The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights

A forceful, moral response to hate violence is required of us all. While bigotry cannot be legislated out of existence, Congress must do everything possible to empower the federal government to assist in local hate crime prosecutions and, where appropriate, expand existing federal authority to permit a wider range of investigations and prosecutions.

Hate crimes have continued unabated since the Senate last considered this legislation in June 2000. The FBI's 2001 Uniform Crime Reports ? the most recent year we have statistics -- showed that as overall crime increased slightly, reported hate crimes increased dramatically from 2000 to 2001, and hate crimes based on sexual orientation increased 7.2 percent.

This amendment strengthens current law. Since 1969, 18 U.S.C. §245 has permitted federal prosecution of certain crimes motivated by bias based on race, religion, national origin, or color, but only when the crime was committed while the victim was involved in a "federally-protected activity." After 34 years, it has become clear that the statute needs to be amended. The Smith-Kennedy Amendment adds actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender, and disability to the list of covered categories, bringing needed uniformity to federal law, and removes the barriers to prosecuting all such crimes.

The Senate regularly passes federal criminal laws, including many that overlap with state law. Since 1995, Congress has enacted dozens of new federal crimes. These laws address a wide range of issues including: punishing "deadbeat dads;" protecting veterans' cemeteries from vandalism; making it a federal crime to harm an animal used in law enforcement (signed into law in 2000); and finally in 2002, Congress made it a federal crime to participate in the business of cockfighting. It is past time for the Senate to pass this common sense measure without delay.

States will continue to play the primary role in combating violent crime. The vast majority of hate crimes will continue to be investigated and prosecuted at the state level. The federal government, however, must be able to address cases that local authorities are either unable or unwilling to pursue. The amendment will provide a backstop to state and local law enforcement.

The full Senate has already overwhelmingly approved S. 966 twice. In 1999, the measure was added to an appropriations bill by unanimous consent. In 2000, the Senate passed the measure, 57 to 42, with 13 Republicans supporting the bill. Since this bill was originally introduced in 1997, Congress has held at least three hearings, and in the 107th Congress, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed the bill out of committee on a bi-partisan vote of 12 to 7.