Public Safety - Rape Kit Collection, Testing, and Tracking Grant Fund - Alterations

HB 58 amends Maryland's Rape Kit Collection, Testing, and Tracking Grant Fund to clarify its name, purpose, and eligible uses. The bill specifies that fund money must support multiyear funding for law enforcement agencies to test sexual assault evidence kits, covering equipment, personnel, and outsourcing costs. It also expands fund usage to include grants for hospitals to hire forensic nurse examiners (RN-FNEs) and cover their certification training. This directly affects law enforcement agencies and hospitals by providing dedicated, non-lapsing funding for processing rape kits and supporting forensic nursing staff.