U.S. Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick and Donald Norcross introduced the National Child Identification Act, H.R. 4172, which aids law enforcement by encouraging parents and guardians to proactively collect and store their children’s sensitive identification information at home.
When DNA samples are stored safely at home, law enforcement officers can spend the crucial first hours during a missing-person case searching for the child, rather than searching for the child’s DNA samples.
The National Child Identification Act helps expand upon an existing initiative that provides child identification kits to parents and guardians. Under the Act, grant funding from the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 could be used to provide for the kits.
Additionally, the Act helps law enforcement by ensuring parents have a child’s identification information immediately available for investigators.
“Nothing is more important to labor than their members and nothing is more important to our members than their children,” said Richard Trumka, president of AFL-CIO. “I appreciate that Congressmen Norcross and Fitzpatrick are leading the effort to protect our nation’s children. We are all family.”
Originally recognized by Congress in 2001, the National Child Identification Program is a community-service initiative that partners with labor organizations, NFL teams, businesses and law enforcement to provide parents and guardians with child identification kits.
“Nothing is more important to the country than our children, they are our future,” said Don Nehlen, former West Virginia football coach.“This ID Kit can be filled out in about five minutes, stored in the home and can be provided to authorities in the case of an emergency.” ••
