,,iv  #aafth ,,congress  #ast ,session  
,h4 ,,res4 #ha  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of 
,,representatives  ,january #bh1        
#bjai,mr4 ,joyce of ,ohio 7for himself1 
,ms4 ,kuster of ,new ,hampshire1 ,mr4   
,katko1 ,ms4 ,speier1 ,mr4 ,turner1 ,mr4
 ,brendan ,f4 ,boyle of ,pennsylvania1  
,mr4 ,balderson1 and ,ms4 ,wasserman    
,schultz7 submitted the following       
resolution2 which was referred to the   
,committee on the ,judiciary            
,,resolution  ,expressing the sense of  
the ,house of ,representatives regarding
 the need for ,state legislatures to    
pass comprehensive sexual assault kit   
reforms by #bjba4  ,whereas survivors of
 sexual assault may undergo an          
hours-long sexual assault forensic exam 
to preserve ,,dna evidence2 ,whereas    
many sexual assault kits across the     
country remain untested2 ,whereas       
untested sexual assault kits represent  
individuals who have been denied the    
opportunity to seek justice and begin   
healing2 ,whereas testing sexual assault

 kits may help law enforcement officials
 identify repeat offenders and serial   
rapists2 ,whereas the testing of #aa1cda
 sexual assault kits in ,detroit has    
resulted in #b1faf ,,dna matches and the
 identification of more than #hjj       
potential serial rapists1 and the ,,dna 
samples from the kits tested in ,detroit
 are linked to other violent crimes     
committed in #dj ,states and the        
,district of ,columbia2 ,whereas ending 
the sexual assault kit backlog requires 
the commitment of ,federal1 ,state1 and 
local governments and their partners2   
and ,whereas in #bjaf1 the ,begun       
,center for ,violence ,prevention       
,research and ,education at ,case       
,western ,reserve ,university1 in       
partnership with the ,cuyahoga ,county  
,prosecutor ,office1 analyzed the cost  
of testing backlogged sexual assault    
kits in ,cuyahoga ,county1 ,ohio1 and   
found that each kit tested produces an  
estimated net savings to the community  
of #h1hic and testing #d1cdg kits       

produces an estimated net savings of    
#ch1gjj1jjj3 ,now1 therefore1 be it     
,that it is the sense of the ,house of  
,representatives that ,state            
legislatures should pass sexual assault 
kit reform legislation that requires--  
7#a7 the ,state to establish            
collaborations with ,state and local    
sexual assault advocates1 sexual assault
 nurse examiners1 law enforcement       
officers1 and others to ensure that--   
7,a7 a sexual assault advocate is made  
available to sexual assault survivors   
upon a report to law enforcement1 during
 a sexual assault forensic exam1 and for
 ongoing support and services2  7,b7    
sexual assault survivors are notified of
 their rights and kit results in a      
trauma-informed manner1 in collaboration
 with sexual assault advocates2 and     
7,c7 policies and procedures pertaining 
to sexual assault kit examinations1     
testing1 and notification are           
victim-centered and developed           
collaboratively across victim advocacy1 

medical1 law enforcement1 and other     
sexual assault response team partners2  
7#b7 the ,state to conduct an annual    
statewide audit to inventory all        
untested sexual assault kits with the   
goal of understanding the scope of the  
problem and to monitor progress in      
eliminating the backlog of previously   
unsubmitted and untested kits2  7#c7 law
 enforcement agencies to submit all     
previously untested sexual assault kits 
to a laboratory and mandates that the   
laboratory test these kits for ,,dna    
within a specific timeframe and upload  
the results into appropriate ,state and 
,federal databases2  7#d7 law           
enforcement agencies to promptly submit 
all newly collected kits that have been 
released for testing to the laboratory  
and mandates that the laboratory test   
these kits for ,,dna within a specific  
timeframe and upload the results into   
appropriate ,state and ,federal         
databases2  7#e7 the ,state to develop a
 sexual assault kit tracking system that

 includes a mechanism for survivors to  
check the status of their kits through  
the process1 from collection to         
analysis1 and ensure that hospitals1 law
 enforcement1 and laboratories are using
 the same system to track sexual assault
 kits2  7#f7 the ,state to have the     
appropriate mechanisms to notify        
survivors about their right to know the 
status and location of their sexual     
assault kits and their case2 and  7#g7  
the ,state to contribute appropriate and
 sustainable funding to address issues  
related to the unsubmitted and untested 
sexual assault kit backlog1 including   
trauma-informed support services for    
survivors4