties of such officers and employees

14 as may be necessary for the efficient administration of the

15 Institute.

16 (d) PREFERENCE.—In implementing this section, the

17 Board and the Director shall afford preference to Amer18 ican Indians.

19 SEC. 10. NONPROFIT AND NONPOLITICAL NATURE OF IN20 STITUTE.

21 (a) NOT AN ADVOCACY ORGANIZATION.—The Insti22 tute shall not engage in the advocacy of public policy alter23 natives, represent itself as the voice of tribal governments,

24 or take other actions that might be construed as interfer25 ing with or diminishing the government-to-government re-
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1 lationship between tribal governments and the United

2 States.

3 (b) NO SUPPORT TO POLITICAL PARTIES.—The In4 stitute may not contribute to, or otherwise support, any

5 political party or candidate for elective public office, in6 cluding tribal office.

7 (c) OTHER.—No part of the income or assets of the

8 Institute shall inure to the benefit of any director, officer,

9 employee, or any other individual, except as salary or rea10 sonable compensation for services.

11 SEC. 11. TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS AND ADMINISTRATION

12 BY THE INSTITUTE.

13 (a) TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS.—There are trans14 ferred to the Institute, and such Institute shall perform,

15 the functions set forth under section 11 of Public Law

16 101–301 relating to the National Center for Native Amer17 ican Studies and Indian Policy Development, and section

18 816(e) of the Native American Programs Act of 1974 (42

19 U.S.C. 2991 et seq.).

20 (b) GRANT.—Subject to an appropriation by the Con21 gress for this purpose, within 30 days following the date

22 of such appropriation, the Secretary of Health and

23 Human Services shall award a grant to the Institute for

24 all activities of the Institute and to enable the Institute

25 to provide such management, technical and support assist-
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1 ance as may be reasonable or necessary to operate the In2 stitute, including audit, accounting, computer services and

3 building and maintenance services. Subject to the avail4 ability of funds, the grant shall be automatically renewable

5 on an annual basis until such time as Congress may pro6 vide otherwise.

7 SEC. 12. RELATIONSHIP WITH TRIBAL COLLEGES AND

8 OTHER RESEARCH ORGANIZATIONS.

9 (a) CONTRACTS AND AGREEMENTS.—The Director of

10 the Institute, pursuant to the direction of, and in consulta11 tion with, the Board of Directors, is authorized to enter

12 into contracts, memoranda of understanding and agree13 ments with—

14 (1) tribally controlled community colleges as de15 fined by section 2(a)(4) of the Tribally Controlled

16 Community College Assistance Act of 1978;

17 (2) the United Tribes Technical College, South18 west Indian Polytechnic Institute, Haskell Indian

19 Junior College, and Crownpoint Institute of Tech20 nology; and

21 (3) other research institutions which have expe22 rience in the conduct of research that has been suc23 cessfully carried out in cooperation with American

24 Indians;
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1 for the purpose of conducting research, developing issue

2 papers, or to assist the Institute in carrying out its respon3 sibilities under this Act.

4 (b) PREFERENCES.—In the award of contracts for re5 search, the Director may give preference to institutions

6 or individuals that have successfully conducted research

7 in cooperation with American Indian tribal governments

8 and organizations.

9 (c) GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY.—The Board

10 of Directors is authorized to enter into an agreement with

11 the George Washington University to obtain facilities and

12 technical services.

13 SEC. 13. REPORTS.

14 (a) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Director of the Institute

15 shall submit an annual report to the Speaker of the House

16 of Representatives, the President pro tempore of the Sen17 ate, and to the Board concerning the activities and status

18 of the Institute during the 12-month period preceding the

19 date of the report. Such report shall include, among other

20 matters, a comprehensive summary of studies performed

21 and activities carried out, a detailed statement of private

22 and public funds, gifts, and other items of a monetary

23 value received by the Institute during such 12-month pe24 riod, and the disposition thereof, as well as any rec-
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1 ommendations for improving the Institute. Such report

2 shall also be provided to all tribal governments.

3 (b) BUDGET PROPOSAL.—The Board shall submit a

4 budget proposal for the Institute for fiscal year 1995, and

5 each fiscal year thereafter, to the Secretary of Health and

6 Human Services. The Secretary of Health and Human

7 Services shall transmit such budget proposal, together

8 with the budget proposal of the Department of Health and

9 Human Services, to the President. The budget proposal

10 of the Institute shall be included in the annual budget of

11 the President.

12 SEC. 14. COMPLIANCE WITH FEDERAL LAWS.

13 For the purpose of administering the Federal crimi14 nal laws relating to larceny, embezzlement, or conversion

15 of property or funds, the Institute shall be considered to

16 be a Federal entity and subject to such laws.

17 SEC. 15. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

18 There are authorized to be appropriated $1,000,000

19 for fiscal year 1995, and such sums as may be necessary

20 for fiscal years 1996 and 1997, to carry out this Act.

21 Funds appropriated under this section shall remain avail22 able without fiscal year limitation.

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