H.R. 2438 · 117th Congress
Justice in Forensic Algorithms Act of 2021
Key: what the circles and colors mean
Each circle is a bill. The ring fills as it moves through Congress:
Under the number: the Yea · Nay count of its final (or latest) recorded vote. On a member's page, the small badge is how that member voted: Y Yea / Aye, N Nay / No, P Present, – Not voting.
Gold and violet are only for Yea and Nay; they never mean a party. A member's party is the letter on their photo.
Never voted on. It didn't reach a floor vote before the 117th Congress ended, so it expired. A bill has to be introduced again to be considered in a new Congress.
1 cosponsor · 1 D
1 signed on when it was introduced; the rest joined later. Cosponsors who withdrew aren't shown.
Justice in Forensic Algorithms Act of 2021 This bill establishes a federal framework to govern the use of computational forensic software. The term computational forensic software means software that relies on an automated computational process to assess evidence in a criminal investigation (e.g., facial recognition technology).
What it does: CRS summary · Introduced in House · Apr 8, 2021
Justice in Forensic Algorithms Act of 2021
This bill establishes a federal framework to govern the use of computational forensic software. The term computational forensic software means software that relies on an automated computational process to assess evidence in a criminal investigation (e.g., facial recognition technology).
The framework contains various elements, including the following:
- requirements for the establishment of testing standards and a testing program for computational forensic software,
- requirements for the use of computational forensic software by federal law enforcement agencies and related entities (e.g., crime labs),
- a ban on the use of trade secret evidentiary privilege to prevent federal criminal defendants from accessing evidence collected using computational forensic software or information about the software (e.g., source code), and
- limits on the admissibility of evidence collected using computational forensic software.
Written by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service. All summary versions on Congress.gov
About this bill and sources
Official title: Justice in Forensic Algorithms Act of 2021
Latest action (Oct 19, 2021): Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement · Origin: House · Introduced: Apr 8, 2021
Official page on Congress.gov · Bill text (GovInfo) · Status record (XML)
No recorded floor vote found.