Senate Engrossed House Bill

tracking system; sexual assault kits

State of Arizona

House of Representatives

Fifty-seventh Legislature

First Regular Session

2025

HOUSE BILL 2581

AN ACT

Amending title 41, chapter 12, article 2, Arizona Revised Statutes, by adding section 41-1735; relating to the department of public safety.

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Title 41, chapter 12, article 2, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 41-1735, to read:

START_STATUTE41-1735. Sexual assault kit evidence tracking system; definition

A. the department shall establish a sexual assault kit evidence tracking system to track sexual assault kit evidence that is collected pursuant to any of the following:

1. section 13-1426.

2. a death investigation.

3. 18 United states code section 3772.

4. the violence against women act REAUTHORIZATION act of 2022 (p.l. 117-103; 136 stat. 840).

B. A medical provider, medical examiner, law enforcement agency as defined in section 13-1426, public accredited crime laboratory or other person or entity that has custody or use of sexual assault kit evidence shall submit the information collected pursuant to subsection A of this section to the sexual assault kit evidence tracking system. The sexual assault kit evidence tracking system must:

1. Track the location and status of each sexual assault kit, including:

(a) the initial collection of evidence for the kit in a forensic medical examination.

(b) The receipt and storage of the kit at a law enforcement agency.

(c) The receipt of the kit by a public accredited crime laboratory.

(d) The completion of the analysis of the kit by a public accredited crime laboratory.

(e) The storage and destruction of the kit.

2. Allow the person or ENTITY pursuant to subsection B of this section to update the status and location of the kits.

3. Allow the victim to anonymously track the status and location of the victim's sexual assault kit evidence, with advance notification of destruction of the kit, if the victim has chosen to receive notifications and has provided contact information to receive notifications.

C. Sexual assault kit evidence Records that are entered into the sexual assault kit evidence tracking system are confidential, except that the records may be accessed by:

1. The victim for whom the sexual assault kit was completed.

2. a person or An employee of an entity listed in Subsection B of this section for the purposes of updating the status or location of the sexual assault kit evidence.

D. A law enforcement agency in a city with a population of more than one million persons with a functional and operational sexual assault kit evidence tracking system in place before the effective date of this section that meets the requirements of this section is not required to submit information to or participate in the Department's sexual assault kit evidence tracking system.  The law enforcement agency is subject to the requirements of sections 13-1426 and 13-1427.

E. For the purposes of this section, "Public accredited crime laboratory" has the same meaning prescribed in section 13-1426. END_STATUTE