FY 2022 DNA Capacity Enhancement for Backlog Reduction

The Houston Forensic Science Center (HFSC) is a uniquely independent laboratory that provides forensic services to the Houston Police Department (HPD), one of the largest police departments in the state of Texas.  HFSC is accredited under ISO/IEC 17025: 2017 in each of seven forensic disciplines: crime scene, digital and multimedia, firearms toxicology, seized drugs, latent prints, and forensic biology/DNA.  As is true for many forensic laboratories, HFSC is challenged to meet customer demand for DNA services and must continuously seek opportunities to streamline laboratory operations, alleviate bottlenecks in the testing process, and increase throughput.

HFSC requests FY 2022 DNA Capacity Enhancement for Backlog Reduction Program (CEBR) funds to support its overall goals of increasing casework throughput and limiting backlog growth.  Specifically, funds will be used for staffing, supplemental casework support, software upgrades, and continuing education.  HFSC anticipates that 2,008 cases can be processed, recorded, screened, and/or analyzed with grant funding during the FY 2022 award period – above and beyond what the laboratory can accomplish without CEBR support.