[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 125 (Tuesday, October 10, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10155-S10156]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             BULLETPROOF VEST PARTNERSHIP GRANT ACT OF 2000

  Mr. BROWNBACK. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 652, S. 2413.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 2413) to amend the Omnibus Crime Control and 
     Safe Streets Act of 1968 to clarify the procedures and 
     conditions for the award of matching grants for the purchase 
     of armor vests.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.


                           Amendment No. 4304

  Mr. BROWNBACK. Mr. President, Senators Campbell and Leahy have an 
amendment at the desk, and I ask for its consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       The Senator from Kansas [Mr. Brownback], for Mr. Leahy, for 
     himself and Mr. Campbell, proposes an amendment numbered 
     4304.

  The amendment is as follows:


                           AMENDMENT NO. 4304

      (Purpose: To provide an interim definition for armor vests)

       On page 5, redesignate subsection (e) on line 18 as 
     subsection (f) and insert after line 17 the following:
       (e) Interim Definition of Armor Vest.--For purposes of part 
     Y of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets 
     Act of 1968, as amended by this Act, the meaning of the term 
     ``armor vest'' (as defined in section 2503 of such Act (42 
     U.S.C. 37966ll-2)) shall, until the date on which a final NIJ 
     Standard 0115.00 is first fully approved and implemented, 
     also include body armor which has been found to meet or 
     exceed the requirements for protection against stabbing 
     established by the State in which the grantee is located.

  Mr. BROWNBACK. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
amendment be agreed to, the bill be read the third time and passed, the 
motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and any statements 
relating to the bill be printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The amendment (No. 4304) was agreed to.
  The bill (S. 2413), as amended, was read the third time and passed, 
as follows:

                                S. 2413

       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 ``Bulletproof Vest Partnership 
     Grant Act of 2000''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds that--
       (1) the number of law enforcement officers who are killed 
     in the line of duty would significantly decrease if every law 
     enforcement officer in the United States had the protection 
     of an armor vest;
       (2) according to studies, between 1985 and 1994, 709 law 
     enforcement officers in the United States were killed in the 
     line of duty;
       (3) the Federal Bureau of Investigation estimates that the 
     risk of fatality to law enforcement officers while not 
     wearing an armor vest is 14 times higher than for officers 
     wearing an armor vest;
       (4) according to studies, between 1985 and 1994, bullet-
     resistant materials helped save the lives of more than 2,000 
     law enforcement officers in the United States; and
       (5) the Executive Committee for Indian Country Law 
     Enforcement Improvements reports that violent crime in Indian 
     country has risen sharply, despite a decrease in the national 
     crime rate, and has concluded that there is a ``public safety 
     crisis in Indian country''.

     SEC. 3. MATCHING GRANT PROGRAM FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT ARMOR 
                   VESTS.

       (a) Matching Funds.--Section 2501(f) of part Y of title I 
     of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 
     U.S.C. 3796ll(f)) is amended--
       (1) by striking ``The portion'' and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(1) In general.--The portion'';
       (2) by striking ``subsection (a)'' and all that follows 
     through the period at the end of the first sentence and 
     inserting ``subsection (a)--
       ``(A) may not exceed 50 percent; and
       ``(B) shall equal 50 percent, if--
       ``(i) such grant is to a unit of local government with 
     fewer than 100,000 residents;
       ``(ii) the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance 
     determines that the quantity of vests to be purchased with 
     such grant is reasonable; and
       ``(iii) such portion does not cause such grant to violate 
     the requirements of subsection (e).''; and
       (3) by striking ``Any funds'' and inserting the following:
       ``(2) Indian assistance.--Any funds''.
       (b) Allocation of Funds.--Section 2501(g) of part Y of 
     title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 
     1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796ll(g)) is amended to read as follows:
       ``(g) Allocation of Funds.--Funds available under this part 
     shall be awarded, without regard to subsection (c), to each 
     qualifying unit of local government with fewer than 100,000 
     residents. Any remaining funds available under this part 
     shall be awarded to other qualifying applicants.''.
       (c) Applications.--Section 2502 of part Y of title I of the 
     Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 
     3796ll-1) is amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(d) Applications in Conjunction With Purchases.--If an 
     application under this section is submitted in conjunction 
     with a transaction for the purchase of armor vests, grant 
     amounts under this section may not be

[[Page S10156]]

     used to fund any portion of that purchase unless, before the 
     application is submitted, the applicant--
       ``(1) receives clear and conspicuous notice that receipt of 
     the grant amounts requested in the application is uncertain; 
     and
       ``(2) expressly assumes the obligation to carry out the 
     transaction, regardless of whether such amounts are 
     received.''.
       (d) Definition of Armor Vest.--Section 2503(1) of part Y of 
     title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 
     1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796ll-2(1)) is amended--
       (1) by striking ``means body armor'' and inserting the 
     following: ``means--
       ``(A) body armor'';
       (2) by adding ``or'' at the end; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(B) body armor that has been tested through the voluntary 
     compliance testing program, and found to meet or exceed the 
     requirements of NIJ Standard 0115.00, or any revision of such 
     standard;''.
       (e) Interim Definition of Armor Vest.--For purposes of part 
     Y of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets 
     Act of 1968, as amended by this Act, the meaning of the term 
     ``armor vest'' (as defined in section 2503 of such Act (42 
     U.S.C. 3796611-2)) shall, until the date on which a final NIJ 
     Standard 0115.00 is first fully approved and implemented, 
     also include body armor which has been found to meet or 
     exceed the requirements for protection agaisnt stabbing 
     established by the State in which the grantee is located.
       (f) Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 1001(a)(23) 
     of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act 
     of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3793(a)(23)) is amended by inserting 
     before the period at the end the following: ``, and 
     $50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2002 through 2004''.

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