BADGES Act Boosts Tribal Law Enforcement Resources and Creates Missing Persons Facilitator Role

The Bridging Agency Data Gaps and Ensuring Safety for Native Communities Act, or BADGES Act, is a major overhaul aimed squarely at improving public safety and justice coordination in Indian Country. At its core, this legislation focuses on fixing long-standing data gaps and resource shortages that have made investigating serious crimes—like missing persons, murders, and sexual violence—significantly harder for Native communities. It’s about getting the right people the right resources and making sure federal agencies are actually talking to each other.

The Friend Who Reads the Fine Print: Data Gaps and Coordination

One of the biggest changes is the creation of a Tribal Facilitator role within the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (SEC. 101). Think of this person as the dedicated point-of-contact whose entire job is to make sure cases involving Native Americans—whether a missing person or unidentified remains found near or on Indian land—actually get reported into the national system. They will provide technical training to Tribal justice officials and coroners, helping them navigate the system and coordinate with non-Tribal law enforcement. For families dealing with the agony of a missing loved one, this new role is designed to cut through bureaucratic red tape and ensure their case doesn’t slip through the cracks due to jurisdictional confusion.

Crucially, the Act also sets up a Missing or Murdered Response Coordination Grant Program (SEC. 202). This grant authorizes $1 million annually from 2026 through 2030 and allows Tribes, Tribal organizations, or States partnered with Tribes to establish tracking centers and regional commissions. The goal is better coordination between federal, Tribal, State, and local agencies when investigating these sensitive cases. If a State wants this funding, they must prove they are already reporting missing persons data nationally or have a plan to start, and they need signed agreements (MOUs) with their partner Tribes for data sharing.

Staffing and Streamlining the Front Line

If you’ve ever waited for a federal agency to hire someone, you know the process can take forever. The BADGES Act tries to fix this for the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) law enforcement with a 5-year demonstration program for background checks (SEC. 201). The Secretary of the Interior can now conduct or approve background investigations and security clearances for BIA law enforcement applicants themselves, rather than relying solely on the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). This is a practical move designed to speed up the hiring process for critical law enforcement jobs in Tribal areas. The clearance granted under this pilot program will count as the official federal clearance, which should shave months off the timeline.

To make sure the right staff are being hired, the bill also mandates detailed reporting on resource needs (SEC. 102). The Department of Justice (DOJ) must now provide an annual report detailing exactly how many full-time employees (FTEs) they have assigned to Indian Country investigations, the percentage of time those FTEs actually spend there, and the turnover rate. They also have to estimate how many skilled employees they need to do the job right. This isn't just paperwork; it’s a required resource assessment that forces the DOJ to publicly detail its staffing shortages, hopefully leading to better funding and hiring strategies down the line.

Evidence and Officer Wellness

Two other sections tackle systemic issues. First, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) is directed to conduct a study on how the BIA and FBI collect and handle evidence in Indian Country cases (SEC. 203). The study must specifically investigate if barriers in evidence handling are contributing to U.S. Attorneys declining to prosecute cases due to insufficient evidence. This is a critical look at whether procedural issues are undermining justice.

Second, the Act recognizes the immense stress on officers. It requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Attorney General to coordinate on making culturally appropriate mental health and wellness programs available for BIA and Tribal law enforcement officers (SEC. 204). This acknowledges that officers dealing with high rates of trauma and serious crime need dedicated, accessible support that respects their cultural context. It’s a necessary step toward addressing burnout and improving officer retention.

Overall, the BADGES Act focuses on practical fixes—better data, faster hiring, and mandatory resource assessments—to strengthen the foundation of public safety across Native communities.