[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 84 (Tuesday, May 22, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6476-S6477]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. REED (for himself, Mr. Leahy, and Mr. Cornyn):
  S. 1448. A bill to extend the same Federal benefits to law 
enforcement officers serving private institutions of higher education 
and rail carriers that apply to law enforcement officers serving units 
of State and local government; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
  Mr. REED. Mr. President, on April 16, 2007, our Nation faced a 
terrible tragedy, the deadliest shooting in the history of our Nation. 
I want to express my sympathy to the victims of this senseless 
violence, one of whom was Daniel O'Neil, a 22-year-old Virginia Tech 
graduate student from Lincoln, RI.
  The unfortunate truth is that this unspeakable event could have 
happened on any campus, anywhere. It highlighted how vulnerable our 
Nation's university and college campuses can be to this type of attack.
  Today, I am reintroducing the Equity in Law Enforcement Act, to 
extend Federal benefits to law enforcement officers who serve private 
institutions of higher education and rail carriers, including line-of-
duty death benefits under the Public Safety Officers' Benefits Program, 
and eligibility for bulletproof vest partnership grants through the 
Department of Justice. This legislation would give sworn, licensed, or 
certified police officers serving private institutions of higher 
education and rail carriers the same Federal benefits that apply to law 
enforcement officers serving units of State and local government.
  The Public Safety Officers' Benefits, PSOB, Act of 1976 was enacted 
to aid in the recruitment and retention of law enforcement officers and 
firefighters by providing a one-time financial benefit to the eligible 
survivors of public safety officers whose deaths are the direct result 
of traumatic injury sustained in the line of duty. Specifically, this 
law addresses concerns that the hazards inherent in law enforcement and 
fire suppression, and the low level of State and local death benefits, 
might discourage qualified individuals from seeking careers in these 
fields.
  The same risks also apply to police officers protecting our private 
universities and railways. Unfortunately, the Public Safety Officers' 
Benefits Act omitted coverage to sworn officers who are privately 
employed, even though they enforce the law and have arrest powers 
within their jurisdiction. These brave officers, who protect our 
college and university campuses and railways every day and receive the 
same training as their government counterparts, are thus excluded from 
receiving the same line-of-duty Federal death benefits as law 
enforcement officers serving units of State and local governments.
  According to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, 25 
college or university officers have been killed in the line of duty 
since September 20, 1963. The names of these 25 officers, including 
Officer Joseph Francis Doyle, who was killed in the line of duty at 
Brown University in 1988, as well as 59 railway officers who have been 
killed in the line-of-duty are inscribed on the Memorial.
  Since September 2004, three sworn campus police officers have been 
killed in the line-of-duty. Two of these officers were from public 
universities: the University of Florida and the University of 
Mississippi, whose sworn officers are covered by the Public Safety 
Officers' Benefits Act. The third, however, was Butler University 
Police Department Officer James L. Davis, Jr., who was shot and killed 
in the line of duty on September 24, 2004, while responding to a campus 
disturbance. Because Butler University is a private university, Officer 
Davis was not eligible for the same Federal benefits as his 
counterparts at the University of Florida or the University of 
Mississippi.
  I am pleased that Senators Leahy and Cornyn have joined me in 
introducing this legislation to help remedy this discrepancy in death 
benefit payments for law enforcement officers and ensure that these 
public safety officers have access to the protective equipment they 
need.
  The bill would apply only to sworn peace officers who receive State 
certification or licensing, and is supported by the International 
Association of Chiefs of Police, IACP, and the International 
Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators, IACLEA. Indeed, 
the benefits of this legislation far outweigh the costs. A 2004 
analysis by the Congressional Budget Office found that there would be 
no significant budget impact by its enactment.
  I urge my colleagues to join me, and Senators Leahy and Cornyn, in 
cosponsoring and passing the Equity in Law Enforcement Act, to ensure 
that the brave officers that serve and protect our private college and 
university campuses and railways receive the benefits that they 
deserve. I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed 
in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                S. 1448

       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 ``Equity in Law Enforcement 
     Act''.

     SEC. 2. LINE-OF-DUTY DEATH AND DISABILITY BENEFITS.

       Section 1204(8) of part L of the Omnibus Crime Control and 
     Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796b(8)) is amended--
       (1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``or'' at the end;
       (2) in subparagraph (C), by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting a semicolon; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(D) an individual who is--
       ``(i) serving a private institution of higher education in 
     an official capacity, with or without compensation, as a law 
     enforcement officer; and
       ``(ii) sworn, licensed, or certified under the laws of a 
     State for the purposes of law enforcement (and trained to 
     meet the training standards for law enforcement officers 
     established by the relevant governmental appointing 
     authority); or
       ``(E) a rail police officer who is--
       ``(i) employed by a rail carrier; and
       ``(ii) sworn, licensed, or certified under the laws of a 
     State for the purposes of law enforcement (and trained to 
     meet the training standards for law enforcement officers 
     established by the relevant governmental appointing 
     authority).''.

     SEC. 3. LAW ENFORCEMENT ARMOR VESTS.

       (a) Grant Program.--Section 2501 of part Y of the Omnibus 
     Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796ll) 
     is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) by striking ``and Indian tribes'' and inserting 
     ``Indian tribes, private institutions of higher education, 
     and rail carriers''; and
       (B) by inserting before the period the following: ``and law 
     enforcement officers serving private institutions of higher 
     education and rail carriers who are sworn, licensed, or 
     certified under the laws of a State for the purposes of law 
     enforcement (and trained to meet the training standards for 
     law enforcement officers established by the relevant 
     governmental appointing authority)'';

[[Page S6477]]

       (2) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ``or Indian tribe'' 
     and inserting ``Indian tribe, private institution of higher 
     education, or rail carrier''; and
       (3) in subsection (e), by striking ``or Indian tribe'' and 
     inserting ``Indian tribe, private institution of higher 
     education, or rail carrier''.
       (b) Applications.--Section 2502 of part Y of the Omnibus 
     Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796ll-
     1) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``or Indian tribe'' and 
     inserting ``Indian tribe, private institution of higher 
     education, or rail carrier''; and
       (2) in subsection (b), by striking ``and Indian tribes'' 
     and inserting ``Indian tribes, private institutions of higher 
     education, and rail carriers''.
       (c) Definitions.--Section 2503(6) of part Y of the Omnibus 
     Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796ll-
     2(6)) is amended by striking ``or Indian tribe'' and 
     inserting ``Indian tribe, private institution of higher 
     education, or rail carrier''.

     SEC. 4. BYRNE GRANTS.

       Section 501(b)(2) of part E of title I of the Omnibus Crime 
     Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3751(b)(2)) 
     is amended by inserting after ``units of local government'' 
     the following: ``, private institutions of higher education, 
     and rail carriers''.
                                 ______