[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2468 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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114th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2468

    To require the Secretary of the Interior to carry out a 5-year 
 demonstration program to provide grants to eligible Indian tribes for 
      the construction of tribal schools, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 27, 2016

  Mr. Tester (for himself and Ms. Cantwell) introduced the following 
  bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian 
                                Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To require the Secretary of the Interior to carry out a 5-year 
 demonstration program to provide grants to eligible Indian tribes for 
      the construction of tribal schools, 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 ``Safe Academic Facilities and 
Environments for Tribal Youth Act'' or the ``SAFETY Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Department.--The term ``Department'' means the 
        Department of the Interior.
            (2) Indian.--The term ``Indian'' means a member of an 
        Indian tribe.
            (3) 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).
            (4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Interior.

SEC. 3. TRIBAL SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Construction of replacement tribal school.--The term 
        ``construction of a replacement tribal school'' includes the 
        construction or renovation of--
                    (A) 1 or more facilities of that school; or
                    (B) the entire campus of that school.
            (2) Demonstration program.--The term ``demonstration 
        program'' means the Tribal School Construction Demonstration 
        Program carried out under subsection (b).
            (3) Eligible indian tribe.--The term ``eligible Indian 
        tribe'' means an Indian tribe that submits an application that 
        is approved by the Secretary under subsection (b)(4).
            (4) Tribal school.--The term ``tribal school'' means--
                    (A) a school operated by the Bureau of Indian 
                Affairs;
                    (B) a school operated pursuant to the Indian Self-
                Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 
                450 et seq.); and
                    (C) a tribally controlled school (as defined in 
                section 5212 of the Tribally Controlled Schools Act of 
                1988 (25 U.S.C. 2511)).
    (b) Demonstration Program.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall carry out a 
        demonstration program to be known as the ``Tribal School 
        Construction Demonstration Program'' for fiscal years 2017 
        through 2021, to provide grants to eligible Indian tribes for 
        the construction of replacement tribal schools.
            (2) Purposes.--The purposes of the demonstration program 
        shall be--
                    (A) to provide additional Indian tribes fair 
                opportunities to construct replacement tribal schools;
                    (B) to accelerate construction of needed 
                educational facilities in Indian country; and
                    (C) to permit additional funds to be provided for 
                the priority list of the Department for construction of 
                replacement tribal schools.
            (3) Grant recipients.--
                    (A) In general.--In carrying out the demonstration 
                program, subject to the availability of appropriations, 
                the Secretary shall award a grant to each eligible 
                Indian tribe.
                    (B) Priority.--The Secretary shall ensure that an 
                eligible Indian tribe currently on the priority list of 
                the Department for construction of replacement tribal 
                schools receives the highest priority for a grant under 
                this section.
            (4) Grant applications.--An application for a grant under 
        the section shall--
                    (A) include a proposal for the construction of a 
                replacement tribal school of the Indian tribe that 
                submits the application; and
                    (B) be in such form as the Secretary determines 
                appropriate.
            (5) Grant agreement.--As a condition of receiving a grant 
        under this section, the eligible Indian tribe shall enter into 
        an agreement with the Secretary that specifies--
                    (A) the costs of construction under the grant;
                    (B) that the Indian tribe shall be required to 
                contribute towards the cost of the construction a 
                tribal share equal to at least 25 percent of the cost; 
                and
                    (C) any other term or condition that the Secretary 
                determines to be appropriate.
    (c) Effect of Grant.--A grant received under this section--
            (1) shall be in addition to any other funds received by an 
        Indian tribe under any other provision of law; and
            (2) shall not affect the eligibility of an Indian tribe 
        receiving funding, or the amount of funding received by the 
        Indian tribe, under--
                    (A) the Tribally Controlled Schools Act of 1988 (25 
                U.S.C. 2501 et seq.); or
                    (B) the Indian Self-Determination and Education 
                Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450 et seq.).
    (d) Report.--At the conclusion of the demonstration program, the 
Secretary shall submit to Congress a report on whether the 
demonstration program has achieved the purposes of the demonstration 
program, as described in subsection (b)(2).

SEC. 4. FUNDING FOR TRIBAL COLLEGES CONSTRUCTION.

    Section 113 of the Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities 
Assistance Act of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 1813) is amended to read as follows:

``SEC. 113. CONSTRUCTION OF NEW FACILITIES.

    ``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Construction.--The term `construction' includes any 
        effort to address the facility construction, maintenance, 
        renovation, reconstruction, and replacement needs of a Tribal 
        College or University.
            ``(2) Tribal college or university.--The term `Tribal 
        College or University' has the meaning given the term in 
        section 316(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
        1059c(b)).
    ``(b) Grants.--With respect to any eligible Tribal College or 
University that identifies a need for construction, the Secretary 
shall, subject to the availability of appropriations, provide grants 
for the construction in accordance with this section.
    ``(c) Application.--Each eligible applicant desiring a grant under 
this section shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, 
in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may 
require.
    ``(d) Eligible Activities.--Activities eligible for a grant under 
this section shall be activities that address a wide variety of 
facilities and infrastructure needs, including--
            ``(1) building of new facilities, including--
                    ``(A) classrooms;
                    ``(B) administrative offices;
                    ``(C) libraries;
                    ``(D) health and cultural centers;
                    ``(E) day care centers;
                    ``(F) technology centers; and
                    ``(G) other education-related facilities;
            ``(2) renovating or expanding existing or acquired 
        facilities;
            ``(3) providing existing facilities with equipment, 
        including--
                    ``(A) laboratory equipment;
                    ``(B) computer infrastructure and equipment;
                    ``(C) library books; and
                    ``(D) furniture; and
            ``(4) property acquisition.
    ``(e) No Matching Requirement.--A recipient of a grant under this 
section shall not be required to make a matching contribution for 
Federal amounts received.
    ``(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $5,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2017 through 2021.''.

SEC. 5. HOUSING ASSISTANCE FOR EDUCATORS IN SCHOOLS WITH INDIAN 
              STUDENTS.

    Title V of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1471 et seq.) is 
amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 545. HOUSING ASSISTANCE FOR EDUCATORS IN SCHOOLS WITH INDIAN 
              STUDENTS.

    ``(a) Definitions.--In this section--
            ``(1) the term `covered educator' means an individual who 
        is employed full-time as a teacher, principal, administrator, 
        or other licensed professional educator by a covered school;
            ``(2) the term `covered school' means--
                    ``(A) a school operated by the Bureau of Indian 
                Affairs;
                    ``(B) a school operated pursuant to the Indian 
                Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 
                U.S.C. 450 et seq.);
                    ``(C) a tribally controlled school (as defined in 
                section 5212 of the Tribally Controlled Schools Act of 
                1988 (25 U.S.C. 2511)); and
                    ``(D) a public elementary school or secondary 
                school in which not less than 25 percent of the 
                students are Indian students;
            ``(3) the terms `elementary school' and `secondary school' 
        have the meanings given those terms in section 8101 of the 
        Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965; and
            ``(4) the term `eligible applicant' means--
                    ``(A) an Indian tribe (as defined in section 4 of 
                the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 
                Act (25 U.S.C. 450b));
                    ``(B) an Indian organization (as defined in section 
                1141 of the Education Amendments of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 
                2021)); or
                    ``(C) a tribally designated housing entity (as 
                defined in section 4 of the Native American Housing 
                Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 
                U.S.C. 4103)).
    ``(b) Grant Program.--The Secretary may award grants to eligible 
applicants to construct, including by reconstructing, renovating, and 
repairing, and provide housing to covered educators in rural areas.
    ``(c) Application.--Each eligible applicant desiring a grant under 
this section shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, 
in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may 
require.
    ``(d) Non-Federal Share.--A recipient of a grant under this section 
shall not be required to obtain or provide a non-Federal share in order 
to receive assistance under this section.
    ``(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to the Secretary to carry out this section $5,000,000 for 
fiscal year 2017 and each fiscal year thereafter.''.

SEC. 6. BIE AND OMB PLAN.

    (a) In General.--The Bureau of Indian Education and the Office of 
Management and Budget shall jointly develop a 10-year plan to bring up 
to good condition, as determined by the facilities evaluation process 
of the Department of the Interior, in compliance with all applicable 
tribal requirements all of the following Bureau of Indian Education 
school facilities:
            (1) An elementary or secondary day or boarding school 
        operated by the Bureau of Indian Education.
            (2) A school operated pursuant to the Indian Self-
        Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450 et 
        seq.).
            (3) A tribally controlled school (as defined in section 
        5212 of the Tribally Controlled Schools Act of 1988 (25 U.S.C. 
        2511)).
            (4) A dormitory operated by the Bureau of Indian Education 
        for students attending a school other than a school specified 
        in paragraphs (1) through (3).
    (b) Inclusions.--The plan developed under subsection (a) shall 
include--
            (1) proposed budget requests and timelines; and
            (2) additional factors such as increasing enrollment 
        capacities.
    (c) Effect.--For the purpose of developing the plan under 
subsection (a) only, section 1125(a)(5) of the Education Amendments of 
1978 (25 U.S.C. 2005(a)(5)) shall not apply.
    (d) Report.--As soon as practicable after completion of the plan 
developed under subsection (a), the Secretary shall submit a report 
describing the plan to--
            (1) the Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related 
        Agencies of the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate;
            (2) the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate;
            (3) the Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related 
        Agencies of the Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
        Representatives; and
            (4) the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of 
        Representatives.

SEC. 7. GAO REPORT.

    Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to Congress a 
comprehensive report describing the implementation of section 8007 of 
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (as in effect on 
December 9, 2015), for fiscal years preceding fiscal year 2017, and 
section 7007 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (as 
in effect for fiscal year 2017), for fiscal year 2017 and subsequent 
fiscal years, that--
            (1) evaluates the adequacy of the distribution of payments 
        between subparagraphs (A) and (B) of subsection (a)(3) of those 
        sections;
            (2) evaluates unmet need; and
            (3) determines the age, condition, and remaining utility of 
        school facilities (as the term is defined in section 7013 of 
        that Act (as in effect for fiscal year 2017)) for those local 
        educational agencies enrolling students described in section 
        7003(a)(1)(C) of that Act (as so in effect) that are eligible 
        to receive a basic support payment under--
                    (A) section 8003(b) of that Act (as in effect on 
                December 9, 2015) for fiscal years preceding fiscal 
                year 2017; and
                    (B) section 7003(b) of that Act (as in effect for 
                fiscal year 2017) for fiscal year 2017 and subsequent 
                fiscal years.
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