Congressman Steven Horsford Votes for Funding to Help End Backlog of Rape Kits

October 23, 2019

Washington, D.C. — On Wednesday, Congressman Steven Horsford (NV-04) voted to reauthorize funding for the Debbie Smith Act, legislation aimed at ending the backlog of untested rape kits and other unanalyzed DNA evidence.

"Victims of sexual assault deserve to know that their cases will be handled with the utmost speed and precision; they deserve to know that perpetrators will not be able to walk free due to delays in processing or mishandling of valuable evidence," Congressman Steven Horsford. "The Debbie Smith Act is of vital importance to prevent any such delays in analyzing DNA evidence, which can create obstacles in apprehending or prosecuting violent or serial offenders or result in wrongfully convicted individuals serving time in prison for crimes they did not commit."

First enacted in 2004, the Debbie Smith Act also created the Debbie Smith Backlog Grant program, which distributes grants to all states to help them reduce the backlog of untested rape kits and other DNA evidence.

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.

The Debbie Smith Reauthorization Act of 2019 will:

reauthorize the Debbie Smith Act and the Debbie Smith Backlog Grant program for an additional five years, through 2023
ensure that grantee states and localities prioritize DNA analysis of crime scene samples from rape kits, other sexual assault evidence, and also, cases without an identified suspect.
condition eligibility for the Debbie Smith Backlog Grant program on the assurances that the DNA section of the laboratory to be used to conduct DNA analyses has a written policy that prioritizes the analysis of samples from homicides and sexual assaults.

Earlier this year, on April 4, 2019, the House passed the Debbie Smith Reauthorization as part of H.R. 1585, the bipartisan Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act. However, unfortunately, six months later, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has still not taken up and passed the critically important VAWA bill, thereby blocking the Debbie Smith reauthorization.