II 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 5636 

To ensure progress toward the fulfillment by the Federal Government of 

its trust and treaty obligations to Native Americans and Tribal governments, to ensure funding for programs for Native Americans and Tribal 

governments, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 19 (legislative day, DECEMBER 16), 2024 

Ms. WARREN introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Indian Affairs 

A BILL 

To ensure progress toward the fulfillment by the Federal 

Government of its trust and treaty obligations to Native 

Americans and Tribal governments, to ensure funding 

for programs for Native Americans and Tribal governments, and for other purposes. 

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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Honoring Promises to Native Nations Act’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 


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Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Purposes. 

Sec. 3. Findings. 

Sec. 4. Sense of Congress. 

Sec. 5. Definitions. 

Sec. 6. Advance appropriations. 

Sec. 7. Sequestration exemption. 

Sec. 8. Office of Management and Budget Office of Native Nations. 

Sec. 9. GAO audit of crosscutting information. 

Sec. 10. White House Council for Native Nations. 

Sec. 11. Deputy Secretary for Native Nations in the Department of the Interior. 

Sec. 12. Tribal consultation by Federal agencies. 

Sec. 13. Interagency working group on data collection. 

TITLE I—CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND PUBLIC SAFETY 

Sec. 101. Findings. 

Sec. 102. Sense of Congress. 

Sec. 103. Full Tribal criminal jurisdiction. 

Sec. 104. Bureau of Prisons tribal prisoner program. 

Sec. 105. Tribal justice systems. 

Sec. 106. Grants to Indian tribes under public safety and community policing 

grant program. 

Sec. 107. Bureau of Indian Affairs law enforcement and detention. 

Sec. 108. Written consent of an Indian tribe prior to an execution of a tribal 

member by the United States. 

Sec. 109. Indian victims of crime. 

Sec. 110. Victim advocates for Native Americans. 

Sec. 111. Special Tribal criminal jurisdiction. 

Sec. 112. National Indian Country Clearinghouse on Sexual Assault. 

Sec. 113. Tribal access program. 

Sec. 114. Tiwahe Initiative. 

Sec. 115. Reviews on Native Hawaiian interactions with law enforcement. 

TITLE II—HEALTH CARE 

Sec. 201. Findings. 

Sec. 202. Sense of Congress. 

Sec. 203. Mandatory funding for Indian Health Service. 

Sec. 204. Sanitation facilities construction program. 

Sec. 205. Special diabetes programs for Indians. 

Sec. 206. Special diabetes program for Native Hawaiians. 

Sec. 207. Permanent extension of full Federal medical assistance percentage to 

urban Indian organizations. 

Sec. 208. Qualified Indian provider services. 

Sec. 209. Remove limitation on payment for services furnished by Indian 

Health Care Providers outside a clinic facility. 

Sec. 210. Native Hawaiian health care. 

Sec. 211. Funding for Tribal epidemiology centers. 

Sec. 212. State option to provide medical assistance for residential addiction 

treatment facility services. 

Sec. 213. Conferring with urban Indian organizations. 

Sec. 214. Medicaid work requirement exemption. 

Sec. 215. Medicaid program policies for members of Indian Tribes. 

Sec. 216. Elevation of IHS Director to Assistant Secretary for Indian Health. 


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Sec. 217. Inclusion of urban Indian organizations in the National Community 

Health Aide Program. 

TITLE III—EDUCATION 

Sec. 301. Findings. 

Sec. 302. Sense of Congress. 

Sec. 303. Mandatory funding for Tribal Colleges and Universities. 

Sec. 304. Expanding instruction and outreach by Tribal Colleges and Universities and other amendments. 

Sec. 305. Endowment funds of Tribal Colleges and Universities. 

Sec. 306. Full funding for operation of Bureau-funded schools. 

Sec. 307. Bureau of Indian Education school construction, modernization, and 

repair. 

Sec. 308. Tribal College and University construction, modernization, and repair. 

Sec. 309. Support for Native students and educators in Native-serving schools. 

Sec. 310. Johnson-O’Malley funding. 

Sec. 311. Native languages. 

Sec. 312. Culturally inclusive education. 

Sec. 313. Alaska Native education programs. 

Sec. 314. Every Student Succeeds Act implementation. 

Sec. 315. Funding for local Tribal educational agencies and Tribal education 

offices. 

Sec. 316. Graduate opportunities at Tribal Colleges and Universities. 

TITLE IV—HOUSING 

Sec. 401. Findings. 

Sec. 402. Sense of Congress. 

Sec. 403. Indian housing block grant program. 

Sec. 404. Native Hawaiian housing block grant program. 

Sec. 405. Set-aside of USDA rural housing funding for Indian Tribes. 

Sec. 406. Restoring authority of Indian tribes and tribally designated housing 

entities in certain housing programs. 

Sec. 407. Indian community development block grants. 

Sec. 408. Loan guarantees for Indian housing. 

Sec. 409. Loan guarantees for Native Hawaiian housing. 

Sec. 410. Direct housing loans for Native American veterans program. 

Sec. 411. Tribal HUD–VASH program. 

Sec. 412. Housing improvement program, Bureau of Indian Affairs. 

Sec. 413. Tribal uninhabitable housing improvement program. 

Sec. 414. Coordinated Environmental Review Process Workgroup. 

TITLE V—ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 

Sec. 501. Findings. 

Sec. 502. Sense of Congress. 

Subtitle A—Economic Development, Infrastructure, and Investments 

Sec. 511. Tribal transportation program. 

Sec. 512. Tribal high priority projects program. 

Sec. 513. Bureau of Indian Affairs road maintenance program. 

Sec. 514. Tribal transit program. 

Sec. 515. Tribal transportation technical assistance program. 

Sec. 516. Rural development tribal technical assistance program. 


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Sec. 517. Native American community development financial institutions assistance program. 

Sec. 518. Tribal revolving funds. 

Sec. 519. Tribal water pollution control. 

Sec. 520. Rural utilities service water and waste disposal program. 

Sec. 521. Funding for Claims Resolution Act of 2010. 

Subtitle B—Spectrum Sovereignty and Broadband Deployment on Tribal 

Lands 

Sec. 531. Tribal Broadband Fund. 

Sec. 532. Office of Native Affairs and Policy, Federal Communications Commission. 

Sec. 533. Immediate deployment of broadband service on Tribal lands. 

Sec. 534. FCC Tribal Spectrum Market. 

Sec. 535. E-rate. 

Sec. 536. ReConnect Program. 

Sec. 537. USDA Office of Tribal Relations. 

Sec. 538. Annual reporting requirements. 

Sec. 539. Definitions. 

1 SEC. 2. PURPOSES. 

2 The purposes of this Act are— 

3 (1) to acknowledge the chronic failure of the 

4 Federal Government— 

5 (A) to fulfill its trust responsibilities to 

6 American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Indian 

7 Tribes; and 

8 (B) to respect its special political and legal 

9 relationship with Native Hawaiians; 

10 (2) to acknowledge the treaty obligations of the 

11 Federal Government to American Indians, Alaska 

12 Natives, and Indian Tribes, which have never been 

13 fulfilled; 

14 (3) to ensure progress toward the fulfillment of 

15 trust and treaty obligations of the Federal Govern16 ment; 


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1 (4) to ensure progress toward adequate funding 

2 for programs for American Indians, Alaska Natives, 

3 Native Hawaiians, and Indian Tribes; 

4 (5) to reaffirm and uphold Tribal sovereignty 

5 and self-governance; and 

6 (6) to acknowledge the broken promises of the 

7 Federal Government to Indian Tribes and Native 

8 Hawaiians, as embodied by— 

9 (A) the failure to uphold treaty obligations; 

10 (B) the failure to fund programs that 

11 should have been fully funded in exchange for 

12 the loss of life and indigenous homelands; 

13 (C) the ceded land and stolen natural re14 sources from Tribal lands; and 

15 (D) the acts taken to extinguish Native 

16 American culture and the traditions of Amer17 ican Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Ha18 waiians. 

19 SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 

20 Congress finds that— 

21 (1) in December 2018, the United States Com22 mission on Civil Rights issued a report entitled 

23 ‘‘Broken Promises: Continuing Federal Funding 

24 Shortfall for Native Americans’’, which made a numVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:13 Jan 27, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5636.IS S5636

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1 ber of important findings, which are related to the 

2 findings described in paragraphs (2) through (8); 

3 (2) the unique government-to-government rela4 tionship between the Federal Government and In5 dian Tribes, and the trust responsibility and obliga6 tions of the Federal Government to American Indi7 ans, Alaska Natives, and Indian Tribes, are— 

8 (A) enumerated in the United States Con9 stitution, Acts of Congress, Executive orders, 

10 Supreme Court precedent, and Federal policies 

11 and regulations; and 

12 (B) as applicable, established in Indian 

13 treaties signed by the United States; 

14 (3) Congress has also passed more than 150 

15 laws that promote the welfare of Native Hawaiians 

16 and affirm a special political and legal relationship 

17 with Native Hawaiians arising out of their status as 

18 Indigenous, Native people; 

19 (4) Federal programs designed to support the 

20 social and economic well-being of American Indians, 

21 Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and Indian 

22 Tribes remain chronically underfunded and some23 times inefficiently structured, which— 

24 (A) leaves many basic obligations of the 

25 Federal Government in rural and urban areas 


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1 with large populations of Native Americans 

2 unmet; and 

3 (B) contributes to the inequities observed 

4 in Native American communities; 

5 (5) woefully inadequate Federal funding for 

6 Native American programs often comes with restric7 tions that hamper access to funds, including indirect 

8 allocations of Federal funding to State governments 

9 to be provided to Tribal governments and Native 

10 American communities at the State’s discretion, 

11 which further diminishes the direct government-to12 government relationship between the Federal Gov13 ernment and Indian Tribes and other funding mech14 anisms for Native American communities; 

15 (6) Congress often provides funding for Native 

16 American programs in a manner that makes effi17 cient long-term planning and budgeting impossible 

18 or exceedingly difficult for Tribal governments, Trib19 al organizations, urban Indian organizations, and 

20 Native American communities; 

21 (7) the Federal Government continues to fail to 

22 keep accurate, consistent, and comprehensive records 

23 of Federal spending for Native American programs, 

24 either for a given fiscal year or for longer time peri25 ods, making monitoring of Federal spending to meet 


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1 the trust responsibility and obligations of the Fed2 eral Government difficult; and 

3 (8)(A) the Federal Government continues to in4 sufficiently track Native American populations and 

5 use outdated or incomplete data points, contributing 

6 to the lack of adequate funding provided for nec7 essary resources; 

8 (B) there is a critical need for more accurate 

9 and current data collection for American Indians, 

10 Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians, including 

11 disaggregated data on those populations; and 

12 (C) inaccurate and undercounted data can neg13 atively impact Federal funds and services received 

14 by American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Ha15 waiian communities. 

16 SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

17 It is the sense of Congress that— 

18 (1) Indian Tribes are distinct sovereigns that 

19 have a government-to-government relationship with 

20 the Federal Government; 

21 (2)(A) the Federal Government has trust and 

22 treaty obligations to Indian Tribes that are estab23 lished in treaties signed by the United States and 

24 enumerated in the Constitution of the United States, 


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1 Acts of Congress, Executive orders, Supreme Court 

2 precedent, and Federal policies and regulations; and 

3 (B) those treaties, like all treaties made under 

4 the authority of the United States, are the supreme 

5 law of the land, as recognized in article VI of the 

6 Constitution of the United States; 

7 (3)(A) the Federal Government has historically 

8 failed to carry out its promises and trust and treaty 

9 obligations to American Indians, Alaska Natives, In10 dian Tribes, and, as applicable, Native Hawaiians; 

11 and 

12 (B) those failures— 

13 (i) are ongoing, as the Federal Government 

14 continually fails to adequately support the so15 cial and economic well-being of American Indi16 ans, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and In17 dian Tribes; and 

18 (ii) have created a civil rights crisis; 

19 (4) the historical failures of the Federal Gov20 ernment described in paragraph (3) include— 

21 (A) federally mandated depopulation of 

22 Native Americans, including— 

23 (i) numerous massacres carried out by 

24 the United States; and 


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1 (ii) the forced relocation efforts and 

2 genocide practices carried out by the 

3 United States; 

4 (B) successive oppressive government poli5 cies, such as the allotment and assimilation, 

6 termination, and relocation eras; 

7 (C) suppression, assimilation, and cultural 

8 annihilation practices carried out against the 

9 United States Indigenous peoples; and 

10 (D) an ongoing failure to acknowledge that 

11 the lands that make up the United States are 

12 indigenous lands; 

13 (5) the Federal Government must do far more 

14 to live up to its trust and treaty obligations to 

15 American Indians and Alaska Natives and Indian 

16 Tribes, for just as the United States expects all na17 tions to live up to their own treaty obligations, the 

18 United States should live up to its own promises; 

19 (6) the Federal Government can empower 

20 American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Ha21 waiians to realize enormous potential by honoring its 

22 promises and obligations through the enactment of 

23 legislation; and 

24 (7) American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Na25 tive Hawaiians have long demonstrated remarkable 


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1 strength, resilience, and revitalization despite the 

2 broken promises of the Federal Government and 

3 failure to acknowledge their contributions to the 

4 United States. 

5 SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS. 

6 In this Act: 

7 (1) HAWAIIAN HOME LANDS.—The term ‘‘Ha8 waiian home lands’’ means land held in trust for 

9 Native Hawaiians by the State of Hawaii pursuant 

10 to the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920 (42 

11 Stat. 108, chapter 42). 

12 (2) INDIAN COUNTRY.—The term ‘‘Indian coun13 try’’ has the meaning given the term in section 1151 

14 of title 18, United States Code. 

15 (3) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian Tribe’’ 

16 means the governing body of any individually identi17 fied and federally recognized Indian or Alaska Na18 tive tribe, band, nation, pueblo, village, community, 

19 affiliated Tribal group, or component reservation in20 cluded on the list published pursuant to section 

21 104(a) of the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe 

22 List Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 5131(a)). 

23 (4) NATIVE HAWAIIAN ORGANIZATION.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘Native Ha2 waiian organization’’ means any private non3 profit entity— 

4 (i) that serves the best interests of 

5 Native Hawaiians; 

6 (ii) in which Native Hawaiians serve 

7 in substantive and policymaking positions; 

8 (iii) that has as a primary and stated 

9 purpose the provision of services to Native 

10 Hawaiians; and 

11 (iv) that has expertise in Native Ha12 waiian affairs. 

13 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘Native Ha14 waiian organization’’ includes— 

15 (i) the Native Hawaiian Health Care 

16 System; and 

17 (ii) the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. 

18 (5) TRIBAL LANDS.— 

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘Tribal 

20 lands’’ has the meaning given the term in sec21 tion 73.7000 of title 47, Code of Federal Regu22 lations (as in effect on the date of enactment of 

23 this Act). 

24 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘Tribal 

25 lands’’ includes— 


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1 (i) Indian country; 

2 (ii) fee simple and restricted fee land 

3 held by an Indian Tribe; and 

4 (iii) Hawaiian home lands. 

5 (6) TRIBAL ORGANIZATION.—The term ‘‘Tribal 

6 organization’’ has the meaning given the term in 

7 section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Edu8 cation Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 

9 (7) URBAN INDIAN ORGANIZATION.—The term 

10 ‘‘urban Indian organization’’ has the meaning given 

11 the term in section 4 of the Indian Health Care Im12 provement Act (25 U.S.C. 1603). 

13 SEC. 6. ADVANCE APPROPRIATIONS. 

14 (a) ADVANCE APPROPRIATIONS.— 

15 (1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

16 (A) APPLICABLE SECRETARY.—The term 

17 ‘‘applicable Secretary’’ means— 

18 (i) with respect to actions involving 

19 the covered accounts described in subpara20 graph (B)(i), the Secretary of the Interior; 

21 and 

22 (ii) with respect to actions involving 

23 the covered accounts described in subpara24 graph (B)(ii), the Secretary of Health and 

25 Human Services. 


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1 (B) COVERED ACCOUNT.—The term ‘‘cov2 ered account’’ means the following: 

3 (i) The following accounts of the De4 partment of the Interior: 

5 (I) Operation of Indian Pro6 grams. 

7 (II) Operation of Indian Edu8 cation Programs. 

9 (III) Contract Support Costs. 

10 (IV) Payments for Tribal Leases. 

11 (V) Bureau of Indian Affairs 

12 Construction. 

13 (VI) Bureau of Indian Education 

14 Construction. 

15 (VII) Indian Guaranteed Loan 

16 Program Account. 

17 (ii) The Indian Health Service ac18 count of the Department of Health and 

19 Human Services. 

20 (iii) The Native Hawaiian Health 

21 Care account of the Primary Health Care 

22 account of the Health Resources and Serv23 ices Administration of the Department of 

24 Health and Human Services that provides 


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1 annual appropriations to the Native Ha2 waiian Health care program. 

3 (C) UNFUNDED FISCAL YEAR.—The term 

4 ‘‘unfunded fiscal year’’, with respect to a cov5 ered account, means a fiscal year for which 

6 amounts are not made available under this Act 

7 for the covered account. 

8 (2) ADVANCE APPROPRIATIONS.—For the first 

9 unfunded fiscal year with respect to a covered ac10 count, and each fiscal year thereafter, new budget 

11 authority provided in an appropriation Act for the 

12 covered account shall— 

13 (A) be made available for that fiscal year; 

14 and 

15 (B) include, for the covered account, ad16 vance new budget authority that first becomes 

17 available for the first fiscal year after the fiscal 

18 year described in subparagraph (A). 

19 (3) ESTIMATES REQUIRED.—If the fiscal year 

20 for which the budget of the President is submitted 

21 pursuant to section 1105 of title 31, United States 

22 Code, is an unfunded fiscal year with respect to a 

23 covered account, the applicable Secretary shall in24 clude in documents submitted to Congress in sup25 port of the budget detailed estimates of the funds 


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1 necessary for the covered account for the fiscal year 

2 following the fiscal year for which the budget is sub3 mitted. 

4 (b) INFORMATION ON APPROPRIATIONS ESTI5 MATES.—Section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, 

6 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(40) information on estimates of appropria8 tions for the fiscal year following the fiscal year for 

9 which the budget is submitted for each covered ac10 count for which the fiscal year for which the budget 

11 is submitted is an unfunded fiscal year (as those 

12 terms are defined in section 6(a)(1) of the Honoring 

13 Promises to Native Nations Act).’’. 

14 SEC. 7. SEQUESTRATION EXEMPTION. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 255 of the Balanced 

16 Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 

17 U.S.C. 905) is amended— 

18 (1) by redesignating subsection (k) as sub19 section (l); and 

20 (2) by inserting after subsection (j) the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘(k) INDIAN HEALTH SERVICE AND OTHER INDIAN

23 PROGRAMS AND ACCOUNTS.—The following programs and 

24 accounts shall be exempt from reduction under any order 

25 issued under this part: 


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1 ‘‘Department of the Interior, Indian Affairs. 

2 ‘‘Department of Health and Human Services, 

3 Indian Health Service. 

4 ‘‘Native Hawaiian Health Care Program. 

5 ‘‘Native Hawaiian Education Program. 

6 ‘‘Alaska Native Education Program. 

7 ‘‘Indian Education Program. 

8 ‘‘All programs under the Native American 

9 Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 

10 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4101 et seq.). 

11 ‘‘Any account for which amounts were made 

12 available under the Honoring Promises to Native 

13 Nations Act. 

14 ‘‘Any account designated as significant to In15 dian Tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations by 

16 the Administrator of the Office of Native Nations in 

17 the Office of Management and Budget under section 

18 8 of the Honoring Promises to Native Nations 

19 Act.’’. 

20 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

21 Section 256(e) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency 

22 Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 906(e)) is amend23 ed— 

24 (1) in the subsection heading, by striking ‘‘, IN25 DIAN HEALTH SERVICES AND FACILITIES,’’; and 


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1 (2) in paragraph (2)— 

2 (A) by striking subparagraphs (C) and 

3 (D); and 

4 (B) by redesignating subparagraph (E) as 

5 subparagraph (C). 

6 SEC. 8. OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET OFFICE OF 

7 NATIVE NATIONS. 

8 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

9 Office of Management and Budget the Office of Native 

10 Nations. 

11 (b) ADMINISTRATOR.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Office of Native Na13 tions shall be headed by an Administrator, who shall 

14 be known as the Administrator of Native Nations 

15 (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Administrator’’). 

16 (2) CAREER POSITION.—The position of Admin17 istrator shall be a career position in the Office of the 

18 Director of Management and Budget. 

19 (3) ADMINISTRATIVE AND SUPPORT SERV20 ICES.—The Director of the Office of Management 

21 and Budget shall provide the Administrator with 

22 such administrative and support services as are nec23 essary to ensure that the Administrator carries out 

24 the duties of the Administrator under this section in 

25 an efficient and expeditious manner. 


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1 (c) DUTIES.—The Director of the Office of Manage2 ment and Budget shall delegate to the Administrator re3 sponsibility for— 

4 (1) coordinating with the rest of the Office of 

5 Management and Budget and the rest of the Execu6 tive branch on matters of funding for Federal pro7 grams and policy affecting American Indians, Alaska 

8 Natives, and Native Hawaiians; 

9 (2) compiling authoritative data on all Federal 

10 funding for Federal programs affecting American 

11 Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians; 

12 (3) ensuring that the budget requests of the In13 dian Health Service and the Bureau of Indian Af14 fairs indicate— 

15 (A) how much Federal funding is needed 

16 for Federal programs affecting American Indi17 ans, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians to 

18 be fully funded, including how much funding is 

19 needed to perform Federal or non-divisible du20 ties; and 

21 (B) how far the Federal Government is 

22 from achieving that full funding; 

23 (4) ensuring that personnel from the Office of 

24 Native Nations accompany Office of Management 


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1 and Budget examiners to meetings with Federal 

2 agencies during the budget development process; 

3 (5) issuing to Federal agencies budget develop4 ment guidance that would fully fund Federal pro5 grams affecting American Indians, Alaska Natives, 

6 and Native Hawaiians; and 

7 (6) carrying out the additional responsibilities 

8 described in subsections (d) through (g). 

9 (d) ANNUAL CROSSCUTTING DOCUMENT.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each fiscal year, the Admin11 istrator shall prepare a crosscutting document con12 taining detailed information, based on data from all 

13 Federal agencies, on the amount of Federal funding 

14 that is reaching Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, 

15 Native Hawaiian organizations, and urban Indian 

16 organizations, which data shall be provided by the 

17 Federal agencies at the most granular level prac18 ticable. 

19 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—The document prepared 

20 under paragraph (1) shall— 

21 (A) be provided at the most granular level 

22 practicable, including with respect to the alloca23 tion of Federal funds that are set aside for In24 dian Tribes, Tribal organizations, Native HaVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:13 Jan 27, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00020 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5636.IS S5636

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1 waiian organizations, and urban Indian organi2 zations; 

3 (B) indicate how funding is obligated, such 

4 as by grant or by formula; 

5 (C) indicate any determinative factors that 

6 are used to award an Indian Tribe, Tribal orga7 nization, or urban Indian organization competi8 tive grant funding in cases in which multiple 

9 Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, and urban 

10 Indian organizations are competing for the 

11 same pool of funds; 

12 (D) indicate the amount of Federal funds 

13 that are allocated to State governments to sub14 sequently provide— 

15 (i) Federal funding to Indian Tribes, 

16 Tribal organizations, Native Hawaiian or17 ganizations, or urban Indian organizations, 

18 including whether the provision of the Fed19 eral funding by each State is mandatory or 

20 discretionary; and 

21 (ii) services for the benefit of Indian 

22 Tribes, Tribal organizations, Native Ha23 waiian organizations, or urban Indian or24 ganizations; and 

25 (E) specify— 


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1 (i) whether Indian Tribes, Tribal or2 ganizations, Native Hawaiian organiza3 tions, and urban Indian organizations are 

4 competing against States or units of local 

5 government for competitive grant funding; 

6 (ii) how much pass-through funding is 

7 allocated to Indian Tribes; 

8 (iii) how much pass-through funding 

9 is successfully transferred to Indian Tribes 

10 after Federal funds are allocated to Indian 

11 Tribes; and 

12 (iv)(I) whether the grant funding re13 ceived by Indian Tribes, Tribal organiza14 tions, Native Hawaiian organizations, and 

15 urban Indian organizations is allocated 

16 from the same pool of funds from which 

17 States and units of local government re18 ceive grant funding; and 

19 (II) if so, what percentage of the pool 

20 of the allocated funds were disbursed to 

21 the Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, 

22 Native Hawaiian organizations, and urban 

23 Indian organizations. 

24 (3) ANNUAL IMPROVEMENT PROCESS.—In ac25 cordance with the Tribal consultation policy develVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:13 Jan 27, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00022 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5636.IS S5636

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1 oped pursuant to subsection (f), the Administrator 

2 shall consult with Indian Tribes, collaborate with 

3 Native Hawaiian organizations, and confer with 

4 urban Indian organizations not less frequently than 

5 annually to ascertain how the document prepared 

6 under paragraph (1) can be modified to make the 

7 document more useful to Indian Tribes, Native Ha8 waiian organizations, and urban Indian organiza9 tions. 

10 (4) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The document pre11 pared under paragraph (1) shall be made publicly 

12 available. 

13 (e) ADDITION TO OMB ANALYTICAL PERSPECTIVES

14 VOLUME OF BUDGET.—The Administrator shall ensure 

15 that the Analytical Perspectives volume prepared by the 

16 Office of Management and Budget for the budget of the 

17 President each fiscal year includes provisions on the sub18 ject of aid to Tribal governments, which shall include the 

19 information contained in the annual crosscutting docu20 ment required under subsection (d) for that fiscal year. 

21 (f) OMB TRIBAL CONSULTATION POLICY.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, in con23 sultation with Indian Tribes and in collaboration 

24 with Native Hawaiian organizations, shall develop a 


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1 Tribal consultation policy applicable to the Office of 

2 Management and Budget that governs— 

3 (A) the interactions of the Office of Man4 agement and Budget with Indian Tribes and 

5 Native Hawaiian organizations; and 

6 (B) the work of the Office of Management 

7 and Budget that has an impact on Indian 

8 Tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations. 

9 (2) APPROVAL.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Tribal consultation 

11 policy developed under paragraph (1) shall take 

12 effect only on the approval of the Director of 

13 the Office of Management and Budget. 

14 (B) DEADLINE.—Not later than 30 days 

15 after receipt of the Tribal consultation policy 

16 developed under paragraph (1), the Director of 

17 the Office of Management and Budget shall ap18 prove or disapprove the Tribal consultation pol19 icy. 

20 (g) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

21 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall publish 

22 a report— 

23 (1) detailing what percentage of Federal fund24 ing for programs affecting American Indians, Alaska 


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1 Natives, and Native Hawaiians is provided to States 

2 for pass-through funding to Indian Tribes; and 

3 (2) presenting options for Congress and the Ex4 ecutive branch to ensure that funds received by 

5 States and local entities for the benefit of American 

6 Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians are 

7 used for the intended purpose of the funds, includ8 ing options— 

9 (A) to eliminate or reduce the prevalence 

10 of State pass-through funding; and 

11 (B) instead to provide direct funding to In12 dian Tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations. 

13 (h) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

14 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

15 $2,000,000 for fiscal year 2025 and each fiscal year there16 after. 

17 SEC. 9. GAO AUDIT OF CROSSCUTTING INFORMATION. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

19 date on which the Administrator of Native Nations issues 

20 the first crosscutting document under section 8(d), and 

21 not less frequently than once every 3 years thereafter, the 

22 Comptroller General of the United States, in consultation 

23 with Indian Tribes, in collaboration with Native Hawaiian 

24 organizations, and in conference with urban Indian orga25 nizations, shall conduct, and submit to Congress a report 


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1 describing the results of, an audit of the extent to which 

2 the processes designed and implemented by the Adminis3 trator of Native Nations accurately produce the informa4 tion contained in the crosscutting document. 

5 (b) INCLUSIONS.—Each audit conducted under sub6 section (a) shall review all Federal funding that is reach7 ing, or is intended for the benefit of, Indian Tribes, Tribal 

8 organizations, urban Indian organizations, and Native 

9 Hawaiian organizations. 

10 SEC. 10. WHITE HOUSE COUNCIL FOR NATIVE NATIONS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The provisions of Executive Order 

12 13647 (78 Fed. Reg. 39539; relating to establishing the 

13 White House Council on Native American Affairs) (as in 

14 effect on June 26, 2013) are enacted into law. 

15 (b) PUBLICATION.—In publishing this Act in slip 

16 form and in the United States Statutes at Large pursuant 

17 to section 112 of title 1, United States Code, the Archivist 

18 of the United States shall include after the date of ap19 proval at the end an appendix setting forth the text of 

20 the Executive order referred to in subsection (a) (as in 

21 effect on June 26, 2013). 

22 (c) MEMBERSHIP.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—The White House Council 

24 on Native American Affairs (as established pursuant 

25 to subsection (a)) (referred to in this section as the 


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1 ‘‘Council’’) shall be known as the ‘‘White House 

2 Council for Native Nations’’ and shall be composed 

3 of the following members: 

4 (A) 2 members shall be appointed by the 

5 President from among elected Tribal leaders 

6 from each of the 12 regions of the Bureau of 

7 Indian Affairs. 

8 (B) 2 members shall be appointed by the 

9 President from among persons who are rep10 resentatives of Native Hawaiian organizations. 

11 (C) 1 member shall be appointed by the 

12 President pro tempore of the Senate, on the 

13 recommendation of the Majority and Minority 

14 Leaders of the Senate, from among Members of 

15 the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate, 

16 which appointment shall be made, as applica17 ble— 

18 (i) for the first appointment, not later 

19 than 30 days after the date on which the 

20 first new Congress after the date of enact21 ment of this Act convenes; and 

22 (ii) for any vacancy, not later than 30 

23 days after the date on which the position 

24 becomes vacant. 


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1 (D) 1 member shall be appointed by the 

2 Speaker of the House of Representatives, in 

3 consultation with the Minority Leader of the 

4 House of Representatives, from among the 

5 Members of the Subcommittee for Indigenous 

6 Peoples of the United States of the Committee 

7 on Natural Resources of the House of Rep8 resentatives, which appointment shall be made, 

9 as applicable— 

10 (i) for the first appointment, not later 

11 than 30 days after the date on which the 

12 first new Congress after the date of enact13 ment of this Act convenes; and 

14 (ii) for any vacancy, not later than 30 

15 days after the date on which the position 

16 becomes vacant. 

17 (E) The members described in clauses (i) 

18 through (xxx) of section 3(a) of the Executive 

19 order referred to in subsection (a) (as in effect 

20 on June 26, 2013). 

21 (F) 1 member from each of the following: 

22 (i) The Office of the Deputy Secretary 

23 for Native Nations of the Department of 

24 the Interior. 


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1 (ii) The Office of the Assistant Sec2 retary of Indian Affairs of the Department 

3 of the Interior. 

4 (iii) The Office of Justice Services of 

5 the Bureau of Indian Affairs. 

6 (iv) The Indian Health Service. 

7 (v) The Office of Tribal Justice of the 

8 Department of Justice. 

9 (vi) The Office of Justice Programs of 

10 the Department of Justice. 

11 (vii) The Indian Resources Section of 

12 the Environment and Natural Resource 

13 Division of the Department of Justice. 

14 (viii) The Administration for Native 

15 Americans of the Department of Health 

16 and Human Services. 

17 (ix) The Office of Native Affairs and 

18 Policy of the Federal Communications 

19 Commission. 

20 (x) The Federal Bureau of Investiga21 tion. 

22 (xi) The Office on Violence Against 

23 Women of the Department of Justice. 

24 (xii) The Office of Insular Affairs of 

25 the Department of the Interior. 


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1 (xiii) The Department of the Navy. 

2 (xiv) The Department of the Army. 

3 (xv) The Administration for Children 

4 and Families of the Department of Health 

5 and Human Services. 

6 (xvi) The Health Resources and Serv7 ices Administration for the Department of 

8 Health and Human Services. 

9 (xvii) The Office of Public and Indian 

10 Housing of the Department of Housing 

11 and Urban Development. 

12 (xviii) The Chair of the United States 

13 Commission on Civil Rights. 

14 (xix) A Commissioner of the Federal 

15 Communications Commission. 

16 (G) The heads of such other Executive de17 partments, agencies, and offices as the Chair18 person may from time to time designate. 

19 (2) CHAIRPERSON.—The Secretary of the Inte20 rior shall serve as Chairperson of the Council. 

21 (d) ADDITIONAL SUBCOMMITTEES.—The Council 

22 shall establish the following additional subcommittees re23 lating to Native American affairs: 

24 (1) A subcommittee on sacred land. 


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1 (2) A subcommittee on children, youth, families, 

2 education, and housing. 

3 (3) A subcommittee on health care, mental 

4 health care, and suicide prevention. 

5 (4) A subcommittee on energy, economic devel6 opment, and jobs. 

7 (5) A subcommittee on law enforcement, Tribal 

8 justice systems, and jurisdiction. 

9 (6) A subcommittee on environment. 

10 (7) A subcommittee on connectivity, Tribal 

11 spectrum management, and affordable broadband. 

12 (8) Such other subcommittees as the Council 

13 determines necessary. 

14 SEC. 11. DEPUTY SECRETARY FOR NATIVE NATIONS IN THE 

15 DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR. 

16 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

17 Department of the Interior (referred to in this section as 

18 the ‘‘Department’’) the position of Deputy Secretary for 

19 Native Nations, who shall— 

20 (1) report immediately to the Secretary of the 

21 Interior; and 

22 (2) be equal with the Deputy Secretary of the 

23 Interior. 


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1 (b) DUTIES.—The Secretary of the Interior shall del2 egate to the Deputy Secretary for Native Nations respon3 sibility for— 

4 (1) honoring Indian treaty obligations and the 

5 trust responsibility of the United States to American 

6 Indians and Alaska Natives, supporting self-deter7 mination, promoting self-sufficiency, and overseeing 

8 all affairs related to American Indians, Alaska Na9 tives, Native Hawaiians, and Indian Tribes under 

10 the jurisdiction of the Department; 

11 (2) coordinating with Cabinet-level officials to 

12 ensure the effective provision of Federal support for 

13 Tribal self-government and programs for American 

14 Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and In15 dian Tribes and services under the Department; and 

16 (3) implementing Indian treaties, statutes, reg17 ulations, Executive and Secretarial orders, pro18 grams, policies, and other powers related to Amer19 ican Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and 

20 Indian Tribes. 

21 (c) AUTHORITY.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Deputy Secretary for 

23 Native Nations shall oversee the following offices 

24 and functions: 

25 (A) Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs. 


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1 (B) Bureau of Indian Affairs, including 

2 the Office of Justice Services. 

3 (C) Bureau of Indian Education. 

4 (D) Office of the Special Trustee for 

5 American Indians. 

6 (E) Office of Self-Governance. 

7 (2) ADDITIONAL AUTHORITY.—The Deputy 

8 Secretary for Native Nations shall coordinate the 

9 Native Nations affairs and activities of the White 

10 House Council on Native Nations for the President, 

11 Vice President, and Cabinet-level officials, subject to 

12 the immediate direction of the Secretary of the Inte13 rior. 

14 (3) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

15 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Dep16 uty Secretary for Native Nations to carry out the re17 sponsibilities of the Deputy Secretary for Native Na18 tions under this section such sums as are necessary. 

19 SEC. 12. TRIBAL CONSULTATION BY FEDERAL AGENCIES. 

20 (a) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this section are— 

21 (1) to enumerate a non-exhaustive set of prin22 ciples to inform a codification of how Federal agen23 cies should engage in meaningful and timely Tribal 

24 consultation; 


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1 (2) to underscore the importance of Tribal con2 sultation in the fulfilment of the trust and treaty ob3 ligations of the Federal Government; 

4 (3) to affirm Tribal consultation and the prin5 ciple of free, prior, and informed consent as rights 

6 of Indian Tribes, predicated on Tribal sovereignty 

7 and self-determination; and 

8 (4) to affirm the need for the entire Federal 

9 Government to recognize the importance of ‘‘regular 

10 and meaningful consultation and collaboration with 

11 tribal officials in the development of Federal policies 

12 that have tribal implications, to strengthen the 

13 United States government-to-government relation14 ships with Indian tribes, and to reduce the imposi15 tion of unfunded mandates upon Indian tribes,’’ as 

16 quoted in Executive Order 13175 (25 U.S.C. 5301 

17 note; relating to consultation and coordination with 

18 Indian Tribal governments) and elaborated in the 

19 Presidential Memoranda of January 26, 2021, and 

20 November 30, 2022. 

21 (b) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 

22 (1) as of January 2021, there existed more 

23 than 27 directives, handbooks, plans, policies, or24 ders, and similar documents implementing various 


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1 Tribal consultation policies, totaling more than 300 

2 pages; 

3 (2) the current lack of centralization in Federal 

4 agencies’ Tribal consultation policies results in a 

5 large number of policies with which Indian Tribes 

6 are expected to be familiar in order to engage in 

7 consultation; 

8 (3) the current lack of centralization in Federal 

9 agencies’ Tribal consultations— 

10 (A) results in a number of challenges, in11 cluding scheduling conflicts and unsustainable 

12 drains on the resources of Indian Tribes and 

13 the time of Tribal leaders; and 

14 (B) reflect a lack of respect for Tribal 

15 leaders; 

16 (4) Federal agency consultation policies take 

17 dramatically different views on the purpose of Tribal 

18 consultation, resulting in significantly different expe19 riences for Indian Tribes attempting to engage in 

20 meaningful nation-to-nation dialogue; and 

21 (5) history demonstrates that the Federal Gov22 ernment best serves Native American communities 

23 when Tribal governments are empowered to lead 

24 their own communities. 


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1 (c) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con2 gress that— 

3 (1) consultation is a right between sovereigns, 

4 and the responsibilities and privileges associated 

5 with it cannot be delegated to other actors; 

6 (2) the purpose of Tribal consultation should be 

7 for the Federal Government to obtain the free, prior, 

8 and informed consent of affected Indian Tribes; 

9 (3) Tribal consultation— 

10 (A) is both a right of Indian Tribes and a 

11 process; 

12 (B) should occur when any Federal rule13 making, legislation, policy, guidance, oper14 ational activity, grant or funding formula 

15 change, or other action may have a substantial 

16 direct effect on Indian Tribes; 

17 (C) requires dialogue, which should often 

18 take place through formal face-to-face meetings, 

19 but may also occur through telephonic, elec20 tronic, or printed means; 

21 (D) should be used to empower Tribal gov22 ernments to lead their own communities; 

23 (E)(i) should be a collaborative process; 

24 (ii) should be built on the exchange of in25 formation; and 


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1 (iii) should promote enhanced communica2 tion that emphasizes trust, respect, and shared 

3 responsibility; 

4 (F) should involve individuals with deci5 sion-making authority; and 

6 (G) in its current form is inadequate and 

7 requires far more from the Federal Govern8 ment; 

9 (4) the records resulting from consultations be10 tween the Federal Government and Tribal govern11 ments should be maintained and published, subject 

12 to the condition that sensitive Tribal information 

13 should be protected; 

14 (5) for Tribal consultation to be effective, both 

15 Indian Tribes and the Federal Government should 

16 have the capacity to engage effectively in the con17 sultation process; 

18 (6) any legislation or policy attempting to pre19 scribe the conditions of Tribal consultation should be 

20 preceded by the gathering of Tribal input with the 

21 goal of reaching a consensus on the proposed legisla22 tion; and 

23 (7) Indian Tribes— 


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1 (A) should be involved in the Tribal con2 sultation process on their request or as early as 

3 practicable; 

4 (B) should have a meaningful remedy for 

5 violations of their right to Tribal consultation; 

6 (C) should be entitled to a codified, formal 

7 dispute resolution process to provide the Indian 

8 Tribes with a potential remedy when their 

9 rights as sovereigns are violated by the Federal 

10 Government; and 

11 (D) should receive adequate notice, and 

12 sufficient information, about any Tribal con13 sultation sessions. 

14 SEC. 13. INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP ON DATA COL15 LECTION. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later 180 days after the date 

17 of enactment of this Act, the Deputy Secretary for Native 

18 Nations shall establish a working group, to be known as 

19 the ‘‘Interagency Working Group on Data Collection for 

20 Native Populations’’ (referred to in this section as the 

21 ‘‘Working Group’’). 

22 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the Working Group 

23 are to develop and improve systems and methodologies for 

24 the collection of accurate and disaggregated data for 


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1 American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian 

2 populations. 

3 (c) CHAIRPERSON; MEMBERSHIP.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Deputy Secretary for 

5 Native Nations shall serve as the Chairperson of the 

6 Working Group. 

7 (2) MEMBERSHIP.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—After engaging in Trib9 al consultation, the Deputy Secretary for Native 

10 Nations, in collaboration with the Director of 

11 the Bureau of the Census, shall appoint the 

12 members of the Working Group in accordance 

13 with subparagraph (B). 

14 (B) REQUIREMENTS.—In appointing mem15 bers of the Working Group under subparagraph 

16 (A), the Deputy Secretary for Native Nations, 

17 in collaboration with the Director of the Bureau 

18 of the Census, shall include— 

19 (i) Tribal leaders representing each of 

20 the 12 regions of the Bureau of Indian Af21 fairs; 

22 (ii) Tribal data experts; 

23 (iii) representatives of urban Indian 

24 organizations; 


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1 (iv) representatives of Native Hawai2 ian organizations; and 

3 (v) other members, as the Deputy 

4 Secretary determines to be necessary. 

5 (d) MEETINGS.—The Working Group shall meet at 

6 the call of the Chairperson. 

7 (e) DUTIES.—The duties of the Working Group shall 

8 be the following: 

9 (1) Provide a public report at least every 2 

10 years, and more often if the Working Group decides 

11 it is necessary, which shall be published on a pub12 licly available website established by the Working 

13 Group, on the following: 

14 (A) How to improve the quality and accu15 racy of data relied on by Federal agencies re16 garding American Indian, Alaska Native, and 

17 Native Hawaiian populations, including how to 

18 achieve appropriate disaggregation from other 

19 populations. 

20 (B) Making recommendations to develop 

21 and improve systems and methodologies that 

22 Federal agencies can replicate for the collection 

23 of accurate data on the populations referred to 

24 in subparagraph (A). 


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1 (C) How to protect and uphold Tribal data 

2 sovereignty in the collection and use of the data 

3 described in subparagraph (B). 

4 (2) To receive input from Indian Tribes, Tribal 

5 organizations, urban Indian organizations, Native 

6 Hawaiian organizations, and Federal agencies, on an 

7 ongoing basis, about instances in which the accuracy 

8 and quality of the data described in paragraph 

9 (1)(B) requires improvement, to research how to 

10 achieve those improvements, and to make rec11 ommendations based on the findings of that re12 search. 

13 (f) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

14 of enactment of this Act, the Chairperson of the Working 

15 Group shall submit to the Committees on the Budget, 

16 Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, and Indian Af17 fairs of the Senate and the Committee on the Budget, the 

18 Subcommittee on Health of the Committee on Energy and 

19 Commerce, and the Subcommittee for Indian and Insular 

20 Affairs of the Committee on Natural Resources of the 

21 House of Representatives an initial report. 

22 (g) TRIBAL CONSULTATION.—The Deputy Secretary 

23 for Native Nations, in collaboration with the Director of 

24 the Bureau of the Census, shall ensure that the Working 


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1 Group engages in robust Tribal consultation with respect 

2 to the work of the Working Group. 

3 (h) TRIBAL DATA SOVEREIGNTY.—The Working 

4 Group shall conduct all its work respect for Tribal data 

5 sovereignty. 

6 (i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

7 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 

8 necessary to carry out this section. 

9 TITLE I—CRIMINAL JUSTICE 

10 AND PUBLIC SAFETY 

11 SEC. 101. FINDINGS. 

12 Congress finds that— 

13 (1) Tribal law enforcement agencies in Amer14 ican Indian and Alaska Native communities have 

15 fewer officers per capita than other law enforcement 

16 agencies nationwide, leaving residents of Indian 

17 country and Alaska Native Villages less safe and 

18 subject to higher rates of crime; 

19 (2) Native Americans are killed during police 

20 encounters at a higher rate than any other group; 

21 (3) Native Americans suffer as victims of vio22 lent crime at a rate that is 2.5 times the national 

23 average; 


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1 (4) Native American women are 10 times more 

2 likely to be murdered and 2 times more likely to ex3 perience rape or experience sexual assault crimes; 

4 (5) the criminal justice system in its current 

5 form creates structural barriers and fails to recog6 nize Tribal sovereignty and inherent Tribal criminal 

7 jurisdiction on Tribal lands; 

8 (6) some Indian Tribes established Tribal 

9 courts before some State courts; 

10 (7) for example, the Cherokee Nation opened its 

11 Supreme Court in 1822, 23 years before the State 

12 of Georgia opened its own Supreme Court; 

13 (8) Indian Tribes historically exercised criminal 

14 jurisdiction over non-Indians who committed crimes 

15 on Tribal lands; 

16 (9) for example, in 1825, the Muscogee (Creek) 

17 Nation passed a law criminalizing rape against 

18 women on Creek lands, which applied to all ‘‘per19 sons’’, regardless of Tribal citizenship status, and 

20 the Muscogee (Creek) Nation prosecuted non-Indian 

21 and Indian men who raped women on Creek lands; 

22 (10) the history of inadequate Federal funding 

23 for public safety on Tribal lands and complex legal 

24 jurisdiction on Tribal lands negatively impacts ac25 cess to counsel in Tribal courts; 


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1 (11) in Oliphant v. Suquamish Indian Tribe, 

2 435 U.S. 191, 212 (1978), the Supreme Court con3 cluded that whether Indian Tribes should ‘‘be au4 thorized to try non-Indians’’ is a consideration ‘‘for 

5 Congress to weigh’’; 

6 (12) the Supreme Court recently affirmed this 

7 holding in June 2021, in United States v. Cooley, 

8 141 S. Ct. 1638, 1643 (2021), concluding once 

9 again that ‘‘tribal authority remains subject to the 

10 plenary authority of Congress’’; 

11 (13) existing successful Federal and Tribal self12 governance programs working to combat the inequi13 ties described in this section face chronic under14 funding; and 

15 (14) the special Tribal criminal jurisdiction ex16 ercised by Indian Tribes pursuant to section 204 of 

17 Public Law 90–284 (25 U.S.C. 1304) (commonly 

18 known as the ‘‘Indian Civil Rights Act of 1968’’) 

19 has been a success. 

20 SEC. 102. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

21 It is the sense of Congress that— 

22 (1) Congress should provide more resources for 

23 public safety and other programs of the Department 

24 of Justice and the Bureau of Indian Affairs that 


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1 make American Indian and Alaska Native commu2 nities safer; 

3 (2) Congress should provide more resources for 

4 Tribal law enforcement agencies, Tribal courts, and 

5 Tribal detention centers to ensure Tribal sovereignty 

6 over public safety programs in Indian country and 

7 Alaska Native Villages; 

8 (3) Indian Tribes have the inherent sovereign 

9 authority to exercise full criminal jurisdiction over 

10 persons— 

11 (A) within the sovereign territory of the 

12 Indian Tribe; and 

13 (B) who commit a violation of Tribal 

14 criminal law; 

15 (4) the Supreme Court of the United States, in 

16 Oliphant v. Suquamish Indian Tribe, 435 U.S. 191 

17 (1978), violated the inherent sovereign authority of 

18 Indian Tribes by wrongly limiting tribal criminal ju19 risdiction and removing Tribal authority to pros20 ecute non-Indians unless authorized by Congress; 

21 (5) the limitation by the Supreme Court of the 

22 United States of inherent Tribal jurisdiction has ef23 fectively granted non-Indians immunity for crimes 

24 committed in Indian country and Alaska Native Vil25 lages, leading to violence and criminal activity by 


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1 non-Indians and preventing Indian Tribes from tak2 ing recourse; 

3 (6) the Violence Against Women Reauthoriza4 tion Act of 2013 (Public Law 113–4; 127 Stat. 54) 

5 recognized and affirmed the inherent criminal juris6 diction of Indian Tribes over non-Indians who com7 mit crimes of domestic violence against Indians in 

8 Indian country; 

9 (7) the Violence Against Women Act Reauthor10 ization Act of 2022 (Public Law 117–103; 136 Stat. 

11 840) recognized and affirmed the inherent criminal 

12 jurisdiction of Indian Tribes over non-Indians who 

13 commit crimes of assaults on Tribal justice per14 sonnel, child violence, obstruction of justice, sexual 

15 violence, sex trafficking, and stalking; 

16 (8) the jurisdiction of Indian Tribes over the 

17 crimes described in paragraphs (6) and (7) is known 

18 as ‘‘special Tribal criminal jurisdiction’’; 

19 (9) the exercise of special Tribal criminal juris20 diction has allowed many Indian Tribes to begin to 

21 address the crisis of violence against American In22 dian and Alaska Native women by holding offenders 

23 accountable and pursuing justice for victims; 

24 (10) the Indian Tribes that have chosen to im25 plement special domestic violence criminal jurisdicVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:13 Jan 27, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00046 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5636.IS S5636

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1 tion under the Violence Against Women Reauthor2 ization Act of 2013 (Public Law 113–4; 127 Stat. 

3 54) have successfully upheld the rights of defendants 

4 under that Act and complied with the requirements 

5 of that Act, including due process protections, but 

6 this partial restoration of Tribal jurisdiction has 

7 proven insufficient to address the range of serious 

8 crimes committed by non-Indians in Indian country 

9 and Alaska Native Villages and in violation of Tribal 

10 criminal law, and as a result, a large number of vio11 lent crimes committed against Native victims go 

12 unprosecuted; and 

13 (11) Congress has a trust duty and responsi14 bility, stemming from both the treaties signed with 

15 Indian Tribes and the Constitution of the United 

16 States, to fund and support strong Tribal govern17 ments, which necessarily includes the funding of 

18 Tribal courts, Tribal law enforcement, and victim 

19 services. 

20 SEC. 103. FULL TRIBAL CRIMINAL JURISDICTION. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title II of Public Law 90–284 (25 

22 U.S.C. 1301 et seq.) (commonly known as the ‘‘Indian 

23 Civil Rights Act of 1968’’) is amended by adding at the 

24 end the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 205. FULL TRIBAL CRIMINAL JURISDICTION. 

2 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

3 ‘‘(1) ALASKA NATIVE VILLAGE.—The term 

4 ‘Alaska Native Village’ means an Alaska Native Vil5 lage Statistical Area covering all or any portion of 

6 a Native village (as defined in section 3 of the Alas7 ka Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1602)), 

8 as depicted on the applicable Tribal Statistical Area 

9 Program Verification map of the Bureau of the Cen10 sus. 

11 ‘‘(2) FULL CRIMINAL JURISDICTION.—The term 

12 ‘full criminal jurisdiction’ means the criminal juris13 diction that a participating tribe may exercise under 

14 this section. 

15 ‘‘(3) INDIAN COUNTRY.—The term ‘Indian 

16 country’ has the meaning given the term in section 

17 1151 of title 18, United States Code. 

18 ‘‘(4) PARTICIPATING TRIBE.—The term ‘partici19 pating tribe’ means an Indian tribe that elects to ex20 ercise full criminal jurisdiction over the Indian coun21 try or Alaska Native Village of that Indian tribe. 

22 ‘‘(5) PROTECTION ORDER.—The term ‘protec23 tion order’— 

24 ‘‘(A) means any injunction, restraining 

25 order, or other order issued by a civil or crimi26 nal court for the purpose of preventing violent 


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1 or threatening acts or harassment against, sex2 ual violence against, contact or communication 

3 with, or physical proximity to, another person; 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(B) includes any temporary or final order 

6 issued by a civil or criminal court, whether ob7 tained by filing an independent action or as a 

8 pendent lite order in another proceeding, if the 

9 civil or criminal order was issued in response to 

10 a complaint, petition, or motion filed by or on 

11 behalf of a person seeking protection. 

12 ‘‘(b) NATURE OF THE CRIMINAL JURISDICTION.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

14 provision of law, in addition to all powers of self-gov15 ernment recognized and affirmed by sections 201 

16 and 203, the powers of self-government of a partici17 pating tribe include the inherent power of that tribe, 

18 which is hereby recognized and affirmed, to exercise 

19 full criminal jurisdiction over any person who— 

20 ‘‘(A) commits a violation of tribal criminal 

21 law in the Indian country or Alaska Native Vil22 lage of that participating tribe; 

23 ‘‘(B) violates a protection order issued by 

24 a Tribal court; or 


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1 ‘‘(C) commits a violation of tribal law out2 side of the Indian country or Alaska Native Vil3 lage of the participating tribe but within the in4 herent extraterritorial jurisdiction of the par5 ticipating tribe. 

6 ‘‘(2) APPLICABILITY.—Nothing in this sec7 tion— 

8 ‘‘(A) creates or eliminates any Federal or 

9 State criminal jurisdiction over Indian country 

10 or an Alaska Native Village; or 

11 ‘‘(B) affects the authority of the United 

12 States or any State that has been delegated au13 thority by the United States to investigate and 

14 prosecute a criminal violation in Indian country 

15 or in an Alaska Native Village. 

16 ‘‘(3) EFFECT.—The authority of the United 

17 States and certain States described in paragraph 

18 (2)(B) shall remain concurrent to the authority re19 stored to Indian tribes in the Honoring Promises to 

20 Native Nations Act. 

21 ‘‘(c) REMOVAL OF LIMITATIONS ON SENTENCING.— 

22 Subparagraphs (B) through (D) of section 202(a)(7), sec23 tion 202(b), and section 202(d) shall not apply to a par24 ticipating tribe exercising full criminal jurisdiction under 

25 this section. 


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1 ‘‘(d) RIGHTS OF DEFENDANTS.—In a criminal pro2 ceeding in which a participating tribe exercises full crimi3 nal jurisdiction over a non-Indian, the participating tribe 

4 shall provide the defendant— 

5 ‘‘(1) all applicable rights under this Act; 

6 ‘‘(2) all rights described in section 202(c), if a 

7 term of imprisonment of any length is imposed; 

8 ‘‘(3) the right to a trial by an impartial jury 

9 that is drawn from sources that— 

10 ‘‘(A) reflect a fair cross section of the com11 munity; and 

12 ‘‘(B) do not systemically exclude any dis13 tinctive group in the community, including non14 Indians; and 

15 ‘‘(4) all other rights whose protection is nec16 essary under the Constitution of the United States 

17 in order for Congress to recognize and affirm the in18 herent power of the participating tribe to exercise 

19 full criminal jurisdiction over the defendant. 

20 ‘‘(e) GRANTS TO TRIBAL GOVERNMENTS.—The At21 torney General may award grants to the governments of 

22 Indian tribes (or to authorized designees of those govern23 ments)— 


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1 ‘‘(1) to strengthen tribal criminal justice sys2 tems to assist Indian tribes in exercising full crimi3 nal jurisdiction, including— 

4 ‘‘(A) law enforcement, including the capac5 ity of law enforcement or court personnel to 

6 enter information into and obtain information 

7 from national crime information databases; 

8 ‘‘(B) prosecution; 

9 ‘‘(C) trial and appellate courts; 

10 ‘‘(D) probation systems; 

11 ‘‘(E) detention and correctional facilities, 

12 including medical services and health care for 

13 inmates; 

14 ‘‘(F) alternative rehabilitation centers and 

15 reentry programs; 

16 ‘‘(G) culturally appropriate services and 

17 assistance for victims and the families of the 

18 victims; and 

19 ‘‘(H) criminal codes and rules of criminal 

20 procedure, appellate procedure, and evidence; 

21 ‘‘(2) to provide indigent criminal defendants 

22 with the effective assistance of licensed defense 

23 counsel, at no cost to the defendant, in criminal pro24 ceedings in which a participating tribe prosecutes a 

25 crime; and 


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1 ‘‘(3) to ensure that, in criminal proceedings in 

2 which a participating tribe exercises full criminal ju3 risdiction, jurors are summoned, selected, and in4 structed in a manner consistent with all applicable 

5 requirements. 

6 ‘‘(f) SUPPLEMENT, NOT SUPPLANT.—Amounts made 

7 available under this section shall supplement and not sup8 plant any other Federal, State, tribal, or local government 

9 amounts made available to carry out activities described 

10 in this section. 

11 ‘‘(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

13 there is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

14 subsection (e), and to provide training, technical as15 sistance, data collection, and evaluation of the crimi16 nal justice systems of participating tribes, and there 

17 is appropriated, out of any monies in the Treasury 

18 not otherwise appropriated, $25,000,000 for each of 

19 fiscal years 2025 through 2034. 

20 ‘‘(2) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

21 amount made available under paragraph (1) for each 

22 of fiscal years 2026 through 2034 shall be adjusted 

23 annually to reflect the change in the Consumer Price 

24 Index for All Urban Consumers published by the 

25 Bureau of Labor Statistics.’’. 


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1 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE; PILOT PROJECT.— 

2 (1) GENERAL EFFECTIVE DATE.—Except as 

3 provided in paragraph (2), subsections (b) through 

4 (d) of section 205 of Public Law 90–284 (commonly 

5 known as the ‘‘Indian Civil Rights Act of 1968’’) 

6 shall take effect on the date that is 5 years after the 

7 date of enactment of this Act. 

8 (2) PILOT PROJECT.— 

9 (A) REQUESTS TO PARTICIPATE.— 

10 (i) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided 

11 in subparagraph (B), at any time during 

12 the 5-year period beginning on the date of 

13 enactment of this Act, an Indian tribe (as 

14 defined in section 201 of Public Law 90– 

15 284 (25 U.S.C. 1301) (commonly known 

16 as the ‘‘Indian Civil Rights Act of 1968’’)) 

17 may ask the Attorney General to designate 

18 the Indian tribe (as so defined) as a par19 ticipating tribe under section 205 of Public 

20 Law 90–284 (commonly known as the ‘‘In21 dian Civil Rights Act of 1968’’) on an ac22 celerated basis. 

23 (ii) PROCEDURE.—The Attorney Gen24 eral may grant a request under clause (i) 

25 after coordinating with the Secretary of 


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1 the Interior, consulting with affected In2 dian tribes (as so defined), and concluding 

3 that the criminal justice system of the re4 questing Indian tribe (as so defined) has 

5 adequate safeguards in place to protect the 

6 rights of defendants, consistent with sec7 tion 205 of Public Law 90–284 (commonly 

8 known as the ‘‘Indian Civil Rights Act of 

9 1968’’). 

10 (B) TRIBES EXERCISING SPECIAL DOMES11 TIC VIOLENCE CRIMINAL JURISDICTION.— 

12 (i) IN GENERAL.—At any time during 

13 the 5-year period beginning on the date of 

14 enactment of this Act, a participating tribe 

15 (as defined in section 204(a) of Public 

16 Law 90–284 (25 U.S.C. 1304(a)) (com17 monly known as the ‘‘Indian Civil Rights 

18 Act of 1968’’)) (referred to in this sub19 paragraph as a ‘‘tribe’’)— 

20 (I) may elect to exercise full 

21 criminal jurisdiction under section 

22 205 of that Act; and 

23 (II) shall notify the Attorney 

24 General of such election. 


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1 (ii) PROCEDURE.—On notification by 

2 a tribe under clause (i)(II), the Attorney 

3 General shall designate the tribe as a par4 ticipating tribe under section 205 of Public 

5 Law 90–284 (commonly known as the ‘‘In6 dian Civil Rights Act of 1968’’). 

7 (C) EFFECTIVE DATES FOR PILOT

8 PROJECTS.—An Indian tribe (as so defined) 

9 designated as a participating tribe under sub10 paragraph (A)(ii) or (B)(ii) may commence ex11 ercising full criminal jurisdiction pursuant to 

12 subsections (b) through (d) of section 205 of 

13 Public Law 90–284 (commonly known as the 

14 ‘‘Indian Civil Rights Act of 1968’’) on a date 

15 chosen by the Indian tribe (as so defined), on 

16 the condition that the date shall be— 

17 (i) not earlier than the date that is 15 

18 days after the date on which the Indian 

19 tribe (as so defined) is designated as a 

20 participating tribe under subparagraph 

21 (A)(ii) or (B)(ii), as applicable; and 

22 (ii) not later than the date that is 5 

23 years after the date of enactment of this 

24 Act. 


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1 (c) PETITIONS TO STAY DETENTION.—Section 

2 204(e) of Public Law 90–284 (25 U.S.C. 1304(e)) (com3 monly known as the ‘‘Indian Civil Rights Act of 1968’’) 

4 is amended— 

5 (1) in paragraph (2)— 

6 (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) 

7 and (B) as clauses (ii) and (iii), respectively, 

8 and indenting appropriately; 

9 (B) in the matter preceding clause (ii) (as 

10 so redesignated), by striking ‘‘A court’’ and in11 serting the following: 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A court’’; 

13 (C) in subparagraph (A) (as so des14 ignated), by inserting before clause (ii) (as so 

15 redesignated) the following: 

16 ‘‘(i) finds that the person has ex17 hausted all tribal court remedies;’’; and 

18 (D) by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(B) VICTIMLESS CRIMES.—If the crime 

20 committed by a defendant petitioning for a stay 

21 under paragraph (1) is a victimless crime, the 

22 court shall not be required to make a finding 

23 described in subparagraph (A)(iii).’’; and 

24 (2) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(3) NOTICE.—An Indian tribe that has or2 dered the detention of any person has a duty to 

3 timely notify the person of the rights and privileges 

4 the person has under this subsection and section 

5 203.’’. 

6 SEC. 104. BUREAU OF PRISONS TRIBAL PRISONER PRO7 GRAM. 

8 Section 234(c) of the Tribal Law and Order Act of 

9 2010 (25 U.S.C. 1302a) is amended— 

10 (1) in paragraph (2)— 

11 (A) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

12 ‘‘(comparable to the’’ and all that follows 

13 through ‘‘United States Code)’’; and 

14 (B) by striking subparagraph (D); and 

15 (2) by striking paragraph (4). 

16 SEC. 105. TRIBAL JUSTICE SYSTEMS. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 103(a) of the Indian Trib18 al Justice Act (25 U.S.C. 3613(a)) is amended— 

19 (1) by striking the subsection designation and 

20 heading and all that follows through ‘‘Pursuant to’’ 

21 and inserting the following: 

22 ‘‘(a) AUTHORIZATION.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Pursuant to’’; and 

24 (2) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary shall enter 

2 into contracts, grants, or agreements with Indian 

3 tribes under paragraph (1) without regard to wheth4 er the Indian tribe is located in a State listed in sec5 tion 1162(a) of title 18, United States Code, or sec6 tion 1360(a) of title 28, United States Code.’’. 

7 (b) FUNDING.—Section 201 of the Indian Tribal Jus8 tice Act (25 U.S.C. 3621) is amended— 

9 (1) in each of subsections (a), (c), and (d), by 

10 striking ‘‘2011 through 2015’’ each place it appears 

11 and inserting ‘‘2025 through 2029’’; and 

12 (2) by striking subsection (b) and inserting the 

13 following: 

14 ‘‘(b) BASE SUPPORT FUNDING FOR TRIBAL JUSTICE

15 SYSTEMS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

17 appropriated to carry out section 103, and there are 

18 appropriated, out of any monies in the Treasury not 

19 otherwise appropriated— 

20 ‘‘(A) $83,000,000 for fiscal year 2025; 

21 ‘‘(B) $140,000,000 for fiscal year 2026; 

22 ‘‘(C) $200,000,000 for fiscal year 2027; 

23 ‘‘(D) $259,000,000 for fiscal year 2028; 

24 and 

25 ‘‘(E) $318,000,000 for fiscal year 2029. 


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1 ‘‘(2) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

2 amount made available under paragraph (1) for each 

3 of fiscal years 2026 through 2029 shall be adjusted 

4 annually to reflect the change in the Consumer Price 

5 Index for All Urban Consumers published by the 

6 Bureau of Labor Statistics.’’. 

7 SEC. 106. GRANTS TO INDIAN TRIBES UNDER PUBLIC SAFE8 TY AND COMMUNITY POLICING GRANT PRO9 GRAM. 

10 Section 1701(j) of the Omnibus Crime Control and 

11 Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10381(j)) is amend12 ed— 

13 (1) in paragraph (2)— 

14 (A) by striking ‘‘In providing’’ and insert15 ing the following: 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In providing’’; and 

17 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENT.—The Attorney Gen19 eral shall provide grants to Indian tribal gov20 ernments under this subsection without regard 

21 to whether the Indian tribe of the Indian tribal 

22 government is located in a State listed in sec23 tion 1162(a) of title 18, United States Code, or 

24 section 1360(a) of title 28, United States 

25 Code.’’; and 


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1 (2) by striking paragraph (4) and inserting the 

2 following: 

3 ‘‘(4) FUNDING.— 

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara5 graph (B), there is authorized to be appro6 priated to carry out this subsection, and there 

7 is appropriated, out of any monies in the Treas8 ury not otherwise appropriated, $52,000,000 

9 for fiscal year 2025 and each fiscal year there10 after. 

11 ‘‘(B) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

12 amount made available under subparagraph (A) 

13 for fiscal year 2026 and each fiscal year there14 after shall be adjusted annually to reflect the 

15 change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

16 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of 

17 Labor Statistics.’’. 

18 SEC. 107. BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS LAW ENFORCEMENT 

19 AND DETENTION. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro21 priated to the Director of the Bureau of Indian Affairs 

22 to carry out the law enforcement and detention activities 

23 of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and there is appropriated, 

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1 priated, $1,200,000,000 for fiscal year 2025 and each fis2 cal year thereafter. 

3 (b) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The amount 

4 made available under subsection (a) for fiscal year 2026 

5 and each fiscal year thereafter shall be adjusted annually 

6 to reflect the change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

7 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor Sta8 tistics. 

9 (c) REQUIREMENT.—The Director of the Bureau of 

10 Indian Affairs shall provide law enforcement and deten11 tion services to Tribal communities without regard to 

12 whether the Tribal community is located in a State listed 

13 in section 1162(a) of title 18, United States Code, or sec14 tion 1360(a) of title 28, United States Code. 

15 SEC. 108. WRITTEN CONSENT OF AN INDIAN TRIBE PRIOR 

16 TO AN EXECUTION OF A TRIBAL MEMBER BY 

17 THE UNITED STATES. 

18 Section 3598 of title 18, United States Code, is 

19 amended— 

20 (1) by striking ‘‘under this chapter for any of21 fense the Federal jurisdiction for’’ and inserting the 

22 following: ‘‘under this chapter for— 

23 ‘‘(1) any offense the Federal jurisdiction for’’; 


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1 (2) by striking ‘‘within the boundaries of Indian 

2 country,’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘within the 

3 boundaries of Indian country; or 

4 ‘‘(2) any offense the Federal jurisdiction for 

5 which is predicated solely on the offender’s use or 

6 taking of an object that has been transported, 

7 shipped, or received in interstate or foreign com8 merce, when the offender was not directly involved 

9 in such transportation, shipping, or receiving,’’; and 

10 (3) by striking ‘‘unless the governing body’’ and 

11 inserting the following: 

12 ‘‘unless the governing body’’. 

13 SEC. 109. INDIAN VICTIMS OF CRIME. 

14 (a) GRANT PROGRAM FOR INDIAN CRIME VICTIM

15 SERVICES.—The Victims of Crime Act of 1984 (34 U.S.C. 

16 20101 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 

17 1404F the following: 

18 ‘‘SEC. 1404G. GRANT PROGRAM FOR INDIAN CRIME VICTIM 

19 SERVICES. 

20 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

21 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘eligi22 ble Indian Tribe’ means an Indian Tribe that sub23 mits a written proposal for a covered grant to the 

24 Director in accordance with subsection (c)(2). 


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1 ‘‘(2) IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER.—The term 

2 ‘immediate family member’ has the meaning given 

3 the term in section 115(c) of title 18, United States 

4 Code. 

5 ‘‘(3) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘Indian Tribe’ 

6 has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the 

7 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

8 Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 

9 ‘‘(4) PERSONALLY IDENTIFYING INFORMA10 TION.—The term ‘personally identifying information’ 

11 has the meaning given the term in section 40002(a) 

12 of the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 (34 

13 U.S.C. 12291(a)). 

14 ‘‘(5) SERVICES TO VICTIMS OF CRIME.—The 

15 term ‘services to victims of crime’— 

16 ‘‘(A) has the meaning given the term in 

17 section 1404; and 

18 ‘‘(B) includes efforts that— 

19 ‘‘(i) respond to the emotional, psycho20 logical, or physical needs of a victim of 

21 crime; 

22 ‘‘(ii) assist a victim of crime in stabi23 lizing his or her life after victimization; 


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1 ‘‘(iii) assist a victim of crime in un2 derstanding and participating in the crimi3 nal justice system; or 

4 ‘‘(iv) restore a measure of security 

5 and safety for a victim of crime. 

6 ‘‘(6) VICTIM OF CRIME.—The term ‘victim of 

7 crime’ means an individual who has suffered direct 

8 physical, sexual, financial, or emotional harm as a 

9 result of the commission of a crime. 

10 ‘‘(b) DUTIES OF DIRECTOR.—The Director shall— 

11 ‘‘(1) administer the grant program described in 

12 subsection (c); 

13 ‘‘(2) provide planning, research, training, and 

14 technical assistance to recipients of covered grants; 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(3) coordinate with the Office of Tribal Jus17 tice, the Indian Health Service, and the Bureau of 

18 Indian Affairs in implementing the grant program 

19 described in subsection (c). 

20 ‘‘(c) GRANT PROGRAM.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—On an annual basis, the 

22 Director shall make grants to eligible Indian Tribes 

23 for the purposes of funding— 

24 ‘‘(A) a program, administered by one or 

25 more Indian Tribes, that provides services to 


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1 victims of crime, which may be provided in tra2 ditional form or through electronic, digital, or 

3 other technological formats, including— 

4 ‘‘(i) services to victims of crime pro5 vided through subgrants to agencies or de6 partments of Tribal governments or non7 profit organizations; 

8 ‘‘(ii) domestic violence shelters, rape 

9 crisis centers, child abuse programs, child 

10 advocacy centers, and elder abuse pro11 grams providing services to victims of 

12 crime; 

13 ‘‘(iii) medical care, equipment, treat14 ment, and related evaluations arising from 

15 the victimization, including— 

16 ‘‘(I) emergency medical care and 

17 evaluation, nonemergency medical 

18 care and evaluation, psychological and 

19 psychiatric care and evaluation, and 

20 other forms of medical assistance, 

21 treatment, or therapy, regardless of 

22 the setting in which the services are 

23 delivered; 

24 ‘‘(II) mental and behavioral 

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1 tion, and assistance, including out2 patient therapy, counseling services, 

3 substance abuse treatment, and other 

4 forms of specialized treatment, includ5 ing intervention and prevention serv6 ices; 

7 ‘‘(III) prophylactic treatment to 

8 prevent an individual from contracting 

9 HIV/AIDS or any other sexually 

10 transmitted disease or infection; and 

11 ‘‘(IV) forensic medical evidence 

12 collection examinations and forensic 

13 interviews of victims of crime— 

14 ‘‘(aa) to the extent that 

15 other funding sources are un16 available or insufficient; and 

17 ‘‘(bb) on the condition that, 

18 to the extent practicable, the ex19 aminers and interviewers follow 

20 relevant guidelines or protocols 

21 issued by the State, unit of local 

22 government, or Indian Tribe with 

23 jurisdiction over the area in 

24 which the examination or inter25 view is conducted; 


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1 ‘‘(iv) legal services, legal assistance 

2 services, and legal clinics (including serv3 ices provided by pro bono legal clinics and 

4 practitioners), the need for which arises di5 rectly from the victimization; 

6 ‘‘(v) the training and certification of 

7 service animals and therapy animals; 

8 ‘‘(vi) equipment for Braille or TTY/ 

9 TTD machines for the deaf necessary to 

10 provide services to victims of crime; 

11 ‘‘(vii) restorative justice opportunities 

12 that allow victims of crime to meet with 

13 the perpetrators if the meetings are volun14 tarily agreed to by the victim of crime and 

15 are for therapeutic purposes; and 

16 ‘‘(viii) training and related materials, 

17 including books, training manuals, and 

18 training videos, for staff and service pro19 viders to develop skills necessary to offer 

20 quality services to victims of crime; 

21 ‘‘(B) the development or implementation of 

22 training, technical assistance, or professional 

23 development that improves or enhances the 

24 quality of services to victims of crime, including 


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1 coordination between healthcare, education, and 

2 justice systems; 

3 ‘‘(C) the transportation of victims of 

4 crime— 

5 ‘‘(i) to receive services; or 

6 ‘‘(ii) to participate in criminal justice 

7 proceedings; 

8 ‘‘(D) emergency legal assistance to victims 

9 of crime that is directly connected to the crime; 

10 ‘‘(E) the supervision of direct service pro11 viders and contracts for professional or special12 ized services that are related directly to pro13 viding services to victims of crime; 

14 ‘‘(F) the repair and replacement of essen15 tial items used during the provision of services 

16 to victims of crime to contribute to and main17 tain a healthy and safe environment for the vic18 tims; 

19 ‘‘(G) transitional housing for victims of 

20 crime, particularly victims who have a par21 ticular need for such housing and cannot safely 

22 return to previous housing, including travel, 

23 rental assistance, security deposits, utilities, 

24 and other related costs that are incidental to 

25 the relocation to transitional housing; 


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1 ‘‘(H) the relocation of victims of crime, 

2 particularly where necessary for the safety and 

3 well-being of the victim, including reasonable 

4 moving expenses, security deposits for housing, 

5 rental expenses, and utility startup costs; 

6 ‘‘(I) the coordination of activities that fa7 cilitate the provision of direct services to victims 

8 of crime; 

9 ‘‘(J) a multisystem, interagency, multi10 disciplinary response to the needs of victims of 

11 crime; and 

12 ‘‘(K) the administration of the program 

13 and services described in this section. 

14 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBILITY.—An Indian Tribe seeking a 

15 covered grant shall, in response to a request for pro16 posal, submit to the Director a written proposal for 

17 a covered grant. 

18 ‘‘(3) NO MATCHING REQUIREMENT.—A recipi19 ent or subrecipient of a covered grant shall not be 

20 required to make a matching contribution for Fed21 eral dollars received. 

22 ‘‘(d) PROTECTION OF CRIME VICTIM CONFIDEN23 TIALITY AND PRIVACY.— 

24 ‘‘(1) ANNUAL REPORTS.—In order to ensure 

25 the safety of victims of crime and immediate family 


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1 members of victims of crime, recipients and sub2 recipients of covered grants shall protect the con3 fidentiality and privacy of individuals receiving serv4 ices from the recipient or subrecipient. 

5 ‘‘(2) NONDISCLOSURE.— 

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraphs 

7 (3) and (4), a recipient or subrecipient of a cov8 ered grant shall not disclose, reveal, or release 

9 any personally identifying information collected 

10 in connection with any service requested, used, 

11 or denied through a program of the recipient or 

12 subrecipient or require the release of personally 

13 identifying information as a condition of eligi14 bility for the services provided by the recipient 

15 or subrecipient— 

16 ‘‘(i) regardless of whether the infor17 mation has been encoded, encrypted, 

18 hashed, or otherwise protected; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) subject to subparagraph (B) and 

20 the condition that consent for release may 

21 not be given by an abuser of the minor, an 

22 abuser of a parent or guardian of a minor, 

23 or an incapacitated individual, absent the 

24 informed, written, reasonably time-limited 

25 consent of— 


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1 ‘‘(I) the individual about whom 

2 information is sought; 

3 ‘‘(II) in the case of an emanci4 pated minor, the minor, and the par5 ent or guardian; or 

6 ‘‘(III) in the case of legal inca7 pacity, a court-appointed guardian. 

8 ‘‘(B) CERTAIN MINORS AND OTHER INDI9 VIDUALS.—If a minor or individual with a le10 gally appointed guardian may lawfully receive 

11 services without the consent of a parent or 

12 guardian, that minor or individual may consent 

13 to the release of information under subpara14 graph (A)(ii) without the additional consent of 

15 a parent or guardian. 

16 ‘‘(3) RELEASE.—If the release of information 

17 described in paragraph (2) is compelled by a statu18 tory or court mandate, a recipient or subrecipient of 

19 a covered grant shall— 

20 ‘‘(A) make reasonable attempts to provide 

21 notice to victims of crime affected by the disclo22 sure of information; and 

23 ‘‘(B) take steps necessary to protect the 

24 privacy and safety of the individuals affected by 

25 the release of the information. 


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1 ‘‘(4) INFORMATION SHARING.—A recipient or 

2 subrecipient of a covered grant may share— 

3 ‘‘(A) data in the aggregate that is not per4 sonally identifying information regarding serv5 ices to clients and demographics in order to 

6 comply with Federal, State, Tribal, or terri7 torial reporting, evaluation, or data collection 

8 requirements; 

9 ‘‘(B) court-generated and law enforcement10 generated information contained in secure gov11 ernmental registries for protection order en12 forcement purposes; and 

13 ‘‘(C) law enforcement-generated and pros14 ecution-generated information necessary for law 

15 enforcement and prosecution purposes. 

16 ‘‘(e) AVAILABILITY OF GRANT FUNDS.—Any amount 

17 awarded under a covered grant that remains unobligated 

18 at the end of the fiscal year in which the grant is made 

19 may be expended for the purpose for which the grant was 

20 made at any time during the 10 succeeding fiscal years, 

21 at the end of which period, any unobligated sums shall 

22 remain available to the Director for award under this sec23 tion in the following fiscal year. 

24 ‘‘(f) EFFECT.—Nothing in this section prohibits— 


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1 ‘‘(1) an Indian Tribe from contracting for the 

2 administration of a program or activity funded 

3 under this section; or 

4 ‘‘(2) multiple Indian Tribes or Tribal organiza5 tions from forming a consortium for any of the pur6 poses described in this section. 

7 ‘‘(g) FUNDING.—The grant program established 

8 under this section shall be carried out using amounts 

9 made available under section 1402(d)(1). 

10 ‘‘(h) TERM.—This section shall be effective for the 

11 first 10 fiscal years beginning after the date of enactment 

12 of this section.’’. 

13 (b) FUNDING FOR GRANTS FOR TRIBAL VICTIMS OF

14 CRIME.—Section 1402(d) of the Victims of Crime Act of 

15 1984 (34 U.S.C. 20101(d)) is amended— 

16 (1) by inserting before paragraph (2) the fol17 lowing: 

18 ‘‘(1) For each of the first 10 fiscal years begin19 ning after the date of enactment of the Honoring 

20 Promises to Native Nations Act, 5 percent of the 

21 total amount in the Fund available for obligation 

22 during a fiscal year shall be made available to the 

23 Director to make grants under section 1404G.’’; 


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1 (2) in paragraph (2)(A), by inserting ‘‘after 

2 compliance with paragraph (1)’’ after ‘‘deposited in 

3 the Fund’’; 

4 (3) in paragraph (3)(A), in the matter pre5 ceding clause (i), by striking ‘‘paragraph (2)’’ and 

6 inserting ‘‘paragraphs (1) and (2)’’; and 

7 (4) in paragraph (5)(A), by inserting ‘‘(1),’’ be8 fore ‘‘(2)’’ each place that term appears. 

9 (c) REGULATIONS REGARDING INDIAN TRIBES.— 

10 (1) EXISTING REGULATIONS.—Any regulation, 

11 rule, or guidance promulgated by the Director of the 

12 Office for Victims of Crime before the date of enact13 ment of this Act shall have no force or effect with 

14 respect to section 1404G of the Victims of Crime 

15 Act of 1984, as added by subsection (a). 

16 (2) NEGOTIATED RULEMAKING.— 

17 (A) DEFINITION.—In this paragraph, the 

18 term ‘‘Indian Tribe’’ has the meaning given the 

19 term in section 1404G(a) of the Victims of 

20 Crime Act of 1984, as added by subsection (a). 

21 (B) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 1 year 

22 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Di23 rector of the Office for Victims of Crime, in 

24 consultation with the Secretary of the Interior 

25 and Indian Tribes, and through notice and 


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1 comment negotiated rulemaking in accordance 

2 with subchapter III of chapter 5 of title 5, 

3 United States Code, shall promulgate final reg4 ulations carrying out section 1404G of the Vic5 tims of Crime Act of 1984, as added by sub6 section (a). 

7 (C) REQUIREMENTS.—The Director of the 

8 Office for Victims of Crime shall ensure that, 

9 with respect to the consultation with Indian 

10 Tribes required under subparagraph (B)— 

11 (i) not fewer than 2 Indian Tribes 

12 from each Bureau of Indian Affairs region 

13 participate in the consultation; and 

14 (ii) small, medium, and large land15 based Indian Tribes are represented. 

16 SEC. 110. VICTIM ADVOCATES FOR NATIVE AMERICANS. 

17 Section 2001(b)(23) title I of the Omnibus Crime 

18 Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 

19 10441(b)(23)) is amended by striking ‘‘domestic violence, 

20 dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking’’ and insert21 ing ‘‘crime’’. 

22 SEC. 111. SPECIAL TRIBAL CRIMINAL JURISDICTION. 

23 Section 204(j) of Public Law 90–284 (25 U.S.C. 

24 1304(j)) (commonly known as the ‘‘Indian Civil Rights 

25 Act of 1968’’) is amended— 


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1 (1) in the subsection heading, by striking ‘‘AU2 THORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS’’ and inserting 

3 ‘‘FUNDING’’; and 

4 (2) in paragraph (1), in the matter preceding 

5 subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘There is authorized 

6 to be appropriated $25,000,000’’ and inserting 

7 ‘‘There is authorized to be appropriated, and there 

8 is appropriated, out of any monies in the Treasury 

9 not otherwise appropriated, $50,000,000’’. 

10 SEC. 112. NATIONAL INDIAN COUNTRY CLEARINGHOUSE 

11 ON SEXUAL ASSAULT. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro13 priated, and there is appropriated, out of any monies in 

14 the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, $1,000,000 for 

15 fiscal year 2025 and each fiscal year thereafter for grants, 

16 contracts, cooperative agreements, and other assistance 

17 for a national clearinghouse that provides training and 

18 technical assistance on issues relating to sexual assault of 

19 Indian and Alaska Native people. 

20 (b) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The amount 

21 made available under subsection (a) for fiscal year 2026 

22 and each fiscal year thereafter shall be adjusted annually 

23 to reflect the change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

24 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor Sta25 tistics. 


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1 SEC. 113. TRIBAL ACCESS PROGRAM. 

2 Section 534(d) of title 28, United States Code, is 

3 amended— 

4 (1) in paragraph (1), in the matter preceding 

5 subparagraph (A), by inserting ‘‘(including entities 

6 designated by an Indian tribe as maintaining public 

7 safety within the territorial jurisdiction of the Indian 

8 tribe)’’ after ‘‘agencies’’; and 

9 (2) in paragraph (2), by striking subparagraph 

10 (B) and inserting the following: 

11 ‘‘(B) FUNDING.—There is authorized to be 

12 appropriated, and there is appropriated, out of 

13 any monies in the Treasury not otherwise ap14 propriated, $60,000,000 for fiscal year 2025, to 

15 remain available until expended, to carry out 

16 the Tribal Access Program under subparagraph 

17 (A).’’. 

18 SEC. 114. TIWAHE INITIATIVE. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro20 priated to carry out the Tiwahe Initiative of the Bureau 

21 of Indian Affairs, and there is appropriated, out of any 

22 monies in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, 

23 $1,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2025 and each fiscal year 

24 thereafter. 

25 (b) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The amount 

26 made available under subsection (a) for fiscal year 2026 


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1 and each fiscal year thereafter shall be adjusted annually 

2 to reflect the change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

3 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor Sta4 tistics. 

5 SEC. 115. REVIEWS ON NATIVE HAWAIIAN INTERACTIONS 

6 WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT. 

7 (a) PUBLIC SAFETY AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE.— 

8 (1) REVIEW ON LAW ENFORCEMENT AFFECT9 ING NATIVE HAWAIIANS.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Department of 

11 Justice shall conduct a comprehensive review of 

12 law enforcement and other crime prevention 

13 programs for various crimes affecting Native 

14 Hawaiian populations, including child sexual ex15 ploitation, child abuse, intimate partner vio16 lence, human trafficking, and substance abuse. 

17 (B) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after 

18 the date of enactment of this Act, the Depart19 ment of Justice shall submit to Congress a re20 port summarizing the review required under 

21 subparagraph (A), which shall include the 

22 amount of Federal funding for the programs re23 ferred to in that subparagraph received by Na24 tive Hawaiian-serving organizations as a perVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:13 Jan 27, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00079 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5636.IS S5636

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1 centage of the total amount spent on those pro2 grams. 

3 (2) REVIEW OF NATIVE HAWAIIAN VICTIMS OF

4 VARIOUS CRIMES.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Department of 

6 Justice shall conduct a comprehensive review of 

7 programs that provide services to victims of 

8 various crimes affecting Native Hawaiian popu9 lations, including child sexual exploitation, child 

10 abuse, intimate partner violence, human traf11 ficking, and substance abuse. 

12 (B) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after 

13 the date of enactment of this Act, the Depart14 ment of Justice shall submit to Congress a re15 port summarizing the review required under 

16 subparagraph (A), which shall include the 

17 amount of Federal funding for the programs re18 ferred to in that subparagraph received by Na19 tive Hawaiian-serving organizations as a per20 centage of the total amount spent on those pro21 grams. 

22 (3) REVIEW OF NATIVE HAWAIIANS IN THE

23 CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM.— 

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—The National Institute 

25 of Justice, in coordination with the Bureau of 


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1 Justice Statistics, shall conduct a comprehen2 sive review on the Native Hawaiian population 

3 involved in the criminal justice system, includ4 ing— 

5 (i) arrests; 

6 (ii) detention in Federal, State, and 

7 local jails; 

8 (iii) pretrial supervision; 

9 (iv) post-conviction supervision; 

10 (v) incarceration in Federal and State 

11 prisons; and 

12 (vi) post-release supervision. 

13 (B) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after 

14 the date of enactment of this Act, the National 

15 Institute of Justice, in coordination with the 

16 Bureau of Justice Statistics, shall submit to 

17 Congress a report summarizing the review re18 quired under subparagraph (A), which shall in19 clude— 

20 (i) the Native Hawaiian population as 

21 a percentage of the total population of the 

22 United States that is involved in the crimi23 nal justice system; 

24 (ii) information on the programs and 

25 services available to, and used by, Native 


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1 Hawaiians in various jurisdictions, includ2 ing diversion programs, in-prison education 

3 programs, and reentry services; and 

4 (iii) the number of culturally relevant 

5 programs available to justice-involved Na6 tive Hawaiians. 

7 TITLE II—HEALTH CARE 

8 SEC. 201. FINDINGS. 

9 Congress finds that— 

10 (1) funding for the Indian Health Service and 

11 health care for American Indians and Alaska Na12 tives is inequitable and unequal; 

13 (2) Indian Health Service expenditures per cap14 ita are well below other Federal healthcare pro15 grams, which results in— 

16 (A) unacceptable health conditions of 

17 American Indians and Alaska Natives; and 

18 (B) American Indians and Alaska Natives 

19 living sicker and dying younger than other indi20 viduals in the United States; 

21 (3) the urban Indian health care budget has 

22 failed to keep pace with urban Indian population 

23 growth or inflation, and that severe underfunding 

24 impedes fulfillment of the trust and treaty obliga25 tions of the Federal Government; 


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1 (4) due to chronic underfunding to healthcare 

2 programs that serve American Indians and Alaska 

3 Natives, American Indians and Alaska Natives face 

4 overwhelming health disparities compared to other 

5 populations, including— 

6 (A) having lower life expectancies and ex7 periencing a disproportionate number of dis8 eases; and 

9 (B) dying at higher rates than other indi10 viduals in the United States from chronic liver 

11 disease, cirrhosis, diabetes mellitus, uninten12 tional injuries, intentional self-harm and sui13 cide, and chronic lower respiratory diseases; 

14 (5) the significant decline of third-party reim15 bursements for care, as clinics serving Tribal areas 

16 operate with limited staff and cancel non-essential 

17 procedures and visits, is affecting Tribal resources, 

18 which— 

19 (A) reduces the amount that Tribal health 

20 facilities can bill Medicare, Medicaid, or other 

21 private insurances for reimbursement of serv22 ices; and 

23 (B) poses a threat to the continuity of op24 erations of those facilities; 


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1 (6)(A) section 10221 of the Patient Protection 

2 and Affordable Care Act (Public Law 111–148; 124 

3 Stat. 935) permanently reauthorized the Indian 

4 Health Care Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1601 et 

5 seq.) in the hope of reducing health disparities faced 

6 by Native Americans; but 

7 (B) many of the provisions of the Indian Health 

8 Care Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) re9 main underfunded; and 

10 (7) the Native Hawaiian Health Care Improve11 ment Act (42 U.S.C. 11701 et seq.) authorized the 

12 Native Hawaiian Health Care Program— 

13 (A) to improve the health status of Native 

14 Hawaiians; and 

15 (B) to provide Native Hawaiian health 

16 care programs with the resources necessary to 

17 improve the health status of Native Hawaiians. 

18 SEC. 202. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

19 It is the sense of Congress that— 

20 (1) funding for the delivery of health care to 

21 American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Ha22 waiians through the Indian Health Service, Indian 

23 Tribes, Tribal organizations, urban Indian organiza24 tions, and the Native Hawaiian Health Care Pro25 gram should be fully funded; 


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1 (2) the funding described in paragraph (1) 

2 should be mandatory; 

3 (3) Congress should allocate funding to job 

4 training and tuition reimbursement programs to in5 crease the number of clinicians and non-medical 

6 health care staff serving American Indians, Alaska 

7 Natives, Native Hawaiians, and Indian Tribes; 

8 (4) Congress should provide funding under the 

9 Medicare program under title XVIII of the Social 

10 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.) and the Med11 icaid program under title XIX of that Act (42 

12 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.) directly to Indian Tribes and 

13 end the practice of pass-through of funds through 

14 States; 

15 (5)(A) the Indian Health Care Improvement 

16 Act (25 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) is crucial to protecting 

17 the health and well-being of American Indians and 

18 Alaska Natives; 

19 (B) all of the provisions of that Act should be 

20 implemented and fully funded; and 

21 (C) in accordance with section 3 of that Act (25 

22 U.S.C. 1602), it is the policy of the United States, 

23 in fulfillment of the special trust responsibilities and 

24 legal obligations to Indians of the United States, in25 cluding Indians living in urban settings— 


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1 (i) to ensure the highest possible health 

2 status for Indians and to provide all resources 

3 necessary to effect that policy; 

4 (ii) to raise the health status of Indians to 

5 at least the levels set forth in the goals con6 tained within the Healthy People 2010 initiative 

7 or successor objectives; 

8 (iii) to ensure maximum Indian participa9 tion in the direction of health care services so 

10 as to render the persons administering such 

11 services and the services themselves more re12 sponsive to the needs and desires of Indian 

13 communities; 

14 (iv) to increase the proportion of all de15 grees in the health professions and allied and 

16 associated health professions awarded to Indi17 ans so that the proportion of Indian health pro18 fessionals in each Indian Health Service area is 

19 raised to at least the level of that of the general 

20 population; 

21 (v) to require that all actions under that 

22 Act shall be carried out with active and mean23 ingful consultation with Indian Tribes, and con24 ference with Tribal organizations and urban InVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:13 Jan 27, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00086 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5636.IS S5636

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1 dian organizations, to implement that Act and 

2 the national policy of Indian self-determination; 

3 (vi) to ensure that the United States and 

4 Indian Tribes work in a government-to-govern5 ment relationship to ensure quality health care 

6 for all Tribal members; and 

7 (vii) to provide funding for programs and 

8 facilities operated by Indian Tribes and Tribal 

9 organizations in amounts that are not less than 

10 the amounts provided to programs and facilities 

11 operated directly by the Indian Health Service; 

12 (6) legal challenges to that Act and the Patient 

13 Protection and Affordable Care Act (Public Law 

14 111–148; 124 Stat. 119) are harmful; 

15 (7) legislation to address the opioid and sub16 stance use epidemic facing American Indian, Alaska 

17 Native, and Native Hawaiian communities (known 

18 as the ‘‘Comprehensive Addiction Resources Emer19 gency Act of 2021’’, S. 3418 and H.R. 6311, 117th 

20 Congress, as introduced on December 16, 2021) 

21 should be enacted without delay; and 

22 (8) legislation to provide significant resources 

23 to Indian Tribes to combat child abuse and neglect 

24 (known as the ‘‘American Indian and Alaska Native 

25 Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act’’, S. 


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1 1868 and H.R. 1566, 117th Congress, as introduced 

2 on May 26, 2021, and March 3, 2021, respectively) 

3 should be enacted without delay. 

4 SEC. 203. MANDATORY FUNDING FOR INDIAN HEALTH 

5 SERVICE. 

6 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

7 Treasury an account, to be known as the ‘‘Indian Health 

8 Services Operations Account’’, into which shall be depos9 ited all amounts appropriated or otherwise made available 

10 according to the recommendations of the national Tribal 

11 Budget Formulation Workgroup, as of the date of enact12 ment of this Act, to carry out the Indian Health Care Im13 provement Act (25 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) and any other 

14 program relating to or operated by the Indian Health 

15 Service. 

16 (b) APPROPRIATION.—There are authorized to be ap17 propriated, and there are appropriated, out of any monies 

18 in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, the following 

19 amounts, which shall be deposited in the Indian Health 

20 Services Operations Account: 

21 (1) For fiscal year 2025, $53,852,801,000. 

22 (2) For fiscal year 2026, $63,040,338,000. 

23 (3) For fiscal year 2027 and each fiscal year 

24 thereafter, an amount equal to the sum of— 


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1 (A) the amount appropriated for the pre2 vious fiscal year, as adjusted annually to reflect 

3 the change in the medical care component of 

4 the consumer price index for all urban con5 sumers (U.S. city average); and 

6 (B) as applicable— 

7 (i) 1.8 percent of the amount appro8 priated for the previous fiscal year; or 

9 (ii) the percentage of the amount ap10 propriated for the previous fiscal year de11 termined under subsection (c)(2). 

12 (c) ADJUSTMENTS AFTER FISCAL YEAR 2026.— 

13 (1) STUDY.—Not later than September 30, 

14 2026, and not less frequently than once every 10 

15 years thereafter, the Comptroller General of the 

16 United States shall conduct a study, in consultation 

17 with Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, and urban 

18 Indian organizations, to determine whether the pop19 ulation served by the Indian Health Service has con20 tinued to grow by 1.8 percent per year. 

21 (2) ADJUSTMENT.—If the Comptroller General 

22 determines under the study conducted under para23 graph (1) that the actual rate of growth of the popu24 lation described in that paragraph is higher than 1.8 

25 percent, for purposes of subsection (b)(3)(B)(ii), the 


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1 percentage by which the amount appropriated for 

2 the previous fiscal year shall be adjusted to reflect 

3 the actual rate of growth determined by the study. 

4 (d) SHORTFALLS AND REPORT.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than the end of 

6 fiscal year 2025, the Secretary of Health and 

7 Human Services shall submit to the Committees on 

8 the Budget, Health, Education, Labor, and Pen9 sions, and Indian Affairs of the Senate and the 

10 Committee on the Budget, the Subcommittee on 

11 Health of the Committee on Energy and Commerce, 

12 and the Subcommittee for Indian and Insular Af13 fairs of the Committee on Natural Resources of the 

14 House of Representatives a publicly available report, 

15 developed in consultation with Indian Tribes, that 

16 proposes an item of appropriation, according to the 

17 recommendations of the national Tribal Budget For18 mulation Workgroup, for shortfalls for funds related 

19 to the lease of a facility used for administration and 

20 delivery of Indian Health Service programs pursuant 

21 to section 105(l) of the Indian Self-Determination 

22 Act (25 U.S.C. 5324(l)), including supporting docu23 mentation on the methods used by the Secretary of 

24 Health and Human Services to determine the 

25 amount of shortfalls. 


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1 (2) ADDITIONAL APPROPRIATIONS.— 

2 (A) FACILITY LEASING.— 

3 (i) IN GENERAL.—In addition to the 

4 amount appropriated for a fiscal year for 

5 the Indian Health Services Operations Ac6 count, there is authorized to be appro7 priated for fiscal year 2025, and each fis8 cal year thereafter, and there is appro9 priated, out of any monies in the Treasury 

10 not otherwise appropriated, the amount re11 quested by the report under paragraph (1). 

12 (ii) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.— 

13 The amount made available under clause 

14 (i) for fiscal year 2026 and each fiscal year 

15 thereafter shall be adjusted annually to re16 flect the change in the medical care compo17 nent of the consumer price index for all 

18 urban consumers (U.S. city average). 

19 (B) CONTRACT SUPPORT COSTS.—In addi20 tion to the amount appropriated for a fiscal 

21 year for the Indian Health Services Operations 

22 Account, there is authorized to be appropriated 

23 for fiscal year 2025, and each fiscal year there24 after, for contract support costs described in 

25 section 106 of the Indian Self-Determination 


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1 Act (25 U.S.C. 5325) an amount determined by 

2 the Secretary of the Interior to cover any short3 falls for the operation of the programs and por4 tions for periods covered by the contract sup5 port costs. 

6 SEC. 204. SANITATION FACILITIES CONSTRUCTION PRO7 GRAM. 

8 Section 7 of the Act of August 5, 1954 (42 U.S.C. 

9 2004a), is amended by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(d) FUNDING.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

12 appropriated, and there are appropriated, out of any 

13 monies in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, 

14 to carry out this section— 

15 ‘‘(A) $1,200,000,000 for each of fiscal 

16 years 2025 through 2027; and 

17 ‘‘(B) $1,900,000,000 for fiscal year 2028 

18 and each fiscal year thereafter. 

19 ‘‘(2) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

20 amount made available under paragraph (1) for fis21 cal year 2026 and each fiscal year thereafter shall 

22 be adjusted annually to reflect the change in the 

23 Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers 

24 published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.’’. 


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1 SEC. 205. SPECIAL DIABETES PROGRAMS FOR INDIANS. 

2 Section 330C of the Public Health Service Act (42 

3 U.S.C. 254c–3) is amended— 

4 (1) in subsection (c)(2)— 

5 (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) 

6 through (E) as clauses (i) through (v), respec7 tively, and indenting appropriately; 

8 (B) in the matter preceding clause (i) (as 

9 so redesignated), by striking ‘‘For the purpose’’ 

10 and inserting the following: 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For the purpose’’; 

12 (C) in subparagraph (A) (as so redesig13 nated)— 

14 (i) in clause (iv) (as so redesignated), 

15 by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

16 (ii) in clause (v) (as so redesignated), 

17 by striking ‘‘2024, to remain available 

18 until expended.’’ and inserting ‘‘2024; 

19 and’’; and 

20 (iii) by adding at the end the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘(vi) subject to subparagraph (B), 

23 $300,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2025 

24 through 2034, to remain available until ex25 pended.’’; and 

26 (D) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(B) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

2 amount authorized to be appropriated under 

3 subparagraph (A)(vi) for each of fiscal years 

4 2026 through 2034 shall be adjusted annually 

5 to reflect the change in the medical care compo6 nent of the consumer price index for all urban 

7 consumers (U.S. city average).’’; 

8 (2) by redesignating subsection (c) as sub9 section (d); and 

10 (3) by inserting after subsection (b) the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(c) REQUIREMENT.—Grants provided under sub13 section (a) shall be subject to the requirements of section 

14 7(b) of the Indian Self-Determination and Education As15 sistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5307(b)).’’. 

16 SEC. 206. SPECIAL DIABETES PROGRAM FOR NATIVE HA17 WAIIANS. 

18 Section 6 of the Native Hawaiian Health Care Im19 provement Act (42 U.S.C. 11705) is amended by adding 

20 at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(i) SPECIAL DIABETES PROGRAM FOR NATIVE HA22 WAIIANS.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make 

24 grants for providing services for the prevention and 


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1 treatment of diabetes in accordance with subsection 

2 (b). 

3 ‘‘(2) SERVICES THROUGH NATIVE HAWAIIAN

4 HEALTH CARE SYSTEMS FACILITIES.—For purposes 

5 of subsection (a), services provided under that sub6 section are provided in accordance with this sub7 section if those services are provided through the 

8 Native Hawaiian Health Care Systems. 

9 ‘‘(3) APPROPRIATIONS.—For the purpose of 

10 making grants under this section, there is appro11 priated, out of any money in the Treasury not other12 wise appropriated, $9,000,000 for each fiscal year.’’. 

13 SEC. 207. PERMANENT EXTENSION OF FULL FEDERAL MED14 ICAL ASSISTANCE PERCENTAGE TO URBAN 

15 INDIAN ORGANIZATIONS. 

16 Section 1905(b) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

17 1396d(b)) is amended, in the third sentence, by striking 

18 ‘‘for the 8 fiscal year quarters beginning with the first 

19 fiscal year quarter beginning after the date of the enact20 ment of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021’’ and in21 serting ‘‘for each fiscal quarter beginning on or after April 

22 1, 2021’’. 

23 SEC. 208. QUALIFIED INDIAN PROVIDER SERVICES. 

24 Section 1905 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

25 1396d) is amended— 


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1 (1) in subsection (a)(2)— 

2 (A) by striking ‘‘, and (C)’’ and inserting 

3 ‘‘, (C)’’; and 

4 (B) by inserting ‘‘, and (D) qualified In5 dian provider services (as defined in subsection 

6 (l)(4))’’ after ‘‘included in the plan’’; and 

7 (2) in subsection (l), by adding at the end the 

8 following: 

9 ‘‘(4)(A) The term ‘qualified Indian provider 

10 services’ means services— 

11 ‘‘(i) for which medical assistance is other12 wise available under the State plan (or a waiver 

13 of such plan); and 

14 ‘‘(ii) that are furnished by an Indian 

15 health care provider (as defined in subpara16 graph (B)) to an individual who— 

17 ‘‘(I) is eligible for medical assistance 

18 under the State plan (or waiver); and 

19 ‘‘(II) is eligible to receive services 

20 from the Indian Health Service. 

21 ‘‘(B) The term ‘Indian health care provider’ 

22 means a health program operated by the Indian 

23 Health Service or by an Indian tribe or tribal orga24 nization (as those terms are defined in section 4 of 

25 the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 


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1 1603)) or inter-tribal consortium (as defined in sec2 tion 501(a) of the Indian Self-Determination and 

3 Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5381(a))) or 

4 through an urban Indian organization (as defined in 

5 section 4 of the Indian Health Care Improvement 

6 Act (25 U.S.C. 1603)) operating pursuant to a 

7 grant or contract with the Indian Health Service 

8 under title V of the Indian Health Care Improve9 ment Act or as a permanent program within the In10 dian Health Services direct care program. 

11 ‘‘(C) Notwithstanding any other provision of 

12 law, qualified Indian provider services may be pro13 vided by authorized non-physician practitioners 

14 working within the scope of their license, certifi15 cation, or authorized practice under Federal, State, 

16 or Tribal law.’’. 

17 SEC. 209. REMOVE LIMITATION ON PAYMENT FOR SERV18 ICES FURNISHED BY INDIAN HEALTH CARE 

19 PROVIDERS OUTSIDE A CLINIC FACILITY. 

20 Section 1905(a)(9) of the Social Security Act (42 

21 U.S.C. 1396d(a)(9)) is amended by inserting ‘‘and includ22 ing such services furnished in any location by or through 

23 an Indian Health Care Provider as defined in subsection 

24 (l)(4)(B)’’ before the semicolon at the end. 


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1 SEC. 210. NATIVE HAWAIIAN HEALTH CARE. 

2 (a) EXTENSION OF FEDERAL TORT CLAIMS ACT

3 COVERAGE TO NATIVE HAWAIIAN HEALTH CARE SYS4 TEMS.—Section 6 of the Native Hawaiian Health Care 

5 Improvement Act (42 U.S.C. 11705) is amended— 

6 (1) by redesignating subsections (h) and (i) (as 

7 added by section 206) as subsections (i) and (j), re8 spectively; 

9 (2) by inserting after subsection (g) the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘(h) FEDERAL TORT CLAIMS ACT COVERAGE.— 

12 ‘‘(1) NATIVE HAWAIIAN HEALTH CARE SYS13 TEMS.—A Native Hawaiian health care system shall 

14 be considered to be a Federal agency for purposes 

15 of claims under sections 1346(b) and 2672 of title 

16 28, United States Code, for money damages for per17 sonal injury, including death, resulting from the per18 formance of functions by the Native Hawaiian 

19 health care system. 

20 ‘‘(2) OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES.—An indi21 vidual who is an officer or employee of a Native Ha22 waiian health care system shall— 

23 ‘‘(A) be considered to be an employee of 

24 the Department of Health and Human Services 

25 for purposes of claims under sections 1346(b) 

26 and 2672 of title 28, United States Code, for 


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1 money damages for personal injury, including 

2 death, resulting from the performance of func3 tions within the scope of employment of the in4 dividual; and 

5 ‘‘(B) be considered to be an employee of 

6 the Public Health Service performing medical, 

7 surgical, dental, or related functions for pur8 poses of ensuring that the remedy provided by 

9 sections 1346(b) and 2672 of title 28, United 

10 States Code, is exclusive of any other civil ac11 tion or proceeding by reason of the same sub12 ject matter against— 

13 ‘‘(i) that individual; or 

14 ‘‘(ii) the estate of that individual.’’; 

15 and 

16 (3) by striking subsection (i) (as so redesig17 nated) and inserting the following: 

18 ‘‘(i) FUNDING.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

20 there are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

21 this section, and there are appropriated, out of any 

22 monies in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, 

23 $47,000,000 for fiscal year 2025, an additional 

24 $9,000,000 per year for each fiscal year until fiscal 


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1 year 2037, and $155,000,000 each fiscal year there2 after. 

3 ‘‘(2) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

4 amount made available under paragraph (1) for fis5 cal year 2038 and each fiscal year thereafter shall 

6 be adjusted annually to reflect the change in the 

7 Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers 

8 published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.’’. 

9 (b) EXTENSION OF FULL FEDERAL MEDICAL AS10 SISTANCE PERCENTAGE TO SERVICES FURNISHED BY NA11 TIVE HAWAIIAN HEALTH CARE SYSTEMS.—Section 

12 1905(b) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396d(b)) 

13 is amended, in the third sentence, by striking ‘‘for such 

14 8 fiscal year quarters,’’ and inserting ‘‘for each fiscal 

15 quarter beginning on or after April 1, 2021,’’. 

16 (c) PERMANENT REMOVAL OF MATCHING REQUIRE17 MENTS.—Section 6 of the Native Hawaiian Health Care 

18 Improvement Act (42 U.S.C. 11705) is amended— 

19 (1) by striking subsection (e); and 

20 (2) by redesignating subsections (f) through (j) 

21 (as redesignated by subsection (a)(1)) as subsections 

22 (e) through (i), respectively. 


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1 SEC. 211. FUNDING FOR TRIBAL EPIDEMIOLOGY CENTERS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 214 of the Indian Health 

3 Care Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1621m) is amended by 

4 adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(f) FUNDING.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be 

7 appropriated, and there is appropriated, out of any 

8 monies in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, 

9 $60,000,000 for fiscal year 2025 and each fiscal 

10 year thereafter for epidemiology centers established 

11 under this section. 

12 ‘‘(2) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

13 amount made available under paragraph (1) for fis14 cal year 2026 and each fiscal year thereafter shall 

15 be adjusted annually to reflect the change in the 

16 medical care component of the consumer price index 

17 for all urban consumers (U.S. city average).’’. 

18 (b) TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.—Section 214(e)(3) of 

19 the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 

20 1621m(e)(3)) is amended by striking ‘‘Public Law104– 

21 191’’ and inserting ‘‘Public Law 104–291’’. 

22 SEC. 212. STATE OPTION TO PROVIDE MEDICAL ASSIST23 ANCE FOR RESIDENTIAL ADDICTION TREAT24 MENT FACILITY SERVICES. 

25 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1905 of the Social Secu26 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 1396d) is amended— 


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1 (1) in subsection (a)(16)— 

2 (A) by striking ‘‘as defined in subsection 

3 (h), and, (B)’’ and inserting ‘‘as defined in sub4 section (h)(1), (B)’’; and 

5 (B) by inserting ‘‘, and (C) residential ad6 diction treatment facility services (as defined in 

7 subsection (h)(3)), if offered as part of a full 

8 continuum of evidence-based treatment services 

9 provided under the State plan, including resi10 dential, outpatient, and community-based care, 

11 for individuals with substance use disorders’’ 

12 before the semicolon; and 

13 (2) in subsection (h)— 

14 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘para15 graph (16) of subsection (a)’’ and inserting 

16 ‘‘subsection (a)(16)(A)’’; and 

17 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(3)(A) For purposes of subsection (a)(16)(C), 

19 the term ‘residential addiction treatment facility 

20 services’ means, subject to subparagraph (B), inpa21 tient services provided— 

22 ‘‘(i) to an individual for the purpose of 

23 treating a substance use disorder that are fur24 nished to an individual in the State for not 

25 more than 60 consecutive days (on a statewide 


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1 average basis), provided that upon completion 

2 of each period of 30 consecutive days of treat3 ment, the individual is assessed and determined 

4 to have progressed through the clinical con5 tinuum of care, in accordance with criteria es6 tablished by the Secretary, in consultation with 

7 the American Society of Addiction Medicine, 

8 and requires continued medically necessary 

9 treatment and social support services to pro10 mote recovery, stable transition to ongoing 

11 treatment, and discharge; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) in a facility that is accredited for the 

13 treatment of substance use disorders by the 

14 Joint Commission on Accreditation of 

15 Healthcare Organizations, the Commission on 

16 Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities, the 

17 Council on Accreditation, or any other accred18 iting agency that the Secretary deems appro19 priate as necessary to ensure nationwide appli20 cability, including qualified national organiza21 tions and State-level accrediting agencies. 

22 ‘‘(B) The State agency responsible for admin23 istering the State plan under this title shall establish 

24 procedures to ensure that, with respect to any facil25 ity providing residential addiction treatment facility 


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1 services in a fiscal year, the number of beds used by 

2 the facility to provide such services during such year 

3 is consistent with State licensure standards. 

4 ‘‘(C) The provision of medical assistance for 

5 residential addiction treatment facility services to an 

6 individual shall not prohibit Federal financial par7 ticipation for medical assistance for items or services 

8 that are provided to the individual in or away from 

9 the residential addiction treatment facility during 

10 any 30-day period in which the individual is receiv11 ing residential addiction treatment facility services. 

12 ‘‘(D) A woman who is eligible for medical as13 sistance on the basis of being pregnant and who is 

14 furnished residential addiction treatment facility 

15 services during any 30-day period may remain eligi16 ble for, and continue to be furnished with, such serv17 ices for additional 30-day periods without regard to 

18 any eligibility limit that would otherwise apply to the 

19 woman as a result of her pregnancy ending, subject 

20 to assessment by the facility and a determination 

21 based on medical necessity related to substance use 

22 disorder and the impact of substance use disorder on 

23 birth outcomes.’’. 


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1 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

2 this section shall apply to items and services furnished on 

3 or after January 1, 2025. 

4 SEC. 213. CONFERRING WITH URBAN INDIAN ORGANIZA5 TIONS. 

6 (a) DEFINITION OF CONFER.—In this section, the 

7 term ‘‘confer’’ means to engage in an open and free ex8 change of information and opinions that— 

9 (1) leads to mutual understanding and com10 prehension; and 

11 (2) emphasizes trust, respect, and shared re12 sponsibility. 

13 (b) REQUIREMENTS.— 

14 (1) HHS.—The Secretary of Health and 

15 Human Services, to the maximum extent practicable, 

16 shall confer with urban Indian organizations in car17 rying out health services of the Department of 

18 Health and Human Services. 

19 (2) VA.—The Secretary of Veteran Affairs, to 

20 the maximum extent practicable, shall confer with 

21 urban Indian organizations in carrying out health 

22 services of the Department of Veteran Affairs. 


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1 SEC. 214. MEDICAID WORK REQUIREMENT EXEMPTION. 

2 Section 1902 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

3 1396a) is amended by adding at the end the following new 

4 subsection: 

5 ‘‘(uu) NONAPPLICATION OF WORK REQUIREMENTS

6 TO INDIANS.—In the case of a State that conditions an 

7 individual’s eligibility for medical assistance upon such in8 dividual’s satisfaction of a requirement that the individual 

9 be employed, enrolled in school, participate in a work ac10 tivity (as defined in section 407(d) or otherwise by the 

11 State), or participate in other community engagement ac12 tivity, the State shall not apply such condition to an indi13 vidual who is an Indian (as defined in section 447.51 of 

14 title 42, Code of Federal Regulations (or a successor regu15 lation)).’’. 

16 SEC. 215. MEDICAID PROGRAM POLICIES FOR MEMBERS OF 

17 INDIAN TRIBES. 

18 The Secretary of Health and Human Services— 

19 (1) may waive compliance with any requirement 

20 of title XIX of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

21 1396 et seq.) in a manner that is specific to— 

22 (A) persons who are Indian (as defined in 

23 section 4 of the Indian Health Care Improve24 ment Act (25 U.S.C. 1603)); and 

25 (B) facilities of the Indian Health Service 

26 and urban Indian organizations; 


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1 (2) shall not waive compliance with any require2 ment of title XIX of the Social Security Act (42 

3 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.) that is specific to persons who 

4 are Indian (as so defined) if such waiver would— 

5 (A) reduce the amount, duration, or scope 

6 of benefits available to such persons under such 

7 Act; or 

8 (B) impose restrictions, premiums or cost9 sharing, or additional conditions on the receipt 

10 of benefits under such Act by such persons; and 

11 (3) shall not waive any requirement relating to 

12 Tribal consultation or conference with urban Indian 

13 organizations as required by any Federal law, rule, 

14 or regulation. 

15 SEC. 216. ELEVATION OF IHS DIRECTOR TO ASSISTANT SEC16 RETARY FOR INDIAN HEALTH. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 601 of the Indian Health 

18 Care Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1661) is amended— 

19 (1) in subsection (a)— 

20 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘tribes’’ 

21 and inserting ‘‘Tribes’’; 

22 (B) in paragraph (2)— 

23 (i) in the paragraph heading, by strik24 ing ‘‘DIRECTOR’’ and inserting ‘‘ASSIST25 ANT SECRETARY FOR INDIAN HEALTH’’; 


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1 (ii) in the first sentence, by striking 

2 ‘‘a Director’’ and inserting ‘‘an Assistant 

3 Secretary for Indian Health (referred to in 

4 this section as the ‘Assistant Secretary’)’’; 

5 (iii) in the second sentence, by strik6 ing ‘‘The Director shall report’’ and insert7 ing ‘‘The Assistant Secretary shall report 

8 directly’’; 

9 (iv) in the third sentence, by striking 

10 ‘‘the Director’’ and inserting ‘‘the Assist11 ant Secretary’’; and 

12 (v) in the fourth sentence, by striking 

13 ‘‘A Director’’ and inserting ‘‘An Assistant 

14 Secretary’’; 

15 (C) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘the In16 dian Health Care Improvement Reauthorization 

17 and Extension Act of 2009 shall serve as Direc18 tor’’ and inserting ‘‘the Honoring Promises to 

19 Native Nations Act shall serve as Assistant Sec20 retary’’; 

21 (D) in paragraph (4), in the matter pre22 ceding subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘Direc23 tor’’ and inserting ‘‘Assistant Secretary’’; and 

24 (E) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(5) DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY; OTHER

2 OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES.—The Assistant Sec3 retary, with the approval of the Secretary, may— 

4 ‘‘(A) appoint a Deputy Assistant Sec5 retary; and 

6 ‘‘(B) employ and prescribe the functions of 

7 such officers and employees, including attor8 neys, as are necessary to administer the activi9 ties of the Service.’’; 

10 (2) in subsection (c)— 

11 (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), 

12 by striking ‘‘Director’’ and inserting ‘‘Assistant 

13 Secretary’’; 

14 (B) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘the In15 dian Health Care Improvement Reauthorization 

16 and Extension Act of 2009’’ and inserting ‘‘the 

17 Honoring Promises to Native Nations Act’’; 

18 and 

19 (C) in paragraph (3)— 

20 (i) in subparagraph (B), by inserting 

21 ‘‘(commonly known as the ‘Snyder Act’)’’ 

22 before ‘‘(25 U.S.C. 13)’’; and 

23 (ii) in subparagraph (E), by striking 

24 ‘‘(25 U.S.C. 450 et seq.)’’ and inserting 

25 ‘‘(25 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.)’’; and 


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1 (3) in subsection (d)(1), in the matter pre2 ceding subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘Director’’ and 

3 inserting ‘‘Assistant Secretary’’. 

4 (b) REFERENCES.—Any reference to the Director of 

5 the Indian Health Service in any Federal law, Executive 

6 order, rule, regulation, or delegation of authority, or in 

7 any document of or relating to the Director of the Indian 

8 Health Service, shall be deemed to be a reference to the 

9 Assistant Secretary for Indian Health. 

10 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

11 (1) Section 603(b) of the Indian Health Care 

12 Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1663(b)) is amended 

13 by striking ‘‘Office of the Director’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘Office of the Assistant Secretary for Indian 

15 Health’’. 

16 (2) Section 604(b) of the Indian Health Care 

17 Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1663a(b)) is amended, 

18 in each of paragraphs (2) and (3), by striking ‘‘Of19 fice of the Director’’ and inserting ‘‘Office of the As20 sistant Secretary for Indian Health’’. 

21 (d) RATE OF BASIC PAY.— 

22 (1) POSITIONS AT LEVEL IV.—Section 5315 of 

23 title 5, United States Code, is amended by striking 

24 ‘‘Assistant Secretaries of Health and Human ServVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:13 Jan 27, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00110 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5636.IS S5636

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1 ices (6)’’ and inserting ‘‘Assistant Secretaries of 

2 Health and Human Services (7)’’. 

3 (2) POSITIONS AT LEVEL V.—Section 5316 of 

4 title 5, United States Code, is amended by striking 

5 ‘‘Director, Indian Health Service, Department of 

6 Health and Human Services.’’. 

7 SEC. 217. INCLUSION OF URBAN INDIAN ORGANIZATIONS 

8 IN THE NATIONAL COMMUNITY HEALTH AIDE 

9 PROGRAM. 

10 Section 119 of the Indian Health Care Improvement 

11 Act (25 U.S.C. 1616l) is amended— 

12 (1) in subsection (d)— 

13 (A) in paragraph (2)— 

14 (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

15 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

16 (ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

17 the period at the end and inserting ‘‘; 

18 and’’; and 

19 (iii) by adding at the end the fol20 lowing: 

21 ‘‘(C) shall include urban Indian organiza22 tions.’’; and 

23 (B) in paragraph (3)— 

24 (i) in the paragraph heading, by strik25 ing ‘‘OR TRIBAL ORGANIZATION’’ and inVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:13 Jan 27, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00111 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5636.IS S5636

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1 serting ‘‘, TRIBAL ORGANIZATION, OR

2 URBAN INDIAN ORGANIZATION’’; and 

3 (ii) by striking ‘‘or tribal organiza4 tion’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘, 

5 tribal organization, or urban Indian orga6 nization’’; and 

7 (2) in subsection (e), by striking ‘‘or a tribal or8 ganization’’ and inserting ‘‘a tribal organization, or 

9 an urban Indian organization’’. 

10 TITLE III—EDUCATION 

11 SEC. 301. FINDINGS. 

12 Congress finds that— 

13 (1)(A) Native American students experience 

14 discernible disparities in access to educational oppor15 tunities compared to their non-Native-American 

16 peers; and 

17 (B) those disparities in educational opportuni18 ties— 

19 (i) have a profound impact on the social 

20 and economic opportunities and well-being of 

21 Native American students and Native American 

22 communities; and 

23 (ii) mean that Native American students 

24 are likely to experience disproportionate levels 

25 of discipline while in school that leads to those 


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1 students being suspended or expelled, increas2 ing the likelihood of those students to be in3 volved in the school-to-prison pipeline; 

4 (2) the Federal Government has failed in its 

5 trust obligation to provide educational services that 

6 address the unique situation of Native American stu7 dents; 

8 (3)(A) a majority of Native American students 

9 attend public schools, many of which lack curricula 

10 that provide historically accurate and culturally com11 petent representation or discussion of Native Ameri12 cans and their history in the United States; and 

13 (B) the failure to include historically accurate 

14 and culturally competent curricula leads to a lack of 

15 understanding for all students of the history and 

16 contributions of Native Americans; 

17 (4)(A) Native American students make up 1.1 

18 percent of students attending public schools; 

19 (B) Native American students have the lowest 

20 high school graduation rates and the lowest scores 

21 on reading and mathematics elementary and sec22 ondary school standardized tests; 

23 (C) students attending schools funded by the 

24 Bureau of Indian Affairs (referred to in this title as 

25 ‘‘Bureau-funded schools’’) have lower academic 


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1 scores than their non-Native American peers who at2 tend public school; and 

3 (D) educational disparities continue into higher 

4 education, with only 16 percent of Native American 

5 students obtaining a bachelor’s degree compared to 

6 the national average of 36 percent of individuals in 

7 the same age group; 

8 (5)(A) the enactment of the Indian Self-Deter9 mination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 

10 5301 et seq.) allowed federally recognized Indian 

11 Tribes to contract with the Bureau-funded schools 

12 and provide education programs; 

13 (B) with 183 Bureau-funded schools, the Bu14 reau of Indian Education is obligated to provide cul15 turally relevant, high-quality education opportunities 

16 to Native American students; and 

17 (C) Bureau-funded schools consistently struggle 

18 to recruit and retain qualified and effective teachers 

19 due to noncompetitive salaries, isolated rural set20 tings, difficult work environments, lack of job oppor21 tunities for spouses and partners, and marginal 

22 housing opportunities; and 

23 (6)(A) American Indian and Alaska Native trib24 ally chartered colleges and universities (referred to 

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1 ning in the late 1960s due to the failure of the 

2 United States higher education system to include 

3 American Indians; 

4 (B) in addition to providing place-based and 

5 culturally grounded higher and career and technical 

6 education, TCUs are charged with preserving and 

7 revitalizing Tribal cultures, languages and lands, 

8 and strengthening Tribal sovereignty; and 

9 (C) TCUs face significant challenges and in10 equities, including— 

11 (i) the lack of adequate operating funding 

12 from the Department of the Interior; 

13 (ii) the inability to grow endowments; and 

14 (iii) a disproportionate number of students 

15 living in poverty, suffering food and housing in16 security, and unprepared for post-secondary 

17 education. 

18 SEC. 302. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

19 It is the sense of Congress that Congress should— 

20 (1) provide full funding for Tribal Colleges and 

21 Universities and Bureau-funded schools, including 

22 increased funding to develop lessons and curricula 

23 that provide culturally competent and historically ac24 curate information; 


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1 (2) provide increased funding to recruit and re2 tain teachers at schools that serve a high proportion 

3 of Native students, including Bureau-funded schools, 

4 in order to address the educational disparities faced 

5 by Native American students described in section 

6 301; 

7 (3) provide full funding for school construction 

8 and repairs at Bureau-funded schools, which have 

9 lacked longstanding adequate funding and 

10 prioritization, to correct facilities operations ineffi11 ciencies that contribute to the chronic poor edu12 cational outcomes and performance of students at 

13 those schools; and 

14 (4) increase and make permanent pro15 grammatic funding for Native American language 

16 programs to restore the elimination of traditional 

17 languages that colonial education forced on Native 

18 American students during the Assimilation Era. 

19 SEC. 303. MANDATORY FUNDING FOR TRIBAL COLLEGES 

20 AND UNIVERSITIES. 

21 Section 371(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

22 (20 U.S.C. 1067q(b)) is amended— 

23 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

24 (A) by striking subparagraph (A) and in25 serting the following: 


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1 ‘‘(A) PROVISION OF FUNDS.—There shall 

2 be available to the Secretary to carry out this 

3 section, from funds in the Treasury not other4 wise appropriated, $300,000,000 for fiscal year 

5 2025 and each fiscal year thereafter.’’; and 

6 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(C) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

8 amount made available under paragraph (1)(A) 

9 for fiscal year 2026 and each fiscal year there10 after shall be adjusted annually to reflect the 

11 change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

12 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of 

13 Labor Statistics.’’; and 

14 (2) in paragraph (2)— 

15 (A) in subparagraph (A)— 

16 (i) in each of clauses (i) and (ii), by 

17 striking ‘‘$100,000,000’’ and inserting 

18 ‘‘$117,500,000’’; and 

19 (ii) in clause (iii), by striking 

20 ‘‘$55,000,000’’ and inserting 

21 ‘‘$65,000,000’’; and 

22 (B) in subparagraph (D)— 

23 (i) in clause (i), by striking 

24 ‘‘$30,000,000’’ each place the term ap25 pears and inserting ‘‘$35,000,000’’; 


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1 (ii) in clause (ii), by striking 

2 ‘‘$15,000,000’’ each place the term ap3 pears and inserting ‘‘$18,000,000’’; and 

4 (iii) in each of clauses (iii) and (iv), 

5 by striking ‘‘$5,000,000’’ and inserting 

6 ‘‘$6,000,000’’. 

7 SEC. 304. EXPANDING INSTRUCTION AND OUTREACH BY 

8 TRIBAL COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES AND 

9 OTHER AMENDMENTS. 

10 (a) SECTION HEADING.—The section heading for 

11 section 316 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

12 U.S.C. 1059c) is amended by striking ‘‘AMERICAN IN13 DIAN TRIBALLY CONTROLLED COLLEGES AND UNI14 VERSITIES’’ and inserting ‘‘TRIBAL COLLEGES AND

15 UNIVERSITIES’’. 

16 (b) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—Section 316(c)(2) of 

17 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

18 1059c(c)(2)) is amended— 

19 (1) in subparagraph (D), by striking ‘‘Indians’’ 

20 and all that follows through ‘‘policy’’ and inserting 

21 the following: ‘‘American Indians and Alaska Na22 tives are underrepresented, instruction in Native 

23 American languages, and instruction and programs 

24 to support Tribal governance, Tribal public policy, 

25 and Tribal history and sovereignty’’; and 


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1 (2) in subparagraph (L), by striking ‘‘outreach’’ 

2 and all that follows through ‘‘education;’’ and insert3 ing the following: ‘‘outreach and recruitment activi4 ties and programs that encourage American Indian 

5 and Alaska Native elementary school students, sec6 ondary school students, and community members to 

7 develop the academic skills and the interest to pur8 sue and succeed in postsecondary education;’’. 

9 (c) APPLICATION, PLAN, ALLOCATION.—Section 

10 316(d) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

11 1059c(d)) is amended— 

12 (1) by striking paragraph (1); 

13 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (2) through 

14 (4) as paragraphs (1) through (3), respectively; and 

15 (3) in paragraph (3) (as so redesignated), by 

16 adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(C) USE OF UNEXPENDED FUNDS.—Any 

18 funds paid to an institution and not expended 

19 or used for the purposes for which the funds 

20 were paid during the 5-year period following the 

21 date of the initial grant award, may be carried 

22 over and expended during the succeeding 5-year 

23 period, if such funds are obligated for a purpose 

24 for which the funds were paid during the 5-year 


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1 period following the date of the initial grant 

2 award.’’. 

3 (d) DEFINITION.—Section 2(a)(4) of the Tribally 

4 Controlled Colleges and Universities Assistance Act of 

5 1978 (25 U.S.C. 1801(a)(4)) is amended by striking ‘‘an 

6 institution’’ and inserting ‘‘a public institution’’. 

7 SEC. 305. ENDOWMENT FUNDS OF TRIBAL COLLEGES AND 

8 UNIVERSITIES. 

9 Section 316(c)(3) of the Higher Education Act of 

10 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1059c(c)(3)) is amended— 

11 (1) by striking subparagraph (B); 

12 (2) by redesignating subparagraph (C) as sub13 paragraph (B); and 

14 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(C) SCHOLARSHIPS.—A Tribal College or 

16 University that uses grant funds provided under 

17 this section to establish or increase an endow18 ment fund may use the interest proceeds from 

19 such endowment to provide scholarships to stu20 dents for the purposes of attending such Tribal 

21 College or University.’’. 

22 SEC. 306. FULL FUNDING FOR OPERATION OF BUREAU23 FUNDED SCHOOLS. 

24 (a) INDIAN SCHOOL EQUALIZATION PROGRAM.— 

25 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out the 


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1 Indian School Equalization Program of the Bureau of In2 dian Affairs, and there is appropriated, out of any monies 

3 in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, $950,000,000 

4 for fiscal year 2025 and each fiscal year thereafter. 

5 (b) TRIBAL COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES OPER6 ATIONS.—There is authorized to be appropriated to fund 

7 operations at Tribal Colleges or Universities that are au8 thorized under titles I and V of the Tribally Controlled 

9 Colleges and Universities Assistance Act of 1978 (25 

10 U.S.C. 1802 et seq., 1861 et seq.) and the Navajo Com11 munity College Act (25 U.S.C. 640a note; Public Law 92– 

12 189), and that originally were authorized under the Act 

13 of November 2, 1921 (25 U.S.C. 13) (commonly known 

14 as the ‘‘Snyder Act’’), and there is appropriated, out of 

15 any monies in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, 

16 $150,000,000 for fiscal year 2025 and each fiscal year 

17 thereafter. 

18 (c) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The amount 

19 made available under subsections (a) and (b) for fiscal 

20 year 2026 and each fiscal year thereafter shall be adjusted 

21 annually to reflect the change in the Consumer Price 

22 Index for All Urban Consumers published by the Bureau 

23 of Labor Statistics. 


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1 (d) SPECIAL PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS TO IMPROVE

2 EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR INDIAN CHIL3 DREN.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subpart 2 of part A of title 

5 VI of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 

6 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7441 et seq.) is amended by 

7 adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 6123. FUNDING. 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), there 

10 is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subpart, 

11 and there is appropriated, out of any monies in the Treas12 ury not otherwise appropriated, $68,000,000 for fiscal 

13 year 2025 and each fiscal year thereafter. 

14 ‘‘(b) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The amount 

15 made available under subsection (a) for fiscal year 2026 

16 and each fiscal year thereafter shall be adjusted annually 

17 to reflect the change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

18 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor Sta19 tistics.’’. 

20 (2) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of con21 tents for the Elementary and Secondary Education 

22 Act of 1965 is amended by inserting after the item 

23 relating to section 6122 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 6123. Funding.’’. 

24 (e) BUREAU OF INDIAN EDUCATION FACILITIES OP25 ERATIONS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

2 there is authorized to be appropriated for Bureau of 

3 Indian Education facilities operations costs, includ4 ing costs for electricity, heating fuels, communica5 tions, custodial services, and other operation ex6 penses, and there is appropriated, out of any monies 

7 in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, 

8 $109,000,000 for fiscal year 2025 and each fiscal 

9 year thereafter. 

10 (2) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

11 amount made available under paragraph (1) for fis12 cal year 2026 and each fiscal year thereafter shall 

13 be adjusted annually to reflect the change in the 

14 Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers 

15 published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

16 (f) STUDENT TRANSPORTATION.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

18 there is authorized to be appropriated for the costs 

19 of transportation of students to Bureau-funded 

20 schools, and there is appropriated, out of any monies 

21 in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, 

22 $73,000,000 for fiscal year 2025 and each fiscal 

23 year thereafter. 

24 (2) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

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1 cal year 2026 and each fiscal year thereafter shall 

2 be adjusted annually to reflect the change in the 

3 Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers 

4 published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

5 SEC. 307. BUREAU OF INDIAN EDUCATION SCHOOL CON6 STRUCTION, MODERNIZATION, AND REPAIR. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), there 

8 are authorized to be appropriated for the costs of con9 struction, facilities improvement, modernization, repair, 

10 and replacement school construction for Bureau-funded 

11 schools, including sanitation, non-mechanical heating, ven12 tilation, and air conditioning system repair and replace13 ment, and there are appropriated, out of any monies in 

14 the Treasury not otherwise appropriated— 

15 (1) $1,000,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

16 2025 through 2029; and 

17 (2) $264,300,000 for fiscal year 2030 and each 

18 fiscal year thereafter. 

19 (b) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The amount 

20 made available under subsection (a)(2) for fiscal year 

21 2031 and each fiscal year thereafter shall be adjusted an22 nually to reflect the change in the Consumer Price Index 

23 for All Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of 

24 Labor Statistics. 


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1 SEC. 308. TRIBAL COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY CONSTRUC2 TION, MODERNIZATION, AND REPAIR. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 112 of the Tribally Con4 trolled Colleges and Universities Assistance Act of 1978 

5 (25 U.S.C. 1812) is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 112. TRIBAL COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY CONSTRUC7 TION, MODERNIZATION, AND REPAIR. 

8 ‘‘(a) STUDY.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall con10 duct a study on the condition of facilities of tribally 

11 controlled colleges or universities, including facilities 

12 of Tribal Colleges or Universities (as defined in sec13 tion 316(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

14 (20 U.S.C. 1059c(b))). 

15 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENT.—The study under para16 graph (1) shall identify the need for new construc17 tion, renovation, and infrastructure enhancements of 

18 the Tribal Colleges and Universities. 

19 ‘‘(3) CONTRACT.—The Secretary may conduct 

20 the study required in subsection (a) directly or by 

21 contract. 

22 ‘‘(b) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after the 

23 date of enactment of the Honoring Promises to Native Na24 tions Act, the Secretary shall submit a report describing 

25 the results of the study under subsection (a) to— 


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1 ‘‘(1) the Committee on Indian Affairs of the 

2 Senate; 

3 ‘‘(2) the Subcommittee for Indian and Insular 

4 Affairs of the Committee on Natural Resources of 

5 the House of Representatives; 

6 ‘‘(3) the Committee on Appropriations of the 

7 Senate; and 

8 ‘‘(4) the Committee on Appropriations of the 

9 House of Representatives.’’. 

10 (b) INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENT.—Section 113 

11 of the Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities Assist12 ance Act of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 1813) is amended to read 

13 as follows: 

14 ‘‘SEC. 113. INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENT. 

15 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

16 ‘‘(1) CONSTRUCTION.—The term ‘construction’ 

17 includes any measure to address a facility construc18 tion, maintenance, renovation, reconstruction, or re19 placement need of a Tribal College or University. 

20 ‘‘(2) TRIBAL COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY.—The 

21 term ‘Tribal College or University’ means a Tribal 

22 College or University (as defined in section 316(b) 

23 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

24 1059c(b))) that was in operation as such a Tribal 

25 College or University— 


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1 ‘‘(A) during fiscal year 2024; or 

2 ‘‘(B) for a period of not fewer than 4 con3 secutive fiscal years through an affiliation with 

4 a tribally controlled college or university that 

5 received assistance under this title during fiscal 

6 year 2024. 

7 ‘‘(b) GRANTS.—Subject to the availability of appro8 priations, the Secretary shall provide to a Tribal College 

9 or University the application of which is approved under 

10 subsection (c) a grant for construction in accordance with 

11 this section. 

12 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to receive a 

14 grant under this section, a Tribal College or Univer15 sity shall submit to the Secretary an application at 

16 such time, in such manner, and containing such in17 formation as the Secretary may reasonably require. 

18 ‘‘(2) APPROVAL.—The Secretary shall approve 

19 an application submitted under paragraph (1) if the 

20 Secretary determines that— 

21 ‘‘(A) the application meets all applicable 

22 requirements established by the Secretary; and 

23 ‘‘(B) identifies a need for construction at 

24 the Tribal College or University. 


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1 ‘‘(d) ELIGIBLE ACTIVITIES.—A Tribal College or 

2 University shall use a grant provided under this section 

3 to address facilities and infrastructure needs, including— 

4 ‘‘(1) construction of new facilities, including— 

5 ‘‘(A) classrooms; 

6 ‘‘(B) administrative offices; 

7 ‘‘(C) libraries; 

8 ‘‘(D) health, fitness, and cultural centers; 

9 ‘‘(E) child care centers; 

10 ‘‘(F) technology centers; 

11 ‘‘(G) housing for students, faculty, and 

12 staff; and 

13 ‘‘(H) other facilities necessary to an insti14 tution of higher education; 

15 ‘‘(2) renovating or expanding an existing or ac16 quired facility; 

17 ‘‘(3) providing new or existing facilities with 

18 equipment and infrastructure, including— 

19 ‘‘(A) laboratory equipment; 

20 ‘‘(B) computer infrastructure and equip21 ment; 

22 ‘‘(C) broadband infrastructure and equip23 ment; 

24 ‘‘(D) library books; and 

25 ‘‘(E) furniture; and 


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1 ‘‘(4) property acquisition. 

2 ‘‘(e) NO MATCH REQUIREMENT.—A Tribal College 

3 or University that receives a grant under this section shall 

4 not be required to make a matching contribution for any 

5 Federal amounts received. 

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

7 is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

8 $525,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2025 through 

9 2027.’’. 

10 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 110(a)(3) 

11 of the Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities Assist12 ance Act of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 1810(a)(3)) is amended by 

13 striking ‘‘sections 112(b) and 113’’ and inserting ‘‘section 

14 112(b)’’. 

15 SEC. 309. SUPPORT FOR NATIVE STUDENTS AND EDU16 CATORS IN NATIVE-SERVING SCHOOLS. 

17 (a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to ad18 dress the shortage of qualified teachers serving American 

19 Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian elementary 

20 school and secondary school students by attracting, and 

21 retaining, quality teachers to Native-serving schools, while 

22 also increasing the number of American Indian, Alaska 

23 Native, and Native Hawaiian teachers in those schools. 

24 (b) SUPPORT FOR NATIVE STUDENTS AND EDU25 CATORS IN NATIVE-SERVING SCHOOLS.—Part B of title 


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1 II of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1031 

2 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

3 ‘‘Subpart 6—Support for Native Students and 

4 Educators in Native-Serving Schools 

5 ‘‘SEC. 259A. DEFINITIONS. 

6 ‘‘In this subpart: 

7 ‘‘(1) BUREAU-FUNDED SCHOOL.—The term 

8 ‘Bureau-funded school’ has the meaning given that 

9 term in section 1141 of the Education Amendments 

10 of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 2021). 

11 ‘‘(2) BUREAU OF INDIAN EDUCATION EARLY

12 CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM.—The term 

13 ‘Bureau of Indian Education early childhood devel14 opment program’ means a program operating under 

15 a grant authorized by section 1139 of the Education 

16 Amendments of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 2019). 

17 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBLE EDUCATOR.—The term ‘eligible 

18 educator’ means an individual who— 

19 ‘‘(A) received a stipend and mentoring 

20 under section 259B; 

21 ‘‘(B) completed the individual’s program of 

22 study and earned an undergraduate or graduate 

23 degree in early childhood education, elementary 

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1 tion from an institution of higher education; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(C) obtains full-time employment in a 

4 Native-serving school. 

5 ‘‘(4) ELIGIBLE STUDENT.—The term ‘eligible 

6 student’ means an individual who— 

7 ‘‘(A) is an Indian or a Native Hawaiian; 

8 ‘‘(B) is pursuing an undergraduate or 

9 graduate degree in early childhood education, 

10 elementary or secondary education, or school 

11 administration from an institution of higher 

12 education; and 

13 ‘‘(C) in the case of an undergraduate stu14 dent, has completed not less than 2 years of 

15 study toward the degree described in subpara16 graph (B). 

17 ‘‘(5) INDIAN.—The term ‘Indian’ has the mean18 ing given such term in section 316(b). 

19 ‘‘(6) NATIVE HAWAIIAN.—The term ‘Native 

20 Hawaiian’ has the meaning given the term in section 

21 6207 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 

22 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7517). 

23 ‘‘(7) NATIVE-SERVING SCHOOL.—The term ‘Na24 tive-serving school’ means— 


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1 ‘‘(A) a Bureau-funded school, including a 

2 Bureau of Indian Education early childhood de3 velopment program; 

4 ‘‘(B) a public elementary school or sec5 ondary school that, for the school year during 

6 which an eligible student or eligible educator is 

7 employed at such school for purposes of section 

8 259B(d)(2)(B) or 259C, respectively— 

9 ‘‘(i) has a student enrollment of 25 

10 percent or more Indian or Native Hawai11 ian students; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) is located in the school district of 

13 a local educational agency eligible for as14 sistance under part A of title I of the Ele15 mentary and Secondary Education Act of 

16 1965; 

17 ‘‘(C) a Tribal early childhood education 

18 program; or 

19 ‘‘(D) a federally funded early childhood 

20 education program that serves a significant 

21 number of Native students, as determined by 

22 the Secretary in consultation with Indian Tribes 

23 and in collaboration with a Native Hawaiian or24 ganization. 


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1 ‘‘(8) TRIBAL EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

2 PROGRAM.—The term ‘Tribal early childhood edu3 cation program’ means any of the following pro4 grams: 

5 ‘‘(A) A Head Start or Early Head Start 

6 program carried out under the Head Start Act 

7 (42 U.S.C. 9831 et seq.) that is located in 

8 Head Start region IX or XI. 

9 ‘‘(B) A Tribal child care and development 

10 program carried out under the Child Care and 

11 Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 

12 U.S.C. 9857 et seq.). 

13 ‘‘(C) A program serving children from 

14 birth through age 6 that— 

15 ‘‘(i) receives funding support from the 

16 Native American language preservation 

17 and maintenance program carried out 

18 under section 803C of the Native Amer19 ican Programs Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 

20 2991b–3); 

21 ‘‘(ii) is a Tribal prekindergarten pro22 gram; 

23 ‘‘(iii) is a program authorized under 

24 section 619 or part C of the Individuals 

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1 dent enrollment of 25 percent or more In2 dian or Native Hawaiian students; or 

3 ‘‘(iv) is a center-based or group-based 

4 early childhood learning or development 

5 program that the Secretary determines 

6 shall be included under this definition, 

7 after receiving a request from an Indian 

8 Tribe or a Native Hawaiian organization. 

9 ‘‘(9) TRIBAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The 

10 term ‘Tribal educational agency’ has the meaning 

11 given the term in section 6132(b) of the Elementary 

12 and Secondary Education Act of 1965. 

13 ‘‘SEC. 259B. STIPENDS AND MENTORING TO NATIVE STU14 DENTS PURSUING EDUCATION DEGREES. 

15 ‘‘(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—From amounts made 

16 available to carry out this section, the Secretary shall 

17 carry out a program under which the Secretary provides 

18 stipends under subsection (b) and mentoring through 

19 grants under subsection (c) to eligible students, in order 

20 to increase the number of Native teachers in Native-serv21 ing schools. 

22 ‘‘(b) STIPENDS.—A stipend provided under this sec23 tion shall be in an amount equal to $1,500 a month, for 

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1 ing to an undergraduate or graduate degree in early child2 hood education, elementary or secondary education, or 

3 school administration from an institution of higher edu4 cation and until the eligible student obtains the degree. 

5 ‘‘(c) MENTORING.—The Secretary shall award 

6 grants, on a competitive basis, to institutions of higher 

7 education serving American Indian, Alaska Native, or Na8 tive Hawaiian students, to enable the institution to estab9 lish programs that provide mentoring to all eligible stu10 dents receiving a stipend under this section. 

11 ‘‘(d) APPLICATIONS.—An eligible student desiring a 

12 stipend and mentoring under this section shall submit an 

13 application— 

14 ‘‘(1) at such time and in such manner as the 

15 Secretary shall require; and 

16 ‘‘(2) that includes— 

17 ‘‘(A) a commitment to continue pursuing 

18 an undergraduate or graduate degree in early 

19 childhood education, elementary or secondary 

20 education, or school administration at an insti21 tution of higher education during the period for 

22 which the eligible student receives a stipend; 

23 and 

24 ‘‘(B) a commitment to serve, upon comple25 tion of the degree described in subparagraph 


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1 (A), in a Native-serving school for a minimum 

2 of 3 years. 

3 ‘‘(e) REPORTING.—The Secretary shall annually pre4 pare and submit to Congress a report regarding the pro5 gram carried out under this section, which shall include 

6 the numbers and percentages of— 

7 ‘‘(1) eligible students receiving assistance under 

8 this section who complete their undergraduate or 

9 graduate degree; 

10 ‘‘(2) such students who begin teaching in a Na11 tive-serving school upon completion of the degree; 

12 and 

13 ‘‘(3) such students who teach in a Native-serv14 ing school for 3 years or more. 

15 ‘‘SEC. 259C. BONUSES AND MENTORING FOR NEW EDU16 CATORS. 

17 ‘‘(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary shall 

18 carry out a program through which the Secretary provides 

19 bonuses described in subsection (b) and mentoring 

20 through grants under subsection (c) to eligible educators 

21 employed in Native-serving schools, in order to address— 

22 ‘‘(1) the compensation gap between teaching 

23 and other professions; and 


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1 ‘‘(2) the additional living expenses that eligible 

2 educators face in order to work in Native-serving 

3 schools. 

4 ‘‘(b) BONUSES.—The amount of a bonus under this 

5 section shall be— 

6 ‘‘(1) not less than $10,000 for each year of full7 time teaching; and 

8 ‘‘(2) increased by $2,000 for each year that the 

9 eligible educator is employed in a Native-serving 

10 school. 

11 ‘‘(c) MENTORING.—The Secretary shall award 

12 grants, on a competitive basis, to local educational agen13 cies serving Native-serving schools to enable the local edu14 cational agencies to establish teacher mentorship pro15 grams that provide mentoring to all eligible educators re16 ceiving a bonus under this section for the first 3 years 

17 of the eligible educator’s employment in a Native-serving 

18 school. 

19 ‘‘(d) APPLICATIONS.—An eligible educator desiring a 

20 bonus and mentoring under this section shall submit an 

21 application— 

22 ‘‘(1) at such time and in such manner as the 

23 Secretary shall determine; and 

24 ‘‘(2) identifying the Native-serving school in 

25 which the eligible educator is employed. 


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1 ‘‘(e) REPORTING.—The Secretary shall annually pre2 pare and submit to Congress a report regarding the pro3 gram carried out under this section, which shall include 

4 the number and percentage of eligible educators receiving 

5 bonuses under this section who teach in Native-serving 

6 schools for not less than 3 years.’’. 

7 (c) NATIONAL BOARD CERTIFICATION INCENTIVE

8 PROGRAM.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Title VI of the Elementary 

10 and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

11 7401 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 

12 following: 

13 ‘‘PART D—NATIONAL BOARD CERTIFICATION 

14 INCENTIVE PROGRAM 

15 ‘‘SEC. 6401. NATIONAL BOARD CERTIFICATION INCENTIVE 

16 PROGRAM. 

17 ‘‘(a) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this section are— 

18 ‘‘(1) to improve the skills of qualified individ19 uals who are Indian or Native Hawaiian or who 

20 teach Indian or Native Hawaiian people; 

21 ‘‘(2) to provide an incentive for qualified edu22 cators to continue to utilize their enhanced skills in 

23 elementary schools and secondary schools serving In24 dian or Native Hawaiian communities; and 


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1 ‘‘(3) to increase the retention of highly skilled 

2 Indian or Native Hawaiian educators in elementary 

3 schools and secondary schools seeking to better in4 corporate Indian or Native Hawaiian culture and 

5 history into the general curriculum. 

6 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

7 ‘‘(1) BUREAU-FUNDED SCHOOL.—The term 

8 ‘Bureau-funded school’ has the meaning given the 

9 term in section 1141 of the Education Amendments 

10 of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 2021). 

11 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible en12 tity’ means— 

13 ‘‘(A) a State educational agency in consor14 tium with an institution of higher education; 

15 ‘‘(B) a local educational agency in consor16 tium with an institution of higher education; 

17 ‘‘(C) an Indian Tribe or organization or a 

18 Native Hawaiian organization, in consortium 

19 with a local educational agency and an institu20 tion of higher education; 

21 ‘‘(D) an Indian Tribe or organization, in 

22 consortium with a Bureau-funded school and an 

23 institution of higher education; or 

24 ‘‘(E) a Bureau-funded school in consor25 tium with an institution of higher education. 


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1 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBLE EDUCATOR.—The term ‘eligible 

2 educator’ means— 

3 ‘‘(A) a teacher who teaches a minimum 

4 number of Indian or Native Hawaiian students, 

5 as determined by the Secretary in consultation 

6 with Indian Tribes or in collaboration with a 

7 Native Hawaiian organization; or 

8 ‘‘(B) a teacher who is Indian or Native 

9 Hawaiian. 

10 ‘‘(4) INDIAN.—The term ‘Indian’ has the mean11 ing given the term in section 6151. 

12 ‘‘(5) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘Indian Tribe’ 

13 has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the 

14 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

15 Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 

16 ‘‘(6) NATIVE HAWAIIAN.—The term ‘Native 

17 Hawaiian’ has the meaning given the term in section 

18 6207. 

19 ‘‘(c) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary is au20 thorized to award grants to eligible entities having applica21 tions approved under this section to enable such eligible 

22 entities to— 

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1 tification or credentialing by the National Board for 

2 Professional Teaching Standards; and 

3 ‘‘(2) provide an increase in annual compensa4 tion, in an amount equal to not less than $5,000 

5 and not more than $10,000, for eligible educators 

6 with a certification from the National Board for 

7 Professional Teaching Standards for the duration of 

8 the grant under this section. 

9 ‘‘(d) APPLICATION.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each eligible entity desir11 ing a grant under this section shall submit an appli12 cation to the Secretary at such time, in such man13 ner, and accompanied by such information as the 

14 Secretary may reasonably require. 

15 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL RULE.—In the case of an eligible 

16 entity desiring to utilize all or a portion of a grant 

17 under this section for eligible educators identified in 

18 subparagraph (B) of subsection (b)(3) who would 

19 not also qualify as an eligible educator under sub20 paragraph (A) of such subsection, the eligible entity 

21 shall provide an assurance that grant funds will sup22 port only those educators who are Native Hawaiian 

23 or tribally enrolled or affiliated with an Indian 

24 Tribe. 


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1 ‘‘(e) AWARDING OF GRANTS.—In awarding grants 

2 under this section, the Secretary shall determine the 

3 amount and duration of each grant, which shall not exceed 

4 5 years. 

5 ‘‘(f) RESTRICTIONS ON COMPENSATION IN6 CREASES.—The Secretary shall require and ensure that 

7 individuals who obtain a certification from the National 

8 Board for Professional Teaching Standards under this 

9 section continue to teach at a school served by the eligible 

10 entity through which funding for such certification was ob11 tained as a condition of receiving annual compensation in12 creases provided for in this section. 

13 ‘‘(g) PROGRESS REPORTS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For every year for which 

15 Congress allocates funds for grants under this sec16 tion, the Secretary shall provide a report on the 

17 progress of the eligible entities receiving grants 

18 under this section in meeting applicable progress 

19 standards, as determined by the Secretary. 

20 ‘‘(2) DISSEMINATION.—The Secretary shall dis21 seminate each report described in this subsection to 

22 each of the following: 

23 ‘‘(A) The Committee on Health, Edu24 cation, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate. 


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1 ‘‘(B) The Committee on Indian Affairs of 

2 the Senate. 

3 ‘‘(C) The Subcommittee on Indian and In4 sular Affairs of the Committee on Natural Re5 sources of the House of Representatives. 

6 ‘‘(D) The Committee on Education and the 

7 Workforce of the House of Representatives.’’. 

8 (2) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of con9 tents for the Elementary and Secondary Education 

10 Act of 1965 is amended by inserting after the item 

11 relating to section 6306 the following: 

‘‘PART D—NATIONAL BOARD CERTIFICATION INCENTIVE PROGRAM

‘‘Sec. 6401. National Board certification incentive program.’’. 

12 (d) NATIVE LANGUAGE VITALIZATION AND TRAIN13 ING PROGRAM FOR TRIBAL COLLEGES OR UNIVERSITIES

14 AND OTHER INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION

15 SERVING SIGNIFICANT NUMBERS OF NATIVE STU16 DENTS.— 

17 (1) PROGRAM ESTABLISHED.—Part A of title 

18 III of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

19 1057 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 

20 following: 

21 ‘‘SEC. 320A. NATIVE AMERICAN LANGUAGE VITALIZATION 

22 AND TRAINING PROGRAM. 

23 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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1 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE INSTITUTION.—Notwithstanding 

2 section 312(b), the term ‘eligible institution’ 

3 means— 

4 ‘‘(A) a Tribal College or University; 

5 ‘‘(B) an Alaska Native-serving institution, 

6 as defined in section 317(b); or 

7 ‘‘(C) a Native Hawaiian-serving institu8 tion, as defined in section 317(b). 

9 ‘‘(2) NATIVE AMERICAN LANGUAGE.—The term 

10 ‘Native American language’ has the meaning given 

11 the term in section 103 of the Native American Lan12 guages Act (25 U.S.C. 2902). 

13 ‘‘(3) TRIBAL COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY.—The 

14 term ‘Tribal College or University’ has the meaning 

15 given the term in section 316(b). 

16 ‘‘(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to 

17 support eligible institutions in preserving and revitalizing 

18 endangered Native American languages through cur19 riculum development, instruction, student support, and in20 novative early childhood education programs and commu21 nity-based partnerships. 

22 ‘‘(c) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary shall 

23 establish a program, to be known as the ‘Tribal College 

24 or University Native American Language Vitalization and 

25 Training Program’, to award grants, on a competitive 


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1 basis, to eligible institutions to enable the eligible institu2 tions to carry out the authorized activities described in 

3 subsection (d). 

4 ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—Grants awarded 

5 under this section shall be used for one or more of the 

6 following activities: 

7 ‘‘(1) Native American language-oriented cur8 riculum development and academic and community9 based instruction, including educational activities, 

10 programs, and partnerships relating to students in 

11 early childhood education programs and in kinder12 garten through grade 12. 

13 ‘‘(2) Native American language-oriented profes14 sional development for faculty of eligible institutions, 

15 and Native American language-oriented in-service 

16 training programs for instructors and administrators 

17 of early childhood education programs, elementary 

18 schools, and secondary schools. 

19 ‘‘(3) Innovative Native American language pro20 grams for students in early childhood education pro21 grams and in kindergarten through grade 12, includ22 ing language immersion programs. 

23 ‘‘(4) Other activities proposed in the application 

24 submitted under subsection (e) that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) contribute to carrying out the pur2 poses of this section; and 

3 ‘‘(B) are approved by the Secretary in the 

4 review and acceptance of such application. 

5 ‘‘(e) APPLICATION AND OTHER PROVISIONS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) APPLICATION.—An eligible institution de7 siring a grant under this section shall submit an ap8 plication to the Secretary at such time and in such 

9 manner as the Secretary may require, consistent 

10 with the purpose of this section. 

11 ‘‘(2) STREAMLINED PROCESS.—Notwith12 standing section 393, the Secretary shall establish 

13 application requirements in such a manner as to 

14 simplify and streamline the process for applying for 

15 grants under this section. 

16 ‘‘(3) INCLUSIONS.—An application under this 

17 subsection shall include a plan for the program pro18 posed by the eligible institution receiving the grant, 

19 including— 

20 ‘‘(A) a description of a 5-year strategy of 

21 the eligible institution for meeting the needs of 

22 American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Ha23 waiians, or Native American Pacific Islanders, 

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1 tution, and how such plan is consistent with the 

2 purpose described in subsection (b); 

3 ‘‘(B)(i) an identification of the population 

4 to be served by the eligible institution; 

5 ‘‘(ii) an identification of the status of Na6 tive American language understanding and use 

7 within that population; and 

8 ‘‘(iii) a description of the manner in which 

9 the program will help preserve and revitalize 

10 the relevant Native American language; 

11 ‘‘(C) a description of the services to be 

12 provided under the program, including the man13 ner in which the services will be integrated with 

14 other appropriate activities of the relevant com15 munity; and 

16 ‘‘(D) a description, to be prepared in con17 sultation with the Secretary, of the performance 

18 measures to be used to assess the performance 

19 of the eligible institution in carrying out the 

20 program. 

21 ‘‘(4) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this 

22 section with funds described in section 

23 399(a)(1)(G)(i), the Secretary shall give priority to 

24 eligible institutions that received funding under sec25 tion 316 in fiscal year 2024. 


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1 ‘‘(5) CONCURRENT FUNDING.— 

2 ‘‘(A) TRIBAL COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY.— 

3 An eligible institution that is a Tribal College 

4 or University may, concurrently, receive a grant 

5 under this section and funds under section 316. 

6 ‘‘(B) ALASKA NATIVE-SERVING INSTITU7 TION OR NATIVE HAWAIIAN-SERVING INSTITU8 TION.—An eligible institution that is an Alaska 

9 Native-serving institution or Native Hawaiian10 serving institution may, concurrently, receive a 

11 grant under this section and funds under sec12 tion 317. 

13 ‘‘(6) EXEMPTIONS.—Sections 311(d), 313(d), 

14 314, 315, 316(d)(3), 317(d)(3), 318(i), 319(d)(3), 

15 320(d)(3), and 391 shall not apply with respect to 

16 a grant awarded under this section.’’. 

17 (2) APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 399(a)(1) of 

18 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

19 1068h(a)(1)) is amended— 

20 (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

21 ‘‘320’’ and inserting ‘‘320B’’; and 

22 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(G) There is authorized to be appropriated to 

24 carry out section 320A, and there is appropriated, 

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1 propriated, $40,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

2 2025 through 2030, of which, for each fiscal year— 

3 ‘‘(i) $35,000,000 shall be available for eli4 gible institutions that are Tribal Colleges or 

5 Universities, as described in section 

6 320A(a)(1)(A); and 

7 ‘‘(ii) $5,000,000 shall be available for eligi8 ble institutions described in subparagraph (B) 

9 or (C) of section 320A(a)(1). 

10 ‘‘(H) There is authorized to be appropriated to 

11 carry out section 320B, and there is appropriated, 

12 out of any monies in the Treasury not otherwise ap13 propriated, $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2025 

14 through 2030.’’. 

15 SEC. 310. JOHNSON-O’MALLEY FUNDING. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro17 priated to the Secretary of the Interior to carry out the 

18 Act of April 16, 1934 (48 Stat. 596, chapter 147; 25 

19 U.S.C. 5342 et seq.) (commonly known as the ‘‘Johnson20 O’Malley Act’’), and there is appropriated, out of any 

21 monies in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, 

22 $240,086,800 for fiscal year 2025 and each fiscal year 

23 thereafter. 

24 (b) ADJUSTMENT.—The amount made available 

25 under subsection (a) for fiscal year 2026 and each fiscal 


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1 year thereafter shall be increased annually to reflect 

2 whichever of the following changes would result in a great3 er amount: 

4 (1) The change in the number of eligible stu5 dents who are served or potentially served by a con6 tracting party (as defined in subsection (a) of sec7 tion 7 of the Act of April 16, 1934 (48 Stat. 596, 

8 chapter 147; 25 U.S.C. 5348)), as determined under 

9 subsection (b) of that section. 

10 (2) An annual increase of 6 percent. 

11 SEC. 311. NATIVE LANGUAGES. 

12 (a) NATIVE AMERICAN LANGUAGES GRANT PRO13 GRAM.—Section 816 of the Native American Programs 

14 Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 2992d) is amended by striking 

15 subsection (e) and inserting the following: 

16 ‘‘(e) FUNDING FOR NATIVE AMERICAN LANGUAGES

17 GRANT PROGRAM.— 

18 ‘‘(1) FUNDING FOR FISCAL YEARS 2025

19 THROUGH 2037.—There is authorized to be appro20 priated, and there is appropriated, out of any monies 

21 in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, to carry 

22 out section 803C $20,000,000 for each of fiscal 

23 years 2025 through 2037. 

24 ‘‘(2) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

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1 cal year 2026 and each fiscal year thereafter shall 

2 be adjusted annually to reflect the change in the 

3 Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers 

4 published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.’’. 

5 (b) INDIAN EDUCATION NATIONAL ACTIVITIES.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subpart 3 of part A of title 

7 VI of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 

8 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7451 et seq.) is amended by 

9 adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 6134. FUNDING. 

11 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro12 priated to carry out this subpart, and there is appro13 priated, out of any monies in the Treasury not otherwise 

14 appropriated, $13,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2025 

15 through 2033. 

16 ‘‘(b) RESERVATION.—From the amount made avail17 able under subsection (a), $5,000,000 shall be reserved 

18 to carry out section 6133.’’. 

19 (2) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of con20 tents for the Elementary and Secondary Education 

21 Act of 1965 is amended by inserting after the item 

22 relating to section 6133 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 6134. Funding.’’. 

23 (c) NATIVE AMERICAN LANGUAGE RESOURCE CEN24 TER.—Section 603 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

25 (20 U.S.C. 1123) is amended— 


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1 (1) by redesignating subsections (b) and (c) as 

2 subsections (c) and (d), respectively; 

3 (2) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(b) NATIVE AMERICAN LANGUAGE RESOURCE CEN6 TER AUTHORIZED.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized 

8 to, after engaging in consultation with Indian Tribes 

9 and after collaborating with Native Hawaiian orga10 nizations, make a grant to, or enter into a contract 

11 with, an eligible entity for the purpose of— 

12 ‘‘(A) establishing, strengthening, and oper13 ating a Native American language resource and 

14 training center as described in paragraph (2); 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(B) staffing the center with individuals 

17 who have high-level fluency in American Indian, 

18 Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian languages 

19 and are experienced with Native American lan20 guage education in preschool, elementary 

21 school, secondary school, adult education, and 

22 higher education programs. 

23 ‘‘(2) PURPOSES OF CENTER.—The Native 

24 American language resource center established under 

25 paragraph (1) shall serve as a resource to— 


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1 ‘‘(A) improve the capacity to teach and 

2 learn Native American languages and further 

3 Native American language acquisition; 

4 ‘‘(B) preserve, protect, and promote the 

5 rights and freedom of Native Americans to use, 

6 practice, and develop Native American lan7 guages; 

8 ‘‘(C) allow the United States to fulfill its 

9 trust responsibility to Native American commu10 nities and address the effects of past discrimi11 nation against Native American language 

12 speakers; 

13 ‘‘(D) support revitalization of Native 

14 American languages; 

15 ‘‘(E) encourage and support the use of Na16 tive American languages as a medium of in17 struction, including use as a medium of edu18 cation in schools operated by Indian Tribes, 

19 States, the Federal Government, and Native 

20 American language educational organizations; 

21 ‘‘(F) encourage and support the use and 

22 development of Native American languages as 

23 the medium of instruction for a wide variety of 

24 age levels and academic content areas; 


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1 ‘‘(G) support metrics aligned with the Na2 tive American language of instruction, including 

3 assessments, qualifications, and processes based 

4 on well-demonstrated best practices in Native 

5 American language medium education; 

6 ‘‘(H) identify barriers to Native American 

7 language education and learning within Federal 

8 laws and actions needed for alignment with the 

9 Native American Languages Act (25 U.S.C. 

10 2901 et seq.); 

11 ‘‘(I) encourage and support elementary 

12 schools, secondary schools, and institutions of 

13 higher education to include Native American 

14 languages in the curriculum in the same man15 ner as other world languages, including through 

16 cooperative agreements and distance education, 

17 and to grant proficiency in Native American 

18 languages the same full academic credit as pro19 ficiency in other world languages; 

20 ‘‘(J) encourage and support the develop21 ment of appropriate teacher preparation pro22 gramming for the teaching of, and through, Na23 tive American languages, including appropriate 

24 alternative pathways to teacher certification; 


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1 ‘‘(K) provide a resource base to provide in2 formation to Federal, Tribal, State, and local 

3 governments and Native American educational 

4 organizations to allow the spread of best prac5 tices in the use, practice, and development of 

6 Native American languages in Native American 

7 communities, including use in educational insti8 tutions; 

9 ‘‘(L) provide a resource base for the use of 

10 technology in intensive community-, land-, and 

11 archive-based programs, as well as hybrid and 

12 collaborative programs in supporting the reten13 tion, use, development, and teaching of Native 

14 American languages by government and private 

15 entities; 

16 ‘‘(M) support the acquisition of distance 

17 learning technologies and training for parents, 

18 students, teachers, and learning support staff, 

19 including the compilation and curation of dig20 ital libraries and other online resources in tar21 get Native American languages, the develop22 ment of distance learning curricula appropriate 

23 for preschool, elementary school, secondary 

24 school, adult education, and postsecondary edu25 cation, the pedagogical training for teachers, 


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1 and other efforts necessary to continue Native 

2 American language acquisition through distance 

3 learning; 

4 ‘‘(N) provide a developmental base from 

5 which interested Tribal Colleges and Univer6 sities and other Native American entities might 

7 develop fully functioning Native American lan8 guage medium education systems that include 

9 associated preschool, elementary school, sec10 ondary school, and adult education programs 

11 conducted through the medium of Native Amer12 ican languages; 

13 ‘‘(O) provide a means to further collabora14 tion among formal government, institutional, 

15 and community-based Native American lan16 guage programs, resources, and research efforts 

17 with additional access to international best 

18 practices in indigenous language revitalization; 

19 ‘‘(P) develop a support center system for 

20 Native American language participants to gath21 er and share helpful information and experi22 ences; and 

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1 tion if, in doing so, the Native American lan2 guage resource and training center— 

3 ‘‘(i) does so as a subsidiary activity; 

4 ‘‘(ii) focuses benefits on Native Amer5 icans living in Native American commu6 nities, or closely tied to such communities; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(iii) ensures that one of the out9 comes being strengthened through this 

10 subparagraph is the use of one or more 

11 Native American languages in a Native 

12 American community. 

13 ‘‘(3) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

14 ‘‘(A) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligi15 ble entity’ means— 

16 ‘‘(i) an institution of higher education; 

17 ‘‘(ii) an entity within an institution of 

18 higher education with dedicated responsi19 bility for Native American language and 

20 culture education; 

21 ‘‘(iii) a consortium of such institu22 tions; 

23 ‘‘(iv) a consortium of such institutions 

24 and other entities with unique responsibil25 ities for Native American languages; 


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1 ‘‘(v) an Indian Tribe; 

2 ‘‘(vi) a consortium of Indian Tribes; 

3 or 

4 ‘‘(vii) a Native Hawaiian organization. 

5 ‘‘(B) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘Indian 

6 Tribe’ has the meaning given the term in sec7 tion 5 of the Honoring Promises to Native Na8 tions Act. 

9 ‘‘(C) NATIVE AMERICAN; NATIVE AMER10 ICAN LANGUAGE.—The terms ‘Native Amer11 ican’ and ‘Native American language’ have the 

12 meanings given those terms in section 103 of 

13 the Native American Languages Act (25 U.S.C. 

14 2902). 

15 ‘‘(D) NATIVE HAWAIIAN ORGANIZATION.— 

16 The term ‘Native Hawaiian organization’ has 

17 the meaning given the term in section 5 of the 

18 Honoring Promises to Native Nations Act.’’; 

19 and 

20 (3) in the matter preceding paragraph (1) of 

21 subsection (c), as redesignated by paragraph (1), by 

22 striking ‘‘subsection (a)’’ and inserting ‘‘this sec23 tion’’. 

24 SEC. 312. CULTURALLY INCLUSIVE EDUCATION. 

25 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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1 (1) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 

2 the Director of the Bureau of Indian Education. 

3 (2) ELIGIBLE PROGRAM PARTICIPANT.—The 

4 term ‘‘eligible program participant’’ means— 

5 (A) a high school teacher, a teacher of one 

6 of the middle grades, or a school leader of a 

7 high school or a school that includes one of the 

8 middle grades (as those terms are defined in 

9 section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary 

10 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801)); 

11 (B) an educational leader or expert who is 

12 not employed by a local educational agency (as 

13 defined in section 8101 of the Elementary and 

14 Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

15 7801)) or an elementary school or secondary 

16 school (as those terms are defined in that sec17 tion) that is independent of any local edu18 cational agency; or 

19 (C) a prospective teacher enrolled in a pro20 gram of postsecondary education coursework or 

21 preservice clinical education. 

22 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

23 the Secretary of Education. 

24 (b) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED; APPROPRIATION.— 


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1 (1) FUNDING.—There is authorized to be ap2 propriated to carry out this section, and there is ap3 propriated, out of any monies in the Treasury not 

4 otherwise appropriated, $15,000,000. 

5 (2) DONATIONS, GIFTS, BEQUESTS, AND DE6 VISES OF PROPERTY.—In accordance with chapter 

7 23 of title 36, United States Code, and in further8 ance of the purposes of this section, the Director 

9 and Secretary are authorized to solicit, accept, hold, 

10 administer, invest, and use donated funds and gifts, 

11 bequests, and devises of property, both real and per12 sonal. 

13 (3) USE OF FUNDS.—The Director, in coordina14 tion with the Secretary, using funds appropriated 

15 under paragraph (1) and resources received under 

16 paragraph (2), and including through the engage17 ment of eligible program participants as appro18 priate— 

19 (A) shall develop and nationally dissemi20 nate accurate, relevant, and accessible resources 

21 to promote understanding about Native Amer22 ican history, the Native American experience, 

23 and the legal responsibility of the Federal Gov24 ernment to Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiian 

25 people, which shall include digital resources and 


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1 may include other types of resources, such as 

2 print resources and traveling exhibitions, with 

3 the goal of helping educators overcome barriers 

4 to accessing reliable, quality, and accurate re5 sources that will improve awareness and under6 standing of those subjects; and 

7 (B) may carry out one or more of the fol8 lowing Native American education program ac9 tivities: 

10 (i) Development, dissemination, and 

11 implementation of principles of sound ped12 agogy for teaching about Native American 

13 history. 

14 (ii) Provision of professional develop15 ment for eligible program participants, 

16 such as through— 

17 (I) local, regional, and national 

18 workshops; 

19 (II) teacher trainings in conjunc20 tion with Native American history 

21 education centers and other appro22 priate partners; 

23 (III) engagement with— 

24 (aa) local educational agen25 cies (as defined in section 8101 


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1 of the Elementary and Secondary 

2 Education Act of 1965 (20 

3 U.S.C. 7801)); and 

4 (bb) high schools and 

5 schools that include one of the 

6 middle grades (as defined in that 

7 section) that are independent of 

8 any local educational agency; and 

9 (IV) operation and expansion of 

10 a teacher fellowship program to cul11 tivate and support leaders in Native 

12 American history education. 

13 (iii) Engagement with State and local 

14 education leaders to encourage the adop15 tion of resources supported under this sec16 tion into curricula across diverse dis17 ciplines. 

18 (iv) Evaluation and research to assess 

19 the effectiveness and impact of Native 

20 American history education programs, 

21 which may include completion of the report 

22 required under subsection (e). 

23 (4) APPLICATIONS.—The Director, in coordina24 tion with the Secretary, may seek the engagement of 

25 an eligible program participant under paragraph (3) 


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1 by requiring submission of an application to the Di2 rector at such time, in such manner, and based on 

3 such competitive criteria as the Director may re4 quire. 

5 (c) ONLINE NATIVE AMERICAN EDUCATION RE6 SOURCES.— 

7 (1) WEBSITE.—The Secretary of the Interior 

8 shall maintain on the website of the Department of 

9 the Interior a special section designated for Native 

10 American history and Tribal governance resources to 

11 improve awareness and understanding of the Federal 

12 trust responsibility and treaty obligations, Tribal 

13 governance systems, Native American history in the 

14 United States, and cultural assimilation practices of 

15 the Indian boarding school experience, as a means to 

16 raise awareness about the importance of preventing 

17 genocide, hate, and bigotry against any group of 

18 people. The website and resources shall be made 

19 publicly available. 

20 (2) INFORMATION DISTRIBUTION.—The Direc21 tor shall distribute information about the activities 

22 funded under this section through the website of the 

23 Department of the Interior, and shall respond to in24 quiries for supplementary information concerning 

25 such activities. 


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1 (3) BEST PRACTICES.—The information distrib2 uted by the Director shall include best practices for 

3 educators. 

4 (d) ENGAGEMENT OF ELIGIBLE PROGRAM PARTICI5 PANTS.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible program partici7 pant shall be engaged at the discretion of the Direc8 tor to participate in Native American history edu9 cation program activities authorized under this sec10 tion and approved by the Director pursuant to an 

11 application described in subsection (b)(4). 

12 (2) ENGAGEMENT PERIOD.—Engagement of eli13 gible program participants under this section shall 

14 be for a period determined by the Director. 

15 (3) PRIORITY.—In engaging eligible program 

16 participants under subsection (b), the Director shall 

17 give priority to applications from such participants 

18 who work for or with a local educational agency, or 

19 a school that is independent of any local educational 

20 agency, that works with an Indian Tribe within the 

21 territorial boundaries of the State in which the agen22 cy or school provides educational services, to develop 

23 the appropriate curriculum for the agency or school. 


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1 (e) ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later than February 1 of 

2 each year, the Director shall submit to Congress a report 

3 describing the activities carried out under this section. 

4 SEC. 313. ALASKA NATIVE EDUCATION PROGRAMS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Part C of title VI of the Elemen6 tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

7 7541 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the fol8 lowing: 

9 ‘‘SEC. 6307. FUNDING. 

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), there 

11 is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this part, 

12 and there is appropriated, out of any monies in the Treas13 ury not otherwise appropriated, $44,000,000 for fiscal 

14 year 2025 and each fiscal year thereafter. 

15 ‘‘(b) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The amount 

16 made available under subsection (a) for fiscal year 2026 

17 and each fiscal year thereafter shall be adjusted annually 

18 to reflect the change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

19 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor Sta20 tistics.’’. 

21 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

22 the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 is 

23 amended by inserting after the item relating to section 

24 6306 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 6307. Funding.’’. 


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1 SEC. 314. EVERY STUDENT SUCCEEDS ACT IMPLEMENTA2 TION. 

3 (a) STUDENT ASSESSMENT SYSTEMS.—Section 8204 

4 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 

5 (20 U.S.C. 7824) is amended by adding at the end the 

6 following: 

7 ‘‘(d) FUNDING.—There are authorized to be appro8 priated, and there are appropriated, out of any monies in 

9 the Treasury not otherwise appropriated— 

10 ‘‘(1) $35,000,000 for fiscal year 2025 to de11 velop assessments consistent with section 1111 for 

12 Bureau-funded schools; and 

13 ‘‘(2) $20,000,000 for fiscal year 2026 and each 

14 succeeding fiscal year to carry out the assessments 

15 consistent with section 1111 for Bureau-funded 

16 schools.’’. 

17 (b) INDIAN EDUCATION FORMULA GRANTS.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subpart 1 of part A of title 

19 VI of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act 

20 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7521 et seq.) is amended by 

21 adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 6119A. FUNDING. 

23 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), there 

24 is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subpart, 

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1 ury not otherwise appropriated, $198,000,000 for fiscal 

2 year 2025 and each fiscal year thereafter. 

3 ‘‘(b) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The amount 

4 made available under subsection (a) for fiscal year 2026 

5 and each fiscal year thereafter shall be adjusted annually 

6 to reflect the change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

7 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor Sta8 tistics.’’. 

9 (2) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of con10 tents for the Elementary and Secondary Education 

11 Act of 1965 is amended by inserting after the item 

12 relating to section 6119 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 6119A. Funding.’’. 

13 SEC. 315. FUNDING FOR LOCAL TRIBAL EDUCATIONAL 

14 AGENCIES AND TRIBAL EDUCATION OFFICES. 

15 (a) DEFINITION OF TRIBAL EDUCATIONAL AGEN16 CY.—In this section, the term ‘‘Tribal educational agency’’ 

17 means the agency, department, or instrumentality of an 

18 Indian tribe (as defined in section 6132(b) of the Elemen19 tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

20 7452(b))) that is primarily responsible for supporting the 

21 elementary and secondary education of students who are 

22 members of the Indian Tribe. 

23 (b) FUNDING.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

25 there are authorized to be appropriated to make 


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1 grants to Tribal educational agencies, and there are 

2 appropriated, out of any monies in the Treasury not 

3 otherwise appropriated, for fiscal year 2025 and 

4 each fiscal year thereafter— 

5 (A) to the Secretary of Education, 

6 $10,000,000; and 

7 (B) to the Secretary of the Interior, 

8 $10,000,000. 

9 (2) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

10 amounts made available under subparagraphs (A) 

11 and (B) of paragraph (1) for fiscal year 2026 and 

12 each fiscal year thereafter shall be adjusted annually 

13 to reflect the change in the Consumer Price Index 

14 for All Urban Consumers published by the Bureau 

15 of Labor Statistics. 

16 SEC. 316. GRADUATE OPPORTUNITIES AT TRIBAL COL17 LEGES AND UNIVERSITIES. 

18 Part A of title III of the Higher Education Act of 

19 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1057 et seq.), as amended by section 

20 309(d), is further amended by adding at the end the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 320B. STRENGTHENING PROFESSIONAL AND GRAD23 UATE OPPORTUNITIES AT TRIBAL COLLEGES 

24 AND UNIVERSITIES. 

25 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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1 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE INSTITUTION.—Notwithstanding 

2 section 312(b), the term ‘eligible institution’ means 

3 an institution of higher education that— 

4 ‘‘(A) is a Tribal College or University; and 

5 ‘‘(B) offers a professional certificate or 

6 graduate degree program. 

7 ‘‘(2) TRIBAL COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY.—The 

8 term ‘Tribal College or University’ has the meaning 

9 given the term in section 316(b). 

10 ‘‘(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this section are 

11 to— 

12 ‘‘(1) expand professional and graduate edu13 cational opportunities for, and improve the academic 

14 attainment of, American Indians and Alaska Natives 

15 in high-demand fields and fields in which American 

16 Indians and Alaska Natives are underrepresented; 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(2) strengthen and enhance the quality of pro19 fessional and graduate programs at Tribal Colleges 

20 and Universities. 

21 ‘‘(c) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award 

23 grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible institutions 

24 to enable the eligible institutions to carry out the au25 thorized activities described in subsection (e). 


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1 ‘‘(2) DURATION.—A grant awarded under this 

2 section shall be for a period of not more than 5 

3 years. 

4 ‘‘(d) APPLICATION AND AWARD BASIS.— 

5 ‘‘(1) APPLICATION.—An eligible institution de6 siring a grant under this section shall submit an ap7 plication to the Secretary at such time and in such 

8 manner as the Secretary may require. Such applica9 tion shall demonstrate how the grant funds will be 

10 used to strengthen graduate and professional oppor11 tunities for American Indian and Alaska Native stu12 dents at Tribal Colleges and Universities. 

13 ‘‘(2) STREAMLINED PROCESS.—The Secretary 

14 shall establish application requirements in such a 

15 manner as to simplify and streamline the process for 

16 applying for grants under this section. 

17 ‘‘(3) PRIORITY.—Notwithstanding section 

18 313(b), in awarding grants under this section, the 

19 Secretary shall give priority to institutions receiving 

20 funding under section 316 for fiscal year 2024. 

21 ‘‘(e) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—Grants awarded 

22 under this section shall be used for 1 or more of the fol23 lowing activities: 


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1 ‘‘(1) Purchase, rental, or lease of scientific or 

2 laboratory equipment for educational purposes, in3 cluding instructional and research purposes. 

4 ‘‘(2) Construction, maintenance, renovation, 

5 and improvement of classrooms, libraries, labora6 tories, and other instructional facilities, including 

7 purchase or rental of telecommunications technology 

8 equipment or services. 

9 ‘‘(3) Purchase of library books, periodicals, 

10 technical and other scientific journals, microfilm, 

11 microfiche, and other educational materials, includ12 ing telecommunications program materials. 

13 ‘‘(4) Support for American Indian and Alaska 

14 Native students including outreach, academic sup15 port services, mentoring, scholarships, fellowships, 

16 and other financial assistance to permit the enroll17 ment of such students in professional certificate pro18 grams and graduate degree programs. 

19 ‘‘(5) Establishment or improvement of a devel20 opment office to strengthen and increase contribu21 tions from professional and graduate alumni and the 

22 private sector. 

23 ‘‘(6) Assistance in the establishment or mainte24 nance of an institutional endowment to facilitate fi25 nancial independence pursuant to section 331. 


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1 ‘‘(7) Professional and graduate program funds 

2 management and administrative management, and 

3 the acquisition of equipment, including software, for 

4 use in strengthening such funds management and 

5 management information systems. 

6 ‘‘(8) Acquisition of real property that is adja7 cent to the campus in connection with the construc8 tion, renovation, or improvement of, or an addition 

9 to, a campus facility essential to a professional cer10 tificate program or graduate degree program. 

11 ‘‘(9) Education or financial information de12 signed to improve the financial literacy and economic 

13 literacy of professional and graduate students, espe14 cially with regard to student indebtedness and stu15 dent assistance programs under title IV. 

16 ‘‘(10) Tutoring, counseling, and student service 

17 programs designed to improve academic success. 

18 ‘‘(11) Support of faculty exchanges, faculty de19 velopment, faculty research, research publication and 

20 dissemination, curriculum development, academic in21 struction, and student research mentoring. 

22 ‘‘(12) Creation and improvement of a facility 

23 for broadband or other distance education tech24 nology, including purchase or rental of telecommuni25 cations technology equipment or services. 


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1 ‘‘(13) Collaboration with other institutions of 

2 higher education to expand graduate degree pro3 grams and professional certificates. 

4 ‘‘(14) Other activities proposed in the applica5 tion submitted pursuant to subsection (d) that— 

6 ‘‘(A) contribute to carrying out the pur7 poses of this section; and 

8 ‘‘(B) are approved by the Secretary in the 

9 review and acceptance of such application. 

10 ‘‘(f) SPECIAL RULES.— 

11 ‘‘(1) CONCURRENT FUNDING.—An eligible insti12 tution that receives a grant under this section may 

13 concurrently receive funds under section 316. 

14 ‘‘(2) LIMIT ON NUMBER OF GRANTS.—An eligi15 ble institution shall not receive more than 1 grant 

16 under this section in any fiscal year. 

17 ‘‘(3) EXEMPTION.—Section 313(d) shall not 

18 apply to an eligible institution that receives a grant 

19 under this section.’’. 

20 TITLE IV—HOUSING 

21 SEC. 401. FINDINGS. 

22 Congress finds that— 

23 (1) there is a housing crisis in Indian country 

24 that has worsened over the 20-year period preceding 

25 the date of introduction of this Act; 


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1 (2) the trust obligations of the Federal Govern2 ment include providing housing opportunities for 

3 Native Americans; 

4 (3) funding for the block grant programs under 

5 titles I and VIII of the Native American Housing 

6 Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 

7 U.S.C. 4111 et seq., 25 U.S.C. 4221 et seq.)— 

8 (A) has not matched inflation; and 

9 (B) fails to cover the growing construction 

10 costs and demand for housing in Indian coun11 try; 

12 (4) due in part to a lack of affordable housing, 

13 many Native Americans live in overcrowded condi14 tions, resulting in— 

15 (A) the average household size for Native 

16 Americans exceeding that of the overall average 

17 household size in the United States; and 

18 (B) overcrowding rates in Tribal areas ex19 ceeding that of the overall overcrowding rate in 

20 other areas in the United States; 

21 (5) lack of access to water is a substantially 

22 larger problem in Indian country than in the United 

23 States as a whole; and 

24 (6) the historical displacement by the Federal 

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1 mote locations and the ongoing failure of the Fed2 eral Government to support the development of ade3 quate infrastructure, including access to water, 

4 roads, and other basic utilities, continues to exacer5 bate housing inequities in Indian country. 

6 SEC. 402. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

7 It is the sense of Congress that— 

8 (1) the Federal Government should provide 

9 steady, equitable, noncompetitive, and nondis10 cretionary funding directly to Indian Tribes, Tribal 

11 governments, Tribal organizations, and Native Ha12 waiian organizations to support the development of 

13 housing; 

14 (2) legislation to address the housing needs in 

15 Native American, Alaska Native, and Native Hawai16 ian communities (known as the ‘‘American Housing 

17 and Economic Mobility Act of 2021’’, S. 1368 and 

18 H.R. 2768, 117th Congress, as introduced in April 

19 2021 and previously supported in a resolution adopt20 ed by the National American Indian Housing Coun21 cil) should be enacted without delay; and 

22 (3) the Secretary of Housing and Urban Devel23 opment should continue to consult with Indian 

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1 sure that Indian Tribes, Tribal organizations, and 

2 Native Hawaiian organizations are maximizing their 

3 capacity and technical expertise to provide for in4 creased housing and infrastructure in their commu5 nities. 

6 SEC. 403. INDIAN HOUSING BLOCK GRANT PROGRAM. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 108 of the Native Amer8 ican Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 

9 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4117) is amended to read as follows: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 108. FUNDING. 

11 ‘‘(a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

12 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary such 

13 sums as are necessary to provide grants under this title 

14 for fiscal year 2025 and each fiscal year thereafter. 

15 ‘‘(b) MANDATORY FUNDING.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—On October 1, 2025, and 

17 on each October 1 thereafter, out of any funds in 

18 the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, the Sec19 retary of the Treasury shall transfer to the Sec20 retary to provide grants under this title 

21 $2,500,000,000, to remain available until expended. 

22 ‘‘(2) INFLATION ADJUSTMENT.—The amount 

23 made available under paragraph (1) for fiscal year 

24 2026 and each fiscal year thereafter shall be ad25 justed annually to reflect the change in the ConVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:13 Jan 27, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00176 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5636.IS S5636

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1 sumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers pub2 lished by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

3 ‘‘(3) RECEIPT AND ACCEPTANCE.—The Sec4 retary shall be entitled to receive, shall accept, and 

5 shall use to provide grants under this title the funds 

6 transferred under paragraph (1), without further ap7 propriation.’’. 

8 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

9 The table of sections in section 1(b) of the Native Amer10 ican Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 

11 1996 (Public Law 104–330; 110 Stat. 4016) is amended 

12 by striking the item relating to section 108 and inserting 

13 the following: 

‘‘108. Funding.’’. 

14 SEC. 404. NATIVE HAWAIIAN HOUSING BLOCK GRANT PRO15 GRAM. 

16 Section 824 of the Native American Housing Assist17 ance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 

18 4243) is amended— 

19 (1) by striking ‘‘are authorized’’ and inserting 

20 ‘‘is authorized’’; and 

21 (2) by striking ‘‘such sums as may be necessary 

22 for each of fiscal years 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, and 

23 2005’’ and inserting ‘‘$47,000,000 for fiscal year 

24 2025 and each fiscal year thereafter’’. 


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1 SEC. 405. SET-ASIDE OF USDA RURAL HOUSING FUNDING 

2 FOR INDIAN TRIBES. 

3 Section 509 of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 

4 1479) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(g) SET-ASIDE FOR INDIAN TRIBES.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For each fiscal year, the 

7 Secretary shall set aside and reserve for assistance 

8 for Indian tribes (as defined in section 4 of the Na9 tive American Housing Assistance and Self-Deter10 mination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4103)) an amount 

11 equal to 5.0 percent in each fiscal year of the aggre12 gate amount of lending authority, budget authority, 

13 or guarantee authority, as appropriate, made avail14 able for the fiscal year for assistance under each of 

15 sections 502, 504, 515, 533, and 538 and of the ag16 gregate amount made available to the Rural Utilities 

17 Service to carry out programs or activities. 

18 ‘‘(2) REALLOCATION.—The procedure under 

19 paragraph (1) for reserving amounts shall provide 

20 that any assistance set aside in any fiscal year for 

21 Indian tribes that has not been expended by a rea22 sonable date established by the Secretary shall be 

23 made available and allocated under the laws and 

24 regulations relating to such assistance, notwith25 standing this subsection.’’. 


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1 SEC. 406. RESTORING AUTHORITY OF INDIAN TRIBES AND 

2 TRIBALLY DESIGNATED HOUSING ENTITIES 

3 IN CERTAIN HOUSING PROGRAMS. 

4 (a) VOUCHER PROGRAM.—Section 502 of the Native 

5 American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act 

6 of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4181) is amended by adding at the 

7 end the following: 

8 ‘‘(c) APPLICABILITY.—Subsections (a) and (b) shall 

9 not apply with respect to tenant-based assistance provided 

10 under section 8(o) of the United States Housing Act of 

11 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(o)).’’. 

12 (b) HUD COUNSELING.—Section 106(a)(4)(A) of the 

13 Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968 (12 U.S.C. 

14 1701x(a)(4)(A)) is amended by striking ‘‘and State hous15 ing finance agencies’’ and inserting ‘‘State housing finance 

16 agencies, and tribally designated housing entities (as de17 fined in section 4 of the Native American Housing Assist18 ance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 

19 4103)).’’. 

20 SEC. 407. INDIAN COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK 

21 GRANTS. 

22 Title I of the Housing and Community Development 

23 Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.) is amended by add24 ing at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 123. INDIAN COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK 

2 GRANTS. 

3 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In addition to any amounts allo4 cated to Indian tribes under section 106(a)(1), there is 

5 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary for grants 

6 under this title for Indian tribes, and there is appro7 priated, out of any monies in the Treasury not otherwise 

8 appropriated, $150,000,000 for fiscal year 2025 and each 

9 fiscal year thereafter. 

10 ‘‘(b) INFLATIONARY ADJUSTMENT.—The amount 

11 made available under subsection (a) for fiscal year 2026 

12 and each fiscal year thereafter shall be adjusted annually 

13 to reflect the change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

14 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor Sta15 tistics.’’. 

16 SEC. 408. LOAN GUARANTEES FOR INDIAN HOUSING. 

17 (a) HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT ACT

18 OF 1992.—Section 184(i)(7) of the Housing and Commu19 nity Development Act of 1992 (12 U.S.C. 1715z– 

20 13a(i)(7)) is amended to read as follows: 

21 ‘‘(7) APPROPRIATIONS.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—To carry out this sec23 tion, there is authorized to be appropriated to 

24 the Guarantee Fund, and there is appropriated, 

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1 wise appropriated, $20,000,000 for fiscal year 

2 2025 and each fiscal year thereafter. 

3 ‘‘(B) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

4 amount made available under subparagraph (A) 

5 for fiscal year 2026 and each fiscal year there6 after shall be adjusted annually to reflect the 

7 change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

8 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of 

9 Labor Statistics.’’. 

10 (b) NATIVE AMERICAN HOUSING ASSISTANCE AND

11 SELF-DETERMINATION ACT OF 1996.—Title VI of the 

12 Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determina13 tion Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4191 et seq.) is amended— 

14 (1) by striking the first section 606 (25 U.S.C. 

15 4191 note) (relating to the effective date); and 

16 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘SEC. 607. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

18 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec19 retary to provide loan guarantees under this title— 

20 ‘‘(1) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2025; and 

21 ‘‘(2) for fiscal year 2026 and each fiscal year 

22 thereafter, the applicable amount during the pre23 ceding fiscal year, as adjusted to reflect changes for 

24 the 12-month period ending the preceding November 

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1 sumers published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics 

2 of the Department of Labor.’’. 

3 SEC. 409. LOAN GUARANTEES FOR NATIVE HAWAIIAN 

4 HOUSING. 

5 Section 184A(j)(7) of the Housing and Community 

6 Development Act of 1992 (12 U.S.C. 1715z–13b(j)(7)) is 

7 amended— 

8 (1) by striking ‘‘such sums as may be necessary 

9 for each of fiscal years 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, and 

10 2005’’ and inserting ‘‘$2,500,000 for fiscal year 

11 2025 and each fiscal year thereafter’’; 

12 (2) by striking ‘‘There are’’ and inserting the 

13 following: 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara15 graph (B), there is’’; and 

16 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(B) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

18 amount made available under subparagraph (A) 

19 for fiscal year 2026 and each fiscal year there20 after shall be adjusted annually to reflect the 

21 change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

22 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of 

23 Labor Statistics.’’. 


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1 SEC. 410. DIRECT HOUSING LOANS FOR NATIVE AMERICAN 

2 VETERANS PROGRAM. 

3 (a) FUNDING REAUTHORIZATION.—Section 3763 of 

4 title 38, United States Code, is amended— 

5 (1) by redesignating subsection (b) as sub6 section (c); and 

7 (2) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol8 lowing: 

9 ‘‘(b) FUNDING.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For fiscal year 2025 and 

11 each fiscal year thereafter, there is authorized to be 

12 appropriated, and there is appropriated, out of any 

13 monies in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, 

14 $20,000,000 to the Secretary, for deposit in the Ac15 count. 

16 ‘‘(2) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

17 amount made available under paragraph (1) for fis18 cal year 2026 and each fiscal year thereafter shall 

19 be adjusted annually to reflect the change in the 

20 Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers 

21 published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.’’. 

22 (b) DEFINITION OF NATIVE HAWAIIAN VETERANS.— 

23 Section 3765(3)(B) of title 38, United States Code, is 

24 amended by striking ‘‘native Hawaiian, as that term is 

25 defined in section 201(a)(7) of the Hawaiian Homes Com26 mission Act, 1920 (Public Law 67–34; 42 Stat. 108)’’ and 


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1 inserting ‘‘Native Hawaiian, as that term is defined in sec2 tion 6207 of the Native Hawaiian Education Act (20 

3 U.S.C. 7517)’’. 

4 SEC. 411. TRIBAL HUD–VASH PROGRAM. 

5 Section 8(o)(19) of the United States Housing Act 

6 of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(o)(19)) is amended by adding 

7 at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(E) INDIAN VETERANS HOUSING RENTAL

9 ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.— 

10 ‘‘(i) DEFINITIONS.—In this subpara11 graph: 

12 ‘‘(I) ELIGIBLE INDIAN VET13 ERAN.—The term ‘eligible Indian vet14 eran’ means an Indian veteran who 

15 is— 

16 ‘‘(aa) homeless or at risk of 

17 homelessness; and 

18 ‘‘(bb) living— 

19 ‘‘(AA) on or near a res20 ervation; or 

21 ‘‘(BB) in or near any 

22 other Indian area. 

23 ‘‘(II) ELIGIBLE RECIPIENT.— 

24 The term ‘eligible recipient’ means a 

25 recipient eligible to receive a grant 


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1 under section 101 of the Native 

2 American Housing Assistance and 

3 Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 

4 U.S.C. 4111). 

5 ‘‘(III) INDIAN; INDIAN AREA.— 

6 The terms ‘Indian’ and ‘Indian area’ 

7 have the meanings given those terms 

8 in section 4 of the Native American 

9 Housing Assistance and Self-Deter10 mination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 

11 4103). 

12 ‘‘(IV) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term 

13 ‘Indian Tribe’ means the governing 

14 body of any individually identified and 

15 Federally recognized Indian or Alaska 

16 Native tribe, band, nation, pueblo, vil17 lage, community, affiliated Tribal 

18 group, or component reservation in19 cluded on the list published pursuant 

20 to section 104(a) of the Federally 

21 Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 

22 1994 (25 U.S.C. 5131(a)). 

23 ‘‘(V) INDIAN VETERAN.—The 

24 term ‘Indian veteran’ means an In25 dian who is a veteran. 


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1 ‘‘(VI) PROGRAM.—The term 

2 ‘Program’ means the Tribal HUD– 

3 VASH program carried out under 

4 clause (ii). 

5 ‘‘(VII) TRIBAL ORGANIZATION.— 

6 The term ‘Tribal organization’ has the 

7 meaning given the term in section 4 

8 of the Indian Self-Determination and 

9 Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 

10 5304). 

11 ‘‘(ii) PROGRAM SPECIFICATIONS.— 

12 The Secretary shall carry out a rental as13 sistance and supported housing program, 

14 to be known as the ‘Tribal HUD–VASH 

15 program’, in conjunction with the Sec16 retary of Veterans Affairs, by awarding 

17 grants for the benefit of eligible Indian vet18 erans. 

19 ‘‘(iii) MODEL.— 

20 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Except as 

21 provided in subclause (II), the Sec22 retary shall model the Program on the 

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1 priation Acts, including administra2 tion in conjunction with the Secretary 

3 of Veterans Affairs. 

4 ‘‘(II) EXCEPTIONS.— 

5 ‘‘(aa) SECRETARY OF HOUS6 ING AND URBAN DEVELOP7 MENT.—After consultation with 

8 Indian Tribes and collaboration 

9 with eligible recipients and any 

10 other appropriate Tribal organi11 zations, the Secretary may make 

12 necessary and appropriate modi13 fications to facilitate the use of 

14 the Program by eligible recipients 

15 to serve eligible Indian veterans. 

16 ‘‘(bb) SECRETARY OF VET17 ERANS AFFAIRS.—After consulta18 tion with Indian Tribes and col19 laboration with eligible recipients 

20 and any other appropriate Tribal 

21 organizations, the Secretary of 

22 Veterans Affairs may make nec23 essary and appropriate modifica24 tions to facilitate the use of the 


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1 Program by eligible recipients to 

2 serve eligible Indian veterans. 

3 ‘‘(iv) ELIGIBLE RECIPIENTS.—The 

4 Secretary shall make amounts for rental 

5 assistance and associated administrative 

6 costs under the Program available in the 

7 form of grants to eligible recipients. 

8 ‘‘(v) FUNDING CRITERIA.—The Sec9 retary shall, after engaging in Tribal con10 sultation, award grants under the Program 

11 based on— 

12 ‘‘(I) need; 

13 ‘‘(II) administrative capacity; and 

14 ‘‘(III) any other funding criteria 

15 established by the Secretary in a no16 tice published in the Federal Register 

17 after consulting with the Secretary of 

18 Veterans Affairs. 

19 ‘‘(vi) ADMINISTRATION.—Grants 

20 awarded under the Program shall be ad21 ministered in accordance with the Native 

22 American Housing Assistance and Self-De23 termination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4101 

24 et seq.), except that recipients shall— 


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1 ‘‘(I) submit to the Secretary, in a 

2 manner prescribed by the Secretary 

3 after Tribal consultation, reports on 

4 the utilization of rental assistance 

5 provided under the Program; and 

6 ‘‘(II) provide to the Secretary in7 formation specified by the Secretary 

8 after Tribal consultation, to assess the 

9 effectiveness of the Program in serv10 ing eligible Indian veterans. 

11 ‘‘(vii) CONSULTATION.— 

12 ‘‘(I) GRANT RECIPIENTS; TRIBAL

13 ORGANIZATIONS.—The Secretary, in 

14 coordination with the Secretary of 

15 Veterans Affairs, shall consult with 

16 Indian Tribes that are eligible recipi17 ents and collaborate with any other 

18 appropriate Tribal organization on the 

19 design of the Program to ensure the 

20 effective delivery of rental assistance 

21 and supportive services to eligible In22 dian veterans under the Program. 

23 ‘‘(II) INDIAN HEALTH SERV24 ICE.—The Director of the Indian 

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1 sistance requested by the Secretary or 

2 the Secretary of Veterans Affairs in 

3 carrying out the Program. 

4 ‘‘(viii) WAIVER.— 

5 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Except as 

6 provided in subclause (II), the Sec7 retary may waive or specify alter8 native requirements for any provision 

9 of law (including regulations) that the 

10 Secretary administers in connection 

11 with the use of rental assistance made 

12 available under the Program if the 

13 Secretary finds that the waiver or al14 ternative requirement is necessary for 

15 the effective delivery and administra16 tion of rental assistance under the 

17 Program to eligible Indian veterans. 

18 ‘‘(II) EXCEPTION.—The Sec19 retary may not waive or specify alter20 native requirements under subclause 

21 (I) for any provision of law (including 

22 regulations) relating to labor stand23 ards or the environment. 

24 ‘‘(ix) RENEWAL GRANTS.—The Sec25 retary may, after Tribal consultation— 


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1 ‘‘(I) set aside, from amounts 

2 made available to carry out the Pro3 gram, such amounts as may be nec4 essary to award renewal grants to eli5 gible recipients that received a grant 

6 under the Program in a previous year; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(II) specify criteria that an eli9 gible recipient must satisfy to receive 

10 a renewal grant under subclause (I), 

11 including providing data on how the 

12 eligible recipient used the amounts of 

13 any grant previously received under 

14 the Program. 

15 ‘‘(x) REPORTING.— 

16 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Not later 

17 than 1 year after the date of enact18 ment of this subparagraph, and every 

19 5 years thereafter, the Secretary, in 

20 coordination with the Secretary of 

21 Veterans Affairs and the Director of 

22 the Indian Health Service, shall— 

23 ‘‘(aa) conduct a review of 

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1 gram, including any factors that 

2 may have limited its success; and 

3 ‘‘(bb) submit a report de4 scribing the results of the review 

5 under item (aa) to— 

6 ‘‘(AA) the Committee 

7 on Indian Affairs, the Com8 mittee on Banking, Housing, 

9 and Urban Affairs, the 

10 Committee on Veterans’ Af11 fairs, and the Committee on 

12 Appropriations of the Sen13 ate; 

14 ‘‘(BB) the Sub15 committee on Indian and In16 sular Affairs of the Com17 mittee on Natural Re18 sources, the Committee on 

19 Financial Services, the Com20 mittee on Veterans’ Affairs, 

21 and the Committee on Ap22 propriations of the House of 

23 Representatives; and 

24 ‘‘(CC) Indian Tribes 

25 that request the report. 


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1 ‘‘(II) ANALYSIS OF HOUSING

2 STOCK LIMITATION.—The Secretary 

3 shall include in the initial report sub4 mitted under subclause (I) a descrip5 tion of— 

6 ‘‘(aa) any regulations gov7 erning the use of formula current 

8 assisted stock (as defined in sec9 tion 1000.314 of title 24, Code of 

10 Federal Regulations (or any suc11 cessor regulation)) within the 

12 Program; 

13 ‘‘(bb) the number of recipi14 ents of grants under the Pro15 gram that have reported the reg16 ulations described in item (aa) as 

17 a barrier to implementation of 

18 the Program; and 

19 ‘‘(cc) proposed alternative 

20 legislation or regulations devel21 oped by the Secretary in con22 sultation or collaboration with re23 cipients of grants under the Pro24 gram to allow the use of formula 


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1 current assisted stock within the 

2 Program. 

3 ‘‘(xi) APPROPRIATIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—To carry out 

5 the Program, there is authorized to be 

6 appropriated to the Secretary, and 

7 there is appropriated, out of any mon8 ies in the Treasury not otherwise ap9 propriated, $15,000,000 for fiscal 

10 year 2025 and each fiscal year there11 after. 

12 ‘‘(II) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLA13 TION.—The amount made available 

14 under clause (i) for fiscal year 2026 

15 and each fiscal year thereafter shall 

16 be adjusted annually to reflect the 

17 change in the Consumer Price Index 

18 for All Urban Consumers published by 

19 the Bureau of Labor Statistics.’’. 

20 SEC. 412. HOUSING IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM, BUREAU OF 

21 INDIAN AFFAIRS. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro23 priated to the Director of the Bureau of Indian Affairs 

24 to carry out the Housing Improvement Program of the 

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1 vember 2, 1921 (25 U.S.C. 13) (commonly known as the 

2 ‘‘Snyder Act’’), and there is appropriated, out of any mon3 ies in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, 

4 $400,000,000 for fiscal year 2025 and each fiscal year 

5 thereafter. 

6 (b) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The amount 

7 made available under subsection (a) for fiscal year 2026 

8 and each fiscal year thereafter shall be adjusted annually 

9 to reflect the change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

10 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor Sta11 tistics. 

12 (c) TRIBAL CONSULTATION.—The Bureau of Indian 

13 Affairs shall engage in Tribal consultation to ensure that 

14 the Housing Improvement Program’s funding formula 

15 does not disadvantage Indian Tribes of certain sizes or 

16 from certain Bureau of Indian Affairs regions. 

17 SEC. 413. TRIBAL UNINHABITABLE HOUSING IMPROVE18 MENT PROGRAM. 

19 Title V of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1471 

20 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘SEC. 545. TRIBAL UNINHABITABLE HOUSING IMPROVE22 MENT PROGRAM. 

23 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

24 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible en25 tity’ means an Indian tribe or Tribal organization loVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:13 Jan 27, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00195 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5636.IS S5636

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1 cated in a rural area that has high levels of over2 crowded housing and homelessness. 

3 ‘‘(2) TRIBAL ORGANIZATION.—The term ‘Tribal 

4 organization’ has the meaning given the term in sec5 tion 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Edu6 cational Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 

7 ‘‘(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to im8 prove living conditions and prevent homelessness in rural 

9 Tribal communities by— 

10 ‘‘(1) assessing the condition of existing housing 

11 resources; and 

12 ‘‘(2) preventing those resources from— 

13 ‘‘(A) deteriorating; and 

14 ‘‘(B) becoming uninhabitable. 

15 ‘‘(c) GRANTS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award 

17 grants to eligible entities— 

18 ‘‘(A) to repair overcrowded homes to pre19 vent the homes from becoming uninhabitable; 

20 ‘‘(B) to remediate homes that are generally 

21 uninhabitable or fail to meet the housing qual22 ity standards established under section 

23 8(o)(8)(B) of the United States Housing Act of 

24 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(o)(8)(B)); or 


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1 ‘‘(C) to repair homes damaged due to cli2 mate change and extreme weather. 

3 ‘‘(2) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this 

4 subsection, the Secretary may give priority to an eli5 gible entity that is located in a community with lev6 els of overcrowded housing and homelessness that 

7 the Secretary determines are among the highest for 

8 communities in which eligible entities are located. 

9 ‘‘(3) USE OF MULTIPLE GRANTS FOR SAME

10 PROJECT.—Multiple eligible entities that each re11 ceive a grant under this subsection may use the 

12 grants for the same project. 

13 ‘‘(d) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—The Secretary may 

14 use not more than 3 percent of the amounts made avail15 able to carry out this section— 

16 ‘‘(1) to administer the competition for grants 

17 under this section; 

18 ‘‘(2) to provide oversight of grantees; and 

19 ‘‘(3) to collect data on the use of grants award20 ed under this section. 

21 ‘‘(e) FUNDING.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be 

23 appropriated to the Secretary to provide grants 

24 under this section, and there is appropriated, out of 

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1 priated, $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2025 and each 

2 fiscal year thereafter. 

3 ‘‘(2) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

4 amount made available under paragraph (1) for fis5 cal year 2026 and each fiscal year thereafter shall 

6 be adjusted annually to reflect the change in the 

7 Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers 

8 published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

9 ‘‘(f) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER ASSISTANCE.—The 

10 receipt by an eligible entity of a grant under this section 

11 shall not affect the eligibility of the eligible entity for any 

12 other assistance provided by the Secretary.’’. 

13 SEC. 414. COORDINATED ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW PROC14 ESS WORKGROUP. 

15 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a 

16 workgroup, to be known as the ‘‘Coordinated Environ17 mental Review Process Workgroup’’ (referred to in this 

18 section as the ‘‘Workgroup’’), consisting of the head (or 

19 a designee) of each of— 

20 (1) the Department of Agriculture; 

21 (2) the Department of Commerce; 

22 (3) the Department of Energy; 

23 (4) the Department of Health and Human 

24 Services; 


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1 (5) the Department of Housing and Urban De2 velopment; 

3 (6) the Department of the Interior; 

4 (7) the Department of Transportation; 

5 (8) the Council on Environmental Quality; and 

6 (9) the Environmental Protection Agency. 

7 (b) CHAIRPERSON.—The Secretary of Housing and 

8 Urban Development (or a designee) shall— 

9 (1) serve as chairperson of the Workgroup; and 

10 (2) be responsible for convening meetings and 

11 coordinating the activities of the Workgroup. 

12 (c) DUTIES.—The Workgroup shall— 

13 (1) assess whether each member agency of the 

14 Workgroup has adopted the recommendations made 

15 in the report entitled ‘‘Coordinated Environmental 

16 Review Process Final Report’’ and dated December 

17 15, 2015, prepared by the Department of Housing 

18 and Urban Development, in collaboration with the 

19 Coordinated Environmental Review Process 

20 Workgroup established pursuant to Senate Report 

21 113–182 (2014), accompanying S. 2438, 113th Con22 gress; 

23 (2) to the extent that any recommendation de24 scribed in paragraph (1) has not been implemented, 


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1 establish a plan for implementation of the rec2 ommendation; and 

3 (3) prepare and submit to Congress the reports 

4 required under subsection (d). 

5 (d) REPORTS.— 

6 (1) INITIAL.—Not later than 18 months after 

7 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

8 Housing and Urban Development, in collaboration 

9 with the Workgroup, shall submit to the Committee 

10 on Indian Affairs of the Senate and the Committee 

11 on Natural Resources of the House of Representa12 tives a report describing— 

13 (A) the results of the assessment under 

14 subsection (c)(1); 

15 (B) any plan established under subsection 

16 (c)(2); and 

17 (C) its plan to engage in Tribal consulta18 tion regarding implementation. 

19 (2) UPDATES.—Not later than 1 year after the 

20 date of submission of the report under paragraph 

21 (1), and not less frequently annually thereafter, the 

22 Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, in 

23 collaboration with the Workgroup, shall submit to 

24 the Committees described in that paragraph an up25 dated report in accordance with that paragraph. 


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1 TITLE V—ECONOMIC 

2 DEVELOPMENT 

3 SEC. 501. FINDINGS. 

4 Congress finds that— 

5 (1) the Federal Government has failed to honor 

6 its trust responsibility to promote Tribal self-deter7 mination through the support of economic develop8 ment on Tribal lands; 

9 (2) the Federal Government has failed to assist 

10 Indian Tribes with the individualized economic devel11 opment necessary for Indian Tribes— 

12 (A) to exercise self-determination; and 

13 (B) to make knowledgeable decisions as to 

14 how to best develop and manage the resources 

15 on Tribal lands for the benefit of the Indian 

16 Tribe; 

17 (3) Native Americans experience— 

18 (A) a poverty rate that is approximately 

19 twice the national average; and 

20 (B) higher rates of unemployment than 

21 any other group of people in the United States; 

22 (4) due to the remote location of many Indian 

23 Tribes, individuals may have long commutes, which 

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1 frastructure due to chronic underfunding and lack of 

2 transportation; 

3 (5) Indian Tribes have had limited access to, 

4 or, in many cases, no direct access to, electricity, 

5 water, broadband, and adequate infrastructure; 

6 (6)(A) only 65 percent of American Indians and 

7 Alaska Natives living on Tribal lands have access to 

8 fixed broadband services; 

9 (B) only 69 percent of American Indian, Alaska 

10 Native, and Native Hawaiian households residing on 

11 rural Tribal lands have telephone services; and 

12 (C) the lack of access described in subpara13 graphs (A) and (B) is in stark contrast with the na14 tional average of 98 percent of households that have 

15 access to telephone services, and 92 percent of indi16 viduals living outside of Tribal lands that have ac17 cess to fixed broadband services; 

18 (7) approximately 1,500,000 people living on 

19 Tribal lands lack access to broadband; 

20 (8) 75 percent of rural Indian Health Service 

21 facilities still lack reliable broadband networks for 

22 American Indians and Alaska Natives to access tele23 health or clinical health care services, which is a 

24 critical need in the most geographically isolated 


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1 areas of the United States, furthering economic in2 equities on Tribal lands; 

3 (9) according to the Bureau of Indian Edu4 cation, up to 95 percent of Native American stu5 dents at some Bureau of Indian Education schools 

6 cannot access internet services at home; 

7 (10) lack of internet access negatively affects 

8 the ability to conduct business online, which took on 

9 increased importance since the beginning of the 

10 Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID–19) pandemic; 

11 and 

12 (11) very few Indian Tribes have established 

13 telecommunications companies to provide residential 

14 phone and internet services. 

15 SEC. 502. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

16 It is the sense of Congress that— 

17 (1) Congress should determine and provide the 

18 funding needed to meet the essential utilities and 

19 core infrastructure needs on Tribal lands, such as 

20 electricity, water, telecommunications, and roads; 

21 (2) Congress should— 

22 (A) provide direct, mandatory funding to 

23 Indian Tribes and the Department of Hawaiian 

24 Home Lands; and 


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1 (B) allow Indian Tribes and the Depart2 ment of Hawaiian Home Lands to leverage 

3 Federal funding; 

4 (3) in cases in which Federal infrastructure 

5 projects occur on or affect Tribal lands or Tribal or 

6 Native Hawaiian communities, the Federal Govern7 ment should engage in, as applicable— 

8 (A) consistent, transparent, and deferential 

9 consultation with Indian Tribes; and 

10 (B) consistent, transparent, and deferen11 tial collaboration with the Department of Ha12 waiian Home Lands and Native Hawaiian orga13 nizations; 

14 (4) the Federal Government should include 

15 Tribal sovereignty principles for Indian Tribes to 

16 manage and self-govern natural resources, including 

17 electromagnetic spectrum over Tribal lands, in ac18 cordance with the Federal trust responsibility and 

19 acknowledgment of their sovereignty, to promote 

20 economic development and self-management of those 

21 modern natural resources; 

22 (5) the Federal Government should clarify the 

23 inherent ownership by Indian Tribes and Native Ha24 waiian organizations of spectrum licenses and spec25 trum over Tribal lands and Hawaiians, and preserve 


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1 that ownership, in furtherance of the Federal trust 

2 responsibility over, and Indian and Native Hawaiian 

3 self-governance of their own modern natural re4 sources; 

5 (6) the Federal Government should— 

6 (A) diminish the effect of the Tribal pri7 ority filing windows, auctions for spectrum li8 censes over Tribal lands, and assignment and 

9 leasing of spectrum over Tribal lands carried 

10 out by the Federal Communications Commis11 sion; 

12 (B) ensure the competitive bidding author13 ity of the Federal Communications Commission 

14 does not apply to licenses or construction per15 mits issued by the Commission over Tribal 

16 lands and Hawaiian home lands; and 

17 (C) permanently eliminate the public avail18 ability of spectrum over Tribal lands and Ha19 waiian home lands; and 

20 (7) legislation to address the lack of spectrum 

21 access by Indian Tribes over Tribal lands and to de22 ploy wireless broadband services, in furtherance of 

23 Tribal sovereignty (known as the ‘‘DIGITAL Res24 ervations Act’’ or the ‘‘Deploying the Internet by 

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1 ing on Reservations Act’’, S. 4331 and H.R. 7774, 

2 116th Congress, as introduced on July 27, 2020, 

3 and July 24, 2020, respectively), should be enacted 

4 without delay. 

5 Subtitle A—Economic Develop6 ment, Infrastructure, and In7 vestments 

8 SEC. 511. TRIBAL TRANSPORTATION PROGRAM. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro10 priated to carry out the tribal transportation program 

11 under section 202 of title 23, United States Code, and 

12 there are appropriated, out of any monies in the Treasury 

13 not otherwise appropriated— 

14 (1) for each of fiscal years 2025 through 2027, 

15 $1,000,000,000; and 

16 (2) for fiscal year 2028 and each fiscal year 

17 thereafter, $800,000,000. 

18 (b) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The amounts 

19 made available under subsection (a) for fiscal year 2029 

20 and each fiscal year thereafter shall be adjusted annually 

21 to reflect the change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

22 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor Sta23 tistics. 

24 (c) OBLIGATION LIMITATION.—The limitation on ob25 ligations for Federal-aid highway and highway safety conVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:13 Jan 27, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00206 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5636.IS S5636

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1 struction programs for each fiscal year shall not apply to 

2 the amounts made available under subsection (a). 

3 (d) TREATMENT.—Amounts made available under 

4 subsection (a) shall be available for obligation in accord5 ance with section 201 of title 23, United States Code. 

6 SEC. 512. TRIBAL HIGH PRIORITY PROJECTS PROGRAM. 

7 Section 1123(h) of MAP–21 (23 U.S.C. 202 note; 

8 Public Law 112–141) is amended by striking paragraph 

9 (2) and inserting the following: 

10 ‘‘(2) APPROPRIATION.—There is authorized to 

11 be appropriated, and there is appropriated, out of 

12 any monies in the Treasury not otherwise appro13 priated, to carry out the program $50,000,000 for 

14 fiscal year 2025 and each fiscal year thereafter.’’. 

15 SEC. 513. BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS ROAD MAINTE16 NANCE PROGRAM. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro18 priated, and there are appropriated, out of any monies in 

19 the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, to the Director 

20 of the Bureau of Indian Affairs to carry out the road 

21 maintenance program of the Bureau— 

22 (1) for each of fiscal years 2025 through 2029, 

23 $100,000,000; and 

24 (2) for fiscal year 2030 and each fiscal year 

25 thereafter, $50,000,000. 


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1 (b) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The amounts 

2 made available under subsection (a) for fiscal year 2031 

3 and each fiscal year thereafter shall be adjusted annually 

4 to reflect the change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

5 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor Sta6 tistics. 

7 SEC. 514. TRIBAL TRANSIT PROGRAM. 

8 Section 5311 of title 49, United States Code, is 

9 amended— 

10 (1) in subsection (c), by striking paragraph (2) 

11 and inserting the following: 

12 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION ON INDIAN RES13 ERVATIONS.— 

14 ‘‘(A) APPROPRIATION.—For fiscal year 

15 2025 and each fiscal year thereafter, there is 

16 authorized to be appropriated, and there is ap17 propriated, out of any monies in the Treasury 

18 not otherwise appropriated, $75,000,000 for 

19 grants to Indian tribes for any purpose eligible 

20 under this section, under such terms and condi21 tions as may be established by the Secretary. 

22 ‘‘(B) APPORTIONMENT.—Amounts made 

23 available under subparagraph (A) shall be ap24 portioned as formula grants, as provided in 

25 subsection (j). 


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1 ‘‘(C) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

2 amount made available under subparagraph (A) 

3 for fiscal year 2026 and each fiscal year there4 after shall be adjusted annually to reflect the 

5 change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

6 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of 

7 Labor Statistics.’’; and 

8 (2) in subsection (j)(1)(A), in the matter pre9 ceding clause (i), by striking ‘‘described in sub10 section (c)(2)(B)’’ and inserting ‘‘made available 

11 under subsection (c)(2)(A)’’. 

12 SEC. 515. TRIBAL TRANSPORTATION TECHNICAL ASSIST13 ANCE PROGRAM. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—For fiscal year 2025 and each fis15 cal year thereafter, there is authorized to be appropriated, 

16 and there is appropriated, out of any monies in the Treas17 ury not otherwise appropriated, $7,500,000 to carry out 

18 the tribal transportation technical assistance program 

19 under section 504(b)(2)(D)(ii) of title 23, United States 

20 Code. 

21 (b) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The amount 

22 made available under subsection (a) for fiscal year 2026 

23 and each fiscal year thereafter shall be adjusted annually 

24 to reflect the change in the Consumer Price Index for All 


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1 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor Sta2 tistics. 

3 (c) OBLIGATION LIMITATION.—The limitation on ob4 ligations for Federal-aid highway and highway safety con5 struction programs for each fiscal year shall not apply to 

6 the amounts made available under subsection (a). 

7 (d) TREATMENT.—Amounts made available under 

8 subsection (a) shall be available for obligation in the same 

9 manner as if those funds were apportioned under chapter 

10 1 of title 23, United States Code. 

11 (e) TRIBAL CONSULTATION.—In carrying out the 

12 tribal transportation technical assistance program under 

13 section 504(b)(2)(D)(ii) of title 23, United States Code, 

14 the Secretary of Transportation shall engage in Tribal 

15 consultation. 

16 SEC. 516. RURAL DEVELOPMENT TRIBAL TECHNICAL AS17 SISTANCE PROGRAM. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), for each 

19 of fiscal years 2025 through 2034, there is authorized to 

20 be appropriated, and there is appropriated, out of any 

21 monies in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, 

22 $2,000,000 to the Secretary of Agriculture to provide 

23 technical assistance under section 6302 of the Agriculture 

24 Improvement Act of 2018 (7 U.S.C. 2671). 


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1 (b) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The amount 

2 made available under subsection (a) for each of fiscal 

3 years 2026 through 2034 shall be adjusted annually to 

4 reflect the change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

5 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor Sta6 tistics. 

7 SEC. 517. NATIVE AMERICAN COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT 

8 FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS ASSISTANCE PRO9 GRAM. 

10 (a) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—Section 108(e) of the 

11 Community Development Banking and Financial Institu12 tions Act of 1994 (12 U.S.C. 4707(e)) is amended— 

13 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

14 (A) in the third sentence, by striking ‘‘The 

15 Fund shall provide no assistance’’ and inserting 

16 the following: 

17 ‘‘(iii) PROHIBITION.—Subject to sub18 paragraph (B), no assistance may be pro19 vided by the Fund’’; 

20 (B) in the second sentence, by striking 

21 ‘‘Such matching funds’’ and inserting the fol22 lowing: 

23 ‘‘(ii) FORM.—The matching funds re24 quired under clause (i)’’; 


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1 (C) by striking ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Assist2 ance’’ and inserting the following: 

3 ‘‘(1) MATCHING REQUIREMENT.— 

4 ‘‘(A) REQUIREMENT.— 

5 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to sub6 paragraph (B) and paragraph (2), assist7 ance’’; and 

8 (D) by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(B) WAIVER FOR CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS

10 AND ENTITIES.—The requirements of subpara11 graph (A) shall not apply to any individual or 

12 entity using the assistance provided under this 

13 section only for the benefit of Indians, Alaska 

14 Natives, Native Hawaiians, or an Indian 

15 tribe.’’; and 

16 (2) in paragraph (2), in the matter preceding 

17 subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘paragraph (1)’’ and 

18 inserting ‘‘paragraph (1)(A)’’. 

19 (b) FUNDING.—Section 121 of the Community Devel20 opment Banking and Financial Institutions Act of 1994 

21 (12 U.S.C. 4718) is amended— 

22 (1) by redesignating subsection (c) as sub23 section (d); and 

24 (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the fol25 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(c) FUNDING FOR INDIANS.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

3 appropriated, and there are appropriated, out of any 

4 monies in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, 

5 to the Fund for the purpose of providing financial 

6 assistance, technical assistance, training, and out7 reach programs to benefit Indian tribes, primarily 

8 through Native Community Development Financial 

9 Institutions with experience and expertise in commu10 nity development banking and lending in Indian 

11 country, and that are committed to working with In12 dian organizations, Indian tribes, tribal organiza13 tions, and other appropriate individuals and enti14 ties— 

15 ‘‘(A) for fiscal year 2025, $55,000,000; 

16 ‘‘(B) for fiscal year 2026, $65,000,000; 

17 ‘‘(C) for fiscal year 2027, $70,000,000; 

18 ‘‘(D) for fiscal year 2028, $75,000,000; 

19 and 

20 ‘‘(E) for fiscal year 2029 and each fiscal 

21 year thereafter, $80,000,000, subject to para22 graph (2). 

23 ‘‘(2) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

24 amounts made available under paragraph (1)(E) for 

25 fiscal year 2030 and each fiscal year thereafter shall 


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1 be adjusted annually to reflect the change in the 

2 Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers 

3 published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.’’. 

4 SEC. 518. TRIBAL REVOLVING FUNDS. 

5 (a) FEDERAL WATER POLLUTION CONTROL ACT.— 

6 Section 518 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act 

7 (33 U.S.C. 1377) is amended— 

8 (1) in subsection (c)(2), by striking ‘‘0.5 per9 cent and not more than 2.0 percent’’ and inserting 

10 ‘‘5 percent’’; and 

11 (2) in subsection (f), in the second sentence, by 

12 striking ‘‘subsection (d) of this section’’ and insert13 ing ‘‘subsection (e)’’. 

14 (b) SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT.—Section 

15 1452(i)(1) of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 

16 300j–12(i)(1)) is amended— 

17 (1) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘Except 

18 as’’ and inserting the following: 

19 ‘‘(B) USE OF GRANTS.—Except as’’; and 

20 (2) by striking the paragraph designation and 

21 heading and all that follows through ‘‘may be used 

22 by the Administrator’’ in the first sentence and in23 serting the following: 

24 ‘‘(1) GRANTS.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any 

2 other provision of law, not less than 5 percent 

3 of the amounts made available for each fiscal 

4 year to carry out this section shall be used by 

5 the Administrator’’. 

6 SEC. 519. TRIBAL WATER POLLUTION CONTROL. 

7 Section 106 of the Federal Water Pollution Control 

8 Act (33 U.S.C. 1256) is amended by striking subsections 

9 (b) and (c) and inserting the following: 

10 ‘‘(b) ALLOTMENT.—Of the amounts made available 

11 to carry out this section for each fiscal year, the Adminis12 trator shall— 

13 ‘‘(1) subject to paragraph (2), make allotments 

14 to States and interstate agencies in accordance with 

15 such regulations as the Administrator may promul16 gate, based on the extent of the pollution problem in 

17 each State; and 

18 ‘‘(2) notwithstanding any other provision of 

19 law, allot to Indian tribes not less than 20 percent. 

20 ‘‘(c) AMOUNT.—The Administrator may pay to each 

21 State, Indian tribe, and interstate agency for each fiscal 

22 year an amount equal to the lesser of— 

23 ‘‘(1) the allotment of the State, Indian tribe, or 

24 interstate agency for the fiscal year under subsection 

25 (b); and 


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1 ‘‘(2) the reasonable costs, as determined by the 

2 Administrator, of developing and carrying out a pol3 lution program by the State, Indian tribe, or inter4 state agency during the fiscal year.’’. 

5 SEC. 520. RURAL UTILITIES SERVICE WATER AND WASTE 

6 DISPOSAL PROGRAM. 

7 Section 306C(e) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural 

8 Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1926c(e)) is amended— 

9 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

10 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

11 (A), by striking ‘‘Subject to paragraph (2), 

12 there’’ and inserting ‘‘There’’; 

13 (B) in subparagraph (A), by adding ‘‘and’’ 

14 after the semicolon at the end; 

15 (C) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘; 

16 and’’ at the end and inserting a period; and 

17 (D) by striking subparagraph (C); and 

18 (2) in paragraph (2)— 

19 (A) by striking ‘‘paragraph (1)(C)’’ and in20 serting ‘‘this paragraph’’; and 

21 (B) by striking the paragraph designation 

22 and heading and all that follows through ‘‘An 

23 entity’’ and inserting the following: 

24 ‘‘(2) INDIANS AND INDIAN TRIBES.— 

25 ‘‘(A) FUNDING.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to sub2 paragraph (B), for fiscal year 2025 and 

3 each fiscal year thereafter, there is author4 ized to be appropriated, and there is ap5 propriated, out of any monies in the Treas6 ury not otherwise appropriated, 

7 $100,000,000 to the Secretary to provide 

8 grants and loans under this section to ben9 efit Indians and Indian Tribes (as those 

10 terms are defined in section 4 of the In11 dian Self-Determination and Education 

12 Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304)). 

13 ‘‘(ii) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.— 

14 The amount made available under clause 

15 (i) for fiscal year 2026 and each fiscal year 

16 thereafter shall be adjusted annually to re17 flect the change in the Consumer Price 

18 Index for All Urban Consumers published 

19 by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

20 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—An entity’’. 

21 SEC. 521. FUNDING FOR CLAIMS RESOLUTION ACT OF 2010. 

22 Section 101(e)(1) of the Claims Resolution Act of 

23 2010 (Public Law 111–291; 124 Stat. 3067) is amend24 ed— 


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1 (1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘Settle2 ment’’ and inserting ‘‘Settlement, and during the 

3 10-year period beginning on the date of enactment 

4 of the Honoring Promises to Native Nations Act’’; 

5 and 

6 (2) in subparagraph (C), by adding at the end 

7 the following: 

8 ‘‘(iii) ADDITIONAL APPROPRIATION.— 

9 In addition to amounts deposited in the 

10 Trust Land Consolidation Fund under 

11 clause (i) and subparagraph (D), not later 

12 than 1 year after the date of enactment of 

13 the Honoring Promises to Native Nations 

14 Act, the Secretary of the Treasury shall 

15 deposit in the Trust Land Consolidation 

16 Fund $1,900,000,000.’’. 

17 Subtitle B—Spectrum Sovereignty 

18 and Broadband Deployment on 

19 Tribal Lands 

20 SEC. 531. TRIBAL BROADBAND FUND. 

21 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Commission shall estab22 lish, as a permanent Federal universal service support 

23 mechanism under section 254 of the Communications Act 

24 of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 254), a mechanism to be known as 

25 the ‘‘Tribal Broadband Fund’’. 


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1 (b) ANNUAL AMOUNT OF SUPPORT.— 

2 (1) INITIAL AMOUNT.—The amount of Federal 

3 universal service support provided through the Trib4 al Broadband Fund shall be $1,000,000,000 for fis5 cal year 2025. 

6 (2) PROPORTIONAL ADJUSTMENT.—For fiscal 

7 year 2026 and each fiscal year thereafter, the 

8 amount specified in paragraph (1) shall be adjusted 

9 so that the amount of Federal universal service sup10 port provided through the Tribal Broadband Fund 

11 for such subsequent fiscal year bears the same pro12 portion to the amount of Federal universal service 

13 support provided through all Federal universal serv14 ice support mechanisms other than the Tribal 

15 Broadband Fund for such subsequent fiscal year as 

16 the proportion that $1,000,000,000 bears to the 

17 amount of Federal universal service support pro18 vided through all Federal universal service support 

19 mechanisms other than the Tribal Broadband Fund 

20 for fiscal year 2025. 

21 (c) PROVISION OF SUPPORT.—The Commission shall 

22 use the Tribal Broadband Fund to provide Federal uni23 versal service support to Indian Tribes, the Department 

24 of Hawaiian Home Lands, and qualifying Tribal entities 

25 to provide— 


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1 (1) technical assistance, deployment of 

2 broadband service infrastructure, maintenance, plan3 ning, training, and digital literacy programs to in4 crease broadband services and network buildout on 

5 Tribal lands, in addition to further economic devel6 opment initiatives for all spectrum over Tribal lands, 

7 including radio, television, broadcast, commercial, 

8 and noncommercial uses, and current generation or 

9 better broadband services; 

10 (2) infrastructure for middle mile and long-haul 

11 fiber buildout, adoption of digital literacy, and other 

12 related resources to expedite the immediate deploy13 ment of, and full access to, telecommunications, 

14 broadband service, spectrum use and future develop15 ment, and wireless services (including wireless 

16 broadband service); and 

17 (3) other smart infrastructure development and 

18 integration on Tribal lands, and other related activi19 ties to ensure Tribal lands have full access to high20 speed broadband services, telecommunications serv21 ices, and other sovereignty of communications infra22 structure covering Tribal lands. 

23 (d) PRIORITIZATION.—In allocating funds from the 

24 Tribal Broadband Fund, the Commission— 


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1 (1) shall prioritize locations where telecommuni2 cations or broadband services have left residents un3 derserved; and 

4 (2) may use funds in locations described in 

5 paragraph (1) for last mile fiber, middle mile fiber, 

6 backhaul transit, interconnection, and other costs 

7 and repairs to damaged infrastructure. 

8 (e) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Commission shall 

9 provide requested technical assistance, training programs, 

10 and grants to assist Indian Tribes, qualifying Tribal enti11 ties, the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, inter12 Tribal government organizations, and Tribal Colleges and 

13 Universities for the purpose of immediate deployment of 

14 telecommunications or broadband services or infrastruc15 ture development over Tribal lands. 

16 (f) FINAL ORDER.—Not later than 18 months after 

17 the date of enactment of this Act, the Commission shall 

18 issue a final order adopting rules and policies associated 

19 with the establishment, implementation, and administra20 tion of the Tribal Broadband Fund. 

21 (g) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec22 tion shall be construed to limit or prevent an Indian Tribe, 

23 the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, or a qualifying 

24 Tribal entity from accessing existing or additional funding 

25 through the Commission or any other Federal agency. 


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1 SEC. 532. OFFICE OF NATIVE AFFAIRS AND POLICY, FED2 ERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION. 

3 (a) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission, acting 

5 through the Office of Native Affairs and Policy and 

6 at the request of an Indian Tribe, the Department 

7 of Hawaiian Home Lands, or a qualifying Tribal en8 tity, shall provide technical assistance to apply for 

9 and participate in— 

10 (A) the Tribal Broadband Fund; 

11 (B) other Federal universal service support 

12 mechanisms; 

13 (C) other Federal funding opportunities 

14 for broadband service or infrastructure develop15 ment; and 

16 (D) the Tribal Spectrum Market estab17 lished under section 534. 

18 (2) PRIORITY.—A request for technical assist19 ance made under this subsection from an Indian 

20 Tribe, the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, or 

21 a qualifying Tribal entity shall receive priority where 

22 telecommunications or broadband services on Tribal 

23 lands— 

24 (A) have not been deployed; or 

25 (B) have been inadequately deployed to 

26 provide broadband services over those Tribal 


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1 lands, resulting in unserved and underserved 

2 Tribal residents. 

3 (3) ADDITIONAL ASSISTANCE.—The assistance 

4 under this subsection includes assistance for associ5 ated backhaul, repairs to damaged infrastructure, or 

6 new infrastructure to deploy broadband service. 

7 (b) ADDITIONAL TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—In addi8 tion to the technical assistance provided under subsection 

9 (a), the Commission shall provide technical assistance that 

10 includes training programs and grant assistance to Indian 

11 Tribes, qualifying Tribal entities, the Department of Ha12 waiian Home Lands, inter-Tribal government organiza13 tions, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and colleges and 

14 universities with Tribal-serving institutions with expertise 

15 on Tribal broadband policy for the purpose of immediate 

16 deployment of telecommunications or broadband services 

17 and infrastructure over Tribal lands. 

18 (c) ENGAGEMENT WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF THE

19 INTERIOR, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE, AND COMMIS20 SION.—The Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of 

21 Commerce, and the Commission shall provide technical as22 sistance to Indian Tribes, the Department of Hawaiian 

23 Home Lands, and qualifying Tribal entities (and, if lo24 cated on Tribal lands, to schools, libraries, health care fa25 cilities, public safety entities, Tribal chapter houses, comVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:13 Jan 27, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00223 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5636.IS S5636

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1 munity centers, government buildings of an Indian Tribe, 

2 and locations where Tribal, State, and Federal elections 

3 and census activities are carried out) to resolve barriers 

4 to the deployment and adoption of broadband service and 

5 other services provided using spectrum, including the fol6 lowing: 

7 (1) Classes or other education related to com8 puter literacy. 

9 (2) Acquisition of computers and related hard10 ware and software. 

11 (3) Use of broadband service and computers for 

12 public safety and emergency communications serv13 ices and interoperability. 

14 (4) Use of spectrum and wireless broadband 

15 service and computers where Tribal, State, and Fed16 eral elections and census activities are carried out. 

17 (5) Use of spectrum and broadband service and 

18 computers to respond to public emergencies, includ19 ing health and biohazard threats and natural disas20 ters. 

21 (6) Such other areas as the Commission, or a 

22 relevant Federal agency that has a role conducting 

23 activities on Tribal lands, determines to be advisable 

24 to increase the deployment and adoption of 

25 broadband service and other services provided using 


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1 spectrum on Tribal lands, or where an Indian Tribe, 

2 the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, or a 

3 qualifying Tribal entity holds a valid and active 

4 spectrum license or right-of-way access. 

5 (d) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec6 tion may be construed to limit or supersede— 

7 (1) the responsibilities of the Commission or 

8 another Federal agency; or 

9 (2) the engagement with Indian Tribes, the De10 partment of Hawaiian Home Lands or Native Ha11 waiian communities, and qualifying Tribal entities 

12 by the Commission or any other Federal agency. 

13 (e) APPROPRIATIONS AMENDMENT.—Section 6 of the 

14 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 156) is amend15 ed— 

16 (1) in the section heading, by inserting ‘‘; AP17 PROPRIATIONS’’ after ‘‘AUTHORIZATION OF AP18 PROPRIATIONS’’; and 

19 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(c) OFFICE OF NATIVE AFFAIRS AND POLICY.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For necessary expenses of 

22 the Office of Native Affairs and Policy of the Com23 mission, there is authorized to be appropriated to 

24 the Commission, and there is appropriated, out of 

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1 priated, $950,000 for each of fiscal years 2025 

2 through 2033. 

3 ‘‘(2) ONAP FEDERAL FUNDING DIRECTOR.— 

4 ‘‘(A) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Commission 

5 shall use 20 percent of the amounts appro6 priated under paragraph (1) to establish within 

7 the Office of Native Affairs and Policy of the 

8 Commission a position of Federal Funding Di9 rector. 

10 ‘‘(B) DUTIES.—The Federal Funding Di11 rector shall have the following duties: 

12 ‘‘(i) Coordinate with Indian tribes, the 

13 Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, 

14 and interested qualifying Tribal entities to 

15 access the funding opportunities of the 

16 Commission or other funding opportunities 

17 that may be available through another 

18 Federal agency, and assist with the appli19 cation processes for the Tribal Broadband 

20 Fund and other universal service contribu21 tions or accounts, auctions proceeds, or 

22 any other accounts or reserve funds avail23 able to the Commission, for the purpose of 

24 providing a source of support for infra25 structure deployment, middle mile and 


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1 long-haul fiber buildout, adoption of digital 

2 literacy, and other related resources for the 

3 deployment of and full access to tele4 communications, broadband service, spec5 trum use and future development, and 

6 wireless services (including wireless 

7 broadband service) for effective and effi8 cient use on Tribal lands. 

9 ‘‘(ii) Coordinate with other Federal 

10 agencies that provide telecommunications 

11 and infrastructure funding to Indian 

12 tribes, the Department of Hawaiian Home 

13 Lands, or interested qualifying Tribal enti14 ties to assist with expedited broadband 

15 service and other telecommunications de16 ployment over Tribal lands. 

17 ‘‘(3) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

18 amount made available under paragraph (1) for fis19 cal year 2026 and each fiscal year thereafter shall 

20 be adjusted annually to reflect the change in the 

21 Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers 

22 published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

23 ‘‘(4) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection, the 

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1 ises to Native Nations Act shall have the meanings 

2 given those terms in that section.’’. 

3 SEC. 533. IMMEDIATE DEPLOYMENT OF BROADBAND SERV4 ICE ON TRIBAL LANDS. 

5 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

6 (1) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti7 ty’’ means— 

8 (A) an Indian Tribe; 

9 (B) a qualifying Tribal entity; and 

10 (C) the Department of Hawaiian Home 

11 Lands. 

12 (2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

13 the Secretary of Agriculture. 

14 (b) GRANTS.— 

15 (1) COMMUNITY FACILITIES GRANT PRO16 GRAM.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall use 

18 amounts appropriated under subsection 

19 (c)(1)(A) to provide grants under the commu20 nity facilities grant program under section 

21 306(a)(19) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural 

22 Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1926(a)(19)) to eli23 gible entities for the deployment of broadband 

24 service on Tribal lands, if the eligible entity 


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1 would be eligible for a grant under that section 

2 for the deployment. 

3 (B) ELIGIBLE COSTS.—An eligible entity 

4 that receives a grant under subparagraph (A) 

5 may use the grant amount for costs for the im6 mediate deployment of broadband service on 

7 Tribal lands, including— 

8 (i) backhaul costs; and 

9 (ii) costs of repairs to damaged infra10 structure, if the cost of the repairs would 

11 be less than the cost of new infrastructure. 

12 (C) PRIORITIZATION.—In making grants 

13 under subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall 

14 give priority to the deployment of telecommuni15 cations or broadband services on Tribal lands 

16 on which the services have not been deployed or 

17 have been inadequately deployed, including— 

18 (i) middle mile fiber; 

19 (ii) backhaul transit, interconnection, 

20 and other costs; and 

21 (iii) repairs to damaged infrastruc22 ture, the cost of the repairs to which would 

23 be less than the cost of new infrastructure. 

24 (D) FEDERAL SHARE.—Notwithstanding 

25 section 306(a)(19)(B) of the Consolidated 


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1 Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 

2 1926(a)(19)(B)), the Federal share of the cost 

3 of a project carried out using a grant under 

4 subparagraph (A) shall be 100 percent. 

5 (2) ESSENTIAL COMMUNITY FACILITIES TECH6 NICAL ASSISTANCE AND TRAINING.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall use 

8 amounts appropriated under subsection 

9 (c)(1)(B) to provide grants to eligible recipients 

10 described in subparagraph (C) under the com11 munity facilities technical assistance and train12 ing grant program under section 306(a)(26) of 

13 the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development 

14 Act (7 U.S.C. 1926(a)(26)) to assist eligible en15 tities in— 

16 (i) preparing applications for grants 

17 under paragraph (1)(A); and 

18 (ii) receiving technical assistance and 

19 training from an entity to which a commu20 nity facilities technical assistance and 

21 training grant has been made under that 

22 section. 

23 (B) APPLICABILITY.—Subparagraph (A) 

24 shall be carried out without regard to— 


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1 (i) subparagraphs (B) and (C) of sec2 tion 306(a)(26) of the Consolidated Farm 

3 and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 

4 1926(a)(26)); and 

5 (ii) any requirements described in 

6 subparagraph (A) of that section relating 

7 to eligibility to receive— 

8 (I) a grant under that section; or 

9 (II) technical assistance and 

10 training from an entity receiving a 

11 grant under that section. 

12 (C) ELIGIBLE RECIPIENTS.—An entity 

13 shall be eligible to receive a grant under sub14 paragraph (A) if the entity is— 

15 (i) eligible for a grant under the com16 munity facilities technical assistance and 

17 training grant program under section 

18 306(a)(26) of the Consolidated Farm and 

19 Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 

20 1926(a)(26)), without regard to subpara21 graphs (B) and (C) of that section, to as22 sist an eligible entity in preparing an appli23 cation for a grant under that section; or 

24 (ii) an inter-Tribal government orga25 nization, a Tribal College or University, or 


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1 a university or college with a Tribal-serv2 ing institution with expertise in Tribal 

3 broadband policy. 

4 (c) FUNDING.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

6 appropriated, and there are appropriated, out of 

7 amounts in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, 

8 to the Secretary for each of fiscal years 2025 

9 through 2033— 

10 (A) $300,000,000 to provide grants under 

11 subsection (b)(1); and 

12 (B) $5,000,000 to provide grants under 

13 subsection (b)(2). 

14 (2) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

15 amount made available under each of subparagraphs 

16 (A) and (B) of paragraph (1) for each of fiscal years 

17 2026 through 2033 shall be adjusted annually to re18 flect the change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

19 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor 

20 Statistics. 

21 (3) AVAILABILITY.—The amounts made avail22 able under paragraph (1) shall remain available until 

23 expended. 

24 SEC. 534. FCC TRIBAL SPECTRUM MARKET. 

25 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall con2 duct a rulemaking proceeding to establish a new 

3 Tribal Spectrum Market. 

4 (2) PURPOSE.—The Tribal Spectrum Market 

5 shall be an optional forum solely for the participa6 tion of Indian Tribes, qualifying Tribal entities, and 

7 the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands to engage 

8 with other Indian Tribes, other qualifying Tribal en9 tities, and the Department of Hawaiian Home 

10 Lands (as applicable) for leasing and assignment op11 portunities for the purpose of economic and business 

12 development on Tribal lands for participants that 

13 choose to participate. 

14 (3) NO EFFECT ON PARTICIPATION IN OTHER

15 FORUMS OR MARKETS.—Participation in the Tribal 

16 Spectrum Market shall not prevent an Indian Tribe, 

17 the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, or a 

18 qualifying Tribal entity from participating in any 

19 other auction forum or secondary spectrum market. 

20 (b) AVAILABILITY OF SPECTRUM.—In furtherance of 

21 the Federal trust responsibility and Tribal self-govern22 ance, and to develop robust economic resources on Tribal 

23 lands, the Commission shall— 

24 (1) make all unused and newly allocated spec25 trum over Tribal lands available to other Indian 


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1 Tribes, the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, 

2 and qualifying Tribal entities through the Tribal 

3 Spectrum Market; and 

4 (2) notify other Indian Tribes, the Department 

5 of Hawaiian Home Lands, and other qualifying 

6 Tribal entities of the availability of unused and 

7 newly allocated spectrum under paragraph (1). 

8 (c) CONSENT REQUIREMENT.—The Commission may 

9 not make unused spectrum over Tribal lands of a partici10 pant available to other Indian Tribes, the Department of 

11 Hawaiian Home Lands, or other qualifying Tribal entities, 

12 as applicable, through the Tribal Spectrum Market, with13 out the consent of the participant. 

14 SEC. 535. E-RATE. 

15 Section 254 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

16 U.S.C. 254) is amended— 

17 (1) in subsection (h)(4), by inserting ‘‘, except 

18 as provided in subsection (m),’’ before ‘‘is a library 

19 or library consortium’’; and 

20 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(m) E-RATE SUPPORT FOR INDIAN TRIBES.— 

22 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection— 

23 ‘‘(A) the term ‘E-rate program’ means the 

24 universal service program for schools and li25 braries authorized under subsection (h)(1)(B), 


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1 the rules of which are set forth under subpart 

2 F of part 54 of title 47, Code of Federal Regu3 lations (or any successor regulation), as author4 ized under subsection (h)(2)(A); 

5 ‘‘(B) the term ‘E-rate support’ means uni6 versal service discounts on eligible services in 

7 accordance with subpart F of part 54 of title 

8 47, Code of Federal Regulations (or any suc9 cessor regulation), as authorized under sub10 section (h)(2)(A); 

11 ‘‘(C) the term ‘Indian Tribe’ has the mean12 ing given the term in section 5 of the Honoring 

13 Promises to Native Nations Act; and 

14 ‘‘(D) the term ‘qualifying anchor institu15 tion’ means a facility owned by an Indian 

16 Tribe, including a Tribal Government building, 

17 chapter house, longhouse, community center, 

18 senior center, or other similar public building. 

19 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBILITY OF TRIBAL LIBRARIES AND

20 QUALIFYING ANCHOR INSTITUTIONS FOR E-RATE

21 SUPPORT.— 

22 ‘‘(A) DESIGNATION OF TRIBAL LIBRARIES

23 AS LIBRARIES ELIGIBLE FOR E-RATE SUP24 PORT.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—An Indian Tribe 

2 that is eligible for support under section 

3 261 of the Library Services and Tech4 nology Act (20 U.S.C. 9161) may des5 ignate a Tribal library or Tribal library 

6 consortium as a library or consortium that 

7 is eligible for E-rate support, without re8 gard to whether the library or library con9 sortium is eligible for assistance from a 

10 State Library Administrative Agency under 

11 the Library Services and Technology Act 

12 (20 U.S.C. 9121 et seq.), if the library or 

13 library consortium is eligible for support 

14 from an Indian Tribe under such section 

15 261. 

16 ‘‘(ii) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.— 

17 Nothing in clause (i) shall be construed to 

18 exempt a Tribal library from any require19 ment under the E-rate program not de20 scribed in that clause, including the other 

21 requirements relating to eligible recipients 

22 under section 54.501 of title 47, Code of 

23 Federal Regulations (or any successor reg24 ulation). 


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1 ‘‘(B) TRIBAL ANCHOR INSTITUTION PRO2 GRAM.— 

3 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Commission, 

4 in consultation with the Institute of Mu5 seum and Library Services and any other 

6 agency with relevant responsibilities, shall 

7 establish a program to be known as the 

8 ‘Tribal Anchor Institution Program’, under 

9 which the Commission shall provide E-rate 

10 support to Indian Tribes for qualifying an11 chor institutions designated by the Indian 

12 Tribes. 

13 ‘‘(ii) ELIGIBILITY.— 

14 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible 

15 to obtain E-rate support under this 

16 subparagraph, a Tribal Government 

17 may not have a Tribal library eligible 

18 for the E-rate program within the 

19 Tribal community. 

20 ‘‘(II) REQUIREMENTS.—E-rate 

21 support obtained under this subpara22 graph shall only be available for an 

23 Indian Tribe if— 

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1 sively owned by the Indian Tribe; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(bb) the proposed quali4 fying anchor institution intends 

5 to deliver publicly available inter6 net access to students, teachers, 

7 librarians, and members of the 

8 community for educational pur9 poses. 

10 ‘‘(III) RULE OF CONSTRUC11 TION.—Nothing in this clause shall be 

12 construed to provide the Commission 

13 with the authority to modify the eligi14 bility requirements described in this 

15 clause. 

16 ‘‘(3) SET-ASIDE FOR INDIAN TRIBES.—Of the 

17 amount made available for the E-rate program in 

18 any fiscal year beginning after the date of enactment 

19 of this subsection, 5 percent shall be used for E-rate 

20 support for Tribal elementary and secondary schools 

21 (as defined in subsection (h)(7)), Tribal libraries 

22 and Tribal library consortia, and qualifying anchor 

23 institutions.’’. 


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1 SEC. 536. RECONNECT PROGRAM. 

2 (a) TRIBAL SET-ASIDE.—Section 779 of division A 

3 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2018 (Public Law 

4 115–141; 132 Stat. 399), is amended by inserting ‘‘: Pro5 vided further, That 15 percent of such amount shall be 

6 reserved for loans and grants to Indian tribes under the 

7 pilot program, and a requirement to match part or all of 

8 any such loan or grant shall not be imposed on an Indian 

9 tribe’’ before the period at the end. 

10 (b) TRIBAL CONNECTIVITY FUND.— 

11 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in 

12 the Treasury of the United States a fund, to be 

13 known as the ‘‘Tribal Connectivity Fund’’. 

14 (2) APPROPRIATION.— 

15 (A) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to 

16 be appropriated, and there is appropriated, out 

17 of amounts in the Treasury not otherwise ap18 propriated, to the Tribal Connectivity Fund 

19 $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2025 

20 through 2033, to remain available until ex21 pended. 

22 (B) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

23 amount made available under subparagraph (A) 

24 for each of fiscal years 2026 through 2033 shall 

25 be adjusted annually to reflect the change in 

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1 sumers published by the Bureau of Labor Sta2 tistics. 

3 (3) USE OF FUNDS.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—Amounts in the Tribal 

5 Connectivity Fund shall be available to the Sec6 retary of Agriculture to provide funding for 

7 laptops, Wi-Fi hotspots, and other connectivity 

8 devices for students attending schools funded by 

9 the Bureau of Indian Education, tribally oper10 ated schools, or Tribal colleges. 

11 (B) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph: 

12 (i) WI-FI.—The term ‘‘Wi-Fi’’ means 

13 a wireless networking protocol based on In14 stitute of Electrical and Electronics Engi15 neers standard 802.11 (or any successor 

16 standard). 

17 (ii) WI-FI HOTSPOT.—The term ‘‘Wi18 Fi hotspot’’ means a device that is capable 

19 of— 

20 (I) receiving mobile advanced 

21 telecommunications and information 

22 services (based upon Wi-Fi and other 

23 wireless standards); and 

24 (II) sharing the services with an25 other device. 


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1 (c) FUNDING FOR BUREAU OF INDIAN EDUCATION

2 INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY INFRASTRUCTURE.— 

3 (1) APPROPRIATION.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara5 graph (B), there is authorized to be appro6 priated, out of any monies in the Treasury not 

7 otherwise appropriated, and there is appro8 priated $50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

9 2025 through 2033, which shall be deposited in 

10 the Bureau of Indian Education, Operation of 

11 Indian Education Programs, Education Man12 agement, Education IT account, to remain 

13 available until expended. 

14 (B) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The 

15 amount made available under subparagraph (A) 

16 for fiscal year 2026 and each fiscal year there17 after shall be adjusted annually to reflect the 

18 change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

19 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of 

20 Labor Statistics. 

21 (2) USE OF FUNDS.—The amounts made avail22 able under paragraph (1) shall be available to the 

23 Secretary of the Interior to provide funding for in24 formation technology infrastructure of the Bureau of 

25 Indian Education. 


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1 SEC. 537. USDA OFFICE OF TRIBAL RELATIONS. 

2 (a) APPROPRIATION.—Subject to subsection (b), 

3 there is authorized to be appropriated, and there is appro4 priated, out of any monies in the Treasury not otherwise 

5 appropriated, to the Secretary of Agriculture $2,500,000 

6 for each of fiscal years 2025 through 2033— 

7 (1) for the provision to Indian Tribes, quali8 fying Tribal entities, and the Department of Hawai9 ian Home Lands of services, technical assistance, 

10 and expansion of programs for the deployment and 

11 build-out of wireless broadband services on Tribal 

12 lands; and 

13 (2) to ensure that services, technical assistance, 

14 and programs described in paragraph (1) and re15 lated policies are efficient, easy to understand, acces16 sible, and developed in consultation with affected In17 dian Tribes and the Department of Hawaiian Home 

18 Lands. 

19 (b) ADJUSTMENT FOR INFLATION.—The amount 

20 made available under subsection (a) for each of fiscal 

21 years 2026 through 2033 shall be adjusted annually to 

22 reflect the change in the Consumer Price Index for All 

23 Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor Sta24 tistics. 

25 SEC. 538. ANNUAL REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. 

26 (a) ANNUAL REPORT.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months 

2 after the date of enactment of this Act, and annually 

3 thereafter, the Commission shall make publicly avail4 able and submit to the entities described in sub5 section (b)— 

6 (A) a report on the deployment of 

7 broadband service on Tribal lands; 

8 (B) a household-level mapping of the ac9 tual speed of broadband service adopted by 

10 Tribal residents; and 

11 (C) an inventory of Tribal spectrum li12 censes. 

13 (2) CONTENTS.— 

14 (A) COLLABORATION WITH TRIBES AND

15 TRIBAL ENTITIES.—The report under para16 graph (1) shall include the following informa17 tion: 

18 (i)(I) The work of the Commission 

19 with Indian Tribes, the Department of Ha20 waiian Homelands, qualifying Tribal enti21 ties, and associated tribal organizations on 

22 spectrum-related matters. 

23 (II) The efforts of the Commission to 

24 bolster Tribal outreach through individual 

25 consultation, funding access, expansion of 


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1 access to broadband service or other full 

2 use of spectrum over Tribal lands, activi3 ties executed through the Office of Native 

4 Affairs and Policy, and rulemakings that 

5 have been executed related to such matters 

6 under this Act. 

7 (III) General updates. 

8 (B) APPLICANTS AND LICENSE HOLD9 ERS.— 

10 (i) IN GENERAL.—The report under 

11 paragraph (1) shall include data collected 

12 by the Commission on whether applicants 

13 for licenses, and holders of licenses, for 

14 spectrum over Tribal lands are— 

15 (I) Indian Tribes; 

16 (II) the Department of Hawaiian 

17 Homelands; 

18 (III) qualifying Tribal entities; or 

19 (IV) third-party licensees. 

20 (ii) RECORDING REQUIREMENT.—The 

21 Commission shall require an Indian Tribe, 

22 the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, 

23 or a qualifying Tribal entity to record the 

24 ownership classification of all licenses or 

25 other agreements for the use of spectrum 


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1 over Tribal lands that take effect on or 

2 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

3 (C) NOTIFICATION OF RELEVANT INDIAN

4 TRIBE OR QUALIFYING TRIBAL ENTITY, OR THE

5 DEPARTMENT OF HAWAIIAN HOME LANDS.— 

6 The Commission shall include in the report sub7 mitted under paragraph (1) a verification that 

8 the Commission has provided information about 

9 assigned and unassigned licenses and license 

10 holders to the Indian Tribe, the Department of 

11 Hawaiian Home Lands, or the qualifying Tribal 

12 entity where the licenses are geographically lo13 cated, including a detailed description of the li14 censes, the license holders, and the entity to 

15 which the information was provided. 

16 (D) ACCESSIBLE CONTACT INFORMA17 TION.—The Commission shall include in the re18 port submitted under paragraph (1) a 

19 verification that the Commission has made con20 tact information easily accessible for Indian 

21 Tribes, the Department of Hawaiian Home 

22 Lands, and qualifying Tribal entities to learn 

23 about participation in any opportunities to ob24 tain licenses for spectrum over Tribal lands or 


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1 secondary market opportunities, including the 

2 respective processes. 

3 (E) UNSERVED LOCATIONS.—The Com4 mission shall include in the report submitted 

5 under paragraph (1) geographic locations on 

6 Tribal lands where wireline broadband or wire7 less telecommunications services have not been 

8 built out or deployed. 

9 (F) FEDERAL FUNDING AVAILABILITY.— 

10 The Commission shall include in the report sub11 mitted under paragraph (1) a description of 

12 available Federal funding across all agencies for 

13 which Indian Tribes, the Department of Hawai14 ian Home Lands, and qualifying Tribal entities 

15 are eligible to apply to further support deploy16 ment of broadband and telecommunications 

17 services on Tribal lands. 

18 (b) SUBMISSION OF RECOMMENDATIONS.—The enti19 ties described in this subsection are— 

20 (1) Indian Tribes, the Department of Hawaiian 

21 Home Lands, and Native Hawaiian organizations; 

22 (2) the Department of the Interior; 

23 (3) the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Sen24 ate; 


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1 (4) the Committee on Natural Resources of the 

2 House of Representatives; 

3 (5) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

4 Transportation of the Senate; 

5 (6) the Committee on Energy and Commerce of 

6 the House of Representatives; 

7 (7) the Native Nations Communications Task 

8 Force of the Commission; 

9 (8) Tribal organizations with telecommuni10 cations expertise; and 

11 (9) requesting qualifying Tribal entities. 

12 SEC. 539. DEFINITIONS. 

13 In this subtitle: 

14 (1) BROADBAND SERVICE.—The term 

15 ‘‘broadband service’’ means internet access service 

16 that is delivered— 

17 (A) with— 

18 (i) except as provided in clause (ii)— 

19 (I) a download speed of not less 

20 than 100 megabits per second; and 

21 (II) an upload speed of not less 

22 than 20 megabits per second; or 

23 (ii) minimum download and upload 

24 speeds established by the Commission after 

25 the date of enactment of this Act, if those 


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1 minimum speeds are higher than the min2 imum speeds required under clause (i); 

3 (B) without any data caps or other service 

4 limitations; 

5 (C) through— 

6 (i) mobile service; 

7 (ii) fixed point-to-point multipoint 

8 service; 

9 (iii) fixed point-to-point service; 

10 (iv) broadcast service; or 

11 (v) wireline service; and 

12 (D) with a latency that meets the latency 

13 requirement set by the Commission to enable 

14 real-time video and other streaming services. 

15 (2) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

16 means the Federal Communications Commission. 

17 (3) DIGITAL LITERACY.—The term ‘‘digital lit18 eracy’’ means information and communications for 

19 the purpose of developing support for technological 

20 deployment and understanding of issues, including 

21 infrastructure deployment, fiber buildout, network 

22 connectivity, spectrum market opportunities, associ23 ated programs and funding opportunities of the 

24 Commission, and other related resources, to expedite 

25 the immediate deployment of, and full access to, 


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1 telecommunications, broadband service, spectrum, 

2 and wireless services available for effective and effi3 cient use on Tribal lands. 

4 (4) ENTITY THAT IS MORE THAN 50 PERCENT

5 OWNED AND CONTROLLED BY 1 OR MORE INDIAN

6 TRIBES.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘entity that 

8 is more than 50 percent owned and controlled 

9 by 1 or more Indian tribes’’ means an entity of 

10 which 1 or more Indian Tribes have both de 

11 facto and de jure control. 

12 (B) DE JURE CONTROL.—For purposes of 

13 subparagraph (A), de jure control of an entity 

14 shall be evidenced by ownership of greater than 

15 50 percent of the voting stock of a corporation, 

16 or in the case of a partnership, general partner17 ship interests. 

18 (C) DE FACTO CONTROL.— 

19 (i) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of 

20 subparagraph (A), de facto control of an 

21 entity shall be determined on a case-by22 case basis. 

23 (ii) INDICIA OF CONTROL.—For pur24 poses of clause (i), an Indian Tribe or In25 dian Tribes shall demonstrate indicia of 


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1 control to establish that the Indian Tribe 

2 or Indian Tribes retain de facto control of 

3 the entity, including the following: 

4 (I) The Indian Tribe or Indian 

5 Tribes constitute or appoint more 

6 than 50 percent of the board of direc7 tors or management committee of the 

8 entity. 

9 (II) The Indian Tribe or Indian 

10 Tribes have authority to appoint, pro11 mote, demote, and fire senior execu12 tives who control the day-to-day ac13 tivities of the entity. 

14 (III) The Indian Tribe or Indian 

15 Tribes play an integral role in the 

16 management decisions of the entity. 

17 (IV) The Indian Tribe or Indian 

18 Tribes have the authority to make de19 cisions or otherwise engage in prac20 tices or activities that determine or 

21 significantly influence— 

22 (aa) the nature or types of 

23 services offered by the entity; 

24 (bb) the terms upon which 

25 such services are offered; or 


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1 (cc) the prices charged for 

2 such services. 

3 (5) QUALIFYING TRIBAL ENTITY.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘qualifying 

5 Tribal entity’’ means an entity designated by 

6 the Indian Tribe with jurisdiction over par7 ticular Tribal lands for which spectrum access 

8 is sought. 

9 (B) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—The following 

10 entities may be designated as a qualifying Trib11 al entity: 

12 (i) An Indian Tribe. 

13 (ii) A Tribal consortia that consists 

14 of— 

15 (I) not less than 2 Indian Tribes; 

16 or 

17 (II) not less than 1 Indian Tribe 

18 and 1 entity that is more than 50 per19 cent owned and controlled by 1 or 

20 more Indian Tribes. 

21 (iii) A federally chartered Tribal cor22 poration established under— 

23 (I) section 17 of the Act of June 

24 18, 1934 (commonly known as the 

25 ‘‘Indian Reorganization Act’’) (48 


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1 Stat. 988, chapter 576; 25 U.S.C. 

2 5124); or 

3 (II) section 4 of the Act of June 

4 26, 1936 (commonly known as the 

5 ‘‘Oklahoma Welfare Act’’) (49 Stat. 

6 1967, chapter 831; 25 U.S.C. 5204). 

7 (iv) An entity that is more than 50 

8 percent owned and controlled by 1 or more 

9 Indian Tribes. 

10 (6) SPECTRUM OVER TRIBAL LANDS.—The 

11 term ‘‘spectrum over Tribal lands’’ means all spec12 trum on Tribal lands, including wireless, radio, tele13 vision, broadcast, commercial and noncommercial 

14 uses, and current generation or better wireless 

15 broadband services. 

16 (7) TRIBAL BROADBAND FUND.—The term 

17 ‘‘Tribal Broadband Fund’’ means the permanent 

18 Federal universal service support mechanism estab19 lished by the Commission under section 531. 

Æ 


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