,,ii #aaeth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #ffj ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,march #ae1 #bjag,mr4 ,gardner 7for himself and ,mr4 ,bennet7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,health1 ,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions ,a ,,bill ,to amend the ,higher ,education ,act of #aife in order to fulfill the ,federal mandate to provide higher educational opportunities for ,native ,american ,indians4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,native ,american ,indian ,education ,act4 #b4 ,purpose ,it is the purpose of this ,act to ensure that ,federal funding is provided to support and sustain the longstanding ,federal mandate requiring colleges and ,states to waive1 in certain circumstances1 tuition charges for ,native ,american ,indian students they admit to an undergraduate college program1 including the waiver of tuition charges for ,native ,american ,indian students who are not residents of the ,state in which the college is located4 #c4 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,native ,american-serving nontribal college institutions have a valuable supplemental role to that provided by tribally controlled community colleges in making available educational opportunities to ,native ,american ,indian students4 7#b7 ,some #d-year ,native ,american-serving nontribal college institutions provide tuition-free education1 with the support of the ,state in which they are located1 as mandated by ,federal statute1 to hundreds of ,native ,american ,indian students in fulfillment of a condition under which the ,united ,states provided land and facilities for such colleges to a ,state or college4 7#c7 ,the value of the ,native student tuition waiver benefits contributed by these colleges and the ,states which support them today far exceeds the value of the original grant of land and facilities4 7#d7 ,the ongoing financial burden of meeting this ,federal mandate to provide tuition-free education to ,native ,american ,indian students is no longer equitably shared among the ,states and colleges because the mandate does not distinguish between such students who are residents of the ,state or who are residents of another ,state4 7#e7 ,native student tuition waiver benefits are now at risk of being terminated by severe budget constraints being experienced by these colleges and the ,states which support them4 #d4 ,state relief from ,federal higher education mandate 7a7 ,in general ,part ,a of title ,,iii of the ,higher ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #ajeg et seq47 is amended by inserting after section #cai the following3 #cai;,a4 ,state relief from ,federal higher education mandate 7a7 ,amount of payment ,for fiscal year #bjah and each succeeding fiscal year through fiscal year #bjbb1 the ,secretary may pay to any eligible college an amount that equals the charges for tuition waived by the college 7as described in subsection 7e77#a77 for the academic year ending before the beginning of such fiscal year for ,native ,american ,indian students who were enrolled in the college for such academic year and who were not residents of the ,state in which the college is located during such academic year4 7b7 ,treatment of payment ,any amounts received by an eligible college under subsection 7a7 shall be treated as a reimbursement from the ,state in which the college is located1 which is provided in fulfillment of any ,federal mandate upon the ,state to waive charges for tuition for ,native ,american ,indian students4 7c7 ,rule of construction ,nothing in this section shall be construed to relieve any ,state from any mandate the ,state may have under ,federal law to reimburse an eligible college for an academic year-- 7#a7 with respect to ,native ,american ,indian students enrolled in the college who are not residents of the ,state in which the college is located1 any amount of charges for tuition waived by the college for such students that exceeds the amount received by the college under subsection 7a7 for such academic year2 and 7#b7 with respect to ,native ,american ,indian students enrolled in the college who are residents of the ,state in which the college is located1 an amount equal to the charges for tuition waived by the college for such students for such academic year4 7d7 ,applicability 7#a7 ,in general ,the provisions of any other section of this part or part ,g shall not apply with respect to funds paid under this section4 7#b7 ,no effect on eligibility ,funds received by a ,native ,american-serving1 nontribal institution under this section shall not be taken into account for purposes of section #cai7;d77#c77;,a74 7e7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,eligible college ,the term eligible college means any #d-year ,native ,american-serving1 nontribal institution that waives the charges for tuition as mandated by ,federal statute1 with the support of the ,state in which the institution is located1 for ,native ,american ,indian students in fulfillment of a condition under which the institution or ,state received its original grant of land and facilities from the ,united ,states4 7#b7 ,native ,american ,indian students ,the term ,native ,american ,indian students includes reference to the term ,indian pupils as that term has been utilized in ,federal statutes imposing a mandate upon any eligible college or ,state to waive charges for tuition for ,native ,american ,indian students in fulfillment of a condition under which the college or ,state received its original grant of land and facilities from the ,united ,states4 7#c7 ,native ,american-serving1 nontribal institution ,the term ,native ,american-serving1 nontribal institution has the meaning given the term in section #cai7;b74 7f7 ,supplement1 not supplant ,funds under this section shall be used to supplement1 not supplant1 any ,federal or non-,federal funds that would otherwise be used for ,indian education programs4 4 7b7 ,authorization ,section #cii7;a77#a7 of the ,higher ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #ajfh;h7a77#a77 is amended-- 7#a7 by redesignating subparagraph 7,f7 as subparagraph 7,g72 and 7#b7 by inserting after subparagraph 7,e7 the following3 7,f7 ,there are authorized to be appropriated to carry out section #cai;,a1 #ag1djj1jjj for each of fiscal years #bjah through #bjbb4 4