HR 8733
Melanie's Law
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Bill overview
Melanie’s Law establishes a grant program to help states implement laws that expand protective orders. These laws aim to protect individuals related by blood, marriage, or who share children with someone in an intimate relationship, or who have been in an intimate relationship. The grants will support training for law enforcement and courts, improve service of process, and provide resources for victims of domestic violence, such as legal assistance, shelter, and counseling.
Key provisions
- Creates a grant program for states to implement Melanie’s Law protective order authorities.
- Protective orders can now cover individuals related by blood, marriage, shared children, or past intimate relationships.
- Grants support training for law enforcement, prosecutors, and courts.
- Grants can improve service of process, including electronic and cross-jurisdictional service.
- Grants support systems for tracking protective orders and sharing information.
- Grants provide resources for victims of domestic violence, such as legal services, shelter, and counseling.
- States must have the Melanie’s Law protective order authorities in place to be eligible for grants.
- The Attorney General will allocate funds based on a formula and competitive basis.
Who is affected
- States
- Law enforcement officers
- Prosecutors
- Courts
- Domestic violence victims
Notable changes
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Primary sponsor
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119th CONGRESS — 2d Session
H. R. 8733
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
A BILL
To amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to establish a grant program to support protective orders that protect individuals who are related by blood or marriage to individuals in intimate relationships, and for other purposes.
This Act may be cited as Melanie's Law
.
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:
The purpose of this part is to support States to implement the Melanie’s Law protective order authorities and carry out related activities involving protective orders and domestic violence.
In this part, the term Melanie’s Law protective order authorities
means laws that ensure that family courts and criminal courts, as applicable, have each of the following authorities:
The jurisdiction and authority to issue and enforce a protective order that protects one individual from another, where the two individuals—
are related by consanguinity or affinity;
are legally married to each other;
were formerly married to each other, regardless of whether the individuals still reside in the same household;
have a child in common, regardless of whether the individuals have been married or have lived together at any time; or
are or have been in an intimate relationship with each other.
In a situation in which two individuals are or have been in an intimate relationship with each other, the jurisdiction and authority to issue and enforce a protective order that protects a third individual, regardless of age, where that third individual is related by consanguinity or affinity to either of the two individuals.
The Attorney General may make grants to eligible States for the following purposes:
To provide education and training to law enforcement officers, prosecutors, and courts on the Melanie’s Law protective order authorities and the implementation of those authorities.
To facilitate the service of process of protective orders, such as by enabling or improving service of process—
in person or by electronic means; or
across State, Tribal, or local jurisdictional lines.
To establish or enhance—
systems that manage and track information about protective orders and violations of protective orders, such as systems operated by law enforcement agencies or courts; and
mechanisms for the sharing of such information between and among such systems.
To support official units or positions that have specialized responsibilities with respect to protective orders or domestic violence, such as to enforce or promote compliance, to prosecute violations, or to coordinate with others on such matters.
To enable or improve the provision to victims in matters involving protective orders of—
victim advocacy services, hotline services, and crisis response services;
emergency shelter services, relocation assistance, transportation assistance, childcare assistance, and short-term housing assistance;
access to counseling, trauma-informed therapy, and case management; and
access to communications equipment and services for personal safety and for participation in hearings or other official proceedings.
Upon request of an eligible State, the Attorney General may permit the State to use grant amounts under this part to provide the non-Federal share of the cost of programs or projects funded by other grant programs administered by the Attorney General that provide support or services to victims.
not more than 22 percent for grants to eligible States on a competitive basis; and
not more than 3 percent for the administrative expenses of the Attorney General in carrying out this part for that fiscal year, including technical assistance, training, evaluation, and program administration.
Each grantee receiving funds under this part shall submit a report to the Attorney General evaluating the effectiveness of projects developed with funds provided under this part and containing such additional information as the Attorney General may prescribe.
In this part, the term State
means each of the several States and the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands.
There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this part $200,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2026 through 2036.