# 119-s-4638: Promoting Strong Native Families and Children Act

119-s-4638, Promoting Strong Native Families and Children Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Murkowski, Lisa [R-AK] (R-AK); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-07-25).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-4638
- As of: 2026-07-25
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-4638
- Congress: 119
- Title: Promoting Strong Native Families and Children Act
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-05-21
- Sponsor: Sen. Murkowski, Lisa [R-AK] (R-AK)
- Cosponsors: 4
- Policy area: Native Americans
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-07-25

## Summary

**Expands tribal funding and control over federal child welfare programs.** This bill boosts dedicated money for tribes, creates direct access to social services block grants, lets tribes run prevention-only programs, and allows states to count tribal caseworker visits when agreed and reported.

## Cosponsors (4)

- Sen. Cortez Masto, Catherine [D-NV] (D-NV), 2026-05-21T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Schatz, Brian [D-HI] (D-HI), 2026-05-21T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Luján, Ben Ray [D-NM] (D-NM), 2026-05-21T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Sullivan, Dan [R-AK] (R-AK), 2026-06-11T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- New tribal share of Social Services funds: benefit, high. If enacted, the bill would add about $1.79 billion for FY2026 and each year to the Social Services Block Grant pot. Five percent of that pot would be reserved for Indian tribes and consortia. Each approved tribe would get at least $25,000 plus a population-based share of the remaining reserved amou…
- Bigger tribal share of child-welfare funds: benefit, medium. If enacted, the bill would raise several tribal set-asides in child welfare programs from 3% to 5% starting the first fiscal year after enactment. It would also require each tribe with an approved plan to receive at least $5,000 from the reserved funds. After $5,000 per tribe, the remaining reserve…
- Tribes could fund customary adoptions: benefit, low. If enacted, the bill would allow tribes and tribal consortia to use child welfare grant money to facilitate and support tribal customary adoptions. That means tribes could pay for cultural adoption practices they recognize. The bill does not itself add new standalone funding for this purpose.
- More funding for tribal courts: benefit, low. If enacted, the bill would raise the Tribal Court Improvement Program appropriation to $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2026 and each year after. This replaces an earlier $2,000,000 multi-year level and raises the program's annual funding floor. The increase is intended to support tribal courts working o…
- More tribal financial and reporting flexibility: benefit, low. If enacted, the bill would let tribal organizations elect to use Federal negotiated indirect cost rates for administrative costs instead of fixed percentage caps. The Secretary could waive or modify matching requirements for tribes on certain child welfare grants when appropriate to tribal needs an…

## Related bills

- 119-s-1748: Kids Online Safety Act
- 119-s-5354: Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Modernization Act of 2026
- 119-s-410: Love Lives On Act of 2025
- 119-s-524: Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2025
- 119-s-1261: CONNECT for Health Act of 2025
- 119-s-306: Fire Ready Nation Act of 2025

## Sources
- [119-s-4638 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/4638)

## Related
- [119-s-1748: Kids Online Safety Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1748)
- [119-s-5354: Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Modernization Act of…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5354)
- [119-s-410: Love Lives On Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-410)
- [119-s-524: Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-524)
- [119-s-1261: CONNECT for Health Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1261)
- [119-s-306: Fire Ready Nation Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-306)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-4638 (as of 2026-07-25).