Current Legislative Priorities
As of January 2025, 49 states and Washington, D.C. have passed laws supporting some aspects of these pillars of reform. You can follow our state-level work throughout 2025 on this list of bills we are tracking and supporting. To learn about rape kit reform legislation in past years, visit our year-end blogs:
- 2024, 9 laws passed in 8 states.
- 2022, 10 laws passed in 9 states.
- 2021, 24 laws passed in 19 states.
- 2020, 10 laws passed in 10 states.
- 2019, 26 laws passed in 22 states.
- 2018, 17 laws passed in 15 states.
- 2017, 18 laws and four resolutions passed in 19 states.
- 2016, 15 laws passed in 14 states.
- 2015, 10 laws passed in 9 states.
- 2014, 10 laws passed in 8 states.
Since 2016, Joyful Heart has been focused on passing comprehensive rape kit reform legislation in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Under our End The Backlog campaign, we advocate for six pillars of reform:
Implement an annual statewide inventory of kits.
An annual statewide inventory and report on the number of untested sexual assault evidence kits in law enforcement facilities, hospitals, crime labs, and any other storage facility to understand the extent of the problem. Mandate that all relevant facilities in your state submit this information to a designated state-level agency within a timeframe of 180 days.
Mandate the submission and testing of all backlogged kits.
Mandatory submission and testing of all previously reported and unsubmitted (backlogged) sexual assault evidence kits, with deadlines for both submission and testing. Mandate that each and every untested rape kit (including those past the statute of limitations) be submitted to the lab within a timeframe of 180 days.
Mandate the testing of all new kits.
Mandatory submission and testing requirements for all newly collected kits, with deadlines for both submission and testing. Require that, for all ongoing rape kit examinations: hospitals must notify the appropriate law enforcement agency within 24 hours of kit collection; law enforcement agencies must pick up the kit within three business days of notification; law enforcement agencies must submit the kit to the lab for analysis within seven days of pickup; and the lab must test the kit and enter any resulting DNA profiles into the CODIS DNA database within 30 days of receipt.
Create and use a statewide kit tracking system.
An electronic tracking system for sexual assault evidence kits that provides a way for survivors to check the status of their kits throughout the entire process, from collection to analysis and final disposition. Ensure all agencies, including hospitals, law enforcement, and labs have access to the system and are required to participate.
Implement mechanisms for survivors to easily find out about the status of their kits.
Victims’ rights to notice and to be informed about the status of their kits, and a mandate that victims be notified if there is a decision not to test a kit or if there is any planned destruction of a kit.
Allocate appropriate funding to submit, test, and track kits.
Resources are necessary to test kits, investigate cases, prosecute offenders, and provide survivors with ongoing support services. Federal funding is currently available for jurisdictions working to eliminate their backlogs, but the state must ensure it is fully funding reforms.