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H.R. 4919: Kevin and Avonte's Law of 2016

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H.R. 4919: Kevin and Avonte's Law of 2016

114th Congress · introduced 2016-04-12 · Crime and Law Enforcement · Latest: Received in the Senate.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

  1. Where it came from: introduced 2016-04-12 · official record
  2. Who proposed it: Rep. Smith, Christopher H. [R-NJ-4] · what a sponsor is
  3. What happened next: 1 recorded vote in our records. Latest: House roll call 619 (2016): On Motion to Suspend the Rules and Pass, as Amended, HR4919 (2016-12-08), Passed. See all
  4. Where it stands now: Received in the Senate. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
  5. If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Kevin and Avonte's Law of 2016

Plain summary

Kevin and Avonte's Law of 2016 TITLE I--MISSING ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE PATIENT ALERT PROGRAM REAUTHORIZATION Missing Americans Alert Program Act of 2016 (Sec. 102) This bill amends the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 to revise and rename the Missing Alzheimer's Disease Patient Alert Program as the Missing Americans Alert Program and to reauthorize it through FY2021. It directs the Department of Justice's (DOJ's) Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) to award competitive grants to health care, law enforcement, or public safety agencies, and nonprofit organizations, to develop or operate locally based proactive programs to prevent wandering and locate missing individuals with dementia or children with developmental disabilities. The BJA must give preference to law enforcement or public safety agencies partnering with nonprofit organizations that use person-centered plans and are directly linked to individuals, and families of individuals, with dementia or developmental disabilities. Additionally, it directs the BJA to award grants to health care, law enforcement, or public safety agencies to develop tracking technology programs to locate missing individuals with dementia or children with developmental disabilities. The bill subjects grants under the Missing Americans Program to accountability provisions. DOJ's Office of Inspector General must conduct annual audits of selected grant recipients. The bill prohibits grants to nonprofit organizations that hold money in an offshore account to avoid tax liability. It also limits the use of grants under this bill for conferences that use more than $20,000 in DOJ funds. DOJ must identify and report on duplicative grant awards. DOJ must also report annually to Congress certain information regarding the Missing Americans Alert Program. TITLE II--EDUCATION AND OUTREACH (Sec. 201) The bill amends the Missing Children's Assistance Act to specify that, with respect to training and technical assistance provided by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, cases involving missing and exploited children include cases involving children with developmental disabilities such as autism. TITLE III--PRIVACY PROTECTIONS (Sec. 302) DOJ must establish and certain grant recipients must comply with standards and best practices related to the use of tracking technology to locate missing individuals with dementia or developmental disabilities. The bill prohibits the use of data from tracking devices to create a federal database. It also prohibits construing this bill to require a parent or guardian to use a tracking device. TITLE IV--MISCELLANEOUS (Sec. 401) This provision prohibits the authorization of FY2017 funds for the Byrne Criminal Justice Innovation Program.

Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House amended), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Kevin and Avonte's Law of 2016

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House amended)

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Smith, Christopher H. [R-NJ-4] · 93 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Maxine Waters (D-CA), John B. Larson (D-CT), Robert B. Aderholt (R-AL), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), David P. Joyce (R-OH), Brendan F. Boyle (D-PA), John Garamendi (D-CA), André Carson (D-IN), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Adam B. Schiff (D-CA), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Scott H. Peters (D-CA), Pete Sessions (R-TX), Doris O. Matsui (D-CA), Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ), Danny K. Davis (D-IL), Julia Brownley (D-CA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), William R. Keating (D-MA), Frederica S. Wilson (D-FL), Joyce Beatty (D-OH), Janice D. Schakowsky (D-IL), Judy Chu (D-CA) and 33 more.

Sponsor's campaign money: Rep. Smith, Christopher H. [R-NJ-4] reported raising $797,217 (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

Recorded votes

Words on this page, explained (2)
Authorization
A law that creates or continues a government program and says what it may do, often with a suggested spending ceiling. An authorization alone does not provide money; a separate appropriation does.
Bill
A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Record fed-us-cong114-hr4919 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong114 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong114