[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4534 Introduced in House (IH)]

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 foster care placements are ordered 
          in tribal court proceedings, 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 Children's Safety 
Act''.

SEC. 2. CHARACTER INVESTIGATIONS.

    Section 408 of the Indian Child Protection and Family 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 Proceedings.--
            ``(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) determines is 
                        subject to a character investigation under that 
                        paragraph.
                    ``(B) Foster care placement.--The term `foster care 
                placement' means any action removing an Indian child 
                from a parent or Indian 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
                            ``(ii) parental rights have not been 
                        terminated.
                    ``(C) Indian custodian.--The term `Indian 
                custodian' means any Indian--
                            ``(i) who has legal custody of an Indian 
                        child under tribal law or custom or under State 
                        law; or
                            ``(ii) to whom temporary physical care, 
                        custody, and control has been transferred 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 adoptions 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;
                                    ``(II) a court established and 
                                operated under the code or custom of an 
                                Indian tribe; or
                                    ``(III) any other administrative 
                                body of a tribe that is vested with 
                                authority 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) 
                commences) 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 the 
                        institution in which the foster care placement 
                        will be made; and
                            ``(ii) concludes that each covered 
                        individual described in clause (i) meets such 
                        standards of character as the Indian tribe 
                        shall establish in accordance with subparagraph 
                        (B).
                    ``(B) Standards of character.--The standards of 
                character described in subparagraph (A)(ii) shall 
                include--
                            ``(i) requirements that each tribal social 
                        services agency described in subparagraph (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 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 necessary.
                    ``(C) Results.--Except as provided in paragraph 
                (3), no foster care placement shall be ordered in any 
                proceeding described in subparagraph (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 section 
                        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 after the date 
                on which the proceeding described in subparagraph (A) 
                commences.
            ``(3) Emergency placement.--Paragraph (2) shall not apply 
        to an emergency foster care placement, 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 subsection, each Indian 
                tribe shall establish procedures to recertify homes or 
                institutions in which foster care placements are made.
                    ``(B) Contents.--The procedures described 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 institution 
                        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 
                        investigation in accordance with this 
                        subsection, including any covered individual 
                        who--
                                    ``(I) resides in the home or is 
                                employed 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 investigation of 
                any covered individual who--
                            ``(i) resides in the home or is employed at 
                        the institution in which the foster care 
                        placement is made after the date on which the 
                        investigation described in paragraph (2)(A)(i) 
                        is completed; and
                            ``(ii) was not the subject of an 
                        investigation 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) resides if the head of 
                the household or the operator 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 section 
                        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 emergency 
                foster care placements under paragraph (3); and
                    ``(D) procedures for certifying compliance with 
                this Act.''.
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