Native American Children's Safety Act
Public Law 114-165 · S. 184 · 114th Congress · began in the Senate
Signed by Barack Obama (D) on Jun 3, 2016 · Native Americans
Sponsor: Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND)
Cosponsors (2): Sen. Jon Tester, Sen. Heidi Heitkamp
Passage votes
- HouseVoice vote
- SenateUnanimous consent
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
Native American Children's Safety Act
Amends the Indian Child Protection and Family Violence Prevention Act to prohibit the final approval of any foster care placement or a foster care license from being issued until the tribal social services agency: (1) completes a criminal records check of each covered individual who resides in the household or is employed at the institution in which the foster care placement will be made, and (2) concludes that each of those individuals meets the tribe's standards established pursuant to this Act. Defines a "covered individual" as an adult and any other individual the tribe determines is subject to a criminal records check.
Requires the Tribe's standards to include requirements that each tribal social services agency: (1) perform criminal records checks, including fingerprint-based checks of national crime information databases; (2) check any abuse registries maintained by the Indian tribe; (3) check any child abuse and neglect registry maintained by the state, and any tribal abuse registries maintained in the state, in which the individual resides; (4) request any other state in which the individual resided during the preceding five years to enable the agency to check its registry; and (5) any other additional requirements that the Indian tribe determines is necessary and permissible within its existing authority, such as the creation of voluntary agreements with state entities in order to facilitate the sharing of information related to the performance of criminal records checks.
Prohibits a foster care placement from being ordered if the investigation reveals that a covered individual has been found guilty by a federal, state, or tribal court of a felony involving child abuse or neglect, spousal abuse, a crime against a child, violence, or drugs.
Exempts emergency foster care placements from such requirements.
Requires Indian tribes to establish procedures to recertify homes or institutions in which foster care placements are made.
Directs the Department of the Interior to issue guidance regarding: (1) procedures for a criminal records check of any covered individual who resides in the home or is employed at the institution in which the child is placed after the investigations that preceded that placement occurred, (2) self-reporting requirements for foster care homes or institutions that have knowledge that a covered individual residing on their premises would fail a criminal records check, (3) promising practices used by Indian tribes to address emergency foster care placements, and (4) procedures for certifying compliance with the Indian Child Protection and Family Violence Prevention Act.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Related bills
1 bill the Library of Congress relates to this one.
H.R. 1168Identical billRelated bill
Native American Children's Safety Act
Data notes
Related bills are identified by the Congressional Research Service, the House and the Senate: companion and identical bills, bills with similar text, bills that were folded into this law, and rules that brought it to the floor. A bill that is itself a public law in this site’s data links here; the others link to Congress.gov.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 17 actions.
- Jun 3, 2016Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 114-165.
- Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- May 27, 2016FloorFloor · Presented to President.
- May 23, 2016FloorFloor · Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- FloorFloor · On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote.
- FloorFloor · DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on S. 184.
- FloorFloor · Considered under suspension of the rules.
- FloorFloor · Mr. Cook moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
- Jun 1, 2015FloorFloor · Held at the desk.
- FloorFloor · Message on Senate action sent to the House.
- FloorFloor · Received in the House.
- FloorFloor · Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent.
- May 11, 2015CalendarCalendar · Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 77.
- CommitteeCommittee · Committee on Indian Affairs. Reported by Senator Barrasso without amendment. With written report No. 114-37.
- Feb 4, 2015CommitteeCommittee · Committee on Indian Affairs. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.
- Jan 16, 2015CommitteeCommittee · Read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs.
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in Senate
Data notes
Every action the Library of Congress lists for the bill, from introduction to signing, plus the dated committee hearings. The source lists many steps twice (the chamber’s own entry and the Library of Congress copy, or a presidential and a became-law entry with the same words); those are shown once. Amendments are listed in their own section.
Amendments
No amendments to this bill are on record.
Data notes
Amendments offered to this bill in either chamber, as the Library of Congress records them: each with a status read from its last recorded step: agreed to, rejected, withdrawn, ruled out of order, fell with another amendment, or offered with no vote recorded (most Senate amendments are only ever offered). The wording of each amendment is the source’s. Amendments to amendments and amendments to other bills are not listed.
Official record
The bill’s full text is on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.