STOP Act
Bill: H.R.650 | Sponsor: Rep. Emmer, Tom (R-MN)
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement

Summary:
Senior abuse Training and Offense Prevention Act or the STOP Act
This bill directs the Department of Justice to award competitive grants to state or local governments, Indian tribes, or other entities to support law enforcement personnel, corrections personnel, and other first responders in elder justice matters.

To direct the Attorney General to award grants to eligible entities for 
  first responders who handle elder justice-related matters, and for 
                            other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Senior abuse Training and Offense 
Prevention Act'' or the ``STOP Act''.

SEC. 2. SUPPORTING LAW ENFORCEMENT IN ELDER JUSTICE MATTERS.

    (a) In General.--The Attorney General, after consultation with the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services, the Postmaster General, and the 
Chief Postal Inspector for the United States Postal Inspection Service, 
shall award grants to eligible entities, on a competitive basis, to 
provide training, technical assistance, multidisciplinary coordination, 
policy development, and other types of support to police, sheriffs, 
detectives, public safety officers, corrections personnel, and other 
first responders who handle elder justice-related matters, to fund 
specially designated elder justice positions or units designed to 
support first responders in elder justice matters.
    (b) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Elder.--The term ``elder'' means an individual age 60 
        or older.
            (2) Elder justice.--The term ``elder justice'' means--
                    (A) efforts to--
                            (i) prevent, detect, threat, intervene in, 
                        and prosecute elder abuse, neglect, and 
                        exploitation; and
                            (ii) protect elders with diminished 
                        capacity while maximizing their autonomy; and
                    (B) the recognition of an elder's rights, including 
                the right to be free of abuse, neglect, and 
                exploitation.
            (3) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means a 
        State or local government agency, Indian tribe or tribal 
        organization, or any other public or nonprofit private entity 
        that is engaged in and has expertise in issues relating to 
        elder justice or a field necessary to promote elder justice 
        efforts.

SEC. 3. EVALUATION; APPLICATIONS.

    (a) Evaluation.--In carrying out the grant program under this Act, 
the Attorney General shall--
            (1) require each recipient of a grant to use a portion of 
        the funds made available through the grant to conduct a 
        validated evaluation of the effectiveness of the activities 
        carried out through the grant by such recipient; or
            (2) as the Attorney General considers appropriate, use a 
        portion of the funds available under this Act for a grant 
        program under this Act to provide assistance to an eligible 
        entity to conduct a validated evaluation of the effectiveness 
        of the activities carried out through such grant program by 
        each of the grant recipients.
    (b) Applications.--
            (1) Submission.--To be eligible to receive a grant under 
        this Act, an entity shall submit an application to the Attorney 
        General at such time, in such manner, and containing such 
        information as the Attorney General may require, which shall 
        include--
                    (A) a proposal for the evaluation required in 
                accordance with subsection (a)(1); and
                    (B) the amount of assistance under subsection 
                (a)(2) the entity is requesting, if any.
            (2) Review and assistance.--
                    (A) In general.--An employee of the Department of 
                Justice, after consultation with an employee of the 
                Department of Health and Human Services with expertise 
                in evaluation methodology, shall review each 
                application described in subsection (b) and determine 
                whether the methodology described in the proposal under 
                paragraph (1)(A) is adequate to gather meaningful 
                information.
                    (B) Denial.--If the reviewing employee determines 
                the methodology described in such proposal is 
                inadequate, the reviewing employee shall recommend that 
                the Attorney General deny the application for the 
                grant, or make recommendations for how the application 
                should be modified.
                    (C) Notice to applicant.--If the Attorney General 
                denies the application on the basis of such proposal, 
                the Attorney General shall inform the applicant of the 
                reasons the application was denied, and offer 
                assistance to the applicant in modifying the proposal.
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