SAFER Act of 2012
Latest action. Referred to the subcommitteeA smaller panel inside a standing committee with jurisdiction over a slice of its subject matter. Most hearings and the first markup usually happen here.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.
Sexual Assault Forensic Evidence Registry Act of 2012 or the SAFER Act of 2012 - Amends the DNA Analysis Backlog Elimination Act of 2000 to authorize the Attorney General to make Debbie Smith grants under such Act to states or local governments to conduct audits of samples of sexual assault evidence that are awaiting testing, provided such government submits an audit plan that includes a good-faith estimate of the number of such samples. Requires between 5% and 10% of Debbie Smith grant funds distributed in FY2014-FY2018 to be awarded for such purpose if sufficient applications to justify such amounts are received by the Attorney General, provided such award doesn't decrease funds for other distribution requirements.
Requires the Attorney General to establish a Sexual Assault Forensic Evidence Registry that: (1) allows state and local governments to enter specified information about samples of sexual assault evidence in their possession that are awaiting testing, and (2) tracks the testing and processing of such samples. Requires such a government: (1) to complete a funded audit and enter such information about the sample into the Registry within one year after receiving a grant under this Act; (2) within 21 days after receiving a sample that was not in such government's possession at the time of the initiation of such audit, to enter information about such sample into the Registry; (3) to update the status of a sample within 30 days after any change; (4) to provide that the chief law enforcement officer of such government is the individual responsible for such government's compliance with registry requirements; and (5) to assign each sample a unique numeric or alphanumeric identifier. Exempts from such Registry-requirements samples that are not considered criminal evidence or that relate to a sexual assault for which the prosecution of each perpetrator is barred by a statute of limitations.
Requires the Attorney General to make publicly available on a website aggregate non-individualized and non-personally identifying data compiled from information required to be entered into the Registry, to allow for comparison of backlog data by state and local governments.
The summary continues for 1 more paragraph. Read it in full on Congress.gov
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on December 4, 2012. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on December 7, 2012: Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 112th Congress (2011-12), 283 of the 10,618 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 2.7 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
Ted Poe (R-TX) introduced it on December 4, 2012, and 4 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They are 4 Democrats.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on December 4, 2012, 5028 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 5025 days ago, on December 7, 2012.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 112th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2013 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers