I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2484 

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 

MAY 2, 2019 

Mr. KIND (for himself, Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania, Ms. HAALAND, Mr. COLE, 

Ms. DAVIDS of Kansas, Mrs. WALORSKI, Mr. KILMER, Mr. SCHWEIKERT, 

Ms. MOORE, Mr. COOK, Ms. DELBENE, Mr. MOOLENAAR, and Mr. 

POCAN) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee on Education and Labor, 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 2019’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 The Congress finds the following: 

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

4 relationship between the United States and Indian 

5 tribes. 

6 (2) Indian tribes have the responsibility and au7 thority to provide governmental programs and serv8 ices to tribal citizens, develop tribal economies, and 

9 build community infrastructure to ensure that In10 dian reservation lands serve as livable, permanent 

11 homes. 

12 (3) The United States Constitution, U.S. Fed13 eral Court decisions, Executive orders, and numer14 ous other Federal laws and regulations recognize 

15 that Indian tribes are governments, retaining the in16 herent authority to tax and operate as other govern17 ments, including (inter alia) financing projects with 

18 government bonds and maintaining eligibility for 

19 general tax exemptions via their government status. 

20 (4) Codifying tax parity with respect to tribal 

21 governments is consistent with Federal treaties rec22 ognizing the sovereignty of tribal governments. 

23 (5) That Indian tribes face historic disadvan24 tages in accessing the underlying capital to build the 

25 necessary infrastructure for job creation, and that 

26 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) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Subparagraph (B) 

18 of section 45(c)(9) of such Code is amended to read as 

19 follows: 

20 ‘‘(B) INDIAN TRIBE.—For purposes of this 

21 paragraph, the term ‘Indian tribe’ means any 

22 Indian tribe, band, nation, or other organized 

23 group or community which is recognized as eli24 gible for the special programs and services proVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:52 May 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2484.IH H2484

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1 vided by the United States to Indians because 

2 of their status as Indians.’’. 

3 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

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

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

6 calendar years beginning after the date of the enact7 ment of this Act. 

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

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

10 obligations issued in calendar years beginning after, 

11 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

12 SEC. 4. TREATMENT OF PENSION AND EMPLOYEE BENEFIT 

13 PLANS MAINTAINED BY TRIBAL GOVERN14 MENTS. 

15 (a) AMENDMENTS TO THE INTERNAL REVENUE

16 CODE OF 1986.— 

17 (1) QUALIFIED PUBLIC SAFETY EMPLOYEE.— 

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

19 of 1986 (defining qualified public safety employee) is 

20 amended by— 

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

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

23 a State, or Indian tribe’’; and 


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1 (B) striking ‘‘such State or political sub2 division’’ and inserting ‘‘such State, political 

3 subdivision, or Indian tribe’’. 

4 (2) GOVERNMENTAL PLAN.—The last sentence 

5 of section 414(d) of such Code (defining govern6 mental plan) is amended to read as follows: ‘‘The 

7 term ‘governmental plan’ includes a plan established 

8 or maintained for its employees by an Indian tribal 

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

10 subdivision of an Indian tribal government (deter11 mined in accordance with section 7871(d)), an agen12 cy, instrumentality, or subdivision of an Indian trib13 al government, or an entity established under Fed14 eral, State, or tribal law which is wholly owned or 

15 controlled by any of the foregoing.’’. 

16 (3) DOMESTIC RELATIONS ORDER.—Section 

17 414(p)(1)(B)(ii) of such Code (defining domestic re18 lations order) is amended by inserting ‘‘or tribal’’ 

19 after ‘‘State’’. 

20 (4) EXEMPT GOVERNMENTAL DEFERRED COM21 PENSATION PLAN.—Section 3121(v)(3) of such Code 

22 (defining governmental deferred compensation plan) 

23 is amended by inserting ‘‘by an Indian tribal govern24 ment or subdivision thereof,’’ after ‘‘political subdivi25 sion thereof,’’. 


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1 (5) GRANDFATHER OF CERTAIN DEFERRED

2 COMPENSATION PLANS.—Section 457 of such Code 

3 is amended by adding at the end the following new 

4 subsection: 

5 ‘‘(h) CERTAIN TRIBAL GOVERNMENT PLANS GRAND6 FATHERED.—Plans established before the date of enact7 ment of this subsection and maintained by an Indian tribal 

8 government (as defined in section 7701(a)(40)), a subdivi9 sion of an Indian tribal government (determined in accord10 ance with section 7871(d)), an agency, instrumentality, or 

11 subdivision of an Indian tribal government, or an entity 

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

13 wholly owned or controlled by any of the foregoing, in com14 pliance with subsection (b) or (f) shall be treated as if 

15 established by an eligible employer under subsection 

16 (e)(1)(A).’’. 

17 (b) AMENDMENTS TO THE EMPLOYEE RETIREMENT

18 INCOME SECURITY ACT OF 1974.— 

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

20 3(32) of the Employee Retirement Income Security 

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

22 read as follows: ‘‘The term ‘governmental plan’ in23 cludes a plan established or maintained for its em24 ployees by an Indian tribal government (as defined 

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


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1 of 1986), a subdivision of an Indian tribal govern2 ment (determined in accordance with section 

3 7871(d) of such Code), an agency, instrumentality, 

4 or subdivision of an Indian tribal government, or an 

5 entity established under Federal, State, or tribal law 

6 which is wholly owned or controlled by any of the 

7 foregoing.’’. 

8 (2) DOMESTIC RELATIONS ORDER.—Section 

9 206(d)(3)(B)(ii)(II) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 

10 1056(d)(3)(B)(ii)(II)) is amended by inserting ‘‘or 

11 tribal’’ after ‘‘State’’. 

12 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

13 (A) Section 4021(b) of such Act (29 

14 U.S.C. 1321(b)) is amended by striking ‘‘or’’ at 

15 the end of paragraph (12), by striking the pe16 riod at the end of paragraph (13) and inserting 

17 ‘‘; or’’, and by inserting after paragraph (13) 

18 the following new paragraph: 

19 ‘‘(14) established or maintained for its employ20 ees by an Indian tribal government (as defined in 

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

22 1986), a subdivision of an Indian tribal government 

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

24 such Code), an agency, instrumentality, or subdivi25 sion of an Indian tribal government, or an entity esVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:52 May 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2484.IH H2484

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1 tablished under Federal, State, or tribal law which 

2 is wholly owned or controlled by any of the fore3 going.’’. 

4 (B) Section 4021(b)(2) of such Act (29 

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

6 which is described in the last sentence of sec7 tion 3(32)’’ and inserting a comma. 

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

9 this section shall apply to years beginning after the date 

10 of the enactment of this Act. 

11 SEC. 5. TREATMENT OF TRIBAL FOUNDATIONS AND CHAR12 ITIES LIKE CHARITIES FUNDED AND CON13 TROLLED BY OTHER GOVERNMENTAL 

14 FUNDERS AND SPONSORS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 170(b)(1)(A) of the Inter16 nal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the 

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

18 ‘governmental unit’ includes an Indian tribal government 

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

20 Code), an agency, instrumentality, or subdivision of an In21 dian tribal government, or an entity established under 

22 Federal, State, or tribal law which is wholly owned or con23 trolled by any of the foregoing.’’. 

24 (b) CERTAIN SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS.—Sec25 tion 509(a) of such Code is amended by adding at the 


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1 end the following: ‘‘For purposes of paragraph (3), an or2 ganization described in paragraph (2) shall be deemed to 

3 include an Indian tribal government (determined in ac4 cordance with section 7871(d) of such Code), an agency, 

5 instrumentality, or subdivision of an Indian tribal govern6 ment, or an entity established under Federal, State, or 

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

8 the foregoing.’’. 

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

10 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after 

11 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

12 SEC. 6. IMPROVING EFFECTIVENESS OF TRIBAL CHILD 

13 SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES BY PAR14 ITY OF ACCESS TO THE FEDERAL PARENT LO15 CATOR SERVICE AND FEDERAL TAX REFUND 

16 OFFSETS. 

17 (a) ACCESS TO FEDERAL PARENT LOCATOR SERV18 ICE.—Section 453(c) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 

19 653(c)) is amended— 

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

21 (4); 

22 (2) by striking the period at the end of para23 graph (5) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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


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1 ‘‘(6) the child support enforcement agency of an 

2 Indian tribe or tribal organization that is eligible for 

3 a grant under section 455(f).’’. 

4 (b) IMPROVING THE COLLECTION OF PAST-DUE

5 CHILD SUPPORT FROM FEDERAL TAX REFUNDS.— 

6 (1) AMENDMENT TO THE SOCIAL SECURITY

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

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

9 following: 

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

11 ORGANIZATIONS ELIGIBLE FOR A GRANT UNDER THIS

12 PART.—This section, except for the requirement to dis13 tribute amounts in accordance with section 457, shall 

14 apply to an Indian tribe or tribal organization eligible for 

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

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

17 this part.’’. 

18 (2) AMENDMENT TO THE INTERNAL REVENUE

19 CODE.—Subsection (c) of section 6402 of the Inter20 nal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at 

21 the end the following: ‘‘For purposes of this sub22 section, any reference to a State shall include a ref23 erence to any Indian tribe or tribal organization de24 scribed in section 464(d) of the Social Security 

25 Act.’’. 


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1 SEC. 7. RECOGNIZING INDIAN TRIBAL GOVERNMENTS FOR 

2 PURPOSES OF DETERMINING UNDER THE 

3 ADOPTION CREDIT WHETHER A CHILD HAS 

4 SPECIAL NEEDS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 23(d)(3) of the Internal 

6 Revenue Code of 1986 (defining child with special needs) 

7 is amended— 

8 (1) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ‘‘or In9 dian tribal government’’ after ‘‘a State’’; and 

10 (2) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ‘‘or In11 dian tribal government’’ after ‘‘such State’’. 

12 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

13 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after 

14 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

Æ 


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