HR-3601-119
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Sponsored by Chris Pappas (D-NH)
What it does
This bill would amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to create a new federal grant program called the Adverse Childhood Experiences Response Team (ACERT) program. The Attorney General, coordinating with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, would award grants to states, local governments, tribal governments, and community-based organizations to establish teams that respond to children exposed to trauma. Grants could fund training, cross-agency coordination, referral networks, and technical assistance. The bill would authorize $10 million per year for fiscal years 2026 through 2029, totaling $40 million.
Who benefits
Children and youth who have experienced trauma or adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), including those exposed to domestic violence, abuse, or community violence. Families of affected children who would gain access to referral services for behavioral health and substance treatment. Communities with high rates of childhood trauma, including lower-income and tribal communities. Mental health providers, behavioral health organizations, and community-based nonprofits that would receive funding or referrals. Law enforcement, child welfare, and emergency services personnel who would receive trauma-informed care training. Correctional reentry programs that may see reduced recidivism if childhood trauma is addressed earlier.
Who is hurt
Taxpayers who fund the $40 million authorization. Competing grant applicants under existing DOJ programs, as finite administrative resources may be redirected. Organizations or jurisdictions that do not receive grants but bear indirect costs of coordinating with new ACERT teams. Existing trauma-response programs that are not selected for funding may face competitive disadvantage. States or localities that receive grants may face unfunded obligations if federal funding expires after 2029 but infrastructure has been built.
Supporters argue
Supporters argue that adverse childhood experiences are strongly linked to long-term criminal justice involvement, with CDC research showing that individuals with four or more ACEs are significantly more likely to experience substance abuse, mental illness, and contact with the criminal justice system. They contend that early, coordinated intervention — integrating law enforcement, mental health, and child welfare — is more cost-effective than downstream incarceration, and that the bill's cross-system approach addresses a documented gap in fragmented community responses to childhood trauma.
Opponents argue
Opponents argue that $10 million per year is insufficient to produce measurable outcomes at scale and that the bill creates a new bureaucratic grant structure that duplicates existing programs under the Victims of Crime Act, the Children's Justice Act, and HHS trauma-informed care initiatives. They contend that a four-year authorization with no sunset evaluation requirement risks building local infrastructure that communities cannot sustain once federal funding ends, leaving jurisdictions with unfunded mandates and no demonstrated return on investment.
Constitutional context
No significant constitutional tension exists. Congress has broad authority to appropriate funds and attach conditions to grants under the Spending Clause (Art. I, §8). The bill does not compel states to participate, consistent with the anti-commandeering doctrine reaffirmed in Murphy v. NCAA (2018).
Checks and balances
The Executive Branch (Attorney General and HHS Secretary) gains grant-making authority; Congress retains oversight through the appropriations process, and grant recipients are subject to standard federal reporting and accountability requirements.
Historical precedent
The Victims of Crime Act (1984) and subsequent reauthorizations established a similar framework of federal grants to states and localities for victim services and trauma response, providing a direct legislative analogue for this type of conditional spending program.