[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2733 Reported in House (RH)]
<DOC>
Union Calendar No. 408
116th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 2733
[Report No. 116-508, Part I]
To direct the Attorney General to review, revise, and develop law
enforcement and justice protocols appropriate to address missing and
murdered Indians, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 14, 2019
Mrs. Torres of California (for herself, Ms. Haaland, Mr. Newhouse, Mr.
Gallego, Ms. Davids of Kansas, Mr. Gianforte, Mr. Cole, Mr. Armstrong,
Ms. McCollum, Mr. Mullin, Mr. Young, Ms. Kuster of New Hampshire, Ms.
Bass, Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney of New York, Ms. Bonamici, Ms. Moore, Mr.
Ruiz, Ms. DelBene, Mr. Stanton, Mr. Cook, and Ms. Sewell of Alabama)
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Natural Resources,
for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case
for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of
the committee concerned
September 16, 2020
Additional sponsors: Mr. McNerney, Mr. DeFazio, Mr. Kilmer, Mr.
LaMalfa, Mr. Johnson of South Dakota, Mrs. Radewagen, Mr. Stewart, Ms.
Torres Small of New Mexico, Mr. Calvert, Mr. Bacon, Mr. O'Halleran, Mr.
Lujan, Mr. Gonzalez of Ohio, Ms. Herrera Beutler, Ms. Blunt Rochester,
Mr. Fulcher, Mr. Cox of California, Mr. Peterson, Mr. Simpson, Mr.
Stauber, Mr. Payne, Mr. Pallone, Mr. Heck, Mr. Crow, Ms. Mucarsel-
Powell, Mr. Ted Lieu of California, Ms. Scanlon, Ms. Garcia of Texas,
Ms. Jackson Lee, Ms. Adams, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, Mr. Trone, Ms. Roybal-
Allard, Ms. Brownley of California, Mr. Levin of Michigan, Mr. Kind,
Ms. Omar, Ms. Schrier, Mr. Cooper, and Ms. Tlaib
September 16, 2020
Reported from the Committee on the Judiciary with an amendment
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed
in italic]
September 16, 2020
Committee on Natural Resources discharged; committed to the Committee
of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on May 14,
2019]
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To direct the Attorney General to review, revise, and develop law
enforcement and justice protocols appropriate to address missing and
murdered Indians, and for other purposes.
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 ``Savanna's Act''.
SEC. 2. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are--
(1) to clarify the responsibilities of Federal, State,
Tribal, and local law enforcement agencies with respect to
responding to cases of missing or murdered Indians;
(2) to increase coordination and communication among
Federal, State, Tribal, and local law enforcement agencies,
including medical examiner and coroner offices;
(3) to empower Tribal governments with the resources and
information necessary to effectively respond to cases of
missing or murdered Indians; and
(4) to increase the collection of data related to missing
or murdered Indian men, women, and children, regardless of
where they reside, and the sharing of information among
Federal, State, and Tribal officials responsible for responding
to and investigating cases of missing or murdered Indians.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Confer.--The term ``confer'' has the meaning given the
term in section 514 of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act
(25 U.S.C. 1660d).
(2) Databases.--The term ``databases'' means--
(A) the National Crime Information Center database;
(B) the Combined DNA Index System;
(C) the Next Generation Identification System; and
(D) any other database relevant to responding to
cases of missing or murdered Indians, including that
under the Violent Criminal Apprehension Program and the
National Missing and Unidentified Persons System.
(3) Indian.--The term ``Indian'' means a member of an
Indian Tribe.
(4) Indian country.--The term ``Indian country'' has the
meaning given the term in section 1151 of title 18, United
States Code.
(5) Indian land.--The term ``Indian land'' means Indian
lands, as defined in section 3 of the Native American Business
Development, Trade Promotion, and Tourism Act of 2000 (25
U.S.C. 4302).
(6) Indian tribe.--The term ``Indian Tribe'' has the
meaning given the term ``Indian tribe'' in section 4 of the
Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25
U.S.C. 5304).
(7) Law enforcement agency.--The term ``law enforcement
agency'' means a Tribal, Federal, State, or local law
enforcement agency.
SEC. 4. IMPROVING TRIBAL ACCESS TO DATABASES.
(a) Tribal Enrollment Information.--The Attorney General shall
provide training to law enforcement agencies regarding how to record
the Tribal enrollment information or affiliation, as appropriate, of a
victim in Federal databases.
(b) Consultation.--
(1) Consultation.--Not later than 180 days after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General, in cooperation
with the Secretary of the Interior, shall complete a formal
consultation with Indian Tribes on how to further improve
Tribal data relevance and access to databases.
(2) Initial confer.--Not later than 180 days after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General, in coordination
with the Secretary of the Interior, shall confer with Tribal
organizations and urban Indian organizations on how to further
improve American Indian and Alaska Native data relevance and
access to databases.
(3) Annual consultation.--Section 903(b) of the Violence
Against Women and Department of Justice Reauthorization Act of
2005 (34 U.S.C. 20126(b)) is amended--
(A) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the
following:
``(2) enhancing the safety of Indian women from domestic
violence, dating violence, sexual assault, homicide, stalking,
and sex trafficking;'';
(B) in paragraph (3), by striking the period at the
end and inserting ``; and''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(4) improving access to local, regional, State, and
Federal crime information databases and criminal justice
information systems.''.
(c) Notification.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall--
(1) develop and implement a dissemination strategy to
educate the public of the National Missing and Unidentified
Persons System; and
(2) conduct specific outreach to Indian Tribes, Tribal
organizations, and urban Indian organizations regarding the
ability to publicly enter information, through the National
Missing and Unidentified Persons System or other non-law
enforcement sensitive portal, regarding missing persons, which
may include family members and other known acquaintances.
SEC. 5. GUIDELINES FOR RESPONDING TO CASES OF MISSING OR MURDERED
INDIANS.
(a) In General.--Not later than 60 days after the date on which the
consultation described in section 4(b)(1) is completed, the Attorney
General shall direct United States attorneys to develop regionally
appropriate guidelines to respond to cases of missing or murdered
Indians that shall include--
(1) guidelines on inter-jurisdictional cooperation among
law enforcement agencies at the Tribal, Federal, State, and
local levels, including inter-jurisdictional enforcement of
protection orders and detailing specific responsibilities of
each law enforcement agency;
(2) best practices in conducting searches for missing
persons on and off Indian land;
(3) standards on the collection, reporting, and analysis of
data and information on missing persons and unidentified human
remains, and information on culturally appropriate
identification and handling of human remains identified as
Indian, including guidance stating that all appropriate
information related to missing or murdered Indians be entered
in a timely manner into applicable databases;
(4) guidance on which law enforcement agency is responsible
for inputting information into appropriate databases under
paragraph (3) if the Tribal law enforcement agency does not
have access to those appropriate databases;
(5) guidelines on improving law enforcement agency response
rates and follow-up responses to cases of missing or murdered
Indians; and
(6) guidelines on ensuring access to culturally appropriate
victim services for victims and their families.
(b) Consultation.--United States attorneys shall develop the
guidelines required under subsection (a) in consultation with Indian
Tribes and other relevant partners, including--
(1) the Department of Justice;
(2) the Federal Bureau of Investigation;
(3) the Department of the Interior;
(4) the Bureau of Indian Affairs;
(5) Tribal, State, and local law enforcement agencies;
(6) medical examiners;
(7) coroners;
(8) Tribal, State, and local organizations that provide
victim services; and
(9) national, regional, or urban Indian organizations with
relevant expertise.
(c) Compliance.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of this Act, the United States attorneys shall
implement, by incorporating into office policies and
procedures, the guidelines developed under subsection (a).
(2) Modification.--Each Federal law enforcement agency
shall modify the guidelines, policies, and protocols of the
agency to incorporate the guidelines developed under subsection
(a).
(3) Determination.--Not later than the end of each fiscal
year beginning after the date the guidelines are established
under this section and incorporated under this subsection, upon
the request of a Tribal, State, or local law enforcement
agency, the Attorney General shall determine whether the
Tribal, State, or local law enforcement agency seeking
recognition of compliance has incorporated guidelines into
their respective guidelines, policies, and protocols.
(d) Accountability.--Not later than 30 days after compliance
determinations are made each fiscal year in accordance with subsection
(c)(3), the Attorney General shall--
(1) disclose and publish, including on the website of the
Department of Justice, the name of each Tribal, State, or local
law enforcement agency that the Attorney General has determined
has incorporated guidelines in accordance with subsection
(c)(3);
(2) disclose and publish, including on the website of the
Department of Justice, the name of each Tribal, State, or local
law enforcement agency that has requested a determination in
accordance with subsection (c)(3) that is pending;
(3) collect the guidelines into a resource of examples and
best practices that can be used by other law enforcement
agencies seeking to create and implement such guidelines.
(e) Training and Technical Assistance.--The Attorney General shall
use the National Indian Country Training Initiative to provide training
and technical assistance to Indian Tribes and law enforcement agencies
on--
(1) implementing the guidelines developed under subsection
(a) or developing and implementing locally specific guidelines
or protocols for responding to cases of missing or murdered
Indians; and
(2) using the National Missing and Unidentified Persons
System and accessing program services that will assist Indian
Tribes with responding to cases of missing or murdered Indians.
(f) Guidelines From Indian Tribes.--
(1) In general.--Indian Tribes may submit their own
guidelines to respond to cases of missing or murdered Indians
to the Attorney General.
(2) Publication.--Upon receipt of any guidelines from an
Indian Tribe, the Attorney General shall publish the guidelines
on the website of the Department of Justice in 1 centralized
location to make the guidelines available as a resource to any
Federal agency, State, or Tribal government.
SEC. 6. ANNUAL REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.
(a) Annual Reporting.--Beginning in the first fiscal year after the
date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall include in
its annual Indian Country Investigations and Prosecutions report to
Congress information that--
(1) includes known statistics on missing Indians in the
United States, available to the Department of Justice,
including--
(A) age;
(B) gender;
(C) Tribal enrollment information or affiliation,
if available;
(D) the current number of open cases per State;
(E) the total number of closed cases per State each
calendar year, from the most recent 10 calendar years;
and
(F) other relevant information the Attorney General
determines is appropriate;
(2) includes known statistics on murdered Indians in the
United States, available to the Department of Justice,
including--
(A) age;
(B) gender;
(C) Tribal enrollment information or affiliation,
if available;
(D) the current number of open cases per State;
(E) the total number of closed cases per State each
calendar year, from the most recent 10 calendar years;
and
(F) other relevant information the Attorney General
determines is appropriate;
(3) maintains victim privacy to the greatest extent
possible by excluding information that can be used on its own
or with other information to identify, contact, or locate a
single person, or to identify an individual in context; and
(4) includes--
(A) an explanation of why the statistics described
in paragraph (1) may not be comprehensive; and
(B) recommendations on how data collection on
missing or murdered Indians may be improved.
(b) Compliance.--
(1) In general.--Beginning in the first fiscal year after
the date of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, for
the purpose of compiling accurate data for the annual report
required under subsection (a), the Attorney General shall
request all Tribal, State, and local law enforcement agencies
to submit to the Department of Justice, to the fullest extent
possible, all relevant information pertaining to missing or
murdered Indians collected by the Tribal, State, and local law
enforcement agency, and in a format provided by the Department
of Justice that ensures the streamlining of data reporting.
(2) Disclosure.--The Attorney General shall disclose and
publish annually, including on the website of the Department of
Justice, the name of each Tribal, State, or local law
enforcement agency that the Attorney General has determined has
submitted the information requested under paragraph (1) for the
fiscal year in which the report was published.
(c) Inclusion of Gender in Missing and Unidentified Persons
Statistics.--Beginning in the first calendar year after the date of
enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Federal Bureau of
Investigation shall include gender in its annual statistics on missing
and unidentified persons published on its public website.
SEC. 7. IMPLEMENTATION AND INCENTIVE.
(a) Grant Authority.--Section 2101(b) of the Omnibus Crime Control
and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10461(b)) is amended by adding
at the end the following:
``(23) To develop, strengthen, and implement policies,
protocols, and training for law enforcement regarding cases of
missing or murdered Indians, as described in section 5 of
Savanna's Act.
``(24) To compile and annually report data to the Attorney
General related to missing or murdered Indians, as described in
section 6 of Savanna's Act.''.
(b) Grants to Indian Tribal Governments.--Section 2015(a) of the
Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10452(a))
is amended--
(1) in paragraph (9), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(2) in paragraph (10), by striking the period at the end
and inserting a semicolon; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(11) develop, strengthen, and implement policies,
protocols, and training for law enforcement regarding cases of
missing or murdered Indians, as described in section 5 of
Savanna's Act; and
``(12) compile and annually report data to the Attorney
General related to missing or murdered Indians, as described in
section 6 of Savanna's Act.''.
Union Calendar No. 408
116th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 2733
[Report No. 116-508, Part I]
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To direct the Attorney General to review, revise, and develop law
enforcement and justice protocols appropriate to address missing and
murdered Indians, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
September 16, 2020
Reported from the Committee on the Judiciary with an amendment
September 16, 2020
Committee on Natural Resources discharged; committed to the Committee
of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed