[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2733 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2733
To direct the Attorney General to review, revise, and develop law
enforcement and justice protocols appropriate to address missing and
murdered Indians, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 14, 2019
Mrs. Torres of California (for herself, Ms. Haaland, Mr. Newhouse, Mr.
Gallego, Ms. Davids of Kansas, Mr. Gianforte, Mr. Cole, Mr. Armstrong,
Ms. McCollum, Mr. Mullin, Mr. Young, Ms. Kuster of New Hampshire, Ms.
Bass, Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney of New York, Ms. Bonamici, Ms. Moore, Mr.
Ruiz, Ms. DelBene, Mr. Stanton, Mr. Cook, and Ms. Sewell of Alabama)
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Natural Resources,
for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case
for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of
the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To direct the Attorney General to review, revise, and develop law
enforcement and justice protocols appropriate to address missing and
murdered 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 ``Savanna's Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) On some reservations, Indian women are murdered at more
than 10 times the national average.
(2) American Indians and Alaska Natives are 2.5 times as
likely to experience violent crimes--and at least 2 times more
likely to experience rape or sexual assault crimes--compared to
all other races, according to the National Congress of American
Indians.
(3) More than 4 in 5 American Indian and Alaska Native
women, or 84.3 percent, have experienced violence in their
lifetime, according to the National Institute of Justice.
(4) More than 4 in 5 American Indian and Alaska Native men,
or 81.6 percent, have experienced violence in their lifetime,
according to the National Institute of Justice.
(5) According to the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, homicide is the third leading cause of death among
American Indian and Alaska Native women and girls between 10
and 24 years of age and the fifth leading cause of death for
American Indian and Alaska Native women between 25 and 34 years
of age.
(6) Investigation into cases of missing and murdered Indian
women is made difficult for Tribal law enforcement agencies due
to a lack of resources, such as--
(A) necessary training, equipment, or funding;
(B) a lack of interagency cooperation; and
(C) a lack of appropriate laws in place.
(7) The complicated jurisdictional scheme that exists in
Indian country--
(A) has a significant negative impact on the
ability to provide public safety to Indian communities;
(B) has been increasingly exploited by criminals;
and
(C) requires a high degree of commitment and
cooperation among Tribal, Federal, and State law
enforcement officials.
(8) In states with restrictive land settlement acts such as
Maine and Alaska, ``Indian country'' is limited, resources for
local tribal responses either nonexistent or insufficient to
meet the needs, and jurisdiction is unnecessarily complicated
and increases the already high levels of victimization of
American Indian and Alaska Native women. According to the
Indian Law and Order Commission Report, Alaska Native women are
over-represented in the domestic violence victim population by
250 percent; they comprise 19 percent of the state population,
but are 47 percent of reported rape victims. These issues are
further complicated as the Indian Law and Order Commission
Report noted that at least 30 percent of villages lack any law
enforcement at all.
(b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are--
(1) to clarify the responsibilities of Federal, State,
Tribal, and local governments and law enforcement agencies with
respect to responding to cases of missing and murdered Indians;
(2) to increase coordination and communication among
Federal, State, Tribal, and local law enforcement agencies,
including medical examiner and coroner offices;
(3) to empower Tribal governments with the resources and
information necessary to effectively respond to cases of
missing and murdered Indians, including Tribes located in any
State known as a ``PL-280 State''; and
(4) to increase the collection of data related to missing
and murdered Indian men, women, and children and the sharing of
information among Federal, State, and Tribal officials
responsible for responding to and investigating cases of
missing and murdered Indians by clarifying and correcting
limitation in the Federal database.
SEC. 3. IMPROVING TRIBAL ACCESS TO DATABASES.
(a) Tribal Enrollment Information.--The Attorney General shall
provide training to law enforcement agencies regarding how to record
the Tribal enrollment information or affiliation, as appropriate, of a
victim in Federal databases.
(b) Consultation.--
(1) Initial consultation.--Not later than 180 days after
the date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General, in
cooperation with the Secretary of the Interior, shall complete
a formal consultation with Indian Tribes on how to further
improve Tribal data relevance and access to databases.
(2) Annual consultation.--Section 903(b) of the Violence
Against Women and Department of Justice Reauthorization Act of
2005 (34 U.S.C. 20126) is amended--
(A) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the
following:
``(2) enhancing the safety of Indian women from domestic
violence, dating violence, obstruction of justice, sexual
assault, homicide, stalking, and sex trafficking;'';
(B) in paragraph (3), by striking the period at the
end and inserting ``; and''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(4) improving access to local, regional, State, and
Federal crime information databases and criminal justice
information systems.''.
(c) Notification.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall--
(1) develop and implement a dissemination strategy to
notify the public of the National Missing and Unidentified
Persons System; and
(2) conduct specific outreach to Indian Tribes regarding
the ability to publicly enter information, through the National
Missing and Unidentified Persons System or other non-law
enforcement sensitive portal, regarding missing persons, which
may include family members and other known acquaintances.
SEC. 4. GUIDELINES FOR RESPONDING TO CASES OF MISSING AND MURDERED
INDIANS.
(a) In General.--Not later than 60 days after the date on which the
consultation described in section 902(c)(1) is completed, the Attorney
General shall direct United States attorneys to develop regionally
appropriate guidelines to respond to cases of missing and murdered
Indians that shall include--
(1) guidelines on inter-jurisdictional cooperation among
law enforcement agencies at the Tribal, Federal, State, and
local levels, including inter-jurisdictional enforcement of
protection orders and detailing specific responsibilities of
each law enforcement agency;
(2) best practices in conducting searches for missing
persons on Indian lands;
(3) standards on the collection, reporting, and analysis of
data and information on missing persons and unidentified human
remains, and information on culturally appropriate
identification and handling of human remains identified as
Indian, including guidance stating that all appropriate
information related to missing and murdered Indians be entered
in a timely manner into applicable databases;
(4) guidance on which law enforcement agency is responsible
for inputting information into appropriate databases under
paragraph (3) if the Tribal law enforcement agency does not
have access to those appropriate databases;
(5) guidelines on improving law enforcement agency response
rates and follow-up responses to cases of missing and murdered
Indians on and off Indian lands;
(6) guidelines on ensuring access to culturally appropriate
victim services for victims and their families; and
(7) guidelines on improving law enforcement agency
communication with families of victims to ensure timely
notification and dissemination of appropriate information in
the cases of missing and murdered Indians on and off Tribal
lands.
(b) Consultation.--United States attorney shall develop the
guidelines required under subsection (a) in consultation with Indian
Tribes and other partners, including--
(1) the Department of Justice;
(2) the Federal Bureau of Investigation;
(3) the Department of the Interior;
(4) the Bureau of Indian Affairs;
(5) Tribal, State, and local law enforcement agencies;
(6) medical examiners;
(7) coroners;
(8) Tribal, State, and local organizations that provide
victim services; and
(9) national or regional tribal organizations with relevant
expertise.
(c) Compliance.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of this Act, the United States attorneys shall
incorporate the guidelines developed under subsection (a) into
existing policies and procedures, and implement such
guidelines.
(2) Modification.--Each Federal law enforcement agency
shall modify the guidelines, policies, and protocols of the
agency to incorporate the guidelines developed under subsection
(a).
(3) Determination.--Not later than the end of each fiscal
year beginning after the date the guidelines are established
under this section and incorporated under this subsection, the
Attorney General shall determine whether each Tribal, State,
and local law enforcement agency has incorporated guidelines
into their respective guidelines, policies, and protocols, and
any barriers the agency reported in collecting and providing
the information.
(4) Accountability.--Not later than 30 days after
compliance determinations are made each fiscal year in
accordance with paragraph (3), the Attorney General shall--
(A) disclose and publish, including on the website
of the Department of Justice, the name of each Tribal,
State, or local law enforcement agency that the
Attorney General has determined has incorporated
guidelines in accordance with paragraph (3);
(B) if a law enforcement agency described in
subparagraph (A) subsequently receives a determination
of compliance in accordance with paragraph (3), the
Attorney General shall--
(i) immediately correct the applicable
record; and
(ii) not later than 3 days after the
determination, add the record to the website of
the Department of Justice and any other
location where the record was published; and
(C) collect guidelines of each agency into a
resource of examples and best practices that can be
used by other law enforcement agencies seeking to
create and implement such guidelines.
(d) Training and Technical Assistance.--
(1) In general.--The Attorney General shall use the
National Indian Country Training Initiative to provide training
and technical assistance to Indian Tribes and law enforcement
agencies on--
(A) implementing the guidelines developed under
subsection (a) or developing and implementing locally
specific guidelines or protocols for responding to
cases of missing and murdered Indians; and
(B) using the National Missing and Unidentified
Persons System and accessing program services that will
assist Indian Tribes with responding to cases of
missing and murdered Indians.
(2) Exception.--the Attorney General may provide the
training described in paragraph (1) through local state law
enforcement academies if--
(A) the Attorney General determines that the such
academies will provide trainings that meet the same
standards and utilize the curriculum as trainings
provided by the National Indian Country Training
Initiative; and
(B) that relevant state, tribal, and local law
enforcement agencies have consented to the training
being provided by such academies, rather than the
National Indian Country Training Initiative.
SEC. 5. IMPLEMENTATION AND INCENTIVES.
(a) Implementation.--
(1) Grants to improve the criminal justice response.--
Section 2101(b) of part U of title I of the Omnibus Crime
Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10461(b)), as
amended by this Act, is further amended by adding at the end
the following:
``(26) To develop, strengthen, and implement policies,
protocols, and training for law enforcement regarding cases of
missing and murdered Indians, as described in section 4 of
Savanna's Act.
``(27) To compile and annually report data to the Attorney
General related to missing and murdered Indians, as described
in section 6 of Savanna's Act.''.
(2) Grants to indian tribal governments.--Section 2015(a)
of part T of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe
Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10452(a)) is amended--
(A) in paragraph (9), by striking ``and'' at the
end;
(B) in paragraph (10), by striking the period at
the end and inserting a semicolon; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(11) to develop, strengthen, and implement policies,
protocols, and training for law enforcement regarding cases of
missing and murdered Indians, as described in section 4 of
Savanna's Act; and
``(12) to compile and annually report data to the Attorney
General related to missing and murdered Indians, as described
in section 6 of Savanna's Act.''.
(b) Incentives.--
(1) Guidelines.--For law enforcement agencies that the
Attorney General determines to have incorporated guidelines in
accordance with section 4, the Attorney General shall increase
the amount provided to that government through the grants under
parts T and U of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe
Streets Act of 1968 and by no more than five percent for two
years following the finding of compliance.
(2) Data reporting.--For law enforcement agencies that the
Attorney General has determined submitted the information
requested under paragraph (1) for the fiscal year in which the
report was published, the Attorney General shall increase the
amount provided to that government through grants under parts T
and U of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets
Act of 1968 by no more than five percent over the previous year
for not more than 2 fiscal years after the determination under
this paragraph.
SEC. 6. ADDITIONAL ANNUAL REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.
(a) Annual Reporting.--Beginning in the first fiscal year after the
date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall include in
its annual Indian Country Investigations and Prosecutions report to
Congress information that--
(1) includes known statistics on missing Indians in the
United States, available to the Department of Justice,
including--
(A) age;
(B) gender;
(C) Tribal enrollment information or affiliation,
if available;
(D) the current number of open cases per State;
(E) the total number of closed cases per State each
calendar year, from the most recent 10 calendar years;
and
(F) other relevant information the Attorney General
determines is appropriate;
(2) includes known statistics on murdered Indians in the
United States, available to the Department of Justice,
including--
(A) age;
(B) gender;
(C) Tribal enrollment information or affiliation,
if available;
(D) the current number of open cases per State;
(E) the total number of closed cases per State each
calendar year, from the most recent 10 calendar years;
and
(F) other relevant information the Attorney General
determines is appropriate;
(3) maintains victim privacy to the greatest extent
possible by excluding information that can be used on its own
or with other information to identify, contact, or locate a
single person, or to identify an individual in context; and
(4) includes--
(A) an explanation of why the statistics described
in paragraph (1) may not be comprehensive; and
(B) recommendations on how data collection on
missing and murdered Indians may be improved, including
by addressing cross-jurisdictional barriers at the
State, local, and tribal law enforcement level.
(b) Compliance.--
(1) In general.--Beginning in the first fiscal year after
the date of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, for
the purpose of compiling accurate data for the annual report
required under subsection (a), the Attorney General shall
request all Tribal, State, and local law enforcement agencies
to submit to the Department of Justice, to the fullest extent
possible, all relevant information collected by the agency, as
determined by the Attorney General in consultation with Indian
Tribes.
(2) Disclosure.--The Attorney General shall disclose and
publish annually, including on the website of the Department of
Justice, the name of each Tribal, State, or local law
enforcement agency that the Attorney General has determined has
submitted the information requested under paragraph (1) for the
fiscal year in which the report was published.
(c) Inclusion of Gender in Missing and Unidentified Persons
Statistics.--Beginning in the first calendar year after the date of
enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Federal Bureau of
Investigation shall include gender in its annual statistics on missing
and unidentified persons published on its public website.
SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Databases.--The term ``databases'' means--
(A) the National Crime Information Center database;
(B) the Combined DNA Index System;
(C) the Next Generation Identification System; and
(D) any other database relevant to responding to
cases of missing and murdered Indians, including that
under the Violent Criminal Apprehension Program and the
National Missing and Unidentified Persons System.
(2) Indian.--The term ``Indian'' means a member of an
Indian Tribe.
(3) Indian country.--The term ``Indian country'' has the
meaning given the term in section 1151 of title 18, United
States Code.
(4) Indian land.--The term ``Indian land'' means Indian
lands, as defined in section 3 of the Native American Business
Development, Trade Promotion, and Tourism Act of 2000 (25
U.S.C. 4302).
(5) Indian tribe.--The term ``Indian Tribe'' has the
meaning given the term ``Indian tribe'' in section 4 of the
Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25
U.S.C. 5304).
(6) Law enforcement agency.--The term ``law enforcement
agency'' means a Tribal, Federal, State, or local law
enforcement agency.
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