Savanna's Act
Public Law 116-165 · S. 227 · 116th Congress · began in the Senate
Signed by Donald Trump (R) on Oct 10, 2020 · Native Americans
Sponsor: Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK)
Cosponsors (29): Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, Sen. Maria Cantwell,
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.
Savanna's Act
This bill directs the Department of Justice (DOJ) to review, revise, and develop law enforcement and justice protocols to address missing or murdered Native Americans.
The bill requires DOJ to
• provide training to law enforcement agencies on how to record tribal enrollment for victims in federal databases;
• develop and implement a strategy to educate the public on the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System;
• conduct specific outreach to 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;
• develop regionally appropriate guidelines for response to cases of missing or murdered Native Americans;
• provide training and technical assistance to tribes and law enforcement agencies for implementation of the developed guidelines; and
• report statistics on missing or murdered Native Americans.
Tribes may submit their own guidelines to DOJ that respond to cases of missing or murdered Native Americans.
Additionally, the bill authorizes DOJ to provide grants for the purposes of (1) developing and implementing policies and protocols for law enforcement regarding cases of missing or murdered Native Americans, and (2) compiling and annually reporting data relating to missing or murdered Native Americans.
Federal law enforcement agencies must modify their guidelines to incorporate the guidelines developed by DOJ.
Finally, the Federal Bureau of Investigation must include gender in its annual statistics on missing and unidentified persons published on its website.
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
2 bills the Library of Congress relates to this one.
H.R. 2733Related bill
Savanna’s Act
S. 2920Related bill
A bill to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act of 1994, and for other purposes.
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. 19 actions.
- Oct 10, 2020Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 116-165.
- Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- Sep 30, 2020FloorFloor · Presented to President.
- Sep 21, 2020FloorFloor · 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. 227.
- FloorFloor · Considered under suspension of the rules.
- FloorFloor · Ms. Scanlon moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
- Mar 12, 2020FloorFloor · Held at the desk.
- FloorFloor · Received in the House.
- FloorFloor · Message on Senate action sent to the House.
- Mar 11, 2020FloorFloor · Passed Senate with an amendment by Unanimous Consent.
- Jan 15, 2020CalendarCalendar · Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 407.
- CommitteeCommittee · Committee on Indian Affairs. Reported by Senator Hoeven with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 116-206.
- Nov 20, 2019CommitteeCommittee · Committee on Indian Affairs. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
- Jun 19, 2019CommitteeCommittee · Committee on Indian Affairs. Hearings held.
- CommitteeCommittee · Hearings by Senate Indian Affairs Committee
- Jan 25, 2019CommitteeCommittee · 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.