I 
113TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4908 
To establish the Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on 
Native Children, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 19, 2014 
Mr. COLE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on Natural Resources, and in addition to the Committee on Appropria-
tions, 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 establish the Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff 
Commission on Native Children, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Alyce Spotted Bear 
and Walter Soboleff Commission on Native Children Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds that— 
(1) the United States has a distinct legal, trea-
ty, and trust obligation to provide for the education, 
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health care, safety, social welfare, and other needs of 
Native children; 
(2) chronic underfunding of Federal programs 
to fulfill the longstanding Federal trust obligation 
has resulted in limited access to critical services for 
the more than 2,100,000 Native children under the 
age of 24 living in the United States; 
(3) Native children are the most at-risk popu-
lation in the United States, confronting serious dis-
parities in education, health, and safety, with 37 
percent living in poverty; 
(4) 17 percent of Native children have no 
health insurance coverage, and child mortality has 
increased 15 percent among Native children aged 1 
to 14, while the overall rate of child mortality in the 
United States decreased by 9 percent; 
(5) suicide is the second leading cause of death 
in Native children aged 15 through 24, a rate that 
is 2.5 times the national average, and violence, in-
cluding intentional injuries, homicide, and suicide, 
account for 75 percent of the deaths of Native chil-
dren aged 12 through 20; 
(6) 58 percent of 3- and 4-year-old Native chil-
dren are not attending any form of preschool, 15 
percent of Native children are not in school and not 
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working, and the graduation rate for Native high 
school students is 50 percent; 
(7) 22.9 percent of Native children aged 12 and 
older report alcohol use, 16 percent report substance 
dependence or abuse, 35.8 percent report tobacco 
use, and 12.5 percent report illicit drug use; 
(8) Native children disproportionately enter fos-
ter care at a rate more than 2.1 times the general 
population and have the third highest rate of victim-
ization; and 
(9) there is no resource that is more vital to the 
continued existence and integrity of Native commu-
nities than Native children, and the United States 
has a direct interest, as trustee, in protecting Native 
children. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 
means the Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff 
Commission on Native Children established by sec-
tion 4. 
(2) INDIAN.—The term ‘‘Indian’’ has the mean-
ing given the term in section 4 of the Indian Self- 
Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 
U.S.C. 450b). 
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(3) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ 
has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the 
Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 
Act (25 U.S.C. 450b). 
(4) NATIVE CHILD.—The term ‘‘Native child’’ 
means— 
(A) an Indian child, as that term is de-
fined in section 4 of the Indian Child Welfare 
Act of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 1903); 
(B) an Indian who is between the ages of 
18 and 24 years old; and 
(C) a Native Hawaiian who is not older 
than 24 years old. 
(5) NATIVE HAWAIIAN.—The term ‘‘Native Ha-
waiian’’ has the meaning given the term in section 
7207 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 
Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7517). 
(6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of the Interior. 
(7) TRIBAL
COLLEGE
OR
UNIVERSITY.—The 
term ‘‘Tribal College or University’’ has the meaning 
given the term in section 316(b) of the Higher Edu-
cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1059c(b)). 
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SEC. 4. COMMISSION ON NATIVE CHILDREN. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—There is established a commission 
in the Office of Tribal Justice of the Department of Jus-
tice, to be known as the ‘‘Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter 
Soboleff Commission on Native Children’’. 
(b) MEMBERSHIP.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Commission shall be 
composed of 11 members, of whom— 
(A) 3 shall be appointed by the President, 
in consultation with— 
(i) the Attorney General; 
(ii) the Secretary; 
(iii) the Secretary of Education; and 
(iv) the Secretary of Health and 
Human Services; 
(B) 3 shall be appointed by the Majority 
Leader of the Senate, in consultation with the 
Chairperson of the Committee on Indian Affairs 
of the Senate; 
(C) 1 shall be appointed by the Minority 
Leader of the Senate, in consultation with the 
Vice Chairperson of the Committee on Indian 
Affairs of the Senate; 
(D) 3 shall be appointed by the Speaker of 
the House of Representatives, in consultation 
with the Chairperson of the Committee on Nat-
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ural Resources of the House of Representatives; 
and 
(E) 1 shall be appointed by the Minority 
Leader of the House of Representatives, in con-
sultation with the Ranking Member of the Com-
mittee on Natural Resources of the House of 
Representatives. 
(2) REQUIREMENTS FOR ELIGIBILITY.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—Subject to subpara-
graph (B), each member of the Commission 
shall have significant experience and expertise 
in— 
(i) Indian affairs; and 
(ii) matters to be studied by the Com-
mission, including— 
(I) health care issues facing Na-
tive children, including mental health, 
physical health, and nutrition; 
(II) Indian education, including 
experience with Bureau of Indian 
Education schools and public schools, 
tribally operated schools, tribal col-
leges or universities, early childhood 
education programs, and the develop-
ment of extracurricular programs; 
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(III) juvenile justice programs re-
lating to prevention and reducing in-
carceration and rates of recidivism; 
and 
(IV) social service programs that 
are used by Native children and de-
signed to address basic needs, such as 
food, shelter, and safety, including 
child protective services, group homes, 
and shelters. 
(B) EXPERTS.— 
(i) NATIVE CHILDREN.—1 member of 
the Commission shall— 
(I) meet the requirements under 
subparagraph (A); and 
(II) be responsible for providing 
the Commission with insight into and 
input from Native children on the 
matters studied by the Commission. 
(ii) RESEARCH.—1 member of the 
Commission shall— 
(I) meet the requirements of sub-
paragraph (A); and 
(II) have extensive experience in 
statistics or social science research. 
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(3) TERMS.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Each member of the 
Commission shall be appointed for a term of 3 
years. 
(B) VACANCIES.— 
(i) IN GENERAL.—A vacancy in the 
Commission shall be filled in the manner 
in which the original appointment was 
made. 
(ii) TERMS.—Any member appointed 
to fill a vacancy shall be appointed for the 
remainder of that term. 
(c) OPERATION.— 
(1) CHAIRPERSON.—Not later than 15 days 
after the date on which all members of the Commis-
sion have been appointed, the Commission shall se-
lect 1 member to serve as Chairperson of the Com-
mission. 
(2) MEETINGS.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall 
meet at the call of the Chairperson. 
(B) INITIAL MEETING.—The initial meet-
ing of the Commission shall take place not later 
than 30 days after the date described in para-
graph (1). 
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(3) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of 
the Commission shall constitute a quorum, but a 
lesser number of members may hold hearings. 
(4) RULES.—The Commission may establish, by 
majority vote, any rules for the conduct of Commis-
sion business, in accordance with this Act and other 
applicable law. 
(d) NATIVE ADVISORY COMMITTEE.— 
(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Commission shall 
establish a committee, to be known as the ‘‘Native 
Advisory Committee’’. 
(2) MEMBERSHIP.— 
(A) COMPOSITION.—The Native Advisory 
Committee shall consist of— 
(i) 1 representative of Indian tribes 
from each region of the Bureau of Indian 
Affairs who is 25 years of age or older; 
and 
(ii) 1 Native Hawaiian who is 25 
years of age or older. 
(B) QUALIFICATIONS.—Each member of 
the Native Advisory Committee shall have expe-
rience relating to matters to be studied by the 
Commission. 
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(3) DUTIES.—The Native Advisory Committee 
shall— 
(A) serve as an advisory body to the Com-
mission; and 
(B) provide to the Commission advice and 
recommendations, submit materials, documents, 
testimony, and such other information as the 
Commission determines to be necessary to carry 
out the duties of the Commission under this 
section. 
(4) NATIVE
CHILDREN
SUBCOMMITTEE.—The 
Native Advisory Committee shall establish a sub-
committee that shall consist of at least 1 member 
from each region of the Bureau of Indian Affairs 
and 1 Native Hawaiian, each of whom shall be a 
Native child, and have experience serving on the 
council of a tribal, regional, or national youth orga-
nization. 
(e) COMPREHENSIVE STUDY OF NATIVE CHILDREN 
ISSUES.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall con-
duct a comprehensive study of Federal, State, local, 
and tribal programs that serve Native children, in-
cluding an evaluation of— 
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(A) the impact of concurrent jurisdiction 
on child welfare systems; 
(B) the barriers Indian tribes and Native 
Hawaiians face in applying, reporting on, and 
using existing public and private grant re-
sources, including identification of any Federal 
cost-sharing requirements; 
(C) the obstacles to nongovernmental fi-
nancial support, such as from private founda-
tions and corporate charities, for programs ben-
efitting Native children; 
(D) the issues relating to data collection, 
such as small sample sizes, large margins of er-
rors, or other issues related to the validity and 
statistical significance of data on Native chil-
dren; 
(E) the barriers to the development of sus-
tainable, multidisciplinary programs designed to 
assist high-risk Native children and families of 
those high-risk Native children, as well as any 
examples of successful program models and use 
of best practices; and 
(F) the barriers to interagency coordina-
tion on programs benefitting Native children. 
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(2) COORDINATION.—In conducting the study 
under paragraph (1), to avoid duplication of efforts, 
the Commission shall, to the maximum extent prac-
ticable, collaborate with other workgroups focused on 
similar issues, such as the Task Force on American 
Indian/Alaska Native Children Exposed to Violence 
of the Attorney General. 
(3) RECOMMENDATIONS.—Taking into consid-
eration the results of the study under paragraph (1) 
and the analysis of any existing data relating to Na-
tive children received from Federal agencies, the 
Commission shall— 
(A) develop goals, and plans for achieving 
those goals, for Federal policy relating to Na-
tive children in the short-, mid-, and long-term, 
which shall be informed by the development of 
accurate child well-being measures; 
(B) make recommendations on necessary 
modifications and improvements to programs 
that serve Native children at the Federal, State, 
and tribal level that integrate the cultural 
strengths of the communities of the Native chil-
dren and will result in— 
(i) improvements to the child welfare 
system that— 
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(I) reduce the disproportionate 
rate at which Native children enter 
child protective services and the pe-
riod of time spent in the foster sys-
tem; 
(II) increase coordination among 
social workers, police, and foster fami-
lies assisting Native children while in 
the foster system to result in the in-
creased safety of Native children while 
in the foster system; 
(III) encourage the hiring and re-
tention of licensed social workers in 
Native communities; 
(IV) address the lack of available 
foster homes in Native communities; 
and 
(V) improve the academic pro-
ficiency and graduation rates of Na-
tive children in the foster system; 
(ii) improvements to the mental and 
physical health of Native children, taking 
into consideration the rates of suicide, sub-
stance abuse, and access to nutrition and 
health care, including— 
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