[House Report 105-256]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                                       
105th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 1st Session                                                    105-256
_______________________________________________________________________


 
JACOB WETTERLING CRIMES AGAINST CHILDREN AND SEXUALLY VIOLENT OFFENDERS 
                 REGISTRATION IMPROVEMENTS ACT OF 1997
_______________________________________________________________________


 September 18, 1997.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on 
            the State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

 Mr. Hyde, from the Committee on the Judiciary, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                             together with

                            DISSENTING VIEWS

                        [To accompany H.R. 1683]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred the 
bill (H.R. 1683) to clarify the standards for State sex 
offender registration programs under the Jacob Wetterling 
Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent Offender 
Registration Act, having considered the same, report favorably 
thereon with an amendment and recommend that the bill as 
amended do pass.

                           TABLE OF CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
The Amendment....................................................     2
Purpose and Summary..............................................     6
Background and Need for Legislation..............................     7
Hearings.........................................................     9
Committee Consideration..........................................    10
Vote of the Committee............................................    10
Committee on Government Reform and Oversight Findings............    11
Committee Oversight Findings.....................................    11
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures........................    12
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................    12
Constitutional Authority Statement...............................    13
Section-by-Section Analysis and Discussion.......................    14
Committee Jurisdiction...........................................    20
Agency Views.....................................................    22
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............    28
Dissenting Views.................................................    40

  The amendment is as follows:
  Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert in lieu 
thereof the following:



SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

  This Act may be cited as the ``Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against 
Children and Sexually Violent Offenders Registration Improvements Act 
of 1997''.

SEC. 2. STANDARDS FOR SEX OFFENDER REGISTRATION PROGRAMS.

  (a) In General.--Section 170101(a) of the Violent Crime Control and 
Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14071(a)) is amended--
          (1) in paragraph (1)--
                  (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``with a 
                designated State law enforcement agency''; and
                  (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``with a 
                designated State law enforcement agency'';
          (2) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following:
          ``(2) Determination of sexually violent predator status; 
        waiver; alternative measures.--
                  ``(A) In general.--A determination of whether a 
                person is a sexually violent predator for purposes of 
                this section shall be made by a court after considering 
                the recommendation of a board composed of experts in 
                the behavior and treatment of sex offenders, victims' 
                rights advocates, and representatives of law 
                enforcement agencies.
                  ``(B) Waiver.--The Attorney General may waive the 
                requirements of subparagraph (A) if the Attorney 
                General determines that the State has established 
                alternative procedures or legal standards for 
                designating a person as a sexually violent predator.
                  ``(C) Alternative measures.--The Attorney General may 
                also approve alternative measures of comparable or 
                greater effectiveness in protecting the public from 
                unusually dangerous or recidivistic sexual offenders in 
                lieu of the specific measures set forth in this section 
                regarding sexually violent predators.''; and
          (3) in paragraph (3)--
                  (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``that consists 
                of--'' and inserting ``in a range of offenses specified 
                by State law which is comparable to or which exceeds 
                the following range of offenses:'';
                  (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``that consists 
                of'' and inserting ``in a range of offenses specified 
                by State law which is comparable to or which exceeds 
                the range of offenses encompassed by''; and
          (4) by adding at the end the following:
                  ``(F) The term `employed, carries on a vocation' 
                includes employment that is full-time or part-time for 
                a period of time exceeding 14 days or for an aggregate 
                period of time exceeding 30 days during any calendar 
                year, whether financially compensated, volunteered, or 
                for the purpose of government or educational benefit; 
                and
                  ``(G) The term `student' means a person who is 
                enrolled on a full-time or part-time basis, in any 
                public or private educational institution, including 
                any secondary school, trade, or professional 
                institution, or institution of higher education.''.
  (b) Requirements Upon Release, Parole, Supervised Release, or 
Probation.--Section 170101(b) of the Violent Crime Control and Law 
Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14071(b)) is amended--
          (1) in paragraph (1)--
                  (A) by striking the paragraph designation and heading 
                and inserting the following:
          ``(1) Duties of responsible officials.--'';
                  (B) in subparagraph (A)--
                          (i) in the matter preceding clause (i), by 
                        striking ``or in the case of probation, the 
                        court'' and inserting ``the court, or another 
                        responsible officer or official'';
                          (ii) in clause (ii), by striking ``give'' and 
                        all that follows before the semicolon and 
                        inserting ``report the change of address as 
                        provided by State law''; and
                          (iii) in clause (iii), by striking ``shall 
                        register'' and all that follows before the 
                        semicolon and inserting ``shall report the 
                        change of address as provided by State law and 
                        comply with any registration requirement in the 
                        new State of residence, and inform the person 
                        that the person must also register in a State 
                        where the person is employed, carries on a 
                        vocation, or is a student''; and
                  (C) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``or the court'' 
                and inserting ``, the court, or another responsible 
                officer or official'';
          (2) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following:
          ``(2) Transfer of information to state and fbi; participation 
        in national sex offender registry.--
                  ``(A) State reporting.--State procedures shall ensure 
                that the registration information is promptly made 
                available to a law enforcement agency having 
                jurisdiction where the person expects to reside and 
                entered into the appropriate State records or data 
                system. State procedures shallalso ensure that 
conviction data and fingerprints for persons required to register are 
promptly transmitted to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
                  ``(B) National reporting.--A State shall participate 
                in the national database established under section 
                170102(b) in accordance with guidelines issued by the 
                Attorney General, including transmission of current 
                address information and other information on 
                registrants to the extent provided by the 
                guidelines.'';
          (3) in paragraph (3)(A)--
                  (A) in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking 
                ``on each'' and all that follows through ``applies:'' 
                and inserting the following: ``State procedures shall 
                provide for verification of address at least 
                annually.''; and
                  (B) by striking clauses (i) through (v);
          (4) in paragraph (4), by striking ``section reported'' and 
        all that follows before the period at the end and inserting the 
        following: ``section shall be reported by the person in the 
        manner provided by State law. State procedures shall ensure 
        that the updated address information is promptly made available 
        to a law enforcement agency having jurisdiction where the 
        person will reside and entered into the appropriate State 
        records or data system'';
          (5) in paragraph (5), by striking ``shall register'' and all 
        that follows before the period at the end and inserting ``and 
        who moves to another State, shall report the change of address 
        to the responsible agency in the State the person is leaving, 
        and shall comply with any registration requirement in the new 
        State of residence. The procedures of the State the person is 
        leaving shall ensure that notice is provided promptly to an 
        agency responsible for registration in the new State, if that 
        State requires registration''; and
          (6) by adding at the end the following:
          ``(7) Registration of out-of-state offenders, federal 
        offenders, persons sentenced by courts martial, and offenders 
        crossing state borders.--As provided in guidelines issued by 
        the Attorney General, each State shall ensure that procedures 
        are in place to accept registration information from--
                  ``(A) persons who were convicted in another State, 
                convicted of a Federal offense, or sentenced by a court 
                martial; and
                  ``(B) nonresident offenders who have crossed into 
                another State in order to work or attend school.''.
  (c) Registration of Offender Crossing State Border.--Section 170101 
of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 
14071(c)) is amended by redesignating subsections (c) through (f) as 
(d) through (g), respectively, and inserting after subsection (b) the 
following:
  ``(c) Registration of Offender Crossing State Border.--Any person who 
is required under this section to register in the State in which such 
person resides shall also register in any State in which the person is 
employed, carries on a vocation, or is a student.''.
  (d) Release of Information.--Section 170101(e)(2) of the Violent 
Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14071(e)(2)), 
as redesignated by subsection (c) of this section, is amended by 
striking ``The designated'' and all that follows through ``State 
agency'' and inserting ``The State or any agency authorized by the 
State''.
  (e) Immunity for Good Faith Conduct.--Section 170101(f) of the 
Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 
14071(f)), as redesignated by subsection (c) of this section, is 
amended by striking ``, and State officials'' and inserting ``and 
independent contractors acting at the direction of such agencies, and 
State officials''.
  (f) FBI Registration.--(1) Section 170102(a)(2) of the Violent Crime 
Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14072(a)(2)) is 
amended by striking ``and `predatory' '' and inserting the following: 
`` `predatory', `employed, or carries on a vocation', and `student' ''.
  (2) Section 170102(a)(3) of the Violent Crime Control and Law 
Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14072(a)(3)) is amended--
          (A) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``in a range of 
        offenses specified by State law which is comparable to or 
        exceeds that'' before ``described'';
          (B) by amending subparagraph (B) to read as follows:
                  ``(B) participates in the national database 
                established under subsection (b) of this section in 
                conformity with guidelines issued by the Attorney 
                General;''; and
          (C) by amending subparagraph (C) to read as follows:
                  ``(C) provides for verification of address at least 
                annually;''.
  (g) Pam Lychner Sexual Offender Tracking and Identification Act of 
1996.--Section 10 of the Pam Lychner Sexual Offender Tracking and 
Identification Act of 1996 is amended by inserting at the end the 
following:
  ``(d) Effective Date.--States shall be allowed the time specified in 
subsection (b) to establish minimally sufficient sexual offender 
registration programs for purposes of the amendments made by section 2. 
Subsections (c) and (k) of section 170102 of the Violent Crime Control 
and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, and any requirement to issue related 
regulations, shall take effect at the conclusion of the time provided 
under this subsection for the establishment of minimally sufficient 
sexual offender registration programs.''.
  (h) Federal Offenders and Military Personnel.--(1) Section 4042 of 
title 18, United States Code, is amended--
          (A) in subsection (a)(5), by striking ``subsection (b)'' and 
        inserting ``subsections (b) and (c)'';
          (B) in subsection (b), by striking paragraph (4);
          (C) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection (d); and
          (D) by inserting after subsection (b) the following:
  ``(c) Notice of Sex Offender Release.--(1) In the case of a person 
described in paragraph (4) who is released from prison or sentenced to 
probation, notice shall be provided to--
          ``(A) the chief law enforcement officer of the State and of 
        the local jurisdiction in which the person will reside; and
          ``(B) a State or local agency responsible for the receipt or 
        maintenance of sex offender registration information in the 
        State or local jurisdiction in which the person will reside.
The notice requirements under this subsection do not apply in relation 
to a person being protected under chapter 224.
  ``(2) Notice provided under paragraph (1) shall include the 
information described in subsection (b)(2), the place where the person 
will reside, and the information that the person shall be subject to a 
registration requirement as a sex offender. For a person who is 
released from the custody of the Bureau of Prisons whose expected place 
of residence following release is known to the Bureau of Prisons, 
notice shall be provided at least 5 days prior to release by the 
Director of the Bureau of Prisons. For a person who is sentenced to 
probation, notice shall be provided promptly by the probation officer 
responsible for the supervision of the person, or in a manner specified 
by the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States 
Courts. Notice concerning a subsequent change of residence by a person 
described in paragraph (4) during any period of probation, supervised 
release, or parole shall also be provided to the agencies and officers 
specified in paragraph (1) by the probation officer responsible for the 
supervision of the person, or in a manner specified by the Director of 
the Administrative Office of the United States Courts.
  ``(3) The Director of the Bureau of Prisons shall inform a person 
described in paragraph (4) who is released from prison that the person 
shall be subject to a registration requirement as a sex offender in any 
State in which the person resides, is employed, carries on a vocation, 
or is a student (as such terms are defined for purposes of section 
170101(a)(3) of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 
1994), and the same information shall be provided to a person described 
in paragraph (4) who is sentenced to probation by the probation officer 
responsible for supervision of the person or in a manner specified by 
the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts.
  ``(4) A person is described in this paragraph if the person was 
convicted of any of the following offenses (including such an offense 
prosecuted pursuant to section 1152 or 1153):
          ``(A) An offense under section 1201 involving a minor victim.
          ``(B) An offense under chapter 109A.
          ``(C) An offense under chapter 110.
          ``(D) An offense under chapter 117.
          ``(E) Any other offense designated by the Attorney General as 
        a sexual offense for purposes of this subsection.
  ``(5) The United States and its agencies, officers, and employees 
shall be immune from liability based on good faith conduct in carrying 
out this subsection and subsection (b).''.
  (2)(A) Section 3563(a) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by 
striking the matter at the end of paragraph (7) beginning with ``The 
results of a drug test'' and all that follows through the end of such 
paragraph and inserting that matter at the end of section 3563.
  (B) The matter inserted by subparagraph (A) at the end of section 
3563 is amended--
          (i) by striking ``The results of a drug test'' and inserting 
        the following:
  ``(e) Results of Drug Testing.--The results of a drug test''; and
          (ii) by striking ``paragraph (4)'' each place it appears and 
        inserting ``subsection (a)(5)''.
  (C) Section 3563(a) of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
          (i) so that paragraphs (6) and (7) appear in numerical order 
        immediately after paragraph (5);
          (ii) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (6);
          (iii) in paragraph (7), by striking ``assessments.'' and 
        inserting ``assessments; and''; and
          (iv) by inserting immediately after paragraph (7) (as moved 
        by clause (i)) the following new paragraph:
          ``(8) for a person described in section 4042(c)(4), that the 
        person report the address where the person will reside and any 
        subsequent change of residence to the probation officer 
        responsible for supervision, and that the person register in 
        any State where the person resides, is employed, carries on a 
        vocation, or is a student (as such terms are defined under 
        section 170101(a)(3) of the Violent Crime Control and Law 
        Enforcement Act of 1994).''.
  (D) Section 3583(d) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by 
inserting after the second sentence the following: ``The court shall 
order, as an explicit condition of supervised release for a person 
described in section 4042(c)(4), that the person report the address 
where the person will reside and any subsequent change of residence to 
the probation officer responsible for supervision, and that the person 
register in any State where the person resides, is employed, carries on 
a vocation, or is a student (as such terms are defined under section 
170101(a)(3) of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 
1994).''.
  (E) Section 4209(a) of title 18, United States Code, insofar as such 
section remains in effect with respect to certain individuals, is 
amended by inserting after the first sentence the following: ``In every 
case, the Commission shall impose as a condition of parole for a person 
described in section 4042(c)(4), that the parolee report the address 
where the parolee will reside and any subsequent change of residence to 
the probation officer responsible for supervision, and that the parolee 
register in any State where the parolee resides, is employed, carries 
on a vocation, or is a student (as such terms are defined under section 
170101(a)(3) of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 
1994).''.
  (3)(A) The Secretary of Defense shall specify categories of conduct 
punishable under the Uniform Code of Military Justice which encompass a 
range of conduct comparable to that described in section 
170101(a)(3)(A) and (B) of the Violent Crime Control and Law 
Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14071(a)(3)(A) and (B)), and such 
other conduct as the Secretary deems appropriate for inclusion for 
purposes of this paragraph.
  (B) In relation to persons sentenced by a court martial for conduct 
in the categories specified under subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall 
prescribe procedures and implement a system to--
          (i) provide notice concerning the release from confinement or 
        sentencing of such persons;
          (ii) inform such persons concerning registration obligations; 
        and
          (iii) track and ensure compliance with registration 
        requirements by such persons during any period of parole, 
        probation, or other conditional release or supervision related 
        to the offense.
  (C) The procedures and requirements established by the Secretary 
under this paragraph shall, to the maximum extent practicable, be 
consistent with those specified for Federal offenders under the 
amendments made by paragraphs (1) and (2).
  (D) If a person within the scope of this paragraph is confined in a 
facility under the control of the Bureau of Prisons at the time of 
release, the Bureau of Prisons shall provide notice of release and 
inform the person concerning registration obligations under the 
procedures specified in section 4042(c) of title 18, United States 
Code.
  (i) Protected Witness Registration.--Section 3521(b)(1) of title 18, 
United States Code, is amended--
          (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of subparagraph (G);
          (2) by redesignating subparagraph (H) as subparagraph (I); 
        and
          (3) by inserting after subparagraph (G) the following:
          ``(H) protect the confidentiality of the identity and 
        location of persons subject to registration requirements as 
        convicted offenders under Federal or State law, including 
        prescribing alternative procedures to those otherwise provided 
        by Federal or State law for registration and tracking of such 
        persons; and''.

SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS AND REPORT RELATING TO STALKING LAWS.

  (a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that each State 
should have in effect a law that makes it a crime to stalk any 
individual, especially children, without requiring that such individual 
be physically harmed or abducted before a stalker is restrained or 
punished.
  (b) Report.--The Attorney General shall include in an annual report 
under section 40610 of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement 
Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14039) information concerning existing or 
proposed State laws and penalties for stalking crimes against children.

SEC. 4. EFFECTIVE DATE.

  This Act shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act, 
except that--
          (1) paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of section 2(h) shall take 
        effect 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act; and
          (2) States shall have 3 years from such date of enactment to 
        implement amendments made by this Act which impose new 
        requirements under the Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children 
        and Sexually Violent Offender Registration Act, and the 
        Attorney General may grant an additional 2 years to a State 
        that is making good faith efforts to implement these 
        amendments.

                          Purpose and Summary

    H.R. 1683, the ``Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children 
and Sexually Violent Offender Registration Improvements Act of 
1997,'' amends a provision enacted as part of the Violent Crime 
Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994. Title XVII of that 
Act, the ``Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and 
Sexually Violent Offender Registration Act'' (hereafter, the 
``Wetterling Act'), requires States to implement a system that 
requires persons who commit sexual or kidnaping crimes against 
children or who commit sexually violent crimes against any 
person (adult or child) to register their address and other 
pertinent information with State law enforcement upon release 
from prison. The law also requires local law enforcement to 
notify communities when certain sex offenders move into their 
neighborhoods. A State's failure to implement this registration 
system by September 1997, will result in a partial loss of 
federal crime-fighting funds. As of May 1996, all States and 
the District of Columbia had some sort of registration system 
in place.
    Sexual offenders frequently target the most vulnerable 
members of our communities. Nearly two-thirds of State 
prisoners serving time for rape and sexual assault victimized 
children. Almost one-third of these victims were less than 11-
years-old. Yet, not only do these violent criminals victimize 
the women and children upon which they prey, but they also 
victimize society as a whole. Americans have a depleted sense 
of trust and security because of these individuals.
    Part of what makes this problem so unsettling is the 
peculiar nature of the perpetrators. Sex offenders have a high 
likelihood of reoffending--in fact, they are nine times more 
likely to repeat their crimes than any other class of criminal. 
It is for this reason that so many communities feel unsafe as 
long as convicted sex offenders are in their midst, and why 
more and more communities are seeking to know of their 
whereabouts.
    H.R. 1683 will substantially strengthen the sex offender 
registration programs in the States and close several loopholes 
which currently allow convicted sex offenders to avoid 
registering their whereabouts with local law enforcement. 
Importantly, H.R. 1683 applies registration requirements to 
certain offenders who currently are not required to register 
under the Wetterling Act. The bill requires offenders convicted 
in federal or military court of certain sex offenses to 
register in the State in which they reside. In addition, 
registration will become a condition of probation or parole for 
such offenders. This bill is not intended to establish a 
federal registry system, nor does it require States to enact 
new laws. It does require offenders convicted in military and 
federal court to register into already established State 
programs. H.R. 1683 will also apply to offenders crossing State 
borders: offenders are required to register in the State in 
which they reside and any State in which they are employed or 
are enrolled as a student, as defined in the Act.
    H.R. 1683 also provides additional flexibility to States as 
they implement their registry systems. States will receive the 
discretion to designate appropriate agencies or entities other 
than ``State law enforcement'' to administer appropriate 
portions of the registry program. Moreover, States will also 
have more discretion as they establish the State board which is 
required under the Wetterling Act. This board is required to 
determine for the courts whether or not certain offenders 
should be deemed ``sexually violent predators.'' Such offenders 
would be subject to more stringent registration requirements 
and community notification. This bill will allow the Attorney 
General to grant a waiver to States which satisfactorily 
demonstrate that they have an alternative system in place which 
adequately designates offenders as ``sexually violent 
predators.'' A State would be given two extra years to comply 
if it doesn't receive the waiver. Also, immunity for good faith 
conduct would be extended beyond law enforcement personnel to 
include private contractors who administer the program under 
the direction of law enforcement.
    Finally, the bill includes a Sense of Congress that each 
State should have in effect laws which make it a crime to stalk 
children. This bill also requires the Justice Department to 
provide Congress with a report describing existing State laws 
with regard to child stalking.

                Background and Need for the Legislation

    In the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 
1994 (P.L. 103-322), Congress established the Jacob Wetterling 
Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent Offender 
Registration Act (see also H. Rept. 103-392). This Act requires 
the Attorney General to establish guidelines for the States to 
implement a program that requires persons who commit sexual or 
kidnaping crimes against children or who commit sexually 
violent crimes against any person (adult or child) to register 
their address and other pertinent information with State law 
enforcement upon release from prison. The law also requires 
local law enforcement to notify communities when certain sex 
offenders move into their neighborhoods. A State's failure to 
implement this registration system by September 1997, will 
result in a partial loss of federal funds provided under the 
Edward Byrne Memorial Drug Law Enforcement Grant Program 
(hereafter, Byrne grants).
    Two years after passage of the Jacob Wetterling Act, 
Congress passed Megan's Law (P.L. 104-145) which amended the 
provisions of the Wetterling Act relating to release of 
registration information and community notification. In 1996, 
Congress also passed the Pam Lychner National Sexual Offender 
Tracking and Identification Act (P.L. 104-236) (hereafter, the 
``Lychner Act''), which makes further amendments to the 
Wetterling Act, and also contains provisions to ensure the 
nationwide availability of sex offender registration to law 
enforcement. The collective result of these enactments is 
codified in 42 U.S.C. 14071-72. By May 1996, all 50 States and 
the District of Columbia had some sort of registration system 
in place, commonly known in the States as ``Megan's law.'' At 
least 40 States have established some form of notification 
program which informs communities when sex offenders move into 
their neighborhoods.
    To date, the Attorney General has not yet determined which 
States have satisfactorily complied with the 1994 Act, nor has 
she determined which States have made good faith efforts and 
should therefore be given more time to come into compliance. 
However, a review of State sex offender registration laws 
indicates that very few States are in full compliance with the 
Wetterling Act. While all the States have some sort of 
registration program in place and many have made commendable 
efforts to come into compliance with the Act, few States are 
congruent in all respects with the Wetterling Act's definitions 
and procedures. It is the view of the Committee that the 
Wetterling Act was intended to serve as a floor, not a ceiling, 
for States as they implement sex offender registration 
programs. One of the primary purposes of H.R. 1683 is to 
clarify portions of the original Wetterling Act and to provide 
the States the flexibility to implement ideas that may not have 
come from Congress but may be equally effective or even more 
effective in keeping track of sex offenders.
    H.R. 1683 allows the Attorney General to approve State 
registration programs which effectively protect the public from 
exceptionally dangerous sex offenders, even if the program is 
not congruent in all respects with the Wetterling Act's 
provisions. The bill also provides States with the discretion 
to designate appropriate agencies or entities other than 
``State law enforcement'' to administer appropriate portions of 
the registry program. For example, Stateswill be allowed to 
vest record keeping authority as they see fit, with either the courts, 
corrections or general State records divisions.
    In addition, States will be given more flexibility and more 
time to comply with sex offender legislation passed at the end 
of the 104th Congress. Under current law, States have until 
October 3, 1997, to comply with certain portions of the Pam 
Lychner National Sex Offender Tracking and Identification Act 
of 1996 or lose 10 percent of Byrne grant funding. The FBI has 
informed the Committee that States need more time. H.R. 1683 
addresses an unintended consequence with the Lychner Act which 
requires direct registration with the FBI of released sex 
offenders in States that do not have ``minimally sufficient'' 
registration programs. Congress enacted the Lychner Act with 
the expectation that all 50 States had, or would soon have, 
registration programs for sex offenders that would meet the 
Act's definition of ``minimally sufficient.'' The provision 
that requires offenders to register directly with the FBI was 
seen accordingly as a back-stop or fail-safe measure that would 
actually be used in only a very small handful of States.
    However, under the Lychner Act's definition of ``minimally 
sufficient,'' existing State programs generally do not qualify. 
For example, under current law, a State registration program 
does not qualify as ``minimally sufficient'' if there are the 
slightest variances in the offenses covered by the program from 
the list of offense categories in the Wetterling Act. The 
practical consequence is that, without further amendment, the 
FBI is likely to be responsible for direct registration of 
almost all sex offenders in the United States by the deadline 
by which States are to comply with the Lychner Act. H.R. 1683 
gives States two additional years to come into compliance and 
also requires States to participate in the FBI's interim 
national registry program until the National Sex Offender 
Registry Program is fully operational.
    Lastly, H.R. 1683 includes a Sense of Congress, proposed by 
Rep. Diaz-Balart, that each State should have in effect laws 
which make it a crime to stalk children. The Committee strongly 
supports the initiative taken by the State of Florida in 
passing the Jennifer Act (Fla. Stat. Sec. 784.048 (1997)). The 
Jennifer Act designates the stalking of a child under the age 
of 16 as a third degree felony. The Act provides that a person 
who willfully, maliciously, and repeatedly follows or harasses 
a child younger than 16 years of age commits aggravated 
stalking. The Jennifer Act is named after a 13-year-old Dade 
County, Florida girl who was stalked in 1996 by an incidental 
family acquaintance. Police told the girl's mother that they 
could not arrest the man unless he had hurt or kidnaped her 
daughter. Unable to obtain a judicial restraining order, 
Jennifer's mother worked tenaciously with her State senator and 
representative to enlist support for a change in the law to 
remove the requirement that physical harm or abduction occur 
before the police could intervene. The law was signed by the 
Governor on April 29, 1997, and will become effective on 
October 1, 1997.
    H.R. 1683 also requires the Attorney General to provide 
Congress with a report describing existing State laws with 
regard to child stalking.

                                Hearings

    No hearings were held on H.R. 1683.

                        Committee Consideration

    On June 12, 1997, the Subcommittee on Crime met in open 
session and ordered reported the bill H.R. 1683, without 
amendment, by a voice vote, a quorum being present. On 
September 9, 1997, the Committee met in open session and 
ordered reported favorably the bill H.R. 1683, with amendment, 
by a recorded vote of 20 to 10, a quorum being present.

                         Vote of the Committee

                             ROLLCALL NO. 1

    Mr. Nadler offered an amendment to the McCollum amendment 
in the nature of a substitute which would withhold 10 percent 
of Byrne grant funds from any State which has in place a law 
requiring persons convicted of consensual sodomy to register 
with local law enforcement. The amendment was defeated by a 
vote of 12-19.
        AYES                          NAYS
Mr. Frank                           Mr. Sensenbrenner
Mr. Schumer                         Mr. McCollum
Mr. Berman                          Mr. Gekas
Mr. Nadler                          Mr. Coble
Mr. Scott                           Mr. Smith (TX)
Mr. Watt                            Mr. Gallegly
Ms. Lofgren                         Mr. Canady
Ms. Jackson-Lee                     Mr. Inglis
Mr. Meehan                          Mr. Goodlatte
Mr. Delahunt                        Mr. Buyer
Mr. Wexler                          Mr. Bono
Mr. Rothman                         Mr. Bryant (TN)
                                    Mr. Chabot
                                    Mr. Barr
                                    Mr. Jenkins
                                    Mr. Hutchinson
                                    Mr. Pease
                                    Mr. Cannon
                                    Mr. Hyde

                             ROLLCALL NO. 2

    Mr. McCollum offered an amendment in the nature of a 
substitute which would make a number of clarifying and 
technical changes to the bill. The amendment was adopted by a 
vote of 20 to 10.
        AYES                          NAYS
Mr. Sensenbrenner                   Mr. Frank
Mr. McCollum                        Mr. Schumer
Mr. Gekas                           Mr. Berman
Mr. Coble                           Mr. Nadler
Mr. Smith (TX)                      Mr. Scott
Mr. Gallegly                        Mr. Watt
Mr. Canady                          Ms. Jackson-Lee
Mr. Inglis                          Mr. Meehan
Mr. Goodlatte                       Mr. Delahunt
Mr. Buyer                           Mr. Wexler
Mr. Bono
Mr. Bryant (TN)
Mr. Chabot
Mr. Barr
Mr. Jenkins
Mr. Hutchinson
Mr. Pease
Mr. Cannon
Mr. Rothman
Mr. Hyde

                             ROLLCALL NO. 3

    Final Passage. Motion to report H.R. 1683 favorably. The 
motion passed by a vote of 20 to 10.
        AYES                          NAYS
Mr. Sensenbrenner                   Mr. Frank
Mr. McCollum                        Mr. Schumer
Mr. Gekas                           Mr. Berman
Mr. Coble                           Mr. Nadler
Mr. Smith (TX)                      Mr. Scott
Mr. Gallegly                        Mr. Watt
Mr. Canady                          Ms. Jackson-Lee
Mr. Inglis                          Mr. Meehan
Mr. Goodlatte                       Mr. Delahunt
Mr. Buyer                           Mr. Wexler
Mr. Bono
Mr. Bryant (TN)
Mr. Chabot
Mr. Barr
Mr. Jenkins
Mr. Hutchinson
Mr. Pease
Mr. Cannon
Mr. Rothman
Mr. Hyde

         Committee on Government Reform and Oversight Findings

    No findings or recommendations of the Committee on 
Government Reform and Oversight were received as referred to in 
clause 2(l)(3)(D) of rule XI of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives.

                      Committee Oversight Findings

    In compliance with clause 2(l)(3)(A) of rule XI of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee reports 
that the findings and recommendations of the Committee, based 
on oversight activities under clause 2(b)(1) of rule X of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives, are incorporated in the 
descriptive portions of this report.

               New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures

    Clause 2(l)(3)(B) of House rule XI is inapplicable because 
this legislation does not provide new budgetary authority or 
increased tax expenditures.

               Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate

    In compliance with clause 2(l)(3)(C) of rule XI of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee sets 
forth, with respect to the bill, H.R. 1683, the following 
estimate and comparison prepared by the Director of the 
Congressional Budget Office under section 403 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                Washington, DC, September 18, 1997.
Hon. Henry J. Hyde,
Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1683, the Jacob 
Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent 
Offender Registration Improvements Act of 1997.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contacts are Susanne S. 
Mehlman (for federal costs) and Matt Eyles (for the private-
sector impact).
            Sincerely,
                                              James L. Blum
                                   (For June E. O'Neill, Director).
    Enclosure.

H.R. 1683--Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually 
        Violent Offenders Registration Improvements Act of 1997

    CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 1683 would not result in 
any significant cost to the federal government. Because 
enactment of H.R. 1683 would not affect direct spending or 
receipts, pay-as-you-go procedures would not apply to the bill.
    H.R. 1683 would make various changes to the Jacob 
Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent 
Offenders Registration Act and the Pam Lychner National Sex 
Offender Tracking and Identification Act of 1996. These laws 
require states to establish a registration system for certain 
sexual offenders and direct the Federal Bureau of Investigation 
to establish a nationwide computer system for tracking such 
offenders.
    Upon enactment of H.R. 1683, registration with state law 
enforcement officials would become a condition of probation or 
parole for persons convicted of sexual offenses under federal 
or military law. As a result, the Bureau of Prisons would be 
responsible for notifying offenders of this requirement and for 
providing information about each offender's address and release 
date to local law enforcement officials. H.R. 1683 also would 
make the Attorney General responsible for the tracking and 
oversight of individuals in the Federal Witness Protection 
Program who are subject to registration requirements. The bill 
would permit the Attorney General to approve state registration 
programs that are not in complete compliance with the 
definitions and procedures under the Jacob Wetterling Crimes 
Against Children and Sexually Violent Offenders Registration 
Act, but that provide comparable protection for the public 
against sexual offenders. Because the federal government is 
already performing most of the requirements under this bill and 
only a small number of sexual offenders are convicted under 
federal or military law, CBO estimates that enacting this bill 
would result in no significant additional cost to the federal 
government.
    H.R. 1683 contains no intergovernmental mandates as defined 
in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA) and would 
impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. In a 
number of cases, the bill would relax conditions of assistance 
or would give states more time to register violent sexual 
offenders.
    H.R. 1683 would impose new private-sector mandates by 
expanding the reporting requirements for persons who are 
classified under federal law as sexually violent predators, who 
have been convicted of a sexually violent offense, or who have 
committed certain criminal offenses against minors. Currently, 
such offenders are required to register a current address, 
photo, and fingerprints with a state law enforcement agency. In 
addition, those individuals are required each year to submit a 
form verifying that they still reside at their last reported 
address.
    Under H.R. 1863, military personnel who have been convicted 
of certain sex offenses or offenses against minors under 
military or federal law would be required to register in the 
state in which they officially reside and, if different from 
their state of residence, the state in which they are 
permanently assigned. In addition, offenders who work or attend 
school in a state other than the one in which they have 
registered would be required to register in both states. 
Finally, offenders who move would be required to notify the 
appropriate agency in their former state of residence that they 
are moving. The bill would also reduce an existing federal 
mandate by eliminating the annual requirement for offenders to 
return a verification form to state law enforcement officials. 
Instead, offenders would be subject to state procedures for an 
annual verification of their residence. CBO estimates that the 
direct costs to the private sector, as defined in UMRA, of the 
new requirements in H.R. 1683 would be negligible.
    The CBO staff contacts for this estimate are Susanne S. 
Mehlman (for federal costs) and Matt Eyles (for the private-
sector impact). This estimate was approved by Robert A. 
Sunshine, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

                   Constitutional Authority Statement

    Pursuant to rule XI, clause 2(l)(4) of the rules of the 
House of Representatives, the Committee finds the authority for 
this legislation in Article I, section 8 of the Constitution.

                      Section-by-Section Analysis

                         Section 1. Short Title

    This section provides that the Act may be cited as the 
``Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent 
Offenders Registration Improvements Act of 1997.''

        Sec. 2. Standards for Sex Offender Registration Programs

    This section amends the Wetterling Act relating to the 
standards for effective sex offender registration programs.
    Allowing ``Local Input'' of Registration Information. 
Amendments to section 2(a)(1) and Section 2(b)(4)-(5) 
explicitly authorize state registration programs that involve 
submission of registration information to the State 
registration agency through an intermediary, rather than 
directly. This clarifies current law which does not preclude 
using intermediaries, for example, to submit changes of address 
information or to serve as a contact point for dissemination of 
information to the general public. Representatives of State law 
enforcement agencies have indicated that there has been some 
confusion as to what current law permits on this point, and it 
is the intent of these new modifications to explicitly provide 
States with the discretion to designate appropriate agencies 
other than ``State law enforcement'' to administer appropriate 
portions of the registry program. Paragraphs (4) and (5) 
provide more flexibility to the States with regard to the 
timing for reporting change of address information, but would 
maintain requirements that (1) changes of address must be 
reported by the registrants in the manner provided by State 
law; (2) the updated address information must be provided 
promptly to a local law enforcement agency where the resident 
will reside; and (3) the information must be entered into the 
appropriate state records or data system. These paragraphs 
further provide that: (1) registrants who move to another State 
must notify the responsible agency in the State while they are 
leaving and comply with registration requirements in the new 
State of residence; and (2) the State the person is leaving 
must promptly notify the responsible registration agency in the 
new State.
    Sexually Violent Predator Designation. Section 2(a)(2) 
amends provisions of the Wetterling Act concerning the 
designation of certain offenders as ``sexually violent 
predators.'' Current law provides that sexually violent 
predators, as defined in the Act, are subject to a lifetime 
registration period under the Act, and quarterly address 
verification as opposed to the annual address verification for 
other registrants. The Wetterling Act (as amended by the 
Lychner Act) provides that the sexually violent predator 
determination is to be made by the sentencing court after 
receiving a report by a board composed of experts in the field 
of the behavior and treatment of sexual offenders, victims' 
rights advocates, and representatives from law enforcement 
agencies. Paragraph (2) and subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C) 
preserve current law with regard to sexually violent predator 
designation but adopts two qualifications: First, the Attorney 
General is allowed to approve alternative procedures for making 
the sexually violent predator determination. The Committee 
recognizes that a program which employs a mixed board of 
psychological experts, victims' representatives, and law 
enforcement personnel to make recommendations to a court is not 
necessarily the only effective approach. Second, the amendment 
more broadly allows the Attorney General to approve 
registration programs which effectively protect the public from 
exceptionally dangerous sex offenders even if they are not 
congruent in all respects with the Wetterling Act's sexually 
violent predator definition andprocedures. In fact, a review of 
State sex offender registration laws indicates that very few States are 
in full compliance with the Wetterling Act in this regard. Few States 
currently follow the sexually violent predator approach in their 
registration systems and many States have reported that it is 
particularly difficult to modify their systems to include judicial 
determinations of sexually violent predator status based on 
psychological assessments.
    However, States can, and in some instances already do, 
incorporate other features into their systems which further the 
objective of protecting the public from particularly dangerous 
sex offenders. For example, some State programs have 
registration periods for broadly defined categories of sex 
offenders which are much longer than the basic 10-year 
registration period under the Wetterling Act. This may provide 
more protection for the public than heightened registration 
requirements limited to a relatively small class of offenders 
who would be classified as sexually violent predators. Also, 
the Wetterling Act, as amended by the Lychner Act, now requires 
lifetime registration for all recidivists in the Wetterling Act 
offense categories, and for registrants who have been convicted 
of aggravated offenses. Moreover, some States require civil 
commitment, lifetime supervision, or very long periods of 
imprisonment for sexually violent predators or broader classes 
of serious sex offenders. Section 2(a)(2) makes it clear that 
alternative approaches like these can be approved if a State's 
approach is equally effective or more effective in protecting 
the public from particularly dangerous sex offenders.
    Offense Coverage. Section 2(a)(3) amends the Wetterling Act 
relating to offenses for which registration is required. The 
specification of offenses in the Wetterling Act was intended to 
ensure comprehensive registration requirements for child 
molestation offenses and for the most serious sexually 
assaultive crimes against adult victims. However, the Committee 
is aware that the degree of detail in the Act's offense 
categories makes State compliance difficult, since all States 
differ from the provisions of the Wetterling Act, and from each 
other, in the terminology and categorizations they use in 
defining sex offenses. Some States may inadvertently find 
themselves out of compliance with the Wetterling Act because 
the States' registration provisions are not exactly congruent 
with one of the Wetterling Act's offense categories, even if 
the offenses covered by the program are much broader in other 
respects than required by the Wetterling Act. Paragraph 3 of 
subsection (a) provides greater flexibility relating to 
offenses for which registration is required by providing, in 
effect, that a state program will be deemed in compliance if 
its offense coverage is ``comparable to or * * * exceeds'' the 
range of offense which is described specifically in the Act.
    Definition of ``Employed, Carries on a Vocation'' and 
``Student.'' Section 2(a)(4) defines ``employed, carries on a 
vocation,'' to include employment that is full-time or part-
time for a period of time exceeding 14 days or for an aggregate 
period of time exceeding 30 days during any calendar year, 
whether financially compensated, volunteered, or for the 
purpose of government or educational benefit. ``Student'' means 
a person who is enrolled on a full-time or part-time basis, in 
any public or private educational institution, including any 
secondary school, trade, or professional institution, or 
institution of higher education.
    Duties of Officials Responsible for Initial Registration. 
Section 2(b)(1) amends language of the Wetterling Act 
concerning the officials responsible for advising offenders of 
their registration obligations at the time of release, and for 
obtaining and initially submitting theregistration information. 
Current law requires that these functions be carried out by a state 
prison officer, or by the court in the case of a person released on 
probation. Some States have indicated that it is not a function of the 
court to fingerprint, photograph, or obtain much of the personal 
information specified in the Wetterling Act. Paragraph (1) explicitly 
provides that these functions may be carried out by a State prison 
officer, the court, or ``another responsible officer or official.'' 
This change in current law is more consistent with the various State 
programs and provides States with more flexibility as they collect and 
forward initial registration information.
    Section 2(b) also adds a new requirement that responsible 
officials are to notify offenders that, in addition to 
registration requirements required of them under the Wetterling 
Act, such offenders are also required to register in any State 
where the offender is employed, or carries on a vocation, or is 
a student, if applicable. It is the expectation of the 
Committee that States can establish administrative procedures 
which would facilitate offender notification of this new 
requirement without having to make changes in their State sex 
offender registration statutes. It is the intent of the 
Committee that the absence of such a State statute, in itself, 
should not disqualify a State from receiving full Byrne Grant 
funding.
    General Procedures for Initial Submission of Registration 
Information. Section 2(b) also amends the provision of the 
Wetterling Act concerning submission and transmission of 
initial registration information by responsible officials. The 
new requirements provide more flexibility with regard to the 
timing for submission of the information while maintaining that 
information be promptly (1) made available to local law 
enforcement where the registrant resides, (2) entered into the 
appropriate state records or data system, and (3) transmitted 
to the FBI.
    Participation in the Interim National Sex Offender 
Registry. Section 2(b)(2) requires that States participate in 
the interim national sex offender registry in conformity with 
the guidelines issued by the Attorney General. These provisions 
also lighten the burden of certain data submission requirements 
imposed on the States by the Lychner Act and make submission 
requirements more consistent with current computer technology.
    The original version of the Wetterling Act required 
transmission of conviction data and fingerprints--but not 
address information--to the FBI. However, under the Lychner 
Act, which amended the Wetterling Act, registration 
information--including address information--must be transmitted 
to the FBI for inclusion into the National Sex Offender 
Registry. Neither of these formulations is entirely sufficient. 
The FBI has indicated that physical transmission by the States 
of address information to the FBI is not necessary or useful at 
the present time. This information can be made available on a 
nationwide basis without physical transmission to the FBI 
through the interim national sex offender registry, which 
involves flagging registered sex offenders in the national 
criminal records system and computer-linkage to the State 
registries. It is important, however, to ensure that such 
registration information from all the States will become 
available through their participation in the interim national 
registry. Provision of conviction data and fingerprints alone 
will not achieve this objective. Moreover, in the future 
development of the National Registry, registration information 
from the States may be maintained directly in the FBI computer 
systems, and transmission of such information by the States to 
theFBI would then be necessary for operation of the system. 
Requiring participation in the interim national registry in conformity 
with the Attorney General's guidelines will ensure that the objectives 
of the National Registry and the Lychner Act reforms are realized, 
without burdening the States with unnecessary data transmission. It is 
the expectation of the Committee that transmission of this information 
to the FBI can be done by the States through administrative procedures 
and therefore should not require changes in State statutes. It is the 
intent of the Committee that the absence of such a State statute, in 
itself, should not disqualify a State from receiving full Byrne Grant 
funding.
    Periodic Address Verification. Section 2(b)(3) amends 
provisions of the Wetterling Act concerning periodic address 
verification for registrants. Current law requires that 
verification be accomplished by mailing (at least annually) to 
the registrant at the registered address a nonforwardable 
verification form, which the registrant must sign and return 
within 10 days. The amendments in section 2(b)(3) maintain the 
requirement of address verification at least annually but 
afford states the option of adopting other verification 
procedures. It is the view of the Committee that the 
verification-form procedure is not necessarily the only 
acceptable approach to effectively verifying a registrant's 
address. A review of State sex offender registry laws indicates 
that some States require registrants to appear in person 
periodically at local law enforcement agencies to verify their 
address (and for such purposes as photographing and 
fingerprinting). Some States assign caseworkers to verify 
periodically that registrants still reside at the registered 
address. These alternative procedures effectively verify 
registrants' location, and impress on registrants that they are 
under observation by the authorities, in addition to making law 
enforcement agencies aware of the presence and identity of 
registered sex offenders in their neighborhoods.
    Registration of Out-of-State Offenders, Federal Offenders, 
Persons Sentenced by Courts Martial, and Offenders Crossing 
State Borders. Section 2(b)(7) provides that States shall 
ensure that their registration programs include procedures 
which accept registration information from (1) persons who were 
convicted in another State,1 convicted of a federal 
offense, or sentenced by a court martial; and (2) nonresident 
offenders who have crossed into another State in order to work 
or to attend school. It is the expectation that the reception 
of registration information from these new categories of 
offenders can be accomplished through modification in 
administrative procedures and therefore should not require 
changes in State statutes. Although it would be preferable that 
States fully incorporate federal offenders, persons sentenced 
by courts martial, and offenders crossing State borders in 
order to work or go to school, into their registration and 
notification programs by statute, the Committee believes that 
this decision is best left up to the States. It is the intent 
of the Committee that the absence of such a State statute, in 
itself, should not disqualify a State from receiving full Byrne 
grant funding.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\ States are already required under current law, as interpreted 
in the Wetterling Act guidelines (62 FR 39009, 39018), to register 
resident offenders convicted in other States. Offenders who are 
convicted in one State and move to another State should be required to 
fully participate in the registration and notification program of that 
new State of residence under penalty of State or federal law. 
Provisions in the Wetterling Improvements Act maintain this 
interpretation.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Registration Requirement of Offenders Crossing State 
Borders. Section 2(c) amends the Wetterling Act to require 
offenders to register in any State where the offender resides, 
in addition to any State where the offender works or attends 
school. Offenders who work or go to school in a neighboring 
State will be required to register in that State, in addition 
to the State in which the offender resides.
    Release of Information. Section 2(d) makes conforming 
changes to the general deletion of references to ``designated 
State law enforcement Agency'' in the Wetterling Act allowing 
for ``the State or any agency authorized by the State'' to 
release relevant registration information as permitted by the 
Act.
    Immunity for Good Faith Conduct. Section 2(e) extends 
immunity for good faith conduct to independent contractors 
(such as computer terminal operators or software providers) 
acting at the direction of law enforcement. Current law only 
provides immunity for law enforcement agencies and their 
personnel, and for other State officials, based on good faith 
conduct under the Act.
    FBI Registration. Section 2(f) amends provisions of the 
Lychner Act redefining the concept of ``minimally sufficient.'' 
Specifically, these provisions address an unintended 
consequence with the Lychner Act which requires direct 
registration with the FBI of released sex offenders in States 
that do not have ``minimally sufficient'' registration 
programs. Congress enacted the Lychner Act with the expectation 
that all 50 States had, or would soon have, registration 
programs for sex offenders that would meet the Act's definition 
of ``minimally sufficient.'' The provision that requires 
offenders to register directly with the FBI was seen 
accordingly as a back-stop or fail-safe measure that would 
actually be used in few, if any States.
    However, under the Lychner Act's definition of ``minimally 
sufficient,'' existing State programs generally do not qualify, 
despite the fact that all 50 States have established 
registration requirements for released sex offenders. Section 
2(b) amends current law concerning the definition of 
``minimally sufficient'' to include all programs which require 
registration for specified categories of released sex 
offenders, require updating of address information on changes 
of residence, and provide for verification of address at least 
annually. Making the definition more flexible will help to 
realize the objectives of the Wetterling Act and the Lychner 
Act by encouraging strong State-based registration programs, 
with direct registration with the FBI serving only as a 
backstop or fail-safe measure. The FBI will remain responsible 
for making the registration information collected under State 
programs available on a nationwide basis through the operation 
of the national sex offender registry.
    Extension to Establish ``Minimally Sufficient'' Systems. 
Section 2(g) provides, through cross reference to other 
effective date provisions in the Lychner Act, that States have 
three years (subject to a possible two-year extension) to 
establish minimally sufficient registration programs for 
purposes of the Lychner Act's direct registration requirements. 
This will provide adequate time to ensure that the registration 
programs of the 50 States are ``minimally sufficient'' under 
the new changes incorporated by H.R. 1683, and time for D.C. 
and the larger territories--which are treated as ``States'' for 
Lychner, Wetterling purposes--to establish sex offender 
registration programs. This provides a further safeguard 
against the duplicative assumption by the FBI of direct 
registration functions.
    Federal Offenders and Military Personnel. Section 2(h) 
provides for registration of federal offenders and military 
personnel. Current law does not require registration of 
released federal or military offenders. Subsection (h) adds a 
new subsection to 18 U.S.C. 4042 which requires the Bureau of 
Prisons to give notice to State and local law enforcement and 
sex offender registration agencies concerning the release to 
their areas of federal sex offenders. For federal sex offenders 
sentenced to probation, the probation officers responsible for 
supervision would be required to provide the same notice. 
Probation officers also would be required to provide notice 
concerning subsequent changes of address by released federal 
sex offenders during any period of probation or post-
imprisonment supervised release or parole. If these functions 
are not carried out directly by the probation officers, the 
Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts would be required to 
specify some alternative procedure for providing the notice. 
Both imprisoned offenders and probationers would be informed 
that they are required to register in the State in which they 
reside. The procedures and requirements under the new 
subsection are largely modeled on existing provisions in 18 
U.S.C. 4042(b), which generally require notice to State and 
local law enforcement concerning the release and subsequent 
movements of federal offenders and drug offenders.
    Subsection (h) also deletes notice in the existing notice 
provisions (18 U.S.C. 4042 (b)(4)) that limits the use of 
release notices to ``law enforcement purposes.'' This 
implements a previous recommendation of the Attorney General to 
Congress to delete the ``law enforcement purposes'' 
restriction, since this restriction could impede legitimate 
uses of the release information (such as warning potential 
victims, or employers who should not be hiring violent or drug 
offenders considering the nature of the employment).
    This subsection would also establish a new mandatory 
condition of probation, supervised release, and parole for 
federal sex offenders. The condition would require reporting of 
current address information to the probation officer 
responsible for supervision, and registering in any state where 
the offender resides, works, or attends school.
    Subsection (h) also directs the Secretary of Defense to 
establish a comparable system for released military sex 
offenders.
    Registrants in the Federal Witness Protection Program. 
Subsection (i) authorizes the Attorney General to provide 
appropriate oversight and tracking for protected witnesses who 
are subject to registration requirements, while protecting the 
security and confidentiality of the identities of such persons. 
For example, the Attorney General could provide, in relation to 
a protected witness, that the U.S. Marshals Service is to carry 
out some or all of the functions that would normally be carried 
out by a State registration agency.

     Sec 3. Sense of Congress and Report Relating to Stalking Laws.

    Section 3(a) expresses the sense of Congress that States 
should have in effect laws which make it a crime to stalk any 
individual, but especially children. Moreover, it is the sense 
of Congress that these stalking laws should not require 
physical harm or actual abduction before the stalker can be 
restrained or punished.
    Section 3(b) integrates a provision in the bill for 
reporting on laws concerning stalking of children with an 
existing requirement for annual reports to Congress by the 
Attorney General concerning State anti-stalking laws.

                         Sec. 4. Effective Date

    This Section specifies the time for carrying out the bill's 
reforms. The bill would generally take effect immediately, but 
the provisions relating to federal and military offenders would 
take effect after one year, and States would have three years 
(subject to a possible two-year extension) to implement the 
bill's Wetterling Act amendments which impose new 
administrative requirements. The time specified for State 
compliance with new requirements--three years, with a possible 
two-year extension based on good faith efforts--is the same 
provided for compliance with the Wetterling Act as originally 
enacted (see 42 U.S.C. 14071(f)) and with the Lychner Act 
amendments to the Wetterling Act (see section 10 of P.L. 104-
236).
                              ----------                              


                         Committee Jurisdiction

                          House of Representatives,
                                Committee on the Judiciary,
                                Washington, DC, September 11, 1997.
Hon. Floyd D. Spence,
Chairman, Committee on National Security, House of Representatives, 
        Rayburn Office Building, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Committee on the Judiciary recently 
marked up H.R. 1683, the ``Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against 
Children and Sexually Violent Offenders Registration 
Improvements Act of 1997.'' Section 2 of the bill as ordered 
reported contains provisions concerning the requirement that 
service members, convicted by court-martial of certain sex 
offenses, register with appropriate state and local law 
enforcement authorities. In addition, the bill would define 
what constitutes a service member's state of residence for the 
purpose of complying with the reporting requirements 
established in the bill.
    The Committee on the Judiciary acknowledges the 
jurisdictional claim of the Committee on National Security with 
respect to these provisions. Nevertheless, I ask that your 
Committee waive any request for sequential referral of the bill 
so that the House may consider H.R. 1683 without undue delay. I 
will be pleased to ensure that your Committee's correspondence 
with respect to this matter appears in our Committee's report 
on the bill and is made a part of the record when H.R. 1683 is 
considered in the House.
    Thank you for your cooperation in this matter and I look 
forward to working with the Committee on National Security when 
this bill reaches the House floor.
            Sincerely,
                                             Henry J. Hyde,
                                                          Chairman.
                              ----------                              

                          House of Representatives,
                            Committee on National Security,
                                Washington, DC, September 11, 1997.
Hon. Henry J. Hyde,
Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives, 
        Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: I write with respect to H.R. 1683, the 
Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent 
Offenders Registration Improvements Act of 1997, which the 
Committee on the Judiciary marked up recently. Section 2 of the 
bill contains provisions that would require the registration 
with federal and state authorities of service members convicted 
by court-martial of certain sex offenses. Other provisions 
would make specific determinations about service members' state 
of residence for the purpose of registering with these 
authorities. These provisions fall within the legislative 
jurisdiction of the Committee on National Security pursuant to 
Rule X of the Rules of the House of Representatives.
    In recognition of your committee's desire to bring this 
legislation expeditiously before the House of Representatives, 
the Committee on National Security will not seek to have the 
bill sequentially referred as a result of the inclusion of the 
aforementioned provisions. This action in no way alters the 
Committee on National Security's jurisdiction over the 
provisions in question, and the committee will seek the 
appointment of conferees in the event of a House-Senate 
conference on H.R. 1683.
    I would appreciate your including this letter as a part of 
your committee's report on H.R. 1683 and as part of the record 
during consideration of this bill by the House. Thank you for 
your attention in this matter.
    With warm personal regards, I am
            Sincerely,
                                           Floyd D. Spence,
                                                          Chairman.

                              Agency Views

                        U.S. Department of Justice,
                              Office of Legislative Affairs
                                     Washington, DC, June 12, 1997.
Hon. Bill McCollum,
Chairman, Subcommittee on Crime, Committee on the Judiciary, House of 
        Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: This letter presents the preliminary 
views of the Department of Justice concerning H.R. 1683, the 
``Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent 
Offenders Registration Improvements Act of 1997.'' The 
Department of Justice strongly supports strengthening sex 
offender registration and community notification laws. We would 
also recommend certain changes to strengthen some of the 
proposed reforms, as described below, and would like to 
continue to work with you and other members of the Committee to 
ensure the development of comprehensive sex offender 
registration and notification systems.
    H.R. 1683 is consistent with the Wetterling Act--Megan's 
Law-Lychner Act system generally, and the bill's specific 
proposals are best understood in the context of the complex 
basic requirements and objectives of the existing law.\1\ As 
you know, the Administration strongly supported enactment of 
these laws as an essential tool to protect children and 
families, and to give communities and neighborhoods peace of 
mind that law enforcement is keeping tract of who the sex 
offenders are and where they live. Since passage of these laws, 
the Department has worked with the states to facilitate the 
development of a nationwide system of sex offender registration 
and community notification programs. Most recently, the 
Department published proposed revised guidelines to implement 
Megan's Law and clarify other issues concerning Wetterling Act 
compliance (65 FR 16180).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\ See, i.e. The Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and 
Sexually Violent Offender Registration Act (hereafter , the 
``Wetterling Act''), Megan's Law, and the Pam Lychner Sexual Offender 
Tracking and Identification Act (hereafter, the ``Lychner Act''). The 
Wetterling Act, which was enacted by section 170101 of the Violent 
Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (Pub. L. 103-322, 108 
Stat. 1796, 2038), encourages states to establish effective sex 
offender registration systems. Megan's Law is a separate enactment 
(Pub. L. 104-145. 110 Stat. 1345 which amended the provisions of the 
Wetterling Act relating to release of registration information. The 
Lychner Act is also a separate enactment (Pub. L. 104-236, 110 Stat. 
3093) which makes further amendments to the Wetterling Act, and also, 
contains provisions to ensure the nationwide availability of sex 
offender registration information to law enforcement. The collective 
result of these enactments is codified in 42 U.S.C. 14071-72. The 
Department of Justice issued guidelines for state compliance with the 
original version of the Wetterling Act (61 FR 15110), and has more 
recently published proposed revised guidelines to implement Megan's Law 
and clarify other issues concerning Wetterling Act compliance (65 FR 
16180).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sections 2 (a) and (b)--Allowing ``local input'' of registration 
        information

    The amendments to the Wetterling Act proposed in section 2 
(a)(1) and (b)(4) would explicitly authorize state registration 
programs that involve submission of registration information to 
the state registration agency through an intermediary, rather 
than directly. This approach is consistent with the 
Department's position as articulated in the proposed revision 
of the Wetterling Act guidelines, as published for comment.

Section 2(a)(2)--Sexually violent predator certification

    Section 2(a)(2) amends provisions of the Wetterling Act 
concerning the certification of certain offenders as ``sexually 
violent predators.'' It preserves the general Wetterling Act 
system for determining who meets the definition of a ``sexually 
violent predator,'' but allows the Attorney General to approve 
alternative procedures for making recommendations to the 
sentencing court concerning the ``sexually violent predator'' 
determination.
    Alternative approaches may be equally effective in 
realizing the Act's objective of protecting the public from 
particularly dangerous offenders. For example, while input from 
the perspective of law enforcement and victims is important, 
this input can be provided directly by the prosecutor and the 
victim at the sentencing hearing, as opposed to being merged in 
a joint report with experts conducting a psychological 
assessment of the offender.

Section 2(b)(1)--Officials responsible for initial registration

    Section 2(b)(1) amends the language of the Wetterling Act 
concerning the officials responsible for advising offenders of 
their registration obligations at the time of release, and for 
obtaining and initially submitting the registration 
information. The Act currently provides that these functions 
are to be carried out by ``a State prison officer,'' or by the 
court in the case of a person released on probation. The 
amendments provide that these functions would be carried out by 
``a State prison officer, a designated State agency, the court, 
or other responsible official.'' This change is consistent with 
the Department's proposed Wetterling Act guidelines revision as 
published for comment.

Section 2(b)(2)--General procedures for initial submission of 
        registration information

    Section 2(b)(2) amends a provision of the Wetterling Act 
concerning submission and transmission of initial registration 
information. The changes, in part, are conforming changes to 
the amendments discussed above which clarify that ``local 
input'' approaches are consistent with the Act. The amended 
language would also be more flexible than the current language 
concerning the timing for submission of the information, while 
maintaining requirements that information be promptly (1) made 
available to local law enforcement where the registrant 
resides, (2) entered into the appropriate state records or data 
system, and (3) transmitted to the FBI.
    We recommend a modification concerning transmission of data 
to the FBI. The amendments in section 2(b)(2) follow the 
original version of the Wetterling Act, which required 
transmission of conviction data and fingerprints--but not 
address information for registered offenders--to the FBI. Under 
the Lychner Act amendments to the Wetterling Act, however, 
registration information (i.e., primarily address information) 
must also be transmitted to the FBI for inclusion in the 
national sex offender registry.
    We agree that physical transmission by the states of 
address information to the FBI is unnecessary, because this 
information can be made available to law enforcement on a 
nationwide basis, without physical transmission to the FBI, 
through the computer-linkage of state registries that the FBI 
has established as the interim national sex offender registry. 
It is important, however, to ensure that registration 
information from all the states will become available through 
the national registry, and provision of conviction data and 
fingerprints alone would not achieve this objective. We 
accordingly recommend including in the bill a provision that 
states, as a condition of Wetterling Act compliance, must 
participate in the national sex offender registry in conformity 
with guidelines issued by the Attorney General. This would 
ensure that the objectives of the national registry and the 
Lychner Act reforms are realized, without burdening the states 
with unnecessary data transmission.

Section 2(b)(3)--Periodic address verification

    Section 2(b)(3) amends the provisions of the Wetterling Act 
concerning periodic address verification for registrants.\2\ 
Currently, the Act requires that verification be accomplished 
by mailing (at least annually) to the registrant at the 
registered address a nonforwardable verification form, which 
the registrant must sign and return within 10 days. The 
amendments in section 2(b)(3) maintain the requirement of 
address verification at least annually, but afford states the 
option of adopting other verification procedures.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \2\ The portion of the amendatory language in section 2(b)(3)(A) 
does not conform to the language being amended and requires a technical 
correction. In essence, the amendatory language should be a complete 
substitute for the current lead-in language in 42 U.S.C. 
14071(b)(3)(A), rather than insert which preserves part of the current 
lead-in language.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    We agree that the verification-form procedure is not 
necessarily the only effective or acceptable approach. For 
example, some existing state programs require registrants to 
appear in person periodically at local law enforcement agencies 
to verify address (and for such purposes as photographing and 
fingerprinting), or assign caseworkers to verify periodically 
that registrants still reside at the registered address. These 
alternative procedures can be as effective as the particular 
approach specified in the Act in verifying registrants' 
location, impressing on registrants that they are under 
observation by the authorities, and making law enforcement 
agencies aware of the presence and identity of registered sex 
offenders in their areas.

Section 2(b)(4)-(5)--Change of address procedures

    Section 2(b)(4)-(5) amends provisions of the Wetterling Act 
concerning reporting of subsequent changes of address by 
registrants. In part, these are conforming changes to the 
amendments discussed above which clarify that ``local input'' 
approaches are consistent with the Act. The amended language 
would also be more flexible than the current language 
concerning the timing for reporting change of address 
information, but it maintains requirements that (1) changes of 
address must be reported by registrants in the manner provided 
by state law; (2) the updated address information must be 
provided promptly to a local law enforcement agency where the 
registrant will reside; and (3) the information must be entered 
into the appropriate state records or data system. It further 
maintains requirements that: (1) registrants who move to 
another state must notify the responsible registration agency 
in the state they are leaving and comply registration 
requirements in the new state of residence; and (2) the state 
the person is leaving must promptly notify the responsible 
registration agency in the new state.
    We would recommend some refinements to strengthen these 
provisions, for example, to ensure that updated address 
information will be promptly entered into the appropriate state 
records or data system, as well as being promptly to local law 
enforcement agencies. We would be pleased to assist in 
improving the formulation of this section.

Section 2(b)(6)--Interstate provisions

    Section 2(b)(6), in part, would require released sex 
offenders to comply with registration laws in states where they 
work or go to school. Without more, these provisions would be 
ineffective, because state law generally do not require workers 
of students in the state (as opposed to residents) to register. 
The intent of the provision appears to be to require states to 
modify their registration laws so that non-resident workers and 
students in the state are also required to register, in order 
to improve both intrastate and interstate communication, and 
notification. We generally support this objective, and would 
recommend an alternative formulation.
    Section 2(b)(6) also states requirements that registrants 
on probation, parole, or other supervised release who move to 
other states must register in accordance with the laws of their 
new states of residence. It is unclear that what this adds to 
the Act's provisions for registration by all covered sex 
offenders--not just those on probation, parole or supervised 
release--when they move interstate. We would be pleased to work 
with Congress to address this and other drafting issues 
presented by Section 2(b)(6).

Section 2(c)--Release of registration information

    Section 2(c) contains amendments to the Wetterling Act's 
information disclosure provisions.
    The amendment proposed in section 2(c)(1) is a conforming 
change to the general proposed deletion of references to 
``designated State law enforcement agency'' in the Act. We 
support this change. The provision to which this pertains, 
following the Megan's Law amendments, currently appears in 42 
U.S.C. 14071(d)(2).
    The amendment proposed in section 2(c)(2), however, fails 
to take into account a substantive change in the Wetterling 
Act's information disclosure provisions which was enacted by 
Megan's Law. The amendment affects a general requirement under 
the original version of the Wetterling Act that would have 
required registration information to be treated as ``private 
data,'' to bedisclosed ``only for criminal justice purposes.'' 
However, Megan's Law deleted the general ``private data'' restriction, 
and substituted a provision (current 42 U.S.C. 14071(d)(1)) that the 
information collected under a state registration program may be 
disclosed for any purpose permitted under the laws of the state. This 
change was made on the basis of a recommendation of the Department of 
Justice:

          The requirement that registration information 
        generally be [t]reated as private data is not necessary 
        or helpful in realizing the objectives of the Jacob 
        Wetterling Act, and it imposes a limitation on the 
        States that did not exist prior to the enactment of the 
        Jacob Wetterling Act. We see no reason why States 
        should not generally be free to make their own 
        decisions concerning the extent to which registration 
        data should or should not be treated as private data, 
        as they have been in the past.
          We accordingly recommended deletion of the provisions 
        that information collected under State registration 
        systems is generally to be treated as private data.

H.R. Rep. No. 555, 104th Cong., 2d Sess. 6 (1996) (committee 
report for Megan's Law) (reproducing Department of Justice 
views letter).

Section 2(d)--Extension of immunity for good faith conduct

    The Wetterling Act currently provides immunity for law 
enforcement agencies and their personnel, and for other state 
officials, based on good faith conduct, under the Act. Section 
2(d) would extend this immunity to independent contractors 
acting at the direction of law enforcement agencies. We support 
this extension.

Section 2(e)--Federal and military offenders

    Section 2(e) contains amendments which are intended to 
extend registration to sex offenders convicted in federal or 
military courts.\3\ The amendments provide principally that 
such offenders must register in accordance with the laws of the 
states in which they reside, and that federal and military 
authorities must ensure that these offenders are notified of 
the registration obligation.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \3\ In this section and possibly elsewhere, the bill refers to 
``release from prison'' as triggering certain obligations. See, e.g., 
section 2(e)(3)(I). For purposes of clarity, we recommend substituting 
the word ``custody'' for ``prison'' throughout the bill in order to 
ensure coverage of correctional facilities other than actual prisons.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    We support the objectives of these provisions. The presence 
in a state of a released sex offender whose whereabouts are 
unknown to the authorities poses the same potential danger to 
the public, regardless of whether the offender was convicted in 
that state, in another state, or in a federal or military 
court. While the Department's guidelines for the Wetterling Act 
do encourage states to require registration for such offenders, 
the Wetterling Act currently does not require registration of 
released federal or military offenders.
    To correct this problem it is not adequate to state that 
sex offenders convicted in federal or military proceedings must 
register in accordance with state law. Without more, there is 
no assurance that states will require registration by released 
federal and military sex offenders under their laws--at the 
present time, some states do, but most do not--and there is no 
way for state registration authorities to know if such released 
offenders enter their jurisdictions but fail to register.
    We should recommend the following elements for a 
comprehensive and adequate set of amendments to ensure 
registration by released federal and military sex offenders: 
(1) provisions directing federal and military correctional 
authorities to notify state registration agencies concerning 
the release of such offenders to their jurisdictions; (2) 
provisions directing federal and military correctional 
authorities to advise such offenders concerning registration 
obligations when they are released; (3) comparable provisions 
ensuring notice to the states and notice concerning 
registration obligations in relation to federal sex offenders 
released on probation; (4) amendments making compliance with 
state registration laws mandatory conditions of probation and 
supervised release for released federal sex offenders; and (5) 
an amendment to the Wetterling Act requiring states, as a 
condition of compliance, to mandate registration for released 
federal and military sex offenders who move into their 
jurisdictions. We would be pleased to work with you to develop 
a comprehensive approach to federal and military sex offender 
registration as outlined above.

Section 3--Stalking laws

    Section 3 expresses the sense of Congress that state 
stalking laws should not require physical harm as an element in 
relation to victims below the age of 16. A related provision in 
section 2(b)(6) would require, through an amendment to the 
Wetterling Act, that the states submit reports to the Attorney 
General setting forth existing or proposed laws regarding 
stalking crimes against individuals 16 years of age or younger.
    We have no objection to the sense of Congress resolution in 
section 3, but note that State stalking laws generally do not 
require physical harm to the victim as an element, regardless 
of the age of the victim. If there is a particular state or 
states whose laws are inadequate in this respect, then the 
problem should be corrected in relation to all victims, not 
just those below the age of 16.
    Based upon our initial review, we note that many of the 
provisions in H.R. 1683 would afford states greater flexibility 
in achieving the Wetterling Act's objectives. It should be made 
clear, however, that updated address information must be 
promptly entered into state records systems, that states must 
participate in the national sex offender registry as a 
condition of compliance, and that states must require 
registration for federal and military sex offenders who move 
into their areas as a condition of compliance. Additional 
amendments and provisions to ensure effective registration of 
federal and military sex offenders should also be incorporated. 
The deletion by Megan's Law of the ``private data'' restriction 
for registration information should not be undone. The special 
provisions in the bill relating to offenders who work or go to 
school in other states, and offenders released on probation or 
parole who move to other states, are problematic in some 
respects. We recommend that further consideration be given to 
the substantive and formulation issues they raise, as indicated 
above.
    We would note that these are our preliminary comments on 
H.R. 1683. In view of the complexity of interrelated 
provisions, we hope to continue working with you to assure the 
fulfillment of our mutual public safety goal--strong, 
efficient, and fully integrated sex offender registration and 
notification systems.
    Finally, a number of provisions of H.R. 1683 would result 
in substantial new requirements for the states, but the bill 
does not generally provide any additional time to come into 
compliance with these requirements. We would note for the 
Committee that states may have difficulty coming into 
compliance with these new requirements by the current statutory 
deadline.
    The Office of Management and Budget advises that there is 
no objection to the submission of this report from the 
standpoint of the Administration's program.
            Sincerely,
                                               Andrew Fois,
                                         Assistant Attorney General
                              ----------                              .


         Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported

  In compliance with clause 3 of rule XIII of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by the 
bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law proposed 
to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new matter is 
printed in italics, existing law in which no change is proposed 
is shown in roman):

         VIOLENT CRIME CONTROL AND LAW ENFORCEMENT ACT OF 1994

          * * * * * * *

                  TITLE XVII--CRIMES AGAINST CHILDREN

   Subtitle A--Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually 
                   Violent Offender Registration Act

SEC. 170101. ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.

  (a) In General.--
          (1) State guidelines.--The Attorney General shall 
        establish guidelines for State programs that require--
                  (A) a person who is convicted of a criminal 
                offense against a victim who is a minor or who 
                is convicted of a sexually violent offense to 
                register a current address [with a designated 
                State law enforcement agency] for the time 
                period specified in subparagraph (A) of 
                subsection (b)(6); and
                  (B) a person who is a sexually violent 
                predator to register a current address [with a 
                designated State law enforcement agency] unless 
                such requirement is terminated under 
                subparagraph (B) of subsection (b)(6).
          [(2) Court determination.--A determination that a 
        person is a sexually violent predator and a 
        determination that a person is no longer a sexually 
        violent predator shall be made by the sentencing court 
        after receiving a report by a State board composed of 
        experts in the field of the behavior and treatment of 
        sexual offenders, victim rights advocates, and 
        representatives from law enforcement agencies.]
          (2) Determination of sexually violent predator 
        status; waiver; alternative measures.--
                  (A) In general.--A determination of whether a 
                person is a sexually violent predator for 
                purposes of this section shall be made by a 
                court after considering the recommendation of a 
                board composed of experts in the behavior and 
                treatment of sex offenders, victims' rights 
                advocates, and representatives of law 
                enforcement agencies.
                  (B) Waiver.--The Attorney General may waive 
                the requirements of subparagraph (A) if the 
                Attorney General determines that the State has 
                established alternative procedures or legal 
                standards for designating a person as a 
                sexually violent predator.
                  (C) Alternative measures.--The Attorney 
                General may also approve alternative measures 
                of comparable or greater effectiveness in 
                protecting the public from unusually dangerous 
                or recidivistic sexual offenders in lieu of the 
                specific measures set forth in this section 
                regarding sexually violent predators.
          (3) Definitions.--For purposes of this section:
                  (A) The term ``criminal offense against a 
                victim who is a minor'' means any criminal 
                offense [that consists of--] in a range of 
                offenses specified by State law which is 
                comparable to or which exceeds the following 
                range of offenses:
                          (i) * * *
          * * * * * * *
                  (B) The term ``sexually violent offense'' 
                means any criminal offense [that consists of] 
                in a range of offenses specified by State law 
                which is comparable to or which exceeds the 
                range of offenses encompassed by aggravated 
                sexual abuse or sexual abuse (as described in 
                sections 2241 and 2242 of title 18, United 
                States Code, or as described in the State 
                criminal code) or an offense that has as its 
                elements engaging in physical contact with 
                another person with intent to commit aggravated 
                sexual abuse or sexual abuse (as described in 
                such sections of title 18, United States Code, 
                or as described in the State criminal code).
          * * * * * * *
                  (F) The term ``employed, carries on a 
                vocation'' includes employment that is full-
                time or part-time for a period of time 
                exceeding 14 days or for an aggregate period of 
                time exceeding 30 days during any calendar 
                year, whether financially compensated, 
                volunteered, or for the purpose of government 
                or educational benefit; and
                  (G) The term ``student'' means a person who 
                is enrolled on a full-time or part-time basis, 
                in any public or private educational 
                institution, including any secondary school, 
                trade, or professional institution, or 
                institution of higher education.
  (b) Registration Requirement Upon Release, Parole, Supervised 
Release, or Probation.--An approved State registration program 
established under this section shall contain the following 
elements:
          [(1) Duty of state prison official or court.--]
          (1) Duties of responsible officials.--
                  (A) If a person who is required to register 
                under this section is released from prison, or 
                placed on parole, supervised release, or 
                probation, a State prison officer, [or in the 
                case of probation, the court] the court, or 
                another responsible officer or official, 
                shall--
                          (i) inform the person of the duty to 
                        register and obtain the information 
                        required for such registration;
                          (ii) inform the person that if the 
                        person changes residence address, the 
                        person shall [give the new address to a 
                        designated State law enforcement agency 
                        in writing within 10 days] report the 
                        change of address as provided by State 
                        law;
                          (iii) inform the person that if the 
                        person changes residence to another 
                        State, the person [shall register the 
                        new address with the law enforcement 
                        agency with whom the person last 
                        registered, and the person is also 
                        required to register with a designated 
                        law enforcement agency in the new State 
                        not later than 10 days after 
                        establishing residence in the new 
                        State, if the new State has a 
                        registration requirement] shall report 
                        the change of address as provided by 
                        State law and comply with any 
                        registration requirement in the new 
                        State of residence, and inform the 
                        person that the person must also 
                        register in a State where the person is 
                        employed, carries on a vocation, or is 
                        a student;
          * * * * * * *
                  (B) In addition to the requirements of 
                subparagraph (A), for a person required to 
                register under subparagraph (B) of subsection 
                (a)(1), the State prison officer [or the 
                court], the court, or another responsible 
                officer or official, as the case may be, shall 
                obtain the name of the person, identifying 
                factors, anticipated future residence, offense 
                history, and documentation of any treatment 
                received for the mental abnormality or 
                personality disorder of the person.
          [(2) Transfer of information to state and the fbi.--
        The officer, or in the case of a person placed on 
        probation, the court, shall, within 3 days after 
        receipt of information described in paragraph (1), 
        forward it to a designated State law enforcement 
        agency. The State law enforcement agency shall 
        immediately enter the information into the appropriate 
        State law enforcement record system and notify the 
        appropriate law enforcement agency having jurisdiction 
        where the person expects to reside. The State law 
        enforcement agency shall also immediately transmit all 
        information described in paragraph (1) to the Federal 
        Bureau of Investigation for inclusion in the FBI 
        database described in section 170102.]
          (2) Transfer of information to state and fbi; 
        participation in national sex offender registry.--
                  (A) State reporting.--State procedures shall 
                ensure that the registration information is 
                promptly made available to a law enforcement 
                agency having jurisdiction where the person 
                expects to reside and entered into the 
                appropriate State records or data system. State 
                procedures shall also ensure that conviction 
                data and fingerprints for persons required to 
                register are promptly transmitted to the 
                Federal Bureau of Investigation.
                  (B) National reporting.--A State shall 
                participate in the national database 
                established under section 170102(b) in 
                accordance with guidelines issued by the 
                Attorney General, including transmission of 
                current address information and other 
                information on registrants to the extent 
                provided by the guidelines.
          (3) Verification.--
                  (A) For a person required to register under 
                subparagraph (A) of subsection (a)(1), [on each 
                anniversary of the person's initial 
                registration date during the period in which 
                the person is required to register under this 
                section the following applies:
                          [(i) The designated State law 
                        enforcement agency shall mail a 
                        nonforwardable verification form to the 
                        last reported address of the person.
                          [(ii) The person shall mail the 
                        verification form to the designated 
                        State law enforcement agency within 10 
                        days after receipt of the form.
                          [(iii) The verification form shall be 
                        signed by the person, and state that 
                        the person still resides at the address 
                        last reported to the designated State 
                        law enforcement agency. The person 
                        shall include with the verification 
                        form, fingerprints and a photograph of 
                        that person.
                          [(iv) If the person fails to mail the 
                        verification form to the designated 
                        State law enforcement agency within 10 
                        days after receipt of the form, the 
                        person shall be in violation of this 
                        section unless the person proves that 
                        the person has not changed the 
                        residence address.] State procedures 
                        shall provide for verification of 
                        address at least annually.
                  (B) The provisions of subparagraph (A) shall 
                be applied to a person required to register 
                under subparagraph (B) of subsection (a)(1), 
                except that such person must verify the 
                registration every 90 days after the date of 
                the initial release or commencement of parole.
          (4) Notification of local law enforcement agencies of 
        changes in address.--A change of address by a person 
        required to register under this [section reported to 
        the designated State law enforcement agency shall be 
        immediately reported to the appropriate law enforcement 
        agency having jurisdiction where the person is 
        residing. The designated law enforcement agency shall, 
        if the person changes residence to another State, 
        notify the law enforcement agency with which the person 
        must register in the new State, if the new State has a 
        registration requirement] section shall be reported by 
        the person in the manner provided by State law. State 
        procedures shall ensure that the updated address 
        information is promptly made available to a law 
        enforcement agency having jurisdiction where the person 
        will reside and entered into the appropriate State 
        records or data system.
          (5) Registration for change of address to another 
        state.--A person who has been convicted of an offense 
        which requires registration under this section [shall 
        register the new address with a designated law 
        enforcement agency in another State to which the person 
        moves not later than 10 days aftersuch person 
establishes residence in the new State, if the new State has a 
registration requirement] and who moves to another State, shall report 
the change of address to the responsible agency in the State the person 
is leaving, and shall comply with any registration requirement in the 
new State of residence. The procedures of the State the person is 
leaving shall ensure that notice is provided promptly to an agency 
responsible for registration in the new State, if that State requires 
registration.
          * * * * * * *
          (7) Registration of out-of-state offenders, federal 
        offenders, persons sentenced by courts martial, and 
        offenders crossing state borders.--As provided in 
        guidelines issued by the Attorney General, each State 
        shall ensure that procedures are in place to accept 
        registration information from--
                  (A) persons who were convicted in another 
                State, convicted of a Federal offense, or 
                sentenced by a court martial; and
                  (B) nonresident offenders who have crossed 
                into another State in order to work or attend 
                school.
  (c) Registration of Offender Crossing State Border.--Any 
person who is required under this section to register in the 
State in which such person resides shall also register in any 
State in which the person is employed, carries on a vocation, 
or is a student.
  [(c)] (d) Penalty.--A person required to register under a 
State program established pursuant to this section who 
knowingly fails to so register and keep such registration 
current shall be subject to criminal penalties in any State in 
which the person has so failed.
  [(d)] (e) Release of Information.--
          (1) The information collected under a State 
        registration program may be disclosed for any purpose 
        permitted under the laws of the State.
          (2) [The designated State law enforcement agency and 
        any local law enforcement agency authorized by the 
        State agency] The State or any agency authorized by the 
        State shall release relevant information that is 
        necessary to protect the public concerning a specific 
        person required to register under this section, except 
        that the identity of a victim of an offense that 
        requires registration under this section shall not be 
        released.
  [(e)] (f) Immunity for Good Faith Conduct.--Law enforcement 
agencies, employees of law enforcement agencies[, and State 
officials] and independent contractors acting at the direction 
of such agencies, and State officials shall be immune from 
liability for good faith conduct under this section.
  [(f)] (g) Compliance.--
          (1) * * *
          * * * * * * *
  [(g)] (h) Fingerprints.--Each requirement to register under 
this section shall be deemed to also require the submission of 
a set of fingerprints of the person required to register, 
obtained in accordance with regulations prescribed by the 
Attorney General under section 170102(h).

SEC. 170102. FBI DATABASE.

  (a) Definitions.--For purposes of this section--
          (1) * * *
          (2) the terms ``criminal offense against a victim who 
        is a minor'', ``sexually violent offense'', ``sexually 
        violent predator'', ``mental abnormality'', [and 
        ``predatory''] ``predatory'', ``employed, or carries on 
        a vocation'', and ``student'' have the same meanings as 
        in section 170101(a)(3); and
          (3) the term ``minimally sufficient sexual offender 
        registration program'' means any State sexual offender 
        registration program that--
                  (A) requires the registration of each 
                offender who is convicted of an offense in a 
                range of offenses specified by State law which 
                is comparable to or exceeds that described in 
                subparagraph (A) or (B) of section 
                170101(a)(1);
                  [(B) requires that all information gathered 
                under such program be transmitted to the FBI in 
                accordance with subsection (g) of this section;
                  [(C) meets the requirements for verification 
                under section 170101(b)(3); and]
                  (B) participates in the national database 
                established under subsection (b) of this 
                section in conformity with guidelines issued by 
                the Attorney General;
                  (C) provides for verification of address at 
                least annually;
          * * * * * * *
                              ----------                              


      SECTION 10 OF THE PAM LYCHNER SEXUAL OFFENDER TRACKING AND 
                       IDENTIFICATION ACT OF 1996

SEC. 10. EFFECTIVE DATE.

  (a) * * *
          * * * * * * *
  (d) Effective Date.--States shall be allowed the time 
specified in subsection (b) to establish minimally sufficient 
sexual offender registration programs for purposes of the 
amendments made by section 2. Subsections (c) and (k) of 
section 170102 of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement 
Act of 1994, and any requirement to issue related regulations, 
shall take effect at the conclusion of the time provided under 
this subsection for the establishment of minimally sufficient 
sexual offender registration programs.
                              ----------                              


                      TITLE 18, UNITED STATE CODE

          * * * * * * *

                      PART II--CRIMINAL PROCEDURE

          * * * * * * *

                  CHAPTER 224--PROTECTION OF WITNESSES

          * * * * * * *

Sec. 3521. Witness relocation and protection

  (a) * * *
  (b)(1) In connection with the protection under this chapter 
of a witness, a potential witness, or an immediate family 
member or close associate of a witness or potential witness, 
the Attorney General shall take such action as the Attorney 
General determines to be necessary to protect the person 
involved from bodily injury and otherwise to assure the health, 
safety, and welfare of that person, including the psychological 
well-being and social adjustment of that person, for as long 
as, in the judgment of the Attorney General, the danger to that 
person exists. The Attorney General may, by regulation--
          (A) * * *
          * * * * * * *
          (G) disclose or refuse to disclose the identity or 
        location of the person relocated or protected, or any 
        other matter concerning the person or the program after 
        weighing the danger such a disclosure would pose to the 
        person, the detriment it would cause to the general 
        effectiveness of the program, and the benefit it would 
        afford to the public or to the person seeking the 
        disclosure, except that the Attorney General shall, 
        upon the request of State or local law enforcement 
        officials or pursuant to a court order, without undue 
        delay, disclose to such officials the identity, 
        location, criminal records, and fingerprints relating 
        to the person relocated or protected when the Attorney 
        General knows or the request indicates that the person 
        is under investigation for or has been arrested for or 
        charged with an offense that is punishable by more than 
        one year in prison or that is a crime of violence; 
        [and]
          (H) protect the confidentiality of the identity and 
        location of persons subject to registration 
        requirements as convicted offenders under Federal or 
        State law, including prescribing alternative procedures 
        to those otherwise provided by Federal or State law for 
        registration and tracking of such persons; and
          [(H)] (I) exempt procurement for services, materials, 
        and supplies, and the renovation and construction of 
        safe sites within existing buildings from other 
        provisions of law as may be required to maintain the 
        security of protective witnesses and the integrity of 
        the Witness Security Program.
The Attorney General shall establish an accurate, efficient, 
and effective system of records concerning the criminal history 
of persons provided protection under this chapter in order to 
provide the information described in subparagraph (G).
          * * * * * * *

                         CHAPTER 227--SENTENCES

          * * * * * * *

                        SUBCHAPTER B--PROBATION

          * * * * * * *

Sec. 3563. Conditions of probation

  (a) Mandatory Conditions.--The court shall provide, as an 
explicit condition of a sentence of probation--
          (1) * * *
          * * * * * * *
          (6) that the defendant--
                  (A) make restitution in accordance with 
                sections 2248, 2259, 2264, 2327, 3663, 3663A, 
                and 3664; and
                  (B) pay the assessment imposed in accordance 
                with section 3013; [and]
          (7) that the defendant will notify the court of any 
        material change in the defendant's economic 
        circumstances that might affect the defendant's ability 
        to pay restitution, fines, or special assessments[. The 
        results of a drug test administered in accordance with 
        paragraph (4) shall be subject to confirmation only if 
        the results are positive, the defendant is subject to 
        possible imprisonment for such failure, and either the 
        defendant denies the accuracy of such test or there is 
        some other reason to question the results of the test. 
        A defendant who tests positive may be detained pending 
        verification of a positive drug test result. A drug 
        test confirmation shall be a urine drug test confirmed 
        using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry techniques 
        or such test as the Director of the Administrative 
        Office of the United States Courts after consultation 
        with the Secretary of Health and Human Services may 
        determine to be of equivalent accuracy. The court shall 
        consider whether the availability of appropriate 
        substance abuse treatment programs, or an individual's 
        current or past participation in such programs, 
        warrants an exception in accordance with United States 
        Sentencing Commission guidelines from the rule of 
        section 3565(b), when considering any action against a 
        defendant who fails a drug test administered in 
        accordance with paragraph (4).]; and
          (8) for a person described in section 4042(c)(4), 
        that the person report the address where the person 
        will reside and any subsequent change of residence to 
        the probation officer responsible for supervision, and 
        that the person register in any State where the person 
        resides, is employed, carries on a vocation, or is a 
        student (as such terms are defined under section 
        170101(a)(3) of the Violent Crime Control and Law 
        Enforcement Act of 1994).
If the court has imposed and ordered execution of a fine and 
placed the defendant on probation, payment of the fine or 
adherence to the court-established installment schedule shall 
be a condition of the probation.
          * * * * * * *
  (e) Results of Drug Testing.--The results of a drug test 
administered in accordance with subsection (a)(5) shall be 
subject to confirmation only if the results are positive, the 
defendant is subject to possible imprisonment for such failure, 
and either the defendant denies the accuracy of such test or 
there is some other reason to question the results of the test. 
A defendant who tests positive may be detained pending 
verification of a positive drug test result. A drug test 
confirmation shall be a urine drug test confirmed using gas 
chromatography/mass spectrometry techniques or such test as the 
Director of the Administrative Office of the United States 
Courts after consultation with the Secretary of Health and 
Human Services may determine to be of equivalent accuracy. The 
court shall consider whether the availability of appropriate 
substance abuse treatment programs, or an individual's current 
or past participation in such programs, warrants an exception 
in accordance with United States Sentencing Commission 
guidelines from the rule of section 3565(b), when considering 
any action against a defendant who fails a drug test 
administered in accordance with subsection (a)(5).
          * * * * * * *

                       SUBCHAPTER D--IMPRISONMENT

          * * * * * * *

Sec. 3583. Inclusion of a term of supervised release after imprisonment

  (a) * * *
          * * * * * * *
  (d) Conditions of Supervised Release.--The court shall order, 
as an explicit condition of supervised release, that the 
defendant not commit another Federal, State, or local crime 
during the term of supervision and that the defendant not 
unlawfully possess a controlled substance. The court shall 
order as an explicit condition of supervised release for a 
defendant convicted for the first time of a domestic violence 
crime as defined in section 3561(b) that the defendant attend a 
public, private, or private nonprofit offender rehabilitation 
program that has been approved by the court, in consultation 
with a State Coalition Against Domestic Violence or other 
appropriate experts, if an approved program is readily 
available within a 50-mile radius of the legal residence of the 
defendant. The court shall order, as an explicit condition of 
supervised release for a person described in section 
4042(c)(4), that the person report the address where the person 
will reside and any subsequent change of residence to the 
probation officer responsible for supervision, and that the 
person register in any State where the person resides, is 
employed, carries on a vocation, or is a student (as such terms 
are defined under section 170101(a)(3) of the Violent Crime 
Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994). The court shall also 
order, as an explicit condition of supervised release, that the 
defendant refrain from any unlawful use of a controlled 
substance and submit to a drug test within 15 days of release 
on supervised release and at least 2 periodic drug tests 
thereafter (as determined by the court) for use of a controlled 
substance. The condition stated in the preceding sentence may 
be ameliorated or suspended by the court as provided in section 
3563(a)(4). The results of a drug test administered in 
accordance with the preceding subsection shall be subject to 
confirmation only if the results are positive, the defendant is 
subject to possible imprisonment for such failure, and either 
the defendant denies the accuracy of such test or there is some 
other reason to question the results of the test. A drug test 
confirmation shall be a urine drug test confirmed using gas 
chromatography/mass spectrometry techniques or such test as the 
Director of the Administrative Office of the United States 
Courts after consultation with the Secretary of Health and 
Human Services may determine to be of equivalent accuracy. The 
court shall consider whether the availability of appropriate 
substance abuse treatment programs, or an individual's current 
or past participation in such programs, warrants an exception 
in accordance with United States Sentencing Commission 
guidelines from the rule of section 3583(g) when considering 
any action against a defendant who fails a drug test. The court 
may order, as a further condition of supervised release, to the 
extent that such condition--
          (1) * * *
          * * * * * * *

                    PART III--PRISONS AND PRISONERS

          * * * * * * *

                     CHAPTER 303--BUREAU OF PRISONS

          * * * * * * *

Sec. 4042. Duties of Bureau of Prisons

  (a) In General.--The Bureau of Prisons, under the direction 
of the Attorney General, shall--
          (1) * * *
          * * * * * * *
          (5) provide notice of release of prisoners in 
        accordance with [subsection (b)] subsections (b) and 
        (c).
  (b) Notice of Release of Prisoners.--(1) * * *
          * * * * * * *
  [(4) The notice provided under this section shall be used 
solely for law enforcement purposes.]
  (c) Notice of Sex Offender Release.--(1) In the case of a 
person described in paragraph (4) who is released from prison 
or sentenced to probation, notice shall be provided to--
          (A) the chief law enforcement officer of the State 
        and of the local jurisdiction in which the person will 
        reside; and
          (B) a State or local agency responsible for the 
        receipt or maintenance of sex offender registration 
        information in the State or local jurisdiction in which 
        the person will reside.
The notice requirements under this subsection do not apply in 
relation to a person being protected under chapter 224.
  (2) Notice provided under paragraph (1) shall include the 
information described in subsection (b)(2), the place where the 
person will reside, and the information that the person shall 
be subject toa registration requirement as a sex offender. For 
a person who is released from the custody of the Bureau of Prisons 
whose expected place of residence following release is known to the 
Bureau of Prisons, notice shall be provided at least 5 days prior to 
release by the Director of the Bureau of Prisons. For a person who is 
sentenced to probation, notice shall be provided promptly by the 
probation officer responsible for the supervision of the person, or in 
a manner specified by the Director of the Administrative Office of the 
United States Courts. Notice concerning a subsequent change of 
residence by a person described in paragraph (4) during any period of 
probation, supervised release, or parole shall also be provided to the 
agencies and officers specified in paragraph (1) by the probation 
officer responsible for the supervision of the person, or in a manner 
specified by the Director of the Administrative Office of the United 
States Courts.
  (3) The Director of the Bureau of Prisons shall inform a 
person described in paragraph (4) who is released from prison 
that the person shall be subject to a registration requirement 
as a sex offender in any State in which the person resides, is 
employed, carries on a vocation, or is a student (as such terms 
are defined for purposes of section 170101(a)(3) of the Violent 
Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994), and the same 
information shall be provided to a person described in 
paragraph (4) who is sentenced to probation by the probation 
officer responsible for supervision of the person or in a 
manner specified by the Director of the Administrative Office 
of the United States Courts.
  (4) A person is described in this paragraph if the person was 
convicted of any of the following offenses (including such an 
offense prosecuted pursuant to section 1152 or 1153):
          (A) An offense under section 1201 involving a minor 
        victim.
          (B) An offense under chapter 109A.
          (C) An offense under chapter 110.
          (D) An offense under chapter 117.
          (E) Any other offense designated by the Attorney 
        General as a sexual offense for purposes of this 
        subsection.
  (5) The United States and its agencies, officers, and 
employees shall be immune from liability based on good faith 
conduct in carrying out this subsection and subsection (b).
  [(c)] (d) Application of Section.--This section shall not 
apply to military or naval penal or correctional institutions 
or the persons confined therein.
          * * * * * * *

                       CHAPTER 311--REPEALED \1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ This chapter is repealed by section 218(a)(5) of the Sentencing 
Reform Act of 1984 (98 Stat. 2027). Section 235(b)(1)(A) of such Act 
(as amended by section 316 of Public Law 101-650 and section 2(a) of 
Public Law 104-232), provides that this chapter ``shall remain in 
effect for fifteen years after the effective as to an individual 
convicted of an offense or adjudicated to be a juvenile delinquent 
before the effective date and as to a term of imprisonment during the 
period described in subsection (a)(1)(A)''.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
          * * * * * * *

Sec. 4209. Conditions of parole

  (a) In every case, the Commission shall impose as conditions 
of parole that the parolee not commit another Federal, State, 
or local crime, that the parolee not possess illegal controlled 
substances. and, if a fine was imposed, that the parolee make a 
diligent effort to pay the fine in accordance with the 
judgment. In every case, the Commission shall impose as a 
condition of parole for a person described in section 
4042(c)(4), that the parolee report the address where the 
parolee will reside and any subsequent change of residence to 
the probation officer responsible for supervision, and that the 
parolee register in any State where the parolee resides, is 
employed, carries on a vocation, or is a student (as such terms 
are defined under section 170101(a)(3) of the Violent Crime 
Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994). In every case, the 
Commission shall also impose as a condition of parole that the 
parolee pass a drug test prior to release and refrain from any 
unlawful use of a controlled substance and submit to at least 2 
periodic drug tests (as determined by the Commission) for use 
of a controlled substance. The condition stated in the 
preceding sentence may be ameliorated or suspended by the 
Commission for any individual parolee if it determines that 
there is good cause for doing so. The results of a drug test 
administered in accordance with the provisions of the preceding 
sentence shall be subject to confirmation only if the results 
are positive, the defendant is subject to possible imprisonment 
for such failure, and either the defendant denies the accuracy 
of such test or there is some other reason to question the 
results of the test. A drug test confirmation shall be urine 
drug test confirmed using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry 
techniques or such test as the Director of the Administrative 
Office of the United States Courts after consultation with the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services may determine to be of 
equivalent accuracy. The Commission shall consider whether the 
availability of appropriate substance abuse treatment programs, 
or an individual's current or past participation in such 
programs, warrants an exception in accordance with United 
States Sentencing Commission guidelines from the rule of 
section 4214(f) when considering any action against a defendant 
who fails a drug test. The Commission may impose or modify 
other conditions of parole to the extent that such conditions 
are reasonably related to--
          (1) the nature and circumstances of the offense; and
          (2) the history and characteristics of the parolee;
and may provide for such supervision and other limitations as 
are reasonable to protect the public welfare.
          * * * * * * *

                            DISSENTING VIEWS

    In 1994, Congress enacted the Jacob Wetterling Crimes 
Against Children and Sexually Violent Offender Registration Act 
(the ``Act''),1 which encourages states to operate 
sex offender registration programs. States which operate such 
programs will receive certain criminal justice grant funds; 
states which do not operate such programs are denied access to 
these funds. The Act specifies in considerable detail precisely 
what a state must do to qualify its program as an ``approved 
state registration program.'' 2 For example: state 
prison officials and courts must inform convicts of certain 
facts and obtain fingerprints and photographs from inmates upon 
their release; state prison officials and courts must transfer 
certain information to federal authorities and to other states; 
states must enact legislation requiring individuals convicted 
of certain offenses to register with law enforcement officials; 
and states must impose penalties on individuals who fail to 
register.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\ Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, Pub. Law 
103-322, Sept., 13, 1994, at Section 170101, codified at 42 U.S.C. 
section 14071.
    \2\ Id. at section 170101(b).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Administering the Act has proved to be quite complex, and 
states have encountered numerous difficulties and questions in 
their efforts to implement registration programs. As we 
understand it, H.R. 1683 is intended to clarify certain matters 
under the Act, and to impose certain additional requirements on 
state registration programs that were omitted in the original 
Act.
    Some of the undersigned support the Act; others of the 
undersigned oppose it. Some of the undersigned believe the 
modifications sought to be effected by H.R. 1683 are 
worthwhile; others believe they are unnecessary extensions of 
an unwise statute.
    All of us agree, however, that H.R. 1683 is seriously 
deficient in that it fails to address the danger of unjust 
application of sex offender registration laws, a danger which 
has become apparent in the three years since the Act became 
law. Specifically, the bill does nothing to prevent states from 
forcing people who have been convicted of consensual adult 
sodomy or similar offenses to register as sex offenders. This 
is a glaring omission, and we believe it must be corrected.
    The Act was designed to protect the community, especially 
young children, from violence at the hands of recidivist sex 
offenders. The registration requirements were aimed at those 
with a history of, and therefore a presumed propensity for, 
forcible victimization of others.
    However, at least four states--Kansas,3 
Louisiana,4 Mississippi 5 and South 
Carolina 6--have laws on the books requiring people 
who have been convicted of offenses designated variously as 
``sodomy,'' ``unnatural intercourse'' and ``buggery'' to 
register as sex offenders. The Act was never intended to have 
that result. There is no reason whatever to think that 
individuals convicted under these so-called ``offenses'' (a 
category comprised primarily of gay men and lesbians, but which 
also includes some heterosexual individuals) pose any danger to 
the community. These so-called ``crimes'' involve no force or 
threat of force, nor do they involve adults having sex with 
children (that would be covered by more serious charges, and we 
do not object here to the inclusion of such crimes under this 
statute). The Act was never intended to result in people 
convicted of these ``offenses'' being required to register as 
sex offenders. Indeed, these ``offenses'' should not be in the 
criminal code at all.7 They certainly have nothing 
to do with genuine predatory offenses such as rape and child 
molestation.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \3\ K.S.A. Section 22-4902(a)(4) (requiring persons convicted of 
sodomy to register as sex offenders); K.S.A. Section 21-3505 (defining 
sodomy).
    \4\ La. R.S. Section 542.E (requiring persons convicted of certain 
offenses to register as sex offenders); id. at 14:89 (defining sodomy).
    \5\ Miss. Code Ann. Section 45-33-1(4)(d) (requiring persons 
convicted of unnatural intercourse to register as sex offenders); id. 
at 97-29-59 (defining unnatural intercourse).
    \6\ S.C. Code Ann. Section 23-3-430(C)(10) (requiring persons 
convicted of buggery to register as sex offenders); id. at 16-15-120 
(defining buggery).
    \7\ We note that state sodomy laws are archaic. Many of the states 
which at one time had such laws have repealed them, and in other states 
the laws have been declared invalid or unenforceable under state 
constitutions. It is our understanding that in the states which do 
continue to enforce such laws, prosecutions are now rare. However, in 
earlier decades prosecutions were much more frequent, with the result 
that there are a large number of individuals with decades-old 
convictions, who may be subject to registration requirements.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    We note that some individuals who have been convicted under 
sodomy statutes are heterosexual individuals.8 It is 
clear, however, that historically these statutes have been used 
to persecute gay men and lesbians. It is bad enough that 
individuals have been convicted under homophobic sodomy 
statutes. It is unconscionable to victimize these individuals 
further by forcing them to register with the police as ``sex 
offenders'' for the rest of their lives.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \8\ The Louisiana, Mississippi and South Carolina statutes apply to 
heterosexual sodomy as well as homosexual activity. The Kansas statute 
is limited to same-sex acts.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    As a result of the Act, every state now has sex offender 
registration laws. We should make sure that these laws do not 
discriminate against gay men and lesbians. States that require 
people with sodomy convictions to register as sex offenders are 
lumping gay men and lesbians who are innocent of any genuinely 
wrongful activity together with rapists and child molesters.
    At the Judiciary Committee meeting to mark up H.R. 1683, 
Rep. Schumer offered an amendment to address this problem. 
Under the amendment, states that require people convicted of 
consensual adult sodomy to register as sex offenders would be 
disqualified from receiving funds under the Act. This amendment 
was defeated. We supported the amendment, and believe that H.R. 
1683 will be seriously flawed unless the amendment is added to 
the bill.
    Committee members opposing the amendment objected to the 
amendment on the ground that it would inject the federal 
government into a decision properly made by the states. We find 
this argument specious.
    The Act already imposes a multitude of requirements on 
states. The Act contains four full pages of dense statutory 
text telling states how their sex offender registration 
programs must operate. The Act further directs the Attorney 
General to issue guidelines spelling out in even greater detail 
exactly what the states must do to qualify for funding--these 
guidelines are ____ pages long. The amendment we supported 
would simply have added an additional requirement to these 
pages and pages of requirement. It is inconsistent to support 
the Act--as those who opposed the Schumer amendment do--yet to 
oppose the amendment on federalism grounds.

                       COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY

                          (democratic members)

                                   John Conyers, Jr.
                                   Charles Schumer.
                                   Jerrold Nadler.
                                   Boddy C. Scott.
                                   Maxine Waters.
                                   William D. Delahunt.
                                   Barney Frank.
                                   Howard Berman.
                                   Melvin L. Watt.
                                   Sheila Jackson Lee.
                                   Marty Meehan.

                                
