[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6170 Introduced in House (IH)]
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115th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 6170
To direct the Secretary of the Interior to establish a demonstration
program to adapt the successful practices of providing foreign aid to
underdeveloped economies to the provision of Federal economic
development assistance to Native communities in similarly situated
remote areas in the United States, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 20, 2018
Mr. Young of Alaska (for himself, Ms. Gabbard, and Ms. Hanabusa)
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
Natural Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To direct the Secretary of the Interior to establish a demonstration
program to adapt the successful practices of providing foreign aid to
underdeveloped economies to the provision of Federal economic
development assistance to Native communities in similarly situated
remote areas in the United States, 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 the ``Native American Millennium Challenge
Demonstration Act''.
SEC. 2. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are--
(1) to adapt the lessons of foreign aid to underdeveloped
economies, such as the experience of the Millennium Challenge
Corporation, to the provision of Federal economic development
assistance to similarly situated remote Native American
communities;
(2) to provide Federal economic development assistance for
Native American communities through the Native American
Challenge Demonstration Project;
(3) to administer Federal economic development assistance
in a manner that--
(A) promotes economic growth and the elimination of
poverty;
(B) strengthens good governance, entrepreneurship,
and investment in Native American communities; and
(C) builds the capacity of Native people to grow
sustainable local economies;
(4) to improve the effectiveness of Federal economic
development assistance by encouraging the integration and
coordination of the assistance in remote Native American
communities;
(5) to promote sustainable economic growth and poverty
reduction policies in remote Native American communities in a
manner that promotes self-determination and self-sufficiency
among remote Native American communities while preserving the
cultural values of those communities; and
(6) to establish a demonstration project within remote
areas of noncontiguous States that experience high levels of
poverty and lack access to traditional transportation
infrastructure (highways, railways, and ports), which, if
successful, could potentially benefit other Native American
communities in the United States.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Compact.--The term ``compact'' means a binding
agreement with the United States entered into pursuant to this
Act.
(2) Economic development strategy.--The term ``economic
development strategy'' means a strategy--
(A) written by an eligible entity and designed to
achieve sustainable economic growth and reduce poverty
over a defined period; and
(B) developed in consultation with public and
private sector entities, as appropriate to the
geographic area and intended beneficiaries of the
compact.
(3) Eligible entity.--
(A) In general.--The term ``eligible entity'' means
a consortium of Native organizations in a noncontiguous
State, with priority given to organizations serving
regions with the highest poverty levels.
(B) Alaska.--In the State of Alaska, a consortium
shall be comprised of not more than 2 regional Alaska
Native nonprofit organizations, to be determined by the
Secretary, in consultation with statewide Alaska Native
organizations.
(C) Hawaii.--In the State of Hawaii, a consortium
shall be comprised of local Native Hawaiian nonprofit
organizations that serve the interests of Native
Hawaiians and in which Native Hawaiians serve in
leadership and substantive policymaking positions.
(4) Indian tribe.--The term ``Indian Tribe'' has the
meaning given the term in section 4 of the Indian Self-
Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304).
(5) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of the Interior.
SEC. 4. MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.
(a) Establishment.--The Secretary shall establish and implement in
the Department of the Interior a demonstration project, to be known as
the ``Native American Millennium Challenge Demonstration Project''
(referred to in this section as the ``demonstration project'').
(b) Authorization of Assistance.--In carrying out the demonstration
project, the Secretary may provide assistance to any eligible entity
that enters into a compact with the United States pursuant to this Act.
(c) Form of Assistance.--Assistance under the demonstration
project--
(1) shall be provided in the form of funding agreements
established under the applicable compact;
(2) may not be provided in the form of loans; and
(3) may not be used for gaming activities conducted under
the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.).
(d) Coordination.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall coordinate the
provision of assistance under the demonstration project, to the
maximum extent practicable, with the Federal agencies listed in
paragraph (2) that administer economic development assistance
programs for Native Americans and in consultation with the
Millennium Challenge Corporation. The Department of the
Interior shall be the lead Federal agency responsible for the
coordination and consultation under this paragraph.
(2) Agencies.--The Federal agencies referred to in
paragraph (1) are--
(A) the Department of Agriculture;
(B) the Department of Commerce;
(C) the Department of Energy;
(D) the Department of Health and Human Services;
(E) the Department of Housing and Urban
Development; and
(F) the Small Business Administration.
(3) Integrated funding.--Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, the Secretary's execution of a compact with
an eligible entity shall authorize the eligible entity to be
the designated applicant for, or recipient of, funds
appropriated pursuant to section 7 and economic development
assistance program funding that would otherwise be provided to
an Indian Tribe located in the region or regions served by the
eligible entity. The eligible entity shall integrate funds
appropriated pursuant to section 7 and any such program funding
and the operation of the programs' services into a single,
coordinated program under a demonstration project.
(4) Competitive funding.--An eligible entity may only be
considered a designated applicant for funding from a
competitive program that would otherwise be provided to an
Indian Tribe located in the region or regions served by the
eligible entity if--
(A) an Indian Tribe located in the region or
regions served by the eligible entity designates the
eligible entity in a resolution passed by its governing
body as authorized to apply for the funding in lieu of
the Indian Tribe and forgoes applying for the funding;
(B) the Indian Tribe has submitted the resolution
to the Secretary and any Secretary who administers the
program; and
(C) the applicable Secretaries have certified in
writing to the eligible entity that they are in receipt
of the resolution.
(5) Other funding.--An eligible entity may only be
considered a designated recipient of funding from a formula
based program or noncompetitive program that is otherwise
provided to a particular Indian Tribe located in the region or
regions served by the eligible entity if--
(A) the Indian Tribe designates the eligible entity
in a resolution passed by its governing body as
authorized to receive the funding in lieu of the Indian
Tribe and forgoes receipt of the funding;
(B) the Indian Tribe has submitted the resolution
to the Secretary and any Secretary that administers the
program; and
(C) the applicable Secretaries have certified in
writing to the eligible entity that they are in receipt
of the resolution.
(6) Authority to rescind.--An Indian Tribe that has
submitted a designating resolution under this subsection may,
at any time, submit to the applicable Secretaries a resolution
passed by its governing body that rescinds the designating
resolution.
(e) Waiver Authority.--
(1) In general.--On receipt of an executed compact, the
Secretary shall consult with the eligible entity that is a
party to the compact and coordinate with the Secretary of each
Federal agency that provides funds to be used to implement the
compact to identify any waiver of statutory requirements or
applicable regulations, policies, or procedures necessary to
enable the eligible entity to implement the compact.
(2) Agencies.--The head of the Federal agency to which the
Federal funds were appropriated may waive (in whole or in part)
the application, solely to such funds that are being used to
implement the compact, of any statutory, regulatory, or
administrative requirement that such agency head--
(A) is otherwise authorized to waive (in accordance
with the terms and conditions of such other authority);
and
(B) is not otherwise authorized to waive, provided
that in such case the agency head shall--
(i) not waive any requirement related to
nondiscrimination, wage and labor standards, or
allocation of funds to State and sub-State
levels;
(ii) issue a written determination, prior
to granting the waiver, with respect to such
discretionary funds that the granting of such
waiver for purposes of the compact--
(I) is consistent with both--
(aa) the statutory purposes
of the Federal program for
which such funds were
appropriated; and
(bb) the other provisions
of this section;
(II) is necessary to achieve the
outcomes of the compact, and is no
broader in scope than is necessary to
achieve such outcomes; and
(III) will result in either--
(aa) realizing efficiencies
by simplifying reporting
burdens or reducing
administrative barriers with
respect to such funds; or
(bb) increasing the ability
of individuals to obtain access
to services that are provided
by such funds; and
(iii) provide at least 60 days advance
written notice to the Committee on Natural
Resources of the House of Representatives and
the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate.
SEC. 5. CHALLENGE COMPACTS.
(a) Compacts.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall develop and recommend
procedures for consideration of proposals for compacts
submitted by eligible entities.
(2) Assistance.--The Secretary may provide assistance to an
eligible entity only if the eligible entity enters into a
compact with the United States, to be known as a Native
American Challenge Compact, that establishes a multiyear plan
for achieving development objectives in furtherance of the
purposes of this Act.
(b) Applications.--The Secretary shall develop and recommend
procedures for considering applications for compacts submitted by
eligible entities.
(c) Criteria for Selection of Eligible Entities.--The Secretary
shall develop an application process and criteria for selecting
eligible entities to enter into compacts under this Act, taking into
consideration--
(1) the purposes of this Act;
(2) the economic development strategy of the eligible
entity;
(3) the remoteness of the communities to be served by the
eligible entity;
(4) the general economic status of the communities to be
served by the eligible entity; and
(5) poverty rates within the communities to be served by
the eligible entity.
(d) Assistance for Development of Compacts.--To the extent that
funds are appropriated in advance to carry out this section, the
Secretary may enter into contracts with, or make grants to, any
eligible entity for the purposes of facilitating the development and
implementation of a compact between the United States and the eligible
entity.
(e) Duration and Extension.--
(1) Duration.--The term of an initial compact under this
section shall be for 5 years.
(2) Subsequent compacts.--An eligible entity and the United
States may enter into one or more subsequent compacts in
accordance with this Act.
(3) Extensions.--If a compact is approaching expiration or
has expired, the eligible entity that is a party to the compact
and the United States may renegotiate or extend the compact for
such number of terms as the parties may agree, with each term
not to exceed 10 years.
(f) Elements.--In furtherance of the economic development strategy
of the applicable eligible entity, each compact shall contain--
(1) a description of the specific objectives for the
sustainable economic development and reduction of poverty that
the eligible entity and the United States expect to achieve
during the term of the compact;
(2) a description of the respective roles and
responsibilities of the eligible entity and the United States
in the achievement of those objectives;
(3) a list and description of regular benchmarks to measure
progress toward achieving those objectives;
(4) an identification of the intended beneficiaries,
disaggregated by income level, gender, and age, to the maximum
extent practicable; and
(5) a multiyear financial plan to guide the implementation
of the compact, including the estimated level of funding and
other contributions by the United States and the eligible
entity, proposed mechanisms to execute the plan, and periodic
assessments to determine whether the requirements of paragraphs
(1) through (4) are being met.
(g) Suspension and Termination of Assistance.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary may suspend or terminate
assistance, in whole or in part, for an eligible entity that
has entered into a compact with the United States if the
Secretary determines that the eligible entity--
(A) failed to meet the responsibilities of the
eligible entity under the compact; or
(B) engaged in a pattern of actions that is
inconsistent with the purposes of this Act.
(2) Reinstatement.--The Secretary may reinstate assistance
for an eligible entity only if the Secretary determines that
the eligible entity has demonstrated a commitment to correcting
each condition for which assistance was suspended or terminated
under paragraph (1).
SEC. 6. PROGRAM ASSESSMENTS AND REPORTS.
(a) Reports of Eligible Entities.--Not later than March 15 each
year, each eligible entity shall prepare and submit to the Secretary a
written report describing the assistance provided to the eligible
entity under this Act during the preceding fiscal year.
(b) Report Contents.--A report required under subsection (a) shall
include--
(1) a description of the amount of obligations and
expenditures for assistance provided during the preceding
fiscal year;
(2) a description of the programs and activities conducted
by the eligible entity in furtherance of the economic
development strategy of the eligible entity and the purposes of
this Act;
(3) an assessment of the effectiveness of the assistance
provided and progress made by the eligible entity toward
achieving the economic development strategy of the eligible
entity and the purposes of this Act; and
(4) such other information as the eligible entity considers
to be relevant, taking into consideration the purposes of this
Act.
(c) Submission to Congress.--Not later than May 15 each year, the
Secretary shall submit the reports required under subsection (a), with
such other information as the Secretary considers to be relevant, to--
(1) the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of
Representatives; and
(2) the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate.
SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
(a) Authorization.--
(1) In general.--There is authorized to be appropriated to
carry out this Act $8,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2018
through 2022, to remain available until expended.
(2) Unappropriated amounts.--Any funds authorized but not
appropriated for any fiscal year under paragraph (1) may be
appropriated for a subsequent fiscal year, subject to the
condition that the cumulative amount authorized to be
appropriated for any of fiscal years 2018 through 2022 shall
not exceed $40,000,000.
(b) Administrative Funds.--Of the funds made available to carry out
this Act, not more than 5 percent may be used by the Secretary for the
administrative expenses of carrying out this Act and oversight of
programs under this Act.
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