[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 50 (Thursday, March 22, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1966-S1968]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 2224. Mr. McCONNELL (for Mr. Hoeven) proposed an amendment to the
bill S. 1116, to amend the Native American Business Development, Trade
Promotion, and Tourism Act of 2000, the Buy Indian Act, and the Native
American Programs Act of 1974 to provide industry and economic
development opportunities to Indian communities; as follows:
Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the
following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Indian Community Economic
Enhancement Act of 2018''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that--
(1)(A) to bring industry and economic development to Indian
communities, Indian tribes must overcome a number of
barriers, including--
(i) geographical location;
(ii) lack of infrastructure or capacity;
(iii) lack of sufficient collateral and capital; and
(iv) regulatory bureaucracy relating to--
(I) development; and
(II) access to services provided by the Federal Government;
and
(B) the barriers described in subparagraph (A) often add to
the cost of doing business in Indian communities;
(2) Indian tribes--
(A) enact laws and exercise sovereign governmental powers;
(B) determine policy for the benefit of tribal members; and
(C) produce goods and services for consumers;
(3) the Federal Government has--
(A) an important government-to-government relationship with
Indian tribes; and
(B) a role in facilitating healthy and sustainable tribal
economies;
(4) the input of Indian tribes in developing Federal policy
and programs leads to more meaningful and effective measures
to assist Indian tribes and Indian entrepreneurs in building
tribal economies;
(5)(A) many components of tribal infrastructure need
significant repair or replacement; and
(B) access to private capital for projects in Indian
communities--
(i) may not be available; or
(ii) may come at a higher cost than such access for other
projects;
(6)(A) Federal capital improvement programs, such as those
that facilitate tax-exempt bond financing and loan
guarantees, are tools that help improve or replace crumbling
infrastructure;
(B) lack of parity in treatment of an Indian tribe as a
governmental entity under Federal tax and certain other
regulatory laws impedes, in part, the ability of Indian
tribes to raise capital through issuance of tax exempt debt,
invest as an accredited investor, and benefit from other
investment incentives accorded to State and local
governmental entities; and
(C) as a result of the disparity in treatment of Indian
tribes described in subparagraph (B), investors may avoid
financing, or demand a premium to finance, projects in Indian
communities, making the projects more costly or inaccessible;
(7) there are a number of Federal loan guarantee programs
available to facilitate financing of business, energy,
economic, housing, and community development projects in
Indian communities, and those programs may support public-
private partnerships for infrastructure development, but
improvements and support are needed for those programs
specific to Indian communities to facilitate more effectively
private financing for infrastructure and other urgent
development needs; and
(8)(A) most real property held by Indian tribes is trust or
restricted land that essentially cannot be held as
collateral; and
(B) while creative solutions, such as leasehold mortgages,
have been developed in response to the problem identified in
subparagraph (A), some solutions remain subject to review and
approval by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, adding additional
costs and delay to tribal projects.
SEC. 3. NATIVE AMERICAN BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT, TRADE
PROMOTION, AND TOURISM ACT OF 2000.
(a) Findings; Purposes.--Section 2 of the Native American
Business Development, Trade Promotion, and Tourism Act of
2000 (25 U.S.C. 4301) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``(c) Applicability to Indian-Owned Businesses.--The
findings and purposes in subsections (a) and (b) shall apply
to any Indian-owned business governed--
``(1) by tribal laws regulating trade or commerce on Indian
lands; or
``(2) pursuant to section 5 of the Act of August 15, 1876
(19 Stat. 200, chapter 289; 25 U.S.C. 261).''.
(b) Definitions.--Section 3 of the Native American Business
Development, Trade Promotion, and Tourism Act of 2000 (25
U.S.C. 4302) is amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (1) through (6) and
paragraphs (7) through (9), as paragraphs (2) through (7) and
paragraphs (9) through (11), respectively;
(2) by inserting before paragraph (2) (as redesignated by
paragraph (1)) the following:
``(1) Director.--The term `Director' means the Director of
Native American Business Development appointed pursuant to
section 4(a)(2).''; and
(3) by inserting after paragraph (7) (as redesignated by
paragraph (1)) the following:
``(8) Office.--The term `Office' means the Office of Native
American Business Development established by section
4(a)(1).''.
(c) Office of Native American Business Development.--
Section 4 of the Native American Business Development, Trade
Promotion, and Tourism Act of 2000 (25 U.S.C. 4303) is
amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) in paragraph (1)--
(i) by striking ``Department of Commerce'' and inserting
``Office of the Secretary''; and
(ii) by striking ``(referred to in this Act as the
`Office')''; and
(B) in paragraph (2), in the first sentence, by striking
``(referred to in this Act as the `Director')''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(c) Duties of Director.--
``(1) In general.--The Director shall serve as--
``(A) the program and policy advisor to the Secretary with
respect to the trust and governmental relationship between
the United States and Indian tribes; and
``(B) the point of contact for Indian tribes, tribal
organizations, and Indians regarding--
``(i) policies and programs of the Department of Commerce;
and
``(ii) other matters relating to economic development and
doing business in Indian lands.
``(2) Departmental coordination.--The Director shall
coordinate with all offices and agencies within the
Department of Commerce to ensure that each office and agency
has an accountable process to ensure--
``(A) meaningful and timely coordination and assistance, as
required by this Act; and
``(B) consultation with Indian tribes regarding the
policies, programs, assistance, and activities of the offices
and agencies.
``(3) Office operations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this section not more than
$2,000,000 for each fiscal year.''.
(d) Indian Community Development Initiatives.--The Native
American Business Development, Trade Promotion, and Tourism
Act of 2000 is amended--
(1) by redesignating section 8 (25 U.S.C. 4307) as section
10; and
(2) by inserting after section 7 (25 U.S.C. 4306) the
following:
``SEC. 8. INDIAN COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVES.
``(a) Interagency Coordination.--Not later than 1 year
after the enactment of this section, the Secretary, the
Secretary of the Interior, and the Secretary of the Treasury
shall coordinate--
``(1) to develop initiatives that--
``(A) encourage, promote, and provide education regarding
investments in Indian communities through--
``(i) the loan guarantee program of Bureau of Indian
Affairs under section 201 of the Indian Financing Act of 1974
(25 U.S.C. 1481);
``(ii) programs carried out using amounts in the Community
Development Financial Institutions Fund established under
section 104(a) of the Community Development Banking and
Financial Institutions Act of 1994 (12 U.S.C. 4703(a)); and
``(iii) other capital development programs;
``(B) examine and develop alternatives that would qualify
as collateral for financing in Indian communities; and
``(C) provide entrepreneur and other training relating to
economic development through tribally controlled colleges and
universities and other Indian organizations with experience
in providing such training;
``(2) to consult with Indian tribes and with the Securities
and Exchange Commission to study, and collaborate to
establish, regulatory changes necessary to qualify an Indian
tribe as an accredited investor for the purposes of sections
230.500 through 230.508 of title 17, Code of Federal
Regulations (or successor regulations), consistent with the
goals of promoting capital formation and ensuring qualifying
Indian tribes have the ability to withstand investment loss,
on a basis comparable to other legal entities that qualify as
accredited investors who are not natural persons;
``(3) to identify regulatory, legal, or other barriers to
increasing investment, business, and economic development,
including qualifying or approving collateral structures,
measurements of economic strength, and
[[Page S1967]]
contributions of Indian economies in Indian communities
through the Authority established under section 4 of the
Indian Tribal Regulatory Reform and Business Development Act
of 2000 (25 U.S.C. 4301 note);
``(4) to ensure consultation with Indian tribes regarding
increasing investment in Indian communities and the
development of the report required in paragraph (5); and
``(5) not less than once every 2 years, to provide a report
to Congress regarding--
``(A) improvements to Indian communities resulting from
such initiatives and recommendations for promoting sustained
growth of the tribal economies;
``(B) results of the study and collaboration regarding the
necessary changes referenced in paragraph (2) and the impact
of allowing Indian tribes to qualify as an accredited
investor; and
``(C) the identified regulatory, legal, and other barriers
referenced in paragraph (3).
``(b) Waiver.--For assistance provided pursuant to section
108 of the Community Development Banking and Financial
Institutions Act of 1994 (12 U.S.C. 4707) to benefit Native
Community Development Financial Institutions, as defined by
the Secretary of the Treasury, section 108(e) of such Act
shall not apply.
``(c) Indian Economic Development Feasibility Study.--
``(1) In general.--The Government Accountability Office
shall conduct a study and, not later than 18 months after the
date of enactment of this subsection, submit to the Committee
on Indian Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Natural
Resources of the House of Representatives a report on the
findings of the study and recommendations.
``(2) Contents.--The study shall include an assessment of
each of the following:
``(A) In general.--The study shall assess current Federal
capitalization and related programs and services that are
available to assist Indian communities with business and
economic development, including manufacturing, physical
infrastructure (such as telecommunications and broadband),
community development, and facilities construction for such
purposes. For each of the Federal programs and services
identified, the study shall assess the current use and demand
by Indian tribes, individuals, businesses, and communities of
the programs, the capital needs of Indian tribes, businesses,
and communities related to economic development, and the
extent that similar programs have been used to assist non-
Indian communities compared to the extent used for Indian
communities.
``(B) Financing assistance.--The study shall assess and
quantify the extent of assistance provided to non-Indian
borrowers and to Indian (both tribal and individual)
borrowers (including information about such assistance as a
percentage of need for Indian borrowers and for non-Indian
borrowers, assistance to Indian borrowers and to non-Indian
borrowers as a percentage of total applicants, and such
assistance to Indian borrowers as individuals as compared to
such assistance to Indian tribes) through the loan programs,
the loan guarantee programs, or bond guarantee programs of
the--
``(i) Department of the Interior;
``(ii) Department of Agriculture;
``(iii) Department of Housing and Urban Development;
``(iv) Department of Energy;
``(v) Small Business Administration; and
``(vi) Community Development Financial Institutions Fund of
the Department of the Treasury.
``(C) Tax incentives.--The study shall assess and quantify
the extent of the assistance and allocations afforded for
non-Indian projects and for Indian projects pursuant to each
of the following tax incentive programs:
``(i) New market tax credit.
``(ii) Low income housing tax credit.
``(iii) Investment tax credit.
``(iv) Renewable energy tax incentives.
``(v) Accelerated depreciation.
``(D) Tribal investment incentive.--The study shall assess
various alternative incentives that could be provided to
enable and encourage tribal governments to invest in an
Indian community development investment fund or bank.''.
SEC. 4. BUY INDIAN ACT.
Section 23 of the Act of June 25, 1910 (commonly known as
the ``Buy Indian Act'') (36 Stat. 861, chapter 431; 25 U.S.C.
47), is amended to read as follows:
``SEC. 23. EMPLOYMENT OF INDIAN LABOR AND PURCHASE OF
PRODUCTS OF INDIAN INDUSTRY; PARTICIPATION IN
MENTOR-PROTEGE PROGRAM.
``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Indian economic enterprise.--The term `Indian
economic enterprise' has the meaning given the term in
section 1480.201 of title 48, Code of Federal Regulations (or
successor regulations).
``(2) Mentor firm; protege firm.--The terms `mentor firm'
and `protege firm' have the meanings given those terms in
section 831(c) of the National Defense Authorization Act for
Fiscal Year 1991 (10 U.S.C. 2302 note; Public Law 101-510).
``(3) Secretaries.--The term `Secretaries' means--
``(A) the Secretary of the Interior; and
``(B) the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
``(b) Enterprise Development.--
``(1) In general.--Unless determined by one of the
Secretaries to be impracticable and unreasonable--
``(A) Indian labor shall be employed; and
``(B) purchases of Indian industry products (including
printing and facilities construction, notwithstanding any
other provision of law) may be made in open market by the
Secretaries.
``(2) Mentor-protege program.--
``(A) In general.--Participation in the Mentor-Protege
Program established under section 831(a) of the National
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1991 (10 U.S.C.
2302 note; Public Law 101-510) or receipt of assistance under
a developmental assistance agreement under that program shall
not render any individual or entity involved in the provision
of Indian labor or an Indian industry product ineligible to
receive assistance under this section.
``(B) Treatment.--For purposes of this section, no
determination of affiliation or control (whether direct or
indirect) may be found between a protege firm and a mentor
firm on the basis that the mentor firm has provided, or
agreed to provide, to the protege firm, pursuant to a mentor-
protege agreement, any form of developmental assistance
described in section 831(f) of the National Defense
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1991 (10 U.S.C. 2302 note;
Public Law 101-510).
``(c) Implementation.--In carrying out this section, the
Secretaries shall--
``(1) conduct outreach to Indian industrial entities;
``(2) provide training;
``(3) promulgate regulations in accordance with this
section and with the regulations under part 1480 of title 48,
Code of Federal Regulations (or successor regulations), to
harmonize the procurement procedures of the Department of the
Interior and the Department of Health and Human Services, to
the maximum extent practicable;
``(4) require regional offices of the Bureau of Indian
Affairs and the Indian Health Service to aggregate data
regarding compliance with this section;
``(5) require procurement management reviews by their
respective Departments to include a review of the
implementation of this section; and
``(6) consult with Indian tribes, Indian industrial
entities, and other stakeholders regarding methods to
facilitate compliance with--
``(A) this section; and
``(B) other small business or procurement goals.
``(d) Report.--
``(1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of this subsection, and not less frequently than
once every 2 years thereafter, each of the Secretaries shall
submit to the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate and
the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of
Representatives a report describing, during the period
covered by the report, the implementation of this section by
each of the respective Secretaries.
``(2) Contents.--Each report under this subsection shall
include, for each fiscal year during the period covered by
the report--
``(A) the names of each agency under the respective
jurisdiction of each of the Secretaries to which this section
has been applied, and efforts made by additional agencies
within the Secretaries' respective Departments to use the
procurement procedures under this Act;
``(B) a summary of the types of purchases made from, and
contracts (including any relevant modifications, extensions,
or renewals) awarded to, Indian economic enterprises,
expressed by agency region;
``(C) a description of the percentage increase or decrease
in total dollar value and number of purchases and awards made
within each agency region, as compared to the totals of the
region for the preceding fiscal year;
``(D) a description of the methods used by applicable
contracting officers and employees to conduct market searches
to identify qualified Indian economic enterprises;
``(E) a summary of all deviations granted under section
1480.403 of title 48, Code of Federal Regulations (or
successor regulations), including a description of--
``(i) the types of alternative procurement methods used,
including any Indian owned businesses reported under other
procurement goals; and
``(ii) the dollar value of any awards made pursuant to
those deviations;
``(F) a summary of all determinations made to provide
awards to Indian economic enterprises, including a
description of the dollar value of the awards;
``(G) a description or summary of the total number and
value of all purchases of, and contracts awarded for,
supplies, services, and construction (including the
percentage increase or decrease, as compared to the preceding
fiscal year) from--
``(i) Indian economic enterprises; and
``(ii) non-Indian economic enterprises;
``(H) any administrative, procedural, legal, or other
barriers to achieving the purposes of this section, together
with recommendations for legislative or administrative
actions to address those barriers; and
``(I) for each agency region--
``(i) the total amount spent on purchases made from, and
contracts awarded to, Indian economic enterprises; and
``(ii) a comparison of the amount described in clause (i)
to the total amount that the agency region would likely have
spent on the same purchases made from a non-Indian economic
enterprise or contracts awarded to a non-Indian economic
enterprise.
[[Page S1968]]
``(e) Goals.--Each agency shall establish an annual minimum
percentage goal for procurement in compliance with this
section.''.
SEC. 5. NATIVE AMERICAN PROGRAMS ACT OF 1974.
(a) Financial Assistance for Native American Projects.--
Section 803 of the Native American Programs Act of 1974 (42
U.S.C. 2991b) is amended--
(1) by redesignating subsections (b) through (d) as
subsections (c) through (e), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after subsection (a) the following:
``(b) Economic Development.--
``(1) In general.--The Commissioner may provide assistance
under subsection (a) for projects relating to the purposes of
this title to a Native community development financial
institution, as defined by the Secretary of the Treasury.
``(2) Priority.--With regard to not less than 50 percent of
the total amount available for assistance under this section,
the Commissioner shall give priority to any application
seeking assistance for--
``(A) the development of a tribal code or court system for
purposes of economic development, including commercial codes,
training for court personnel, regulation pursuant to section
5 of the Act of August 15, 1876 (19 Stat. 200, chapter 289;
25 U.S.C. 261), and the development of nonprofit subsidiaries
or other tribal business structures;
``(B) the development of a community development financial
institution, including training and administrative expenses;
or
``(C) the development of a tribal master plan for community
and economic development and infrastructure.''.
(b) Technical Assistance and Training.--Section 804 of the
Native American Programs Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 2991c) is
amended--
(1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking
``The Commissioner'' and inserting the following:
``(a) In General.--The Commissioner''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(b) Priority.--In providing assistance under subsection
(a), the Commissioner shall give priority to any application
described in section 803(b)(2).''.
(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 816 of the
Native American Programs Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 2992d) is
amended--
(1) by striking ``803(d)'' each place it appears and
inserting ``803(e)''; and
(2) in subsection (a)--
(A) by striking ``such sums as may be necessary'' and
inserting ``$34,000,000''; and
(B) by striking ``1999, 2000, 2001, and 2002'' and
inserting ``2019 through 2023''.
______