I
107TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 534
To establish a grant program that provides incentives for States to enact
mandatory minimum sentences for certain firearms offenses, and for
other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 8, 2001
Mr. CRENSHAW introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary
A BILL
To establish a grant program that provides incentives for
States to enact mandatory minimum sentences for cer-
tain firearms offenses, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Project Exile Safe
Streets and Neighborhoods Act of 2001’’.
SEC. 2. FIREARMS SENTENCING INCENTIVE GRANTS.
(a) PROGRAM ESTABLISHED.—Title II of the Violent
Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 is
amended—
monwealth of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin
Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern
Mariana Islands.
‘‘SEC. 20352. AUTHORIZATION OF GRANTS.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made available to
carry out this subtitle, the Attorney General shall provide
Firearms Sentencing Incentive grants under section
20353 to eligible States.
‘‘(b) ALLOWABLE USES.—Such grants may be used
by a State only for the following purposes:
‘‘(1) To support—
‘‘(A) law enforcement agencies;
‘‘(B) prosecutors;
‘‘(C) courts;
‘‘(D) probation officers;
‘‘(E) correctional officers;
‘‘(F) the juvenile justice system;
‘‘(G) the expansion, improvement, and co-
ordination of criminal history records; or
‘‘(H) case management programs involving
the sharing of information about serious offend-
ers.
‘‘(2) To carry out a public awareness and com-
munity support program described in section
20353(a)(2).
‘‘(3) To build or expand correctional facilities.
‘‘(c) SUBGRANTS.—A State may use such grants di-
rectly or by making subgrants to units of local government
within that State.
‘‘SEC. 20353. FIREARMS SENTENCING INCENTIVE GRANTS.
‘‘(a) ELIGIBILITY.—Except as provided in subsection
(b), to be eligible to receive a grant award under this sec-
tion, a State shall submit an application to the Attorney
General that complies with the following:
‘‘(1) The application shall demonstrate that
such State has implemented firearms sentencing
laws requiring 1 or more of the following:
‘‘(A) Any person who, during and in rela-
tion to any violent crime or serious drug traf-
ficking crime, uses or carries a firearm, shall,
in addition to the punishment provided for such
crime of violence or serious drug trafficking
crime, be sentenced to a term of imprisonment
of not less than 5 years (without the possibility
of parole during that term).
‘‘(B) Any person who, having at least 1
prior conviction for a violent crime, possesses a
firearm, shall, for such possession, be sentenced
to a term of imprisonment of not less than 5
years (without the possibility of parole during
that term).
‘‘(2) The application shall demonstrate that
such State has implemented, or will implement not
later than 6 months after receiving a grant under
this subtitle, a public awareness and community sup-
port program that seeks to build support for, and
warns potential violators of, the firearms sentencing
laws implemented under paragraph (1).
‘‘(3) The application shall provide assurances
that such State—
‘‘(A) will coordinate with Federal prosecu-
tors and Federal law enforcement agencies
whose jurisdictions include such State, so as to
promote Federal involvement and cooperation in
the enforcement of laws within that State; and
‘‘(B) will allocate its resources in a manner
calculated to reduce crime in the high-crime
areas of the State.
‘‘(b) ALTERNATE ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A State that is unable to
demonstrate in its application that such State meets
the requirement of subsection (a)(1) shall be eligible
to receive a grant award under this section notwith-
standing that inability if that State, in such applica-
tion, provides assurances that such State has in ef-
fect an equivalent Federal prosecution agreement.
‘‘(2) 
EQUIVALENT
FEDERAL
PROSECUTION
AGREEMENT.—For purposes of paragraph (1), an
equivalent Federal prosecution agreement is an
agreement with appropriate Federal authorities that
ensures 1 or more of the following:
‘‘(A) If a person engages in the conduct
specified in subsection (a)(1)(A), but the con-
viction of that person under State law for that
conduct is not certain to result in the imposi-
tion of an additional sentence as specified in
that subsection, that person is referred for
prosecution for such conduct under Federal
law.
‘‘(B) If a person engages in the conduct
specified in subsection (a)(1)(B), but the con-
viction of that person under State law for that
conduct is not certain to result in the imposi-
tion of a sentence as specified in that sub-
section, that person is referred for prosecution
for such conduct under Federal law.
‘‘SEC. 20354. FORMULA FOR GRANTS.
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The amount available for grants
under section 20353 for any fiscal year shall be allocated
to each eligible State, in the ratio that the number of part
1 violent crimes reported by such State to the Federal Bu-
reau of Investigation for the 3 years preceding the year
in which the determination is made, bears to the average
annual number of part 1 violent crimes reported by all
eligible States to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for
the 3 years preceding the year in which the determination
is made.
‘‘(b) UNAVAILABLE DATA.—If data regarding part 1
violent crimes in any State is substantially inaccurate or
is unavailable for the 3 years preceding the year in which
the determination is made, the Attorney General shall uti-
lize the best available comparable data regarding the num-
ber of violent crimes for the previous year for the State
for the purposes of allocation of funds under this subtitle.
‘‘SEC. 20355. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
‘‘(a) AUTHORIZATIONS.—There are authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this subtitle—
‘‘(1) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2001;
‘‘(2) $15,000,000 for fiscal year 2002;
‘‘(3) $20,000,000 for fiscal year 2003;
‘‘(4) $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2004; and
‘‘(5) $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2005.
‘‘(b) LIMITATIONS ON FUNDS.—
‘‘(1) USES OF FUNDS.—Funds made available
pursuant to this subtitle shall be used only to carry
out the purposes described in section 20352(b).
‘‘(2) NONSUPPLANTING REQUIREMENT.—Funds
made available pursuant to this section shall not be
used to supplant State funds, but shall be used to
increase the amount of funds that would, in the ab-
sence of Federal funds, be made available from
State sources.
‘‘(3) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Not more than
3 percent of the funds made available pursuant to
this section shall be available to the Attorney Gen-
eral for purposes of administration, research and
evaluation, technical assistance, and data collection.
‘‘(4) CARRYOVER OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Funds
appropriated pursuant to this section during any fis-
cal year shall remain available until expended.
‘‘(5) MATCHING FUNDS.—The Federal share of
a grant received under this subtitle may not exceed
90 percent of the costs of a proposal as described in
an application approved under this subtitle.
‘‘SEC. 20356. REPORT BY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL.
‘‘Beginning on October 1, 2001, and each subsequent
July 1 thereafter, the Attorney General shall submit to
the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the
Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representa-
tives a report on the implementation of this subtitle. The
report shall include information regarding the eligibility
of States under section 20353 and the distribution and
use of funds under this subtitle.’’.
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents
in section 2 of that Act is amended—
(1) by redesignating the item relating to sub-
title D of title II as subtitle E of such title; and
(2) by inserting after subtitle C of such title the
following:
‘‘Subtitle D—Firearms Sentencing Incentive Grants
‘‘Sec. 20351. Definitions.
‘‘Sec. 20352. Authorization of grants.
‘‘Sec. 20353. Firearms sentencing incentive grants.
‘‘Sec. 20354. Formula for grants.
‘‘Sec. 20355. Authorization of appropriations.
‘‘Sec. 20356. Report by the Attorney General.’’.
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