[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 227 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
116th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 227
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 SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
January 25 (legislative day, January 24), 2019
Ms. Murkowski (for herself, Ms. Cortez Masto, Ms. Cantwell, Mr.
Sullivan, Mr. Coons, Mr. Cramer, Mr. Udall, Mr. Tester, Mr. Heinrich,
Mr. Tillis, Mr. Merkley, and Mr. Hoeven) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
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 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.
(b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are--
(1) to clarify the responsibilities of Federal, State,
Tribal, and local 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; and
(4) to increase the collection of data related to missing
and murdered Indian men and women and the sharing of
information among Federal, State, and Tribal officials
responsible for responding to and investigating cases of
missing and murdered Indians.
SEC. 3. 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--
(A) 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); and
(B) land owned by a Regional Corporation or Village
Corporation, as such terms are defined in section 3 of
the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C.
1602).
(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.
SEC. 4. 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) 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, 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 United States citizens 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. 5. GUIDELINES FOR RESPONDING TO CASES OF MISSING AND MURDERED
INDIANS.
(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date on which
the consultation described in section 4(b)(1) is completed, the
Attorney General shall direct United States attorneys with jurisdiction
to prosecute crimes in Indian country under sections 1152 and 1153 of
title 18, United States Code, or any other provision of law, as part of
the annual consultations on sexual violence by United States attorneys
with Indian Tribes and Federal partners, to develop 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 land;
(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; and
(6) guidelines on ensuring access to culturally appropriate
victim services for victims and their families.
(b) Consultation.--United States attorneys shall develop the
guidelines required under subsection (a) in consultation with Indian
Tribes and other Federal partners, including--
(1) the Department of Justice;
(2) the Federal Bureau of Investigation;
(3) the Bureau of Indian Affairs;
(4) Tribal, State, and local law enforcement agencies;
(5) medical examiners;
(6) coroners; and
(7) Tribal, State, and local organizations that provide
victim services.
(c) Compliance.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 60 days after the next
sexual violence response annual consultation occurs in each
region after the date of enactment of this Act, the United
States attorneys shall modify the sexual violence response
guidelines to incorporate the guidelines developed under
subsection (a) and implement such modified 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.
(4) Preference.--For each of fiscal years 2019 through
2023, for the fiscal year in which a grant was solicited, the
Attorney General shall give affirmative preference to all
National Institute of Justice and Office for Victims of Crime
discretionary grant applications of a Tribal, State, or local
law enforcement agency, or applications submitted on behalf of
such law enforcement agencies by a local, State, or Tribal
government, if the Attorney General has determined under
paragraph (3) that the agency has incorporated the guidelines.
(d) Accountability.--Not later than 30 days after compliance
determinations are made each fiscal year in accordance with subsection
(c)(3), the Attorney General shall--
(1) 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 not incorporated guidelines in accordance with subsection
(c)(3); and
(2) if a law enforcement agency described in paragraph (1)
subsequently receives a determination of compliance, the
Attorney General shall--
(A) immediately correct the applicable record; and
(B) not later than 3 days after the determination,
remove the record from the website of the Department of
Justice and any other location where the record was
published.
(e) Training and Technical Assistance.--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--
(1) 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
(2) 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.
SEC. 6. 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.
(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 required, as determined by
the Attorney General.
(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
not submitted the information requested under paragraph (1) for
the fiscal year in which the report was published.
(3) Preference.--For each of fiscal years 2019 through
2023, for the fiscal year in which a grant was solicited, the
Attorney General shall give affirmative preference to all
Department of Justice discretionary grant applications of a
Tribal, State, or local law enforcement agency, or applications
submitted on behalf of such law enforcement agencies by a
local, State, or Tribal government, that would aid in the
implementation of the guidelines developed under section 5 or
help address the issue of missing and murdered Indians, if the
Attorney General has determined the agency 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.
<all>