ROCHESTER, N.Y. — When people with autism go missing, it’s a worst-case scenario for their caregivers.

“It’s the worst feeling in the world," said Rachel Rosner, of AutismUp. "For families that have a child or adult that does wander, they try to do everything they can to put a plan in place to make sure that doesn’t happen. From locks on windows and doors to alerting neighbors and law enforcement, but even the most comprehensive is not effective 100 percent of the time.”

Last month, a 21-year-old Livingston County woman with autism named Starrlita Smith went missing.

She was found safely after an exhaustive three-day search, but the situation highlighted the need for potentially life-saving GPS tracking devices.

“Sometimes it’s on the wrist, sometimes it’s sewn into the clothes," said Sen. Charles Schumer, (D) New York. "There are different ways to do it. But in any case when you have a tracking device and a child or adult wanders off, you can find them just like that.”

Schumer is calling for the passage of “Kevin and Avonte’s Law” – named for two missing children with autism who died – to expand federal funding for tracking devices.

Livingston, Ontario and Wayne Counties currently provide them, but Monroe County does not.

Law enforcement says the devices can dramatically improve search efforts for missing people.

“You’ve got to think about the risk to volunteers, risk to law enforcement, firefighters that come on scene to do these searches," said Monroe County Sheriff-Elect Todd Baxter. "It’s keeping us all safer, it’s saving time, it’s saving everything. And think about the financial numbers, how much money is spent on these searches that go on. This is going to be a small amount.”

Schumer says the law would provide devices to families free of charge but cost only $5 million or $6 million in federal funding.

He says expects the bipartisan bill to pass quickly.

And that’s a relief to local caregivers.

“Any family member or friend would sleep just that much better knowing that if that scary thing happened in their family, they would be able to find their loved one in just a few short moments," Rosner said.