The act is designed to provide the empirical data needed to develop effective hate violence prevention policies; to raise public awareness of hate crimes; and to help law enforcement officials measure trends, design appropriate prevention strategies, and develop sensitivity to the particular needs of hate crime victims. The act is innovative in that it is the first Federal legislation requiring the government to collect specific data on hate crimes and because it recognizes violence against gays and lesbians as hate crime. The act's primary utility lies in the compilation of data for State and local crime control resource allocation purposes. It is pointed out, however, that the counting system established by the act will not provide an accurate count of hate crimes due to such factors as public mistrust of the police, language barriers, fear of retaliation by the offender, and fear of public exposure. An overview and legislative history of the Hate Crime Statistics Act are presented. The act itself is appended. 152 footnotes