25 U.S.C. § 2907 — Survey on Native American languages

Page 528 TITLE 25—INDIANS § 2905 (Pub. L. 101–477, title I, § 105, Oct. 30, 1990, 104 Stat. 1155.) § 2905. Evaluations (a) The President shall direct the heads of the various Federal departments, agencies, and in- strumentalities to— (1) evaluate their policies and procedures in consultation with Indian tribes and other Na- tive American governing bodies as well as tra- ditional leaders and educators in order to de- termine and implement changes needed to bring the policies and procedures into compli- ance with the provisions of this chapter; (2) give the greatest effect possible in mak- ing such evaluations, absent a clear specific Federal statutory requirement to the con- trary, to the policies and procedures which will give the broadest effect to the provisions of this chapter; and (3) evaluate the laws which they administer and make recommendations to the President on amendments needed to bring such laws into compliance with the provisions of this chap- ter. (b) By no later than the date that is 1 year after October 30, 1990, the President shall submit to the Congress a report containing rec- ommendations for amendments to Federal laws that are needed to bring such laws into compli- ance with the provisions of this chapter. (c) Evaluation; report Not later than 1 year after January 5, 2023, the President shall— (1) require the heads of the various Federal departments, agencies, and instrumentalities to carry out an evaluation described in sub- section (a)(1); and (2) submit to Congress a report that de- scribes— (A) the results of the evaluations; and (B) the recommendations of the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the Secretary of Edu- cation, after consultation with Indian tribes, traditional leaders, and representatives of Native American language communities, for amendments to Federal laws that are need- ed— (i) to bring the Federal laws into compli- ance with this chapter; (ii) to improve interagency coordination for purposes of supporting revitalization, maintenance, and use of Native American languages; and (iii) to reduce duplication, inefficiencies, and barriers Native American language communities face in accessing Federal pro- grams to support efforts to revitalize, maintain, or increase the use of Native American languages. (Pub. L. 101–477, title I, § 106, Oct. 30, 1990, 104 Stat. 1156; Pub. L. 117–337, § 2(a), Jan. 5, 2023, 136 Stat. 6153.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT This chapter, referred to in subsec. (c)(2)(B)(i), was in the original ‘‘this Act’’ and was translated as reading ‘‘this title’’, meaning title I of Pub. L. 101–477, known as the Native American Languages Act, which is classi- fied generally to this chapter, to reflect the probable intent of Congress. AMENDMENTS 2023—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 117–337 added subsec. (c). § 2906. Use of English Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as precluding the use of Federal funds to teach English to Native Americans. (Pub. L. 101–477, title I, § 107, Oct. 30, 1990, 104 Stat. 1156.) § 2907. Survey on Native American languages (a) In general Not later than 18 months after January 5, 2023, and every 5 years thereafter, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Commissioner of the Administration for Native Americans (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Secretary’’), shall undertake a survey of the use of all Native American languages in the United States. (b) Updates Prior to conducting each subsequent survey after the initial survey under subsection (a), the Secretary shall update the survey in accordance with this section. (c) Consultation required The Secretary shall design the initial survey under subsection (a) and each updated survey under subsection (b)— (1) in consultation with Indian tribes; and (2) after considering feedback received from Native American language speakers and ex- perts. (d) Contents Each survey under subsection (a) shall so- licit— (1) information on which Native American languages are currently spoken; (2) estimates of the number of speakers of each Native American language; (3) any language usage statistics or informa- tion that the Secretary, in consultation with Indian tribes and Native American language speakers and experts, determines to be rel- evant and appropriate; (4) information on the types of Native Amer- ican language maintenance and revitalization projects and practices that are currently being carried out; (5) information on any unmet Native Amer- ican language resource needs of Indian tribes and Native American language communities; and (6) any other information that the Sec- retary, in consultation with Indian tribes and Native American language speakers and ex- perts, determines to be necessary. (e) Coordination The Secretary may coordinate, and enter into cooperative agreements with, the Director of the Bureau of the Census for the purposes of car- rying out this section. Page 529 TITLE 25—INDIANS § 3001 1 So in original. The period probably should be a comma. (f) Outreach and engagement (1) In general The Secretary shall carry out outreach and engagement activities to provide Indian tribes, Native American language commu- nities, and the public information about— (A) opportunities to provide input on the development and design of each survey under subsection (a), including information on the consultations required under sub- section (c); (B) the goals and purpose of the surveys conducted under subsection (a); and (C) the benefits and importance of partici- pation in surveys under subsection (a). (2) Grants, contracts, and cooperative agree- ments authorized The Secretary may carry out the outreach and engagement activities required under paragraph (1)— (A) directly; (B) in partnership with the Bureau of the Census; or (C) through grants to, or contracts or co- operative agreements with— (i) Indian tribes; (ii) tribal organizations; and (iii) nonprofit organizations that work with Indian tribes, Native American lan- guage programs, and Native American lan- guage communities. (g) Limitation Nothing in this section requires an Indian tribe, Native American language community, or Native American language speaker— (1) to participate in a survey under sub- section (a); or (2) to provide specific or culturally sensitive information in completing such a survey. (h) Availability of survey materials and findings (1) In general Not later than 1 year after January 5, 2023, and prior to conducting each survey under subsection (a), the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate and the Committees on Education and Labor and Natural Resources of the House of Rep- resentatives, and make publicly available, a description of— (A) the feedback received under subsection (c) on the design of the survey; (B) the form and content of the survey; (C) the plan for deploying the survey to en- sure a robust response; and (D) how the Secretary will ensure any sur- vey enumeration efforts are culturally in- formed and appropriate. (2) Results Not later than 90 days after the date on which analysis of each survey under sub- section (a) is completed, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate and the Committees on Education and Labor and Natural Resources of the House of Representatives, and make publicly avail- able, the results of the survey. (i) Authorization of appropriations There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $1,500,000 for each fiscal year— (1) preceding a fiscal year during which a survey under subsection (a) is conducted; and (2) during which a survey under that sub- section is conducted. (Pub. L. 101–477, title I, § 108, as added Pub. L. 117–337, § 2(b), Jan. 5, 2023, 136 Stat. 6153.) Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries CHANGE OF NAME Committee on Education and Labor of House of Rep- resentatives changed to Committee on Education and the Workforce of House of Representatives by House Resolution No. 5, One Hundred Eighteenth Congress, Jan. 9, 2023. CHAPTER 32—NATIVE AMERICAN GRAVES PROTECTION AND REPATRIATION Sec. 3001. Definitions. 3002. Ownership. 3003. Inventory for human remains and associated funerary objects. 3004. Summary for unassociated funerary objects, sacred objects, and cultural patrimony. 3005. Repatriation. 3006. Review committee. 3007. Penalty. 3008. Grants. 3009. Savings provision. 3010. Special relationship between Federal Govern- ment and Indian tribes and Native Hawai- ian organizations. 3011. Regulations. 3012. Authorization of appropriations. 3013. Enforcement. § 3001. Definitions For purposes of this chapter, the term— (1) ‘‘burial site’’ means any natural or pre- pared physical location, whether originally below, on, or above the surface of the earth, into which as a part of the death rite or cere- mony of a culture, individual human remains are deposited. (2) ‘‘cultural affiliation’’ means that there is a relationship of shared group identity which can be reasonably traced historically or prehistorically between a present day Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian organization and an identifiable earlier group. (3) ‘‘cultural items’’ means human remains and— (A) ‘‘associated funerary objects’’ which shall mean objects that, as a part of the death rite or ceremony of a culture, are rea- sonably believed to have been placed with individual human remains either at the time of death or later, and both the human re- mains and associated funerary objects are presently in the possession or control of a Federal agency or museum, except that other items exclusively made for burial pur- poses or to contain human remains shall be considered as associated funerary objects.1 (B) ‘‘unassociated funerary objects’’ which shall mean objects that, as a part of the death rite or ceremony of a culture, are rea- sonably believed to have been placed with individual human remains either at the time