,,ii #aaith ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #cegg ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,december #ah1 #bjbe,mr4 ,coons 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,moreno1 and ,ms4 ,rosen7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on the ,judiciary ,a ,,bill ,to provide funding to ,state and local law enforcement agencies to combat auto theft and stolen automobile trafficking1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,auto ,theft ,prevention ,act4 #b4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,director ,the term ,director means the ,director of the ,office of ,community ,oriented ,policing ,services of the ,department of ,justice4 7#b7 ,grant year ,the term grant year means the year during which the applicable grant is to be disbursed under the ,program4 7#c7 ,local law enforcement agency ,the term local law enforcement agency means any entity administered by a locality that exists primarily to prevent and detect crime and enforce criminal laws4 7#d7 ,locality ,the term locality means any city1 county1 township1 town1 borough1 parish1 village1 or other general purpose political subdivision of a ,state4 7#e7 ,program ,the term ,program means the auto theft prevention grant program established under section #c7;a74 7#f7 ,recipient ,state ,the term recipient ,state means a ,state that is awarded a grant under the ,program4 7#g7 ,state ,the term ,state means any ,state of the ,united ,states1 the ,district of ,columbia1 the ,commonwealth of ,puerto ,rico1 the ,united ,states ,virgin ,islands1 ,guam1 ,american ,samoa1 and the ,commonwealth of the ,northern ,mariana ,islands4 7#h7 ,state law enforcement agency ,the term ,state law enforcement agency means any ,state entity that exists primarily to prevent and detect crime and enforce criminal laws4 #c4 ,auto theft prevention grant program 7a7 ,establishment ,not later than #fj days after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,director shall establish an auto theft prevention grant program to provide funding to ,state law enforcement agencies and local law enforcement agencies to combat auto theft and stolen vehicle trafficking4 7b7 ,application ,a ,state desiring a grant under the ,program shall submit to the ,director an application that includes-- 7#a7 evidentiary or other materials1 including1 as appropriate1 ,state-specific police reports1 budget documents1 plans1 or other documents1 demonstrating that the ,state needs ,federal assistance to combat auto theft2 7#b7 documentation of the actions taken by the ,state during the year before the grant year1 based on the information in such evidentiary or other materials1 to reduce the instances of auto theft in the ,state2 and 7#c7 a plan indicating how the ,state will-- 7,a7 use amounts received under the ,program to implement auto theft prevention activities in accordance with subsections 7d7 and 7e72 and 7,b7 evaluate the success of the activities carried out using amounts received under the ,program4 7c7 ,awards 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,director may make a grant under the ,program to the ,attorney ,general of any ,state which has submitted an application that complies with the requirements under subsection 7b74 7#b7 ,considerations ,in determining whether to make a grant to a ,state under the ,program and the amount of a grant under the ,program1 the ,director shall-- 7,a7 consider the information provided in the application of the ,state2 and 7,b7 endeavor to prioritize ,states with a higher overall level of auto thefts during the year before the grant year4 7d7 ,distribution of funds 7#a7 ,local law enforcement agencies ,the ,attorney ,general of a recipient ,state shall make not less than #ej percent of the amount of a grant awarded under the ,program available as competitive subgrants to local law enforcement agencies within the recipient ,state to combat auto theft1 with the amount awarded determined by prioritizing localities with a higher overall level of auto thefts during the year before the grant year4 7#b7 ,state law enforcement agencies ,the ,attorney ,general of a recipient ,state shall make not less than #be percent of the amount of a grant awarded under the ,program available to ,state law enforcement agencies of the recipient ,state to combat auto theft4 7#c7 ,other amounts 7,a7 ,in general ,the ,attorney ,general of a recipient ,state shall make any amounts received under a grant under the ,program that are not allocated under paragraph 7#a7 or 7#b7 available as competitive subgrants to local law enforcement agencies or to ,state law enforcement agencies of the recipient ,state4 7,b7 ,prioritization for localities ,the amount of any subgrant made under this paragraph to a local law enforcement agency shall follow the prioritization under paragraph 7#a74 7e7 ,eligible activities ,amounts received under a grant under the ,program may only be used for the purpose of combating auto theft and combating stolen automobile trafficking1 including-- 7#a7 purchasing equipment used to combat auto theft1 such as law enforcement vehicles and license plate readers2 7#b7 funding costs associated with equipment described in paragraph 7#a71 such as subscription fees and data storage fees for license plate readers2 7#c7 hiring additional law enforcement officers and support staff to combat auto theft2 7#d7 funding overtime costs and additional compensation for law enforcement officers and support staff involved in combating auto theft2 7#e7 providing training for law enforcement officers and support staff to combat auto theft2 7#f7 providing resources for joint task forces established to combat auto theft2 7#g7 funding law enforcement data collection1 data storage1 or research activities related to combating auto theft2 and 7#h7 funding for the administrative costs of applying for and implementing the grant1 which shall not exceed #e percent of the grant amount4 7f7 ,authorization of appropriations ,there is authorized to be appropriated #cj1jjj1jjj for each of fiscal years #bjbf through #bjcj to carry out the ,program4 #d4 ,additional authorized uses of ,,cops grant program funds ,section #agja7;b7 of the ,omnibus ,crime ,control and ,safe ,streets ,act of #aifh 7#cd ,u4,s4,c4 #ajcha7;b77 is amended-- 7#a7 by redesignating paragraphs 7#bc7 and 7#bd7 as paragraphs 7#bd7 and 7#be71 respectively2 7#b7 by inserting after paragraph 7#bb71 the following3 7#bc7 to combat auto thefts and stolen automobile trafficking by purchasing equipment1 hiring law enforcement officers and support staff1 funding overtime and officer compensation costs1 expanding access to training initiatives1 funding joint task forces1 and funding law enforcement data collection or research activities related to auto thefts2 2 and 7#c7 in paragraph 7#bd71 as so redesignated1 by striking 7#bb7 and inserting 7#bc74