[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 761 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 761

To provide loans for the improvement of telecommunications services on 
                          Indian reservations.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 24, 2001

 Mr. Baucus (for himself, Mr. Daschle, Mr. Bingaman, Mr. Johnson, and 
  Mr. Inouye) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
              referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide loans for the improvement of telecommunications services on 
                          Indian reservations.

    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 ``Native American Telecommunications 
Improvement and Value Enhancement Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) the average telephone penetration rate for Native 
        Americans on reservations is 47 percent (with some reservations 
        as low as 16 percent) as compared to 94 percent for the entire 
        United States;
            (2) barriers to telephone penetration on Native American 
        reservations include poverty (the per capita income for Native 
        Americans is $8,234), the high cost of service due to sparse 
        population, and geographic challenges; and
            (3) without telephone service, individuals cannot obtain 
        access to medical care in an emergency (911 service), cannot 
        reach prospective employers quickly and easily, and cannot take 
        advantage of the educational, medical, and commercial 
        opportunities offered by the Internet.

SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF LOAN PROGRAM.

    The Rural Electrification Act of 1936 (7 U.S.C. 901 et seq.) is 
amended by adding at the end the following:

                  ``TITLE VI--MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

``SEC. 601. NATIVE AMERICAN TELECOMMUNICATIONS IMPROVEMENT AND VALUE 
              ENHANCEMENT LOAN PROGRAM.

    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary, acting through the Rural 
Utilities Service, shall establish a program to make loans to eligible 
Indian tribes (or tribal entities that have entered into a partnership 
with a telecommunications carrier) to enable such tribes to provide for 
the development of telecommunications infrastructure (wireline or 
wireless) on lands under the jurisdiction of the tribe involved.
    ``(b) Eligibility.--To be eligible to receive a loan under the 
program established under subsection (a) an Indian tribe shall--
            ``(1)(A) be a member of a cooperative that is made up of 
        Federally-recognized Indian tribes specifically formed for the 
        purpose of providing telecommunications services to members of 
        the tribes involved; or
            ``(B) be a Federally-recognized Indian tribe that has 
        entered into an agreement with a telecommunications carrier for 
        the purpose of obtaining loans under this section to improve 
        the telecommunications infrastructure on lands under the 
        jurisdiction of the tribe involved; and
            ``(2) prepare and submit to the Secretary an application at 
        such time, in such manner, and containing such information as 
        the Secretary may require, including a telecommunications plan 
        that meets the requirements of section 305(d)(3)(B).
    ``(c) Revolving Loan Fund.--
            ``(1) In general.--There is hereby established in the 
        Treasury of the United States a fund, to be known as the Native 
        American Telecommunications Improvement Revolving Fund 
        (referred to as the `Fund'), consisting of--
                    ``(A) all notes, bonds, obligations, liens, 
                mortgages, and property delivered or assigned to the 
                Secretary pursuant to loans made under this section, 
                and all proceeds from the sales of such notes, bonds, 
                obligations, liens, mortgages, and property, which 
                shall be transferred to and be assets of the Fund;
                    ``(B) all collections of principal and interest 
                received on a loan made under subsection (a), which 
                shall be paid into and be assets of the Fund; and
                    ``(C) all amounts appropriated to the Fund under 
                subsection (f).
            ``(2) Use.--The assets of the Fund shall be used--
                    ``(A) to make loans under subsection (a) and to 
                otherwise administer the loan program under this 
                section; and
                    ``(B) to award grants as provided for in subsection 
                (e).
    ``(d) Interest.--The interest rate for any loan made under 
subsection (a) shall not exceed an annual rate of--
            ``(1) two percent for loans made to tribes where the per 
        capita income of the area to be served under the loan is 25 
        percent or less of the per capita income of the entire United 
        States, based on the most recent census;
            ``(2) three percent for loans made to tribes where the per 
        capita income of the area to be served under the loan is at 
        least 26 percent but less than 34 percent of the per capita 
        income of the entire United States, based on the most recent 
        census;
            ``(3) four percent for loans made to tribes where the per 
        capita income of the area to be served under the loan is at 
        least 34 percent but less than 51 percent or less of the per 
        capita income of the entire United States, based on the most 
        recent census; or
            ``(4) five percent for loans made to tribes--
                    ``(A) where the per capita income of the area to be 
                served under the loan is at least 51 percent of the per 
                capita income of the entire United States, based on the 
                most recent census; or
                    ``(B) that otherwise meet the definition of 
                hardship as contained in the Rural Utilities Service 
                regulations in effect on the date of enactment of this 
                Act.
    ``(e) Grants.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall award grants to 
        Indian tribes to enable such tribes to conduct feasibility 
        studies with respect to tribal telecommunications projects
            ``(2) Limitation.--The amount of a grant awarded under 
        paragraph (1) shall not exceed $200,000.
            ``(3) Funding.--Of the amount appropriated under subsection 
        (f) and transferred to the Fund--
                    ``(A) $2,000,000 shall be available immediately 
                upon the appropriation of funds under subsection (f) 
                and be used to award grants under this section; and
                    ``(B) an amount determined appropriate by the 
                Secretary from the interest derived from loans made 
                under this section shall be used to award grants under 
                this section upon the use of all funds under 
                subparagraph (A).
    ``(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated $1,000,000,000 to carry out this section.
    ``(g) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Federally-recognized indian tribe.--The term 
        `Federally-recognized Indian tribe' means any Indian or Alaska 
        Native tribe, band, nation, pueblo, village or community that 
        is acknowledged by the Federal Government to constitute a 
        government-to-government relationship with the United States 
        and to be eligible for the programs and services established by 
        the United States for Indians.
            ``(2) Telecommunications carrier.--The term 
        `telecommunications carriers' means any provider of 
        telecommunications services.
    ``(h) Termination.--The program established under this section 
shall terminate on the earlier of--
            ``(1) the date that is 10 years after the date on which the 
        first loan is made under the program; or
            ``(2) the date on which the Secretary determines that the 
        telecommunications penetration rate is at least 90 percent of 
        all households on reservation lands.''.
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