[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4305 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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118th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 4305
To improve the effectiveness of body armor issued to female agents and
officers of the Department of Homeland Security, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
May 9, 2024
Mr. Peters (for himself and Mrs. Britt) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security
and Governmental Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To improve the effectiveness of body armor issued to female agents and
officers of the Department of Homeland Security, 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 ``DHS Better Ballistic Body Armor
Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(a) Ballistic Resistant Body Armor.--The term ``ballistic
resistant body armor'' means torso ballistic protection containing soft
ballistic panels, hard ballistic panels, or a combination of both,
contained within a carrier, which may be concealable for wear under a
uniform shirt or external for wear over a uniform shirt, and holds
panels and plates in position on the torso.
(b) Department.--The term ``Department'' means the Department of
Homeland Security.
(c) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of
Homeland Security.
SEC. 3. PROCUREMENT OF BALLISTIC RESISTANT BODY ARMOR TO ENSURE THE
PROTECTION OF THE DEPARTMENT'S FEMALE AGENTS AND
OFFICERS.
(a) In General.--The Secretary shall require components of the
Department, when procuring ballistic resistant body armor for
individuals whose body shapes are most closely associated with female
agents and officers, to procure ballistic resistant body armor that--
(1) is specifically designed to fully protect body shapes
most closely associated with female agents and officers;
(2) is made to conform to the individual wearer and provide
the best possible fit and coverage to allow for either a flat
or shaped front panel;
(3) is assessed and verified, upon delivery, to fit
properly and have sufficient coverage in accordance with
American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM International)
standards for fit;
(4) has enhanced and advanced fit and technology that stops
a bullet from skipping off the chest at an upward angle into
the throat region or the spinal cord area; and
(5) is certified by the National Institute of Justice
(referred to in this paragraph as ``NIJ''), pursuant to the NIJ
standard for ballistic resistant body armor, and listed on the
associated NIJ Compliant Products List as successfully passing
the ballistic resistant body armor standards in accordance with
the applicable ballistic protection level recommended by the
NIJ, including passing testing that uses--
(A) ballistic testing on gender-specific clay or
gelatin molds to ensure better contact of nonplanar
panels with clay or gelatin molds;
(B) soft body armor front panels contained in soft
carriers on female-shaped clay or gelatin molds
designed to fill the space behind the panel;
(C) shots to be placed on shaping features;
(D) angled shots; and
(E) an angled shot at the chest that tests the
concerns of bullet skipping into the neckline of each
test sample to address the concern of a bullet
skipping.
(b) Annual Reports.--
(1) Issuance of ballistic resistant body armor.--Not later
than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, and
annually thereafter for the following 2 years, the head of each
relevant component agency of the Department shall submit a
report to the Secretary regarding the ballistic resistant body
armor issued to female agents and officers of such component
agency, including, with respect to the reporting period--
(A) the number of female agents and officers to
whom ballistic resistant body armor was issued for
performance of their official duties;
(B) the number of ballistic resistant body armor
units the use of which was discontinued due to
noncompliance with the requirements described in
subsection (a);
(C) the number of ballistic resistant body armor
units issued to female agents and officers that are
compliant with the requirements described in subsection
(a); and
(D) the percentage of female agents and officers of
such component agency who, as of the last day of the
reporting period, have been issued and are regularly
using ballistic resistant body armor that complies with
the requirements described in subsection (a),
disaggregated by duty station.
(2) Aggregate report.--Not later than 30 days after
receiving all of the reports required to be submitted under
paragraph (1), the Secretary shall submit a report that
aggregates all of the data contained in such reports to the
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the
Senate and the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of
Representatives.
SEC. 4. EFFECTIVE DATE.
Not later than 3 years after the date of the enactment of this Act,
all agents and officers of any component of the Department who have a
body shape most closely associated with female agents and officers
shall have been issued body armor that meets the requirements described
in section 3(a).
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