[House Report 110-753]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
110th Congress Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
2d Session 110-753
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A CHILD IS MISSING ALERT AND RECOVERY CENTER ACT
_______
July 10, 2008.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the
State of the Union and ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Conyers, from the Committee on the Judiciary, submitted the
following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 5464]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred the bill
(H.R. 5464) to direct the Attorney General to make an annual
grant to the A Child Is Missing Alert and Recovery Center to
assist law enforcement agencies in the rapid recovery of
missing children, and for other purposes, having considered the
same, report favorably thereon without amendment and recommend
that the bill do pass.
CONTENTS
Page
Purpose and Summary.............................................. 1
Background and Need for the Legislation.......................... 2
Hearings......................................................... 2
Committee Consideration.......................................... 3
Committee Votes.................................................. 3
Committee Oversight Findings..................................... 3
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures........................ 3
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................ 3
Performance Goals and Objectives................................. 4
Constitutional Authority Statement............................... 5
Advisory on Earmarks............................................. 5
Section-by-Section Analysis...................................... 7
Purpose and Summary
H.R. 5464, the ``A Child Is Missing Alert and Recovery
Center Act,'' authorizes $5 million for each of fiscal years
2009 through 2014 to the A Child Is Missing Alert and Recovery
Center, a national non-profit organization, to operate and
expand the program and technologies necessary to assist law
enforcement agencies in the rapid recovery of missing
individuals.
Background and Need for the Legislation
More than 1.3 million children went missing in 1999.\1\ The
successful recovery of missing children often requires a quick
response. Sherry Friedlander, the founder of A Child is Missing
Alert and Recovery Center (ACIM), saw the need for a rapid-
response program to help quickly find persons who go missing,
especially in situations that do not involve abductions. In
response to this need, she established ACIM, a national non-
profit organization that offers free assistance to law
enforcement agencies, 365 days of the year, 24 hours per day.
The program is not limited to children, but extends to elderly
persons, perhaps suffering from senility or Alzheimer's, to
mentally challenged or disabled individuals, and to college
students.
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\1\See Andrea J. Sedlak, David Finkelhor, Heather Hammer & Dana J.
Schultz, National Estimates of Missing children: An Overview, National
Incidence Studies of Missing, Abducted, Runaway, and Thrownaway
Children (NISMART), Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Dept. of Justice (Oct.
2002).
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When law enforcement receives a call regarding a missing
person, the first responder can immediately call ACIM for help.
The officer provides critical information to ACIM, such as the
individual's age and description, and information regarding
when he or she was last seen and the location. ACIM uses that
information to record a message that, within minutes, is sent
via phone to thousands of locations within a radius of the last
sighting of the person. Through its computer mapping system,
ACIM also can identify ``hot spots,'' such as water or wooded
areas.
ACIM complements the Amber Alert program by providing
different services. While Amber Alert focuses on children who
are abducted, ACIM covers all ``persons'' who go missing,
including situations where criminal intent may not be at issue.
Amber Alert uses television and highway signs to broadcast
information about the abducted child and the related vehicle,
while ACIM uses a rapid response telephone alert system and
covers cases where there is no vehicle involved.
ACIM would use the authorized funding to operate and expand
the existing ACIM office in Florida, to develop Regional
Centers for on-site training and communication with local law
enforcement, to maintain and expand their computer and phone
technologies, and to assist the National Center for Missing and
Exploited Children, the AMBER Alert Coordinator, and
appropriate law enforcement agencies with training.
Hearings
The Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism,
and Homeland Security held 1 day of hearings on H.R. 5464, on
April 17, 2008. Testimony was received from Representative Ron
Klein (D-FL); Sherry Friedlander, founder and CEO, A Child is
Missing Alert and Recovery Center; and Vernon Keenan, Director,
Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Committee Consideration
On May 13, 2008, the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and
Homeland Security met in open session and ordered the bill H.R.
5464 favorably reported, without amendment, by voice vote, a
quorum being present. On May 14, 2008, the Committee met in
open session and ordered the bill H.R. 5464 favorably reported,
without amendment, by voice vote, a quorum being present.
Committee Votes
In compliance with clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, the Committee advises that there
were no recorded votes during the Committee's consideration of
H.R. 5464.
Committee Oversight Findings
In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules
of the House of Representatives, the Committee advises 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 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of
Representatives is inapplicable because this legislation does
not provide new budgetary authority or increased tax
expenditures.
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate
In compliance with clause 3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules
of the House of Representatives, the Committee sets forth, with
respect to the bill, H.R. 5464, the following estimate and
comparison prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget
Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of
1974:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, May 16, 2008.
Hon. John Conyers, Jr., 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. 5464, the ``A
Child Is Missing Alert and Recovery Center Act.''
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Mark
Grabowicz, who can be reached at 226-2860.
Sincerely,
Peter R. Orszag,
Director.
Enclosure.
cc:
Honorable Lamar S. Smith,
Ranking Member.
H.R. 5464--A Child Is Missing Alert and Recovery Center Act
SUMMARY
H.R. 5464 would authorize the appropriation of $5 million
for each of the fiscal years 2009 through 2014 for the
Department of Justice to make grants to a nonprofit agency (A
Child Is Missing Alert and Recovery Center) to assist law
enforcement agencies in locating missing persons. CBO estimates
that implementing H.R. 5464 would cost about $15 million over
the 2009-2013 period, assuming appropriation of the authorized
amounts. Enacting the bill would not affect direct spending or
revenues.
H.R. 5464 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA)
and would impose no costs on State, local, or tribal
governments.
ESTIMATED COST TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
The estimated budgetary impact of H.R. 5464 is shown in the
following table. For this estimate, CBO assumes that the
amounts authorized by H.R. 5464 will be appropriated by the
beginning of each fiscal year and that outlays will follow the
historical spending rates for those activities. The cost of
this legislation falls within budget function 750
(administration of justice).
By Fiscal Year, in Millions of Dollars
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CHANGES IN SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION
Authorization Level 5 5 5 5 5
Estimated Outlays 1 2 3 4 5
------------------------------------------------------------------------
INTERGOVERNMENTAL AND PRIVATE-SECTOR IMPACT
H.R. 5464 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in UMRA and would impose no costs on State,
local, or tribal governments.
ESTIMATE PREPARED BY:
Federal Costs: Mark Grabowicz (226-2860)
Impact on State, Local, and Tribal Governments: Melissa Merrell
(225-3220)
Impact on the Private Sector: MarDestinee C. Perez (226-2940)
ESTIMATE APPROVED BY:
Peter H. Fontaine,
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
Performance Goals and Objectives
The Committee states that pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, H.R.
5464 will authorize an annual grant to the A Child Is Missing
Alert and Recovery Center to assist law enforcement in the
rapid recovery of missing persons.
Constitutional Authority Statement
Pursuant to clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, the Committee finds the authority for
this legislation in article I, section 8 of the Constitution.
Advisory on Earmarks
In accordance with clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, H.R. 5464 does not contain any
limited tax benefits or limited tariff benefits as defined in
clause 9(e) or 9(f). The Committee is treating the bill, which
authorizes a grant in a specific amount to a specific entity,
as an earmark, as defined in clause 9(d), and is treating the
sponsor of the bill, Ron Klein, as the requester, the A Child
Is Missing Alert and Recovery Center in Fort Lauderdale, FL, as
the recipient, and the authorization, $5 million per year for
each of fiscal years 2009-2014, as the requested amount.
Section-by-Section Analysis
Sec. 1. Short Title. Section 1 sets forth the short title
of the bill as the ``A Child Is Missing Alert and Recovery
Center Act.''
Sec. 2. Directing the Attorney General to Make Annual
Grants to a Child is Missing Alert and Recovery Center to
Assist Law Enforcement Agencies in Recovering Missing Children.
Section 2 directs the Attorney General through the
Administrator of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention to annually make a grant to ACIM. The funds must be
used to:
(1) Loperate and expand the ACIM center to provide
services to Federal, State and local law enforcement by
using rapid alert telephone calls, text messaging, and
satellite mapping technology;
(2) Lmaintain and expand technologies and techniques;
(3) Lestablish and maintain regional centers to train
and distribute information to law enforcement;
(4) Lshare information with the National Center for
Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), the AMBER Alert
Coordinator, and law enforcement agencies; and
(5) Lassist NCMEC, AMBER, and law enforcement agencies
with education programs.
Section 3. Definition of Missing Child. Section 3 provides
that for purposes of this Act, the term ``missing child'' means
an individual whose whereabouts are unknown to a Federal,
State, or local law enforcement agency.
Sec. 4. Authorization of Appropriations. Section 4
authorizes $5 million to be appropriated to the Attorney
General for grants under section 2 for each of fiscal years
2009 through 2014.