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S. 1622: Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on Native Children Act

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S. 1622: Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on Native Children Act

113th Congress · introduced 2013-10-30 · Native Americans · Latest: By Senator Tester from Committee on Indian Affairs filed written report under authority of the order of the Senate of 09/18/2014. Report No. 113-264. Additional views filed.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

  1. Where it came from: introduced 2013-10-30 · official record
  2. Who proposed it: Sen. Heitkamp, Heidi [D-ND] · what a sponsor is
  3. What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
  4. Where it stands now: By Senator Tester from Committee on Indian Affairs filed written report under authority of the order of the Senate of 09/18/2014. Report No. 113-264. Additional views filed. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
  5. If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on Native Children Act

Plain summary

Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on Native Children Act - (Sec. 4) Establishes the Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on Native Children in the Office of Tribal Justice of the Department of Justice (DOJ). Requires the President and Congress to appoint to the Commission individuals who have significant experience and expertise in Indian affairs and matters to be studied by the Commission, including health care issues facing Native children, Indian education, juvenile justice programs, and social service programs used by Native children. Requires the Commission to establish a Native Advisory Committee consisting of representatives of Indian tribes from each region of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and a native Hawaiian. Requires members of the Committee to be experienced in matters to be studied by the Commission. Requires the Commission to conduct a comprehensive study of federal, state, local, and tribal programs that serve Native children, including an evaluation of: the impact of concurrent jurisdiction on child welfare systems; barriers Indian tribes and Native Hawaiians face in using public and private grant resources; obstacles to nongovernmental financial support for programs benefitting Native children; issues relating to the validity and statistical significance of data on Native children; barriers to the development of sustainable, multidisciplinary programs designed to assist high-risk Native children and their families, as well as any examples of successful program models; and barriers to interagency coordination. Directs the Commission to use the results of the study and analyses of existing federal data to: develop plans and goals for federal policy relating to Native children in the short-, mid-, and long-term informed by the development of accurate child well-being measures; recommend modifications and improvements to programs that serve Native children that integrate the cultural strengths of Native communities and result in improvements to the child welfare system, the mental and physical health of Native children, educational and vocational opportunities, and tribal juvenile detention programs. recommend improvements to the collection of data regarding Native children and the programs that serve them; and identify models of successful federal, state, and tribal programs in the areas studied by the Commission. Requires the Commission to submit a report to the President, Congress, and the White House Council on Native American Affairs on its findings, conclusions, and recommendations for legislative and administrative action. Terminates the Commission 90 days after the report is submitted.

Congressional Research Service summary (Reported to Senate with amendment(s)), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

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A “Nay” vote

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PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on Native Children Act

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Reported to Senate with amendment(s))

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Heitkamp, Heidi [D-ND] · 34 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), John Hoeven (R-ND), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Patty Murray (D-WA), Mike Crapo (R-ID), John Thune (R-SD), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Susan M. Collins (R-ME), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Kirsten E. Gillibrand (D-NY)

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (1)
Jurisdiction
The area or the matters a government or court has authority over.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Record fed-us-cong113-s1622 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong113 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong113