H.R. 7170 — Language Access to Gun Violence Prevention Strategies Act of 2026

This section defines terms used in the Act, including (1) community-based organization (as defined in 34 U.S.C. 10251); (2) extreme risk protection order (i.e., a State or Tribal court order or warrant temporarily prohibiting an individual from possessing a firearm or requiring firearm surrender to reduce risk of firearm-related death or injury); (3) firearm (as defined in 18 U.S.C. 921); (4) gun violence (i.e., mass shootings, firearm homicides or assaults, suicides or self-harm, unintentional deaths or injuries, and related crime); (5) gun violence prevention strategy (i.e., programs, policies, or practices to reduce firearm-related violence, injuries, death, or crime in at-risk populations or settings); (6) individual with limited English proficiency; (7) language access (i.e., culturally competent language services to enhance access for such individuals); (8) limited English proficient population; (9) priority languages (i.e., at minimum, the 10 most commonly spoken U.S. languages other than English, including Mandarin, Cantonese, Japanese, and Korean); (10) Secretary (i.e., Secretary of Health and Human Services); and (11) significant resource (i.e., agency materials critical for public education campaigns).

This section requires the Attorney General and Secretary of Health and Human Services to ensure that significant public-facing resources of the Department of Justice and Department of Health and Human Services, respectively, relating to gun violence prevention and firearm safety—including materials on extreme risk protection orders, safe gun storage, and resources funded under division B of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (i.e., grants and activities for mental health services, crisis response, school-based mental health, and suicide prevention)—are competently translated into priority languages and provided in accessible formats. It further requires review of such translations by community-based organizations with demonstrated relationships to speakers of those languages prior to publication, with funding provided from amounts appropriated to carry out this Act.

This section amends the Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) program (34 U.S.C. 10152) by adding to the requirements for extreme risk protection order programs (i.e., civil orders temporarily restricting firearm possession by individuals deemed a risk) a mandate for public outreach and education efforts, including (1) meaningful engagement with community-based organizations serving limited English proficient (LEP) populations and (2) translation of public-facing documents into non-English languages spoken by LEP populations constituting at least 3% or 500 individuals (whichever is less) of the served or encountered population. It further requires grant recipients to report on compliance with these outreach requirements and directs the Attorney General to (1) prioritize grant applications for extreme risk protection orders, State crisis intervention court proceedings, and other gun violence reduction efforts that include targeted LEP outreach plans and (2) issue related guidance within 90 days of enactment. (As background, the Byrne JAG program provides formula grants to states and localities for criminal justice activities, including law enforcement, prosecution, corrections, and crisis intervention courts.)

This section directs the Attorney General, acting through the Director of the Office of Justice Programs and in coordination with the Community-Based Violence Intervention and Prevention Initiative (CVIPI), to develop and implement a national public awareness campaign to increase language access to community-based gun violence prevention strategies—such as extreme risk protection orders—with a focus on outreach to limited English proficient populations. (As background, CVIPI supports grants to community organizations for evidence-based violence intervention initiatives.) The campaign must (1) provide in-language and culturally appropriate messaging disseminating scientific and evidence-based information and (2) disseminate information on subgrants to community-based organizations educating professionals and community stakeholders; it must be coordinated with other Federal, State, Tribal, and local efforts, as appropriate. The Attorney General must submit a report to Congress detailing the use of funds appropriated to carry out this section.

This section directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and in coordination with the Director of the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, to develop and implement a national public education campaign to increase awareness of gun violence prevention strategies and CDC-supported firearm safety programs (e.g., safe gun storage practices), with a focus on outreach to limited English proficient populations. The campaign must (1) provide in-language and culturally appropriate messaging disseminating scientific and evidence-based information on gun violence prevention and firearm safety and (2) disseminate information on subgrants to community-based organizations educating professionals and community stakeholders. The campaign shall be coordinated with other Federal, State, Tribal, and local efforts, as appropriate, and the Secretary must report to Congress on the use of appropriated funds.