ST. PAUL — Law enforcement agencies are tallying the state’s backlog of untested rape kits in hopes of erasing it — or at least better understanding what led to it.

The effort started Saturday as part of a new law passed by the Legislature this year that requires each law enforcement agency to report its number of untested rape kits, which gathered by hospitals to preserve evidence of an alleged sexual assault, along with an explanation for why each kit wasn’t processed.

The state’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension will report the statewide tally to lawmakers in December.

It will be the first statewide account for untested kits in Minnesota, where police departments haven’t been required to keep an inventory. Congress approved more than $40 million in federal spending earlier this year to test an estimated 400,000 kits nationwide.

The reasons those tests may not be tested vary. Some victims refuse to approve DNA testing. In other cases, the suspect was charged before the evidence could be tested.

According to a press release, Laura Taken-Holtze from the Minnesota Coalition Against Sexual Assault said she hopes the tally will both bolster Minnesota’s knowledge of untested rape kits and also boost efforts to improve victim advocacy.

“What this legislation will do is assess, first of all, whether or not we have a problem (with untested kits) in Minnesota,” Taken-Holtze said. “And second of all, hopefully it will then spark a broader conversation about making sure that victims have access to rape kit and have access to sexual assaults forensic exams.”

In Duluth, 565 kits have gone untested since 1995. Deputy Police Chief Ann Clancey said the department hasn’t sent kits for testing that weren’t part of an active investigation. They’re starting to test those kits now, sending 10 at a time to the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.

The tally is at 495 at the Anoka County Sheriff’s Office, which stores the kits for all law enforcement agencies dating back to 1985.