I 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4602 

To protect crime victims’ rights, to eliminate the substantial backlog of 

DNA and other forensic evidence samples to improve and expand the 

forensic science testing capacity of Federal, State, and local crime laboratories, to increase research and development of new testing technologies, 

to develop new training programs regarding the collection and use of 

forensic evidence, to provide post-conviction testing of DNA evidence 

to exonerate the innocent, to support accreditation efforts of forensic 

science laboratories and medical examiner offices, to address training 

and equipment needs, to improve the performance of counsel in State 

capital cases, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 24, 2016 

Mr. POE of Texas (for himself and Mr. COSTA) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition 

to the Committee on Financial Services, 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 protect crime victims’ rights, to eliminate the substantial 

backlog of DNA and other forensic evidence samples 

to improve and expand the forensic science testing capacity of Federal, State, and local crime laboratories, to 

increase research and development of new testing technologies, to develop new training programs regarding 

the collection and use of forensic evidence, to provide 

post-conviction testing of DNA evidence to exonerate the 

innocent, to support accreditation efforts of forensic 


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science laboratories and medical examiner offices, to address training and equipment needs, to improve the performance of counsel in State capital cases, and for other 

purposes. 

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 ‘‘Justice for All Reau5 thorization Act of 2016’’. 

6 SEC. 2. CRIME VICTIMS’ RIGHTS. 

7 (a) RESTITUTION DURING SUPERVISED RELEASE.— 

8 Section 3583(d) of title 18, United States Code, is amend9 ed in the first sentence by inserting ‘‘, that the defendant 

10 make restitution in accordance with sections 3663 and 

11 3663A, or any other statute authorizing a sentence of res12 titution,’’ after ‘‘supervision’’. 

13 (b) COLLECTION OF RESTITUTION FROM DEFEND14 ANT’S ESTATE.—Section 3613(b) of title 18, United 

15 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol16 lowing: ‘‘The liability to pay restitution shall terminate on 

17 the date that is the later of 20 years from the entry of 

18 judgment or 20 years after the release from imprisonment 

19 of the person ordered to pay restitution. In the event of 

20 the death of the person ordered to pay restitution, the in21 dividual’s estate will be held responsible for any unpaid 

22 balance of the restitution amount, and the lien provided 


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1 in subsection (c) of this section shall continue until the 

2 estate receives a written release of that liability.’’. 

3 (c) VICTIM INTERPRETERS.—Rule 28 of the Federal 

4 Rules of Criminal Procedure is amended in the first sen5 tence by inserting before the period at the end the fol6 lowing: ‘‘, including an interpreter for the victim’’. 

7 SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR GRANTS 

8 FOR CRIME VICTIMS. 

9 (a) CRIME VICTIMS LEGAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS.— 

10 Section 103(b) of the Justice for All Act of 2004 (Public 

11 Law 108–405; 118 Stat. 2264) is amended— 

12 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘2006, 2007, 

13 2008, and 2009’’ and inserting ‘‘2017 through 

14 2021’’; 

15 (2) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘2006, 2007, 

16 2008, and 2009’’ and inserting ‘‘2017 through 

17 2021’’; 

18 (3) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘2006, 2007, 

19 2008, and 2009’’ and inserting ‘‘2017 through 

20 2021’’; 

21 (4) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘2006, 2007, 

22 2008, and 2009’’ and inserting ‘‘2017 through 

23 2021’’; and 


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1 (5) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘2006, 2007, 

2 2008, and 2009’’ and inserting ‘‘2017 through 

3 2021’’. 

4 (b) CRIME VICTIMS NOTIFICATION GRANTS.—Sec5 tion 1404E(c) of the Victims of Crime Act of 1984 (42 

6 U.S.C. 10603e(c)) is amended by striking ‘‘2006, 2007, 

7 2008, and 2009’’ and inserting ‘‘2017 through 2021’’. 

8 SEC. 4. REDUCING THE RAPE KIT BACKLOG. 

9 Of the amounts made available to the Attorney Gen10 eral for a DNA Analysis and capacity enhancement pro11 gram and for other local, State, and Federal forensic ac12 tivities under the heading ‘‘STATE AND LOCAL LAW EN13 FORCEMENT’’ under the heading ‘‘OFFICE OF JUSTICE

14 PROGRAMS’’ under the heading ‘‘DEPARTMENT OF 

15 JUSTICE’’ in a fiscal year— 

16 (1) not less than 75 percent of such amounts 

17 shall be provided for grants for direct testing activi18 ties described under paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of 

19 section 2(a) of the DNA Analysis Backlog Elimi20 nation Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 14135(a)); and 

21 (2) not less than 5 percent of such amounts 

22 shall be provided for grants for law enforcement 

23 agencies to conduct audits of their backlogged rape 

24 kits, including through the creation of a tracking 

25 system, under section 2(a)(7) of the DNA Analysis 


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1 Backlog Elimination Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 

2 14135(a)(7)), and to prioritize testing in those cases 

3 in which the statute of limitation will soon expire. 

4 SEC. 5. SEXUAL ASSAULT NURSE EXAMINERS. 

5 Section 304 of the DNA Sexual Assault Justice Act 

6 of 2004 (42 U.S.C. 14136a) is amended— 

7 (1) by redesignating subsection (c) as sub8 section (d); and 

9 (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘(c) PREFERENCE.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In reviewing applications 

13 submitted in accordance with a program authorized, 

14 in whole or in part, by this section, the Attorney 

15 General shall give preference to any eligible entity 

16 that certifies that the entity will use the grant funds 

17 to— 

18 ‘‘(A) operate or expand forensic nurse ex19 aminer programs in a rural area or for an un20 derserved population, as those terms are de21 fined in section 4002 of the Violence Against 

22 Women Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 13925); 

23 ‘‘(B) hire full-time forensic nurse exam24 iners to conduct activities under subsection (a); 

25 or 


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1 ‘‘(C) sustain or establish a training pro2 gram for forensic nurse examiners. 

3 ‘‘(2) DIRECTIVE TO THE ATTORNEY GEN4 ERAL.—Not later than 120 days after the date of 

5 enactment of the Justice for All Reauthorization Act 

6 of 2016, the Attorney General shall coordinate with 

7 the Secretary of Health and Human Services to in8 form Federally Qualified Health Centers, Commu9 nity Health Centers, hospitals, colleges and univer10 sities, and other appropriate health-related entities 

11 about the role of forensic nurses and existing re12 sources available within the Department of Justice 

13 and the Department of Health and Human Services 

14 to train or employ forensic nurses to address the 

15 needs of communities dealing with sexual assault, 

16 domestic violence, and elder abuse. The Attorney 

17 General shall collaborate on this effort with non18 governmental organizations representing forensic 

19 nurses.’’. 

20 SEC. 6. PROTECTING THE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT. 

21 Section 8(e)(1)(A) of the Prison Rape Elimination 

22 Act of 2003 (42 U.S.C. 15607(e)(1)(A)) is amended— 

23 (1) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

24 (2) in clause (ii), by striking the period and in25 serting ‘‘; and’’; and 


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1 (3) by inserting at the end the following: 

2 ‘‘(iii) the program is not administered 

3 by the Office on Violence Against Women 

4 of the Department of Justice.’’. 

5 SEC. 7. CLARIFICATION OF VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN 

6 ACT HOUSING PROTECTIONS. 

7 Section 41411(b)(3)(B)(ii) of the Violence Against 

8 Women Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14043e–11(b)(3)(B)(ii)) 

9 is amended— 

10 (1) in the first sentence, by inserting ‘‘or resi11 dent’’ after ‘‘any remaining tenant’’; and 

12 (2) in the second sentence, by inserting ‘‘or 

13 resident’’ after ‘‘tenant’’ each place it appears. 

14 SEC. 8. STRENGTHENING THE PRISON RAPE ELIMINATION 

15 ACT. 

16 The Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 (42 U.S.C. 

17 15601 et seq.) is amended— 

18 (1) in section 6(d)(2) (42 U.S.C. 15605(d)(2)), 

19 by striking subparagraph (A) and inserting the fol20 lowing: 

21 ‘‘(A)(i) include the certification of the chief 

22 executive that the State receiving such grant 

23 has adopted all national prison rape standards 

24 that, as of the date on which the application 


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1 was submitted, have been promulgated under 

2 this Act; or 

3 ‘‘(ii) demonstrate to the Attorney General, 

4 in such manner as the Attorney General shall 

5 require, that the State receiving such grant is 

6 actively working to adopt and achieve full com7 pliance with the national prison rape standards 

8 described in clause (i);’’; and 

9 (2) in section 8(e) (42 U.S.C. 15607(e))— 

10 (A) by striking paragraph (2) and insert11 ing the following: 

12 ‘‘(2) ADOPTION OF NATIONAL STANDARDS.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For each fiscal year, 

14 any amount that a State would otherwise re15 ceive for prison purposes for that fiscal year 

16 under a grant program covered by this sub17 section shall be reduced by 5 percent, unless the 

18 chief executive officer of the State submits to 

19 the Attorney General proof of compliance with 

20 this Act through— 

21 ‘‘(i) a certification that the State has 

22 adopted, and is in full compliance with, the 

23 national standards described in subsection 

24 (a); or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) an assurance that the State in2 tends to adopt and achieve full compliance 

3 with those national standards so as to en4 sure that a certification under clause (i) 

5 may be submitted in future years, which 

6 includes— 

7 ‘‘(I) a commitment that not less 

8 than 5 percent of such amount shall 

9 be used for this purpose; or 

10 ‘‘(II) a request that the Attorney 

11 General hold 5 percent of such 

12 amount in abeyance pursuant to the 

13 requirements of subparagraph (E). 

14 ‘‘(B) RULES FOR CERTIFICATION.— 

15 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—A chief executive 

16 officer of a State who submits a certifi17 cation under this paragraph shall also pro18 vide the Attorney General with— 

19 ‘‘(I) a list of the prisons under 

20 the operational control of the execu21 tive branch of the State; 

22 ‘‘(II) a list of the prisons listed 

23 under subclause (I) that were audited 

24 during the most recently concluded 

25 audit year; 


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1 ‘‘(III) all final audit reports for 

2 prisons listed under subclause (I) that 

3 were completed during the most re4 cently concluded audit year; and 

5 ‘‘(IV) a proposed schedule for 

6 completing an audit of all the prisons 

7 listed under subclause (I) during the 

8 following 3 audit years. 

9 ‘‘(ii) AUDIT APPEAL EXCEPTION.—Be10 ginning on the date that is 3 years after 

11 the date of enactment of the Justice for 

12 All Reauthorization Act of 2016, a chief 

13 executive officer of a State may submit a 

14 certification that the State is in full com15 pliance pursuant to subparagraph (A)(i) 

16 even if a prison under the operational con17 trol of the executive branch of the State 

18 has an audit appeal pending. 

19 ‘‘(C) RULES FOR ASSURANCES.— 

20 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—A chief executive 

21 officer of a State who submits an assur22 ance under subparagraph (A)(ii) shall also 

23 provide the Attorney General with— 


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1 ‘‘(I) a list of the prisons under 

2 the operational control of the execu3 tive branch of the State; 

4 ‘‘(II) a list of the prisons listed 

5 under subclause (I) that were audited 

6 during the most recently concluded 

7 audit year; 

8 ‘‘(III) an explanation of any bar9 riers the State faces to completing re10 quired audits; 

11 ‘‘(IV) all final audit reports for 

12 prisons listed under subclause (I) that 

13 were completed during the most re14 cently concluded audit year; 

15 ‘‘(V) a proposed schedule for 

16 completing an audit of all prisons 

17 under the operational control of the 

18 executive branch of the State during 

19 the following 3 audit years; and 

20 ‘‘(VI) an explanation of the 

21 State’s current degree of implementa22 tion of the national standards. 

23 ‘‘(ii) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENT.—A 

24 chief executive officer of a State who sub25 mits an assurance under subparagraph 


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1 (A)(ii)(I) shall, before receiving the appli2 cable funds described in subparagraph 

3 (A)(ii)(I), also provide the Attorney Gen4 eral with a proposed plan for the expendi5 ture of the funds during the applicable 

6 grant period. 

7 ‘‘(iii) ACCOUNTING OF FUNDS.—A 

8 chief executive officer of a State who sub9 mits an assurance under subparagraph 

10 (A)(ii)(I) shall, in a manner consistent 

11 with the applicable grant reporting require12 ments, submit to the Attorney General a 

13 detailed accounting of how the funds de14 scribed in subparagraph (A) were used. 

15 ‘‘(D) SUNSET OF ASSURANCE OPTION.— 

16 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—On the date that 

17 is 3 years after the date of enactment of 

18 the Justice for All Reauthorization Act of 

19 2016, subclause (II) of subparagraph 

20 (A)(ii) shall cease to have effect. 

21 ‘‘(ii) ADDITIONAL SUNSET.—On the 

22 date that is 6 years after the date of enact23 ment of the Justice for All Reauthorization 

24 Act of 2016, clause (ii) of subparagraph 

25 (A) shall cease to have effect. 


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1 ‘‘(iii) EMERGENCY ASSURANCES.— 

2 ‘‘(I) REQUEST.—Notwithstanding 

3 clause (ii), during the 2-year period 

4 beginning 6 years after the date of en5 actment of the Justice for All Reau6 thorization Act of 2016, a chief execu7 tive officer of a State who certifies 

8 that the State has audited not less 

9 than 90 percent of prisons under the 

10 operational control of the executive 

11 branch of the State may request that 

12 the Attorney General allow the chief 

13 executive officer to submit an emer14 gency assurance in accordance with 

15 subparagraph (A)(ii) as in effect on 

16 the day before the date on which that 

17 subparagraph ceased to have effect 

18 under clause (ii) of this subparagraph. 

19 ‘‘(II) GRANT OF REQUEST.—The 

20 Attorney General shall grant a re21 quest submitted under subclause (I) 

22 within 60 days upon a showing of 

23 good cause. 

24 ‘‘(E) DISPOSITION OF FUNDS HELD IN

25 ABEYANCE.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—If the chief execu2 tive officer of a State who has submitted 

3 an assurance under subparagraph 

4 (A)(ii)(II) subsequently submits a certifi5 cation under subparagraph (A)(i) during 

6 the 3-year period beginning on the date of 

7 enactment of the Justice for All Reauthor8 ization Act of 2016, the Attorney General 

9 will release all funds held in abeyance 

10 under subparagraph (A)(ii)(II) to be used 

11 by the State in accordance with the condi12 tions of the grant program for which the 

13 funds were provided. 

14 ‘‘(ii) RELEASE OF FUNDS.—If the 

15 chief executive officer of a State who has 

16 submitted an assurance under subpara17 graph (A)(ii)(II) is unable to submit a cer18 tification during the 3-year period begin19 ning on the date of enactment of the Jus20 tice for All Reauthorization Act of 2016, 

21 but does assure the Attorney General that 

2 22 ⁄3 of prisons under the operational control 

23 of the executive branch of the State have 

24 been audited at least once, the Attorney 

25 General shall release all of the funds of the 


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1 State held in abeyance to be used in adopt2 ing and achieving full compliance with the 

3 national standards, if the State agrees to 

4 comply with the applicable requirements in 

5 clauses (ii) and (iii) of subparagraph (C). 

6 ‘‘(iii) REDISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.— 

7 If the chief executive officer of a State who 

8 has submitted an assurance under sub9 paragraph (A)(ii)(II) is unable to submit a 

10 certification during the 3-year period be11 ginning on the date of enactment of the 

12 Justice for All Reauthorization Act of 

13 2016 and does not assure the Attorney 

General that 2 14 ⁄3 of prisons under the oper15 ational control of the executive branch of 

16 the State have been audited at least once, 

17 the Attorney General shall redistribute the 

18 funds of the State held in abeyance to 

19 other States to be used in accordance with 

20 the conditions of the grant program for 

21 which the funds were provided. 

22 ‘‘(F) PUBLICATION OF AUDIT RESULTS.— 

23 Not later than 1 year after the date of enact24 ment of the Justice for All Reauthorization Act 

25 of 2016, the Attorney General shall request 


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1 from each State, and make available on an ap2 propriate Internet website, all final audit re3 ports completed to date for prisons under the 

4 operational control of the executive branch of 

5 each State. The Attorney General shall update 

6 such website annually with reports received 

7 from States under subparagraphs (B)(i) and 

8 (C)(i). 

9 ‘‘(G) REPORT ON IMPLEMENTATION OF

10 NATIONAL STANDARDS.—Not later than 2 years 

11 after the date of enactment of the Justice for 

12 All Reauthorization Act of 2016, the Attorney 

13 General shall issue a report to the Committee 

14 on the Judiciary of the Senate and the Com15 mittee on the Judiciary of the House of Rep16 resentatives on the status of implementation of 

17 the national standards and the steps the De18 partment, in conjunction with the States and 

19 other key stakeholders, is taking to address any 

20 unresolved implementation issues.’’; and 

21 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(8) BACKGROUND CHECKS FOR AUDITORS.— 

23 An individual seeking certification by the Depart24 ment of Justice to serve as an auditor of prison 

25 compliance with the national standards described in 


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1 subsection (a) shall, upon request, submit finger2 prints in the manner determined by the Attorney 

3 General for criminal history record checks of the ap4 plicable State and Federal Bureau of Investigation 

5 repositories.’’. 

6 SEC. 9. ADDITIONAL REAUTHORIZATIONS. 

7 (a) DNA RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.—Section 

8 305(c) of the Justice for All Act of 2004 (42 U.S.C. 

9 14136b(c)) is amended by striking ‘‘$15,000,000 for each 

10 of fiscal years 2005 through 2009’’ and inserting 

11 ‘‘$5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2017 through 2021’’. 

12 (b) FBI DNA PROGRAMS.—Section 307(a) of the 

13 Justice for All Act of 2004 (Public Law 108–405; 118 

14 Stat. 2275) is amended by striking ‘‘$42,100,000 for each 

15 of fiscal years 2005 through 2009’’ and inserting 

16 ‘‘$10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2017 through 

17 2021’’. 

18 (c) DNA IDENTIFICATION OF MISSING PERSONS.— 

19 Section 308(c) of the Justice for All Act of 2004 (42 

20 U.S.C. 14136d(c)) is amended by striking ‘‘fiscal years 

21 2005 through 2009’’ and inserting ‘‘fiscal years 2017 

22 through 2021’’. 


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1 SEC. 10. PAUL COVERDELL FORENSIC SCIENCES IMPROVE2 MENT GRANTS. 

3 (a) GRANTS.—Part BB of title I of the Omnibus 

4 Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 

5 3797j) is amended— 

6 (1) in section 2802(2) (42 U.S.C. 3797k(2)), by 

7 inserting after ‘‘bodies’’ the following: ‘‘and is ac8 credited by an accrediting body that is a signatory 

9 to an internationally recognized arrangement and 

10 that offers accreditation to forensic science con11 formity assessment bodies using an accreditation 

12 standard that is recognized by that internationally 

13 recognized arrangement, or attests, in a manner that 

14 is legally binding and enforceable, to use a portion 

15 of the grant amount to prepare and apply for such 

16 accreditation not more than 2 years after the date 

17 on which a grant is awarded under section 2801’’; 

18 (2) in section 2803(a) (42 U.S.C. 3797l(a))— 

19 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

20 (i) by striking ‘‘Seventy-five percent’’ 

21 and inserting ‘‘Eighty-five percent’’; and 

22 (ii) by striking ‘‘75 percent’’ and in23 serting ‘‘85 percent’’; 

24 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘Twenty25 five percent’’ and inserting ‘‘Fifteen percent’’; 

26 and 


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1 (C) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘0.6 per2 cent’’ and inserting ‘‘1 percent’’; 

3 (3) in section 2804(a) (42 U.S.C. 3797m(a))— 

4 (A) in paragraph (2)— 

5 (i) by inserting ‘‘impression evidence,’’ 

6 after ‘‘latent prints,’’; and 

7 (ii) by inserting ‘‘digital evidence, fire 

8 evidence,’’ after ‘‘toxicology,’’; 

9 (B) in paragraph (3), by inserting ‘‘and 

10 medicolegal death investigators’’ after ‘‘labora11 tory personnel’’; and 

12 (C) by inserting at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(4) To address emerging forensic science 

14 issues (such as statistics, contextual bias, and uncer15 tainty of measurement) and emerging forensic 

16 science technology (such as high throughput automa17 tion, statistical software, and new types of instru18 mentation). 

19 ‘‘(5) To educate and train forensic pathologists 

20 in the United States. 

21 ‘‘(6) To work with the States and units of local 

22 government to direct funding to medicolegal death 

23 investigation systems to facilitate accreditation of 

24 medical examiner and coroner offices and certifi25 cation of medicolegal death investigators.’’; and 


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1 (4) in section 2806(a) (42 U.S.C. 3797o(a))— 

2 (A) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

3 the end; 

4 (B) by redesignating paragraph (4) as 

5 paragraph (5); and 

6 (C) by inserting after paragraph (3) the 

7 following: 

8 ‘‘(4) the progress of any unaccredited forensic 

9 science service provider receiving grant funds toward 

10 obtaining accreditation; and’’. 

11 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

12 1001(a)(24) of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and 

13 Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3793(a)(24)) is 

14 amended— 

15 (1) in subparagraph (H), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

16 the end; 

17 (2) in subparagraph (I), by striking the period 

18 at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

19 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(J) $25,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

21 2017 through 2021.’’. 

22 SEC. 11. IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF REPRESENTATION 

23 IN STATE CAPITAL CASES. 

24 Section 426 of the Justice for All Act of 2004 (42 

25 U.S.C. 14163e) is amended— 


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1 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘$75,000,000 

2 for each of fiscal years 2005 through 2009’’ and in3 serting ‘‘$30,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2017 

4 through 2021’’; and 

5 (2) in subsection (b), by inserting before the pe6 riod at the end the following: ‘‘, or upon a showing 

7 of good cause, and at the discretion of the Attorney 

8 General, the State may determine a fair allocation of 

9 funds across the uses described in sections 421 and 

10 422’’. 

11 SEC. 12. POST-CONVICTION DNA TESTING. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 3600 of title 18, United 

13 States Code, is amended— 

14 (1) by striking ‘‘under a sentence of’’ in each 

15 place it appears and inserting ‘‘sentenced to’’; 

16 (2) in subsection (a)— 

17 (A) in paragraph (1)(B)(i), by striking 

18 ‘‘death’’; and 

19 (B) in paragraph (3)(A), by striking ‘‘and 

20 the applicant did not—’’ and all that follows 

21 through ‘‘knowingly fail to request’’ and insert22 ing ‘‘and the applicant did not knowingly fail to 

23 request’’; 

24 (3) in subsection (b)(1)— 


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1 (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

2 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

3 (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking the 

4 period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

5 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(C) order the Government to— 

7 ‘‘(i) prepare an inventory of the evi8 dence related to the case; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) issue a copy of the inventory to 

10 the court, the applicant, and the Govern11 ment.’’; 

12 (4) in subsection (e)— 

13 (A) by amending paragraph (1) to read as 

14 follows: 

15 ‘‘(1) RESULTS.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The results of any 

17 DNA testing ordered under this section shall be 

18 simultaneously disclosed to the court, the appli19 cant, and the Government. 

20 ‘‘(B) RESULTS EXCLUDE APPLICANT.— 

21 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—If a DNA profile 

22 is obtained through testing that excludes 

23 the applicant as the source and the DNA 

24 complies with the Federal Bureau of Inves25 tigation’s requirements for the uploading 


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1 of crime scene profiles to the National 

2 DNA Index System (referred to in this 

3 subsection as ‘NDIS’), the court shall 

4 order that the law enforcement entity with 

5 direct or conveyed statutory jurisdiction 

6 that has access to the NDIS submit the 

7 DNA profile obtained from probative bio8 logical material from crime scene evidence 

9 to determine whether the DNA profile 

10 matches a profile of a known individual or 

11 a profile from an unsolved crime. 

12 ‘‘(ii) NDIS SEARCH.—The results of a 

13 search under clause (i) shall be simulta14 neously disclosed to the court, the appli15 cant, and the Government.’’; and 

16 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘the Na17 tional DNA Index System (referred to in this 

18 subsection as ‘NDIS’)’’ and inserting ‘‘NDIS’’; 

19 and 

20 (5) in subsection (g)(2)(B), by striking 

21 ‘‘death’’. 

22 (b) PRESERVATION OF BIOLOGICAL EVIDENCE.— 

23 Section 3600A of title 18, United States Code, is amend24 ed— 


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1 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘under a sen2 tence of’’ and inserting ‘‘sentenced to’’; and 

3 (2) in subsection (c)— 

4 (A) by striking paragraphs (1) and (2); 

5 and 

6 (B) by redesignating paragraphs (3), (4), 

7 and (5) as paragraphs (1), (2), and (3), respec8 tively. 

9 SEC. 13. KIRK BLOODSWORTH POST-CONVICTION DNA 

10 TESTING PROGRAM. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 413 of the Justice for All 

12 Act of 2004 (42 U.S.C. 14136 note) is amended— 

13 (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by 

14 striking ‘‘fiscal years 2005 through 2009’’ and in15 serting ‘‘fiscal years 2017 through 2021’’; and 

16 (2) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the 

17 following: 

18 ‘‘(2) for eligible entities that are a State or unit 

19 of local government, provide a certification by the 

20 chief legal officer of the State in which the eligible 

21 entity operates or the chief legal officer of the juris22 diction in which the funds will be used for the pur23 poses of the grants, that the State or jurisdiction— 

24 ‘‘(A) provides DNA testing of specified evi25 dence under a State statute or a State or local 


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1 rule or regulation to persons sentenced to im2 prisonment or death for a State felony offense, 

3 in a manner intended to ensure a reasonable 

4 process for resolving claims of actual innocence 

5 that ensures post-conviction DNA testing in at 

6 least those cases that would be covered by sec7 tion 3600(a) of title 18, United States Code, 

8 had they been Federal cases and, if the results 

9 of the testing exclude the applicant as the 

10 source of the DNA, permits the applicant to 

11 apply for post-conviction relief, notwithstanding 

12 any provision of law that would otherwise bar 

13 the application as untimely; and 

14 ‘‘(B) preserves biological evidence, as de15 fined in section 3600A of title 18, United 

16 States Code, under a State statute or a State 

17 or local rule, regulation, or practice in a man18 ner intended to ensure that reasonable meas19 ures are taken by the State or jurisdiction to 

20 preserve biological evidence secured in relation 

21 to the investigation or prosecution of, at a min22 imum, murder, nonnegligent manslaughter and 

23 sexual offenses.’’. 

24 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

25 412(b) of the Justice for All Act of 2004 (42 U.S.C. 


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1 14136e(b)) is amended by striking ‘‘$5,000,000 for each 

2 of fiscal years 2005 through 2009’’ and inserting 

3 ‘‘$10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2017 through 

4 2021’’. 

5 SEC. 14. ESTABLISHMENT OF BEST PRACTICES FOR EVI6 DENCE RETENTION. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle A of title IV of the Jus8 tice for All Act of 2004 (Public Law 108–405; 118 Stat. 

9 2278) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 414. ESTABLISHMENT OF BEST PRACTICES FOR EVI11 DENCE RETENTION. 

12 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the National In13 stitute of Justice, in consultation with Federal, State, and 

14 local law enforcement agencies and government labora15 tories, shall— 

16 ‘‘(1) establish best practices for evidence reten17 tion to focus on the preservation of forensic evi18 dence; and 

19 ‘‘(2) assist State, local, and tribal governments 

20 in adopting and implementing the best practices es21 tablished under paragraph (1). 

22 ‘‘(b) DEADLINE.—Not later than 1 year after the 

23 date of enactment of this section, the Director of the Na24 tional Institute of Justice shall publish the best practices 

25 established under subsection (a)(1). 


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1 ‘‘(c) LIMITATION.—Nothing in this section shall be 

2 construed to require or obligate compliance with the best 

3 practices established under subsection (a)(1).’’. 

4 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

5 The table of contents in section 1(b) of the Justice for 

6 All Act of 2004 (Public Law 108–405; 118 Stat. 2260) 

7 is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 

8 413 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 414. Establishment of best practices for evidence retention.’’. 

9 SEC. 15. EFFECTIVE ADMINISTRATION OF CRIMINAL JUS10 TICE. 

11 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as the 

12 ‘‘Effective Administration of Criminal Justice Act of 

13 2015’’. 

14 (b) STRATEGIC PLANNING.—Section 502 of title I of 

15 the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 

16 (42 U.S.C. 3752) is amended— 

17 (1) by inserting ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—’’ before 

18 ‘‘To request a grant’’; and 

19 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(6) A comprehensive Statewide plan detailing 

21 how grants received under this section will be used 

22 to improve the administration of the criminal justice 

23 system, which shall— 

24 ‘‘(A) be designed in consultation with local 

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1 ments of the criminal justice system, including 

2 judges, prosecutors, law enforcement personnel, 

3 corrections personnel, and providers of indigent 

4 defense services, victim services, juvenile justice 

5 delinquency prevention programs, community 

6 corrections, and reentry services; 

7 ‘‘(B) include a description of how the State 

8 will allocate funding within and among each of 

9 the uses described in subparagraphs (A) 

10 through (G) of section 501(a)(1); 

11 ‘‘(C) describe the process used by the State 

12 for gathering evidence-based data and devel13 oping and using evidence-based and evidence14 gathering approaches in support of funding de15 cisions; 

16 ‘‘(D) describe the barriers at the State and 

17 local level for accessing data and implementing 

18 evidence-based approaches to preventing and re19 ducing crime and recidivism; and 

20 ‘‘(E) be updated every 5 years, with an21 nual progress reports that— 

22 ‘‘(i) address changing circumstances 

23 in the State, if any; 

24 ‘‘(ii) describe how the State plans to 

25 adjust funding within and among each of 


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1 the uses described in subparagraphs (A) 

2 through (G) of section 501(a)(1); 

3 ‘‘(iii) provide an ongoing assessment 

4 of need; 

5 ‘‘(iv) discuss the accomplishment of 

6 goals identified in any plan previously pre7 pared under this paragraph; and 

8 ‘‘(v) reflect how the plan influenced 

9 funding decisions in the previous year. 

10 ‘‘(b) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.— 

11 ‘‘(1) STRATEGIC PLANNING.—Not later than 90 

12 days after the date of enactment of this subsection, 

13 the Attorney General shall begin to provide technical 

14 assistance to States and local governments request15 ing support to develop and implement the strategic 

16 plan required under subsection (a)(6). 

17 ‘‘(2) PROTECTION OF CONSTITUTIONAL

18 RIGHTS.—Not later than 90 days after the date of 

19 enactment of this subsection, the Attorney General 

20 shall begin to provide technical assistance to States 

21 and local governments, including any agent thereof 

22 with responsibility for administration of justice, re23 questing support to meet the obligations established 

24 by the Sixth Amendment to the Constitution of the 

25 United States, which shall include— 


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1 ‘‘(A) public dissemination of practices, 

2 structures, or models for the administration of 

3 justice consistent with the requirements of the 

4 Sixth Amendment; and 

5 ‘‘(B) assistance with adopting and imple6 menting a system for the administration of jus7 tice consistent with the requirements of the 

8 Sixth Amendment. 

9 ‘‘(3) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

10 There is authorized to be appropriated $5,000,000 

11 for each of fiscal years 2017 through 2021 to carry 

12 out this subsection.’’. 

13 (c) APPLICABILITY.—The requirement to submit a 

14 strategic plan under section 501(a)(6) of title I of the Om15 nibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, as 

16 added by subsection (b), shall apply to any application 

17 submitted under such section 501 for a grant for any fis18 cal year beginning after the date that is 1 year after the 

19 date of enactment of this Act. 

20 SEC. 16. OVERSIGHT AND ACCOUNTABILITY. 

21 All grants awarded by the Department of Justice that 

22 are authorized under this Act shall be subject to the fol23 lowing: 

24 (1) AUDIT REQUIREMENT.—Beginning in fiscal 

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1 spector General of the Department of Justice shall 

2 conduct audits of recipients of grants under this Act 

3 to prevent waste, fraud, and abuse of funds by 

4 grantees. The Inspector General shall determine the 

5 appropriate number of grantees to be audited each 

6 year. 

7 (2) MANDATORY EXCLUSION.—A recipient of 

8 grant funds under this Act that is found to have an 

9 unresolved audit finding shall not be eligible to re10 ceive grant funds under this Act during the 2 fiscal 

11 years beginning after the 12-month period described 

12 in paragraph (5). 

13 (3) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this 

14 Act, the Attorney General shall give priority to eligi15 ble entities that, during the 3 fiscal years before 

16 submitting an application for a grant under this Act, 

17 did not have an unresolved audit finding showing a 

18 violation in the terms or conditions of a Department 

19 of Justice grant program. 

20 (4) REIMBURSEMENT.—If an entity is awarded 

21 grant funds under this Act during the 2-fiscal-year 

22 period in which the entity is barred from receiving 

23 grants under paragraph (2), the Attorney General 

24 shall— 


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1 (A) deposit an amount equal to the grant 

2 funds that were improperly awarded to the 

3 grantee into the General Fund of the Treasury; 

4 and 

5 (B) seek to recoup the costs of the repay6 ment to the fund from the grant recipient that 

7 was erroneously awarded grant funds. 

8 (5) DEFINED TERM.—In this section, the term 

9 ‘‘unresolved audit finding’’ means an audit report 

10 finding in the final audit report of the Inspector 

11 General of the Department of Justice that the 

12 grantee has utilized grant funds for an unauthorized 

13 expenditure or otherwise unallowable cost that is not 

14 closed or resolved within a 12-month period begin15 ning on the date when the final audit report is 

16 issued. 

17 (6) NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION REQUIRE18 MENTS.— 

19 (A) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this 

20 section and the grant programs described in 

21 this Act, the term ‘‘nonprofit organization’’ 

22 means an organization that is described in sec23 tion 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

24 1986 and is exempt from taxation under section 

25 501(a) of such Code. 


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1 (B) PROHIBITION.—The Attorney General 

2 shall not award a grant under any grant pro3 gram described in this Act to a nonprofit orga4 nization that holds money in offshore accounts 

5 for the purpose of avoiding paying the tax de6 scribed in section 511(a) of the Internal Rev7 enue Code of 1986. 

8 (C) DISCLOSURE.—Each nonprofit organi9 zation that is awarded a grant under a grant 

10 program described in this Act and uses the pro11 cedures prescribed in regulations to create a re12 buttable presumption of reasonableness for the 

13 compensation of its officers, directors, trustees 

14 and key employees, shall disclose to the Attor15 ney General, in the application for the grant, 

16 the process for determining such compensation, 

17 including the independent persons involved in 

18 reviewing and approving such compensation, the 

19 comparability data used, and contemporaneous 

20 substantiation of the deliberation and decision. 

21 Upon request, the Attorney General shall make 

22 the information disclosed under this subsection 

23 available for public inspection. 

24 (7) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Unless oth25 erwise explicitly provided in authorizing legislation, 


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1 not more than 7.5 percent of the amounts author2 ized to be appropriated under this Act may be used 

3 by the Attorney General for salaries and administra4 tive expenses of the Department of Justice. 

5 (8) CONFERENCE EXPENDITURES.— 

6 (A) LIMITATION.—No amounts authorized 

7 to be appropriated to the Department of Justice 

8 under this Act may be used by the Attorney 

9 General or by any individual or organization 

10 awarded discretionary funds through a coopera11 tive agreement under this Act, to host or sup12 port any expenditure for conferences that uses 

13 more than $20,000 in Department funds, un14 less the Deputy Attorney General or the appro15 priate Assistant Attorney General, Director, or 

16 principal deputy as the Deputy Attorney Gen17 eral may designate, provides prior written au18 thorization that the funds may be expended to 

19 host a conference. 

20 (B) WRITTEN APPROVAL.—Written ap21 proval under subparagraph (A) shall include a 

22 written estimate of all costs associated with the 

23 conference, including the cost of all food and 

24 beverages, audio/visual equipment, honoraria 

25 for speakers, and any entertainment. 


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1 (C) REPORT.—The Deputy Attorney Gen2 eral shall submit an annual report to the Com3 mittee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the 

4 Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 

5 Representatives on all conference expenditures 

6 approved by operation of this paragraph. 

7 (9) PROHIBITION ON LOBBYING ACTIVITY.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—Amounts authorized to 

9 be appropriated under this Act may not be uti10 lized by any grant recipient to— 

11 (i) lobby any representative of the De12 partment of Justice regarding the award of 

13 grant funding; or 

14 (ii) lobby any representative of a Fed15 eral, State, local, or tribal government re16 garding the award of grant funding. 

17 (B) PENALTY.—If the Attorney General 

18 determines that any recipient of a grant under 

19 this Act has violated subparagraph (A), the At20 torney General shall— 

21 (i) require the grant recipient to repay 

22 the grant in full; and 

23 (ii) prohibit the grant recipient from 

24 receiving another grant under this Act for 

25 not less than 5 years. 


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1 SEC. 17. NEEDS ASSESSMENT OF FORENSIC LABORA2 TORIES. 

3 (a) STUDY AND REPORT.—Not later than October 1, 

4 2018, the Attorney General shall conduct a study and sub5 mit a report to the Committee on the Judiciary of the Sen6 ate and the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 

7 Representatives on the status and needs of the forensic 

8 science community. 

9 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—The report required under 

10 subsection (a) shall— 

11 (1) examine the status of current workload, 

12 backlog, personnel, equipment, and equipment needs 

13 of public crime laboratories and medical examiner 

14 and coroner offices; 

15 (2) include an overview of academic forensic 

16 science resources and needs, from a broad forensic 

17 science perspective, including nontraditional crime 

18 laboratory disciplines such as forensic anthropology, 

19 forensic entomology, and others as determined ap20 propriate by the Attorney General; 

21 (3) consider— 

22 (A) the National Institute of Justice study, 

23 Forensic Sciences: Review of Status and Needs, 

24 published in 1999; 

25 (B) the Bureau of Justice Statistics census 

26 reports on Publicly Funded Forensic Crime 


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1 Laboratories, published in 2002, 2005, 2009, 

2 and 2014; 

3 (C) the National Academy of Sciences re4 port, Strengthening Forensic Science: A Path 

5 Forward, published in 2009; and 

6 (D) the Bureau of Justice Statistics survey 

7 of forensic providers recommended by the Na8 tional Commission of Forensic Science and ap9 proved by the Attorney General on September 

10 8, 2014; 

11 (4) provide Congress with a comprehensive view 

12 of the infrastructure, equipment, and personnel 

13 needs of the broad forensic science community; and 

14 (5) be made available to the public. 

15 SEC. 18. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

16 It is the sense of Congress that— 

17 (1) the authority of the Director of the Office 

18 of Victims of Crime under section 1404 of the Vic19 tims of Crime Act of 1984 (42 U.S.C. 10603) in20 cludes funding ongoing projects that provide services 

21 to victims of crime on a nationwide basis or Ameri22 cans abroad who are victims of crimes committed 

23 outside of the United States; and 

24 (2) the proposed rule entitled ‘‘VOCA Victim 

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1 tims of Crime of the Department of Justice in the 

2 Federal Register on August 27, 2013 (78 Fed. Reg. 

3 52877), is consistent with section 1404 of the Vic4 tims of Crime Act of 1984 (42 U.S.C. 10603). 

Æ 


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