[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 199 (Wednesday, December 21, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H9955-H9956]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          NATIVE AMERICAN LANGUAGE RESOURCE CENTER ACT OF 2022

  Mrs. PELTOLA. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (S. 989) to establish a Native American language resource center 
in furtherance of the policy set forth in the Native American Languages 
Act.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                 S. 989

       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 ``Native American Language 
     Resource Center Act of 2022''.

     SEC. 2. NATIVE AMERICAN LANGUAGE RESOURCE CENTERS.

       (a) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to further align 
     the resources provided by the Department of Education with 
     the policies set forth in the Native American Languages Act 
     (25 U.S.C. 2901 et seq.) through establishment of a program 
     within the Department of Education to support 1 or more 
     Native American language resource centers.
       (b) In General.--The Secretary of Education is authorized 
     to make a grant to, or enter into a contract with, an 
     eligible entity for the purpose of--
       (1) establishing, strengthening, and operating a Native 
     American language resource center; and
       (2) staffing the center with individuals with relevant 
     expertise and experience, including staff who speak American 
     Indian and Alaska Native languages and the Native Hawaiian 
     language and have worked in language education in the 
     American Indian and Alaska Native languages and the Native 
     Hawaiian language in a preschool, elementary school, 
     secondary school, adult education, or higher education 
     program.
       (c) Authorized Activities.--The Native American language 
     resource center established under subsection (b) shall carry 
     out activities to--
       (1) improve the capacity to teach and learn Native American 
     languages;
       (2) further Native American language use and acquisition;
       (3) preserve, protect, and promote the rights and freedom 
     of Native Americans to use, practice, and develop Native 
     American languages in furtherance of--
       (A) the policies set forth in the Native American Languages 
     Act (25 U.S.C. 2901 et seq.); and
       (B) the United States trust responsibility to Native 
     American communities;
       (4) address the effects of past discrimination and ongoing 
     inequities experienced by Native American language speakers;
       (5) support the revitalization and reclamation of Native 
     American languages; and
       (6) support the use of Native American languages as a 
     medium of instruction for a wide variety of age levels, 
     academic content areas, and types of schools, including 
     Native American language medium education.
       (d) Additional Authorized Activities.--The Native American 
     language resource center established under subsection (b) may 
     also carry out activities--
       (1) to encourage and support the use of Native American 
     languages within educational systems in the same manner as 
     other world languages, including by encouraging State 
     educational agencies, local educational agencies, and 
     institutions of higher education to offer Native American 
     language courses the same full academic credit as courses in 
     other world languages;
       (2) to support the development, adoption, and use of 
     educational outcome metrics aligned with the Native American 
     language of instruction, including assessments, 
     qualifications, and processes based on promising practices in 
     Native American language medium education;
       (3) to provide assistance to Native American language 
     programs seeking Federal resources;
       (4) to encourage and support teacher preparation programs 
     that prepare teachers to teach Native American languages and 
     to use Native American languages as a medium of instruction, 
     including by disseminating promising practices and developing 
     pedagogical programming and through appropriate alternative 
     pathways to teacher certification;
       (5) to provide information and resources--
       (A) on promising practices in the use and revitalization of 
     Native American languages in Native American communities, 
     including use in educational institutions; and
       (B) for the use of technology in school and community-based 
     Native American language programs to support the retention, 
     use, and teaching of Native American languages;
       (6) to support the use of distance learning technologies 
     and training for parents, students, teachers, and learning 
     support staff associated with Native American language 
     programs, including--
       (A) the compilation and curation of digital libraries and 
     other online resources for Native American languages, except 
     that any materials collected by the center shall only be 
     materials provided by a Native American language program or 
     Native American community;
       (B) the development of optional distance learning curricula 
     appropriate for preschool, elementary school, secondary 
     school, adult education, and postsecondary education;
       (C) pedagogical training for Native American language 
     teachers; and
       (D) other efforts necessary to continue Native American 
     language acquisition through distance learning;
       (7) to provide technical assistance for Native American 
     communities and school systems to develop Native American 
     language medium education programs in preschool, elementary 
     school, secondary school, or adult education programs 
     conducted through the medium of Native American languages;
       (8) to support Native American language programs and Native 
     American communities in--
       (A) accessing international best practices, resources, and 
     research in indigenous language revitalization; and
       (B) gathering and sharing technical assistance, promising 
     practices, and experiences;
       (9) for the operation of intensive programs, including 
     summer institutes, to train Native American language 
     speakers, to provide professional development, and to improve 
     Native American language instruction through preservice and 
     in-service language training for teachers; and
       (10) that otherwise support the Native American language 
     resource center established under subsection (b) to carry out 
     the activities required in subsection (c).
       (e) Definitions.--In this section:
       (1) ESEA definitions.--The terms ``elementary school'', 
     ``local educational agency'', ``secondary school'', and 
     ``State educational agency'' have the meanings given the 
     terms in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary 
     Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
       (2) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means--
       (A) an institution of higher education;
       (B) an entity within an institution of higher education 
     with dedicated expertise in Native American language and 
     culture education; or
       (C) a consortium that includes 1 or more institutions of 
     higher education or 1 or more entities described in 
     subparagraph (B).
       (3) Institution of higher education.--The term 
     ``institution of higher education'' has the meaning given the 
     term in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
     U.S.C. 1001).
       (4) Native american; native american language.--The terms 
     ``Native American'' and ``Native American language'' have the 
     meanings given those terms in section 103 of the Native 
     American Languages Act (25 U.S.C. 2902).

[[Page H9956]]

       (f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated to carry out this section, $3,000,000 for 
     each fiscal year.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
Alaska (Mrs. Peltola) and the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. 
Foxx) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Alaska.


                             General Leave

  Mrs. PELTOLA. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks 
and include extraneous material on S. 989, the Native American Language 
Resource Center Act of 2022.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Alaska?
  There was no objection.
  Mrs. PELTOLA. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of S. 989, the Native 
American Languages Resource Center Act of 2022.
  By 1990, some 150 remaining Native American languages were dying out 
after decades of policies that worked to eliminate Native American 
languages. While Congress has previously acted to reverse those 
efforts, Native American languages are still at risk.
  To that end, I applaud Senator Brian Schatz for championing the 
Native American Language Resource Center Act.

                              {time}  1615

  Specifically, this bill will create a center that will provide 
support for Native American language programs in schools serving 
students of all ages and at all levels of learning from pre-K to Ph.D.; 
serve as a resource to Federal, Tribal, State, local governments, and 
other organizations to spread best practices for the development of 
Native American language teaching and learning; and support teacher 
preparation programs that prepare teachers to teach Native American 
languages.
  Madam Speaker, research shows that the best way to reverse Native 
American language extinction is to invest in Native American language 
education. The Native American Language Resource Center Act of 2022 
will accomplish that goal.
  Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I 
reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. FOXX. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise in support of S. 989, the Native American 
Language Resource Center Act of 2022.
  This legislation will support Native American language centers toward 
fulfilling the mission of the Native American Language Act, a 
bipartisan bill passed in 1990, with the intent of revitalizing Native 
American languages.
  This legislation has been helping Native American Tribes preserve 
their cultural heritage for 32 years. S. 989 will help advance this 
mission. Specifically, S. 989 ensures taxpayer funds are targeted 
toward the intended purpose preserving Native languages.
  Promoting and preserving Native American languages is a challenging 
mission, but a worthy one. Sadly, some languages have already been 
lost.
  In 2008, Chief Marie Smith Jones passed away. She was the last 
speaker of the Eyak language of an Alaskan indigenous Tribe. When she 
died, so would have the Eyak language if she had not worked to create a 
dictionary and recordings of the language.
  According to the National Geographic, one language dies every 14 
days. S. 989 will help prevent that from happening. Simply put, this 
legislation works to provide Native American language centers with the 
resources they need to keep our country's cultures, traditions, and 
heritage alive.
  Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of S. 989, and I 
reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. PELTOLA. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. FOXX. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
  Madam Speaker, S. 989 will assist Native American resource centers in 
further aligning the resources they are provided by the Department of 
Education with the goals of the Native American Language Act.
  By supporting the development, preservation, and promotion of Native 
American languages, this legislation ensures that the rich, cultural 
heritage and traditions of Native Americans are not lost to future 
generations.
  Madam Speaker, I thank my colleagues who have spoken in support of S. 
989, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mrs. PELTOLA. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
  Now more than ever, Congress needs to take action to reaffirm our 
commitments to indigenous populations and make good on our promise to 
preserve Native American languages.
  The Native American Language Resource Center Act of 2022 is a 
critical step to achieving that goal. By creating a hub for resources 
and learning, Congress will signal their commitment to protecting 
Native American languages.
  Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the 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 Alaska (Mrs. Peltola) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, S. 989.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. ROSENDALE. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further 
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.

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