,,ii #aaeth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 #cgee ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,december #ac1 #bjah ,mr4 ,hoeven 7for himself and ,mr4 ,udall7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,indian ,affairs ,a ,,bill ,to establish a demonstration program regarding background checks for certain employees of the ,bureau of ,indian ,affairs4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,background ,investigation ,authorization ,demonstration ,act4 #b4 ,demonstration program on ,,bia employment back ground checks 7a7 ,establishment of program 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary of the ,interior 7referred to in this section as the ,secretary7 shall establish a demonstration program for the purpose of conducting or adjudicating1 in coordination with the ,director of the ,bureau of ,indian ,affairs1 personnel background investigations for applicants for law enforcement positions in the ,bureau of ,indian ,affairs4 7#b7 ,background investigations and security clearance determinations 7,a7 ,,bia investigations ,as part of the demonstration program established under paragraph 7#a71 the ,secretary1 through the ,office of ,justice ,services1 may carry out a background investigation1 security clearance determination1 or both a background investigation and a security clearance determination for an applicant for a law enforcement position in the ,bureau of ,indian ,affairs4 7,b7 ,use of previous investigations and determinations 7i7 ,in ,general ,subject to clause 7ii71 as part of the demonstration program established under paragraph 7#a71 the ,secretary1 in adjudicating background investigations for applicants for law enforcement positions in the ,bureau of ,indian ,affairs1 shall consider previous background investigations for an applicant1 security clearance determinations for an applicant1 or both background investigations and security clearance determinations for an applicant1 as the case may be1 that have been conducted by a ,state1 local1 or ,tribal ,government1 or by the ,bureau of ,indian ,affairs1 within the #e-year period preceding the application for employment with the ,bureau of ,indian ,affairs4 7ii7 ,quality ,the ,secretary shall only consider previous background investigations and security clearance determinations for an applicant that have been conducted by a ,state1 local1 or ,tribal ,government if the ,secretary can verify that those previous investigations and determinations1 as the case may be1 are of a comparable quality and thoroughness to investigations and determinations carried out by the ,bureau of ,indian ,affairs1 the ,office of ,personnel ,management1 or another ,federal agency4 7iii7 ,additional investigation ,if1 as described in clause 7i71 the ,secretary considers an existing background investigation1 security clearance determination1 or both1 as the case may be1 for an applicant that has been carried out by a ,state1 local1 or ,tribal ,government1 or by the ,bureau of ,indian ,affairs1 the ,secretary-- 7,i7 may carry out additional investigation and examination of the applicant if the ,secretary determines that such additional information is needed in order to make an appropriate determination as to the character and trustworthiness of the applicant before final adjudication can be made and a security clearance can be issued2 and 7,,ii7 shall not initiate a new background investigation process with the ,national ,background ,investigations ,bureau or other ,federal agency unless that new background investigation process covers a period of time that was not covered by a previous background investigation process4 7iv7 ,agreements ,the ,secretary may enter into a ,memorandum of ,agreement with a ,state1 local1 or ,tribal ,government to develop steps to expedite the process of receiving and obtaining access to background investigation and security clearance determinations for use in the demonstration program4 7#c7 ,sunset ,the demonstration program established under this section shall terminate #e years after the date of the commencement of the program4 7b7 ,sufficiency ,notwithstanding any other provision of law1 a background investigation conducted or adjudicated by the ,secretary pursuant to the demonstration program authorized in subsection 7a7 that results in the granting of a security clearance to an applicant for a law enforcement position in the ,bureau of ,indian ,affairs shall be sufficient to meet the applicable requirements of the ,office of ,personnel ,management or other ,federal agency for such investigations4 7c7 ,annual report ,the ,secretary shall submit an annual report to the ,committee on ,indian ,affairs of the ,senate and the ,committee on ,natural ,resources of the ,house of ,representatives on the demonstration program established under subsection 7a71 which shall include a description of-- 7#a7 the demonstration program and any relevant annual changes or updates to the program2 7#b7 the number of background investigations carried out under the program2 7#c7 the costs1 including any cost savings1 associated with the investigation and adjudication process under the program2 7#d7 the processing times for the investigation and adjudication processes under the program2 7#e7 any ,memoranda of ,agreement entered into with ,state1 local1 or ,tribal ,governments2 and 7#f7 any other information that the ,secretary determines to be relevant4 7d7 ,,gao study and report 7#a7 ,initial report ,not later than #ah months after the beginning of the demonstration program under this section1 the ,comptroller ,general of the ,united ,states shall prepare and submit to ,congress an initial report on such demonstration program4 7#b7 ,final report ,not later than #c years after the beginning of the demonstration program under this section1 the ,comptroller ,general of the ,united ,states shall prepare and submit to ,congress a final report on such demonstration program4 7#c7 ,tribal input ,in preparing the reports under this subsection1 the ,comptroller ,general shall prioritize input from ,indian ,tribes regarding the demonstration program under this section4