I 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3030 

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to treat Indian tribal governments in the same manner as State governments for certain Federal 

tax purposes, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

AUGUST 2, 2013 

Mr. KIND introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee on Education and 

the Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to treat Indian 

tribal governments in the same manner as State governments for certain Federal tax purposes, 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. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Tribal Tax and Invest5 ment Reform Act of 2013’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 The Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) There is a unique Federal legal and political 

2 relationship between the United States and Indian 

3 tribes. 

4 (2) Indian tribes have the responsibility and au5 thority to provide governmental programs and serv6 ices to tribal citizens, develop tribal economies, and 

7 build community infrastructure to ensure that In8 dian reservation lands serve as livable, permanent 

9 homes. 

10 (3) The United States Constitution, U.S. Fed11 eral Court decisions, Executive orders, and numer12 ous other Federal laws and regulations recognize 

13 that Indian tribes are governments, retaining the in14 herent authority to tax and operate as other govern15 ments, including (inter alia) financing projects with 

16 government bonds and maintaining eligibility for 

17 general tax exemptions via their government status. 

18 (4) Codifying tax parity with respect to tribal 

19 governments is consistent with Federal treaties rec20 ognizing the sovereignty of tribal governments. 

21 (5) That Indian tribes face historic disadvan22 tages in accessing the underlying capital to build the 

23 necessary infrastructure for job creation, and that 

24 certain statutory restrictions on tribal governance 


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1 further inhibit tribes’ ability to develop strong gov2 ernance and economies. 

3 (6) Indian tribes are sometimes excluded from 

4 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 in key provisions 

5 which results in unfair tax treatment for tribal citi6 zens or unequal enforcement authority for tribal en7 forcement agencies. 

8 (7) Congress is vested with the authority to 

9 regulate commerce with Indian tribes, and hereby 

10 exercises that authority in a manner which furthers 

11 tribal self-governance, and in doing so, further af12 firms the United States government-to-government 

13 relationship with Indian tribes. 

14 SEC. 3. TREATMENT OF INDIAN TRIBES AS STATES WITH 

15 RESPECT TO BOND ISSUANCE. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (c) of section 7871 of 

17 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to Indian 

18 tribal governments treated as States for certain purposes) 

19 is amended to read as follows: 

20 ‘‘(c) SPECIAL RULES FOR TAX-EXEMPT BONDS.—In 

21 applying section 146 to bonds issued by Indian tribal gov22 ernments (or subdivisions thereof) the Secretary of the 

23 Treasury shall annually— 

24 ‘‘(1) establish a national bond volume cap based 

25 on the greater of— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the State population formula ap2 proach in section 146(d)(1)(A) (using national 

3 tribal population estimates supplied annually by 

4 the Department of the Interior in consultation 

5 with the Census Bureau), and 

6 ‘‘(B) the minimum State ceiling amount in 

7 section 146(d)(1)(B) (as adjusted in accordance 

8 with the cost of living provision in section 

9 146(d)(2)), and 

10 ‘‘(2) allocate such national bond volume cap 

11 among all Indian tribal governments seeking such an 

12 allocation in a particular year under regulations pre13 scribed by the Secretary.’’. 

14 (b) REPEAL OF ESSENTIAL GOVERNMENTAL FUNC15 TION REQUIREMENTS.—Section 7871 of such Code is fur16 ther amended by striking subsections (b) and (e). 

17 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

18 (1) SUBSECTION (a).—The amendment made 

19 by subsection (a) shall apply to obligations issued in 

20 calendar years beginning after the date of the enact21 ment of this Act. 

22 (2) SUBSECTION (b).—The repeals made by 

23 subsection (b) shall apply to transactions after, and 

24 obligations issued in calendar years beginning after, 

25 the date of the enactment of this Act. 


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1 SEC. 4. TREATMENT OF PENSION AND EMPLOYEE BENEFIT 

2 PLANS MAINTAINED BY TRIBAL GOVERN3 MENTS. 

4 (a) AMENDMENTS TO THE INTERNAL REVENUE

5 CODE OF 1986.— 

6 (1) QUALIFIED PUBLIC SAFETY EMPLOYEE.— 

7 Section 72(t)(10)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code 

8 of 1986 (defining qualified public safety employee) is 

9 amended by— 

10 (A) striking ‘‘or political subdivision of a 

11 State’’ and inserting ‘‘, political subdivision of 

12 a State, or Indian tribe’’; and 

13 (B) striking ‘‘such State or political sub14 division’’ and inserting ‘‘such State, political 

15 subdivision, or tribe’’. 

16 (2) GOVERNMENTAL PLAN.—The last sentence 

17 of section 414(d) of such Code (defining govern18 mental plan) is amended to read as follows: ‘‘The 

19 term ‘governmental plan’ includes a plan established 

20 or maintained for its employees by an Indian tribal 

21 government (as defined in section 7701(a)(40)), a 

22 subdivision of an Indian tribal government (deter23 mined in accordance with section 7871(d)), an agen24 cy, instrumentality, or subdivision of an Indian trib25 al government, or an entity established under FedVerDate Mar 15 2010 01:12 Aug 10, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3030.IH H3030

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1 eral, State, or tribal law which is wholly owned or 

2 controlled by any of the foregoing.’’. 

3 (3) DOMESTIC RELATIONS ORDER.—Section 

4 414(p)(1)(B)(ii) of such Code (defining domestic re5 lations order) is amended by inserting ‘‘or tribal’’ 

6 after ‘‘State’’. 

7 (4) EXEMPT GOVERNMENTAL DEFERRED COM8 PENSATION PLAN.—Section 3121(v)(3) of such Code 

9 (defining governmental deferred compensation plan) 

10 is amended by inserting ‘‘by an Indian tribal govern11 ment or subdivision thereof,’’ after ‘‘political subdivi12 sion thereof,’’. 

13 (5) GRANDFATHER OF CERTAIN DEFERRED

14 COMPENSATION PLANS.—Section 457 of the Internal 

15 Revenue Code is amended by adding at the end the 

16 following new subsection: 

17 ‘‘(h) CERTAIN TRIBAL GOVERNMENT PLANS GRAND18 FATHERED.—Plans established before the date of enact19 ment of this subsection and maintained by an Indian tribal 

20 government (as defined in section 7701(a)(40)), a subdivi21 sion of an Indian tribal government (determined in accord22 ance with section 7871(d)), an agency, instrumentality, or 

23 subdivision of an Indian tribal government, or an entity 

24 established under Federal, State, or tribal law which is 

25 wholly owned or controlled by any of the foregoing, in comVerDate Mar 15 2010 01:12 Aug 10, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3030.IH H3030

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1 pliance with subsection (b) or (f) shall be treated as if 

2 established by an eligible employer under subsection 

3 (e)(1)(A).’’. 

4 (b) AMENDMENTS TO THE EMPLOYEE RETIREMENT

5 INCOME SECURITY ACT OF 1974.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—The last sentence of section 

7 3(32) of the Employee Retirement Income Security 

8 Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1002(32)) is amended to 

9 read as follows: ‘‘The term ‘governmental plan’ in10 cludes a plan established or maintained for its em11 ployees by an Indian tribal government (as defined 

12 in section 7701(a)(40) of the Internal Revenue Code 

13 of 1986), a subdivision of an Indian tribal govern14 ment (determined in accordance with section 

15 7871(d) of such Code), an agency, instrumentality, 

16 or subdivision of an Indian tribal government, or an 

17 entity established under Federal, State, or tribal law 

18 which is wholly owned or controlled by any of the 

19 foregoing.’’. 

20 (2) DOMESTIC RELATIONS ORDER.—Section 

21 206(d)(3)(B)(ii)(II) of such Act is amended by in22 serting ‘‘or tribal’’ after ‘‘State’’. 

23 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

24 (A) Paragraph (2) of section 109(d) of the 

25 Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act of 


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1 2008 (Public Law 110–458; 122 Stat. 5112) is 

2 repealed, and, subject to subparagraph (B), 

3 each provision amended by such paragraph is 

4 amended to read as if such paragraph had not 

5 been enacted. 

6 (B) Section 4021(b) of the Employee Re7 tirement Income Security Act of 1974 is 

8 amended by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of para9 graph (12), by striking the period at the end of 

10 paragraph (13) and inserting ‘‘; or’’, and by in11 serting after paragraph (13) the following new 

12 paragraph: 

13 ‘‘(14) established or maintained for its employ14 ees by an Indian tribal government (as defined in 

15 section 7701(a)(40) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

16 1986), a subdivision of an Indian tribal government 

17 (determined in accordance with section 7871(d) of 

18 such Code), an agency, instrumentality, or subdivi19 sion of an Indian tribal government, or an entity es20 tablished under Federal, State, or tribal law which 

21 is wholly owned or controlled by any of the fore22 going.’’. 

23 (C) Section 4021(b)(2) of such Act (29 

24 U.S.C. 1321(b)(2)) is amended by striking ‘‘, or 


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1 which is described in the last sentence of sec2 tion 3(32)’’ and inserting a comma. 

3 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

4 this section shall apply to years beginning after the date 

5 of the enactment of this Act. 

6 SEC. 5. TREATMENT OF TRIBAL FOUNDATIONS AND CHAR7 ITIES LIKE CHARITIES FUNDED AND CON8 TROLLED BY OTHER GOVERNMENTAL 

9 FUNDERS AND SPONSORS. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 170(b)(1)(A) of the Inter11 nal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the 

12 end the following: ‘‘For purposes of clause (vi), the term 

13 ‘governmental unit’ includes an Indian tribal government 

14 (determined in accordance with section 7871(d) of such 

15 Code), an agency, instrumentality, or subdivision of an In16 dian tribal government, or an entity established under 

17 Federal, State, or tribal law which is wholly owned or con18 trolled by any of the foregoing.’’. 

19 (b) CERTAIN SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS.—Sec20 tion 509(a) of such Code is amended by adding at the 

21 end the following: ‘‘For purposes of paragraph (3), an or22 ganization described in paragraph (2) shall be deemed to 

23 include an Indian tribal government (determined in ac24 cordance with section 7871(d) of such Code), an agency, 

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1 ment, or an entity established under Federal, State, or 

2 tribal law which is wholly owned or controlled by any of 

3 the foregoing.’’. 

4 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

5 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after 

6 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

7 SEC. 6. IMPROVING EFFECTIVENESS OF TRIBAL CHILD 

8 SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES BY PAR9 ITY OF ACCESS TO THE FEDERAL PARENT LO10 CATOR SERVICE AND FEDERAL TAX REFUND 

11 OFFSETS. 

12 (a) ACCESS TO FEDERAL PARENT LOCATIOR SERV13 ICE.—Section 453(c) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

14 653(c)) is amended— 

15 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

16 (3); 

17 (2) by striking the period at the end of para18 graph (4) and inserting ‘‘; and’’ ; and 

19 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(5) the child support enforcement agency of an 

21 Indian tribe or tribal organization that is eligible for 

22 a grant under section 455(f).’’. 

23 (b) IMPROVING THE COLLECTION OF PAST-DUE

24 CHILD SUPPORT FROM FEDERAL TAX REFUNDS.— 


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1 (1) AMENDMENT TO THE SOCIAL SECURITY

2 ACT.—Section 464 of the Social Security Act (42 

3 U.S.C. 664) is amended by adding at the end the 

4 following: 

5 ‘‘(d) APPLICABILITY TO INDIAN TRIBES AND TRIBAL

6 ORGANIZATIONS ELIGIBLE FOR A GRANT UNDER THIS

7 PART.—This section, except for the requirement to dis8 tribute amounts in accordance with section 457, shall 

9 apply to an Indian tribe or tribal organization eligible for 

10 a grant under section 455(f) in the same manner in which 

11 this section applies to a State with a plan approved under 

12 this part.’’. 

13 (2) AMENDMENT TO THE INTERNAL REVENUE

14 CODE.—Subsection (c) of section 6402 of the Inter15 nal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at 

16 the end the following: ‘‘ ‘For purposes of this sub17 section, any reference to a State shall include a ref18 erence to any Indian tribe or tribal organization de19 scribed in section 464(d) of the Social Security 

20 Act.’’. 

21 SEC. 7. APPLICATION OF CLEAN RENEWABLE ENERGY 

22 BONDS TO TRIBES. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 54(j) of the Internal Rev24 enue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the 

25 following new paragraph: 


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1 ‘‘(6) INDIAN TRIBAL GOVERNMENT.—The term 

2 ‘Indian tribal government’ has the meaning given 

3 such term by section 7701(a)(40) and includes a 

4 subdivision of an Indian tribal government (deter5 mined in accordance with section 7871(d)), an agen6 cy, instrumentality, or subdivision of an Indian trib7 al government, or an entity established under Fed8 eral, State, or tribal law which is wholly owned or 

9 controlled by any of the foregoing.’’. 

10 (b) ALLOCATION.—Section 54(f) of such Code is 

11 amended by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULE FOR INDIAN TRIBAL GOV13 ERNMENTS.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding sub15 section (m), there is a clean renewable energy 

16 bond limitation for Indian tribal governments of 

17 $200,000,000 for each of calendar years 2014, 

18 2015, and 2016. 

19 ‘‘(B) ALLOCATION BY SECRETARY.—The 

20 Secretary shall allocate the amount described in 

21 subparagraph (A) among qualified projects in 

22 such manner as the Secretary determines ap23 propriate, except that the Secretary may not al24 locate more than 20 percent of the national 


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1 clean renewable energy bond limitation to fi2 nance any 1 qualified project.’’. 

3 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

4 this section shall apply to obligations issued after Decem5 ber 31, 2014. 

Æ 


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