Last week, my congresswoman US Rep Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and US Rep Dean Heller (R-NV) along with over 20 House colleagues introduced H.R. 4114, the “Justice for Survivors of Sexual Assault Act of 2009.”

The legislation would help reduce the national backlog of over 180,000 untested rape kits currently on police shelves by creating incentives for jurisdictions to eliminate their rape kit backlogs, process their incoming rape kits in a timely manner, and publicly report their backlog numbers. The bill will also address several other factors that work to deny justice to victims of sexual assault – including the denial of free rape kits to survivors of sexual assault and the shortage of trained health professionals capable of administering rape kit exams.

The Senate’s companion bill, S.2736, has been introduced by Senators Franken, Grassley, Hatch, and Feinstein.

Check out Rep. Maloney’s Press release

This piece of legislation is much needed. We need your help.

Call your Representative to support HR 4114

Call your Senator to support S.2736