BADGES for Native Communities Act

The bill would take several steps to improve federal and tribal responses to missing, murdered, and unidentified Native Americans. The Attorney General would appoint one or more tribal facilitators for the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System to coordinate reporting, provide technical assistance to tribes and tribal organizations, and improve data tracking. The Department of Justice would submit annual reports to Congress detailing staffing levels, vacancies, and hiring strategies for each DOJ law enforcement agency working criminal cases in Indian country. The Department of the Interior would run a five-year demonstration program allowing it to conduct or adjudicate background investigations for BIA law enforcement applicants rather than relying solely on the current federal process. A new DOJ grant program would fund tribes, tribal organizations, and states to build coordination centers, establish inter-agency commissions, and develop rapid-alert systems for missing persons and death investigation cases.

The bill would also direct DOJ and the Department of Health and Human Services to coordinate to make culturally appropriate mental health and wellness programs available to BIA and tribal law enforcement officers. Two separate GAO studies would examine evidence collection and handling practices of federal agencies in Indian country, and staffing shortfalls at DOJ Indian country law enforcement units.

Tribal nations and tribal organizations eligible to apply for the new coordination grants; Bureau of Indian Affairs law enforcement applicants who would move through a potentially faster background check process; BIA and tribal law enforcement officers who would gain access to mental health and wellness resources; families of missing or murdered Native Americans who depend on improved tracking and coordination; and DOJ and Interior agencies that would face new reporting and administrative responsibilities.

Native American communities experience disproportionately high rates of missing persons, homicides, and unresolved cases. If enacted, the bill would create new federal infrastructure — facilitators, grants, reporting mandates, and interagency coordination — to address data gaps and administrative barriers that advocates and investigators say have allowed cases to go unresolved. The GAO studies could also provide a fact-based foundation for future legislative action.

The Attorney General would appoint tribal facilitators for the national missing persons database and submit annual public and congressional reports on their activities for three years. DOJ agencies would submit annual staffing reports, and the GAO would review those findings within 18 months of the first report. Interior would stand up the background-check demonstration program and report to Congress at the three-year mark. The Office of Justice Programs would administer the coordination grants, with Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and state-tribal consortia as eligible recipients; states must demonstrate they report to national crime databases or plan to do so. HHS and DOJ would coordinate to assess and expand mental health program eligibility for tribal and BIA officers.