Sec. 8. Office of Investigative Forensic Sciences Realignment
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Congress finds the following: Forensic science is the application of scientific or technical practices to the recognition, collection, analysis, and interpretation of evidence to establish conclusions or opinions, facts, and findings that can be used for criminal and civil law or regulatory issues. In particular, forensic science plays a pivotal role in exonerating suspects and wrongfully convicted individuals, implicating and convicting those who commit crimes, identifying missing person, bringing closure and justice to victims of crime and their families, providing actionable intelligence to law enforcement agencies to solve and prevent crime enabling transparent intelligence-led and data-driven policing, and by providing fact-based evidence for judges and juries which would otherwise not be available.
In 2009, the National Academy of Sciences, National Research Council published a report entitled Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States: A Path Forward, that put forward an agenda for advancement in the forensic science community and its associated disciplines. Within the Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs there was established the National Institute of Justice. The Office of Investigative Forensic Sciences was created as a component of National Institute of Justice to be the lead department in the Department of Justice for forensic science research and development as well as for the administration of programs that facilitate training, improve laboratory efficiency and reduce backlogs, all in an effort to strengthen forensic science in the United States.
The forensic sciences within Federal Government departments and agencies are fragmented, with many Federal agencies having some level of forensic science capabilities. There is a need for a central entity to provide robust leadership on forensic science issues within the Department of Justice. The Office of Investigative Forensic Sciences, currently as a component of the National Institute of Justice, does not have the same standing within the Office of Justice Programs or the Department of Justice as other equally important bureaus and offices.
The time is right to realign the Office of Investigative Forensic Sciences to the same program office level as other Office of Justice Programs bureaus and offices with a presidentially appointed director. Part A of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 ( 34 U.S.C. 10101 et seq. ) is amended by adding at the end the following: There is established, within the Office of Justice Programs, a program Office of Investigative Forensic Sciences (referred to in this section as the OIFS ), to be headed by a Director appointed by the President, who shall report directly to the Office of Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice Programs.
There shall be transferred to the OIFS the personnel, including contractors and interns, assets, liabilities, contracts, property, records, and unexpended balance of appropriations, authorizations, allocations, and other funds employed, held, used, arising from, available or to be made available, and the functions, powers, and duties of the following: Oversight of existing cooperative agreements relating to forensic science administered by the Department of Justice and determining the purposes and objectives of discretionary grants relating to forensic science administered by the Department of Justice, other than a grant awarded under the Kirk Bloodsworth Post-Conviction DNA Testing Grant Program established under section 412 of the Justice for All Act of 2004 ( 42 U.S.C. 40727 ).
The Office of Investigative and Forensic Sciences within the National Institute of Justice. The forensic components of the Drugs and Crime program in the Office of Research and Evaluation within the National Institute of Justice. The digital evidence component of the Office of Science and Technology within the National Institute of Justice. The OIFS shall have access to and authority to search Federal law enforcement databases and shall have assigned to it an Originating Agency Identification
(ORI)Number to facilitate the sharing of information between the Office and law enforcement agencies. The mission of the OIFS is to strengthen and promote the use and application of forensic science within the judicial system by supporting forensic science service providers, as they continually improve the evidence-based, valid, and reliable practice of forensic science with a focus on quality assurance advancement research and development conducted through— a fair, competitive, transparent merit review process; testing and evaluation; technology; information exchange; training; capacity building for the forensic infrastructure; the development of systems to implement research into practice; and the development of systems to address quality management and other improvements to advance justice. The OIFS shall include— a Director who shall have, at a minimum, a Master of Science degree; and a Deputy Director who shall have, at a minimum, a Bachelor of Science degree. The OIFS may also include employees of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the National Science Foundation, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention detailed to the Office of Forensic Science on a reimbursable basis. If no detailed positions are filled under subsection (e)(2), the Directors of the National Science Foundation, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the Centers for Disease Control, shall each, in consultation with the OIFS, designate a liaison at each respective agency to facilitate communication between the OIFS and the agencies. The OIFS shall— have the authorities relating to forensic science described in section 202(c); in coordination with the National Institute of Justice, participate in the development of any Federal forensic science research agenda as the lead representatives on behalf of the Department of Justice, along with other departments and agencies of the Federal Government; assume and execute the responsibilities of the offices, programs, and initiatives transferred under subsection (b), including determining the purposes and objectives of discretionary grants, oversight of cooperative agreements; assist and support the Forensic Laboratory Needs Technology Working Group, Medical Legal Death Investigation Working Group, and Forensic Science Research and Development Technology Working Group in carrying out the respective functions of the working groups under this title and such other related functions as are necessary to perform the functions; and evaluate the recommendations of the Forensic Laboratory Needs Technology Working Group, Medical Legal Death Investigation Working Group, and Forensic Science Research and Development Technology Working Group and take actions consistent with the mission of the OIFS. . The transfer required under section 820 of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, as added by subsection (b), shall be completed on the date that is 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act.
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- 42 USC 40727
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