2018 US Code
Title 34 - Crime Control and Law Enforcement
Subtitle II - Protection of Children and Other Persons
Chapter 203 - Victims of Child Abuse
Subchapter I - Improving Investigation and Prosecution of Child Abuse Cases
Sec. 20304 - Local children's advocacy centers

The Administrator, in coordination with the Director of the Office of Victims of Crime, shall make grants to—

The Administrator, in coordination with the Director of the Office of Victims of Crime, may make grants to develop and implement specialized programs to identify and provide direct services to victims of a severe form of trafficking (as defined in section 7102(9)(A) of title 22) who were under the age of 18 at the time of the offense and victims of human trafficking and child pornography.

(1) The Administrator shall establish the criteria to be used in evaluating applications for grants under subsections (a) and (b) consistent with sections 11183 and 11186 of this title.

(2) In general, the grant criteria established pursuant to paragraph (1) may require that a program include any of the following elements:

In awarding grants under this section, the Administrator shall ensure that grants are distributed to all States that are eligible for such grants, including large and small States, and to rural, suburban, and urban jurisdictions.

A grant recipient under this section shall consult from time to time with regional children's advocacy centers in its census region that are grant recipients under section 20303 of this title.

In awarding grants under this section, the Administrator shall ensure that a portion of the grants is distributed to State chapters to enable State chapters to provide technical assistance, training, coordination, and oversight to other recipients of grants under this section in providing evidence-informed initiatives, including mental health counseling, forensic interviewing, multidisciplinary team coordination, and victim advocacy.

(Pub. L. 101–647, title II, §214, formerly §212, Nov. 29, 1990, 104 Stat. 4793; renumbered §214 and amended Pub. L. 102–586, §6(b)(1), (c), Nov. 4, 1992, 106 Stat. 5029, 5034; Pub. L. 107–273, div. C, title II, §12221(b)(1)(A), Nov. 2, 2002, 116 Stat. 1894; Pub. L. 114–22, title I, §104(2), May 29, 2015, 129 Stat. 236; Pub. L. 115–392, §6, Dec. 21, 2018, 132 Stat. 5253; Pub. L. 115–424, §2(d), (h)(2), Jan. 7, 2019, 132 Stat. 5467, 5470.)

Section was formerly classified to section 13002 of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare, prior to editorial reclassification and renumbering as this section. Some section numbers or references in amendment notes below reflect the classification of such sections or references prior to editorial reclassification.

A prior section 214 of Pub. L. 101–647 was renumbered section 214B and is classified to section 20306 of this title.

2019—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 115–424, §2(d)(1), added subsec. (a) and struck out former subsec. (a). Prior to amendment, text read as follows: "The Administrator, in coordination with the Director and with the Director of the Office of Victims of Crime, shall make grants to develop and implement multidisciplinary child abuse investigation and prosecution programs."

Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 115–424, §2(d)(2), in heading, inserted "human trafficking and" before "child pornography", and in text, struck out "with the Director and" after "coordination" and inserted "human trafficking and" before "child pornography".

Subsec. (c)(1). Pub. L. 115–424, §2(h)(2), made technical amendment to reference in original act which appears in text as reference to sections 11183 and 11186 of this title.

Pub. L. 115–424, §2(d)(3)(A), substituted "Administrator" for "Director" and "subsections (a) and (b)" for "this section".

Subsec. (c)(2)(A). Pub. L. 115–424, §2(d)(3)(B)(i), substituted "child protective service" for "social service".

Subsec. (c)(2)(B). Pub. L. 115–424, §2(d)(3)(B)(ii), substituted "a 'children's advocacy center' " for "the 'counseling center' ".

Subsec. (c)(2)(C). Pub. L. 115–424, §2(d)(3)(B)(iii), substituted "child abuse cases that meet designated referral criteria to the children's advocacy center" for "sexual and serious physical abuse and neglect cases to the counseling center".

Subsec. (c)(2)(D). Pub. L. 115–424, §2(d)(3)(B)(iv), substituted "forensic" for "investigative" and "child protective service" for "social service".

Subsec. (c)(2)(E). Pub. L. 115–424, §2(d)(3)(B)(v)–(vii), redesignated subpar. (F) as (E), substituted "children's advocacy center or an agency with which there is a linkage agreement regarding the delivery of multidisciplinary child abuse investigation, prosecution, and intervention services" for "counseling center", and struck out former subpar. (E) which read as follows: "A requirement that, to the extent practicable, the same agency representative who conducts an initial interview conduct all subsequent interviews."

Subsec. (c)(2)(F). Pub. L. 115–424, §2(d)(3)(B)(vi), (viii), redesignated subpar. (G) as (F) and substituted "eliminate duplicative forensic interviews with a child victim" for "minimize the number of interviews that a child victim must attend". Former subpar. (F) redesignated (E).

Subsec. (c)(2)(G). Pub. L. 115–424, §2(d)(3)(B)(vi), (ix), redesignated subpar. (H) as (G) and substituted "children's advocacy center" for "multidisciplinary program". Former subpar. (G) redesignated (F).

Subsec. (c)(2)(H). Pub. L. 115–424, §2(d)(3)(B)(vi), (x), redesignated subpar. (I) as (H) and inserted "intervention and" before "judicial proceedings". Former subpar. (H) redesignated (G).

Subsec. (c)(2)(I), (J). Pub. L. 115–424, §2(d)(3)(B)(vi), (xi), redesignated subpar. (J) as (I) and substituted "Administrator" for "Director". Former subpar. (I) redesignated (H).

Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 115–424, §2(d)(4), substituted "the Administrator" for "the Director" and "all States that are eligible for such grants, including large and small States," for "both large and small States".

Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 115–424, §2(d)(5), added subsec. (f).

2018—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 115–392 inserted "child victims of a severe form of trafficking in persons and" before "victims of child pornography" in heading and "victims of a severe form of trafficking (as defined in section 7102(9)(A) of title 22) who were under the age of 18 at the time of the offense and" before "victims of child pornography" in text.

2015—Subsecs. (b) to (e). Pub. L. 114–22 added subsec. (b) and redesignated former subsecs. (b) to (d) as (c) to (e), respectively.

2002—Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 107–273 substituted "sections 5673 and 5676 of this title" for "sections 5665a, 5673, and 5676 of this title".

1992—Pub. L. 102–586, §6(c)(1), substituted "Local children's advocacy centers" for "Authority of Director to make grants" in section catchline.

Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 102–586, §6(c)(2), substituted "The Administrator, in coordination with the Director and with the Director of the Office of Victims of Crime," for "The Director of the Office of Victims of Crime (hereinafter in this subchapter referred to as the 'Director'), in consultation with officials of the Department of Health and Human Services,".

Subsec. (b)(2)(B). Pub. L. 102–586, §6(c)(3), inserted "and nonoffending family members" after "neglect".

Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 102–586, §6(c)(4), added subsec. (d).

Amendment by Pub. L. 107–273 effective on the first day of the first fiscal year that begins after Nov. 2, 2002, and applicable only with respect to fiscal years beginning on or after the first day of the first fiscal year that begins after Nov. 2, 2002, see section 12223 of Pub. L. 107–273, as amended, set out as a note under section 11101 of this title.