Date: 2016-05-23
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. let me thank the gentleman from Texas for his persistence. his determination. and for this exciting commemoration of the Justice for All Reauthorization Act of 2016. Let me thank the Congressional Victims Rights Caucus and cochair JIM COSTA. along with Congressman POE. Judge POE. who famously has said. "And that is just the way it is." and I see all of us seemingly adopting those words. So he has now put the English language in a form that we just cant help ourselves. So I thank Judge POE so very much. I remember his beginning. I want to thank him for a year or 2 ago when he joined me and Chairman MCCAUL for a Committee on Homeland Security human trafficking hearing in Houston. Texas. I believe we have had other hearings since then because we know that Houston. Texas. Harris County. and in Texas has been called one of the center points of human trafficking. to our dismay. Many stories have come to our attention. I think it was about 2 years ago. Judge POE. when they found a stash house out in the county. I actually went to that site where teams ofwhen I say teams. tens upon tens of individuals. including children. were in that particular place. We had to shut down a cantina in and around the inner city that had been used for human trafficking in the city of Houston. The one point that is very important that I will makeand I will comment on some other aspects that are in this billis that human trafficking is profitable. Human trafficking is profitable. That means that slavery is not dead. Human trafficking is profitable. The reason is. tragically. the young child. the young teenager. the preteen. the young woman. or the young man or boy is recycled. tragically. over and over again. which makes human trafficking more than profitable and vicious and vile. They have to keep that human being who needs to be free and enjoy the freedom of being a child and enjoy the various special things of being a child. like being loved and nurtured. going to picnics. going to school. they have to keep that young woman. that young man in bondage. That is what this bill. as spoken of previously. and certainly among other things. speaks to today. In the many bills that were incorporated in this bill. it was to eliminate. if you will. the pain and viciousness of human trafficking. Let me quickly say that I want to congratulate the fact that this bill reduces the rape kit backlog and provides resources for forensic labs in cities all over America. As a member of the Judiciary Committee. we were hearing the stories about backlogs of rape kits. So this bill requires at least 75 percent of amounts made available to the DOJ for forensic testing and to be used for direct testing of crime scene evidence. including rape kits. It improves the sexual assault nurse examiner program by incentivizing the hiring of fulltime nurses. particularly in rural and underserved areas. and reauthorizes and improves the Paul Coverdell Forensic Science Improvement Grants. which awards grants to States and local governments to improve the quality of forensic science services. which is so very important. I also say that I acknowledge that numerous studies have shown that at least 75 percent of youths involved in the justice system have experienced traumatic victimization. making them vulnerable to mental health disorders and perceived behavioral and noncompliance and misconduct. This legislation deals with bestevidence research to be able to help our youth as well. and to ensure that they get the kind of treatment they need. particularly after sexual assault. which is what human trafficking mostly is. besides the heinousness of being held by another human being. So I am very glad that we are moving forward on the reauthorization for Justice for All for 2016. So many things have been made better. I want to cite one example as I close. I am reminded of this because of the floods that we dealt with recently. There were incidences of women living in places where their name was not on the lease. So. for example. if a man gets evicted for abusing his livein girlfriend. the girlfriend who is not a named tenant on the lease. but is a resident. would automatically be evicted. That is so very important. Many times. that girlfriend is living there with her children. She would be permitted to stay for a reasonable time to establish her own eligibility to remain in the public housing unit. Let me say this: this is not a onesizefitsall. but it is not one community. It is not any race of people. it is not any economic level of people. It is people who are egregiously abusing and violating another human being. In many instances. Judge POE. it is a child. So I want to thank you for this legislation. Let us continue to walk this pathway together in a bipartisan manner. Certainly. as a very valued member of the Judiciary Committee. a lot of your work is part of that legislative agenda. and I am very glad to join in. A lot of your work is also on the Foreign Affairs Committee. Let us work together to save lives and to protect our children. Mr. Speaker. I am pleased to join my colleagues of the Congressional Victims Rights Caucus. Congressman TED POE (RTX) and Congressman JIM COSTA (DCA) who are anchoring this Special Order in support of the Justice for All Reauthorization Act of 2016. The Justice for All Act. which I cosponsored in 2004. enhanced protections for victims of Federal crimes. provided resources to improve the use of DNA and forensic technology to combat crimes. and established safeguards to prevent and reverse wrongful convictions. This legislation reauthorizes and improves many of the programs created by the original law and responsibly reduces overall funding in response to current economic conditions. The bipartisan Justice for All Act of 2004 increased resources devoted to DNA and other forensic technology. established safeguards to prevent wrongful convictions. and enhanced protections for crime victims. This legislation builds on the Justice for All Act to improve the criminal justice system and ensure public confidence in it. The Justice for All Act of 2016 increases access to restitution for crime victims and requires that interpreters be available to all federal crime victims who wish to participate in a court proceeding. Reauthorizing important programs used to notify crime victims of their right to be heard in court. this legislation provides them with legal assistance. Additionally. the bill improves housing rights for domestic violence victims and protects Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) funding from federal penalties. The bill makes payment of restitution a mandatory condition of supervised release for any defendant convicted of a Federal felony or misdemeanor and ordered to pay restitution. The bill will also amend the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure to give the court authority to appoint an interpreter for any victim present during proceedings. Importantly. this legislation supports programs that inform crime victims of their rights and helps ensure that those rights are enforced by reauthorizing the Crime Victims Legal Assistance Grants and Crime Victims Notification Grants. Reducing current Rape Kit Backlog. the Justice for All Act requires that at least 75% of amounts made available to the Attorney General for local. state. and Federal forensic activities must be used for direct testing activities described in the Debbie Smith DNA Backlog Grant Program. Requiring law enforcement agencies to conduct audits of their backlogged rape kits. this law also creates tracking mechanisms. and prioritizes testing in cases in which the statute of limitations will soon expire. The Act also amends the Sexual Assault Forensic Exam Program Grants to give preference to entities which will: operate or expand forensic nurse examiner programs in rural areas or for underserved populations. hire fulltime forensic nurse examiners. or support training programs for forensic nurse examiners. Critically. the Act provides community health centers. colleges and hospitals with information about resources available to address domestic violence. sexual assault. and elder abuse. Clarifying requirements for housing protections in the Violence Against Women Act. the act will extend protection against automatic eviction to any "resident" in a public housing unitwho is not a tenant listed on the leasein situations where the named tenant is evicted. For example. if a man gets evicted for abusing his livein girlfriend. the girlfriend. who is not a named tenant on the lease but is a resident. would not automatically be evicted. She would be permitted to stay for a reasonable time to establish her own eligibility to remain in the public housing unit. The Justice for All Reauthorization Act of 2016 strengthens the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA). PREA currently requires that all states to comply with its requirements or suffer a 5% reduction in DOJ funds they would receive for "prison purposes." States can still receive the funds however. even if they are not in compliance. if the Governor submits an "assurance" that the state will reallocate 5% of those funds to PREA implementation. To ensure compliance. states are required to have all of their prisons audited for at least once every three years. The bill requires Governors to submit with their annual certification or assurance information about the states PREA implementation efforts. including which correctional facilities were audited in the most recent audit year. a proposed schedule for completing an audit of all prison during the next three audit years. and all final audit reports. Numerous studies have also shown that at least 75% of youth involved in the justice system have experienced traumatic victimization. making them vulnerable to mental health disorders and perceived behavioral noncompliance and misconduct. Over the years. clear evidence has emerged from federal investigations. classaction lawsuits or authoritative reports written by reputable media outlets or respected public or private agencies showing that youth corrections facility across the country have repeatedly failed to protect youth from violence by staff or other youth. sexual assaults and/or excessive use of isolation or restraints. (Annie E. Casey FoundationMaltreatment Report. 2015). Despite costly law suits and periods of federal supervision. inhumane conditions of youth confinement remains rampant and a national epidemic. Despite national outcry for compliance with PREA. Many states have failed to implement and enforce its standards for youth in correctional and detention facilities. Current law provides that states not conforming to required protocols will lose 5% of all funds they receive from the U.S. DOJ grant programs. However. financial penalties will not begin until 2017. and expected that DOJ will extend deadline and/or disperse funds to noncompliant states (provided they use the money toward implementing PREA requirements). (AECF Report). Further. the bill requires the Attorney General to post all final audit reports on its website and to update the site at least annually. Expanding the reach of these valiant efforts. the Justice for All Reauthorization Act of 2016 clarifies that grants authorized for victim assistance may be used to support nonprofit entities which assist victims of crime on a nationwide basis or Americans abroad who are victims of crimes committed outside of the United States. Truly. improving the administration of criminal justice programs. the bill increases accountability for federal funds spent by state and local governments by requiring that states receiving funds under the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program develop a strategic plan detailing how the funds will be spent. The bill directs the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) to promulgate best practices for evidence retention within eighteen months of enactment and requires NIJ to assist state. local. and tribal governments wishing to adopt those best practices. Because this bill has tremendous potential to improve victims access to justice. support law enforcement. exonerate the innocent. and strengthen and improve the criminal justice system. we urge the committee to bring this bill up for timely consideration and passage. As a member of the Congressional Victims Rights Caucus. I thank my colleagues Congressman TED POE (RTX) and Congressman JIM COSTA (DCA) ) for hosting this Special Order in support of the Justice for All Reauthorization Act of 2016. It is an invaluable and much needed effort.