EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
Underlining indicates amendments to bill.
Strike out indicates matter stricken from the bill by amendment or deleted from the law by
amendment.
*hb0675*
HOUSE BILL 675
J1, E4 5lr2435
CF SB 669
By: Delegates Bartlett, D. Jones, and Shetty Shetty, Crutchfield, Cardin,
Tomlinson, Pasteur, Simmons, Phillips, Stinnett, Arikan, Simpson,
Conaway, Kaufman, and Williams
Introduced and read first time: January 24, 2025
Assigned to: Judiciary
Committee Report: Favorable with amendments
House action: Adopted
Read second time: February 27, 2025
CHAPTER ______
AN ACT concerning 1
Public Safety – Rape Kit Testing – Tracking Program and Grant Fund – 2
Alterations 3
FOR the purpose of altering the date by which a certain report under a certain sexual 4
assault evidence collection kit tracking program is required to be submitted; altering 5
the purpose and use of the Rape Kit Testing Grant Fund; expanding the duties of the 6
Executive Director of the Governor’s Office of Crime Prevention and Policy relating 7
to the Fund; prohibiting the use of the Fund for the Sexual Assault Evidence Kit 8
Tracking System a certain sexual assault evidence collection kit tracking program; 9
and generally relating to the Rape Kit Testing Grant Fund rape kit testing. 10
BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 11
Article – Criminal Procedure 12
Section 11–926.1(b)(2) 13
Annotated Code of Maryland 14
(2018 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 15
BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 16
Article – Public Safety 17
Section 4–401 18
Annotated Code of Maryland 19
(2022 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 20
2 HOUSE BILL 675
SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 1
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 2
Article – Criminal Procedure 3
11–926.1. 4
(b) (2) A law enforcement agency or a person, including a health care provider, 5
forensic laboratory, or State’s Attorney, that had control or possession of a sexual assault 6
evidence collection kit before October 1, 2023, and has control or possession of the sexual 7
assault evidence collection kit on or after October 1, 2023, shall report location, status, and 8
chain of custody information to the reporting program established under this section on or 9
before [December 31, 2025] MARCH 31, 2026. 10
Article – Public Safety 11
4–401. 12
(a) (1) In this section the following words have the meanings indicated. 13
(2) “Forensic laboratory” means a facility, an entity, or a site that offers or 14
performs forensic analysis and is owned or operated by the State, a county or municipal 15
corporation in the State, or another governmental entity. 16
(3) “Fund” means the Rape Kit Testing Grant Fund. 17
(4) “Law enforcement agency” means the Department of State Police or a 18
police department of a county or municipal corporation in the State. 19
(b) There is a Rape Kit Testing Grant Fund. 20
(c) The purpose of the Fund is to PROVIDE FUNDING TO : 21
(1) provide law enforcement agencies with funding to pay for testing of 22
sexual assault evidence collection kits by forensic laboratories, INCLUDING EQUIPMENT, 23
SUPPLIES, PERSONNEL, AND OUTSOURCING ; 24
(2) PROVIDE THE OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL WITH 25
FUNDING TO ASSIST LAW ENFORC EMENT AGENCY INVESTI GATIONS OF CRIMES 26
INVOLVING SEXUAL ASS AULT EVIDENCE COLLEC TION KITS THAT WERE COLLECTED 27
BEFORE OCTOBER 1, 2020, AND HAVE NOT BEEN TE STED; 28
(3) PROVIDE THE FEDERALLY RECOGN IZED STATE SEXUAL ASSAULT 29
COALITION WITH FUNDING FOR A STATEWIDE SEXU AL ASSAULT VICTIM 30
NOTIFICATION HOTLINE AND RELATED PERSONNE L TO PROVIDE VICTIMS OF 31
SEXUAL ASSAULT WITH : 32 HOUSE BILL 675 3
(I) ADVOCACY; 1
(II) SUPPORT; 2
(III) INFORMATION ABOUT UN TESTED RAPE KITS ; 3
(IV) INFORMATION ABOUT NA VIGATING THE SEXUAL ASSAULT 4
EVIDENCE KIT TRACKIN G SYSTEM ESTABLISHED UNDER § 11–926.1 OF THE 5
CRIMINAL PROCEDURE ARTICLE; AND 6
(V) VICTIMS’ RIGHTS INFORMA TION; AND 7
(4) PROVIDE SUPPORT TO PEER–TO–PEER TELEHEALTH PROG RAMS 8
AS DEFINED IN § 11–1007 OF THE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE ARTICLE. 9
(d) The Executive Director of the Governor’s Office of Crime Prevention and 10
Policy shall: 11
(1) administer the Fund; 12
(2) establish and publish procedures for the distribution of funding to law 13
enforcement agencies; 14
(3) ensure each jurisdiction in the State that has a forensic laboratory is 15
able to access the Fund; 16
(4) consider the number of sexual assault incidents that were investigated 17
by a law enforcement agency in the prior fiscal year when distributing funding; [and] 18
(5) (I) ENSURE THAT FUNDS AR E DISTRIBUTED IN ACC ORDANCE 19
WITH SUBSECTION (C)(2) AND (3) OF THIS SECTION EACH FISCAL Y EAR UNTIL ALL 20
SEXUAL ASSAULT EVIDE NCE COLLECTION KITS COLLECTED BEFORE OCTOBER 1, 21
2020, HAVE BEEN TESTED , OR IT HAS BEEN DETER MINED THAT TESTING I S NOT 22
REQUIRED UNDER § 11–926 OF THE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE ARTICLE; AND 23
(II) UNLESS THE A PPROPRIATION TO THE FUND IS REDUCED OR 24
FUNDING HAS BEEN AWA RDED FROM THE NATIONAL SEXUAL ASSAULT KIT 25
INITIATIVE FOR THE SA ME PURPOSE , ENSURE THAT FUNDS DI STRIBUTED UNDER 26
THIS PARAGRAPH ARE N OT LESS THAN THE AMO UNT DISTRIBUTED FOR THE PRIOR 27
FISCAL YEAR; AND 28
(6) submit a report with information on the distribution of funding to the 29
General Assembly, in accordance with § 2–1257 of the State Government Article, before 30
September 1 each year. 31 4 HOUSE BILL 675
(e) (1) The Fund is a special, nonlapsing fund that is not subject to § 7–302 of 1
the State Finance and Procurement Article. 2
(2) The State Treasurer shall hold the Fund separately, and the 3
Comptroller shall account for the Fund. 4
(f) The Fund consists of: 5
(1) money appropriated in the State budget to the Fund; 6
(2) any interest earnings of the Fund; and 7
(3) any other money from any other source accepted for the benefit of the 8
Fund. 9
(g) (1) The Fund may be used only for [equipment, supplies, personnel, and 10
outsourcing necessary for the testing of sexual assault evidence collection kits in forensic 11
laboratories] THE PURPOSES STATED IN SUBSECTION (C) OF THIS SECTION . 12
(2) Subject to paragraph (1) of this subsection, the Fund may be used for 13
equipment, supplies, personnel, and outsourcing necessary for the testing of sexual assault 14
evidence collection kits collected before or after the establishment of the Fund. 15
(3) THE FUND MAY NOT BE USED TO SUPPORT THE SEXUA L ASSAULT 16
EVIDENCE COLLECTION KIT TRACKING SYSTEM PROGRAM ESTABLISHED UNDER § 17
11–926.1 OF THE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE ARTICLE. 18
(h) (1) The State Treasurer shall invest the money of the Fund in the same 19
manner as other State money may be invested. 20
(2) Any interest earnings of the Fund, including interest earnings under 21
subsection (f) of this section, shall be credited to the Fund. 22
(i) (1) Expenditures from the Fund may be made only in accordance with the 23
State budget. 24
(2) THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE GOVERNOR’S OFFICE OF 25
CRIME PREVENTION AND POLICY MAY MAKE A GRANT FROM THE FUND FOR A 26
PERIOD OF UP TO 36 MONTHS. 27
(j) Money expended from the Fund for testing of sexual assault evidence 28
collection kits is supplemental to and is not intended to take the place of funding that 29
otherwise would be appropriated for [testing of sexual assault evidence collection kits] THE 30
PURPOSES OF THE FUND AS STATED IN SUBSECTION (C) OF THIS SECTION . 31
HOUSE BILL 675 5
SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect 1
October 1, 2025. 2
Approved:
________________________________________________________________________________
Governor.
________________________________________________________________________________
Speaker of the House of Delegates.
________________________________________________________________________________
President of the Senate.