Bounty Hunter Accountability and Quality Assistance Act of 1999
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Judiciary.
Congressional Research Service
Official summary
Version 00 · Introduced in Senate · May 19, 1999
Bounty Hunter Accountability and Quality Assistance Act of 1999 - Authorizes: (1) an association of bail enforcement employers, which shall be designated by the Attorney General, to submit to the Attorney General fingerprints or other methods of positive identification approved by the Attorney General, on behalf of any applicant for a State license or certificate of registration as a bail enforcement officer or employer; and (2) the Attorney General, in response to such submission, to exchange, for licensing and employment purposes, identification and criminal history records with the State governmental agencies to which the applicant has applied (subject to specified limitations). Authorizes the Attorney General to promulgate such regulations as necessary to carry out such provisions, including measures relating to audits, recordkeeping requirements, and the security, confidentiality, accuracy, use, and dissemination of information submitted or exchanged. Express the sense of Congress that each State should participate in any such exchange. (Sec. 5) Directs the Attorney General to publish in the Federal Register model guidelines for the State control and regulation of persons employed or applying for employment as bail enforcement officers, including recommendations regarding whether a person seeking such employment should be: (1) allowed to obtain such employment if that person has been convicted of a Federal felony, or of a State offense that would be a felony if charged under Federal law; (2) required to obtain adequate liability insurance for actions taken in the course of performing duties pursuant to employment as a bail enforcement officer; or (3) prohibited, if acting in the capacity of that person as a bail enforcement officer, from entering any private dwelling without first knocking on the front door and announcing the presence of one or more bail enforcement officers. Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to require the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance to give priority, in making drug control and system improvement (Byrne) grants, to States that have adopted the model guidelines. (Sec. 6) Declares that a bail enforcement officer, whether acting as an independent contractor or as an employee of a bail enforcement employer on a bail bond, shall be considered to be the agent of that employer for liability purposes.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Aug 10, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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