[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 130 (Tuesday, October 17, 2000)]
[House]
[Pages H10026-H10028]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TRIBAL CONTRACT SUPPORT COST TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS OF 2000
Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
pass the bill (H.R. 4148) to make technical amendments to the
provisions of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance
Act relating to contract support costs, and for other purposes, as
amended.
The Clerk read as follows:
H.R. 4148
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
[[Page H10027]]
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Tribal Contract Support Cost
Technical Amendments of 2000''.
SEC. 2. AMENDMENT DETAILING CALCULATION AND PAYMENT OF
CONTRACT SUPPORT COSTS.
The Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act
(25 U.S.C. 450 et seq.) is amended by adding after section
106 the following new section:
``SEC. 106A. CONTRACT SUPPORT COSTS.
``(a) Other Federal Agencies.--Except as otherwise provided
by statute, an Indian tribe or tribal organization
administering a contract or compact under this Act shall be
entitled to recover its full indirect costs associated with
any other Federal funding received by such tribe or tribal
organization (other than funds paid under this Act),
consistent with the tribe's or tribal organization's indirect
cost rate agreement with its cognizant Federal agency. This
subsection shall not independently entitle such tribe or
tribal organization to be paid additional amounts associated
with such other Federal funding.
``(b) Allowable Uses of Funds.--Notwithstanding any other
provision of law (including regulation or circular), an
Indian tribe or tribal organization (1) administering a
contract or compact under this Act, and (2) employing an
indirect cost pool that includes both funds paid under this
Act and other Federal funds, shall be entitled to use or
expend all Federal funds in such tribe's or tribal
organization's indirect cost pool in the same manner as
permitted in section 106(j) (relating to allowable uses of
funds without approval of the Secretary), and for such
purposes only the term `Secretary' means the Secretary of any
Federal agency providing funds to such tribe or tribal
organization.
``(c) Negotiation of Contract Support Cost Amounts.--Within
the Indian Health Service of the Department of Health and
Human Services, tribal contract support cost entitlements
shall be the responsibility of the Office of Tribal Programs,
subject to the tribe's or tribal organization's indirect cost
rate agreement with the tribe's or tribal organization's
cognizant Federal agency.
``(d) Direct Contract Support Costs and Federal
Employees.--The contract support costs that are eligible
costs for the purposes of receiving funding under this Act
shall include direct contract support costs associated with
all Federal employees employed in connection with the
program, service, function, or activity that is the subject
of the contract, including all Federal employees paid with
funds generated from third-party collections.''.
SEC. 3. AMENDMENTS CLARIFYING CONTRACT SUPPORT COST
ENTITLEMENT.
Section 106(a)(5) of the Indian Self-Determination and
Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450j1(a)(5)) is amended
by adding at the end thereof the following flush sentence:
``Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary
shall fully pay preaward and startup costs without regard to
the year in which such costs were incurred or will be
incurred, including such costs payable to tribes and tribal
organizations identified by the Indian Health Service as `ISD
Queue Tribes' in its September 17, 1999, report entitled `FY
1999 IHS CSC Shortfall Data'.''.
SEC. 4. AMENDMENTS REGARDING JUDICIAL REMEDIES.
Section 110(c) of the Indian Self-Determination and
Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450m-1(c)) is amended by
inserting after ``administrative appeals'' the following: ``,
and section 2412(d)(2)(A) of title 28, United States Code,
shall apply to appeals filed with administrative appeals
boards, in appeals''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Alaska (Mr. Young) and the gentleman from New Mexico (Mr. Udall) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Alaska (Mr. Young).
Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, H.R. 4148 makes technical changes in the Indian Health
Self-Determination Education Assistance Act, and particularly to the
contract support costs for the Indian Health Service and Bureau of
Indian Affairs programs previously administered by the two departments.
This bill is technical in nature to ensure that tribal contractors
recover their full and direct costs associated with these Federal
programs, to receive funding for all Federal employees previously under
the employment of IHS and BIA, and to direct the Secretaries of Health
and Human Services to fully pay preaward and start-up costs without
regard to the year in which such cost occurred.
Many tribal contractors have paid their preaward and start-up costs
out of their own funds and have not been reimbursed for these programs
by IHS and BIA. This corrects this inequity and prevents tribes from
using their own program funds to pay for these administrative costs.
In a recent presentation at the Indian National Self-Governance
conference in Nashville, Tennessee, Dr. Trujillio of the Indian Health
Service reportedly told tribal representatives that the IHS supports
enactment of H.R. 4148, as amended.
Again, Mr. Speaker, this bill is technical in nature and has been
supported by all tribal contractors. I urge an aye vote for this
important bill for American Indians and Alaskan Natives.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Mr. Speaker, the bill we are bringing up this evening is vastly
different from the bill we reported from the Committee on Resources a
few weeks back. The funding problems that Indian tribes face when
assuming responsibility for Federal programs is serious and complex.
Congress has time and again reiterated its support for Indian tribes
to take over and run Federal programs that have previously been run by
the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Indian Health Service. We have
found that tribes are able to run these programs more innovatively and
often provide better services to their tribal members.
Unfortunately, not all start-up and costs are covered in these funds
provided tribes for these programs. This bill was introduced and
designed to address those shortfalls. But in its current form, I am not
sure that it meets the honorable goal of its author, the gentleman from
Alaska (Chairman Young).
The administration has informed us they oppose the bill. And while I
would like to pass contract support cost assistance, I will ask for a
de novo vote so we will have an additional day to work on this bill.
I would also like to ask the gentleman from Alaska (Chairman Young)
if the cost of this bill has been worked out based on the new structure
here.
Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. I yield to the gentleman from Alaska.
Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, the gentleman I hope would support
this legislation. He has a large native contingency in his district
that strongly supports this legislation; and if he does not support it,
I am sure they will be aware of it. If not, I will let them know about
it.
The main thing is that the reason the bill is different is the way it
was scored. And I believe it was $11 billion. And as much as I believe
there is justification there, we could not get it to pass the muster of
other parts of this House nor the administration.
What we are trying to do is make sure that any tribal group that
enters into a forwarding of money to set up a program, which they have
been guaranteed, that they are being paid retroactively if they are
owed money and in fact will be paid in the future. I think that is only
fair. Because what has happened many times is they entered into a
contract and then the agency, BIA or IHS, do not pay the forwarded
monies and in consequence they have to swallow it themselves, and that
takes away from the health programs, very frankly, of the Native
American people.
I do hope that the gentleman will recognize the importance of this
legislation; and although he may ask for a vote, I do not really put
much truck in this administration. Although he is one of the opposite
parties, I hope he does not either when it comes to Indian affairs.
They have abused, misused, and misled the American Indians in the
last 8 years. They have used them in the vote. They have used them for
the money that they should have gotten and that they spent in other
areas and very frankly that they are using now. There is over $2.5
billion that we cannot find that we know is there and the investigation
shows it there. In fact, the Supreme Court has subpoenaed and filed in
contempt Secretary Babbitt and I belief Secretary Rubin and the
Treasury Department.
So anytime anybody talks about the Indians getting too much or not
enough, I am saying, look at the facts. I think it is very
inappropriate, very frankly, to have the administration even think
about a veto of this.
Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, reclaiming my time, I would
like to ask the chairman the question
[[Page H10028]]
again. I am unclear what the cost of the bill is now.
Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman will continue to
yield, it is between $80 million and $100 million from $11 billion.
That is what we call the striking or the marking of the CBO.
Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my
time.
Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my
time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Alaska (Mr. Young) that the House suspend the rules and
pass the bill, H.R. 4148, as amended.
The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that
the ayes appeared to have it.
Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the
ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a
quorum is not present.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be
postponed.
The point of no quorum is considered withdrawn.
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