H.B. 945 - Statewide Sexual Assault Evidence Collection Kit Tracking System

• Establishes the Statewide Sexual Assault Evidence Collection Kit Tracking System (SAECK) within the State Crime Laboratory, effective October 1, 2018, to track all sexual assault evidence collection kits purchased or distributed by the state.

• Requires all medical providers, law enforcement agencies, forensic laboratories, and other entities with custody of sexual assault evidence collection kits to participate in the system and comply with established protocols and rules.

• Allows sexual assault victims to track the location of their forensic medical examination kit and determine whether forensic testing has been completed.

• Mandates tracking and entry of previously untested sexual assault evidence collection kits identified in the 2017 statewide inventory into the system, with law enforcement taking reasonable measures to provide tracking information to affected victims.

• Requires the Director of the State Crime Laboratory to submit annual reports to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Justice and Public Safety beginning October 1, 2019, detailing kit shipments, examinations, testing submissions, completed tests, and unreported cases.