H.Res. 1257

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1257 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. RES. 1257

Expressing support for the designation of May 5, 2026, as the 
``National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women 
and Girls''.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

May 4, 2026

Mr. Newhouse (for himself, Ms. Leger Fernandez, Ms. Salazar, Ms. 
Bonamici, Mr. Thompson of California, Mr. Johnson of South Dakota, Mr. 
Case, Mrs. Fedorchak, Mr. Simpson, Mr. Ellzey, Mr. Hurd of Colorado, 
Mrs. Bice, Mr. Biggs of Arizona, and Mr. Crane) submitted the following 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, 
and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

RESOLUTION

Expressing support for the designation of May 5, 2026, as the 
``National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women 
and Girls''.

Whereas, according to 2017 data, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 
found homicide was the sixth-leading cause of death for American Indian 
and Alaska Native women and girls under 44 years of age, with murder 
rates more than 10 times the national average;
Whereas approximately 1,500 American Indian and Alaska Native missing persons 
have been entered into the National Crime Information Center index 
throughout the United States, and approximately 2,700 cases of murder 
and nonnegligent homicide offenses have been reported to the Federal 
Government's Uniform Crime Reporting Program;
Whereas, according to a 2020 joint study completed by the State of Hawai'i and 
the Hawai'i State Commission on the Status of Women, 64 percent of human 
trafficking victims in Hawai'i identified as at least part Native 
Hawaiian;
Whereas, in 2020, Savanna's Act (Public Law 116-165) and the Not Invisible Act 
(Public Law 116-166) were signed into law, which initiated a joint 
commission between the Department of the Interior (DOI) and the DOJ to 
combat violent crime within Tribal communities and develop new law 
enforcement protocols when investigating MMIW;
Whereas, in 2021, the DOI created a Missing and Murdered Unit within its Bureau 
of Indian Affairs' Office of Justice Services to expand cross-
departmental and interagency collaboration for the purposes of 
investigating cases of missing and murdered Indigenous people at the 
request of Tribal leadership;
Whereas, in 2022, the DOI fulfilled a provision in the Not Invisible Act 
requiring the establishment of the Not Invisible Act Commission by 
filling membership with law enforcement, Tribal leaders, Federal 
partners, service providers, family members of MMIW, and survivors and 
held their first meeting;
Whereas, in 2023, the Not Invisible Act Commission submitted recommendations to 
the DOJ, DOI, and Congress to address the epidemic of missing persons 
and the murder and trafficking of American Indian and Alaska Native 
peoples;
Whereas, in response to the commission's recommendations, the DOJ highlighted 
the MMIW regional outreach program to aid the U.S. Attorney's Offices to 
update Savanna's Act guidelines to provide further training and 
technical assistance to State agencies and provide uniformity in 
guidelines across jurisdictions;
Whereas, despite progress that has been made, in 2024, 5,614 Indigenous Women 
and Girls were reported missing. Of these 5,614 reports, 4,179 victims 
were under the age of 18, and at the end of 2024, there were 628 active 
missing person records;
Whereas research data shows that national averages hide the extremely high rates 
of murder against Indigenous women and girls present in some counties 
comprised primarily of tribal land; and
Whereas, in previous years, May 5 has been designated as the day of remembrance 
for ``Missing and Murdered Native Women and Girls'' in honor of the 
birth date of Hanna Harris, a member of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe, who 
was murdered after being reported missing by her family in Lame Deer, 
Montana: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) expresses support for the designation of a ``National 
Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and 
Girls'';
(2) calls on the people of the United States and interested 
groups to--
(A) commemorate the lives of missing and murdered 
Indigenous women and girls whose cases are documented 
and undocumented in public records and the media; and
(B) demonstrate solidarity with the families of 
victims in light of those tragedies;
(3) recommends that the Department of Justice's National 
Institute of Justice commission a new study with focused data 
on missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls to ensure 
up-to-date statistics are made public regarding the current 
state of the missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls 
crisis given 9 years have passed since their 2016 study was 
published; and
(4) recognizes that, despite the positive efforts made, 
there is more work to be done to address this nationwide 
crisis.
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