[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8509 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8509

     To reform pattern or practice investigations conducted by the 
             Department of Justice, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 22, 2024

 Ms. Strickland (for herself, Mr. Carson, and Mr. Torres of New York) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                             the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To reform pattern or practice investigations conducted by the 
             Department of Justice, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Enhancing Oversight to End 
Discrimination in Policing Act''.

SEC. 2. CONSENT DECREE PROCEDURES.

    (a) In General.--The Attorney General, acting through the Assistant 
Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of 
Justice, shall--
            (1) modify the procedures for civil consent decrees and 
        consent agreements in civil litigation with State and local 
        governmental entities arising from pattern or practice 
        investigations under section 210401 of the Violent Crime 
        Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (34 U.S.C. 12601) to 
        ensure that--
                    (A) the use of consent decrees and consent 
                agreements fosters the creation and use of remedies 
                that are not limited to law enforcement reforms, such 
                as mental health support, including in cases where a 
                pattern or practice of conduct is found to violate the 
                Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 
                12101 et seq.), or community-based restorative justice 
                mechanisms;
                    (B) community oversight requirements, such as a 
                community oversight body described in subsection (b), 
                are incorporated, when possible, into the terms of 
                consent decrees and consent agreements; and
                    (C) remedies are developed and implemented 
                expeditiously, when possible; and
            (2) in carrying out paragraph (1)(A), request guidance from 
        the heads of other relevant agencies, such as the Secretary of 
        Housing and Urban Development and the Secretary of Health and 
        Human Services, on the efficacy of the alternative remedies 
        described in that paragraph.
    (b) Community Oversight Body Described.--A community oversight body 
described in this subsection is an oversight entity that--
            (1) is comprised of individuals who--
                    (A) represent the communities and organizations 
                within the State or unit of local government to which 
                the consent decree or consent agreement applies; and
                    (B) do not work, and have not previously worked, in 
                a law enforcement capacity;
            (2) has a role of--
                    (A) ensuring compliance with the provisions of the 
                consent decree or consent agreement; and
                    (B) fostering transparency in the administration 
                and personnel of the law enforcement agency; and
            (3) has the authority to--
                    (A) ask questions of the law enforcement agency;
                    (B) obtain documents, data, and information from 
                the law enforcement agency; and
                    (C) make recommendations--
                            (i) for modifications to the provisions of 
                        the consent decree or consent agreement, as 
                        necessary; and
                            (ii) to the law enforcement agency or 
                        governmental officials overseeing the agency 
                        about changes in policing services.

SEC. 3. FUNDING FOR PATTERN OR PRACTICE INVESTIGATIONS.

    (a) Additional Funding.--
            (1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated, 
        in addition to any other amounts authorized, $445,000,000 to 
        the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice for each 
        of fiscal years 2025 through 2034, not less than $100,000,000 
        of which shall be made available each fiscal year for 
        enforcement and technical assistance under section 210401 of 
        the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (34 
        U.S.C. 12601).
            (2) Reports to congress.--Not later than 1 year after the 
        date of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the 
        Attorney General shall submit to the Committee on the Judiciary 
        of the Senate and the Committee on the Judiciary of the House 
        of Representatives a report on the use of amounts appropriated 
        pursuant to the authorization of appropriations under paragraph 
        (1), which shall include a detailed summary of how the amounts 
        were used for pattern or practice investigations.
    (b) Unlawful Conduct.--Subtitle D of title XXI of the Violent Crime 
Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (34 U.S.C. 12601 et seq.) is 
amended--
            (1) in the subtitle heading, by striking ``Police''; and
            (2) in section 210401(a) (34 U.S.C. 12601(a))--
                    (A) by striking ``by law enforcement officers or by 
                officials or employees of any governmental agency with 
                responsibility for the administration of juvenile 
                justice or the incarceration of juveniles'' and 
                inserting ``by law enforcement officers, prosecutors, 
                judges, officials or employees of any governmental 
                agency with responsibility for the administration of 
                juvenile justice or the incarceration of juveniles, or 
                other officials or employees of any governmental agency 
                involved in the administration of justice''; and
                    (B) by inserting before the period at the end the 
                following: ``, provided that no prosecutor shall be 
                deemed to have engaged in unlawful conduct under this 
                subsection on the basis of exercising discretion to 
                decline to bring criminal charges''.
    (c) Authority for State Investigations.--Section 210401(b) of the 
Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (34 U.S.C. 
12601(b)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``Whenever'' and inserting the following:
            ``(1) Federal enforcement.--Whenever'';
            (2) in paragraph (1), as so designated, by striking 
        ``paragraph (1)'' and inserting ``subsection (a)''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) State enforcement.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Whenever an attorney general of 
                a State has reasonable cause to believe that a 
                violation of subsection (a) has occurred by a 
                governmental authority, or agent thereof, of the State, 
                including a prosecutor or other agency involved in the 
                administration of justice, the attorney general, or 
                another official or agency designated by the State, may 
                in a civil action brought in any appropriate district 
                court of the United States obtain appropriate equitable 
                and declaratory relief to eliminate the pattern or 
                practice.
                    ``(B) Prevention of conflicts of interest.--
                            ``(i) In general.--No official or agency 
                        may be designated under subparagraph (A) if--
                                    ``(I) upon such designation, the 
                                Attorney General determines there is 
                                reason to believe--
                                            ``(aa) the official or 
                                        agency would be unable to 
                                        conduct an independent 
                                        investigation; or
                                            ``(bb) a conflict of 
                                        interest between the official 
                                        or agency and the governmental 
                                        authority under investigation 
                                        exists; or
                                    ``(II) the official is employed by 
                                or the agency is within, as the case 
                                may be, the governmental authority 
                                under investigation.
                            ``(ii) Independent organization required.--
                        In the case of a governmental authority under 
                        investigation that is a State-wide office, an 
                        independent organization that is unaffiliated 
                        with State or local government shall be 
                        designated under subparagraph (A).
                    ``(C) Technical assistance.--The Attorney General 
                shall provide technical assistance and training to 
                States and units of local government to assist States 
                and units of local governments in carrying out pattern 
                or practice investigations and cases.
                    ``(D) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this 
                paragraph shall be construed to preclude a Federal 
                investigation or other enforcement under this section 
                during the course of a State-led investigation or 
                claim.''.
    (d) Grant Program.--
            (1) State defined.--In this subsection, the term ``State'' 
        means each of the several States, the District of Columbia, and 
        each commonwealth, territory, or possession of the United 
        States.
            (2) Authorization.--The Attorney General may award grants 
        to States to assist such States in pursuing pattern or practice 
        investigations and cases under section 210401 of the Violent 
        Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (34 U.S.C. 
        12601).
            (3) Use of funds.--A grant awarded under this subsection 
        may be used by a State to--
                    (A) conduct pattern or practice investigations and 
                cases under section 210401 of the Violent Crime Control 
                and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (34 U.S.C. 12601);
                    (B) implement and enforce law enforcement reforms 
                to address patterns and practices identified under such 
                section 210401, provided that no funds may be diverted 
                to law enforcement agencies for other law enforcement 
                operations; and
                    (C) develop non-law enforcement programs that 
                reduce dependence on law enforcement agencies, such as 
                funding social workers, behavioral health crisis 
                experts, and public safety alternatives to police 
                enforcement of traffic rules.
            (4) Application.--To be eligible to receive a grant under 
        this subsection, a State shall submit an application to the 
        Attorney General that--
                    (A) contains clearly defined and measurable 
                objectives for the grant funds;
                    (B) describes how the State intends to use the 
                grant funds to pursue, implement, and enforce pattern 
                or practice investigations and cases under section 
                210401 of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement 
                Act of 1994 (34 U.S.C. 12601);
                    (C) outlines the qualifications and training of the 
                attorneys, staff, and other personnel who are, or who 
                may be, assigned to lead or assist pattern or practice 
                investigations and cases; and
                    (D) demonstrates how the State will remedy patterns 
                or practices of unlawful law enforcement conduct 
                through the creation of community-based programs 
                designed to address underlying challenges leading to 
                law enforcement interaction.
            (5) Required reporting.--
                    (A) Grantee reporting.--Not later than 5 business 
                days after the last day of each quarter of each fiscal 
                year for which a State receives a grant under this 
                subsection, the State shall submit to the Attorney 
                General a report detailing, for that quarter--
                            (i) how the grant funds were used; and
                            (ii) the progress made towards addressing 
                        patterns and practices identified under section 
                        210401 of the Violent Crime Control and Law 
                        Enforcement Act of 1994 (34 U.S.C. 12601).
                    (B) Reports to congress.--Not later than 18 months 
                after the date of enactment of this Act, and annually 
                thereafter, the Attorney General shall submit to the 
                Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the 
                Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 
                Representatives a report on the grant program 
                established under this subsection, which shall 
                include--
                            (i) a detailed summary of how grant funds 
                        awarded under the grant program were used; and
                            (ii) recommendations, if any, for 
                        improvements needed for the grant program.
            (6) Accountability mechanisms.--
                    (A) Monitoring & evaluation.--
                            (i) In general.--Pursuant to rules 
                        promulgated by the Attorney General, the 
                        Attorney General shall--
                                    (I) monitor the use of grant funds 
                                by each recipient of a grant under this 
                                subsection; and
                                    (II) evaluate the results of 
                                pattern or practice investigations 
                                carried out using grants awarded under 
                                this subsection.
                            (ii) Types of evaluations.--An evaluation 
                        conducted under clause (i) may include an 
                        independent audit or assessment of--
                                    (I) the behavior of law enforcement 
                                officers;
                                    (II) the performance of a pattern 
                                or practice investigation; or
                                    (III) the implementation of 
                                remedies following a pattern or 
                                practice investigation.
                            (iii) Data collection.--The Attorney 
                        General may require 1 or more recipients of 
                        grants under this subsection to collect data on 
                        the race, gender, socioeconomic status, and 
                        other demographic characteristics of 
                        individuals subject to deprivations of the 
                        rights, privileges, or immunities secured or 
                        protected by the Constitution or laws of the 
                        United States.
                    (B) Revocation of grant.--If the Attorney General 
                finds, based on reporting under paragraph (5), 
                monitoring and evaluation under subparagraph (A) of 
                this paragraph, or other information, that grant funds 
                awarded under this subsection are being diverted to law 
                enforcement operations or another purpose other than 
                pattern or practice investigations--
                            (i) the Attorney General shall revoke the 
                        grant; and
                            (ii) the grantee shall repay to the Federal 
                        Government any amounts that the grantee--
                                    (I) received through the grant; and
                                    (II) has not obligated or expended.
            (7) Authorization of appropriations.--There are authorized 
        to be appropriated to the Attorney General $150,000,000 for 
        each of fiscal years 2025 through 2034 to carry out this 
        subsection.
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