This report to the U.S. Congress assesses the readiness, education and training needs, technological challenges, and obstacles that Indian Tribes encounter when integrating state or regional AMBER Alert communication plans as intended under the Ashlynne Mike AMBER Alert in Indian Country Act.
The report includes data obtained from surveying Tribes and state AMBER Alert coordinators who have at least one federally recognized Tribe within their state. Overall, the data indicate that although challenges remain, significant progress has been made in incorporating Indian Tribes into state AMBER Alert systems. A national survey of federally recognized Tribes found that 25 Tribes have a Tribal alerting system that can be used to disseminate an alert within tribal boundaries in a child abduction case. Seventy-five Tribes reported they have an emergency plan or checklist to be used in the event of a child abduction; 86 Tribes reported that they are authorized to participate in the state AMBER Alert plan; however, only 76 of those Tribes reported they currently participate in their state AMBER Alert plan. The 10 remaining Tribes have opted not to adopt the state AMBER Alert criteria. Forty-seven Tribes reported that they had received training in the AMBER Alert plan, and 53 Tribes reported they had not received training in the state AMBER Alert plan. Nineteen Tribes indicated they do not know how to access their state's AMBER Alert plan; and 18 Tribes indicated they do not have agreements in place with their state or regional AMBER Alert plan to allow access. A total of 26 (78.8 percent) of the 33 state AMBER Alert coordinators cited challenges that prevented Tribes from accessing the state AMBER Alert plan. These challenges are outlined in this report, along with suggested next steps and recommendations. 4 tables, 4 figures, and appended detailed information