I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4836 

To build safer, thriving communities, and save lives by investing in effective 

violence reduction initiatives. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 23, 2019 

Mr. HORSFORD (for himself, Ms. NORTON, and Ms. KELLY of Illinois) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, 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 

A BILL 

To build safer, thriving communities, and save lives by 

investing in effective violence reduction initiatives. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Break the Cycle of 

5 Violence Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) Gun violence is a significant public health 

2 and safety concern nationwide and is a leading cause 

3 of death for people in the United States of nearly all 

4 ages. 

5 (2) From 2012 to 2017, over 105,000 people in 

the United States were murdered. Nearly 3 6 ⁄4 of these 

7 victims were murdered with a gun. Hundreds of 

8 thousands more were hospitalized or treated in 

9 emergency departments after surviving life-changing 

10 gunshot injuries. 

11 (3) Gun violence has sharply increased in the 

12 United States in recent years. Gun homicide rates 

13 spiked by 30 percent between 2014 and 2017, driven 

14 by large spikes in violence in some cities in the 

15 United States. 

16 (4) Shootings, homicides, and group-related vio17 lence are disproportionately concentrated in the 

18 poorest and most segregated urban areas of the Na19 tion, and have an enormously disproportionate im20 pact on young people of color in particular. From 

21 2012 to 2017, African-American children and teens 

22 were 14 times as likely to be shot to death as their 

23 White peers. Hispanic children and teens and Native 

24 American children and teens were both nearly 3 


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1 times as likely to be shot to death as their White 

2 peers. 

3 (5) African-American men make up just 6 per4 cent of the population in the United States, but ac5 count for more than 50 percent of all gun homicide 

6 victims each year. 

7 (6) Violence is responsible for half of all deaths 

8 among young African-American men, ages 15 

9 through 24, as many as every other cause of death 

10 combined. 

11 (7) This violence imposes enormous human, so12 cial, and economic costs. Nationwide, the annual so13 cietal cost of firearm violence was estimated at 

14 $229,000,000,000 per year in 2012. Economists es15 timate that each firearm homicide generates hun16 dreds of thousands of dollars in direct public costs, 

17 including medical care and criminal justice expenses. 

18 (8) Several evidence-based violence intervention 

19 strategies have demonstrated remarkable success at 

20 interrupting entrenched cycles of violence, victimiza21 tion, and retaliation. These strategies reflect the im22 portant fact that in most cities, the vast majority of 

23 violence is perpetrated by a relatively small number 

24 of identifiable groups or individuals that comprise 

25 less than 0.5 percent of the city’s total population. 


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1 (9) When properly implemented and consist2 ently funded, coordinated, evidence-based strategies 

3 focused on interrupting cycles of violence among in4 dividuals at highest risk can produce life-saving and 

5 cost-saving results in a short period of time without 

6 contributing to mass incarceration. Multiple cities 

7 have substantially reduced community violence in re8 cent years by implementing such strategies, includ9 ing the following: 

10 (A) Hospital-based violence intervention 

11 programs (referred to in this section as 

12 ‘‘HVIP’’), which work to break cycles of vio13 lence by providing intensive counseling, peer 

14 support, case management, mediation, and so15 cial services to patients recovering from gunshot 

16 wounds and other violent injuries. Research has 

17 shown that violently injured patients are at 

18 high risk of retaliating with violence themselves 

19 and being revictimized by violence in the near 

20 future. Evaluations of HVIPs have found that 

21 patients who received HVIP services were 4 

22 times less likely to be convicted of a violent 

23 crime and roughly 4 times less likely to be sub24 sequently reinjured by violence than patients 

25 who did not receive HVIP services. 


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1 (B) Evidence-based street outreach pro2 grams, which treat gun violence as a commu3 nicable disease and work to interrupt its trans4 mission among community members. These 

5 public health-centered initiatives use street out6 reach workers to build relationships with high7 risk individuals in their communities and con8 nect them with intensive counseling, mediation, 

9 peer support, and social services in order to re10 duce their risk of violence. Evaluations have 

11 found that these programs are associated with 

12 significant reductions in gun violence, with 

13 some sites reporting up to 70-percent reduc14 tions in homicides or assaults. 

15 (C) Strategies, including group violence 

16 interventions (referred to in this section as 

17 ‘‘GVI’’), which are a form of problem-oriented 

18 policing that provides targeted social services 

19 and support to individuals at highest risk for 

20 involvement in community violence, and a proc21 ess for community members to voice a clear de22 mand for the violence to stop. This approach 

23 coordinates law enforcement, service providers, 

24 and community engagement efforts to reduce 

25 violence among a small, identifiable segment of 


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1 the population that is responsible for the vast 

2 majority of gun violence in most cities. In one 

3 evaluation of the GVI program in Boston, re4 searchers found a 63-percent reduction in youth 

5 homicides and a 25-percent decline in monthly 

6 gun assaults across the city. Other studies have 

7 found that GVI programs were associated with 

8 homicide reductions of up to 60 percent. 

9 (10) These strategies are often most effective 

10 when local officials and dedicated staff work to co11 ordinate stakeholders, relevant public agencies, and 

12 service providers. Mayors in cities like Los Angeles 

13 and New York have established city departments 

14 that are primarily dedicated to violence prevention, 

15 and their offices have played a critical role in ensur16 ing cross-agency collaboration and information-shar17 ing. 

18 (11) These strategies are also most effective 

19 when they receive consistent funding. For example, 

20 large cuts in funding for violence prevention pro21 grams in Chicago in 2008, 2012, and 2015 through 

22 2016 corresponded with large spikes in homicides in 

23 those years. Similarly, the city of Stockton, Cali24 fornia, saw an increase in homicides after dis25 continuing funding for its highly successful GVI proVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:24 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4836.IH H4836

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1 gram. When Stockton’s funding was restored, homi2 cides decreased. 

3 (12) A national strategy for reducing gun vio4 lence must include substantial and targeted Federal 

5 funding to expand and replicate the most effective 

6 strategies in communities most impacted by violence. 

7 (13) At present, however, these strategies are 

8 implemented in only a handful of cities and are 

9 funded through an unreliable patchwork of discre10 tionary grant programs. The current level of Federal 

11 funding to support the scaling of these strategies is 

12 woefully inadequate. 

13 (14) Intentional and sustained investments in 

14 evidence-based violence reduction strategies can re15 verse recent crime trends, help to heal impacted 

16 communities, and reduce the enormous human and 

17 financial costs of violence, without contributing to 

18 mass incarceration. 

19 SEC. 3. COMMUNITY-BASED VIOLENCE INTERVENTION 

20 PROGRAM GRANTS. 

21 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

22 (1) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 

23 the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance. 


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1 (2) ELIGIBLE UNIT OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT.— 

2 The term ‘‘eligible unit of local government’’ means 

3 a unit of local government that— 

4 (A) for not less frequently than two out of 

5 the 3 years preceding the grant application, ex6 perienced twenty or more homicides per year 

7 and had a homicide rate that was not less than 

8 double the national average; or 

9 (B) demonstrates a unique and compelling 

10 need for additional resources to address gun 

11 and group-related violence within the commu12 nity of the unit of local government. 

13 (b) GRANTS.—The Director shall award Community14 Based Violence Intervention Program grants to support, 

15 enhance, and replicate coordinated violence reduction ini16 tiatives in units of local government that are dispropor17 tionately impacted by gun and group-related violence. 

18 (c) ELIGIBILITY.—The Director shall award grants 

19 under this section on a competitive basis to— 

20 (1) eligible units of local government; and 

21 (2) community-based organizations that serve 

22 the residents of an eligible unit of local government. 

23 (d) USE OF FUNDS.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—A grant awarded under this 

25 section shall be used to implement coordinated vioVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:24 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4836.IH H4836

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1 lence reduction initiatives, through strategies such 

2 as hospital-based violence intervention, evidence3 based street outreach, and group violence interven4 tion. 

5 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—A coordinated violence 

6 reduction initiative implemented using grant funds 

7 awarded under this section shall— 

8 (A) be primarily focused on providing com9 munity-based violence intervention services to 

10 the small portion of a grantee’s community who 

11 are, regardless of age, identified as having the 

12 highest risk of perpetrating or being victimized 

13 by gun or group-related violence in the near fu14 ture; and 

15 (B) use strategies that are evidence-based 

16 and have demonstrated effectiveness at reduc17 ing violence. 

18 (e) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—Each applicant 

19 for a grant under this section shall submit a grant pro20 posal, which shall, at a minimum— 

21 (1) describe how the applicant proposes to use 

22 the grant to implement a coordinated violence reduc23 tion initiative in accordance with this section; 

24 (2) describe how the applicant proposes to use 

25 the grant to promote or improve coordination beVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:24 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4836.IH H4836

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1 tween relevant agencies and community organiza2 tions in order to minimize duplication of services 

3 and achieve maximum impact; 

4 (3) provide evidence indicating that the pro5 posed violence reduction initiative would likely re6 duce gun and group-related violence; and 

7 (4) in the case of a unit of local government ap8 plicant, demonstrate strong support within the unit 

9 of local government for the proposed violence reduc10 tion initiative, such as letters of support from— 

11 (A) the mayor or chief executive officer; 

12 (B) the chief of police; 

13 (C) the local health department director; 

14 and 

15 (D) the director of one or more commu16 nity-based organizations that provide services to 

17 individuals at high risk of violence in the area. 

18 (f) PRIORITIZATION.—In awarding grants under this 

19 section, the Director shall give preference to applicants 

20 whose grant proposals demonstrate the greatest likelihood 

21 of reducing gun and group-related violence in the commu22 nity of the applicant without contributing to mass incar23 ceration. 

24 (g) GRANT DURATION.—A grant awarded under this 

25 section shall be for a 5-year period. 


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1 (h) GRANT AWARD.—The amount of funds awarded 

2 to an applicant under this section shall be commensurate 

3 with the scope of the proposal of the applicant and the 

4 demonstrated need for additional resources to effectively 

5 reduce gun and group-related violence in the community 

6 of the applicant. 

7 (i) MATCHING FUNDS REQUIRED.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para9 graphs (2) and (3), the Federal share of each grant 

10 awarded under this section shall be 75 percent of 

11 the eligible costs incurred by the grant recipient. 

12 (2) EXEMPTION FROM REQUIREMENT.—Para13 graph (1) shall not apply to a grant awarded to 

14 community-based organization under subsection 

15 (c)(2). 

16 (3) WAIVER.—The Federal share of a grant 

17 awarded to a unit of local government under sub18 section (c)(1) may be up to 100 percent if the Direc19 tor determines there is good cause to waive the Fed20 eral share requirement in paragraph (1) of this sub21 section. 

22 (j) COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS.—Each unit of local 

23 government awarded a grant under this section shall dis24 tribute not less than 50 percent of the grant funds re25 ceived under this section to— 


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1 (1) one or more community-based organizations 

2 that provide services to individuals at high risk of 

3 perpetrating or being victimized by violence; or 

4 (2) a public agency or department that is not 

5 a law enforcement agency, but that is an agency or 

6 department primarily dedicated to the prevention of 

7 violence or community safety. 

8 (k) REPORTS.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

9 on which the first 5-year grant period under this section 

10 ends, the Director shall publish a report identifying best 

11 practices for cities implementing evidence-based violence 

12 intervention initiatives. 

13 (l) REWARDING SUCCESS.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director may reserve 

15 not more than 10 percent of the funds appropriated 

16 for a fiscal year under subsection (o) for supple17 mental incentive funds to be distributed to grantees 

18 outside the competitive grant process in accordance 

19 with paragraph (2). 

20 (2) DISTRIBUTION OF ADDITIONAL FUNDS.— 

21 The Director may distribute amounts reserved under 

22 paragraph (1), in the discretion of the Director, to 

23 a grantee under subsection (b) that has— 

24 (A) implemented the grant for not less 

25 than 2 years; 


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1 (B) demonstrated exceptional commitment 

2 and progress toward implementing the violence 

3 reduction initiatives of the grantee; and 

4 (C) shown that the grantee would likely 

5 achieve more substantial reductions in violence 

6 with additional Federal funding. 

7 (3) FEDERAL SHARE.—Subsection (i) shall not 

8 apply to any amounts distributed to a grantee under 

9 this subsection. 

10 (4) EXPLANATION OF DISTRIBUTION.—Upon 

11 distributing supplemental incentive funds to a grant12 ee, the Director shall publish a statement on the 

13 website of the Bureau of Justice Assistance that 

14 clearly explains the basis for the decision to award 

15 these funds to a particular grantee. 

16 (m) EVALUATION AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.— 

17 The Director may reserve not more than 8 percent of the 

18 funds appropriated for a fiscal year under subsection (o) 

19 for the purpose of— 

20 (1) contracting with or hiring technical assist21 ance providers with experience implementing com22 munity-based violence reduction initiatives; and 

23 (2) contracting with independent researchers to 

24 evaluate the performance and impact of selected ini25 tiatives supported by the Community-Based Violence 


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1 Intervention Program grant, and such evaluations 

2 shall be made publicly available on the website of the 

3 Bureau of Justice Assistance. 

4 (n) NONSUPPLANTING CLAUSE.—A grantee receiving 

5 a grant under this section shall use the grant to supple6 ment, and not supplant, the amount of funds the grantee 

7 would otherwise dedicate to reducing gun and group-re8 lated violence in the community of the grantee. 

9 (o) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

10 are authorized to be appropriated to the Bureau of Justice 

11 Assistance, in addition to any amounts otherwise author12 ized to be appropriated or made available to the Bureau 

13 of Justice Assistance, $65,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

14 2020 through 2029. 

15 SEC. 4. HOSPITAL-BASED VIOLENCE INTERVENTION 

16 GRANTS. 

17 (a) GRANTS.—The Director of the National Insti18 tutes of Health (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Direc19 tor’’) shall award grants on a competitive basis to support 

20 hospital-based or hospital-linked violence intervention pro21 grams that work to interrupt cycles of violence and reduce 

22 risk of violent injury and retaliation among patients iden23 tified as being at highest risk for involvement in commu24 nity violence. 


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1 (b) ELIGIBILITY.—Grants shall be made available 

2 under this section to private and public hospitals that 

3 treat at least 250 patients annually for firearm assault 

4 or stabbing injuries, and to community-based organiza5 tions that operate violence intervention programs in such 

6 hospitals. 

7 (c) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this sec8 tion, the Director shall give priority to nonprofit hospitals 

9 that serve communities with the highest incidence of vio10 lent injury and injury recidivism, and community-based 

11 organizations that operate violence intervention programs 

12 in such hospitals. 

13 (d) GRANT REQUIREMENTS.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each grant awarded under 

15 this section shall be used to implement or enhance 

16 a hospital-based or hospital-linked violence interven17 tion program, to reduce risk of violent injury and re18 taliatory violence among patients identified as being 

19 at highest risk for involvement in community vio20 lence. 

21 (2) OTHER REQUIREMENTS.—Any program 

22 supported by this grant shall be evidence-informed 

23 and implemented in accordance with standards pre24 scribed by the Director, in consultation with the 

25 Health Alliance for Violence Intervention. 


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1 (e) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—Each application 

2 for a grant under this section shall describe— 

3 (1) how the applicant proposes to use the grant 

4 to implement or enhance a hospital-based or hos5 pital-linked violence intervention program in accord6 ance with this section; and 

7 (2) how the applicant plans to coordinate its vi8 olence intervention program with other relevant 

9 stakeholders or violence intervention programs in the 

10 community, if any, to maximize impact and mini11 mize duplication of services. 

12 (f) GRANT DURATION.—A grant awarded under this 

13 section shall be for a 5-year period. 

14 (g) EVALUATION AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.— 

15 The Director may reserve not more than 10 percent of 

16 the funds appropriated under subsection (i) for the pur17 pose of contracting with or hiring technical assistance pro18 viders with experience implementing hospital-based or hos19 pital-linked violence intervention initiatives, and for the 

20 purpose of contracting with independent researchers to 

21 evaluate the performance and impact of selected programs 

22 supported by grants awarded under this section. Such 

23 evaluations shall be made publicly available on the internet 

24 website of the National Institutes of Health. 


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1 (h) NONSUPPLANTING CLAUSE.—An entity receiving 

2 a grant under this section shall use such grant to supple3 ment, and not supplant, funds otherwise available to sup4 port violence intervention programs of the entity. 

5 (i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—To carry 

6 out this section, there is authorized to be appropriated, 

7 in addition to any amounts otherwise made available to 

8 the National Institutes of Health, $25,000,000 for each 

9 of fiscal years 2020 through 2029. 

10 SEC. 5. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING SERVICES FOR 

11 VICTIMS OF VIOLENT CRIME. 

12 It is the sense of Congress that— 

13 (1) hospital-based and hospital-linked violence 

14 intervention programs have shown effective results 

15 as a strategy in reducing violently injured crime vic16 tims’ risk of injury recidivism and retaliation; and 

17 (2) young men of color are disproportionately 

18 victimized by violent crime and gun and group-re19 lated violence in particular, but are frequently un20 derserved by the victim services field. 

Æ 


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