# 119-hr-8746: VICTIM Act of 2026

119-hr-8746, VICTIM Act of 2026, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Evans, Dwight [D-PA-3] (D-PA); status introduced (as of 2026-09-21).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-8746
- As of: 2026-09-21
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hr-8746
- Congress: 119
- Title: VICTIM Act of 2026
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-05-12
- Sponsor: Rep. Evans, Dwight [D-PA-3] (D-PA)
- Cosponsors: 1
- Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
- Touches household money: no
- Last recorded action: 2026-09-21

## Summary

**A federal grant program to boost clearance rates for homicides and firearm-related violent crimes** would create funding, training, technology upgrades, and victim-support requirements to help State, Tribal, and local law enforcement solve violent crimes more effectively. - Law enforcement agencies would be able to get grants for hiring, training, forensic testing, evidence processing, and upgraded investigative technology to improve homicide and firearm-related case clearance. - Victims and families would gain stronger access to services paid for by grants, including emergency needs, medical and counseling support, legal help, trauma-informed interviewing, and language and disability access. - The program would be funded at $60 million per year from 2027 through 2031 and would reserve at least 5 percent each year for Tribal agencies and 5 percent for rural agencies. Grant recipients must submit annual reports, the National Institute of Justice must evaluate practices every two years, and the Department of Justice Inspector General must audit recipients annually. *Authorizes $60 million per year for fiscal years 2027–2031 for the grant program, creating an annual federal outlay at that level if funds are appropriated.*

## Cosponsors (1)

- Rep. Bacon, Don [R-NE-2] (R-NE), 2026-05-12T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Grants for investigators and victims: benefit, medium. If enacted, grant money could pay to hire, train, retain, and deploy investigators and forensic staff and to buy investigative and evidence-processing technology. Grants would also be allowed to pay for victim-centered services such as emergency food, housing, clothing, travel, medical and counseli…
- New grants to improve investigations: benefit, medium. If enacted, the Attorney General would create a COPS grant program within 180 days to help State, Tribal, and local law enforcement improve homicide and firearm-related clearance rates. The bill would authorize $60 million each year for fiscal years 2027 through 2031 for the program. Each year at l…
- Definitions for clearance and metrics: benefit, low. If enacted, the bill would define key terms used in the program. "Clearance by arrest" would mean arrest of at least one person, charging, and referral for prosecution (or juvenile citation). "Clearance by exception" would mean identifying a suspect with enough evidence but an outside circumstance…
- Streamlined applications and audits: mixed, low. If enacted, the Attorney General would report within 60 days on a streamlined application that an eligible agency could complete in no more than two hours, and the COPS Director would use that short application for local governments. Grant recipients would have to submit annual reports starting one…

## Related bills

- 119-hr-3151: SHIPS for America Act of 2025
- 119-hr-6900: American Affordability Act of 2025
- 119-hr-9237: Take Care of America’s Veterans Act
- 119-hr-7977: Energy Bills Relief Act
- 119-hr-2485: Arts Education for All Act
- 119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act

## Sources
- [119-hr-8746 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/8746)

## Related
- [119-hr-3151: SHIPS for America Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-3151)
- [119-hr-6900: American Affordability Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-6900)
- [119-hr-9237: Take Care of America’s Veterans Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-9237)
- [119-hr-7977: Energy Bills Relief Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7977)
- [119-hr-2485: Arts Education for All Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-2485)
- [119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7973)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-8746 (as of 2026-09-21).