119-HRES-1190 Journalist Public Summary

Headline Summary

The House is considering a bipartisan, nonbinding resolution to mark April 19–25, 2026 as National Crime Victims’ Rights Week and to spotlight enforcement of victims’ rights and services nationwide.

What It Does

H. Res. 1190 formally supports recognizing April 19–25, 2026 as “National Crime Victims’ Rights Week.” It honors survivors and the organizations that serve them; reiterates widely recognized victims’ rights such as being treated with dignity, receiving timely notice of proceedings, being heard in court, and conferring with prosecutors; highlights the 2026 theme “CommUNITY”; and urges Congress to keep strengthening and protecting existing laws like the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA), the Crime Victims’ Rights Act (CVRA), and the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). It does not create new rights, programs, or funding by itself.

Type

Simple House resolution (expresses the House’s position; does not change statute)

Commemorative Dates

April 19–25, 2026

2026 Theme

“CommUNITY”

Named Statutes

VOCA, CVRA, VAWA

By the Numbers (as cited in the resolution)

Who’s For It

• Bipartisan House sponsors, led by Rep. Jim Costa (D‑CA), joined by Reps. Juan Ciscomani (R‑AZ), Debbie Dingell (D‑MI), Josh Riley (D‑NY), Shomari Figures (D‑AL), James Moylan (R‑GU), Josh Gottheimer (D‑NJ), Stephen Lynch (D‑MA), Derek Schmidt (R‑KS), Tracey Mann (R‑KS), Stephanie Bice (R‑OK), André Carson (D‑IN), and Vern Buchanan (R‑FL). They argue the week raises awareness, honors survivors and service providers, and encourages consistent enforcement of victims’ rights.
• Many victim‑service providers and advocacy groups typically support such observances because they help connect survivors with resources and highlight legal rights already on the books.
• Supportive lawmakers emphasize that reaffirming VOCA, CVRA, and VAWA can keep attention on funding and implementation without reopening complex statutory debates.

Who’s Against It

• No organized opposition was noted at introduction.
• Potential concerns sometimes raised about commemorative resolutions: they are symbolic and do not themselves deliver services or funding; some civil‑liberties advocates may worry that emphasis on victims’ rights can, in practice, be misapplied in ways that strain defendants’ due‑process protections; others see such measures as duplicative of existing awareness efforts.

What’s Next

As of April 20, 2026, the resolution was submitted and referred to the House Judiciary Committee. If scheduled and adopted by the House, it would express the chamber’s support for National Crime Victims’ Rights Week; as a simple House resolution, it would not go to the President and would not change federal law.