Forensic Science Research and Standards Act of 2020

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 8239 To facilitate the development and distribution of forensic science standards by establishing in the National Institute of Standards and Technology the Organization of Scientific Area Committees for Forensic Science, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES SEPTEMBER 14, 2020 Ms. JOHNSON of Texas (for herself and Mr. LUCAS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Science, Space, and Tech- nology, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consider- ation of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To facilitate the development and distribution of forensic science standards by establishing in the National Insti- tute of Standards and Technology the Organization of Scientific Area Committees for Forensic Science, and for other purposes. 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 ‘‘Forensic Science Re- 4 search and Standards Act of 2020’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 07:30 Sep 15, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8239.IH H8239 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 8239 IH SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 1 Congress makes the following findings: 2 (1) In 2009, the National Research Council 3 published a report entitled ‘‘Strengthening Forensic 4 Science in the United States: A Path Forward’’, 5 which provided a roadmap for the future of forensics 6 research. 7 (2) The Federal Government, forensic science 8 community, the research community, and the legal 9 community have taken steps to move the field of fo- 10 rensic science forward since the release of this re- 11 port. 12 (3) There are still scientific advances to be 13 made to bring further rigor to the forensic analyses 14 used in courts across the United States. 15 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 16 In this Act: 17 (1) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES OF CON- 18 GRESS.—The term ‘‘appropriate committees of Con- 19 gress’’ means— 20 (A) the Committee on Commerce, Science, 21 and Transportation of the Senate; and 22 (B) the Committee on Science, Space, and 23 Technology of the House of Representatives. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 07:30 Sep 15, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8239.IH H8239 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 8239 IH (2) BOARD.—The term ‘‘Board’’ means the Fo- 1 rensic Science Standards Board established under 2 section 5(b)(1). 3 (3) FORENSIC SCIENCE.—The term ‘‘forensic 4 science’’ refers to the application of scientific or 5 technical practices to the recognition, collection, 6 analysis, and interpretation of evidence to establish 7 opinions, facts, and findings that can be used for 8 criminal and civil law or regulatory purposes. 9 (4) FORENSIC SCIENCE COMMUNITY.—The 10 term ‘‘forensic science community’’ means forensic 11 science practitioners, agencies, and service providers, 12 forensic medicolegal death investigators, medical ex- 13 aminers or coroners, agencies, and service providers, 14 various scientists, and forensic organizational mem- 15 bers with applied scientific and technical knowledge 16 of and proximity to the area of forensic science. 17 (5) FORENSIC SCIENCE PRACTITIONER.—The 18 term ‘‘forensic science practitioner’’ means an indi- 19 vidual who— 20 (A) applies scientific or technical practices 21 to the recognition, collection, analysis, or inter- 22 pretation of evidence for criminal and civil law 23 or regulatory purposes; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 07:30 Sep 15, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8239.IH H8239 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 8239 IH (B) issues test results, provides reports, or 1 provides interpretations, conclusions, or opin- 2 ions through testimony with respect to such evi- 3 dence. 4 (6) ORGANIZATION.—The term ‘‘Organization’’ 5 means the Organization of Scientific Area Commit- 6 tees for Forensic Science established under section 7 5(a)(1). 8 (7) NONGOVERNMENTAL STANDARDS DEVELOP- 9 MENT ORGANIZATIONS.—The term ‘‘nongovern- 10 mental standards development organization’’ means 11 a standards developing organization as defined in 12 section 2(e) of Office of Management and Budget 13 Circular A–119 (relating to Federal participation in 14 the development and use of voluntary consensus 15 standards in conformity assessment activities), or 16 any successor document. 17 (8) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 18 the Secretary of Commerce. 19 SEC. 4. NATIONAL FORENSIC SCIENCE RESEARCH COORDI- 20 NATION AND STRATEGY. 21 (a) INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP ON FORENSIC 22 SCIENCE.— 23 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Director of the Of- 24 fice of Science and Technology Policy shall establish 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 07:30 Sep 15, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8239.IH H8239 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 8239 IH an interagency working group (referred to in this 1 section as the ‘‘Working Group’’) for the purpose of 2 coordinating Federal investments relating to, and 3 developing a research strategy for, forensic science. 4 (2) MEMBERSHIP.— 5 (A) COMPOSITION.—The Working Group 6 shall be composed of members as follows: 7 (i) One or more members selected by 8 the Director of the National Science Foun- 9 dation as the Director of the National 10 Science Foundation considers appropriate. 11 (ii) One or more members selected by 12 the Director of the National Institute of 13 Standards and Technology as the Director 14 of the National Institute of Standards and 15 Technology considers appropriate. 16 (iii) One or more members selected by 17 the Attorney General as the Attorney Gen- 18 eral considers appropriate, which shall in- 19 clude a representative with expertise in 20 conducting scientific research. 21 (iv) One or more members selected by 22 the Director of the Office of Science and 23 Technology Policy as the Director con- 24 siders appropriate. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 07:30 Sep 15, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8239.IH H8239 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 8239 IH (v) Such additional members from 1 such other Federal agencies responsible for 2 conducting forensic science research or 3 that have expertise in conducting and 4 funding scientific research as the Director 5 of the Office of Science and Technology 6 Policy considers appropriate. 7 (B) REQUIREMENT.—Each member of the 8 Working Group appointed under subparagraph 9 (A) shall be an employee of the Federal Govern- 10 ment. 11 (3) CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIRPERSON.— 12 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Working Group 13 shall select a Chairperson and Vice Chairperson 14 from among the members of the Working 15 Group. 16 (B) TERM.—The terms of the Chairperson 17 and the Vice Chairperson of the Working Group 18 shall each be for periods of 2 years. 19 (C) ROTATING BASIS.—After the initial 20 terms of the Chairperson and Vice Chairperson 21 of the Working Group, such positions shall be 22 filled on a rotating basis from the members of 23 the Working group for successive 2-year terms. 24 (4) RESEARCH STRATEGY.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 07:30 Sep 15, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8239.IH H8239 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 8239 IH (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year 1 after the date of the enactment of this Act and 2 not less frequently than once every 2 years 3 thereafter until the termination of the Working 4 Group, the Working Group shall publish a re- 5 search strategy for the Federal Government on 6 forensic science. 7 (B) CONTENTS.—The strategy required by 8 subparagraph (A) shall include the following: 9 (i) Specification of priority areas, in- 10 cluding specific milestones and objectives 11 as appropriate, for the short-term and 12 long-term research necessary— 13 (I) to enhance the validity and 14 reliability of forensic science dis- 15 ciplines, including emerging dis- 16 ciplines; and 17 (II) to provide the scientific basis 18 for the development and updating of 19 forensic science standards pursuant to 20 section 5. 21 (ii) A description of the role of each 22 relevant Federal agency in supporting the 23 specific areas of research identified under 24 clause (i). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 07:30 Sep 15, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8239.IH H8239 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 8239 IH (iii) A description of common metrics 1 and other evaluation criteria that will be 2 used to assess progress toward achieving 3 the priorities, milestones, and objectives 4 identified under clause (i), consistent with 5 the mission of each Federal agency speci- 6 fied under clause (ii). 7 (iv) Recommendations, if any, for 8 policies to support the implementation of 9 the research strategy, including opportuni- 10 ties for new or expanded interagency col- 11 laborations. 12 (v) A description of the options, if 13 any, for a Federal Government role in 14 helping to ensure the viability of a non- 15 governmental standards development orga- 16 nization for the promulgation of forensic 17 science standards developed under section 18 5. 19 (vi) A description of changes or 20 progress since the publication of the pre- 21 vious research strategy. 22 (5) CONSULTATION REQUIRED.—In developing 23 the research strategy under paragraph (4), the 24 Working Group shall consult with stakeholders, in- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 07:30 Sep 15, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8239.IH H8239 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 8239 IH cluding forensic science practitioners, forensic 1 science working groups within the Office of Justice 2 Programs of the Department of Justice, the Organi- 3 zation of Scientific Area Committees (OSAC) for 4 Forensic Science of the National Institute of Stand- 5 ards and Technology, statisticians, criminal justice 6 stakeholders, and research scientists to ensure that 7 the strategy takes into account practical applications 8 and implementation of the research. 9 (6) TERMINATION.—The Working Group estab- 10 lished under paragraph (1) shall terminate on the 11 date that is 10 years after the date on which such 12 working group is established. 13 (b) IMPLEMENTATION.—The Director of the National 14 Science Foundation, the Director of the National Institute 15 of Standards and Technology, and the Attorney General, 16 shall continue to advance the foundation and practice of 17 forensic science in the United States by— 18 (1) conducting or supporting research in foren- 19 sic science, consistent with the Federal research 20 strategy developed under subsection (a)(3); 21 (2) building relationships between members of 22 the forensic science community and researchers at 23 universities; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 07:30 Sep 15, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8239.IH H8239 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 8239 IH (3) encouraging and promoting the education 1 and training of a diverse group of people to be lead- 2 ers in the interdisciplinary field of forensic science; 3 and 4 (4) broadly disseminating the results of the re- 5 search conducted or supported under paragraph (1). 6 SEC. 5. FACILITATING DEVELOPMENT AND DISTRIBUTION 7 OF FORENSIC SCIENCE STANDARDS. 8 (a) ORGANIZATION OF SCIENTIFIC AREA COMMIT- 9 TEES FOR FORENSIC SCIENCE.— 10 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary, acting 11 through the Director of the National Institute of 12 Standards and Technology (referred to in this sec- 13 tion as the ‘‘Director’’), shall establish within the 14 National Institute of Standards and Technology an 15 organization to facilitate the development of forensic 16 science standards. 17 (2) DESIGNATION.—The organization estab- 18 lished under paragraph (1) shall be known as the 19 ‘‘Organization of Scientific Area Committees for Fo- 20 rensic Science’’. 21 (3) COMPOSITION.—The Organization shall be 22 composed of the following: 23 (A) The Forensic Science and Standards 24 Board established under subsection (b). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 07:30 Sep 15, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8239.IH H8239 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 8239 IH (B) Each scientific area committee estab- 1 lished under subsection (c). 2 (4) DUTIES OF THE ORGANIZATION.—The du- 3 ties of the Organization are as follows: 4 (A) Facilitate the development and dis- 5 tribution of scientifically sound, consensus- 6 based documentary standards and guidelines for 7 forensic science, including through formal col- 8 laboration with nongovernmental standards de- 9 velopment organizations. 10 (B) Establish a registry of scientifically 11 sound forensic science standards and guidelines 12 approved and endorsed by the Organization. 13 (C) Establish a process for regularly re- 14 evaluating existing standards and guidelines 15 published for placement on the registry estab- 16 lished under subparagraph (B). 17 (D) Promote the adoption by the forensic 18 science community of the standards and guide- 19 lines described in subparagraph (A) and in- 20 cluded in the registry established under sub- 21 paragraph (B). 22 (b) FORENSIC SCIENCE STANDARDS BOARD.— 23 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary, acting 24 through the Director, shall establish within the Or- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 07:30 Sep 15, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8239.IH H8239 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 8239 IH ganization a board to oversee the operations of the 1 Organization and its committees. 2 (2) DESIGNATION.—The board established 3 under paragraph (1) shall be known as the ‘‘Foren- 4 sic Science Standards Board’’. 5 (3) COMPOSITION.—The Board shall be com- 6 posed of the following: 7 (A) Members selected by the Secretary to 8 serve on the Board from each of the following: 9 (i) Members of the forensic science 10 community. 11 (ii) Scientists and engineers with rel- 12 evant expertise at institutions of higher 13 education and other nonprofit research or- 14 ganizations. 15 (iii) Statisticians. 16 (iv) A representative of each of the 17 task groups established under subsection 18 (d), as the Secretary considers appropriate. 19 (v) Such other communities or sectors 20 as the Secretary considers appropriate. 21 (B) The chairpersons of the scientific area 22 committees established under subsection (c). 23 (4) DUTIES.—The duties of the Board are as 24 follows: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 07:30 Sep 15, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8239.IH H8239 kjohnson on DSK7 [Text truncated for display. 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