[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1972 Referred in House (RFH)]







104th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 1972


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 9, 1996

  Referred to the Committee on Economic and Educational Opportunities

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
  To amend the Older Americans Act of 1965 to improve the provisions 
              relating to Indians, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Older Americans Indian Technical 
Amendments Act''.

SEC. 2. INDIAN EMPLOYMENT; DEFINITION OF INDIAN RESERVATION.

    Section 502(b)(1)(B) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 3056(b)(1)(B)) is 
amended to read as follows:
            ``(B)(i) will provide employment for eligible individuals 
        in the community in which such individuals reside, or in nearby 
        communities; or
            ``(ii) if such project is carried out by a tribal 
        organization that enters into an agreement under subsection (b) 
        or receives assistance from a State that enters into such an 
        agreement, will provide employment for such individuals who are 
        Indians residing on or near an Indian reservation, as the term 
        is defined in section 2601(2) of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 
        (25 U.S.C. 3501(2)).''.

SEC. 3. POPULATION STATISTICS DEVELOPMENT.

    Section 614(b) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 3057e(b)) is amended by 
striking ``certification'' and inserting ``approval''.

SEC. 4. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

    Section 614(c) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 3057e(c)) is amended--
            (1) by inserting ``(1)'' after ``(c)''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
    ``(2) The Assistant Secretary shall provide waivers and exemptions 
of the reporting requirements of subsection (a)(3) for applicants that 
serve Indian populations in geographically isolated areas, or 
applicants that serve small Indian populations, where the small scale 
of the project, the nature of the applicant, or other factors make the 
reporting requirements unreasonable under the circumstances. The 
Assistant Secretary shall consult with such applicants in establishing 
appropriate waivers and exemptions.''.

SEC. 5. EXPENDITURE OF FUNDS FOR NUTRITION SERVICES.

    Section 614(c) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 3057e(c)), as amended by 
section 4, is further amended by adding at the end the following new 
paragraph:
    ``(3) In determining whether an application complies with the 
requirements of subsection (a)(8), the Assistant Secretary shall 
provide maximum flexibility to an applicant who seeks to take into 
account subsistence needs, local customs, and other characteristics 
that are appropriate to the unique cultural, regional, and geographic 
needs of the Indian populations to be served.''.

SEC. 6. COORDINATION OF SERVICES.

    Section 614(c) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 3057e(c)), as amended by 
section 5, is further amended by adding at the end the following new 
paragraph:
    ``(4) In determining whether an application complies with the 
requirements of subsection (a)(12), the Assistant Secretary shall 
require only that an applicant provide an appropriate narrative 
description of the geographical area to be served and an assurance that 
procedures will be adopted to ensure against duplicate services being 
provided to the same recipients.''.

            Passed the Senate September 6, 1996.

            Attest:

                                             KELLY D. JOHNSTON,

                                                             Secretary.