I 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4744 

To require the Secretary of the Interior to carry out a 5-year demonstration 

program to provide grants to eligible Indian tribes for the construction 

of tribal schools, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 15, 2016 

Mrs. KIRKPATRICK introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committees on Financial Services and Natural Resources, 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 require the Secretary of the Interior to carry out a 

5-year demonstration program to provide grants to eligible Indian tribes for the construction of tribal schools, 

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 ‘‘Safe Academic Facili5 ties and Environments for Tribal Youth Act’’ or the 

6 ‘‘SAFETY Act’’. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 4744 IH

1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this Act: 

3 (1) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’ 

4 means the Department of the Interior. 

5 (2) INDIAN.—The term ‘‘Indian’’ means a 

6 member of an Indian tribe. 

7 (3) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ 

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

9 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

10 Act (25 U.S.C. 450b). 

11 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

12 the Secretary of the Interior. 

13 SEC. 3. TRIBAL SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION DEMONSTRATION 

14 PROGRAM. 

15 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

16 (1) CONSTRUCTION OF REPLACEMENT TRIBAL

17 SCHOOL.—The term ‘‘construction of a replacement 

18 tribal school’’ includes the construction or renovation 

19 of— 

20 (A) 1 or more facilities of that school; or 

21 (B) the entire campus of that school. 

22 (2) DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM.—The term 

23 ‘‘demonstration program’’ means the Tribal School 

24 Construction Demonstration Program carried out 

25 under subsection (b). 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 4744 IH

1 (3) ELIGIBLE INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘eligi2 ble Indian tribe’’ means an Indian tribe that submits 

3 an application that is approved by the Secretary 

4 under subsection (b)(4). 

5 (4) TRIBAL SCHOOL.—The term ‘‘tribal school’’ 

6 means— 

7 (A) a school operated by the Bureau of In8 dian Affairs; 

9 (B) a school operated pursuant to the In10 dian Self-Determination and Education Assist11 ance Act (25 U.S.C. 450 et seq.); and 

12 (C) a tribally controlled school (as defined 

13 in section 5212 of the Tribally Controlled 

14 Schools Act of 1988 (25 U.S.C. 2511)). 

15 (b) DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry 

17 out a demonstration program to be known as the 

18 ‘‘Tribal School Construction Demonstration Pro19 gram’’ for fiscal years 2017 through 2021, to pro20 vide grants to eligible Indian tribes for the construc21 tion of replacement tribal schools. 

22 (2) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the dem23 onstration program shall be— 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 4744 IH

1 (A) to provide additional Indian tribes fair 

2 opportunities to construct replacement tribal 

3 schools; 

4 (B) to accelerate construction of needed 

5 educational facilities in Indian country; and 

6 (C) to permit additional funds to be pro7 vided for the priority list of the Department for 

8 construction of replacement tribal schools. 

9 (3) GRANT RECIPIENTS.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the 

11 demonstration program, subject to the avail12 ability of appropriations, the Secretary shall 

13 award a grant to each eligible Indian tribe. 

14 (B) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall en15 sure that an eligible Indian tribe currently on 

16 the priority list of the Department for construc17 tion of replacement tribal schools receives the 

18 highest priority for a grant under this section. 

19 (4) GRANT APPLICATIONS.—An application for 

20 a grant under the section shall— 

21 (A) include a proposal for the construction 

22 of a replacement tribal school of the Indian 

23 tribe that submits the application; and 

24 (B) be in such form as the Secretary deter25 mines appropriate. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 4744 IH

1 (5) GRANT AGREEMENT.—As a condition of re2 ceiving a grant under this section, the eligible Indian 

3 tribe shall enter into an agreement with the Sec4 retary that specifies— 

5 (A) the costs of construction under the 

6 grant; 

7 (B) that the Indian tribe shall be required 

8 to contribute towards the cost of the construc9 tion a tribal share equal to at least 25 percent 

10 of the cost; and 

11 (C) any other term or condition that the 

12 Secretary determines to be appropriate. 

13 (c) EFFECT OF GRANT.—A grant received under this 

14 section— 

15 (1) shall be in addition to any other funds re16 ceived by an Indian tribe under any other provision 

17 of law; and 

18 (2) shall not affect the eligibility of an Indian 

19 tribe receiving funding, or the amount of funding re20 ceived by the Indian tribe, under— 

21 (A) the Tribally Controlled Schools Act of 

22 1988 (25 U.S.C. 2501 et seq.); or 

23 (B) the Indian Self-Determination and 

24 Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450 et 

25 seq.). 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
6 

•HR 4744 IH

1 (d) REPORT.—At the conclusion of the demonstration 

2 program, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report 

3 on whether the demonstration program has achieved the 

4 purposes of the demonstration program, as described in 

5 subsection (b)(2). 

6 SEC. 4. FUNDING FOR TRIBAL COLLEGES CONSTRUCTION. 

7 Section 113 of the Tribally Controlled Colleges and 

8 Universities Assistance Act of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 1813) is 

9 amended to read as follows: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 113. CONSTRUCTION OF NEW FACILITIES. 

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

12 ‘‘(1) CONSTRUCTION.—The term ‘construction’ 

13 includes any effort to address the facility construc14 tion, maintenance, renovation, reconstruction, and 

15 replacement needs of a Tribal College or University. 

16 ‘‘(2) TRIBAL COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY.—The 

17 term ‘Tribal College or University’ has the meaning 

18 given the term in section 316(b) of the Higher Edu19 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1059c(b)). 

20 ‘‘(b) GRANTS.—With respect to any eligible Tribal 

21 College or University that identifies a need for construc22 tion, the Secretary shall, subject to the availability of ap23 propriations, provide grants for the construction in ac24 cordance with this section. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
7 

•HR 4744 IH

1 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.—Each eligible applicant desiring 

2 a grant under this section shall submit an application to 

3 the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and con4 taining such information as the Secretary may require. 

5 ‘‘(d) ELIGIBLE ACTIVITIES.—Activities eligible for a 

6 grant under this section shall be activities that address 

7 a wide variety of facilities and infrastructure needs, in8 cluding— 

9 ‘‘(1) building of new facilities, including— 

10 ‘‘(A) classrooms; 

11 ‘‘(B) administrative offices; 

12 ‘‘(C) libraries; 

13 ‘‘(D) health and cultural centers; 

14 ‘‘(E) day care centers; 

15 ‘‘(F) technology centers; and 

16 ‘‘(G) other education-related facilities; 

17 ‘‘(2) renovating or expanding existing or ac18 quired facilities; 

19 ‘‘(3) providing existing facilities with equip20 ment, including— 

21 ‘‘(A) laboratory equipment; 

22 ‘‘(B) computer infrastructure and equip23 ment; 

24 ‘‘(C) library books; and 

25 ‘‘(D) furniture; and 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
8 

•HR 4744 IH

1 ‘‘(4) property acquisition. 

2 ‘‘(e) NO MATCHING REQUIREMENT.—A recipient of 

3 a grant under this section shall not be required to make 

4 a matching contribution for Federal amounts received. 

5 ‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

6 is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

7 $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2017 through 2021.’’. 

8 SEC. 5. HOUSING ASSISTANCE FOR EDUCATORS IN 

9 SCHOOLS WITH INDIAN STUDENTS. 

10 Title V of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1471 

11 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘SEC. 545. HOUSING ASSISTANCE FOR EDUCATORS IN 

13 SCHOOLS WITH INDIAN STUDENTS. 

14 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

15 ‘‘(1) the term ‘covered educator’ means an indi16 vidual who is employed full-time as a teacher, prin17 cipal, administrator, or other licensed professional 

18 educator by a covered school; 

19 ‘‘(2) the term ‘covered school’ means— 

20 ‘‘(A) a school operated by the Bureau of 

21 Indian Affairs; 

22 ‘‘(B) a school operated pursuant to the In23 dian Self-Determination and Education Assist24 ance Act (25 U.S.C. 450 et seq.); 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
9 

•HR 4744 IH

1 ‘‘(C) a tribally controlled school (as defined 

2 in section 5212 of the Tribally Controlled 

3 Schools Act of 1988 (25 U.S.C. 2511)); and 

4 ‘‘(D) a public elementary school or sec5 ondary school in which not less than 25 percent 

6 of the students are Indian students; 

7 ‘‘(3) the terms ‘elementary school’ and ‘sec8 ondary school’ have the meanings given those terms 

9 in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary 

10 Education Act of 1965; and 

11 ‘‘(4) the term ‘eligible applicant’ means— 

12 ‘‘(A) an Indian tribe (as defined in section 

13 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Edu14 cation Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b)); 

15 ‘‘(B) an Indian organization (as defined in 

16 section 1141 of the Education Amendments of 

17 1978 (25 U.S.C. 2021)); or 

18 ‘‘(C) a tribally designated housing entity 

19 (as defined in section 4 of the Native American 

20 Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act 

21 of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4103)). 

22 ‘‘(b) GRANT PROGRAM.—The Secretary may award 

23 grants to eligible applicants to construct, including by re24 constructing, renovating, and repairing, and provide hous25 ing to covered educators in rural areas. 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
10 

•HR 4744 IH

1 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.—Each eligible applicant desiring 

2 a grant under this section shall submit an application to 

3 the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and con4 taining such information as the Secretary may require. 

5 ‘‘(d) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—A recipient of a grant 

6 under this section shall not be required to obtain or pro7 vide a non-Federal share in order to receive assistance 

8 under this section. 

9 ‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

10 is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry 

11 out this section $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2017 and each 

12 fiscal year thereafter.’’. 

13 SEC. 6. BIE AND OMB PLAN. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Bureau of Indian Education 

15 and the Office of Management and Budget shall jointly 

16 develop a 10-year plan to bring up to good condition, as 

17 determined by the facilities evaluation process of the De18 partment of the Interior, in compliance with all applicable 

19 tribal requirements all of the following Bureau of Indian 

20 Education school facilities: 

21 (1) An elementary or secondary day or boarding 

22 school operated by the Bureau of Indian Education. 

23 (2) A school operated pursuant to the Indian 

24 Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act 

25 (25 U.S.C. 450 et seq.). 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
11 

•HR 4744 IH

1 (3) A tribally controlled school (as defined in 

2 section 5212 of the Tribally Controlled Schools Act 

3 of 1988 (25 U.S.C. 2511)). 

4 (4) A dormitory operated by the Bureau of In5 dian Education for students attending a school other 

6 than a school specified in paragraphs (1) through 

7 (3). 

8 (b) INCLUSIONS.—The plan developed under sub9 section (a) shall include— 

10 (1) proposed budget requests and timelines; and 

11 (2) additional factors such as increasing enroll12 ment capacities. 

13 (c) EFFECT.—For the purpose of developing the plan 

14 under subsection (a) only, section 1125(a)(5) of the Edu15 cation Amendments of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 2005(a)(5)) shall 

16 not apply. 

17 (d) REPORT.—As soon as practicable after comple18 tion of the plan developed under subsection (a), the Sec19 retary shall submit a report describing the plan to— 

20 (1) the Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, 

21 and Related Agencies of the Committee on Appro22 priations of the Senate; 

23 (2) the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Sen24 ate; 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
12 

•HR 4744 IH

1 (3) the Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, 

2 and Related Agencies of the Committee on Appro3 priations of the House of Representatives; and 

4 (4) the Committee on Natural Resources of the 

5 House of Representatives. 

6 SEC. 7. GAO REPORT. 

7 Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 

8 of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 

9 shall submit to Congress a comprehensive report describ10 ing the implementation of section 8007 of the Elementary 

11 and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (as in effect on De12 cember 9, 2015), for fiscal years preceding fiscal year 

13 2017, and section 7007 of the Elementary and Secondary 

14 Education Act of 1965 (as in effect for fiscal year 2017), 

15 for fiscal year 2017 and subsequent fiscal years, that— 

16 (1) evaluates the adequacy of the distribution of 

17 payments between subparagraphs (A) and (B) of 

18 subsection (a)(3) of those sections; 

19 (2) evaluates unmet need; and 

20 (3) determines the age, condition, and remain21 ing utility of school facilities (as the term is defined 

22 in section 7013 of that Act (as in effect for fiscal 

23 year 2017)) for those local educational agencies en24 rolling students described in section 7003(a)(1)(C) 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
13 

•HR 4744 IH

1 of that Act (as so in effect) that are eligible to re2 ceive a basic support payment under— 

3 (A) section 8003(b) of that Act (as in ef4 fect on December 9, 2015) for fiscal years pre5 ceding fiscal year 2017; and 

6 (B) section 7003(b) of that Act (as in ef7 fect for fiscal year 2017) for fiscal year 2017 

8 and subsequent fiscal years. 

Æ 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS