Sponsors (10)
The bill broadens federal grant eligibility so state, local, and tribal authorities can better investigate and address identity theft—improving victim support and tribal access to resources—while posing modest fiscal costs and a risk that funding may tilt toward enforcement at the expense of privacy or restorative services.
State, local, and tribal law enforcement can use federal grants to investigate and prosecute identity theft, expanding local capacity to address identity-based crime.
Victims of identity theft may receive stronger prevention programs and victim-assistance services funded through expanded grant eligibility.
Tribal governments gain clear statutory recognition to seek federal grants for addressing identity-theft crimes in their communities, improving tribal capacity and access to resources.
Expanding grant-eligible activities could increase federal spending or divert existing funds, potentially raising costs for taxpayers or reducing funds for other priorities.
Broader eligibility may emphasize enforcement-focused grants, which could prioritize law-enforcement activity over privacy protections or restorative services for victims.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Expands the local law enforcement cybercrime grant statute to explicitly include identity theft as a covered offense and eligible activity.
Official title: To amend the Violence Against Women Act Reauthorization Act of 2022 to include identity theft in the grant program related to local law enforcement grants for enforcement of cybercrimes, and for other purposes.
Introduced September 26, 2025 by Kristen McDonald Rivet · Last progress September 26, 2025
Adds “identity theft” to the list of offenses covered by the federal local law enforcement cybercrime grants program, making identity-theft investigations and related activities explicitly eligible for those grants. This change defines identity theft as knowingly transferring, possessing, or using another person’s means of identification without lawful authority and inserts the term wherever the statute refers to “cybercrime(s) against individuals.”