Resources for Victims of Gun Violence Act of 2019

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2585 To establish a Federal Advisory Council to Support Victims of Gun Violence. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MAY 8, 2019 Mr. EVANS (for himself, Ms. CASTOR of Florida, Mr. DEUTCH, Mr. HAS- TINGS, Ms. NORTON, Mr. MORELLE, Mr. PAYNE, Ms. DEAN, Ms. HOULAHAN, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Mr. MICHAEL F. DOYLE of Penn- sylvania, Ms. SCANLON, Ms. MENG, Mr. VEASEY, and Mr. ESPAILLAT) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary A BILL To establish a Federal Advisory Council to Support Victims of Gun Violence. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Resources for Victims 4 of Gun Violence Act of 2019’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds the following: 7 (1) In the United States, approximately 100 in- 8 dividuals are killed with guns every day, and more 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:11 May 14, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 \\ALPHA3\E\BILLS\H2585.IH H2585 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HR 2585 IH than 36,000 individuals die from gun violence every 1 year. Approximately 100,000 more individuals sur- 2 vive gun-related injuries every year. 3 (2) The approximately 100,000 individuals who 4 survive gun-related injuries every year in the United 5 States face a life-long process of physical and emo- 6 tional healing, in addition to the heavy economic 7 costs faced by those survivors, their families and 8 communities, and society as a whole. According to a 9 recent national poll, 4 percent of adults alive in the 10 United States as of the date of the poll, or an esti- 11 mated 10,000,000 people, have been shot and in- 12 jured in their lifetimes. 13 (3) Nearly two-thirds of gun-related deaths in 14 the United States are suicides. Suicide attempts in- 15 volving firearms are uniquely lethal: while less than 16 5 percent of suicide attempts not involving a firearm 17 result in death, approximately 85 percent of suicide 18 attempts involving a firearm end in death. According 19 to a 2018 report by the Department of Veterans Af- 20 fairs, veterans are about 1.5 times as likely as civil- 21 ians to die by suicide, and 69.4 percent of veteran 22 suicides in 2016 resulted from a firearm injury. 23 (4) More than one-third of gun-related deaths 24 in the United States are homicides, and in 2010, the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:11 May 14, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 \\ALPHA3\E\BILLS\H2585.IH H2585 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HR 2585 IH gun homicide rate in the United States was 25.2 1 times higher than in 22 other high-income countries. 2 (5) Gun homicides in the United States occur 3 disproportionately in cities, particularly in racially 4 segregated neighborhoods with high rates of poverty. 5 Gun homicide disproportionately affects communities 6 of color, and Black Americans represent the major- 7 ity of gun homicide victims. 8 (6) More than 325 mass shootings took place in 9 the United States in 2018, and more than 1,900 10 mass shootings have taken place since the shooting 11 at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, 12 Connecticut, in 2012. Fifty-four percent of mass 13 shootings are related to domestic or family violence. 14 (7) Firearms are the second leading cause of 15 death for children and teenagers and the first lead- 16 ing cause of death for Black children and teenagers 17 in the United States. Every year, nearly 3,000 chil- 18 dren and teenagers are shot and killed, and approxi- 19 mately 15,600 are shot and injured. 20 (8) During an average year in the United 21 States, more than 600 women are shot to death by 22 an intimate partner, and many more women are shot 23 and injured by an intimate partner. Nearly 24 1,000,000 women in the United States who are alive 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:11 May 14, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 \\ALPHA3\E\BILLS\H2585.IH H2585 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HR 2585 IH as of the date of enactment of this Act have been 1 shot or shot at by an intimate partner, and approxi- 2 mately 4,500,000 women alive as of that date have 3 been threatened with a gun by an intimate partner. 4 (9) More than 10,300 violent hate crimes com- 5 mitted in the United States in an average year in- 6 volve a gun, or more than 28 each day. The vast 7 majority of hate crimes are directed against commu- 8 nities of color, religious minorities, and lesbian, gay, 9 bisexual, transgender, and queer (commonly known 10 as ‘‘LGBTQ’’) people. 11 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 12 In this Act: 13 (1) ADVISORY COUNCIL.—The term ‘‘Advisory 14 Council’’ means the Advisory Council to Support 15 Victims of Gun Violence established under section 4. 16 (2) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES.—The term 17 ‘‘appropriate committees’’ means the following: 18 (A) The Committee on Health, Education, 19 Labor, and Pensions of the Senate. 20 (B) The Committee on the Judiciary of the 21 Senate. 22 (C) The Committee on Education and 23 Labor of the House of Representatives. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:11 May 14, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 \\ALPHA3\E\BILLS\H2585.IH H2585 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •HR 2585 IH (D) The Committee on Energy and Com- 1 merce of the House of Representatives. 2 (E) The Committee on the Judiciary of the 3 House of Representatives. 4 (F) Any other relevant committee of the 5 Senate or of the House of Representatives with 6 jurisdiction over matters affecting victims of 7 gun violence. 8 (3) GUN VIOLENCE.—The term ‘‘gun violence’’ 9 means— 10 (A) suicide involving firearms; 11 (B) homicide involving firearms; 12 (C) domestic violence involving firearms; 13 (D) hate crimes involving firearms; 14 (E) youth violence involving firearms; 15 (F) mass shootings; 16 (G) unintentional shootings; 17 (H) nonfatal shootings; and 18 (I) threats or exposure to violent acts in- 19 volving firearms. 20 (4) VICTIM OF GUN VIOLENCE.—The term ‘‘vic- 21 tim of gun violence’’ means— 22 (A) an individual who has been wounded 23 as a result of gun violence; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:11 May 14, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 \\ALPHA3\E\BILLS\H2585.IH H2585 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •HR 2585 IH (B) an individual who has been threatened 1 with an act of gun violence; 2 (C) an individual who has witnessed an act 3 of gun violence; and 4 (D) a relative, classmate, coworker, or 5 other associate of— 6 (i) an individual who has been killed 7 as a result of gun violence; or 8 (ii) an individual described in sub- 9 paragraph (A) or (B). 10 (5) VICTIM ASSISTANCE PROFESSIONAL.—The 11 term ‘‘victim assistance professional’’ means a pro- 12 fessional who assists victims of gun violence, includ- 13 ing— 14 (A) a medical professional, including an 15 emergency medical professional; 16 (B) a social worker; 17 (C) a provider of long-term services or 18 care; and 19 (D) a victim advocate. 20 SEC. 4. ADVISORY COUNCIL TO SUPPORT VICTIMS OF GUN 21 VIOLENCE. 22 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established an Advi- 23 sory Council to Support Victims of Gun Violence. 24 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:11 May 14, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 \\ALPHA3\E\BILLS\H2585.IH H2585 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •HR 2585 IH (1) IN GENERAL.—The Advisory Council shall 1 be composed of the following members or their des- 2 ignees: 3 (A) The Secretary of Health and Human 4 Services. 5 (B) The Attorney General. 6 (C) The Secretary of Education. 7 (D) The Secretary of Housing and Urban 8 Development. 9 (E) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs. 10 (F) The Commissioner of the Social Secu- 11 rity Administration. 12 (G) The Assistant Secretary for Mental 13 Health and Substance Use. 14 (H) The Director of the Centers for Dis- 15 ease Control and Prevention. 16 (I) The Director of the National Institutes 17 of Health. 18 (J) The Administrator of the Administra- 19 tion for Community Living. 20 (K) The Director of the Office on Violence 21 Against Women. 22 (L) The Director of the Office for Victims 23 of Crime. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:11 May 14, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 \\ALPHA3\E\BILLS\H2585.IH H2585 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •HR 2585 IH (M) The chairman of the Board of the 1 Legal Services Corporation. 2 (N) As appropriate, the head of any other 3 Federal department or agency identified by the 4 Secretary of Health and Human Services as 5 having responsibilities, or administering pro- 6 grams, relating to issues affecting victims of 7 gun violence. 8 (2) ADDITIONAL MEMBERS.—In addition to the 9 members described in paragraph (1), the Advisory 10 Council shall be composed of the following: 11 (A) Not fewer than 2 and not more than 12 5 victims of gun violence, who shall be ap- 13 pointed by the Secretary of Health and Human 14 Services. 15 (B) Not fewer than 2 and not more than 16 5 victim assistance professionals, who shall be 17 appointed by the Secretary of Health and 18 Human Services. 19 (3) LEAD AGENCY.—The Department of Health 20 and Human Services shall be the lead agency for the 21 Advisory Council. 22 (c) DUTIES.— 23 (1) ASSESSMENT.—The Advisory Council 24 shall— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:11 May 14, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 \\ALPHA3\E\BILLS\H2585.IH H2585 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 •HR 2585 IH (A) survey victims of gun violence and vic- 1 tim assistance professionals about their needs 2 in order to inform the content of information 3 disseminated under paragraph (2) and the re- 4 port published under paragraph (3); 5 (B) conduct a literature review and assess 6 past or ongoing programs designed to assist vic- 7 tims of gun violence or individuals with similar 8 needs to determine— 9 (i) the effectiveness of the programs; 10 and 11 (ii) best and promising practices for 12 assisting victims of gun violence; and 13 (C) assess the administration of compensa- 14 tion funds established after mass shootings to 15 determine best and promising practices to di- 16 rect victims of gun violence to sources of fund- 17 ing. 18 (2) INFORMATION.— 19 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Advisory Council 20 shall identify, promote, coordinate, and dissemi- 21 nate to the public information, resources, and 22 best and promising practices available to help 23 victims of gun violence— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:11 May 14, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 \\ALPHA3\E\BILLS\H2585.IH H2585 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 •HR 2585 IH (i) meet their medical, financial, edu- 1 cational, workplace, housing, transpor- 2 tation, assistive technology, and accessi- 3 bility needs; 4 (ii) maintain their mental health and 5 emotional well-being; 6 (iii) seek legal redress for their inju- 7 ries and protection against any ongoing 8 threats to their safety; and 9 (iv) access government programs, 10 services, and benefits for which they may 11 be eligible or to which they may be enti- 12 tled. 13 (B) CONTACT INFORMATION.—The Advi- 14 sory Council shall include in the information 15 disseminated under subparagraph (A) the 16 websites and telephone contact information for 17 helplines of relevant Federal agencies, State 18 agencies, and nonprofit organizations. 19 (C) AVAILABILITY.—The Advisory Council 20 shall make the information described in sub- 21 paragraphs (A) and (B) available— 22 (i) online through a public website; 23 and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:11 May 14, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 \\ALPHA3\E\BILLS\H2585.IH H2585 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 •HR 2585 IH (ii) by submitting a hard copy and 1 making available additional hard copies 2 to— 3 (I) each Member of Congress; 4 (II) each field office of the Social 5 Security Administration; 6 (III) each State agency that is 7 responsible for administering health 8 and human services, for dissemination 9 to medical facilities; 10 (IV) each State agency that is re- 11 sponsible for administering education 12 programs, for dissemination to 13 schools; and 14 (V) the office of each State attor- 15 ney general, for dissemination to local 16 prosecutor’s offices. 17 (3) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after 18 the date of enactment of this Act, the Advisory 19 Council shall— 20 (A) prepare a report that— 21 (i) includes the best and promising 22 practices, resources, and other useful infor- 23 mation for victims of gun violence identi- 24 fied under paragraph (2); 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:11 May 14, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 \\ALPHA3\E\BILLS\H2585.IH H2585 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 •HR 2585 IH (ii) identifies any gaps in items de- 1 scribed in clause (i); and 2 (iii) if applicable, identifies any addi- 3 tional Federal or State legislative authority 4 necessary to implement the activities de- 5 scribed in clause (i) or address the gaps 6 described in clause (ii); 7 (B) submit the report prepared under sub- 8 paragraph (A) to— 9 (i) the appropriate committees; 10 (ii) each State agency that is respon- 11 sible for administering health and human 12 services; 13 (iii) each State agency that is respon- 14 sible for administering education pro- 15 grams; and 16 (iv) the office of each State attorney 17 general; and 18 (C) make the report prepared under sub- 19 paragraph (A) available to the public online in 20 an accessible format. 21 (4) FOLLOW-UP REPORT.—Not later than 2 22 years after the date on which the Advisory Council 23 prepares the report under paragraph (3), the Advi- 24 sory Council shall— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:11 May 14, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 \\ALPHA3\E\BILLS\H2585.IH H2585 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 13 •HR 2585 IH (A) submit to the entities described in sub- 1 paragraph (B) of that paragraph a follow-up re- 2 port that includes the information identified in 3 subparagraph (A) of that paragraph; and 4 (B) make the follow-up report described in 5 subparagraph (A) available to the public online 6 in an accessible format. 7 (5) PUBLIC INPUT.— 8 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Advisory Council 9 shall establish a process to collect public input 10 to inform the development of, and provide up- 11 dates to, the best and promising practices, re- 12 sources, and other information described in 13 paragraph (2), including by conducting out- 14 reach to entities and individuals described in 15 subparagraph (B) of this paragraph that— 16 (i) have a range of experience with the 17 types of gun violence described in section 18 3(3); and 19 (ii) include representation from com- 20 munities disproportionately affected by gun 21 violence. 22 (B) ENT [Text truncated for display. 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