Washington, D.C. - U.S. Congressman Kevin Brady (R-The Woodlands) today secured House approval of $375,000 for Sam Houston State University for a Rural Crime Laboratory. The crime lab is a partnership between the University and Walker County to help expedite criminal investigations in rural communities outside of Houston.

“Our rural law enforcement agencies need their tests done quickly and affordably, and to not get stuck in the backlog in Houston or Dallas. This funding will kick-off the effort to create a crime lab that taps the resources and expertise of one of the top criminal justice institutions in the nation, Sam Houston State University,” said Brady. “The funding is not all that we need, but it’s a start.”

Law enforcement agencies in rural communities experience long waits and backlogs when requesting services from major cities like Houston. This funding allows Sam Houston State University—one of the nation’s foremost criminal justice universities—to use its expertise in forensic science to partner with Walker County to build a Rural Crime Laboratory that will provide services to local law enforcement such as identification of controlled substances, toxicology screening and finger print matching. The lab will be able to service communities in a 75-mile wide area.

The funding was including in the 2008 Departments of Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill. The bill must now be approved by the Senate and signed by the president to become law.