OKLAHOMA CITY – Nearly three dozen states have failed to meet conditions of a 2006 federal law that requires them to take part in a nationwide program to track sex offenders, including five states that have given up on the effort entirely.
The states stand to lose millions of dollars in government grants, but some have concluded that honoring the law would be far more expensive than simply living without the money. Others also have doubts about the way the program works.
Texas, for instance, would lose an estimated $1.4 million. But the state's cost to implement the changes could exceed $38 million.
The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act was supposed to create a uniform system for registering and tracking sex offenders that would link all 50 states.
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