[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 163 (Monday, September 21, 2020)]
[House]
[Pages H4579-H4581]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       NOT INVISIBLE ACT OF 2019

  Ms. SCANLON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (S. 982) to increase intergovernmental coordination to identify 
and combat violent crime within Indian lands and of Indians.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                 S. 982

       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 the ``Not Invisible Act of 2019''.

     SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act--
       (1) the term ``Commission'' means the Department of the 
     Interior and the Department of Justice Joint Commission on 
     Reducing Violent Crime Against Indians under section 4;
       (2) the term ``human trafficking'' means act or practice 
     described in paragraph (9) or paragraph (10) of section 103 
     of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 
     7102);
       (3) the term ``Indian'' means a member of an Indian tribe;
       (4) the terms ``Indian lands'' and ``Indian tribe'' have 
     the meanings given the terms in section 3 of the Native 
     American Business Development, Trade Promotion, and Tourism 
     Act of 2000 (25 U.S.C. 4302); and
       (5) the terms ``urban centers'' and ``urban Indian 
     organization'' have the meanings given the terms in section 4 
     of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1603).

     SEC. 3. COORDINATOR OF FEDERAL EFFORTS TO COMBAT VIOLENCE 
                   AGAINST NATIVE PEOPLE.

       (a) Coordinator Designation.--The Secretary of the Interior 
     shall designate an official within the Office of Justice 
     Services in the Bureau of Indian Affairs who shall--
       (1) coordinate prevention efforts, grants, and programs 
     related to the murder of, trafficking of, and missing Indians 
     across Federal agencies, including--
       (A) the Bureau of Indian Affairs; and
       (B) the Department of Justice, including--
       (i) the Office of Justice Programs;
       (ii) the Office on Violence Against Women;
       (iii) the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services;
       (iv) the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and
       (v) the Office of Tribal Justice;
       (2) ensure prevention efforts, grants, and programs of 
     Federal agencies related to the murder of, trafficking of, 
     and missing Indians consider the unique challenges of 
     combating crime, violence, and human trafficking of Indians 
     and on Indian lands faced by Tribal communities, urban 
     centers, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Tribal law 
     enforcement, Federal law enforcement, and State and local law 
     enforcement;
       (3) work in cooperation with outside organizations with 
     expertise in working with Indian tribes and Indian Tribes to 
     provide victim centered and culturally relevant training to 
     tribal law enforcement, Indian Health Service health care 
     providers, urban Indian organizations, Tribal community 
     members and businesses, on how to effectively identify, 
     respond to and report instances of missing persons, murder, 
     and trafficking within Indian lands and of Indians; and
       (4) report directly to the Secretary of the Interior.
       (b) Report.--The official designated in subsection (a) 
     shall submit to the Committee on Indian Affairs and the 
     Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the Committee on 
     Natural Resources and the Committee on the Judiciary of the 
     House of Representatives a report to provide information on 
     Federal coordination efforts accomplished over the previous 
     year that includes--
       (1) a summary of all coordination activities undertaken in 
     compliance with this section;
       (2) a summary of all trainings completed under subsection 
     (a)(3); and
       (3) recommendations for improving coordination across 
     Federal agencies and of relevant Federal programs.

     SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR AND THE 
                   DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE JOINT COMMISSION ON 
                   REDUCING VIOLENT CRIME AGAINST INDIANS.

       (a) Establishment.--Not later than 120 days after the date 
     of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior, in 
     coordination with the Attorney General, shall establish and 
     appoint all members of a joint commission on violent crime on 
     Indian lands and against Indians.
       (b) Membership.--
       (1) Composition.--
       (A) In general.--The Commission shall be composed of 
     members who represent diverse experiences and backgrounds 
     that provide balanced points of view with regard to the 
     duties of the Commission.
       (B) Diversity.--To the greatest extent practicable, the 
     Secretary of the Interior shall ensure the Commission 
     includes Tribal representatives from diverse geographic areas 
     and of diverse sizes.
       (2) Appointment.--The Secretary of the Interior, in 
     coordination with the Attorney General, shall appoint the 
     members to the Commission, including representatives from--
       (A) tribal law enforcement;
       (B) the Office of Justice Services of the Bureau of Indian 
     Affairs;
       (C) State and local law enforcement in close proximity to 
     Indian lands, with a letter of recommendation from a local 
     Indian Tribe;
       (D) the Victim Services Division of the Federal Bureau of 
     Investigation;
       (E) the Department of Justice's Human Trafficking 
     Prosecution Unit;
       (F) the Office of Violence Against Women of the Department 
     of Justice;
       (G) the Office of Victims of Crime of the Department of 
     Justice;
       (H) a United States attorney's office with experience in 
     cases related to missing persons, murder, or trafficking of 
     Indians or on Indian land;
       (I) the Administration for Native Americans of the Office 
     of the Administration for Children & Families of the 
     Department of Health and Human Services;
       (J) the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services 
     Administration of the Department of Health and Human 
     Services;
       (K) a Tribal judge with experience in cases related to 
     missing persons, murder, or trafficking;
       (L) not fewer than 3 Indian Tribes from diverse geographic 
     areas, including 1 Indian tribe located in Alaska, selected 
     from nominations submitted by the Indian Tribe;
       (M) not fewer than 2 health care and mental health 
     practitioners and counselors and providers with experience in 
     working with Indian survivors of trafficking and sexual 
     assault, with a letter of recommendation from a local tribal 
     chair or tribal law enforcement officer;
       (N) not fewer than 3 national, regional, or urban Indian 
     organizations focused on violence against women and children 
     on Indian lands or against Indians;
       (O) at least 2 Indian survivors of human trafficking;
       (P) at least 2 family members of missing Indian people;
       (Q) at least 2 family members of murdered Indian people;
       (R) the National Institute of Justice; and
       (S) the Indian Health Service.
       (3) Periods of appointment.--Members shall be appointed for 
     the duration of the Commission.
       (4) Vacancies.--A vacancy in the Commission shall be filled 
     in the manner in which the original appointment was made and 
     shall not affect the powers or duties of the Commission.
       (5) Compensation.--Commission members shall serve without 
     compensation.
       (6) Travel expenses.--The Secretary of the Interior, in 
     coordination with the Attorney General, shall consider the 
     provision of travel expenses, including per diem, to 
     Commission members when appropriate.
       (c) Duties.--
       (1) In general.--The Commission may hold such hearings, 
     meet and act at times and places, take such testimony, and 
     receive such evidence as the Commission considers to be 
     advisable to carry out the duties of the Commission under 
     this section.
       (2) Recommendations for the department of interior and 
     department of justice.--
       (A) In general.--The Commission shall develop 
     recommendations to the Secretary of the Interior and Attorney 
     General on actions the Federal Government can take to help 
     combat violent crime against Indians and within Indian lands, 
     including the development and implementation of 
     recommendations for--
       (i) identifying, reporting, and responding to instances of 
     missing persons, murder, and human trafficking on Indian 
     lands and of Indians;

[[Page H4580]]

       (ii) legislative and administrative changes necessary to 
     use programs, properties, or other resources funded or 
     operated by the Department of the Interior and Department of 
     Justice to combat the crisis of missing or murdered Indians 
     and human trafficking on Indian lands and of Indians;
       (iii) tracking and reporting data on instances of missing 
     persons, murder, and human trafficking on Indian lands and of 
     Indians;
       (iv) addressing staff shortages and open positions within 
     relevant law enforcement agencies, including issues related 
     to the hiring and retention of law enforcement officers;
       (v) coordinating tribal, State, and Federal resources to 
     increase prosecution of murder and human trafficking offenses 
     on Indian lands and of Indians; and
       (vi) increasing information sharing with tribal governments 
     on violent crime investigations and prosecutions in Indian 
     lands that were terminated or declined.
       (B) Submission.--Not later than 18 months after the 
     enactment of this Act, the Commission shall make publicly 
     available and submit all recommendations developed under this 
     paragraph to--
       (i) the Secretary of the Interior;
       (ii) the Attorney General;
       (iii) the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate;
       (iv) the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate;
       (v) the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of 
     Representatives; and
       (vi) the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 
     Representatives.
       (C) Secretarial response.--Not later than 90 days after the 
     date on which the Secretary of the Interior and the Attorney 
     General receive the recommendations under paragraph (2), the 
     Secretary and the Attorney General shall each make publicly 
     available and submit a written response to the 
     recommendations to--
       (i) the Commission;
       (ii) the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate;
       (iii) the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate;
       (iv) the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of 
     Representatives; and
       (v) the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 
     Representatives.
       (d) FACA Exemption.--The Commission shall be exempt from 
     the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.).
       (e) Sunset.--The Commission shall terminate on the date 
     that is 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
Pennsylvania (Ms. Scanlon) and the gentleman from North Dakota (Mr. 
Armstrong) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Pennsylvania.


                             General Leave

  Ms. SCANLON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include 
extraneous material on the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Pennsylvania?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. SCANLON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  S. 982, the Not Invisible Act of 2019, introduced by Nevada Senator 
Catherine Cortez Masto and passed by the Senate last March, addresses 
the crisis of violence and sexual violence committed against American 
Indian and Alaska Native men and women in two concrete ways, by 
directing the appointment within the Bureau of Indian Affairs of a 
coordinator of Federal efforts to combat violence against Native people 
and by establishing a commission on reducing violent crime against 
Indians.
  I commend my colleague, Representative Debra Haaland from New Mexico, 
for introducing the companion bill here in the House and for her 
efforts in advancing this important legislation.
  For decades, Native American and Alaska Native communities have 
struggled with high rates of assault, abduction, and murder of women. 
Community advocates describe the crisis as a legacy of generations of 
government policies promoting forced removal, land seizures, and 
violence inflicted on Native peoples.
  Advocates and victims' families also complain, and rightly so, that 
the investigation and monitoring of disappearances and killings of 
members of their communities have gotten lost in bureaucratic gaps 
generated by a system that lacks clarity on whether local or Federal 
agencies should investigate. The Federal Government must do something 
to address these problems.
  The statistics on violence in Native American communities are 
staggering. More than four in five American Indian and Alaska Native 
women have experienced violence in their lifetime, including 56.1 
percent who have experienced sexual violence. American Indian and 
Alaska Native men also have high victimization rates, with 81.6 percent 
having experienced violence in their lifetime. This problem is, in 
large part, the result of decades of neglect by the Federal Government.
  This crisis has particularly affected Native American women, scores 
of whom have gone missing and have been found murdered. Recently, these 
women's stories have begun to be told to a wider audience. But these 
stories are not new, and it is long overdue that we address them.
  The Not Invisible Act of 2019 is an important step for the Federal 
Government in finding an adequate response to the problem of violence 
against Native Americans. By making a permanent position within the 
Bureau of Indian Affairs that reports directly to the Secretary of the 
Interior and who will submit an annual report to Congress, we will 
greatly improve the Federal response to combating violence in Native 
communities.
  Significantly, this bill also directs the BIA coordinator to take 
into consideration the unique challenges faced by Native American 
communities, both on and off Tribal lands, and to work in cooperation 
with outside organizations to train Tribal law enforcement, Indian 
Health Service care providers, and other Tribal community members on 
identifying, responding to, and reporting on cases of missing persons, 
murder, and human trafficking.
  For 2 years, a joint commission on reducing violent crimes against 
Indians will be tasked with preparing recommendations on concrete 
actions the Department of the Interior and the Department of Justice 
can take to help combat violent crimes against Native Americans and on 
Native American lands. These include the development and implementation 
of strategies for identifying, reporting, and responding to instances 
of missing persons, murder, and human trafficking; tracking and 
reporting relevant data; and increasing prosecutions in this neglected 
arena. These are long-overdue critical measures.
  It is well past the time to help rectify these problems, and I am 
pleased that the Not Invisible Act will go a long way in that process. 
Therefore, I urge all of my colleagues to join me in support of this 
bill today.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. ARMSTRONG. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  I rise in support of S. 982, the Not Invisible Act of 2019.
  We just discussed the appalling extent of missing and murdered 
indigenous women and how Savanna's Act will begin to address this 
issue. The Not Invisible Act is another step to solve this abhorrent 
problem.
  This bill provides an opportunity for the Federal Government to 
improve its efforts to combat the growing crisis of murder and 
trafficking and the disappearance of indigenous men and women.
  While there are many Federal programs tasked with addressing violent 
crime, the agencies that operate these programs do not have an 
overarching strategy to properly deploy these resources in Indian 
Country and in urban Indian communities. Program implementation often 
takes place without considering the unique needs of Native American 
communities in this context.
  S. 982 will require the appropriate agencies to coordinate prevention 
efforts, grants, and programs across the Bureau of Indian Affairs and 
the Department of Justice, among other stakeholders.
  I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting S. 982, and I reserve 
the balance of my time.
  Ms. SCANLON. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. ARMSTRONG. Mr. Speaker, I yield 10 minutes to the gentleman from 
Washington (Mr. Newhouse), my good friend.

  Mr. NEWHOUSE. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from North Dakota (Mr. 
Armstrong) for yielding to me on this important issue.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to urge my colleagues to support a 
bipartisan piece of legislation that will finally foster progress 
toward addressing the crisis

[[Page H4581]]

that we know is plaguing our Native communities across the country.
  Despite unparalleled rates of violence, there is still no reliable 
way of knowing how many indigenous women go missing each year nor whose 
fate hangs in the balance of an unsolved murder case.
  My congressional district in central Washington has been particularly 
affected by this crisis. Since the year 2013, there have been 13 cases 
of missing or murdered indigenous women on or around the Yakama 
Reservation alone.
  This number accounts only for the land surrounding one of the 29 
federally recognized Tribes in Washington State, let alone the hundreds 
of others across the country. This information is available only due to 
the efforts and activism of local communities.
  Tribal and community leaders have held multiple marches, vigils, and 
community forums to raise awareness and demand action.
  The diligent reporting of the Yakima Herald-Republic, our local 
newspaper, has highlighted the response and activism on the ground by 
creating an online hub to list open cases involving missing and 
murdered women and providing resources for the community to report such 
disappearances.
  Recently passed State laws in Olympia have enhanced data collection 
and improved communication between Tribal leaders, law enforcement, and 
various State agencies.
  These local leaders have given a voice to the crisis, and I am 
heartened to see that the Federal Government is finally taking action. 
For too long, indigenous women and Native communities have faced this 
crisis all alone and suffered in silence.
  The Trump administration has worked to bring this crisis to light, 
creating an interagency task force between the Departments of Justice 
and the Interior called Operation Lady Justice.
  I was proud to welcome Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Tara 
Sweeney to central Washington last December, where she highlighted the 
administration's effort to deliver justice to Native American 
communities. But Secretary Sweeney echoed the concerns of local leaders 
and myself by pointing out the need for congressional action.
  By sending this bill to President Trump's desk, we are signaling that 
we have heard them and that they are no longer invisible.
  As Congress takes long-overdue action to address the crisis of 
missing and murdered indigenous women, I urge my colleagues to join me 
in supporting the Not Invisible Act.
  Mr. ARMSTRONG. Mr. Speaker, I don't think I could close any better 
than that, so I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. SCANLON. Mr. Speaker, the Not Invisible Act does precisely what 
its title aims to do. It ensures that the Federal Government dedicates 
proper attention and gives visibility to the crisis of violence and 
sexual violence committed against American Indian and Alaska Native men 
and women. Indeed, these communities have been subjected to 
invisibility and neglect for far too long.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this important 
bipartisan legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from Pennsylvania (Ms. Scanlon) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, S. 982.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________