Tribal Connect Act of 2020

To improve access by Indian Tribes to support from the Schools and Libraries Universal Service Support program (E-rate) of the Federal Communications Commission, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Tribal Connect Act of 2020 2. Eligibility of tribal libraries and qualifying essential community-serving institutions for e-rate support Section 254 of the Communications Act of 1934 ( 47 U.S.C. 254 (1) in subsection (h)(4), by inserting , except as provided in subsection (m), is a library or library consortium (2) by adding at the end the following: (m) Eligibility of tribal libraries and qualifying essential community-Serving institutions for E-Rate support (1) Definitions In this subsection— (A) the term broadband internet access service (B) the term E-rate program (C) the term E-rate support (D) the term Indian Tribe Indian tribe (E) the term qualifying essential community-serving institution (F) the term Tribal College or University 20 U.S.C. 1059c(b) (2) Eligibility of tribal libraries for e-rate support (A) Designation of tribal libraries as libraries eligible for e-rate support (i) In general An Indian Tribe that is eligible for support under section 261 of the Library Services and Technology Act ( 20 U.S.C. 9161 20 U.S.C. 9121 (ii) Rule of construction Nothing in clause (i) shall be construed to exempt a tribal library from any requirement under the E-rate program not described in that clause, including the other requirements relating to eligible recipients under section 54.501 of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor regulation). (B) Tribal essential community-serving institution demonstration program (i) In general The Commission, in consultation with the Institute of Museum and Library Services and any other agency with relevant responsibilities, shall establish a pilot program to be known as the Tribal Essential Community-Serving Institution Program (ii) Eligibility E-rate support obtained under this subparagraph shall only be available to an Indian Tribe if the proposed qualifying essential community-serving institution intends to deliver publicly available internet access and telecommunications services to students, teachers, librarians, and members of the community. (iii) Eligibility for E-rate after the demonstration program A qualifying essential community-serving institution that receives E-rate support under this subparagraph shall be eligible for E-rate support at the end of the 3-year period described in subparagraph (C). (C) Use of contributions Of the amount collected for the Universal Service Fund under subsection (d), $100,000,000 shall be made available for the 3-fiscal-year period beginning after the date of enactment of the Tribal Connect Act of 2020 to the Commission to carry out this paragraph. (3) Training and technical assistance for tribal schools and libraries (A) Annual reports The Commission shall— (i) direct the Administrator of the Schools and Libraries Universal Service Support program to submit an annual report to the Commission regarding the actions of the Schools and Libraries Universal Service Support program to ensure that tribal schools and libraries can participate fully and effectively in the E-rate program, including— (I) outreach efforts targeted to tribal schools and libraries to promote awareness of the E-rate program; (II) specific E-rate training programs for tribal schools and libraries; and (III) other technical assistance initiatives regarding the program’s application process that are available to tribal schools and libraries; and (ii) submit each annual report described in clause (i) to— (I) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate; (II) the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate; (III) the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives; and (IV) the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives. (B) Review of annual reports The Commission shall review each annual report required under subparagraph (A) to determine whether additional steps are necessary to ensure that tribal schools and libraries can participate fully and effectively in the E-rate program. (C) Universal service fund technical assistance and training The Commission, in consultation with the Institute of Museum and Library Services, shall provide technical assistance and training to Indian Tribes with respect to Universal Service Fund programs. (4) Coordination and performance measurement The Commission shall— (A) improve the reliability of the data of the Commission relating to institutions that receive E-rate support by defining the term tribal (B) (i) develop performance goals and measures to track progress on achieving the strategic objective of the Commission of ensuring that all Indian Tribes have affordable access to broadband internet access service for educational purposes for students, teachers, librarians, and members of the community; (ii) in coordination with the Institute of Museum and Library Services, identify all tribal libraries and developing tribal libraries in the United States; and (iii) not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this subsection, submit to Congress and make public a report on the goals and measures developed under clause (i) and the list of libraries identified under clause (ii). .

Summary: Tribal Connect Act of 2020 This bill expands tribal access to the Schools and Libraries Universal Service Support (E-rate) program, which provides discounted broadband internet access and telecommunications services to certain schools and libraries. It also establishes a pilot program to provide E-rate support to certain community-serving institutions. First, a tribe may designate a tribal library or tribal library consortium, including a public-serving library of a tribal college or university, as a library or library consortium that is eligible for E-rate support. The tribe may make this designation regardless of whether the library or consortium is eligible for certain assistance from a state library administrative agency. In addition, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) must establish a program to provide E-rate support to tribes for qualifying essential community-serving institutions (e.g., community centers). E-rate support may be provided to institutions designated by tribes if (1) the institutions are exclusively owned by the tribes; and (2) the institutions intend to deliver publicly available internet access to students, teachers, librarians, and community members. Further, the bill requires the FCC to (1) provide technical assistance and training, (2) develop performance measures, and (3) review and submit annual reports.