Department of Homeland Security suicide prevention and resiliency for law enforcement

(a)

In general

Title VII of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 341 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 710 the following:

710A.

Suicide prevention and resiliency for law enforcement

(a)

Definitions

(1)

Department of homeland security component

The term Department of Homeland Security component means—(A)U.S. Customs and Border Protection;(B)U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement;(C)the Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security;(D)the United States Coast Guard;(E)the United States Secret Service;(F)the Transportation Security Administration; and(G)any other Department of Homeland Security component or office with law enforcement officers or agents.(2)

Program

The term Program means the Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Program established pursuant to subsection (b).(b)

Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Program

(1)

Establishment

(A)

In general

The Secretary shall establish, within the office overseen by the Chief Medical Officer, the Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Program.(B)

Purpose

The purpose of the Program shall be to provide a comprehensive approach to address the mental health and wellness of Department of Homeland Security law enforcement agents and officers.(C)

Administration

The Secretary, working through the Program, shall—(i)establish and maintain policies and standard operating procedures, consistent with best evidence-based practices, that detail the authority, roles, and responsibilities of the Program;(ii)conduct data collection and research on mental health, suicides, and, to the extent possible, attempted suicides, of law enforcement personnel within the Department of Homeland Security, in accordance with section 552a of title 5, United States Code (commonly known as the Privacy Act of 1974), section 501 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 791), the Department of Homeland Security’s directives and policies, section 1128E of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1320a–7e), and section 2(a) of the Law Enforcement Suicide Data Collection Act (Public Law 116–143);(iii)track current trends and leading practices from other governmental and nongovernmental organizations for law enforcement mental health and wellness;(iv)evaluate current mental health and resiliency programs within Department of Homeland Security components;(v)promote education and training related to mental health, resilience, suicide prevention, stigma, and mental health resources to raise mental health awareness and to support the needs of supervisors, clinicians, care-givers, peer support members, chaplains, and those who have been exposed to trauma;(vi)establish partnerships with faith-based organizations, community-based organizations, counseling programs, or other social service programs that provide mental health and suicide prevention support services;(vii)establish the Peer-to-Peer Support Program Advisory Council, which shall—(I)include at least 1 licensed clinician and at least 1 official with requisite and relevant training and experience in peer support for law enforcement personnel from each Department of Homeland Security component;(II)evaluate component peer support programs;(III)identify and address any potential deficiencies, limitations, and gaps;(IV)provide for sharing of leading practices or best practices, including internationally recognized peer support standards of care protocols;(V)create a peer support network that enables the sharing of trained peer support personnel, chaplains, and other peer-to-peer personnel across Department of Homeland Security components, and may also include outside agency organizations, such as faith-based organizations, community-based organizations, counseling programs, and other social service programs; and(VI)sustain peer support programs through ongoing funding of annual and refresher training and resources for peer support programing in the workplace—(aa)to ensure minimum standards for peer support services; and(bb)to provide appropriate care for peer support personnel across Department of Homeland Security components;(viii)assist Department of Homeland Security components in developing a program to provide suicide prevention and resiliency support and training for—(I)families of law enforcement agents and officers; and(II)surviving families of officers and agents who have died by suicide;(ix)work with law enforcement mental health and wellness program officials of Department of Homeland Security components (which shall include peer support-trained personnel, agency mental health professionals, chaplains, and, for components with employees having an exclusive representative, the exclusive representative with respect to such program) to implement new policies, procedures, and programs that may be necessary based on findings from data collection, research, and evaluation efforts; and(x)conduct regular outreach and messaging, across Department of Homeland Security components, of available training opportunities and resources.(D)

Confidentiality; limitation

(i)

Confidentiality

Actions described in subparagraph (C) may not—(I)include the publication of any personally identifiable information; or(II)compel any employee to provide any information for the purposes of this subsection.(ii)

Limitation

Personally identifiable information collected pursuant to subparagraph (C) may not be used for any purpose other than the implementation of this section unless otherwise permitted under applicable law. Any personally identifiable information that is collected, maintained, or used pursuant to this section is subject to applicable public nondisclosure requirements, including sections 552 and 552a of title 5, United States Code.(E)

Personnel

(i)

Management

The Workplace Health and Wellness Coordinator of the Department, under the direction of the Chief Medical Officer of the Department, shall be responsible for the ongoing management of the Program.(ii)

Minimum core personnel requirements

Subject to appropriations, the Secretary shall ensure that the Program is staffed with the number of employees that the Chief Medical Officer determines to be necessary to carry out the duties described in subparagraph (C), including representatives from each Department of Homeland Security component and the Office of the Chief Privacy Officer.(2)

Directive

Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of the DHS Suicide Prevention and Resiliency for Law Enforcement Act, the Chief Medical Officer of the Department shall—(A)issue a directive or policy that outlines the roles and responsibilities of the Program; and(B)distribute such directive or policy among all Department personnel.(c)

Coordination

The Chief Medical Officer of the Department shall require the Program to regularly coordinate with the Department of Homeland Security components by assigning at least 1 official from each such component to the Program for the purpose of coordinating with field points of contact who are responsible for carrying out duties within Department mental health and wellness programs.(d)

Department of Homeland Security components

The Secretary shall require the head of each Department of Homeland Security component to prioritize and improve mental health and wellness programs, which may include other Department of Homeland Security component personnel, that—(1)provide adequate resources for law enforcement mental health, well-being, resilience, and suicide prevention programs and research;(2)promote a culture that reduces the stigma of seeking mental health assistance through regular messaging, training, and raising mental health awareness;(3)offer several avenues of seeking mental health or counseling assistance, both within the Department of Homeland Security component and through private sources, which may include faith-based organizations, community-based organizations, counseling programs, and other social service programs, that provide for anonymity and include access to external mental health clinicians;(4)review and revise relevant policies of Department of Homeland Security components that inadvertently deter personnel from seeking mental health assistance;(5)ensure that such programs include safeguards against adverse action by such component with respect to any employee solely because such employee self identifies a need for psychological health counseling or assistance or receives such counseling or assistance;(6)ensure that such programs include safeguards regarding automatic referrals for employment-related examinations or inquiries that are based solely on an employee who self identifies a need for psychological health counseling or assistance or receives such counseling or assistance, except that such safeguards shall not prevent a component referral to evaluate an employee’s ability to meet established medical or psychological standards by such component or to evaluate an employee's national security eligibility;(7)implement policies that require in-person or live and interactive virtual suicide awareness and law enforcement resiliency training for law enforcement officers and agents;(8)make such training available, as appropriate, to other personnel—(A)upon the commencement of their employment with the Department of Homeland Security;(B)on an annual basis during such employment;(C)during such employees’ transition into a supervisory role; and(D)if feasible, shortly before the officer, agent, or other Department of Homeland Security component personnel terminates his or her employment with the Department, if such individual elects to participate; and(9)include prevention and awareness training opportunities and support services for families of officers, agents, and other Department of Homeland Security component personnel.(e)

Data collection and evaluation

(1)

Assessment of effectiveness of law enforcement health and wellness programs

The Workplace Health and Wellness Coordinator of the Department, under the direction of the Chief Medical Officer of the Department—(A)shall develop criteria to assess the effectiveness of law enforcement health and wellness programs carried out by the Department;(B)shall conduct annual confidential surveys of law enforcement agents and officers within Department of Homeland Security components to assist in evaluating the effectiveness of law enforcement health and wellness programs in accordance with the criteria developed pursuant to subparagraph (A);(C)shall ensure that the surveys conducted pursuant to subparagraph (B)—(i)incorporate leading practices in questionnaire and survey design and development; and(ii)establish a baseline and subsequently measure change over time; and(D)may utilize contractor support in carrying out the duties described in subparagraphs (A) through (C).(2)

Recommendations

The Chief Medical Officer of the Department shall provide recommendations to Department of Homeland Security components based on the evaluation of programs and the results of the surveys conducted pursuant to paragraph (1)(B).(3)

Incident reports

Each Department of Homeland Security component shall report, to the Workplace Health and Wellness Coordinator, incidents of suicide involving law enforcement officers and agents and any data consistent with data collected under section 2(a) of the Law Enforcement Suicide Data Collection Act (Public Law 116–143). The Workplace Health and Wellness Coordinator shall forward such information to the Law Enforcement Officers Suicide Data Collection Program established pursuant to such section.(4)

Confidentiality; limitation

(A)

Confidentiality

Activities described in paragraph (1) and reporting described under paragraph (3) may not include the publication of any personally identifiable information.(B)

Limitation

Personally identifiable information collected pursuant to paragraph (1) may not be used for any purpose other than the implementation of this section unless otherwise permitted under applicable law. Any personally identifiable information that is collected, maintained, or used pursuant to this section is subject to applicable public nondisclosure requirements, including sections 552 and 552a of title 5, United States Code.(f)

Briefing

Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of the DHS Suicide Prevention and Resiliency for Law Enforcement Act, and annually thereafter through fiscal year 2027, the Chief Medical Officer of the Department shall provide a briefing to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives regarding the implementation of the requirements described in this section.(g)

Voluntary participation; clarification

Participation in any program, survey, or data collection conducted under this section is voluntary.(h)

Rule of construction

Notwithstanding any provision of this section, the Secretary may provide services under the Program to any employee of the Department.

(b)

Clerical amendment

The table of contents in section 1(b) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (Public Law 107–296) is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 710 the following:

Sec. 710A. Suicide prevention and resiliency for law enforcement.