Native American Seeds Protection Act of 2019

II 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 2241 To provide for a study on the protection of Native American seeds and traditional foods, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES JULY 23, 2019 Mr. HEINRICH (for himself and Ms. MCSALLY) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs A BILL To provide for a study on the protection of Native American seeds and traditional foods, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Native American Seeds 4 Protection Act of 2019’’. 5 SEC. 2. STUDY ON THE PROTECTION OF NATIVE AMERICAN 6 SEEDS AND TRADITIONAL FOODS. 7 Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 8 of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 9 shall conduct a study on— 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:45 Jul 27, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2241.IS S2241 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 2241 IS (1) the extent to which seeds and foods that 1 mimic Native American seeds or traditional foods 2 are available in the commercial marketplace and are 3 fraudulently identified as authentic Native American 4 seeds or traditional foods, as of the date of enact- 5 ment of this Act; 6 (2) the availability and long-term viability of 7 Native American seeds, including an analysis of the 8 storage, cultivation, harvesting, and commercializa- 9 tion of such seeds; 10 (3) the extent to which Federal law, Federal 11 programs, or Federal oversight protect Native Amer- 12 ican seeds and traditional foods from infringement, 13 or unlawful or unauthorized commercialization; and 14 (4) the means by which authentic Native Amer- 15 ican seeds and traditional foods might be protected 16 to ensure preservation and availability for future 17 generations. 18 SEC. 3. CONFIDENTIALITY; FOIA; OWNERSHIP. 19 (a) CONFIDENTIALITY.—The Comptroller General of 20 the United States shall ensure the confidentiality of sen- 21 sitive information of Indian Tribes that is gained through 22 the study conducted under section 2, including traditional 23 cultural knowledge and information about locations that 24 are considered to be sacred by an Indian Tribe. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:45 Jul 27, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2241.IS S2241 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 2241 IS (b) FOIA NOT APPLICABLE.—The information de- 1 scribed in subsection (a) shall be exempt from public dis- 2 closure under section 552 of title 5, United States Code 3 (commonly known as the ‘‘Freedom of Information Act’’). 4 (c) INDIAN OWNERSHIP.—Nothing in this Act shall 5 be construed as interfering with, limiting, or otherwise af- 6 fecting the exclusive ownership and control of Native 7 American seeds by an Indian Tribe unless the Indian 8 Tribe consents to the ownership or control of such seeds 9 by another entity. 10 SEC. 4. DEFINITION OF INDIAN TRIBE. 11 In this Act, the term ‘‘Indian Tribe’’ has the meaning 12 given the term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ (without regard to capital- 13 ization) in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and 14 Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 15 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:45 Jul 27, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S2241.IS S2241 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS