[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 39 (Tuesday, March 2, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S994-S995]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

      By Mr. THUNE (for himself and Mr. Wyden):
  S. 534. A bill to improve the effectiveness of tribal child support 
enforcement agencies, and for other purposes; to the Committee on 
Finance.
  Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of 
the bill be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                 S. 534

       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 ``Tribal Child Support 
     Enforcement Act''.

     SEC. 2. IMPROVING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF TRIBAL CHILD SUPPORT 
                   ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES.

       (a) Improving the Collection of Past-Due Child Support 
     Through State and Tribal Parity in the Allowable Use of Tax 
     Information.--
       (1) Amendment to the social security act.--Section 464 of 
     the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 664) is amended by adding 
     at the end the following:
       ``(d) Applicability to Indian Tribes and Tribal 
     Organizations Receiving a Grant Under This Part.--This 
     section, except for the requirement to distribute amounts in 
     accordance with section 457, shall apply to an Indian tribe 
     or tribal organization receiving a grant under section 455(f) 
     in the same manner in which this section applies to a State 
     with a plan approved under this part.''.
       (2) Amendments to the internal revenue code.--
       (A) Section 6103(a)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 
     is amended by striking ``any local child support enforcement 
     agency'' and inserting ``any tribal or local child support 
     enforcement agency''.
       (B) Section 6103(a)(3) of such Code is amended by inserting 
     ``, (8)'' after ``(6)''.
       (C) Section 6103(l) of such Code is amended--
       (i) in paragraph (6)--

       (I) by striking ``or local'' in subparagraph (A) and 
     inserting ``tribal, or local'';
       (II) by striking ``and local'' in the heading thereof and 
     inserting ``tribal, and local'';
       (III) by striking ``The following'' in subparagraph (B) and 
     inserting ``The'';
       (IV) by striking the colon and all that follows in 
     subparagraph (B) and inserting a period; and
       (V) by adding at the end the following:

       ``(D) State, tribal, or local child support enforcement 
     agency.--For purposes of this paragraph, the following shall 
     be treated as a State, tribal, or local child support 
     enforcement agency:
       ``(i) Any agency of a State or political subdivision 
     thereof operating pursuant to a plan described in section 454 
     of the Social Security Act which has been approved by the 
     Secretary of Health and Human Services under part D of title 
     IV of such Act.
       ``(ii) Any child support enforcement agency of an Indian 
     tribe or tribal organization receiving a grant under section 
     455(f) of the Social Security Act.'';
       (ii) in paragraph (8)--

       (I) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``or State or local'' 
     and inserting ``State, tribal, or local'';
       (II) by adding the following at the end of subparagraph 
     (B): ``The information disclosed to any child support 
     enforcement agency under subparagraph (A) with respect to any 
     individual with respect to whom child support obligations are 
     sought to be established or enforced may be disclosed by such 
     agency to any agent of such agency which is under contract 
     with such agency for purposes of, and to the extent necessary 
     in, establishing and collecting child support obligations 
     from, and locating, individuals owing such obligations.'';
       (III) by striking subparagraph (C) and inserting the 
     following:

       ``(C) State, tribal, or local child support enforcement 
     agency.--For purposes of this paragraph, the term `State, 
     tribal, or local child support enforcement agency' has the 
     same meaning as when used in paragraph (6)(D).''; and

       (IV) by striking ``and local'' in the heading thereof and 
     inserting ``tribal, and local''; and

       (iii) in paragraph (10)(B), by adding at the end the 
     following new clause:
       ``(iii) The information disclosed to any child support 
     enforcement agency under subparagraph (A) with respect to any 
     individual with respect to whom child support obligations are 
     sought to be established or enforced may be disclosed by such 
     agency to any agent of such agency which is under contract 
     with such agency for purposes of, and to the extent necessary 
     in, establishing and collecting child support obligations 
     from, and locating, individuals owing such obligations.''.
       (D) Subsection (c) of section 6402 of the Internal Revenue 
     Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following: 
     ``For purposes of this subsection, any reference to a State 
     shall include a reference to any Indian tribe or tribal 
     organization receiving a grant under section 455(f) of the 
     Social Security Act.''.
       (b) Reimbursement for Reports.--Section 453(g) of the 
     Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 653(g)) is amended--
       (1) in the subsection heading, by striking ``State''; and
       (2) by striking ``and State'' and inserting ``, State, and 
     tribal''.
       (c) Technical Amendments.--Paragraphs (7) and (33) of 
     sections 454 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 654) are 
     each amended by striking ``450b'' and inserting ``5304''.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. KAINE:
  S. 540. A bill to require Federal, State, and local law enforcement 
agencies to report information related to allegations of misconduct of 
law enforcement officers to the Attorney General, and for other 
purposes; to the Committee on the Judiciary.

[[Page S995]]

  

  Mr. KAINE. Mr. President, I am pleased to introduce the Cost of 
Police Misconduct Act. This legislation strives to increase 
transparency and accountability, saving taxpayer dollars and 
potentially lives by requiring Federal, State, and local law 
enforcement agencies to report police misconduct allegations and 
related judgments or settlements to the Department of Justice.
  Last year, the horrific murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and 
Ahmaud Arbery made it clear that systemic reform in policing is needed 
now more than ever. On top of having to bear the loss of friends and 
loved ones, these very communities who suffer from this misconduct have 
to foot its bill, yet they are often in the dark on the full size of 
that bill. Citizens deserve to know what they are paying for unjust 
policing practices.
  In the last 10 years, 31 of 50 cities in the Nation with the highest 
police-to-civilian ratio spent more than $3 billion to settle police 
misconduct lawsuits. These large judgments and settlements paid by 
State and local governments are typically paid from liability 
insurance, from a general or dedicated municipal fund, or from issuing 
bonds. In particular, municipal bonds have become increasingly more 
commonplace to cover the cost of large judgments and settlements that 
exceed insurer liability coverage or the capacity of dedicated 
municipal funds. This often results in passing costs to taxpayers, who 
must pay nearly double the cost of the judgment or settlement because 
the city or county must pay fees to financial institutions and interest 
to investors. This is unacceptable.
  Specifically, the Cost of Police Misconduct Act seeks to remedy this 
costly and pervasive issue by ensuring the Department of Justice 
maintains a comprehensive public database of misconduct data and trends 
that have gone largely unreported by Federal, State, and local law 
enforcement agencies. Furthermore, this legislation makes certain 
important data--such as the type of alleged misconduct, the total 
amount of the settlement, and the source of funds used to cover the 
cost of any one judgment or settlement--is properly preserved in an 
easily accessible manner. Additionally, this legislation directs the 
Government Accountability Office to conduct a study of the information 
reported to determine the leading cause of judgments and settlements 
related to allegations of misconduct and what interventions are 
necessary to prevent them.
  Police misconduct takes lives, erodes trust, and sparks fear. I am 
hopeful the Senate will act upon my legislation this year to shine a 
light on the price of police misconduct, ending the secrecy and 
hopefully spurring agencies to put a stop to it.

                          ____________________