National Triad Program Act

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``National Triad Program Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds that--
            (1) older Americans are among the most rapidly growing 
        segments of our society;
            (2) currently, the elderly comprise 15 percent of our 
        society, and predictions are that by the turn of the century 
        they will constitute 18 percent of our Nation's population;
            (3) older Americans find themselves uniquely situated in 
        our society, environmentally and physically;
            (4) many elderly Americans are experiencing increased 
        social isolation due to fragmented and distant familial 
        relations, scattered associations, limited access to 
        transportation, and other insulating factors;
            (5) physical conditions such as hearing loss, poor 
        eyesight, lessened agility, and chronic and debilitating 
        illnesses often contribute to an older person's susceptibility 
        to criminal victimization;
            (6) our elders are too frequently the victims of abuse and 
        neglect, violent crime, property crime, consumer fraud, medical 
        quackery, and confidence games;
            (7) studies have found that elderly victims of violent 
        crime are more likely to be injured and require medical 
        attention than are younger victims;
            (8) victimization data on crimes against the elderly are 
        incomplete and out of date, and data sources are partial, 
        scattered, and not easily obtained;
            (9) although a few studies have attempted to define and 
        estimate the extent of elder abuse and neglect, both in their 
        homes and in institutional settings, many experts believe that 
        this crime is substantially underreported and undetected;
            (10) similarly, while some evidence suggests that the 
        elderly may be targeted in a range of fraudulent schemes, 
        neither the Uniform Crime Report nor the National Crime Survey 
        collects data on individual- or household-level fraud;
            (11) law enforcement officers and social service providers 
        come from different disciplines and frequently bring different 
        perspectives to the problem of crimes against the elderly;
            (12) these differences, in turn, can contribute to 
        inconsistent approaches to the problem and inhibit a genuinely 
        effective response;
            (13) there are, however, a few efforts currently under way 
        that seek to forge partnerships to coordinate criminal justice 
        and social service approaches to victimization of the elderly;
            (14) the Triad program, sponsored by the National Sheriffs' 
        Association (NSA), the International Association of Chiefs of 
        Police (IACP), and the American Association of Retired Persons 
        (AARP), is one such effort;
            (15) recognizing that older Americans have the same 
        fundamental desire as other members of our society to live 
        freely, without fear or restriction due to the criminal 
        element, the Federal Government seeks to expand efforts to 
        reduce crime against this growing and uniquely vulnerable 
        segment of our population; and
            (16) our goal is to support a coordinated effort among law 
        enforcement and social service agencies to stem the tide of 
        transgenerational violence against the elderly and to support 
        media and nonmedia strategies aimed at increasing both public 
        understanding of the problem and the elderly person's skills in 
        preventing crime against themselves and their property.

SEC. 3. PURPOSE.

    The purpose of this Act is to address the problem of crime against 
the elderly in a systematic and effective manner with a program of 
practical and focused research, development, and dissemination designed 
to assist States and units of local government in implementing specific 
programs of crime prevention, victim assistance, citizen involvement, 
and public education that offer a high probability of improving the 
coordinated effectiveness of law enforcement and social service 
efforts. The efforts of local coalitions, such as the Triad model being 
piloted in a number of areas by National Sheriffs' Association, 
International Association of the Chiefs of Police, and American 
Association of Retired Persons, are of particular interest.

SEC. 4. NATIONAL ASSESSMENT AND DISSEMINATION.

    (a) In General.--The Director of the National Institute of Justice 
(referred to as the ``Director'') shall conduct a national assessment 
of--
            (1) the nature and extent of crimes against the elderly;
            (2) the needs of law enforcement, health, and social 
        service organizations in working to prevent, identify, 
        investigate, and provide assistance to victims of those crimes; 
        and
            (3) promising strategies to respond effectively to those 
        challenges.
    (b) Matters to be Addressed.--The national assessment made pursuant 
to subsection (a) shall address--
            (1) the analysis and synthesis of data from a range of 
        sources in order to develop accurate information on the nature 
        and extent of crimes against the elderly, including identifying 
        and conducting such surveys and other data collection efforts 
        as are needed and designing a strategy to keep such information 
        current over time;
            (2) the problem of the most vulnerable and hard-to-reach 
        elderly who are in poor health, are living alone or without 
        family nearby, or are living in high crime areas;
            (3) the problem of elderly who are abused and neglected, 
        sometimes in the home and sometimes in health care facilities, 
        sometimes subjected to physical abuse and at other times to 
        verbal aggression and neglect;
            (4) the problem of fear of victimization, which inhibits 
        the freedom of the elderly and can make them prisoners in their 
        homes;
            (5) the identification of strategies and techniques that 
        have been shown to be effective, or appear to hold promise of 
        being effective, in responding to the problems described in 
        this subsection and in preventing, reducing, and ameliorating 
        the impact of crime against the elderly;
            (6) the analysis of the factors that enhance or inhibit 
        development of a coordinated response by law enforcement, 
        health care, and social service providers to crimes against the 
        elderly and the treatment of elderly victims; and
            (7) the research agenda needed to develop a comprehensive 
        understanding of the problems of crimes against the elderly, 
        including the changes anticipated in the crimes themselves and 
        appropriate responses as our society increasingly ages, and the 
        identification and evaluation of effective and fiscally 
        feasible approaches to prevent and reduce victimization of our 
        Nation's elderly citizens.
    (c) Dissemination.--Based on the results of the national assessment 
and analysis of successful or promising strategies in dealing with the 
problems described in subsection (b) and other problems, including 
coalition efforts such as the Triad programs referred to in sections 2 
and 3, the Director shall disseminate the results through reports, 
publications, clearinghouse services, public service announcements, and 
programs of evaluation, demonstration, training, and technical 
assistance.

SEC. 5. PILOT PROGRAMS.

    (a) Awards.--The Director may make awards to coalitions of local 
law enforcement agencies, victim service providers, and organizations 
representing the elderly for pilot programs and field tests of 
particularly promising strategies and models for forging partnerships 
for crime prevention and service provision based on the concepts of the 
Triad model, which can then be evaluated and serve as the basis for 
further demonstration and education programs.
    (b) Eligibility.--Pilot programs funded under this section may 
include existing general service coalitions of law enforcement, victim 
service, and elder advocate organizations that wish to use additional 
funds to work at a particular problem in their community, such as 
fraud, burglary, or abuse and neglect, or to target a particular 
geographic area in need of intensive services.

SEC. 6. EVALUATION AND DISSEMINATION AWARDS.

    In conjunction with the national assessment under section 4 and the 
pilot programs under section 5, the Director may make awards to--
            (1) coalitions of national law enforcement, victim service, 
        and elder advocate organizations, for the purposes of providing 
        training and technical assistance in implementing pilot 
        programs, including programs based on the concepts of the 
        Triad;
            (2) research organizations, for the purposes of--
                    (A) investigating the types of elder victimization 
                shown by the national assessment to present 
                particularly critical problems or to be emerging crimes 
                about which little is known;
                    (B) evaluating the effectiveness of selected pilot 
                programs; and
                    (C) conducting the research and development 
                identified through the national assessment as being 
                critical; and
            (3) public service advertising coalitions, for the purposes 
        of mounting a program of public service advertisements to 
        increase public awareness and understanding of the issues 
        surrounding crimes against the elderly and promoting ideas or 
        programs to prevent them.

SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    Of amounts authorized to be appropriated to the National Institute 
of Justice under section 1001(a)(2) of the Omnibus Crime Control and 
Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3793(a)(2)), $5,000,000 shall be 
available to carry out this Act, of which--
            (1) up to $2,000,000 may be used to fund up to 20 pilot 
        programs;
            (2) up to $1,000,000 may be used to fund a national 
        training and technical assistance effort;
            (3) up to $1,000,000 may be used to develop public service 
        announcements; and
            (4) up to $1,000,000 may be used for the national 
        assessment, the evaluation of pilot programs, and the carrying 
        out of the research agenda.

Summary: National Triad Program Act - Requires the Director of the National Institute of Justice to conduct a national assessment of: (1) crimes against the elderly. (2) the needs of law enforcement, health, and social service organizations in working to assist victims. And (3) promising strategies to respond effectively. Specifies that such assessment shall address the problems of elderly who are living alone or in high crime areas and who are abused and neglected and the fear of victimization. Authorizes the Director to make awards to: (1) coalitions of local law enforcement agencies, victim service providers, and organizations representing the elderly for pilot programs and field tests of promising strategies and models for forging partnerships for crime prevention and service provision. Specifies that pilot programs may include existing general service coalitions of law enforcement, victim service, and elder advocate organizations that wish to use additional funds to work at a particular problem in their community or to target a particular geographic area. (2) research organizations to investigate the types of elder victimization that present particularly critical problems or emerging crimes about which little is known, to evaluate the effectiveness of selected pilot programs, and to conduct critical research and development. And (3) public service advertising coalitions to increase public awareness of, and promote ideas or programs to prevent, crimes against the elderly. Authorizes appropriations.