Heitkamp's Bill to Stand Up for Native American Children Unanimously Passes U.S. Senate

Press Release

U.S. Senators Heidi Heitkamp and Lisa Murkowski's bipartisan bill to improve the lives of Native children today unanimously passed in the U.S. Senate.

In February, the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs unanimously approved their bill to create a Commission on Native Children -- just two weeks after Heitkamp and Murkowski reintroduced their plan, in the opening days of the new Congress.

The Senators' bill would create a Commission on Native Children that would work to identify the complex challenges faced by Native children in North Dakota and across the United States by conducting an intensive study on these issues -- including high rates of poverty, staggering unemployment, child abuse, domestic violence, crime, substance abuse, and dire economic opportunities -- and making recommendations on how to make sure Native children get the protections, as well as economic and educational tools they need to thrive.

A member of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, Heitkamp and Murkowski initially introduced their bill to create the Commission on Native Children last Congress as her first bill in the U.S. Senate where it quickly gained bipartisan momentum -- first by unanimously passing the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, then being recommended for creation by Congress as part of the bill to keep the U.S. government running. Since her time as North Dakota's Attorney General, Heitkamp has been committed to working with both sides of the aisle to develop policies that advance Native American priorities and improve the lives of Native youth for generations to come.

"For generations, children on tribal lands have lived with the odds stacked against them, relegated to the shadows of our society and the peripheries of our federal resources," said Heitkamp. "Despite being saddled with challenges no child should ever face --our Native kids are determined to persevere. Today, the Senate spoke with a strong, united voice and passed my bill -- the first bill I introduced in the Senate -- to give our Native youth that fighting chance. By creating a Commission on Native Children, we can begin to address chronic issues like abuse and suicide that has shattered the lives of too many young people -- and put holistic solutions in place that can positively change the lives of many Native kids. When I entered the doors of the Senate, I promised to work to improve the lives of Native children -- and by building bipartisan consensus for that goal with my colleagues across the aisle, we built the momentum to change the trajectory. Today, the Senate unanimously committed to addressing the challenges that will improve outcomes for Native children for generations to come. In the coming days and weeks, I will look to my colleagues in the House of Representatives to answer this bipartisan call to action by quickly introducing and passing complementary legislation."

"Our First People carry a proud tradition and lifestyle that is being eroded by a culture of despair fed by poverty, crime, unemployment, substance abuse, and tragic household violence; this complicated problem deserves a thorough review that brings all the governments' agencies to bear. Alaska Natives, Native Americans and Native Hawaiians deserve better and the government's must live up to its trust responsibility and empower them to change this," said Murkowski. "I am proud that the Commission bearing the name of Alaska Legend Walter Soboleff has been approved by my Senate colleagues to take a comprehensive look at all the factors and triggers in play -- whether from the vantage point of justice, education or healthcare -- and make informed policy suggestions to turn this cycle around."

Heitkamp also cosponsored Senator Hoeven's Native American Children's Safety Act, which passed today in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. The bill will implement protections for Native children who are placed by in the tribal foster care system by tribal courts.

Background:

Conditions for young people in Indian Country are tragic and must be addressed. For example:

More than one in three American Indian and Alaska Native children live in poverty;

Suicide rates for Native children ages 15-24 years old are 2.5 times the national average and is the second-leading cause of death in that age group;

High school graduation rate for students at schools run by the Bureau of Indian Education is 53 percent, compared to 80 percent for white students;

While the overall rate of child mortality in the U.S. has decreased since 2000, the rate for Native children has increased 15 percent; and

60 percent of American Indian schools do not have adequate high-speed Internet or digital technology to meet the requirements of college and career ready standards.

To help reverse these impacts, the Commission on Native Children would conduct a comprehensive study of the programs, grants, and resources available for Native children, both at government agencies and on the ground in Native communities, with the goal of developing a sustainable system that delivers wrap-around services to Native children. Then, the 11-member Commission would issue a report to address a series of challenges currently facing Native children. A Native Children Subcommittee would also provide advice to the Commission. The Commission's report would address how to achieve:

Better Use of Existing Resources -- The Commission would identify ways to streamline current federal, state, and local programs to be more effective and give tribes greater flexibility to devise programs for their communities in the spirit of self-determination and allow government agencies to redirect resources to the areas of most need.

Increased Coordination -- The Commission would seek to improve coordination of existing programs benefitting Native children. The federal government houses programs across numerous and varying agencies, yet these programs too often do not coordinate.

Measurable Outcomes -- The Commission would recommend measures to determine the wellbeing of Native children, and use these measurements to propose short-term, mid-term, and long-term national policy goals.

Stronger Data -- The Commission would seek to develop better data collection methods. Too often Native children are left out of the conversation because existing data collection, reporting, and analysis practices exclude them.

Stronger Private Sector Partnerships -- The Commission would seek to identify obstacles to public-private partnerships in Native communities.

Implementation of Best Practices -- The Commission would identify and highlight successful models that can be adopted in Native communities.

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