[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 6]
[Senate]
[Page 7798]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         RAPID DNA ACT OF 2017

  Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, as in legislative session, I ask 
unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate 
consideration of Calendar No. 74, S. 139.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 139) to implement the use of Rapid DNA 
     instruments to inform decisions about pretrial release or 
     detention and their conditions, to solve and prevent violent 
     crimes and other crimes, to exonerate the innocent, to 
     prevent DNA analysis backlogs, and for other purposes.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill 
be considered read a third time and passed and the motion to reconsider 
be considered made and laid upon the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The bill (S. 139) was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading, 
was read the third time, and passed, as follows:

                                 S. 139

       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 ``Rapid DNA Act of 2017''.

     SEC. 2. RAPID DNA INSTRUMENTS.

       (a) Standards.--Section 210303(a) of the DNA Identification 
     Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14131(a)) is amended by adding at the 
     end the following:
       ``(5)(A) In addition to issuing standards as provided in 
     paragraphs (1) through (4), the Director of the Federal 
     Bureau of Investigation shall issue standards and procedures 
     for the use of Rapid DNA instruments and resulting DNA 
     analyses.
       ``(B) In this Act, the term `Rapid DNA instruments' means 
     instrumentation that carries out a fully automated process to 
     derive a DNA analysis from a DNA sample.''.
       (b) Index.--Paragraph (2) of section 210304(b) of the DNA 
     Identification Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14132(b)(2)) is amended 
     to read as follows:
       ``(2) prepared by--
       ``(A) laboratories that--
       ``(i) have been accredited by a nonprofit professional 
     association of persons actively involved in forensic science 
     that is nationally recognized within the forensic science 
     community; and
       ``(ii) undergo external audits, not less than once every 2 
     years, that demonstrate compliance with standards established 
     by the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; or
       ``(B) criminal justice agencies using Rapid DNA instruments 
     approved by the Director of the Federal Bureau of 
     Investigation in compliance with the standards and procedures 
     issued by the Director under section 210303(a)(5); and''.

     SEC. 3. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS RELATING TO COLLECTION OF DNA 
                   IDENTIFICATION INFORMATION.

       (a) From Certain Federal Offenders.--Section 3 of the DNA 
     Analysis Backlog Elimination Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 14135a) 
     is amended--
       (1) in subsection (b), by adding at the end the following: 
     ``The Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation may 
     waive the requirements under this subsection if DNA samples 
     are analyzed by means of Rapid DNA instruments and the 
     results are included in CODIS.''; and
       (2) in subsection (c), by adding at the end the following:
       ``(3) The term `Rapid DNA instruments' means 
     instrumentation that carries out a fully automated process to 
     derive a DNA analysis from a DNA sample.''.
       (b) From Certain District of Columbia Offenders.--Section 4 
     of the DNA Analysis Backlog Elimination Act of 2000 (42 
     U.S.C. 14135b) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (b), by adding at the end the following: 
     ``The Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation may 
     waive the requirements under this subsection if DNA samples 
     are analyzed by means of Rapid DNA instruments and the 
     results are included in CODIS.''; and
       (2) in subsection (c), by adding at the end the following:
       ``(3) The term `Rapid DNA instruments' means 
     instrumentation that carries out a fully automated process to 
     derive a DNA analysis from a DNA sample.''.

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