Congress Advances Federal Law Enforcement Benefits, Community Relations Legislation
To close National Police Week, the House of Representatives advanced legislation that would address pay, benefits, and mental health services for federal law enforcement officers. The bills passing through the full House and heading to the Senate are the Public Safety Officer Support Act (H.R. 6943), the Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Law Enforcement Training Act (H.R. 2992), and the Rights of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Workforce Act (H.R. 903).
The Senate Judiciary Committee similarly advanced legislation this week in support of state, local, and federal law enforcement officers. The Senate committee advanced the Fighting Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Act (S.4007), Invest to Protect Act (S.3860), Strong Communities Act (S.2151), and Law Enforcement De-Escalation Training Act (S.4003) to the floor for debate.
Addressing Mental Health & Wellness
Federal law enforcement officers would become eligible for death and disability benefits if they contract PTSD or other acute stress disorders on the job under the Public Safety Officer Support Act (H.R. 6943). The bill passed the full House this week and now moves to the Senate, where the Senate Judiciary Committee is expected to consider the bill next week.
The bill recognizes various stress related mental illnesses as a disability if the officer was exposed, while on duty, to a traumatic event. By enacting the measure, law enforcement personnel would be eligible for disability assistance through the Public Safety Officers Benefits Program (PSOB), which currently covers physical ailments.
Further, the bill authorizes death benefits for officer’s who have committed suicide as a result of a traumatic event on the job. In 2017, over 240 public safety officers across all levels of government committed suicide; however, no survivors received assistance from the federal government.
“Public safety officers are 25 times more likely to develop acute stress disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, or other mental health conditions than the public. They’ve got a tough job,” said Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN) as he managed the House floor debate. “The need for this worthy and overdue change is even more apparent as we continue to grieve the tragic loss of four police officers who died by suicide after responding to the attack on the U.S. Capitol.”
The House also advanced the TBI and PTSD Law Enforcement Training Act (H.R. 2992) in the same session on Wednesday. This bill requires the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) to establish training tools for first responders to address individuals with traumatic brain injuries, acquired brain injuries, and PTSD.
The Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association (FLEOA) endorsed both measures and noted the measure would address an unprecedented increase in law enforcement suicides and align federal law enforcement benefits with military benefits.
“To improve wellness across federal law enforcement, it was imperative that the Public Safety Officers Benefit Program recognize injuries caused by post-traumatic stress. When an officer is unable to obtain the support services needed to address this stress and tragically takes their own life, PSOB must also address the aftermath left behind and the devastating effect on family, friends, and colleagues.” said FLEOA President Larry Cosme in response to the bills’ advancement.
Today, Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Ranking Member of the Judiciary Committee, and Senator Jon Ossoff (D-GA) introduced a companion version of the TBI and PTSD Law Enforcement Training Act in the Senate.
“It’s important that our police and all first responders are empowered with the resources they need to address a variety of emergencies, including incidents that involve people with traumatic brain injuries or post-traumatic stress disorder. Our legislation would provide departments with crisis intervention tools that can help de-escalate situations and improve outcomes for everyone involved,” Senator Grassley said.
Senator Grassley also led a bipartisan coalition in passing the Fighting Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Act of 2022 (S.4007) through the Senate Judiciary Committee this week. The measure would aid first responders dispatched to crisis situations through innovative mental health programs.
Addressing TSA Workforce Issues
By a vote of 220-201, the House passed the Rights of the TSA Workforce Act (H.R. 903) last week to reform TSA employees pay and benefits. This bill places TSA screeners on the General Schedule (GS) pay scale and provide whistleblower and due process protections under Title V of the U.S. Code. The bill also provides TSA employees collective bargaining rights.
As part of the bill, Transportation Security Officers (TSOs) would see salary increases of an average of 30 percent and Federal Air Marshals by 21 percent. According to Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), Chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, the raise would bring both agencies' salaries in line with other Homeland Security Department agencies.
“The most recent analysis done on turnover shows that over a two-year span, one in three transportation security officers quit. It also revealed that in a single year, TSA spent $16 million to hire and onboard nearly 2,000 people, who left just months after they got the job,” Rep. Bennie Thompson stated. “This revolving door of recruiting, training and then losing TSOs is unsustainable and underscores the need to find a permanent solution that will ensure TSA lives up to its critical national security mission.”
Community Relations
Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) joined Senator Grassley in passing the Invest to Protect Act (S.3860) through the Senate Judiciary Committee. If passed into law, the measure would allocate $250 million over the next five years to support small law enforcement agencies to invest in training, equipment, mental health support and recruitment and retention.
“[This] bill would ensure that small agencies can easily access resources to provide training and mental health care for their officers, and to invest in recruitment and retention to help keep great officers on the streets. These small departments are the backbone of so many communities, and I’ll always work to get them what they need,” said Senator Cortez Masto.
The Strong Communities Act (S.2151) builds off the investment in local police and would allow Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) to utilize grant funds in recruitment efforts to encourage officers to live in the communities they serve.
Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) led the Law Enforcement De-Escalation Training Act (S.4003) through the Committee as well with a cohort of bipartisan support. This bill amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (P.L. 90–351) to include training on alternatives to force, such as de-escalation, mental and behavioral health, and suicidal crisis response.
“We ask law enforcement in our communities to wear too many hats, including that of mental health provider, and they often do not have enough resources or training to provide the level of care individuals in crisis need,” said Senator Cornyn. “We must give them the necessary tools so officers feel supported while helping those experiencing mental health emergencies and other crises, and this legislation would do just that.”