[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2624 Introduced in House (IH)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2624

  To authorize the Attorney General to make grants to honor, through 
permanent tributes, men and women of the United States who were killed 
or disabled while serving as law enforcement or public safety officers.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 25, 2001

  Mr. Schiff (for himself, Mr. Tom Davis of Virginia, Mr. Stupak, Mr. 
Souder, Mr. Frost, Ms. Jackson-Lee of Texas, Mr. Lantos, Ms. McKinney, 
Ms. Roybal-Allard, Mr. Gilman, Mr. Nadler, Mr. Crowley, Mr. Holden, Mr. 
  McNulty, Ms. Norton, and Mr. Cramer) introduced the following bill; 
          which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To authorize the Attorney General to make grants to honor, through 
permanent tributes, men and women of the United States who were killed 
or disabled while serving as law enforcement or public safety officers.

    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 ``Law Enforcement Tribute Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) The well-being of all citizens of the United States is 
        preserved and enhanced as a direct result of the vigilance and 
        dedication of law enforcement and public safety personnel.
            (2) More than 700,000 law enforcement officers, both men 
        and women, at great risk to their personal safety, serve their 
        fellow citizens as guardians of peace.
            (3) Nationwide, 51 law enforcement officers were killed in 
        the line of duty in 2000, according to statistics released by 
        the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This number is an increase 
        of 9 from the 1999 total of 42.
            (4) In 1999, 112 firefighters died while on duty, an 
        increase of 21 deaths from the previous year.
            (5) Every year, 1 in 9 peace officers is assaulted, 1 in 25 
        is injured, and 1 in 4,400 is killed in the line of duty.
            (6) In addition, recent statistics indicate that 83 
        officers were accidentally killed in the performance of their 
        duties in 2000, an increase of 18 from the 65 accidental deaths 
        in 1999.
            (7) A permanent tribute is a powerful means of honoring the 
        men and women who have served our Nation with distinction. 
        However, many law enforcement and public safety agencies lack 
        the resources to honor their fallen colleagues.

SEC. 3. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.

    (a) In General.--From amounts made available to carry out this 
section, the Attorney General may make grants to States, units of local 
government, and Indian tribes to carry out programs to honor, through 
permanent tributes, men and women of the United States who were killed 
or disabled while serving as law enforcement or public safety officers.
    (b) Uses of Funds.--Grants awarded under this section shall be 
distributed directly to the State, unit of local government, or Indian 
tribe, and shall be used for the purposes specified in subsection (a).
    (c) $150,000 Limitation.--A grant under this section may not exceed 
$150,000 to any single recipient.
    (d) Matching Funds.--
            (1) The Federal portion of the costs of a program provided 
        by a grant under this section may not exceed 50 percent.
            (2) Any funds appropriated by Congress for the activities 
        of any agency of an Indian tribal government or the Bureau of 
        Indian Affairs performing law enforcement or public safety 
        functions on any Indian lands may be used to provide the non-
        Federal share of a matching requirement funded under this 
        subsection.
    (e) Applications.--To request a grant under this section, the chief 
executive of a State, unit of local government, or Indian tribe shall 
submit an application to the Attorney General at such time, in such 
manner, and accompanied by such information as the Attorney General may 
require.
    (f) Annual Report to Congress.--Not later than November 30 of each 
year, the Attorney General shall submit a report to the Congress 
regarding the activities carried out under this section. Each such 
report shall include, for the preceding fiscal year, the number of 
grants funded under this section, the amount of funds provided under 
those grants, and the activities for which those funds were used.
    (g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $3,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2002 through 2006.
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