Carla Walker Act
Congress proposes Justice Department grants for DNA genealogy tools to help solve cold cases
Stalled
No legislative action in over 90 days.
Legislative Progress
Key Points
- Congress would let the Justice Department give competitive grants to states, local police, prosecutors, medical examiners, and coroners to use advanced DNA testing to find new leads in cases.
- The grants focus on whole-genome DNA testing and searching allowed genealogy databases when standard federal DNA database checks don’t produce a match.
- Money could be used to do the testing in-house or to pay approved outside labs, including some private labs that agree to get accredited within 2 years.
- The bill authorizes $5 million per year from 2024 to 2028 for DNA genealogy testing, plus another $5 million per year from 2024 to 2028 for equipment; most funds can’t be used for staffing, training, travel, or general equipment.
- Grant recipients would have to keep records, follow Justice Department rules on how DNA samples and data are handled, and report results like how many cases led to identifications or arrests and how long it took.
Impact Analysis
Personal Impact
How this policy affects specific groups of people
Milestones
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Introduced in House
The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.
Votes
No votes have been recorded for this legislation yet.
Related News
2 articles
Cornyn, Welch Introduce the Carla Walker Act to Help Solve Cold Cases
Covers the introduction of the Carla Walker Act and its goal of dedicating federal grant funds to support forensic genetic genealogy (FGG) DNA analysis to solve cold cases.
Rep. Hunt reintroduces Carla Walker Act to aid forensic genealogy
Reports on the reintroduction of the Carla Walker Act of 2025 and describes the proposed $5M + $5M pilot programs supporting forensic genetic genealogy to solve cold cases.
Source Information
Document Type
Congressional Bill
Official Title
Carla Walker Act
Data Sources
Sponsor
Cosponsors
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