[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 63 (Monday, April 25, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2422-S2423]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 3874. Mr. McCONNELL (for Mr. Schatz) proposed an amendment to the
bill S. 1579, to enhance and integrate Native American tourism, empower
Native American communities, increase coordination and collaboration
between Federal tourism assets, and expand heritage and cultural
tourism opportunities in the United States; as follows:
Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the
following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Native American Tourism and
Improving Visitor Experience Act'' or the ``NATIVE Act''.
SEC. 2. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are--
(1) to enhance and integrate Native American tourism--
(A) to empower Native American communities; and
(B) to advance the National Travel and Tourism Strategy;
(2) to increase coordination and collaboration between
Federal tourism assets to support Native American tourism and
bolster recreational travel and tourism;
(3) to expand heritage and cultural tourism opportunities
in the United States to spur economic development, create
jobs, and increase tourism revenues;
(4) to enhance and improve self-determination and self-
governance capabilities in the Native American community and
to promote greater self-sufficiency;
(5) to encourage Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and
Native Hawaiian organizations to engage more fully in Native
American tourism activities to increase visitation to rural
and remote areas in the United States that are too difficult
to access or are unknown to domestic travelers and
international tourists;
(6) to provide grants, loans, and technical assistance to
Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and Native Hawaiian
organizations that will--
(A) spur important infrastructure development;
(B) increase tourism capacity; and
(C) elevate living standards in Native American
communities; and
(7) to support the development of technologically
innovative projects that will incorporate recreational travel
and tourism information and data from Federal assets to
improve the visitor experience.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Agency.--The term ``agency'' has the meaning given the
term in section 551 of title 5, United States Code.
(2) 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).
(3) Native hawaiian organization.--The term ``Native
Hawaiian organization'' means a nonprofit organization--
(A) that serves the interests of Native Hawaiians;
(B) in which Native Hawaiians serve in substantive and
policymaking positions; and
(C) that is recognized for having expertise in Native
Hawaiian culture and heritage, including tourism.
(4) Tribal organization.--The term ``tribal organization''
has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the Indian
Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C.
450b).
SEC. 4. INTEGRATING FEDERAL TOURISM ASSETS TO STRENGTHEN
NATIVE TOURISM OPPORTUNITIES.
(a) Secretary of Commerce and Secretary of the Interior.--
The Secretary of Commerce and the Secretary of the Interior
shall update the respective management plans and tourism
initiatives of the Department of Commerce and the Department
of the Interior to include Indian tribes, tribal
organizations, and Native Hawaiian organizations.
(b) Other Agencies.--The head of each agency that has
recreational travel or tourism functions or complementary
programs shall update the respective management plans and
tourism strategies of the agency to include Indian tribes,
tribal organizations, and Native Hawaiian organizations.
(c) Native American Tourism Plans.--
(1) In general.--The plans shall outline policy proposals--
(A) to improve travel and tourism data collection and
analysis;
(B) to increase the integration, alignment, and utility of
public records, publications, and Web sites maintained by
Federal agencies;
(C) to create a better user experience for domestic
travelers and international visitors;
(D) to align Federal agency Web sites and publications;
(E) to support national tourism goals;
(F) to identify agency programs that could be used to
support tourism capacity building and help sustain tourism
infrastructure in Native American communities;
(G) to develop innovative visitor portals for parks,
landmarks, heritage and cultural sites, and assets that
showcase and respect the diversity of the indigenous peoples
of the United States;
(H) to share local Native American heritage through the
development of bilingual interpretive and directional signage
that could include or incorporate English and the local
Native American language or languages; and
(I) to improve access to transportation programs related to
Native American community capacity building for tourism and
trade, including transportation planning for programs related
to visitor enhancement and safety.
(2) Consultation with indian tribes and native americans.--
In developing the plan under paragraph (1), the head of each
agency shall consult with Indian tribes and the Native
American community to identify appropriate levels of
inclusion of the Indian tribes and Native Americans in
Federal tourism activities, public records and publications,
including Native American tourism information available on
Web sites.
(d) Technical Assistance.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of the Interior, in
consultation with the Secretary of Commerce, shall enter into
a memorandum of understanding or cooperative agreement with
an entity or organization with a demonstrated record in
tribal communities of defining, introducing, developing, and
sustaining American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native
Hawaiian tourism and related activities in a manner that
respects and honors native traditions and values.
(2) Coordination.--The memorandum of understanding or
cooperative agreement described in paragraph (1) shall
formalize a role for the organization or entity to serve as a
facilitator between the Secretary of the Interior and the
Secretary of Commerce and the Indian tribes, tribal
organizations, and Native Hawaiian organizations--
(A) to identify areas where technical assistance is needed
through consultations with Indian tribes, tribal
organizations, and Native Hawaiian organizations to empower
the Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and Native Hawaiian
organizations to participate fully in the tourism industry;
and
(B) to provide a means for the delivery of technical
assistance and coordinate the delivery of the assistance to
Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and Native Hawaiian
organizations in collaboration with the Secretary of the
Interior, the Secretary of Commerce, and other entities with
distinctive experience, as appropriate.
(3) Funding.--Subject to the availability of
appropriations, the head of each Federal agency, including
the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Commerce, the
Secretary of Transportation, the Secretary of Agriculture,
the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the Secretary
of Labor shall obligate any funds made available to the head
of the agency to cover any administrative expenses incurred
by the organization or entity described in paragraph (1) in
carrying out programs or activities of the agency.
(4) Metrics.--The Secretary of the Interior and the
Secretary of Commerce shall coordinate with the organization
or entity described in paragraph (1) to develop metrics to
measure the effectiveness of the entity or organization in
strengthening tourism opportunities for Indian tribes, tribal
organizations, and Native Hawaiian organizations.
(e) Reports.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of this Act, and occasionally thereafter, the
Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce shall
each submit to the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate
and the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of
Representatives a report that describes--
(1) the manner in which the Secretary of the Interior or
the Secretary of Commerce, as applicable, is including Indian
tribes, tribal organizations, and Native Hawaiian
organizations in management plans;
(2) the efforts of the Secretary of the Interior or the
Secretary of Commerce, as applicable, to develop departmental
and agency tourism plans to support tourism programs of
Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and Native Hawaiian
organizations;
(3) the manner in which the entity or organization
described in subsection (d)(1) is working to promote tourism
to empower Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and Native
Hawaiian organizations to participate fully in the tourism
industry; and
(4) the effectiveness of the entity or organization
described in subsection (d)(1) based on the metrics developed
under subsection (d)(4).
SEC. 5. NATIVE AMERICAN TOURISM AND BRANDING ENHANCEMENT.
(a) In General.--The head of each agency shall--
(1) take actions that help empower Indian tribes, tribal
organizations, and Native Hawaiian organizations to showcase
the heritage, foods, traditions, history, and continuing
vitality of Native American communities;
[[Page S2423]]
(2) support the efforts of Indian tribes, tribal
organizations, and Native Hawaiian organizations--
(A) to identify and enhance or maintain traditions and
cultural features that are important to sustain the
distinctiveness of the local Native American community; and
(B) to provide visitor experiences that are authentic and
respectful;
(3) provide assistance to interpret the connections between
the indigenous peoples of the United States and the national
identity of the United States;
(4) enhance efforts to promote understanding and respect
for diverse cultures and subcultures in the United States and
the relevance of those cultures to the national brand of the
United States; and
(5) enter into appropriate memoranda of understanding and
establish public-private partnerships to ensure that arriving
domestic travelers at airports and arriving international
visitors at ports of entry are welcomed in a manner that both
showcases and respects the diversity of Native American
communities.
(b) Grants.--To the extent practicable, grant programs
relating to travel, recreation, or tourism administered by
the Commissioner of the Administration for Native Americans,
Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, Chairman of
the National Endowment for the Humanities, or the head of an
agency with assets or resources relating to travel,
recreation, or tourism promotion or branding enhancement for
which Indian tribes, tribal organizations, or Native Hawaiian
organizations are eligible may be used--
(1) to support the efforts of Indian tribes, tribal
organizations, and Native Hawaiian organizations to tell the
story of Native Americans as the First Peoples of the United
States;
(2) to use the arts and humanities to help revitalize
Native communities, promote economic development, increase
livability, and present the uniqueness of the United States
to visitors in a way that celebrates the diversity of the
United States; and
(3) to carry out this section.
(c) Smithsonian.--The Advisory Council and the Board of
Regents of the Smithsonian Institution shall work with Indian
tribes, tribal organizations, Native Hawaiian organizations,
and nonprofit organizations to establish long-term
partnerships with non-Smithsonian museums and educational and
cultural organizations--
(1) to share collections, exhibitions, interpretive
materials, and educational strategies; and
(2) to conduct joint research and collaborative projects
that would support tourism efforts for Indian tribes, tribal
organizations, and Native Hawaiian organizations and carry
out the intent of this section.
SEC. 6. EFFECT.
Nothing in this Act alters, or demonstrates congressional
support for the alteration of, the legal relationship between
the United States and any American Indian, Alaska Native, or
Native Hawaiian individual, group, organization, or entity.
____________________