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S 390

A JOINT RESOLUTION TO APPROVE REGULATIONS OF THE STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION, RELATING TO ASSESSMENT PROGRAM, DESIGNATED AS

2025-2026 Regular Session

Improves Native safety by closing data gaps for missing persons, expanding NamUs support, and funding a 5-year BIA background-check demo and a $5M DOJ grant program.

Recommitted to Committee on Education
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Bill Summary · S 390

Summary — S. 390: Bridging Agency Data Gaps and Ensuring Safety (BADGES) for Native Communities Act

Status (select): Introduced Feb 4, 2025; referred to Senate Committee on Indian Affairs; reported favorably by committee (S. Rept. 119‑53) July 31, 2025; placed on Senate Legislative Calendar (Calendar No. 138). Companion/related: H.R. 1010 (companion).

Note on source materials: The bill text and Senate report accompanying S. 390 establish the “BADGES for Native Communities Act.” Some documents provided alongside the bill materials appear unrelated (state/docket items). This summary reflects the federal S. 390 as reported by the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs.

Purpose

To improve public safety and justice in Indian Country by (1) closing law‑enforcement data gaps that hinder investigations of missing and murdered Indigenous people, (2) strengthening interagency coordination and investigative capacity, and (3) streamlining federal background checks to support recruitment and retention of Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and Tribal law enforcement officers.

Key provisions

  • Title I — Bridging agency data gaps

    • Directs the Attorney General to appoint one or more Tribal facilitators for the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) to assist Tribes with NamUs navigation and outreach.
    • Updates federal reporting requirements on Indian Country law‑enforcement personnel resources and unmet staffing needs (reporting under the Indian Law Enforcement Reform Act/TLOA).

  • Title II — Ensuring safety for Native communities

    • Authorizes a 5‑year BIA demonstration program allowing the BIA (through its Office of Justice Services) to conduct background investigations and security clearance determinations for BIA law enforcement positions (currently, BIA relies on OPM and has limited authority only to conduct checks for Tribal officers under certain agreements).
    • Establishes a Missing or Murdered Response Coordination Grant Program at DOJ: a $5 million program over five years to enhance responses to missing persons, sexual violence, and death investigations of interest to Tribes.
    • Requires the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to review unmet staffing identified by DOJ law enforcement agencies working on Indian Country cases and to study evidence collection, handling, and processing practices for criminal cases in Indian Country.
    • Improves interagency coordination for training resources and mental‑health/wellness programs for BIA and Tribal law enforcement officers.

Who is affected

  • Tribal governments and Tribal law enforcement agencies (capacity, access to NamUs assistance and federal grants).
  • Bureau of Indian Affairs (authority to run a background‑check demonstration program; OJS operational changes).
  • Department of Justice and NamUs (appointment of Tribal facilitators; grant administration).
  • Federal agencies involved in background investigations (OPM, FBI) and GAO (directed reviews/studies).
  • Families and communities affected by missing or murdered Indigenous persons (improved response capacity).
  • Potential beneficiaries include Tribal victims’ advocates, forensic/medical examiners, and state/local LEAs interacting with Tribal communities.

Procedural / timeline highlights

  • Introduced: Feb 4, 2025.
  • Committee action: Reported favorably by the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs (March 5, 2025 business meeting; written report No. 119‑53 filed July 31, 2025).
  • Demonstration programs and grant program durations specified as five years in the bill text.
  • GAO reviews/studies are directed but the bill text does not set explicit statutory deadlines beyond standard GAO timelines (see full text/report for exact requirements).

Potential impact and limitations

  • Expected benefits: better data access and navigation for Tribes (NamUs), increased investigative capacity through targeted grants, and faster hiring/retention if BIA background checks shorten timelines.
  • Constraints/limitations: participation in some national systems (e.g., NamUs, NCIC access via Tribal Access Program) has been optional or dependent on TAP participation — the bill helps navigation and outreach but does not automatically grant system access to all Tribes. Funding in the grant program ($5 million over five years) is modest relative to need; structural and legal barriers to interagency data sharing may persist and may require further legislative or administrative fixes.

Related/companion measures

  • Companion in House: H.R. 1010.
  • Prior and related Senate bills addressing similar issues appear in the legislative history (see report for cross‑references).

For full statutory language, section‑by‑section analysis, and committee report context, see S. Rept. 119‑53 and the bill text as reported by the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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