text: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
  
      This Act may be cited as the ``Sex Offender Registration Tips 
  Program Act of 2009'' or the ``SORT Act of 2009''.
  
  SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
  
      Congress finds the following:
              (1) Parents for Megan's Law, Inc., a nonprofit corporation 
          described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
          1986 and headquartered in New York, has since 1998 educated and 
          supported the community, law enforcement, criminal justice, and 
          government agencies on issues related to sex offender 
          registration, notification, responsible use of information, 
          sexual abuse and abduction prevention, Internet Safety, and 
          crime victim support.
              (2) Parents for Megan's Law, Inc., established and operates 
          the National Megan's Law Helpline, a free confidential 
          telephone helpline that provides information, support, and 
          criminal justice referrals, nationally and internationally, on 
          sex offender management issues. Parents for Megan's Law, Inc. 
          is a certified rape crisis center and provides support and 
          assistance to child and adult victims of sexual abuse and all 
          victims of violent crime. Research suggests that sexual assault 
          victims who receive counseling support are more likely to 
          report their attack to the police and participate in the 
          prosecution of the offender.
              (3) The National Megan's Law Helpline has generated over 
          70,000 requests for assistance, information, or follow-up 
          contacts on sex offender management, crime victim support, and 
          prevention education issues. Helpline requests utilize the 
          Helpline's resources and often entail coordination with outside 
          resources, follow-up calls, or actual referrals to any or all 
          of the following: law enforcement and other criminal justice 
          agencies, state and local crime victims assistance agencies and 
          organizations, social service and human service providers, and 
          other service provider organizations.
              (4) The Internet website of Parents for Megan's Law, Inc., 
          serves as a clearinghouse and national resource for information 
          related to sex offender registration, notification, sexual 
          abuse and abduction prevention, and crime victims' support and 
          referrals. Such Internet website is also utilized by the public 
          to anonymously report Internet child pornography and child sex 
          tourism and as a resource for Internet Safety education. 
          Reports are forwarded to local law enforcement for appropriate 
          follow-up.
              (5)(A) With limited resources, the National Megan's Law 
          Helpline has provided the public with a resource for 
          confidentially reporting registered sex offenders failing to 
          comply with registration requirements, supervision, or 
          employment restrictions or who are in positions of trust where 
          potential child victims can be accessed. Confidential tips are 
          triaged, crime victim support is provided, and referrals are 
          made to the appropriate criminal justice agency for follow-up 
          action.
              (B) In fact, because of anonymous tips to the Helpline, 
          actions have been taken to mitigate potentially dangerous 
          situations, including--
                      (i) sending a registered sex offender back to 
                  prison after he was identified as residing in a 
                  registered child day care center where he could access 
                  potential child victims;
                      (ii) preventing a convicted former middle school 
                  teacher required to register as a sex offender and give 
                  up his teacher's license, from gaining employment as an 
                  in home children's tutor for a reputable tutoring 
                  company where he could gain unsupervised access to 
                  potential child victims;
                      (iii) having a registered sex offender who targeted 
                  a child, and subsequently was barred from using the 
                  Internet to develop online relationships, removed from 
                  an Internet Dating service where he attempted to 
                  develop a relationship with whom he believed was a 
                  single woman with children;
                      (iv) sending a registered sex offender, who was on 
                  parole for a weapons charge and restricted from 
                  entering school grounds, back to prison for entering 
                  school grounds and drug possession;
                      (v) identifying and reporting a registered sex 
                  offender, convicted of sexually victimizing a 4-year-
                  old boy while baby-sitting, who had absconded and 
                  failed to register; and
                      (vi) identifying, locating and reporting registered 
                  sex offenders in violation of conditions of probation, 
                  parole, local employment or other restriction laws.
              (6) A national Sex Offender Registration Compliance survey 
          conducted by Parents for Megan's Law, Inc., in 2003, indicated 
          that, 24 percent of (or over 100,000) registered sex offenders 
          were not complying with sex offender registration laws. Sex 
          offender registry information provides parents and community 
          members an opportunity to protect themselves, their children, 
          and their communities from sexual victimization, but that 
          information, in order to be of value, requires labor intensive 
          follow-up intervention and proactive maintenance to be kept 
          current.
              (7) Access to the National Criminal Information databases 
          is necessary for Parents for Megan's Law, Inc., to effectively 
          evaluate the veracity of tips received, proactively research 
          noncompliant registrants or registrants engaged in criminal 
          activities and provide law enforcement with viable accurate 
          information for follow-up action.
              (8) The Sex Offender Registration Tips (SORT) Program will 
          reduce sexual victimization and increase sex offender 
          registration compliance through community tips and proactive 
          maintenance.
              (9) Authorizing federal funds for the SORT Program will 
          reduce criminal sexual victimization by--
                      (A) supporting crime victims seeking assistance;
                      (B) supporting sex offender registration, 
                  notification, and sexual abuse and abduction prevention 
                  education and Internet Safety inquiries; and
                      (C) providing the public two interactive 
                  confidential resources, the Helpline and Internet 
                  website, for the public to provide information--
                              (i) about registered sex offenders who are 
                          believed to be out of compliance with 
                          registration requirements, supervision, or 
                          employment restrictions and who are in 
                          positions of trust where potential child 
                          victims can be accessed; or
                              (ii) concerning sex offender activities 
                          that indicate a heightened risk of re-
                          offending.
              (10)(A) The SORT program will serve as a powerful national 
          tool supporting communities and crime victims while assisting 
          and advancing the mission of Federal, state, and local law 
          enforcement in combating sexual victimization.
              (B) The SORT program and the National Megan's Law Helpline 
          is unique in the following ways:
                      (i) It provides up to date sexual abuse prevention 
                  information, deters vigilantism, and reinforces 
                  responsible use of information.
                      (ii) It provides victims who come forth with needed 
                  information with an infrastructure of advocacy, 
                  enforcement, and therapeutic support.
                      (iii) It maximizes law enforcement's already 
                  strained resources by screening anonymous tips promptly 
                  and effectively through the use of trained 
                  investigators with access to public, private and law 
                  enforcement databases.
  
  SEC. 3. GRANTS FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF SEX OFFENDER REGISTRATION TIPS 
                PROGRAM.
  
      (a) In General.--Subject to the availability of the funds 
  authorized to be appropriated under subsection (d), the Attorney 
  General shall provide grants and access to information and resources to 
  the not-for-profit community and victim's rights organization, Parents 
  for Megan's Law, Inc., to implement the Sex Offender Registration Tips 
  Program described in subsection (b).
      (b) Sex Offender Registration Tips Program Described.--For purposes 
  of subsection (a), the Sex Offender Registration Tips Program is a 
  program to reduce sexual victimization and support victims of violent 
  crime by--
              (1) providing up-to-date and accurate sex offender registry 
          information to Federal, State, and local law enforcement 
          entities through the National Megan's Law Helpline staffed by 
          Parents for Megan's Law, Inc., and the Internet website of such 
          organization;
              (2) enabling the analysis and coordination of community 
          tips relating to sex offenders who fail to register in the sex 
          offender registry maintained by the jurisdiction involved or 
          who engage in activities in violation of conditions of their 
          probation or parole or other criminal activities;
              (3) using existing Internet sex offender registries, public 
          information, and the National Criminal Information databases to 
          compare and contrast information and proactively identify high-
          risk registrants who are out of compliance, in violation of 
          conditions of supervision, and identify the location of wanted 
          registrants in order to ascertain the need for follow-up action 
          by law enforcement;
              (4) providing crime victims support, information, and 
          referrals; and
              (5) supporting community members with up-to-date sex 
          offender registration, notification, and sexual abuse and 
          abduction prevention and Internet Safety information.
      (c) Access.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the 
  Attorney General shall ensure access by Parents for Megan's Law, Inc., 
  to the National Crime Information Center databases operated by the 
  Federal Bureau of Investigation pursuant to section 534 of title 28, 
  United States Code, to the extent that such access is only for purposes 
  within the scope of the organization's duties and responsibilities to 
  assist or support law enforcement agencies in administration of 
  criminal justice functions.
      (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
  appropriated $1,000,000 for grants under subsection (a) for each of the 
  fiscal years 2010 through 2014.
target: Sex Offender Registration Tips Program Act of 2009 or the SORT Act of 2009 - Directs the Attorney General to: (1) provide grants and access to information and resources to Parents for Megan's Law, Inc., to implement the Sex Offender Registration Tips Program; and (2) ensure access by Parents for Megan's Law, Inc., to the National Crime Information Center databases operated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
feat_title: A bill to direct the Attorney General to provide grants and access to information and resources for the implementation of the Sex Offender Registration Tips and Crime Victims Center Programs.