No Time Limit for Justice Act

No Time Limit for Justice Act

This bill directs the Department of Justice to increase a state's allocation of funds under the STOP Violence Against Women Formula Grant Program if, under the laws of the state, child sexual abuse criminal offenses and civil actions authorizing damages for victims of child sexual abuse are not subject to a statute of limitations.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5049 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 5049

 To provide incentives for States to eliminate statutes of limitation 
         related to child sexual abuse, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            August 17, 2021

    Ms. Moore of Wisconsin introduced the following bill; which was 
               referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To provide incentives for States to eliminate statutes of limitation 
         related to child sexual abuse, 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 ``No Time Limit for Justice Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) According to the Children's Bureau of the 
        Administration on Children, Youth and Families of the 
        Department of Health and Human Services, every 9 minutes, a 
        child is sexually assaulted in the United States, and 93 
        percent of victims know the perpetrator, who is often related 
        to the victim.
            (2) Child sexual abuse can have a serious impact on the 
        physical and mental health of victims, who often experience 
        post-traumatic stress disorder, shame, guilt, anxiety, and 
        depression.
            (3) A study from the National Institutes of Health found 
        that between 60 and 80 percent of victims of childhood sexual 
        abuse wait until adulthood to disclose their abuse.
            (4) Due to the especially heinous nature of child sexual 
        abuse, it is imperative that perpetrators of this crime are 
        punished and prevented from reoffending, and that victims have 
        the opportunity to see their abusers brought to justice.
            (5) Statutes of limitations for felony sex crimes against 
        minors differ by State, and some end as little as 3 years after 
        the crime occurred, even for crimes like production of child 
        sexual abuse imagery. For victims, statutes of limitations can 
        hinder their ability to seek justice and hold their perpetrator 
        accountable.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Covered grant program.--The term ``covered grant 
        program'' means the grant program under part T of title I of 
        the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 
        U.S.C. 10441 et seq.) (commonly referred to as the ``STOP 
        Violence Against Women Formula Grant Program'').
            (2) Sexual abuse.--The term ``sexual abuse'' has the 
        meaning given the term in section 111 of the Child Abuse 
        Prevention and Treatment Act (42 U.S.C. 5106g).

SEC. 4. INCREASED FUNDING FOR GRANTS AUTHORIZED UNDER STOP GRANT 
              PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--The Attorney General shall, in accordance with 
subsection (b), increase the total amount of each grant awarded to a 
State under the covered grant program, if, as of the first day of the 
fiscal year for which the grant is being awarded--
            (1) child sexual abuse criminal offenses under the laws of 
        the State are not subject to a statute of limitations; and
            (2) civil actions authorizing damages for victims of child 
        sexual abuse under the laws of the State are not subject to a 
        statute of limitations.
    (b) Grant Increase.--The amount of an increase provided to a State 
under subsection (a) shall be equal to not more than 5 percent of the 
average of the total amount of funding provided to the State under the 
covered grant program during the 3 most recent fiscal years in which 
the State was awarded a grant under the covered grant program.
    (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated $10,000,000 for each of 2022 through 2026 to carry out 
this section.
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