[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4313 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 4313
To authorize the Attorney General to make grants to State and Tribal
courts in order to allow the electronic service of certain court
orders, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
September 12, 2019
Mrs. Dingell (for herself and Mr. Fitzpatrick) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To authorize the Attorney General to make grants to State and Tribal
courts in order to allow the electronic service of certain court
orders, 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 ``Electronic Service for
Effectiveness, Reduction of Violence, and Improved Court Efficiency Act
of 2019'' or the ``E-SERVICE Act''.
SEC. 2. GRANTS TO STATE AND TRIBAL COURTS TO IMPLEMENT PROTECTION ORDER
PILOT PROGRAMS.
Part U of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act
of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10461 et seq.) is amended--
(1) by redesignating sections 2103, 2104, and 2105 as
sections 2104, 2105, and 2106, respectively; and
(2) by inserting after section 2102 the following:
``SEC. 2103. GRANTS TO STATE AND TRIBAL COURTS TO IMPLEMENT PROTECTION
ORDER PILOT PROGRAMS.
``(a) Definition of Eligible Entity.--In this section, the term
`eligible entity' means a State or tribal court that is part of a
multidisciplinary partnership that includes, to the extent
practicable--
``(1) State, tribal, or local law enforcement agency;
``(2) a State, tribal, or local prosecutor advocate group;
``(3) a victim service provider or State or tribal domestic
violence coalition;
``(4) a nonprofit program or government agency with
demonstrated experience in providing legal assistance or legal
advice to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault;
``(5) the bar association of the applicable State or Indian
Tribe;
``(6) the State or tribal association of court clerks;
``(7) a State, tribal, or local association of criminal
defense attorneys;
``(8) not fewer than 2 individuals with expertise in the
design and management of court case management systems and
systems of integration;
``(9) not fewer than 2 State or tribal court judges with
experience in--
``(A) the field of domestic violence; and
``(B) issuing protective orders; and
``(10) a judge assigned to the criminal docket of the State
or tribal court.
``(b) Grants Authorized.--
``(1) In general.--In addition to grants authorized under
section 2101, the Attorney General shall make grants to
eligible entities to carry out the activities described in
subsection (c) of this section.
``(2) Number.--The Attorney General may award not more than
10 grants under paragraph (1).
``(3) Amount.--The amount of a grant awarded under
paragraph (1) may be not more than $1,500,000.
``(c) Mandatory Activities.--
``(1) In general.--An eligible entity that receives a grant
under this section shall use the grant funds, in consultation
with the partners required under subsection (a), to--
``(A) develop and implement a program for properly
and legally serving protection orders through
electronic communication methods to--
``(i) modernize the service process and
make the process more effective and efficient;
``(ii) provide for improved safety of
victims; and
``(iii) make protection orders enforceable
as quickly as possible;
``(B) develop best practices relating to the
service of protection orders through electronic
communication methods;
``(C) ensure that the program developed under
subparagraph (A) complies with due process requirements
and any other procedures required by law or by a court;
and
``(D) implement any technology necessary to carry
out the program developed under subparagraph (A), such
as technology to verify and track the receipt of a
protection order by the intended party.
``(2) Timeline.--An eligible entity that receives a grant
under this section shall--
``(A) implement the program required under
paragraph (1)(A) not later than 2 years after receiving
the grant; and
``(B) carry out the program for not fewer than 3
years.
``(d) Diversity of Recipients.--The Attorney General shall award
grants under this section to eligible entities in a variety of areas
and situations, including--
``(1) a State court that serves a population of not fewer
than 1,000,000 individuals;
``(2) a State court that--
``(A) serves a State that is among the 7 States
with the lowest population density in the United
States; and
``(B) has a relatively low rate of successful
service with respect to protection orders, as
determined by the Attorney General;
``(3) a State court that--
``(A) serves a State that is among the 7 States
with the highest population density in the United
States; and
``(B) has a relatively low rate of successful
service with respect to protection orders, as
determined by the Attorney General;
``(4) a court that uses an integrated, statewide case
management system;
``(5) a court that uses a standalone case management
system;
``(6) a tribal court; and
``(7) a court that serves a culturally specific and
underserved population.
``(e) Application.--
``(1) In general.--An eligible entity shall submit an
application to the Attorney General that includes--
``(A) a description of the process that the
eligible entity uses for service of protection orders
at the time of submission of the application;
``(B) to the extent practicable, statistics
relating to protection orders during the 3 calendar
years preceding the date of submission of the
application, including rates of--
``(i) successful service; and
``(ii) enforcement;
``(C) an initial list of the entities serving as
the partners required under subsection (a); and
``(D) any other information the Attorney General
may reasonably require.
``(2) No other application required.--An eligible entity
shall not be required to submit an application under section
2102 to receive a grant under this section.
``(f) Technical Assistance.--Notwithstanding section 40002(b)(11)
of the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 (34 U.S.C. 12291(b)(11)), as
applied under section 2106 of this part, not less than 5 percent and
not more than 8 percent of the total amounts appropriated to carry out
this section shall be available to the Attorney General for technical
assistance relating to the purposes of this section.
``(g) Report to Attorney General.--
``(1) Initial report.--Not later than 2 years after
receiving a grant under this section, an eligible entity shall
submit to the Attorney General a report that details the plan
of the entity for implementation of the program under
subsection (c).
``(2) Subsequent reports.--
``(A) In general.--Not later than 1 year after
implementing the program under subsection (c), and not
later than 2 years thereafter, an eligible entity shall
submit to the Attorney General a report that describes
the program implemented under subsection (c), including
with respect to--
``(i) viability;
``(ii) cost;
``(iii) service statistics;
``(iv) challenges;
``(v) analysis of the technology used to
fulfill the goals of the program;
``(vi) analysis of any legal or due process
issues resulting from the electronic service
method described in subsection (c)(1)(A); and
``(vii) best practices for implementing
such a program in other similarly situated
locations.
``(B) Contents of final report.--An eligible entity
shall include in the second report submitted under
subparagraph (A) recommendations for--
``(i) future nationwide implementation of
the program implemented by the eligible entity;
and
``(ii) usage of electronic service, similar
to the service used by the eligible entity, for
other commonly used court orders, including
with respect to viability and cost.
``(h) No Regulations or Guidelines Required.--Notwithstanding
section 2105, the Attorney General shall not be required to publish
regulations or guidelines implementing this section.
``(i) Authorization of Appropriations.--In addition to amounts
otherwise made available to carry out this part, there is authorized to
be appropriated to carry out this section $10,000,000 for fiscal years
2019 through 2024.''.
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