[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 980 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 980

   To direct the Secretary of Commerce to establish a demonstration 
program to adapt the lessons of providing foreign aid to underdeveloped 
 economies to the provision of Federal economic development assistance 
   to certain similarly situated individuals, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 5, 2009

  Ms. Murkowski (for herself, Mr. Inouye, Mr. Akaka, and Mr. Begich) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
                      Committee on Indian Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To direct the Secretary of Commerce to establish a demonstration 
program to adapt the lessons of providing foreign aid to underdeveloped 
 economies to the provision of Federal economic development assistance 
   to certain similarly situated individuals, 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 ``Native American Challenge 
Demonstration Project Act of 2009''.

SEC. 2. PURPOSES.

    The purposes of this Act are--
            (1) to adapt the lessons of foreign aid to underdeveloped 
        economies, such as the experience of the Millennium Challenge 
        Corporation, to the provision of Federal economic development 
        assistance to similarly situated remote Native American 
        communities;
            (2) to provide Federal economic development assistance for 
        Native American communities through the Native American 
        Challenge Demonstration Project;
            (3) to administer Federal economic development assistance 
        in a manner that--
                    (A) promotes economic growth and the elimination of 
                poverty; and
                    (B) strengthens good governance, entrepreneurship, 
                and investment in Native American communities;
            (4) to improve the effectiveness of Federal economic 
        development assistance by encouraging the integration and 
        coordination of the assistance in Native American communities;
            (5) to promote sustainable economic growth and poverty 
        reduction policies in Native American communities in a manner 
        that promotes self-determination and self-sufficiency among 
        remote Native American communities while preserving the 
        cultural values of those communities;
            (6) to enhance the capacity of Alaska Native communities to 
        meet the challenges posed by climate change and the effects of 
        climate change on those communities; and
            (7) to establish a demonstration project that, if 
        successful, may be broadly applied to other Native American 
        communities in the United States.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Commitment to development.--The term ``commitment to 
        development'' means a commitment to poverty reduction and 
        economic growth, as demonstrated through activities for--
                    (A) entrepreneurship and job creation;
                    (B) an increase in worker productivity and 
                innovation; or
                    (C) the promotion of market forces and the private 
                sector.
            (2) Compact.--The term ``compact'' means a binding 
        agreement with the United States entered into pursuant to this 
        Act.
            (3) Economic development strategy.--The term ``economic 
        development strategy'' means a strategy--
                    (A) written by an eligible entity and designed to 
                achieve sustainable economic growth and reduce poverty 
                over a defined period; and
                    (B) developed in consultation with public and 
                private sector entities, as appropriate to the 
                geographical area and intended beneficiaries of the 
                compact.
            (4) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means--
                    (A) in the State of Alaska, not more than 2 
                regional Alaska Native nonprofit organizations, to be 
                determined by the Secretary, in consultation with the 
                Secretary of the Interior and the Alaska Federation of 
                Natives, with priority given to organizations serving 
                regions with high poverty levels;
                    (B) in the State of Hawaii, a consortia of local 
                Native Hawaiian community organizations, to be 
                determined by the Secretary, in consultation with the 
                Secretary of the Interior and the Office of Hawaiian 
                Affairs; and
                    (C) in the 48 contiguous States, not more than 3 
                organizations, to be determined by the Secretary, in 
                consultation with the Secretary of the Interior, which 
                may be Indian tribes, consortia of Indian tribes, or 
                nongovernmental entities authorized by 1 or more Indian 
                tribes.
            (5) 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).
            (6) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Commerce.

SEC. 4. NATIVE AMERICAN MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.

    (a) Establishment.--The Secretary shall establish and implement in 
the Department of Commerce a demonstration project, to be known as the 
``Native American Millennium Challenge Demonstration Project'' 
(referred to in this section as the ``demonstration project'').
    (b) Authorization of Assistance.--In carrying out the demonstration 
project, the Secretary may provide assistance to any eligible entity 
that enters into a compact with the United States pursuant to this Act.
    (c) Form of Assistance.--Assistance under the demonstration 
project--
            (1) shall be provided in the form of funding agreements 
        established under the applicable compact;
            (2) may not be provided in the form of loans; and
            (3) may not be used for gaming activities covered by the 
        Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.).
    (d) Coordination.--
            (1) In general.--To improve the effectiveness of Federal 
        economic development assistance by encouraging the integration 
        and coordination of that assistance in Indian communities, 
        except as specifically prohibited by any other provision of law 
        (including regulations), the provision of assistance under this 
        section may be coordinated with Federal economic development 
        assistance provided for Indians by--
                    (A) the Department of Agriculture;
                    (B) the Department of Commerce;
                    (C) the Department of Energy;
                    (D) the Department of Health and Human Services;
                    (E) the Department of Housing and Urban 
                Development;
                    (F) the Department of the Interior;
                    (G) the Small Business Administration; and
                    (H) such other Federal agencies and 
                instrumentalities as the Secretary determines to be 
                appropriate.
            (2) Integrated funding.--On execution of a compact with an 
        eligible entity, the Secretary, in cooperation with the heads 
        of other Federal departments and agencies and in accordance 
        with paragraph (1), may authorize the eligible entity to 
        coordinate the federally funded economic development assistance 
        programs of the eligible entity in a manner that integrates the 
        program services into a single, coordinated program.
    (e) Programs Affected.--The programs that may be integrated under 
the demonstration project include any program--
            (1) under which an Indian tribe is eligible for receipt of 
        funds under a statutory or administrative formula for economic 
        development purposes; and
            (2) for which there is no specific statutory or regulatory 
        prohibition preventing agency or departmental participation.
    (f) Waiver Authority.--On receipt of an executed compact, the 
Secretary shall consult with the eligible entity that is a party to the 
compact and the Secretary of each Federal agency or department that 
provides funds to be used to implement the compact to identify any 
waiver of statutory requirements or applicable regulations, policies, 
or procedures necessary to enable the eligible entity to implement the 
compact.

SEC. 5. NATIVE AMERICAN CHALLENGE COMPACTS.

    (a) Compacts.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall develop and recommend 
        procedures for consideration of proposals for compacts 
        submitted by eligible entities.
            (2) Assistance.--The Secretary may provide assistance to an 
        eligible entity only if the eligible entity enters into a 
        compact with the United States, to be known as a ``Native 
        American Challenge Compact'', that establishes a multiyear plan 
        for achieving development objectives in furtherance of the 
        purposes of this Act.
    (b) Applications.--The Secretary shall develop and recommend 
procedures for considering applications for compacts submitted by 
eligible entities.
    (c) Criteria for Selection of Eligible Entities.--The Secretary 
shall develop an application process and criteria for selecting 
eligible entities to enter into compacts under this Act, taking into 
consideration--
            (1) the purposes of this Act;
            (2) the economic development strategy of the eligible 
        entity;
            (3) the remoteness of the community to be served by the 
        eligible entity;
            (4) the general economic status of the community to be 
        served by the eligible entity;
            (5) the poverty rate of the community to be served by the 
        eligible entity;
            (6) the service capacity of the eligible entity; and
            (7) the commitment to development of the community to be 
        served by the eligible entity.
    (d) Assistance for Development of Compacts.--To the extent that 
funds are appropriated in advance to carry out this section, the 
Secretary may enter into contracts with, or make grants to, any 
eligible entity for the purposes of facilitating the development and 
implementation of a compact between the United States and the eligible 
entity.
    (e) Duration and Extension.--
            (1) Duration.--The term of an initial compact under this 
        section shall not exceed 5 years.
            (2) Subsequent compacts.--An eligible entity and the United 
        States may enter into 1 or more subsequent compacts in 
        accordance with this Act.
            (3) Extensions.--If a compact is approaching expiration or 
        has expired, the eligible entity that is a party to the compact 
        and the United States may renegotiate or extend the compact for 
        such number of terms as the parties may agree, with each term 
        not to exceed 10 years.
    (f) Elements.--In furtherance of the economic development strategy 
of the applicable eligible entity, each compact shall contain--
            (1) a description of the specific objectives for the 
        sustainable economic development and reduction of poverty that 
        the eligible entity and the United States expect to achieve 
        during the term of the compact;
            (2) a description of the respective roles and 
        responsibilities of the eligible entity and the United States 
        in the achievement of those objectives;
            (3) a list and description of regular benchmarks to measure 
        progress toward achieving those objectives;
            (4) an identification of the intended beneficiaries, 
        disaggregated by income level, gender, and age, to the maximum 
        extent practicable; and
            (5) a multiyear financial plan to guide the implementation 
        of the compact, including the estimated level of funding and 
        other contributions by the United States and the eligible 
        entity, proposed mechanisms to execute the plan, and periodic 
        assessments to determine whether the requirements of paragraphs 
        (1) through (4) are being met.
    (g) Suspension and Termination of Assistance.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary may suspend or terminate 
        assistance, in whole or in part, for an eligible entity that 
        has entered into a compact with the United States if the 
        Secretary determines that--
                    (A) the eligible entity has failed to meet the 
                responsibilities of the eligible entity under the 
                compact; or
                    (B) the eligible entity has engaged in a pattern of 
                actions that is inconsistent with the purposes of this 
                Act.
            (2) Reinstatement.--The Secretary may reinstate assistance 
        for an eligible entity only if the Secretary determines that 
        the eligible entity has demonstrated a commitment to correcting 
        each condition for which assistance was suspended or terminated 
        under paragraph (1).

SEC. 6. PROGRAM ASSESSMENTS AND REPORTS.

    (a) Reports of Eligible Entities.--Not later than March 15, 2010, 
and annually thereafter, each eligible entity shall prepare and submit 
to the Secretary a written report describing the assistance provided to 
the eligible entity under this Act during the preceding fiscal year.
    (b) Report Contents.--A report required under subsection (a) shall 
include--
            (1) a description of the amount of obligations and 
        expenditures for assistance provided during the preceding 
        fiscal year;
            (2) a description of the programs and activities conducted 
        by the eligible entity in furtherance of the economic 
        development strategy of the eligible entity and the purposes of 
        this Act;
            (3) an assessment of the effectiveness of the assistance 
        provided and progress made by the eligible entity toward 
        achieving the economic development strategy of the eligible 
        entity and the purposes of this Act; and
            (4) such other information as the eligible entity considers 
        to be relevant, taking into consideration the purposes of this 
        Act.
    (c) Submission to Congress.--Not later than May 15, 2010, and 
annually thereafter, the Secretary shall submit the reports required 
under subsection (a), with such other information as the Secretary 
considers to be relevant, to--
            (1) the Committees on Energy and Commerce and Natural 
        Resources of the House of Representatives; and
            (2) the Committees on Indian Affairs, Commerce, Science, 
        and Transportation, and Energy and Natural Resources of the 
        Senate.

SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    (a) Authorization.--
            (1) In general.--There is authorized to be appropriated to 
        carry out this Act $20,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2010 
        through 2014, to remain available until expended.
            (2) Unappropriated amounts.--Any funds authorized but not 
        appropriated for any fiscal year under paragraph (1) may be 
        appropriated for a subsequent fiscal year, subject to the 
        condition that the cumulative amount authorized to be 
        appropriated for any of fiscal years 2010 through 2014 shall 
        not exceed $100,000,000.
    (b) Administrative and Program Oversight Expenses.--Of the funds 
made available to carry out this Act, not more than 5 percent may be 
used by the Secretary for--
            (1) the administrative expenses of carrying out this Act; 
        and
            (2) oversight of programs under this Act.
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