II 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2907 

To establish the Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School 

Policies in the United States, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 30, 2021 

Ms. WARREN (for herself, Ms. BALDWIN, Ms. SMITH, Mr. PADILLA, Mr. 

WYDEN, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. BOOKER, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. LUJA ́N, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. HEINRICH, Ms. CORTEZ MASTO, 

and Mr. SCHATZ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs 

A BILL 

To establish the Truth and Healing Commission on Indian 

Boarding School Policies in the United States, 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 ‘‘Truth and Healing 

5 Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds that— 


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1 (1) assimilation processes, such as the Indian 

2 Boarding School Policies, were adopted by the 

3 United States Government to strip American Indian, 

4 Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian children of 

5 their Indigenous identities, beliefs, and languages to 

6 assimilate them into non-Native culture through fed7 erally funded and controlled Christian-run schools, 

8 which had the intent and, in many cases, the effect, 

9 of termination, with dire and intentional con10 sequences on the cultures and languages of Indige11 nous peoples; 

12 (2) assimilation processes can be traced back 

13 to— 

14 (A) the enactment of the Act of March 3, 

15 1819 (3 Stat. 516, chapter 85) (commonly 

16 known as the ‘‘Indian Civilization Fund Act of 

17 1819’’), which created a fund to administer the 

18 education, healthcare, and rations promised to 

19 Tribal nations under treaties those Tribal na20 tions had with the United States; and 

21 (B) the Grant Administration’s peace pol22 icy with Tribal nations in 1868, which, among 

23 other things, authorized amounts in the fund 

24 established under the Act of March 3, 1819 (3 

25 Stat. 516, chapter 85) (commonly known as the 


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1 ‘‘Indian Civilization Fund Act of 1819’’), to be 

2 used by churches; 

3 (3) according to research from the National 

4 Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition, 

5 the Federal Government funded church-run boarding 

6 schools for Native Americans from 1819 through the 

7 1960s under the Act of March 3, 1819 (3 Stat. 516, 

8 chapter 85), which authorized the forced removal of 

9 hundreds of thousands of American Indian and 

10 Alaska Native children as young as 3 years old, relo11 cating them from their traditional homelands to 1 of 

12 at least 367 known Indian boarding schools, of 

13 which 73 remain open today, across 30 States; 

14 (4) beginning in 1820, missionaries from the 

15 United States arrived in Hawai‘i, bringing a similar 

16 desire to civilize Native Hawaiians and convert ‘‘Ha17 waiian heathens’’ to Christians, establishing day 

18 schools and boarding schools that followed models 

19 first imposed on Tribal nations on the East Coast of 

20 the United States; 

21 (5) as estimated by David Wallace Adams, pro22 fessor emeritus of history and education at Cleve23 land State University in Ohio, by 1926, nearly 83 

24 percent of American Indian and Alaska Native 

25 school-age children were enrolled in Indian boarding 


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1 schools in the United States, but, the full extent of 

2 the Indian Boarding School Policies has yet to be 

3 fully examined by— 

4 (A) the Federal Government or the church5 es who ran those schools; or 

6 (B) other entities who profited from the 

7 existence of those schools; 

8 (6) General Richard Henry Pratt, the founder 

9 and superintendent of the Carlisle Indian Industrial 

10 School in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, stated that the 

11 ethos of Indian Boarding School Policies was to ‘‘kill 

12 the Indian in him, and save the man’’; 

13 (7) in 1878, General Pratt brought a group of 

14 American Indian warriors held as prisoners of war 

15 to what was then known as the Hampton Agricul16 tural and Industrial School in Hampton, Virginia, 

17 for a residential experiment in the education of In18 digenous people; 

19 (8) prior to arriving to the Hampton Agricul20 tural and Industrial School in 1878, the American 

21 Indian warriors held as prisoners of war had already 

22 spent 3 years imprisoned, during which time they 

23 were forced to shave their traditionally grown hair, 

24 dress in military uniforms, participate in Christian 

25 worship services, and adopt an English name; 


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1 (9) General Samuel C. Armstrong, founder and, 

2 in 1878, principal, of the Hampton Agricultural and 

3 Industrial School, was influenced by his parents and 

4 other missionaries in the United States involved in 

5 the education of Native Hawaiian children; 

6 (10) General Armstrong modeled the Hampton 

7 Agricultural and Industrial School after the Hilo 

8 Boarding School in Hawai‘i, a missionary-run board9 ing school that targeted high performing Native Ha10 waiians to become indoctrinated in Protestant ide11 ology, which was similar to boarding schools led by 

12 missionaries in the similarly sovereign Five Tribes of 

13 Oklahoma, including the Cherokee and Chickasaw; 

14 (11) in addition to bringing a group of Amer15 ican Indian warriors held as prisoners of war to the 

16 Hampton Agricultural and Industrial School in 

17 1878, General Pratt influenced Sheldon Jackson, a 

18 Presbyterian missionary who, in 1885, was ap19 pointed by the Secretary of the Interior to be a Gen20 eral Agent of Education in the Alaska Territory; 

21 (12) Hampton Agricultural and Industrial 

22 School continued as a boarding school for American 

23 Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians until 

24 1923; 


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1 (13) founded in 1879, the Carlisle Indian In2 dustrial School set the precedent for government3 funded, off-reservation Indian boarding schools in 

4 the United States, where more than 10,000 Amer5 ican Indian and Alaska Native children were en6 rolled from more than 140 Indian Tribes; 

7 (14) Indian boarding schools, and the policies 

8 that created, funded, and fueled their existence, were 

9 designed to assimilate American Indian, Alaska Na10 tive, and Native Hawaiian children into non-Native 

11 culture by stripping them of their cultural identities, 

12 often through physical, sexual, psychological, indus13 trial, and spiritual abuse and neglect; 

14 (15) many of the children who were taken to 

15 Indian boarding schools did not survive, and of those 

16 who did survive, many never returned to their par17 ents, extended families, and communities; 

18 (16) at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School 

19 alone, approximately 180 American Indian and Alas20 ka Native children were buried; 

21 (17) according to research from the National 

22 Native American Boarding School Healing Coali23 tion— 

24 (A) while attending Indian boarding 

25 schools, American Indian, Alaska Native, and 


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1 Native Hawaiian children suffered additional 

2 physical, sexual, psychological, industrial, and 

3 spiritual abuse and neglect as they were sent to 

4 non-Native homes and businesses for involun5 tary and unpaid manual labor work during the 

6 summers; 

7 (B) many American Indian, Alaska Native, 

8 and Native Hawaiian children escaped from In9 dian boarding schools by running away, and 

10 then remained missing or died of illnesses due 

11 to harsh living conditions, abuse, or sub12 standard health care provided by the Indian 

13 boarding schools; 

14 (C) many American Indian, Alaska Native, 

15 and Native Hawaiian children died at hospitals 

16 neighboring Indian boarding schools, including 

17 the Puyallup Indian School that opened in 

18 1860, which was first renamed the Cushman 

19 Indian School in 1910 and then the Cushman 

20 Hospital in 1918; and 

21 (D) many of the American Indian and 

22 Alaska Native children who died while attend23 ing Indian boarding schools or neighboring hos24 pitals were buried in unmarked graves or off25 campus cemeteries; 


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1 (18) according to independent ground pene2 trating radar and magnetometry research commis3 sioned by the National Native American Boarding 

4 School Healing Coalition, evidence of those un5 marked graves and off-campus cemeteries has been 

6 found, including— 

7 (A) unmarked graves at Chemawa Indian 

8 School in Salem, Oregon; and 

9 (B) remains of children who were burned 

10 in incinerators at Indian boarding schools; 

11 (19) according to research from the National 

12 Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition, 

13 inaccurate, scattered, and missing school records 

14 make it difficult for families to locate their loved 

15 ones, especially because— 

16 (A) less than 38 percent of Indian board17 ing school records have been located, from only 

18 142 of the at least 367 known Indian boarding 

19 schools; and 

20 (B) all other records are believed to be 

21 held in catalogued and uncatalogued church ar22 chives, private collections, or lost or destroyed; 

23 (20) parents of the American Indian, Alaska 

24 Native, and Native Hawaiian children who were 

25 forcibly removed from or coerced into leaving their 


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1 homes and placed in Indian boarding schools were 

2 prohibited from visiting or engaging in correspond3 ence with their children; 

4 (21) parental resistance to compliance with the 

5 harsh no-contact policy described in paragraph (20) 

6 resulted in the parents being incarcerated or losing 

7 access to basic human rights, food rations, and 

8 clothing; 

9 (22) in 2013, post-traumatic stress disorder 

10 rates among American Indian and Alaska Native 

11 youth were 3-times the general public, the same 

12 rates for post-traumatic stress disorder among vet13 erans; 

14 (23) in 2014, the White House Report on Na15 tive Youth declared a state of emergency due to a 

16 suicide epidemic among American Indian and Alaska 

17 Native youth; 

18 (24) the 2018 Broken Promises Report pub19 lished by the United States Commission on Civil 

20 Rights reported that American Indian and Alaska 

21 Native communities continue to experience intergen22 erational trauma resulting from experiences in In23 dian boarding schools, which divided cultural family 

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1 flicted chronic psychological ramifications on Amer2 ican Indian and Alaska Native children and families; 

3 (25) the Centers for Disease Control and Pre4 vention Kaiser Permanente Adverse Childhood Expe5 riences Study shows that adverse or traumatic child6 hood experiences disrupt brain development, leading 

7 to a higher likelihood of negative health outcomes as 

8 adults, including heart disease, obesity, diabetes, 

9 autoimmune diseases, and early death; 

10 (26) American Indians, Alaska Natives, and 

11 Native Hawaiians suffer from disproportional rates 

12 of each of the diseases described in paragraph (25) 

13 compared to the national average; 

14 (27) the longstanding intended consequences 

15 and ramifications of the treatment of American In16 dian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian children, 

17 families, and communities because of Federal poli18 cies and the funding of Indian boarding schools con19 tinue to impact Native communities through inter20 generational trauma, cycles of violence and abuse, 

21 disappearance, health disparities, substance abuse, 

22 premature deaths, additional undocumented phys23 ical, sexual, psychological, industrial, and spiritual 

24 abuse and neglect, and trauma; 


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1 (28) according to the Child Removal Survey 

2 conducted by the National Native American Board3 ing School Healing Coalition, the First Nations Re4 patriation Institute, and the University of Min5 nesota, 75 percent of Indian boarding school sur6 vivors who responded to the survey had attempted 

7 suicide, and nearly half of respondents to the survey 

8 reported being diagnosed with a mental health con9 dition; 

10 (29) the continuing lasting implications of the 

11 Indian Boarding School Policies and the physical, 

12 sexual, psychological, industrial, and spiritual abuse 

13 and neglect of American Indian and Alaska Native 

14 children and families influenced the present-day op15 eration of Bureau of Indian Education-operated 

16 schools; 

17 (30) Bureau of Indian Education-operated 

18 schools have often failed to meet the many needs of 

19 nearly 50,000 American Indian and Alaska Native 

20 students across 23 States; 

21 (31) in Alaska, where there are no Bureau of 

22 Indian Education-funded elementary and secondary 

23 schools, the State public education system often fails 

24 to meet the needs of Alaska Native students, fami25 lies, and communities; 


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1 (32) the assimilation policies imposed on Amer2 ican Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians 

3 during the Indian boarding school era have been 

4 replicated through other Federal actions and pro5 grams, including the Indian Adoption Project in ef6 fect from 1958 to 1967, which placed American In7 dian and Alaska Native children in non-Indian 

8 households and institutions for foster care or adop9 tion; 

10 (33) the Association on American Indian Af11 fairs reported that the continuation of assimilation 

12 policies through Federal American Indian and Alas13 ka Native adoption and foster care programs be14 tween 1941 to 1967 separated as many as one-third 

15 of American Indian and Alaska Native children from 

16 their families in Tribal communities; 

17 (34) in some States, greater than 50 percent of 

18 foster care children in State adoption systems are 

19 American Indian, Alaska Native, or Native Hawai20 ian children, including in Alaska, where over 60 per21 cent of children in foster care are Alaska Native; 

22 (35) the general lack of public awareness, ac23 countability, education, information, and acknowl24 edgment of the ongoing and direct impacts of the 

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1 generational trauma persists, signaling the overdue 

2 need for an investigative Federal commission to fur3 ther document and expose assimilation and termi4 nation efforts to eradicate the cultures and lan5 guages of Indigenous peoples implemented under In6 dian Boarding School Policies; and 

7 (36) in the secretarial memorandum entitled 

8 ‘‘Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative’’ and 

9 dated June 22, 2021, Secretary of the Interior 

10 Debra Haaland stated the following: ‘‘The 

11 assimilationist policies of the past are contrary to 

12 the doctrine of trust responsibility, under which the 

13 Federal Government must promote Tribal self-gov14 ernance and cultural integrity. Nevertheless, the leg15 acy of Indian boarding schools remains, manifesting 

16 itself in Indigenous communities through intergen17 erational trauma, cycles of violence and abuse, dis18 appearance, premature deaths, and other undocu19 mented bodily and mental impacts.’’. 

20 SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 

21 The purposes of this Act are to establish a Truth and 

22 Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies 

23 in the United States— 

24 (1) to formally investigate and document— 


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1 (A) the attempted termination of cultures 

2 and languages of Indigenous peoples, assimila3 tion practices, and human rights violations that 

4 occurred against American Indians, Alaska Na5 tives, and Native Hawaiians through Indian 

6 Boarding School Policies in furtherance of the 

7 motto to ‘‘kill the Indian in him and save the 

8 man’’; and 

9 (B) the impacts and ongoing effects of his10 torical and intergenerational trauma in Native 

11 communities, including the effects of the at12 tempted cultural, religious, and linguistic termi13 nation of American Indians, Alaska Natives, 

14 and Native Hawaiians, resulting from Indian 

15 Boarding School Policies; 

16 (2) to hold culturally respectful and meaningful 

17 public hearings for American Indian, Alaska Native, 

18 and Native Hawaiian survivors, victims, families, 

19 communities, organizations, and Tribal leaders to 

20 testify, discuss, and add to the documentation of, 

21 the impacts of the physical, psychological, and spir22 itual violence of Indian boarding schools; 

23 (3) to collaborate and exchange information 

24 with the Department of the Interior with respect to 

25 the review of the Indian Boarding School Policies 


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1 announced by Secretary of the Interior Debra 

2 Haaland in the secretarial memorandum entitled 

3 ‘‘Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative’’ and 

4 dated June 22, 2021; and 

5 (4) to further develop recommendations for the 

6 Federal Government to acknowledge and heal the 

7 historical and intergenerational trauma caused by 

8 the Indian Boarding School Policies and other cul9 tural and linguistic termination practices carried out 

10 by the Federal Government and State and local gov11 ernments, including recommendations— 

12 (A) for resources and assistance that the 

13 Federal Government should provide to aid in 

14 the healing of the trauma caused by the Indian 

15 Boarding School Policies; 

16 (B) to establish a nationwide hotline for 

17 survivors, family members, or other community 

18 members affected by the Indian Boarding 

19 School Policies; and 

20 (C) to prevent the continued removal of 

21 American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native 

22 Hawaiian children from their families and Na23 tive communities under modern-day assimila24 tion practices carried out by State social service 


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1 departments, foster care agencies, and adoption 

2 services. 

3 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 

4 In this Act: 

5 (1) ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—The term ‘‘Advi6 sory Committee’’ means the Truth and Healing Ad7 visory Committee established by the Commission 

8 under section 5(g). 

9 (2) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

10 means the Truth and Healing Commission on Indian 

11 Boarding School Policies in the United States estab12 lished by section 5(a). 

13 (3) INDIAN BOARDING SCHOOL POLICIES.—The 

14 term ‘‘Indian Boarding School Policies’’ means— 

15 (A) the assimilation policies and practices 

16 of the Federal Government, which began with 

17 the enactment of the Act of March 3, 1819 (3 

18 Stat. 516, chapter 85) (commonly known as the 

19 ‘‘Indian Civilization Fund Act of 1819’’), and 

20 the peace policy with Tribal nations advanced 

21 by President Ulysses Grant in 1868, under 

22 which more than 100,000 American Indian and 

23 Alaska Native children were forcibly removed 

24 from or coerced into leaving their family homes 

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1 ated schools or church-run schools, including at 

2 least 367 known Indian boarding schools, at 

3 which assimilation and ‘‘civilization’’ practices 

4 were inflicted on those children as part of the 

5 assimilation efforts of the Federal Government, 

6 which were intended to terminate the cultures 

7 and languages of Indigenous peoples in the 

8 United States; and 

9 (B) the assimilation practices inflicted on 

10 Native Hawaiian children in boarding schools 

11 following the arrival of Christian missionaries 

12 from the United States in Hawai‘i in 1820 who 

13 sought to extinguish Hawaiian culture. 

14 SEC. 5. TRUTH AND HEALING COMMISSION ON INDIAN 

15 BOARDING SCHOOL POLICIES IN THE UNITED 

16 STATES. 

17 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the 

18 Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding 

19 School Policies in the United States. 

20 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall in22 clude 10 members, of whom— 

23 (A) 2 shall be appointed by the President; 


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1 (B) 2 shall be appointed by the President 

2 pro tempore of the Senate, on the recommenda3 tion of the majority leader of the Senate; 

4 (C) 2 shall be appointed by the President 

5 pro tempore of the Senate, on the recommenda6 tion of the minority leader of the Senate; and 

7 (D) 4 shall be appointed by the Speaker of 

8 the House of Representatives, of whom not 

9 fewer than 2 shall be appointed on the rec10 ommendation of the minority leader of the 

11 House of Representatives. 

12 (2) REQUIREMENTS FOR MEMBERSHIP.—To the 

13 maximum extent practicable, the President and the 

14 Members of Congress shall appoint members of the 

15 Commission under paragraph (1) to represent di16 verse experiences and backgrounds and so as to in17 clude Tribal and Native representatives and experts 

18 who will provide balanced points of view with regard 

19 to the duties of the Commission, including Tribal 

20 and Native representatives and experts— 

21 (A) from diverse geographic areas; 

22 (B) who possess personal experience with, 

23 diverse policy experience with, or specific exper24 tise in, Indian boarding school history and the 

25 Indian Boarding School Policies; and 


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1 (C) who possess expertise in truth and 

2 healing endeavors that are traditionally and cul3 turally appropriate. 

4 (3) PRESIDENTIAL APPOINTMENT.—The Presi5 dent shall make appointments to the Commission 

6 under this subsection in coordination with the Sec7 retary of the Interior and the Director of the Bu8 reau of Indian Education. 

9 (4) DATE.—The appointments of the members 

10 of the Commission shall be made not later than 120 

11 days after the date of enactment of this Act. 

12 (5) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT; VACANCIES; RE13 MOVAL.— 

14 (A) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT.—A mem15 ber of the Commission shall be appointed for a 

16 term of 5 years. 

17 (B) VACANCIES.—A vacancy in the Com18 mission— 

19 (i) shall not affect the powers of the 

20 Commission; and 

21 (ii) shall be filled in the same manner 

22 as the original appointment. 

23 (C) REMOVAL.—A quorum of members 

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1 dent or Member of Congress, respectively, only 

2 for neglect of duty or malfeasance in office. 

3 (c) MEETINGS.— 

4 (1) INITIAL MEETING.—As soon as practicable 

5 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Commis6 sion shall hold the initial meeting of the Commission 

7 and begin operations. 

8 (2) SUBSEQUENT MEETINGS.—After the initial 

9 meeting of the Commission is held under paragraph 

10 (1), the Commission shall meet at the call of the 

11 Chairperson. 

12 (3) FORMAT OF MEETINGS.—A meeting of the 

13 Commission may be conducted in-person, virtually, 

14 or via phone. 

15 (d) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of the 

16 Commission shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser num17 ber of members may hold hearings. 

18 (e) CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIRPERSON.—The 

19 Commission shall select a Chairperson and Vice Chair20 person from among the members of the Commission. 

21 (f) COMMISSION PERSONNEL MATTERS.— 

22 (1) COMPENSATION OF MEMBERS.—A member 

23 of the Commission who is not an officer or employee 

24 of the Federal Government shall be compensated at 

25 a rate equal to the daily equivalent of the annual 


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1 rate of basic pay prescribed for level IV of the Exec2 utive Schedule under section 5315 of title 5, United 

3 States Code, for each day (including travel time) 

4 during which the member is engaged in the perform5 ance of the duties of the Commission. 

6 (2) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—A member of the 

7 Commission shall be allowed travel expenses, includ8 ing per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates author9 ized for employees of agencies under subchapter I of 

10 chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, while 

11 away from their homes or regular places of business 

12 in the performance of services for the Commission. 

13 (g) TRUTH AND HEALING ADVISORY COMMITTEE.— 

14 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Commission shall 

15 establish an advisory committee, to be known as the 

16 ‘‘Truth and Healing Advisory Committee’’. 

17 (2) MEMBERSHIP.—The Advisory Committee 

18 shall consist of— 

19 (A) 1 representative from each of— 

20 (i) the National Native American 

21 Boarding School Healing Coalition; 

22 (ii) the National Congress of Amer23 ican Indians; 

24 (iii) the National Indian Education 

25 Association; 


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1 (iv) the National Indian Child Welfare 

2 Association; 

3 (v) the Alaska Federation of Natives; 

4 and 

5 (vi) the Office of Hawaiian Affairs; 

6 (B) the Director of the Bureau of Indian 

7 Education; 

8 (C) the Director of the Office of Indian 

9 Education of the Department of Education; 

10 (D) the Commissioner of the Administra11 tion for Native Americans of the Office of the 

12 Administration for Children and Families of the 

13 Department of Health and Human Services; 

14 and 

15 (E) not fewer than— 

16 (i) 5 members of different Indian 

17 Tribes from diverse geographic areas, to be 

18 selected from among nominations sub19 mitted by Indian Tribes; 

20 (ii) 1 member representing Alaska 

21 Natives, to be selected by the Alaska Fed22 eration of Natives from nominations sub23 mitted by an Alaska Native individual, or24 ganization, or village; 


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1 (iii) 1 member representing Native 

2 Hawaiians, to be selected by a process ad3 ministered by the Office of Hawaiian Af4 fairs; 

5 (iv) 2 health care or mental health 

6 practitioners, Native healers, counselors, or 

7 providers with experience in working with 

8 former students, or descendants of former 

9 students, of Indian boarding schools, to be 

10 selected from among nominations of Tribal 

11 chairs or elected Tribal leadership local to 

12 the region in which the practitioner, coun13 selor, or provider works, in order to ensure 

14 that the Commission considers culturally 

15 responsive supports for victims, families, 

16 and communities; 

17 (v) 3 members of different national 

18 American Indian, Alaska Native, or Native 

19 Hawaiian organizations, regional American 

20 Indian, Alaska Native, or Native Hawaiian 

21 organizations, or urban Indian organiza22 tions that are focused on, or have relevant 

23 expertise studying, the history and sys24 temic and ongoing trauma associated with 

25 the Indian Boarding School Policies; 


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1 (vi) 2 family members of students who 

2 attended Indian boarding schools, who 

3 shall represent diverse regions of the 

4 United States; 

5 (vii) 4 alumni who attended a Bureau 

6 of Indian Education-operated school, trib7 ally controlled boarding school, State pub8 lic boarding school, private nonprofit 

9 boarding school formerly operated by the 

10 Federal Government, parochial boarding 

11 school, or Bureau of Indian Education-op12 erated college or university; 

13 (viii) 2 current teachers who teach at 

14 an Indian boarding school; 

15 (ix) 2 students who, as of the date of 

16 enactment of this Act, attend an Indian 

17 boarding school; 

18 (x) 1 representative of the Inter19 national Indian Treaty Council or the As20 sociation on American Indian Affairs; and 

21 (xi) 1 trained archivist who has expe22 rience working with educational or church 

23 records. 

24 (3) DUTIES.—The Advisory Committee shall— 


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1 (A) serve as an advisory body to the Com2 mission; and 

3 (B) provide to the Commission advice and 

4 recommendations, and submit to the Commis5 sion materials, documents, testimony, and such 

6 other information as the Commission deter7 mines to be necessary, to carry out the duties 

8 of the Commission under subsection (h). 

9 (4) SURVIVORS SUBCOMMITTEE.—The Advisory 

10 Committee shall establish a subcommittee that shall 

11 consist of not fewer than 4 former students or sur12 vivors who attended an Indian boarding school. 

13 (h) DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall de15 velop recommendations on actions that the Federal 

16 Government can take to adequately hold itself ac17 countable for, and redress and heal, the historical 

18 and intergenerational trauma inflicted by the Indian 

19 Boarding School Policies, including developing rec20 ommendations on ways— 

21 (A) to protect unmarked graves and ac22 companying land protections; 

23 (B) to support repatriation and identify 

24 the Tribal nations from which children were 

25 taken; and 


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1 (C) to stop the continued removal of Amer2 ican Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawai3 ian children from their families and reserva4 tions under modern-day assimilation practices. 

5 (2) MATTERS INVESTIGATED.—The matters in6 vestigated by the Commission under paragraph (1) 

7 shall include— 

8 (A) the implementation of the Indian 

9 Boarding School Policies and practices at— 

10 (i) the schools operated by the Bureau 

11 of Indian Affairs; and 

12 (ii) church-run Indian boarding 

13 schools; 

14 (B) how the assimilation practices of the 

15 Federal Government advanced the attempted 

16 cultural, religious, and linguistic termination of 

17 American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native 

18 Hawaiians; 

19 (C) the impacts and ongoing effects of the 

20 Indian Boarding School Policies; 

21 (D) the location of American Indian, Alas22 ka Native, and Native Hawaiian children who 

23 are still, as of the date of enactment of this 

24 Act, buried at Indian boarding schools and off25 campus cemeteries, including notifying the 


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1 Tribal nation from which the children were 

2 taken; and 

3 (E) church and government records, in4 cluding records relating to attendance, infir5 mary, deaths, land, Tribal affiliation, and other 

6 correspondence. 

7 (3) ADDITIONAL DUTIES.—In carrying out 

8 paragraph (1), the Commission shall— 

9 (A) work to locate and identify unmarked 

10 graves at Indian boarding school sites or off11 campus cemeteries; 

12 (B) locate, document, analyze, and pre13 serve records from schools described in para14 graph (2)(A), including any records held at 

15 State and local levels; and 

16 (C) provide to, and receive from, the De17 partment of the Interior any information that 

18 the Commission determines to be relevant— 

19 (i) to the work of the Commission; or 

20 (ii) to any investigation of the Indian 

21 Boarding School Policies being conducted 

22 by the Department of the Interior. 

23 (4) TESTIMONY.—The Commission shall take 

24 testimony from— 


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1 (A) survivors of schools described in para2 graph (2)(A), in order to identify how the expe3 rience of those survivors impacts their lives, so 

4 that their stories will be remembered as part of 

5 the history of the United States; and 

6 (B) American Indian, Alaska Native, and 

7 Native Hawaiian individuals, tribes, and organi8 zations directly impacted by assimilation prac9 tices supported by the Federal Government, in10 cluding assimilation practices promoted by— 

11 (i) religious groups receiving funding, 

12 or working closely with, the Federal Gov13 ernment; 

14 (ii) local, State, and territorial school 

15 systems; 

16 (iii) any other local, State, or terri17 torial government body or agency; and 

18 (iv) any other private entities; and 

19 (C) those who have access to, or knowledge 

20 of, historical events, documents, and items re21 lating to the Indian Boarding School Policies 

22 and the impacts of those policies, including— 

23 (i) churches; 

24 (ii) the Federal Government; 

25 (iii) State and local governments; 


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1 (iv) individuals; and 

2 (v) organizations. 

3 (5) REPORTS.— 

4 (A) INITIAL REPORT.—Not later than 3 

5 years after the date of enactment of this Act, 

6 the Commission shall make publicly available 

7 and submit to the President, the White House 

8 Council on Native American Affairs, the Sec9 retary of the Interior, the Secretary of Edu10 cation, the Secretary of Health and Human 

11 Services, the Committee on Indian Affairs of 

12 the Senate, the Committee on Natural Re13 sources of the House of Representatives, and 

14 the Members of Congress making appointments 

15 under subsection (b)(1), an initial report con16 taining— 

17 (i) a detailed statement of the find18 ings and conclusions of the Commission; 

19 (ii) the recommendations of the Com20 mission for such legislation and adminis21 trative actions as the Commission con22 siders appropriate; 

23 (iii) the recommendations of the Com24 mission to provide or increase Federal 

25 funding to adequately fund— 


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1 (I) American Indian, Alaska Na2 tive, and Native Hawaiian programs 

3 for mental health and traditional heal4 ing programs; 

5 (II) a nationwide hotline for sur6 vivors, family members, or other com7 munity members affected by the In8 dian Boarding School Policies; and 

9 (III) the development of mate10 rials to be offered for possible use in 

11 K–12 Native American and United 

12 States history curricula to address the 

13 history of Indian Boarding School 

14 Policies; and 

15 (iv) other recommendations of the 

16 Commission to identify— 

17 (I) possible ways to address his18 torical and intergenerational trauma 

19 inflicted on American Indian, Alaska 

20 Native, and Native Hawaiian commu21 nities by the Indian Boarding School 

22 Policies; and 

23 (II) ongoing and harmful prac24 tices and policies relating to or result25 ing from the Indian Boarding School 


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1 Policies that continue in public edu2 cation systems. 

3 (B) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 5 

4 years after the date of enactment of this Act, 

5 the Commission shall make available and sub6 mit a final report in accordance with the re7 quirements under subparagraph (A) that have 

8 been agreed on by the vote of a majority of the 

9 members of the Commission. 

10 (i) POWERS OF COMMISSION.— 

11 (1) HEARINGS AND EVIDENCE.—The Commis12 sion may, for the purpose of carrying out this sec13 tion— 

14 (A) hold such hearings and sit and act at 

15 such times and places, take such testimony, re16 ceive such evidence, and administer such oaths, 

17 virtually or in-person, as the Commission may 

18 determine advisable; and 

19 (B) subject to subparagraphs (A) and (B) 

20 of paragraph (2), require, by subpoena or oth21 erwise, the attendance and testimony of such 

22 witnesses and the production of such books, 

23 records, correspondence, memoranda, papers, 

24 videos, oral histories, recordings, documents, or 

25 any other paper or electronic material, virtually 


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1 or in-person, as the Commission may determine 

2 advisable. 

3 (2) SUBPOENAS.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.— 

5 (i) ISSUANCE OF SUBPOENAS.—Sub6 ject to subparagraph (B), the Commission 

7 may issue subpoenas requiring the attend8 ance and testimony of witnesses and the 

9 production of any evidence relating to any 

10 matter that the Commission is empowered 

11 to investigate under this section. 

12 (ii) VOTE.—Subpoenas shall be issued 

13 under clause (i) by agreement between the 

14 Chairperson and Vice Chairperson of the 

15 Commission, or by the vote of a majority 

16 of the members of the Commission. 

17 (iii) ATTENDANCE OF WITNESSES AND

18 PRODUCTION OF EVIDENCE.—The attend19 ance of witnesses and the production of 

20 evidence may be required from any place 

21 within the United States at any designated 

22 place of hearing within the United States. 

23 (B) PROTECTION OF PERSON SUBJECT TO

24 A SUBPOENA.— 


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1 (i) IN GENERAL.—When issuing a 

2 subpoena under subparagraph (A), the 

3 Commission shall— 

4 (I) consider the cultural, emo5 tional, and psychological well-being of 

6 survivors, family members, and com7 munity members affected by the In8 dian Boarding School Policies; and 

9 (II) take reasonable steps to 

10 avoid imposing undue burden, includ11 ing cultural, emotional, and psycho12 logical trauma, on a survivor, family 

13 member, or community member af14 fected by the Indian Boarding School 

15 Policies. 

16 (ii) QUASHING OR MODIFYING A SUB17 POENA.—On a timely motion, the district 

18 court of the United States in the judicial 

19 district in which compliance with the sub20 poena is required shall quash or modify a 

21 subpoena that subjects a person to undue 

22 burden as described in clause (i)(II). 

23 (C) FAILURE TO OBEY A SUBPOENA.— 

24 (i) ORDER FROM A DISTRICT COURT

25 OF THE UNITED STATES.—If a person does 


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1 not obey a subpoena issued under subpara2 graph (A), the Commission is authorized to 

3 apply to a district court of the United 

4 States for an order requiring that person 

5 to appear before the Commission to give 

6 testimony, produce evidence, or both, relat7 ing to the matter under investigation. 

8 (ii) LOCATION.—An application under 

9 clause (i) may be made within the judicial 

10 district where the hearing relating to the 

11 subpoena is conducted or where the person 

12 described in that clause is found, resides, 

13 or transacts business. 

14 (iii) PENALTY.—Any failure to obey 

15 an order of a court described in clause (i) 

16 may be punished by the court as a civil 

17 contempt. 

18 (D) SUBJECT MATTER JURISDICTION.— 

19 The district court of the United States in which 

20 an action is brought under subparagraph (C)(i) 

21 shall have original jurisdiction over any civil ac22 tion brought by the Commission to enforce, se23 cure a declaratory judgment concerning the va24 lidity of, or prevent a threatened refusal or failVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:38 Oct 02, 2021 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00034 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2907.IS S2907

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1 ure to comply with, the applicable subpoena 

2 issued by the Commission. 

3 (E) SERVICE OF SUBPOENAS.—The sub4 poenas of the Commission shall be served in the 

5 manner provided for subpoenas issued by a dis6 trict court of the United States under the Fed7 eral Rules of Civil Procedure. 

8 (F) SERVICE OF PROCESS.—All process of 

9 any court to which an application is made 

10 under subparagraph (C) may be served in the 

11 judicial district in which the person required to 

12 be served resides or may be found. 

13 (3) ADDITIONAL PERSONNEL AND SERVICES.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Chairperson of the 

15 Commission may procure additional personnel 

16 and services to ensure that the work of the 

17 Commission avoids imposing an undue burden, 

18 including cultural, emotional, and psychological 

19 trauma, on survivors, family members, or other 

20 community members affected by the Indian 

21 Boarding School Policies. 

22 (B) COMPENSATION.—The Chairperson of 

23 the Commission may fix the compensation of 

24 personnel procured under subparagraph (A) 

25 without regard to chapter 51 and subchapter 


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1 III of chapter 53 of title 5, United States Code, 

2 relating to classification of positions and Gen3 eral Schedule pay rates, except that the rate of 

4 pay for such personnel may not exceed the rate 

5 payable for level V of the Executive Schedule 

6 under section 5316 of that title. 

7 (4) POSTAL SERVICES.—The Commission may 

8 use the United States mails in the same manner and 

9 under the same conditions as other agencies of the 

10 Federal Government. 

11 (5) GIFTS.—The Commission may accept, use, 

12 and dispose of gifts or donations of services or prop13 erty relating to the purpose of the Commission 

14 (j) APPLICATION.—The Commission shall be subject 

15 to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.). 

16 (k) CONSULTATION WITH INDIAN TRIBES.—In car17 rying out the duties of the Commission under subsection 

18 (h), the Commission shall consult with Indian Tribes. 

19 (l) COLLABORATION BY THE DEPARTMENT OF THE

20 INTERIOR.—The Department of the Interior shall collabo21 rate and exchange relevant information with the Commis22 sion in order for the Commission to effectively carry out 

23 the duties of the Commission under subsection (h). 

24 (m) TERMINATION OF COMMISSION.—The Commis25 sion shall terminate 90 days after the date on which the 


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1 Commission submits the final report required under sub2 section (h)(5)(B). 

3 (n) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

4 are authorized to be appropriated to the Commission to 

5 carry out this section such sums as may be necessary, to 

6 remain available until expended. 

Æ 


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