[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4999 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4999

      To control crime by providing law enforcement block grants.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 27, 2000

 Mr. McCollum (for himself and Mr. Fletcher) introduced the following 
       bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
      To control crime by providing law enforcement block grants.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Local Government Law Enforcement 
Block Grants Act of 2000''.

SEC. 2. BLOCK GRANT PROGRAM.

    (a) Payment and Use.--
            (1) Payment.--The Director of the Bureau of Justice 
        Assistance shall pay to each unit of local government which 
        qualifies for a payment under this Act an amount equal to the 
        sum of any amounts allocated to such unit under this Act for 
        each payment period. The Director shall pay such amount from 
        amounts appropriated to carry out this Act.
            (2) Use.--Amounts paid to a unit of local government under 
        this section shall be used by the unit for reducing crime and 
        improving public safety, including but not limited to, 1 or 
        more of the following purposes:
                    (A)(i) Hiring, training, and employing on a 
                continuing basis new, additional law enforcement 
                officers and necessary support personnel.
                    (ii) Paying overtime to presently employed law 
                enforcement officers and necessary support personnel 
                for the purpose of increasing the number of hours 
                worked by such personnel.
                    (iii) Procuring equipment, technology, and other 
                material directly related to basic law enforcement 
                functions.
                    (B) Enhancing security measures--
                            (i) in and around schools; and
                            (ii) in and around any other facility or 
                        location which is considered by the unit of 
                        local government to have a special risk for 
                        incidents of crime.
                    (C) Establishing crime prevention programs that 
                may, though not exclusively, involve law enforcement 
                officials and that are intended to discourage, disrupt, 
                or interfere with the commission of criminal activity, 
                including neighborhood watch and citizen patrol 
                programs, sexual assault and domestic violence 
                programs, and programs intended to prevent juvenile 
                crime.
                    (D) Establishing or supporting drug courts.
                    (E) Establishing early intervention and prevention 
                programs for juveniles to reduce or eliminate crime.
                    (F) Enhancing the adjudication process of cases 
                involving violent offenders, including the adjudication 
                process of cases involving violent juvenile offenders.
                    (G) Enhancing programs under subpart 1 of part E of 
                the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968.
                    (H) Establishing cooperative task forces between 
                adjoining units of local government to work 
                cooperatively to prevent and combat criminal activity, 
                particularly criminal activity that is exacerbated by 
                drug or gang-related involvement.
                    (I) Establishing a multijurisdictional task force, 
                particularly in rural areas, composed of law 
                enforcement officials representing units of local 
                government, that works with Federal law enforcement 
                officials to prevent and control crime.
            (3) Definitions.--For purposes of this subsection--
                    (A) the term ``violent offender'' means a person 
                charged with committing a part I violent crime; and
                    (B) the term ``drug courts'' means a program that 
                involves--
                            (i) continuing judicial supervision over 
                        offenders with substance abuse problems who are 
                        not violent offenders; and
                            (ii) the integrated administration of other 
                        sanctions and services, which shall include--
                                    (I) mandatory periodic testing for 
                                the use of controlled substances or 
                                other addictive substances during any 
                                period of supervised release or 
                                probation for each participant;
                                    (II) substance abuse treatment for 
                                each participant;
                                    (III) probation, or other 
                                supervised release involving the 
                                possibility of prosecution, 
                                confinement, or incarceration based on 
                                noncompliance with program requirements 
                                or failure to show satisfactory 
                                progress; and
                                    (IV) programmatic, offender 
                                management, and aftercare services such 
                                as relapse prevention, vocational job 
                                training, job placement, and housing 
                                placement.
    (b) Prohibited Uses.--Notwithstanding any other provision of this 
Act, a unit of local government may not expend any of the funds 
provided under this Act to purchase, lease, rent, or otherwise 
acquire--
            (1) tanks or armored personnel carriers;
            (2) fixed wing aircraft;
            (3) limousines;
            (4) real estate;
            (5) yachts;
            (6) consultants; or
            (7) vehicles not primarily used for law enforcement;
unless the Attorney General certifies that extraordinary and exigent 
circumstances exist that make the use of funds for such purposes 
essential to the maintenance of public safety and good order in such 
unit of local government.
    (c) Timing of Payments.--The Director shall pay each unit of local 
government that has submitted an application under this Act not later 
than--
            (1) 90 days after the date that the amount is available, or
            (2) the first day of the payment period if the unit of 
        local government has provided the Director with the assurances 
        required by section 4(c),
whichever is later.
    (d) Adjustments.--
            (1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), the Director 
        shall adjust a payment under this Act to a unit of local 
        government to the extent that a prior payment to the unit of 
        local government was more or less than the amount required to 
        be paid.
            (2) Considerations.--The Director may increase or decrease 
        under this subsection a payment to a unit of local government 
        only if the Director determines the need for the increase or 
        decrease, or if the unit requests the increase or decrease, not 
        later than 1 year after the end of the payment period for which 
        a payment was made.
    (e) Reservation for Adjustment.--The Director may reserve a 
percentage of not more than 2 percent of the amount under this section 
for a payment period for all units of local government in a State if 
the Director considers the reserve is necessary to ensure the 
availability of sufficient amounts to pay adjustments after the final 
allocation of amounts among the units of local government in the State.
    (f) Repayment of Unexpended Amounts.--
            (1) Repayment required.--A unit of local government shall 
        repay to the Director, by not later than 27 months after 
        receipt of funds from the Director, any amount that is--
                    (A) paid to the unit from amounts appropriated 
                under the authority of this section; and
                    (B) not expended by the unit within 2 years after 
                receipt of such funds from the Director.
            (2) Penalty for failure to repay.--If the amount required 
        to be repaid is not repaid, the Director shall reduce payment 
        in future payment periods accordingly.
            (3) Deposit of amounts repaid.--Amounts received by the 
        Director as repayments under this subsection shall be deposited 
        in a designated fund for future payments to units of local 
        government. Any amounts remaining in such designated fund after 
        5 years following the enactment of the Local Government Law 
        Enforcement Block Grants Act of 2000 shall be applied to the 
        Federal deficit or, if there is no Federal deficit, to reducing 
        the Federal debt.
    (g) Nonsupplanting Requirement.--Funds made available under this 
Act to units of local government shall not be used to supplant State or 
local funds, but shall be used to increase the amount of funds that 
would, in the absence of funds made available under this Act, be made 
available from State or local sources.
    (h) Matching Funds.--
            (1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), the 
        Federal share of a grant received under this Act may not exceed 
        90 percent of the costs of a program or proposal funded under 
        this Act.
            (2) Exception for financial hardship.--The Director may 
        increase the Federal share under paragraph (1) up to 100 
        percent for a unit of local government upon a showing of 
        financial hardship by such unit.

SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    (a) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this Act--
            (1) $2,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2001;
            (2) $2,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2002;
            (3) $2,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2003;
            (4) $2,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2004; and
            (5) $2,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2005.
    (b) Oversight Accountability and Administration.--Not more than 3 
percent of the amount authorized to be appropriated under subsection 
(a) for each of the fiscal years 2001 through 2005 shall be available 
to the Attorney General for studying the overall effectiveness and 
efficiency of the provisions of this Act, and assuring compliance with 
the provisions of this Act and for administrative costs to carry out 
the purposes of this Act. The Attorney General shall establish and 
execute an oversight plan for monitoring the activities of grant 
recipients. Such sums are to remain available until expended.
    (c) Technology Assistance.--The Attorney General shall reserve 1 
percent in each of fiscal years 2001 through 2003 of the amount 
authorized to be appropriated under subsection (a) for use by the 
National Institute of Justice in assisting local units to identify, 
select, develop, modernize, and purchase new technologies for use by 
law enforcement.
    (d) Availability.--The amounts authorized to be appropriated under 
subsection (a) shall remain available until expended.

SEC. 4. QUALIFICATION FOR PAYMENT.

    (a) In General.--The Director shall issue regulations establishing 
procedures under which a unit of local government is required to 
provide notice to the Director regarding the proposed use of funds made 
available under this Act.
    (b) Program Review.--The Director shall establish a process for the 
ongoing evaluation of projects developed with funds made available 
under this Act.
    (c) General Requirements for Qualification.--A unit of local 
government qualifies for a payment under this Act for a payment period 
only if the unit of local government submits an application to the 
Director and establishes, to the satisfaction of the Director, that--
            (1) the unit of local government has established a local 
        advisory board that--
                    (A) includes, but is not limited to, a 
                representative from--
                            (i) the local police department or local 
                        sheriff's department;
                            (ii) the local prosecutor's office;
                            (iii) the local court system;
                            (iv) the local public school system; and
                            (v) a local nonprofit, educational, 
                        religious, or community group active in crime 
                        prevention or drug use prevention or treatment;
                    (B) has reviewed the application; and
                    (C) is designated to make nonbinding 
                recommendations to the unit of local government for the 
                use of funds received under this Act;
            (2) the chief executive officer of the State has had not 
        less than 20 days to review and comment on the application 
        prior to submission to the Director;
            (3)(A) the unit of local government will establish a trust 
        fund in which the government will deposit all payments received 
        under this Act; and
            (B) the unit of local government will use amounts in the 
        trust fund (including interest) during a period not to exceed 2 
        years from the date the first grant payment is made to the unit 
        of local government;
            (4) the unit of local government will expend the payments 
        received in accordance with the laws and procedures that are 
        applicable to the expenditure of revenues of the unit of local 
        government;
            (5) the unit of local government will use accounting, 
        audit, and fiscal procedures that conform to guidelines which 
        shall be prescribed by the Director after consultation with the 
        Comptroller General and as applicable, amounts received under 
        this Act shall be audited in compliance with the Single Audit 
        Act of 1984;
            (6) after reasonable notice from the Director or the 
        Comptroller General to the unit of local government, the unit 
        of local government will make available to the Director and the 
        Comptroller General, with the right to inspect, records that 
        the Director reasonably requires to review compliance with this 
        Act or that the Comptroller General reasonably requires to 
        review compliance and operation;
            (7) a designated official of the unit of local government 
        shall make reports the Director reasonably requires, in 
        addition to the annual reports required under this Act;
            (8) the unit of local government will spend the funds made 
        available under this Act only for the purposes set forth in 
        section 2(a)(2);
            (9) the unit of local government will achieve a net gain in 
        the number of law enforcement officers who perform 
        nonadministrative public safety service if such unit uses funds 
        received under this Act to increase the number of law 
        enforcement officers as described under subparagraph (A) of 
        section 2(a)(2);
            (10) the unit of local government--
                    (A) has an adequate process to assess the impact of 
                any enhancement of a school security measure that is 
                undertaken under subparagraph (B) of section 2(a)(2), 
                or any crime prevention programs that are established 
                under subparagraphs (C) and (E) of section 2(a)(2), on 
                the incidence of crime in the geographic area where the 
                enhancement is undertaken or the program is 
                established;
                    (B) will conduct such an assessment with respect to 
                each such enhancement or program; and
                    (C) will submit an annual written assessment report 
                to the Director; and
            (11) the unit of local government has established 
        procedures to give members of the Armed Forces who, on or after 
        October 1, 1990, were or are selected for involuntary 
        separation (as described in section 1141 of title 10, United 
        States Code), approved for separation under section 1174a or 
        1175 of such title, or retired pursuant to the authority 
        provided under section 4403 of the Defense Conversion, 
        Reinvestment, and Transition Assistance Act of 1992 (division D 
        of Public Law 102-484; 10 U.S.C. 1293 note), a suitable 
        preference in the employment of persons as additional law 
        enforcement officers or support personnel using funds made 
        available under this Act. The nature and extent of such 
        employment preference shall be jointly established by the 
        Attorney General and the Secretary of Defense. To the extent 
        practicable, the Director shall endeavor to inform members who 
        were separated between October 1, 1990, and the date of the 
        enactment of this section of their eligibility for the 
        employment preference;
    (d) Sanctions for Noncompliance.--
            (1) In general.--If the Director determines that a unit of 
        local government has not complied substantially with the 
        requirements or regulations prescribed under subsections (a) 
        and (c), the Director shall notify the unit of local government 
        that if the unit of local government does not take corrective 
        action within 60 days of such notice, the Director will 
        withhold additional payments to the unit of local government 
        for the current and future payment periods until the Director 
        is satisfied that the unit of local government--
                    (A) has taken the appropriate corrective action; 
                and
                    (B) will comply with the requirements and 
                regulations prescribed under subsections (a) and (c).
            (2) Notice.--Before giving notice under paragraph (1), the 
        Director shall give the chief executive officer of the unit of 
        local government reasonable notice and an opportunity for 
        comment.
    (e) Maintenance of Effort Requirement.--A unit of local government 
qualifies for a payment under this Act for a payment period only if the 
unit's expenditures on law enforcement services (as reported by the 
Bureau of the Census) for the fiscal year preceding the fiscal year in 
which the payment period occurs were not less than 90 percent of the 
unit's expenditures on such services for the second fiscal year 
preceding the fiscal year in which the payment period occurs.

SEC. 5. ALLOCATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.

    (a) State Set-Aside.--
            (1) In general.--Of the total amounts appropriated for this 
        Act for each payment period, the Director shall allocate for 
        units of local government in each State an amount that bears 
        the same ratio to such total as the average annual number of 
        part 1 violent crimes reported by such State to the Federal 
        Bureau of Investigation for the 3 most recent calendar years 
        for which such data is available, bears to the number of part 1 
        violent crimes reported by all States to the Federal Bureau of 
        Investigation for such years.
            (2) Minimum requirement.--Each State shall receive not less 
        than .25 percent of the total amounts appropriated under 
        section 3 under this subsection for each payment period.
            (3) Proportional reduction.--If amounts available to carry 
        out paragraph (2) for any payment period are insufficient to 
        pay in full the total payment that any State is otherwise 
        eligible to receive under paragraph (1) for such period, then 
        the Director shall reduce payments under paragraph (1) for such 
        payment period to the extent of such insufficiency. Reductions 
        under the preceding sentence shall be allocated among the 
        States (other than States whose payment is determined under 
        paragraph (2)) in the same proportions as amounts would be 
        allocated under paragraph (1) without regard to paragraph (2).
    (b) Local Distribution.--
            (1) In general.--From the amount reserved for each State 
        under subsection (a), the Director shall allocate--
                    (A) among reporting units of local government the 
                reporting units' share of such reserved amount, and
                    (B) among nonreporting units of local government 
                the nonreporting units' share of the reserved amount.
            (2) Amounts.--
                    (A) The reporting units' share of the reserved 
                amount is the amount equal to the product of such 
                reserved amount multiplied by the percentage which the 
                population living in reporting units of local 
                government in the State bears to the population of all 
                units of local government in the State.
                    (B) The nonreporting units' share of the reserved 
                amount is the reserved amount reduced by the reporting 
                units' share of the reserved amount.
            (3) Allocation to each reporting unit.--From the reporting 
        units' share of the reserved amount for each State under 
        subsection (a), the Director shall allocate to each reporting 
        unit of local government an amount which bears the same ratio 
        to such share as the average annual number of part 1 violent 
        crimes reported by such unit to the Federal Bureau of 
        Investigation for the 3 most recent calendar years for which 
        such data is available bears to the number of part 1 violent 
        crimes reported by all units of local government in the State 
        in which the unit is located to the Federal Bureau of 
        Investigation for such years.
            (4) Allocation to each nonreporting unit.--From the 
        nonreporting units' share of the reserved amount for each State 
        under subsection (a), the Director shall allocate to each 
        nonreporting unit of local government an amount which bears the 
        same ratio to such share as the average number of part 1 
        violent crimes of like governmental units in the same 
        population class as such unit bears to the average annual 
        imputed number of part 1 violent crimes of all nonreporting 
        units in the State for the 3 most recent calendar years.
            (5) Limitation on allocations.--A unit of local government 
        shall not receive an allocation which exceeds 100 percent of 
        such unit's expenditures on law enforcement services as 
        reported by the Bureau of the Census for the most recent fiscal 
        year. Any amount in excess of 100 percent of such unit's 
        expenditures on law enforcement services shall be distributed 
        proportionally among units of local government whose allocation 
        does not exceed 100 percent of expenditures on law enforcement 
        services.
            (6) Definitions.--For purposes of this subsection--
                    (A) The term `reporting unit of local government' 
                means any unit of local government that reported part 1 
                violent crimes to the Federal Bureau of Investigation 
                for the 3 most recent calendar years for which such 
                data is available.
                    (B) The term `nonreporting unit of local 
                government' means any unit of local government which is 
                not a reporting unit of local government.
                    (C)(i) The term `like governmental units' means any 
                like unit of local government as defined by the 
                Secretary of Commerce for general statistical purposes, 
                and means--
                            (I) all counties are treated as like 
                        governmental units;
                            (II) all cities are treated as like 
                        governmental units;
                            (III) all townships are treated as like 
                        governmental units.
                    (ii) Similar rules shall apply to other types of 
                governmental units.
                    (D) The term `same population class' means a like 
                unit within the same population category as another 
                like unit with the categories determined as follows:
                            (i) 0 through 9,999.
                            (ii) 10,000 through 49,999.
                            (iii) 50,000 through 149,999.
                            (iv) 150,000 through 299,999.
                            (v) 300,000 or more.
            (7) Local governments with allocations of less than 
        $10,000.--If under paragraph (3) or (4) a unit of local 
        government is allotted less than $10,000 for the payment 
        period, the amount allotted shall be transferred to the chief 
        executive officer of the State who shall distribute such funds 
        among State police departments that provide law enforcement 
        services to units of local government and units of local 
        government whose allotment is less than such amount in a manner 
        which reduces crime and improves public safety.
            (8) Special rules.--
                    (A) If a unit of local government in a State that 
                has been incorporated since the date of the collection 
                of the data used by the Director in making allocations 
                pursuant to this section, such unit shall be treated as 
                a nonreporting unit of local government for purposes of 
                this subsection.
                    (B) If a unit of local government in the State has 
                been annexed since the date of the collection of the 
                data used by the Director in making allocations 
                pursuant to this section, the Director shall pay the 
                amount that would have been allocated to such unit of 
                local government to the unit of local government that 
                annexed it.
            (9) Resolution of disparate allocations.--(A) 
        Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, if--
                    (i) the attorney general of a State certifies that 
                a unit of local government under the jurisdiction of 
                the State bears more than 50 percent of the costs of 
                prosecution or incarceration that arise with respect to 
                part 1 violent crimes reported by a specified 
                geographically constituent unit of local government, 
                and
                    (ii) but for this paragraph, the amount of funds 
                allocated under this section to--
                            (I) any one such specified geographically 
                        constituent unit of local government exceeds 
                        200 percent of the amount allocated to the unit 
                        of local government certified pursuant to 
                        clause (i), or
                            (II) more than one such specified 
                        geographically constituent unit of local 
                        government (excluding units of local government 
                        referred to subclause I and in paragraph (7)), 
                        exceeds 400 percent of the amount allocated to 
                        the unit of local government certified pursuant 
                        to clause (i) and the attorney general of the 
                        State determines that such allocation is likely 
                        to threaten the efficient administration of 
                        justice,
        then in order to qualify for payment under this Act, the unit 
        of local government certified pursuant to clause (i), together 
        with any such specified geographically constituent units of 
        local government described in clause (ii), shall submit to the 
        Director a joint application for the aggregate of funds 
        allocated to such units of local government. Such application 
        shall specify the amount of such funds that are to be 
        distributed to each of the units of local government and the 
        purposes for which such funds are to be used. The units of 
        local government involved may establish a joint local advisory 
        board for the purposes of carrying out this paragraph.
            (B) In this paragraph, the term ``geographically 
        constituent unit of local government'' means a unit of local 
        government that has jurisdiction over areas located within the 
        boundaries of an area over which a unit of local government 
        certified pursuant to clause (i) has jurisdiction.
    (c) Unavailability and Inaccuracy of Information.--
            (1) Data for states.--For purposes of this section, if data 
        regarding part 1 violent crimes in any State for the 3 most 
        recent calendar years is unavailable or substantially 
        inaccurate, the Director shall utilize the best available 
        comparable data regarding the number of violent crimes for such 
        years for such State for the purposes of allocation of any 
        funds under this Act.
            (2) Possible inaccuracy of data for units of local 
        government.--In addition to the provisions of paragraph (1), if 
        the Director believes that the reported rate of part 1 violent 
        crimes for a unit of local government is inaccurate, the 
        Director shall--
                    (A) investigate the methodology used by such unit 
                to determine the accuracy of the submitted data; and
                    (B) when necessary, use the best available 
                comparable data regarding the number of violent crimes 
                for such years for such unit of local government.

SEC. 6. UTILIZATION OF PRIVATE SECTOR.

    Funds or a portion of funds allocated under this Act may be 
utilized to contract with private, nonprofit entities or community-
based organizations to carry out the purposes specified under section 
2(a)(2).

SEC. 7. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION.

    (a) In General.--A unit of local government expending payments 
under this Act shall hold not less than 1 public hearing on the 
proposed use of the payment from the Director in relation to its entire 
budget.
    (b) Views.--At the hearing, persons shall be given an opportunity 
to provide written and oral views to the unit of local government 
authority responsible for enacting the budget and to ask questions 
about the entire budget and the relation of the payment from the 
Director to the entire budget.
    (c) Time and Place.--The unit of local government shall hold the 
hearing at a time and place that allows and encourages public 
attendance and participation.

SEC. 8. ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS.

    The administrative provisions of part H of the Omnibus Crime 
Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, shall apply to this Act and for 
purposes of this section any reference in such provisions to title I of 
the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 shall be deemed 
to be a reference to this Act.

SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS.

    For the purposes of this Act:
            (1) The term ``unit of local government'' means--
                    (A) a county, township, city, or political 
                subdivision of a county, township, or city, that is a 
                unit of local government as determined by the Secretary 
                of Commerce for general statistical purposes; and
                    (B) the District of Columbia and the recognized 
                governing body of an Indian tribe or Alaskan Native 
                village that carries out substantial governmental 
                duties and powers.
            (2) The term ``payment period'' means each 1-year period 
        beginning on October 1 of any year in which a grant under this 
        Act is awarded.
            (3) The term ``State'' means any State of the United 
        States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto 
        Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and the 
        Northern Mariana Islands, except that American Samoa. Guam, and 
        the Northern Mariana Islands shall be considered as 1 State and 
        that, for purposes of section 5(a), 33 percent of the amounts 
        allocated shall be allocated to American Samoa, 50 percent to 
        Guam, and 17 percent to the Northern Mariana Islands.
            (4) The term ``juvenile'' means an individual who is 17 
        years of age or younger.
            (5) The term ``part 1 violent crimes'' means murder and 
        nonnegligent manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery, and 
        aggravated assault as reported to the Federal Bureau of 
        Investigation for purposes of the Uniform Crime Reports.
            (6) The term ``Director'' means the Director of the Bureau 
        of Justice Assistance.
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