Title 34, NavyRelease 119-110
§20323 Strengthening of Court-appointed Special Advocate Program
Title 34 › Subtitle II — Protection of Children and Other Persons › CHAPTER 203 — VICTIMS OF CHILD ABUSE › SUBCHAPTER II — COURT-APPOINTED SPECIAL ADVOCATE PROGRAM › § 20323
Summary
The Administrator of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention must give grants to start, keep running, and grow court-appointed special advocate (CASA) programs. Grants can go to a national group with wide CASA membership and experience running grants and training, or to a local public or nonprofit group that wants to start or expand a CASA program. A national grantee may make subgrants and contracts with other public or nonprofit groups and may use up to 5 percent of its grant for administrative costs. The Administrator will set rules for deciding who gets money. Programs must follow National CASA standards for screening, training, and supervising volunteers. Rules cover things like having a matching mission, access to legal help, strong supervision, written records and policies, proper screening and training, and not accepting volunteers with certain sex, violent, or child-abuse convictions. Programs must have a way to report if a child is in immediate danger. Grants must be given to places without a CASA program and to programs that need to grow. State and local CASA programs may ask the FBI for fingerprint-based criminal checks, and they pay the cost. Grantees must send a yearly report on how they used the money and on outcome measures set by the Administrator.
Full Legal Text
Title 34, §20323
Navy, Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)In general
The Administrator of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention shall make grants to initiate, sustain, and expand the court-appointed special advocate program.
(b)Grantee organizations
(1)An organization to which a grant is made pursuant to subsection (a)—
(A)shall be a national organization that has broad membership among court-appointed special advocates and has demonstrated experience in grant administration of court-appointed special advocate programs and in providing training and technical assistance to court-appointed special advocate program; or
(B)may be a local public or not-for-profit agency that has demonstrated the willingness to initiate, sustain, and expand a court-appointed special advocate program.
(2)An organization described in paragraph (1)(A) that receives a grant may be authorized to make subgrants and enter into contracts with public and not-for-profit agencies to initiate, sustain, and expand the court-appointed special advocate program. Should a grant be made to a national organization for this purpose, the Administrator shall specify an amount not exceeding 5 percent that can be used for administrative purposes by the national organization.
(c)Grant criteria
(1)The Administrator shall establish criteria to be used in evaluating applications for grants under this section, consistent with section 11183 and 11186 of this title.
(2)In general, the grant criteria established pursuant to paragraph (1) shall require that a court-appointed special advocate program provide screening, training, and supervision of court-appointed special advocates in accordance with standards developed by the National Court-Appointed Special Advocate Association. Such criteria may include the requirements that—
(A)a court-appointed special advocate association program have a mission and purpose in keeping with the mission and purpose of the National Court-Appointed Special Advocate Association and that it abide by the National Court-Appointed Special Advocate Association Standards for Programs;
(B)a court-appointed special advocate association program operate with access to legal counsel;
(C)the management and operation of a court-appointed special advocate program assure adequate supervision of court-appointed special advocate volunteers;
(D)a court-appointed special advocate program keep written records on the operation of the program in general and on each applicant, volunteer, and case;
(E)a court-appointed special advocate program have written management and personnel policies and procedures, screening requirements, and training curriculum;
(F)a court-appointed special advocate program not accept volunteers who have been convicted of, have charges pending for, or have in the past been charged with, a felony or misdemeanor involving a sex offense, violent act, child abuse or neglect, or related acts that would pose risks to children or to the court-appointed special advocate program’s credibility;
(G)a court-appointed special advocate program have an established procedure to allow the immediate reporting to a court or appropriate agency of a situation in which a court-appointed special advocate volunteer has reason to believe that a child is in imminent danger;
(H)a court-appointed special advocate volunteer be an individual who has been screened and trained by a recognized court-appointed special advocate program and appointed by the court to advocate for children who come into the court system primarily as a result of abuse or neglect; and
(I)a court-appointed special advocate volunteer serve the function of reviewing records, facilitating prompt, thorough review of cases, and interviewing appropriate parties in order to make recommendations on what would be in the best interests of the child.
(3)In awarding grants under this section, the Administrator shall ensure that grants are distributed to localities that have no existing court-appointed special advocate program and to programs in need of expansion.
(d)Background checks
State and local Court Appointed Special Advocate programs are authorized to request fingerprint-based criminal background checks from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s criminal history database for prospective volunteers. The requesting program is responsible for the reasonable costs associated with the Federal records check.
(e)Reporting
An organization that receives a grant under this section for a fiscal year shall submit to the Administrator a report regarding the use of the grant for the fiscal year, including a discussion of outcome performance measures (which shall be established by the Administrator) to determine the effectiveness of the programs of the organization in meeting the needs of children in the child welfare system.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
Codification Section was formerly classified to section 13013 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.
Amendments
2019—Subsec. (c)(1). Pub. L. 115–424 made technical amendment to reference in original act which appears in text as reference to section 11183 and 11186 of this title. 2013—Subsec. (c)(2)(A). Pub. L. 113–4, § 106(2)(A), substituted “Standards for Programs” for “Code of Ethics”. Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 113–4, § 106(2)(B), added subsec. (e). 2006—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 109–162, § 112(c)(1), substituted “to initiate, sustain, and expand” for “to expand”. Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 109–162, § 112(c)(2)(A), substituted “subsection (a)—” for “subsection (a)”, inserted subpar. (A) designation before “shall be”, and substituted “(B) may be” for “(2) may be” and “to initiate, sustain, and expand” for “to initiate or expand”. Subsec. (b)(2). Pub. L. 109–162, § 112(c)(2)(B), substituted “(1)(A)” for “(1)(a)” and “to initiate, sustain, and expand” for “to initiate and to expand”. Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 109–162, § 112(c)(3), added subsec. (d). 2002—Subsec. (c)(1). Pub. L. 107–273 substituted “section 5673 and 5676 of this title” for “section 5665a, 5673, and 5676 of this title”.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date
of 2013 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 113–4 not effective until the beginning of the fiscal year following Mar. 7, 2013, see section 4 of Pub. L. 113–4, set out as a note under section 2261 of Title 18, Crimes and Criminal Procedure.
Effective Date
of 2002 AmendmentAmendment 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.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
34 U.S.C. § 20323
Title 34, Navy
Last Updated
Sep 22, 2026
Release point: 119-110