I 
113TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4534 
To amend the Indian Child Protection and Family Violence Prevention Act 
to require background checks before foster care placements are ordered 
in tribal court proceedings, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 30, 2014 
Mr. CRAMER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Natural Resources 
A BILL 
To amend the Indian Child Protection and Family Violence 
Prevention Act to require background checks before fos-
ter care placements are ordered in tribal court pro-
ceedings, 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 ‘‘Native American Chil-
dren’s Safety Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. CHARACTER INVESTIGATIONS. 
Section 408 of the Indian Child Protection and Fam-
ily Violence Prevention Act (25 U.S.C. 3207) is amended 
by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(d) BY TRIBAL SOCIAL SERVICES AGENCY
FOR 
FOSTER CARE PLACEMENTS
IN TRIBAL COURT PRO-
CEEDINGS.— 
‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 
‘‘(A) COVERED
INDIVIDUAL.—The term 
‘covered individual’ includes— 
‘‘(i) any individual 18 years of age or 
older; and 
‘‘(ii) any individual who an Indian 
tribe described in paragraph (2)(A) deter-
mines is subject to a character investiga-
tion under that paragraph. 
‘‘(B) FOSTER
CARE
PLACEMENT.—The 
term ‘foster care placement’ means any action 
removing an Indian child from a parent or In-
dian custodian for temporary placement in a 
foster home or institution or the home of a 
guardian or conservator if— 
‘‘(i) the parent or Indian custodian 
cannot have the child returned on demand; 
and 
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‘‘(ii) parental rights have not been 
terminated. 
‘‘(C) INDIAN CUSTODIAN.—The term ‘In-
dian custodian’ means any Indian— 
‘‘(i) who has legal custody of an In-
dian child under tribal law or custom or 
under State law; or 
‘‘(ii) to whom temporary physical 
care, custody, and control has been trans-
ferred by the parent of the child. 
‘‘(D) 
PARENT.—The 
term 
‘parent’ 
means— 
‘‘(i) any biological parent of an Indian 
child; or 
‘‘(ii) any Indian who has lawfully 
adopted an Indian child, including adop-
tions under tribal law or custom. 
‘‘(E) TRIBAL
COURT.—The term ‘tribal 
court’ means a court— 
‘‘(i) with jurisdiction over foster care 
placements; and 
‘‘(ii) that is— 
‘‘(I) a Court of Indian Offenses; 
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‘‘(II) a court established and op-
erated under the code or custom of an 
Indian tribe; or 
‘‘(III) any other administrative 
body of a tribe that is vested with au-
thority over foster care placements. 
‘‘(F) TRIBAL SOCIAL SERVICES AGENCY.— 
The term ‘tribal social services agency’ means 
the agency of the Federal Government or of an 
Indian tribe described in paragraph (2)(A) that 
has the primary responsibility for carrying out 
foster care services (as of the date on which the 
proceeding described in paragraph (2)(A) com-
mences) on the Indian reservation of the Indian 
tribe. 
‘‘(2) CHARACTER
INVESTIGATIONS
BEFORE 
PLACEMENT.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 
paragraph (3), no foster care placement shall be 
ordered in any proceeding over which an Indian 
tribe has exclusive jurisdiction until the tribal 
social services agency— 
‘‘(i) completes an investigation of the 
character of each covered individual who 
resides in the household or is employed at 
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the institution in which the foster care 
placement will be made; and 
‘‘(ii) concludes that each covered indi-
vidual described in clause (i) meets such 
standards of character as the Indian tribe 
shall establish in accordance with subpara-
graph (B). 
‘‘(B) STANDARDS
OF
CHARACTER.—The 
standards of character described in subpara-
graph (A)(ii) shall include— 
‘‘(i) requirements that each tribal so-
cial services agency described in subpara-
graph (A)— 
‘‘(I) perform criminal records 
checks, 
including 
fingerprint-based 
checks of national crime information 
databases (as defined in section 
534(f)(3) of title 28, United States 
Code); and 
‘‘(II) check any child abuse and 
neglect registry maintained by the 
State in which the covered individual 
resides for information on the covered 
individual, and request any other 
State in which the covered individual 
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resided in the preceding 5 years, to 
enable the tribal social services agency 
to check any child abuse and neglect 
registry maintained by that State for 
such information; and 
‘‘(ii) any other additional requirement 
that the Indian tribe determines is nec-
essary. 
‘‘(C) RESULTS.—Except as provided in 
paragraph (3), no foster care placement shall be 
ordered in any proceeding described in subpara-
graph (A) if an investigation described in clause 
(i) of that subparagraph reveals that a covered 
individual described in that clause— 
‘‘(i) has been found by a Federal, 
State, or tribal court to have committed 
any crime listed in clause (i) or (ii) of sec-
tion 471(a)(20)(A) of the Social Security 
Act (42 U.S.C. 671(a)(20)(A)); or 
‘‘(ii) is listed on a registry described 
in subparagraph (B)(i)(II). 
‘‘(D) DEADLINE.—Except as provided in 
paragraph (3), the tribal social services agency 
shall satisfy the requirements of clauses (i) and 
(ii) of subparagraph (A) not later than 14 days 
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after the date on which the proceeding de-
scribed in subparagraph (A) commences. 
‘‘(3) EMERGENCY PLACEMENT.—Paragraph (2) 
shall not apply to an emergency foster care place-
ment, as determined by an Indian tribe described in 
paragraph (2)(A). 
‘‘(4) RECERTIFICATION OF FOSTER HOMES OR 
INSTITUTIONS.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—Not later than 180 
days after the date of enactment of this sub-
section, each Indian tribe shall establish proce-
dures to recertify homes or institutions in which 
foster care placements are made. 
‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—The procedures de-
scribed in subparagraph (A) shall include, at a 
minimum, periodic intervals at which the home 
or institution shall be subject to recertification 
to ensure— 
‘‘(i) the safety of the home or institu-
tion for the Indian child; and 
‘‘(ii) that each covered individual who 
resides in the home or is employed at the 
institution is subject to a character inves-
tigation in accordance with this subsection, 
including any covered individual who— 
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‘‘(I) resides in the home or is em-
ployed at the institution on the date 
on which the procedures established 
under subparagraph (A) commences; 
and 
‘‘(II) did not reside in the home 
or was not employed at the institution 
on the date on which the investigation 
described in paragraph (2)(A)(i) was 
completed. 
‘‘(C) REGULATIONS
PROMULGATED
OR 
GUIDANCE ISSUED BY THE SECRETARY.—The 
procedures established under subparagraph (A) 
shall be subject to any regulation promulgated 
or guidance issued by the Secretary that is in 
accordance with the purpose of this subsection. 
‘‘(5) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days 
after the date of enactment of this subsection and 
after consultation with Indian tribes, the Secretary 
shall promulgate a regulation regarding— 
‘‘(A) procedures for a character investiga-
tion of any covered individual who— 
‘‘(i) resides in the home or is em-
ployed at the institution in which the fos-
ter care placement is made after the date 
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on which the investigation described in 
paragraph (2)(A)(i) is completed; and 
‘‘(ii) was not the subject of an inves-
tigation described in paragraph (2)(A)(i) 
before the foster care placement was made; 
‘‘(B) self-reporting requirements for foster 
care homes or institutions in which any covered 
individual described in subparagraph (A) re-
sides if the head of the household or the oper-
ator of the institution has knowledge that the 
covered individual— 
‘‘(i) has been found by a Federal, 
State, or tribal court to have committed 
any crime listed in clause (i) or (ii) of sec-
tion 471(a)(20)(A) of the Social Security 
Act (42 U.S.C. 671(a)(20)(A)); or 
‘‘(ii) is listed on a registry described 
in paragraph (2)(B)(i)(II); 
‘‘(C) procedures and guidelines for emer-
gency foster care placements under paragraph 
(3); and 
‘‘(D) procedures for certifying compliance 
with this Act.’’. 
Æ 
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