[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 87 (Thursday, June 5, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Page S3477]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. REED (for himself, Ms. Ayotte, Mr. Leahy, Mr. Markey, and 
        Mr. Whitehouse):
  S. 2441. 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, 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. 
This legislation would make these individuals eligible for the same 
benefits provided to public law enforcement officers, including line-
of-duty death benefits under the Public Safety Officers' Benefits 
Program and bulletproof vest partnership grants through the Department 
of Justice.
  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.
  The same risks also apply to officers protecting our private 
universities and railways. However, the PSOB Act does not include these 
officers, even though they enforce the law. These brave individuals, 
who protect our college and university campuses and railways every day 
and receive similar training to their government counterparts, are thus 
excluded from receiving the line-of-duty federal death benefits 
available to law enforcement officers serving units of State and local 
governments.
  Over the last 50 years, 35 college or university law enforcement 
officers have lost their lives in the line of duty, according to the 
National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund. The names of these 
officers, including Patrol Officer Joseph Francis Doyle who was killed 
in the line of duty at Brown University in 1988, as well as the railway 
officers who have been killed in the line of duty are inscribed on the 
memorial.
  A recent name on the memorial is Patrol Officer Sean Collier. We 
recently marked the first anniversary of the bombing at the Boston 
Marathon, an act of terror that tragically killed three and injured 
over 260 others. Three days later, during the manhunt for the 
attackers, the perpetrators shot and killed Officer Collier of the MIT 
Police Department on the university's campus. Officer Collier was not 
only bravely serving the students and faculty of MIT last April. He was 
also serving the city of Boston, working with others in the law 
enforcement community to keep the city and our Nation safe during an 
exceptionally tense and difficult time. However, since he was employed 
by a private university, Officer Collier was not eligible for line-of-
duty death benefits. To honor Officer Collier's service and sacrifice, 
this bill would be retroactive to April 15, 2013, the day of the Boston 
bombings.
  I am pleased that Senators Ayotte, Leahy, Markey, and Whitehouse have 
joined me in introducing this legislation, which would ensure that 
officers who give their full measure and their families are eligible 
for the benefits associated with law enforcement work, and that they 
have access to the protective equipment they need.
  The bill would only apply to officers who are sworn, licensed or 
certified to enforce the law within their jurisdiction, and is 
supported by the National Association of Police Organizations and the 
International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators.
  I urge our colleagues to join us in cosponsoring and passing the 
Equity in Law Enforcement Act.

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