Protecting Access to Justice for Survivors Act of 2020

Protecting Access to Justice for Survivors Act of 2020

This bill authorizes a recipient of certain Department of Justice (DOJ) grants to use grant funds for legal representation in post-conviction relief proceedings. DOJ may not prohibit a recipient from using the grant for this purpose.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8133 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8133

To provide that, in the case of any grant made by the Attorney General, 
 no restriction may be placed on the use of grant amounts for purposes 
of representation in post-conviction relief proceedings, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            August 28, 2020

  Ms. Scanlon (for herself and Mrs. Wagner) introduced the following 
       bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide that, in the case of any grant made by the Attorney General, 
 no restriction may be placed on the use of grant amounts for purposes 
of representation in post-conviction relief proceedings, and for other 
                               purposes.

    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 ``Protecting Access to Justice for 
Survivors Act of 2020''.

SEC. 2. USE OF LEGAL AID SERVICES.

    Beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, the Office of 
Justice Programs or the Office on Violence Against Women, in awarding a 
grant that may be used for legal representation, may not prohibit a 
recipient from using the grant for legal representation for post-
conviction relief proceedings, including any proceedings relating to 
vacatur, expungement, record-stealing, or other post-conviction relief 
measure.

SEC. 3. ANNUAL REPORTING REQUIREMENT.

    Beginning in the first fiscal year after the date of enactment of 
this Act, and annually thereafter, the Executive Office for United 
States Attorneys shall submit a report to the Committees on the 
Judiciary of the House of Representatives and the Senate detailing--
            (1) the number of motions, that were filed in Federal 
        court--
                    (A) to vacate;
                    (B) for expungement; or
                    (C) setting forth mitigating factors;
        and that, but for the application of section 2, would not 
        otherwise have been filed;
            (2) the underlying crime of each action;
            (3) the response of the Executive Office; and
            (4) the final disposition of the motion.
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