Debbie Smith Reauthorization Act of 2019

Floor Speech

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Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 777) to reauthorize programs authorized under the Debbie Smith Act of 2004.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 777

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 ``Debbie Smith Reauthorization Act of 2019''. SEC. 2. REAUTHORIZATION.

Section 2 of the DNA Analysis Backlog Elimination Act of 2000 (34 U.S.C. 40701) is amended--

(1) in subsection (a)--

(A) in paragraph (2), by striking ``including'' and inserting ``prioritizing, to the extent practicable consistent with public safety considerations''; and

(B) in paragraph (8), by striking ``including'' and inserting ``in particular,'';

(2) in subsection (b)--

(A) in paragraph (6), by striking ``and'' at the end;

(B) in paragraph (7), by striking the period at the end and inserting ``; and''; and

(C) by adding at the end the following:

``(8) provide assurances that the DNA section of the laboratory to be used to conduct DNA analyses has a written policy that prioritizes the analysis of, to the extent practicable consistent with public safety considerations, samples from homicides and sexual assaults.'';

(3) in subsection (c)(3)--

(A) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``2014 through 2019'' and inserting ``2019 through 2024''; and

(B) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``2014 through 2019'' and inserting ``2019 through 2024''; and

(4) in subsection (j), by striking ``2015 through 2019'' and inserting ``2019 through 2024''. SEC. 3. TRAINING AND EDUCATION.

Section 303(b) of the DNA Sexual Assault Justice Act of 2004 (34 U.S.C. 40722(b)) is amended by striking ``2015 through 2019'' and inserting ``2019 through 2024''. SEC. 4. SEXUAL ASSAULT FORENSIC EXAM GRANTS.

Section 304(d) of the DNA Sexual Assault Justice Act of 2004 (34 U.S.C. 40723(d)) is amended by striking ``2015 through 2019'' and inserting ``2019 through 2024''.
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Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 777, the Debbie Smith Reauthorization Act of 2019.

The Debbie Smith Act, named for a courageous woman who has fought for the rights of survivors of sexual assault, is critical to helping States process DNA evidence and reduce the Nation's large backlog of untested DNA samples.

The law, which I helped author and enact in its original form in 2004, was developed in response to a crisis of untested DNA samples, a problem that we have helped to reduce but which, unfortunately, still requires our urgent attention today.

Over the past several decades, evidence from DNA samples has helped us solve an increasing number of criminal cases and has been particularly valuable in identifying the perpetrators of the horrible and all-too-common crime of sexual assault.

The use of DNA evidence kits in sexual assault cases is critical, and it is imperative that the evidence that is collected is analyzed as soon as possible. When the evidence is collected and processed, the DNA profile is added to the Combined DNA Index System so that matches against other DNA profiles can be sought, increasing the scope of the database.

By testing the DNA evidence left at the scene of a rape or sexual assault, we can increase the likelihood of identifying the perpetrators, making it more likely that they will be captured, punished, and prevented from doing it again. This, in turn, allows victims to obtain some measure of justice and society to take violent criminals off the streets. DNA evidence also allows us, definitively, to exonerate the falsely accused.

Over time, however, crime labs across the country, regrettably, developed a large backlog of DNA samples that they had not tested, an intolerable situation calling out for Federal action.

In response, in 2000, I cosponsored the passage of the DNA Analysis Backlog Elimination Act, which provided $40 million to help States analyze DNA evidence; and in 2002, I introduced the Rape Kit DNA Analysis Backlog Elimination Act. This legislation authorized funding to help police departments finance the testing of rape kits to reduce the backlog. Working with my colleagues and with advocates, we maintained the pressure to address this problem.

Then, in 2004, I was the original cosponsor of the Justice for All Act, introduced by our colleague Jim Sensenbrenner. That bill included many of the provisions of my 2002 bill.

Title II of that bill, named the Debbie Smith Act by Congresswoman Maloney, authorized substantial funding for DNA testing and strengthened the ability of State and local law enforcement specifically to test rape kits. We subsequently reauthorized the Debbie Smith Act in 2008 and again in 2014.

In recent years, the grants we have reauthorized under the Debbie Smith Act have supported the work of crime labs to build capacity and process DNA evidence, including evidence collected in rape kits, with greater percentages of funding allocated to testing these kits provided in subsequent amendments.

The act also supports audits of evidence awaiting analysis at law enforcement agencies and charges the Department of Justice with the task of maintaining national testing guidelines.

Despite these efforts, the rape kit backlog continues to be a major concern, with a large volume of kits still untested in this country, harming the survivors of sexual assault and jeopardizing public safety. Therefore, we must continue the valuable programs authorized by this important law.

That is why we included the reauthorization of this program in the Violence Against Women Act, or VAWA reauthorization bill, developed by the Judiciary Committee and passed by the House earlier this year. Unfortunately, VAWA is languishing in the Senate.

While we take steps to separately pass the reauthorization of the Debbie Smith program today, I again call on the Senate to fulfill their responsibility to pass the Violence Against Women Act reauthorization without needless additional delay. Therefore, I support H.R. 777.

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Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I remind my colleagues that the reauthorization of this bill has been sitting in the VAWA reauthorization bill passed by this House many months ago, it has been sitting in the Senate since then.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney).

Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York. I thank the gentleman from the great State of New York for yielding and for his outstanding leadership on the Judiciary Committee.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of this bill, H.R. 777, the Debbie Smith Reauthorization Act, as amended. I was pleased to introduce this bill with my colleague and good friend Ann Wagner of Missouri.

I first passed this bill in 2004. This critical State backlog grant program provides funding for forensic labs and local law enforcement to process DNA evidence, including rape kits.

In 2001, I invited a woman named Debbie Smith to testify before the Oversight and Government Reform Committee. Debbie was a rape survivor, and I remember being struck by her story of waiting more than 6 years for her rape kit to be processed. And Debbie's story is not unique.

Across this country, DNA evidence collected at crime scenes sits in a backlog, because forensic labs have limited capacity or resources to process it in a timely manner.

So I wrote and passed the Debbie Smith Act, which at the time was called the most important antirape legislation ever signed into law.

The results of the grant program speak for themselves. The National Institute of Justice reports that since 2005 Debbie Smith funding is responsible for 192,000, or about 42 percent, of DNA matches in the FBI database.

So when it can match and convict a rapist, it prevents future rapes. The FBI says rapists will attack roughly seven times, so if you catch that person and put them in jail, you protect other women from being hurt.

And as improved technology enables collection of DNA evidence, demand for grant funding has dramatically increased. We need this funding. This funding keeps rapists and other criminals off the street, and perhaps more importantly, the program can deliver some measure of justice to survivors of violence.

Unfortunately, this Debbie Smith Act authorization expired on September 30. And the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act passed by this House that included an extension of the Debbie Smith program has not been passed in the Senate.

I truly want to thank not only Chairman Nadler, but also Speaker Pelosi, Leader Hoyer, the entire Democratic Caucus for recognizing the importance of this grant program and moving H.R. 777 forward.

Despite its lapse in authorization, we have an opportunity to make sure that this successful program continues to help solve and prevent violent rape and protect survivors.

The Debbie Smith Act has always enjoyed broad bipartisan support, and I hope we continue that tradition today. I urge all of my colleagues to support the reauthorization of the Debbie Smith Act. It protects women from sexual violence. It is important.

And, again, I thank all of my colleagues that have supported this legislation in the past, particularly Ann Wagner, who has championed fighting sex trafficking and protecting women in other areas.

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Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee).

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New York for yielding, and I express my appreciation to the manager of our friends on the other side of the aisle, my colleague from Arizona, and my colleague on the Judiciary Committee.

Let me say, first of all, to Carolyn Maloney, if we go down memory lane, we have been together on this issue from the very start. We know when you had Debbie Smith come when she was willing to speak at a time that, I would say, was most concerning in the early stages of this. She was willing to come to the United States Congress and to share her story.

And, Congresswoman Maloney, let me thank you for crafting the legislation, working with any number of bipartisan cosponsors, some of whom are no longer in the United States Congress, but I remember as a member of the Judiciary Committee being very closely aligned and supporting this bill. And so we have made great strides. And the over 140,000 cases that have been solved is a testament to the great need of this legislation. There is no doubt.

And, of course, as we know from 2004--that is 15 years ago--that at that time, and continuing to a certain extent, the enormity of the backlog. Those of us who interact with law enforcement and interact with our district attorneys, we know that that has been an atrocious Achilles heel in providing comfort and justice to those who have been violated.

I am reminded of the forensic lab that we had in Houston; we had to do a completely massive overhaul for the Harris County lab to ensure that we were in compliance or that we were going after the backlog. That is the word that we should be focused on, the ``backlog.'' Backlog means injustice or no justice.

And certainly, as I have heard stories--just as recently as last night, I was on the phone with a constituent with a story that was just overwhelming, and she was trying to craft her next direction.

And so this legislation is answering the pain of individuals who have come forward--and even those who are not able to identify a person immediately, and the DNA provides that opportunity--and it reauthorizes the bill. It ensures that grantee states and localities prioritize DNA analysis of crime scene samples, rape kits, other sexual assault evidence, and also carries cases without an identified suspect.

I am glad that this bill is on the floor. But let me be very clear, we wrote a Violence Against Women Act starting in 2017 that was a monumental tribute to this month, in fact, which is Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

We know that there are many around the Nation who have experienced and suffered this. In fact, there was a recent trial in Houston with a family that was killed in totality, except one member, because of domestic violence.

We need the Violence Against Women Act. And I might take an exception to the fact that this bill is a holistic bill. It is a law enforcement bill. It is a bill of improving services to victims of domestic violence and dating violence and sexual assault.

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Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Texas.

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Madam Speaker, we have some very unique aspects in that legislation. We have counseling for men and boys, something very unique. I can't view that as controversial.

We, likewise, have extended the protection of the arm of justice to Native American women.

And, let me just speak to law enforcement, because I speak to them almost every weekend that I am at home: $291 million; and the creativity of prosecutors, local prosecutors, and law enforcement is amazing with those dollars.

So I believe that we can do both. We can continue to affirm and complement the enormity of the work of Carolyn Maloney, the years of work that we have worked with her and attacked the backlog, which none of us ever want to hear or see. We want no backlog.

We hope that this bill moves in the Senate, but it is not accurate that this bill, the Violence Against Women Act--there are active supporters of this legislation in the Senate, and I am looking forward to what we do best, working in a bipartisan manner to pass the Debbie Smith DNA bill and pass, to give relief to victims of domestic violence and others, the Violence Against Women Act.

Madam Speaker, I ask Members to vote for Debbie Smith.

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Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, how much time do I have remaining?

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Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I am a little puzzled by what I am hearing on the floor today and, frankly, what I heard in committee this morning on a different bill.

The gist of that is, well, we passed a bill, but we know it is not exactly the way the Senate wants it; therefore, we shouldn't pass it. We should only pass a bill exactly the way the Senate wants it; otherwise, it is only for show.

On this bill, look what happened. This reauthorization was included in the VAWA reauthorization, which we passed and sent to the Senate.

Ah, but that was political, we are told, because the Senate doesn't agree in every respect with the VAWA reauthorization we passed, so they won't touch it.

Well, I don't understand that. I always thought, from the time I was in third grade, that they should pass their own version of the VAWA bill. If it is different from ours, we go to conference.

But, no. No, we can't rely on them to do that. They have to have a bill that they agree with totally, or they won't look at the subject no matter how important.

Ah, but they introduced their own. They took it out of VAWA, and they did their own Debbie Smith bill.

Fine. We are doing a Debbie Smith bill because we don't agree exactly with what they did. They put in some new accountability provisions. We have always had accountability provisions in the bill, still there. It has always been the law. They are adding some new ones which we judge to be unduly burdensome on small providers. It is a judgment.

We should pass this bill. They have passed a different version of the bill. We can go to conference, iron it out. That is the way the process is supposed to work.

My Republican colleagues seem to think that we should never talk to the Senate; we should only pass a bill exactly the way they passed it. Or if they haven't passed it exactly the way we know they will want it and if we pass a bill differently, then it is just political posturing. That is nonsense.

This reauthorization bill is a good bill. It is the way we think it ought to be. If we pass it--they have already passed a different reauthorization bill. I regret that they didn't pass the entire VAWA reauthorization bill, but we can go to conference. We can iron it out.

If someone wants to argue that the provisions in that bill are better, let them offer it here, but not be heard to say we should only do exactly what the Senate wants. That doesn't make sense.

We are our own independent body. We were elected to do our job. This is the way we want to do it. This is the way we think the bill ought to be. We put it in the VAWA reauthorization bill. We have given up waiting for the Senate on that one.

They passed a Debbie Smith bill in a version we don't entirely approve of. We will pass our own version. We will get together. We will see if we can agree on it. That is the way the process ought to work.

If we pass this bill, that is the way the process will work, and we are more likely to get a reauthorization bill than by standing here and saying: Don't pass this bill. Only pass a bill--which we won't do-- exactly in a form that we don't like, exactly the way the Senate wanted it.
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Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time to close.

Madam Speaker, it is critical that we do all that we can to prevent sexual assault and that we ensure survivors receive the essential services they need, which is why we passed the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act earlier this year.

And I would remind my colleagues that the VAWA Act, which included the authorization for the Debbie Smith Reauthorization Act, expired last September 30, 2018, when the Republicans had the majority in the House, the majority in the Senate, and the President. So the fact that it lapsed was unfortunate, but it was also the responsibility of the Republican Party, which then had control of the Senate, the House, and the Presidency to get its continuation, which they neglected to do.

We continue to urge the Senate to do the right thing and pass the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, which includes the Debbie Smith Reauthorization Act.

And we will also, again, today pass provisions to reauthorize the Debbie Smith Act by advancing this bill today. In doing so, we reaffirm our commitment to this important program.

I, therefore, urge my colleagues to support this bill, and to continue to fight to support the more comprehensive measures in the Violence Against Women Act.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Madam Speaker, as a senior member of both the Judiciary Committee and a co-sponsor, I rise in strong support of H.R. 777, the ``Debbie Smith Reauthorization Act of 2019,'' which reauthorizes the Debbie Smith Act and the Debbie Smith Backlog Grant program for an additional five years, through FY 2024.

These grant programs to address DNA backlogs and provide DNA training and technical assistance on local, state, and federal levels.

It is essential that these programs be reauthorized so that the backlog of unprocessed rape kits can be reduced and then eliminated, and perpetrators of sexual assault crimes can be prosecuted and convicted.

There is an ever-present need to continue robust funding for programs such as the Debbie Smith DNA Backlog Grant Program in order to make sure victims do not fall through the cracks of the system.

Women who have been raped have a right to expect police to thoroughly investigate the case and prosecute the offenders; however, many rape kits across the country are never even tested, and the perpetrators never face justice.

Under the Debbie Smith Act, not less than 40 percent of the total amount awarded in grants must be used for DNA analyses of samples from crime scenes, rape kits and other sexual assault evidence, and in cases that do not have an identified suspect.

Madam Speaker, the number of backlogged DNA samples was in excess of 100,000 nationwide as recently as January 2014.

H.R. 777 reauthorizes for five years (until the end of fiscal year 2024) the following programs:

1. ``Debbie Smith Reauthorization'' grants for state and local DNA crime laboratories to address DNA backlogs and enhance their capacity.

2. DNA training and technical directed to law enforcement, courts, forensic scientists, and corrections.

3. DNA training and technical assistance directed to sexual assault nurse examiner/(``SANE'') programs.

In my congressional district, these grant programs have resulted in forensic laboratories being hired to clear much of the Houston Police Department's backlog of untested DNA benefit from this type of legislation.

Just within the past year, decades-old rape kits that sat untested in Houston have identified at least one-third of potential offenders in cases where there was sufficient DNA, according to the Houston Police Department.

In my district more than 6,600 rape kits have been cleared because of the funding made possible by the grant programs that H.R. 777 will reauthorize.

This record of success highlights the importance and continuing need to provide adequate funding so law enforcement agencies can conduct necessary DNA testing and training.

Madam Speaker, when enacted in 2004, the Debbie Smith Act was the first piece of legislation aimed at ending the backlog of untested rape kits and other unanalyzed DNA evidence.

Debbie Smith grants have played a critical role in states across the country.

The importance of the Debbie Smith Act is highlighted by the fact that delays in processing DNA evidence can result in delays apprehending or prosecuting violent or serial offenders or it can result in wrongfully convicted individuals serving time in prison for crimes they did not commit.

Law enforcement has increasingly recognized that the backlog of DNA evidence awaiting entry in state databases can prevent law enforcement officials from solving many heinous crimes--which has made the Debbie Smith Act recognized as such a crucial program.

Madam Speaker, the DNA Initiative is an invaluable tool for law enforcement today, and it will continue to be a legislative priority of mine. That is why I am pleased to co-sponsor H.R. 777 and urge my colleagues to join me in voting to approve this critically important legislation.

Why We Also Need the Enactment of the Entire Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act

Although the country needs the provisions of the Debbie Smith Act, survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault need and deserve more.

The Senate must pass the full VAWA Reauthorization, which includes:

Improving services for victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking;

Giving law enforcement enhanced tools to combat domestic violence and sexual assault;

Making vital new investments in prevention;

Helping to better protect Native American women;

Preserving and improving housing protections for survivors;

Strengthening the health care system's response to domestic violence and sexual assault.

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Mr. NADLER. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

The yeas and nays were ordered.

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