[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 85 (Wednesday, May 17, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2981-S2984]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                          National Police Week

  Mr. DONNELLY. Mr. President, I rise today to honor our law 
enforcement officers during National Police Week and to talk about the 
importance of supporting law enforcement, including their mental 
health.
  During National Police Week, we recognize and remember the sacrifices 
of the law enforcement officers we lost in the line of duty in 2016. 
Every day and through every night in communities across Indiana and our 
country, law enforcement officers are patrolling our streets, arriving 
at the scenes of challenging and often traumatic incidents, and even 
putting themselves in harm's way as they do their best to keep our 
families safe. They help ensure that our children can be safe at the 
neighborhood playground and our seniors can sit peacefully on their 
front porch. They help keep drugs off our streets, they are called to 
the scenes of opioid and heroin overdoses, and they help stem the 
violence and crime that has plagued many of our communities for far too 
long.

  Our law enforcement officers put on the uniform every day. They head 
out the door to serve us, while their family members say a prayer 
hoping they come back safely into their family's loving arms at the end 
of their shift. Sadly, sometimes they do not.
  In my home State of Indiana, our law enforcement lost one of their 
own last year when the Howard County sheriff's deputy, Carl Koontz, was 
shot and killed during a raid in Russiaville, IN, last March.
  Deputy Koontz was only 27 years old, in the prime of his life, and 
had dedicated himself to serving and protecting the communities he 
loved. He left behind his wife Kassie and their young son Noah.
  Deputy Koontz's loss was felt not just in Kokomo, not just in Howard 
County, but in cities and towns across our State. He represented the 
very best our State has to offer. He was smart, talented, and service 
driven, working

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to make his community a better place to live.
  Mr. President, I know your State was stricken this past year, as 
well, with the loss of the same kind of extraordinary individuals who 
went and served every day. That is at the core of what law enforcement 
officers strive for and why it is so devastating when they are lost in 
the line of duty.
  While we pay our respects to those we lost, it is our solemn duty to 
support those who serve our communities today. As law enforcement 
officers go through their work, they are sometimes confronted with 
challenging or even horrific situations.
  Recently, I joined with my friend and colleague from Indiana, Senator 
Todd Young, to introduce the bipartisan Law Enforcement Mental Health 
and Wellness Act. It provides tools for law enforcement agencies to 
help support the mental health and wellness of our brave men and women.
  We were thankful to have the support from Senators Blunt, Coons, 
Cornyn, and Feinstein when we introduced the legislation. I am honored 
that Senators Blumenthal, Booker, Brown, Cruz, Hatch, Klobuchar, Cortez 
Masto, Durbin, and Tester have added their support in the days since.
  I say to the Presiding Officer, thank you for your support of our 
legislation.
  I am very pleased to say that our bill passed the Senate unanimously 
late yesterday, and it is a major step forward. I am hopeful that our 
friends in the House of Representatives, where a companion piece was 
introduced by Congresswoman Susan Brooks and Congresswoman Val Demings 
of Florida, who served as the first female chief of police in Orlando 
before coming to Congress--I am hopeful Congresswoman Brooks and 
Congresswoman Demings can shepherd this bill through that Chamber.
  This legislation is also supported by a number of law enforcement 
organizations, including the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police 
Department, the Fraternal Order of Police, the National Association of 
Police Organizations, the Major County Sheriffs of America, and more.
  I am proud that this is a bipartisan effort, as evidenced by the 
Members supporting this legislation. It is time to get this to the 
President's desk to be signed into law as soon as possible.
  The Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act is about providing 
resources to law enforcement agencies that want to better protect their 
officers' mental health, as well as the providers who strive to serve 
that unique population. It would direct the Departments of Justice and 
Health and Human Services to develop resources for mental health 
providers to educate them about law enforcement culture and evidenced-
based therapies for mental health issues common to law enforcement. It 
would require the Department of Justice to study the effectiveness of 
crisis hotlines for law enforcement. It authorizes grants to initiate 
peer mentoring programs in law enforcement agencies. We are already 
seeing the success of these programs where the IMPD, the Indianapolis 
Metropolitan Police Department, is utilizing peer mentoring for officer 
mental health.
  During my time in the Senate, our main legislative focus has been to 
improve the availability of mental healthcare services for 
servicemembers and their families. We have made great progress in 
recent years. I am proud that my bipartisan Jacob Sexton Military 
Suicide Prevention Act is now law.
  As of this September, every servicemember--Active, Reserve, or 
Guard--is required to have an annual mental health assessment. The Law 
Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act builds upon the work our 
military has been doing to combat suicide and mental health challenges.
  It requires the Department of Defense, the VA, and the Department of 
Justice to consult on military mental health practices that can be 
adopted by law enforcement agencies. Building on the Sexton Act that 
requires annual mental health assessments for servicemembers, the Law 
Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act examines if having annual 
mental health checks for law enforcement officers would help save 
lives.
  When Senator Young and I announced this legislation last month, we 
had the honor of being joined by a number of law enforcement 
professionals, including the Indianapolis chief of police, Bryan Roach. 
Chief Roach shared some of his experiences. He said:

       When I am came on, officers were taught to be in control of 
     their emotions.
       We still teach the IMPD to be in control of their emotions. 
     But if you think about the day in, day out routine of the 
     things they participate in, and the things that they see, and 
     they are confronted with on a day to day basis, it is 
     difficult sometimes to control those emotions, but they do a 
     very good job of it.
       The problem is they take those things home. The things 
     we're talking about are not just PTSD, but depression and 
     anxiety.

  As the chief stated, law enforcement officers--like the rest of us--
don't just turn themselves off when they go home. The experiences they 
have every day impact them and their family and their friends.
  Sheriff Mike Nielsen of Boone County--located in Central Indiana, 
right near Indianapolis--was also on hand that day with us to share his 
perspective. He said: In 2015, Captain Nanavaty and the office received 
national recognition, being awarded the National Law Enforcement 
Officers Memorial Fund's Annual Officer Wellness Award. IMPD's 
innovation and forward thinking have inspired police departments across 
the United States to follow their footsteps and undertake similar 
efforts to address law enforcement mental health and wellness. But this 
is just the beginning of these efforts.

       I have seen things that cannot be unseen. The brave men and 
     women of police, fire, EMS, are all public safety officers 
     who put their lives on the line each and every day.
       They endure more than anybody can imagine, and they must 
     deal with the stresses of life both on the job and at home.

  Sometimes it is really, really tough. Sheriff Nielsen continued:

       We must all work hard to stop the stigma with mental health 
     issues.
       As administrators, we have to train our supervisors how to 
     recognize signs of PTSD in our staff. We must administer 
     standard officer wellness programs.
       As administrators and public safety, we must lead from the 
     front, and let our staff know that it is okay to struggle 
     with issues. That we are only human.
       Our emotional mental health heals just like a physical 
     injury. With the proper treatment, and with time.
       We must provide the funding and resources to go beyond the 
     critical stress debriefing. We must do this for our officers.

  Both Chief Roach's and Sheriff Nielsen's comments show us the 
importance of ending the stigma attached to mental health issues. We 
can't be afraid of talking about mental health and the ways we support 
our law enforcement officers as they work through these challenges.
  Lebanon police officer Taylor Nielsen, who followed in the tradition 
of her dad, Sheriff Mike Nielsen--an extraordinary family, serving our 
State with their lives every day--was courageous enough to share her 
mental health struggles following a particularly tough assignment.
  She recounted the questions that she was dealing with:

       Why am I alone? Why isn't anybody else having these issues? 
     Why can't I get this out of my head? What is wrong with me? 
     These were the questions that repeatedly ran through my head 
     on a daily basis last year.
       Questions that made me believe that there was something 
     fundamentally wrong with me.

  She continued:

       For those of you who feel you are fighting alone, know that 
     there is relief out there. Please don't be afraid to seek out 
     those resources. The battle will be hard, but it can be won.

  Thanks to her strong will and the help of a trained therapist, Taylor 
was able to handle her mental health challenges. As she said, though, 
we have to work together as a team to beat these issues.
  We will take time over Police Week to reflect on the law enforcement 
professionals we lost last year. As we do that, it is important that we 
take commonsense steps to support our law enforcement officers.
  We took a major step forward with yesterday's passage of the Law 
Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act in the Senate. I see my 
colleague Todd Young, who was my teammate on that, in the Chamber as 
well. I am hopeful it will be enacted soon so we can bring more tools 
to law enforcement agencies across Indiana and our country. 
Congresswoman Brooks and Congresswoman Demings are working on it right 
now.
  After the service and sacrifices law enforcement officers make every 
day, they have earned the resources we have, so that we can provide the 
very best to the very best.
  Thanks again to Senator Young for working with me on this effort, to 
the police and sheriffs in Indiana who have lent their support, to law 
enforcement officers protecting Hoosiers as we stand here at this 
moment.

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  May God bless all of these officers, and may God bless the family of 
Deputy Carl Koontz. May God bless Indiana, and may God bless America.
  Mr. President, I yield back.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Indiana.
  Mr. YOUNG. Mr. President, I rise to join the senior Senator from 
Indiana in voicing my strong support for the Law Enforcement Mental 
Health and Wellness Act of 2017. During Police Week, I wish to take a 
minute to thank all of our men and women in blue who stand on the 
frontlines to protect our communities.
  I have four young children. Since they could barely talk, my wife and 
I taught them that if they need help, they should dial 911, and the 
police would respond.
  Every day our law enforcement communities around the country live 
their lives to answer these calls and to help our fellow citizens. 
Sometimes the job is as simple as reuniting a child with their parent 
at the park or at a store, but other times they see horrific scenes 
that no one should have to experience in their lifetimes or they 
experience traumatic stress in the performance of their jobs.
  Ultimately, police officers see the best and the worst of humanity, 
which can take a heavy emotional toll, but who is there to answer the 
call for help when they need it after experiencing such trauma on a 
regular basis?
  A couple of weeks ago, Senator Donnelly and I introduced the Law 
Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act. This legislation is for 
those who answer that call. This bill works with the relevant Federal 
agencies, mental health providers, and broader law enforcement 
communities to offer opportunities for care.
  When our police force is healthy, when it is strong, our communities 
are healthy and strong as well. That is why it is vital that we provide 
our Nation's law enforcement with the resources they need as they put 
their health and their lives on the line in order to protect our 
communities day in and day out.
  This includes supporting law enforcement agencies' efforts to protect 
and strengthen the mental health and wellness of their respective law 
enforcement officers. I am confident that this bill will have a 
positive impact on the mental health and wellness of law enforcement 
officers across the country.
  I look forward to the findings of DOJ's collaborative reports, the 
efficacy of the peer mentoring pilot programs, and the results of the 
Department's study into the creation of a crisis hotline for law 
enforcement officers.
  With that said, I thank Indiana's senior Senator for his hard work in 
drafting this legislation and allowing for my input and those of my 
colleagues. It has been my pleasure to work with Senator Donnelly on 
this, and I look forward to continuing our work together on behalf of 
all Hoosiers in the future.
  In fact, this legislation drew upon efforts undertaken by Hoosiers at 
the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department. In 2010, Indiana's 
IMPD recognized the need to address law enforcement mental health and 
wellness by creating the Office of Professional Development and Police 
Wellness. The IMPD captain, Brian Nanavaty, led the effort to establish 
the office and has recently promoted its motto: ``Healthy Hire--Healthy 
Retire: Wellness is more than just an annual physical.''
  Senator Donnelly and I are proud that the Law Enforcement Mental 
Health and Wellness Act has passed the Senate and is one step closer to 
being signed into law, contributing to the efforts of the IMPD.
  As I close, I want to recognize the leadership of a fellow Hoosier, 
U.S. Representative Susan Brooks, and her colleagues in the U.S. House 
who introduced this legislation. This bill has received bipartisan, 
bicameral support in Congress, widespread support from several law 
enforcement organizations, and, frankly, support across the country 
from rank-and-file Americans who understand that this is a problem we 
have an obligation to address. We are all with you. Now we call upon 
all of our colleagues in the House to act on this important legislation 
and send it to the President's desk for his signature.
  Let me finish with these words of heartfelt gratitude: Thank you to 
our law enforcement community for always answering the call.
  Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I am pleased that the Senate is 
considering Rachel Brand to be Associate Attorney General. Ms. Brand is 
a native Iowan, and I am proud to be supporting her nomination here 
today. She has had a distinguished legal career. In fact, she was 
appointed to Senate-confirmed positions by both President Bush and 
President Obama, and both times, she was confirmed by a voice vote in 
the Senate.
  But it looks like this nomination somehow has become controversial. I 
don't understand. Ms. Brand has a broad range of legal experience that 
happens to be a broad range in both the government and the private 
sector.
  With her previous positions in the White House, the Office of Legal 
Counsel, and the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, she has 
experience that touches almost every part of the Federal Government. As 
the Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy, she was 
a member of the senior management team of the Department of Justice, 
working with components and law enforcement agencies throughout the 
entire Justice Department. Similarly, at the Privacy and Civil 
Liberties Oversight Board, Ms. Brand worked with diverse agencies to 
ensure that privacy and civil liberties are taken into account while 
carrying out the important mission of protecting the Nation from 
terrorism.
  During Ms. Brand's tenure in the private sector, she gained extensive 
litigation management experience that will serve her very well as she 
oversees the Department's civil litigation components.
  She has seemingly become a little more controversial. Many of my 
colleagues on the other side of the aisle have said they aren't 
supporting her nomination because of the work she did with the U.S. 
Chamber of Commerce. Those views are utterly ridiculous. So I will take 
a minute to address these concerns.
  First, when she worked at the Chamber, all of her advocacy was done 
to represent the views of her client, the U.S. Chamber. Everybody 
expects that if you hire a lawyer, they are going to represent your 
views. We all know that we can't assume an attorney personally believes 
in what they are advocating for on behalf of their client, just ask 
criminal defense attorneys.
  Furthermore, she was not involved in any policy or lobbying apparatus 
of the Chamber. Her role there was to bring lawsuits challenging rules 
that the U.S. Chamber believed were unlawful. At the same time, besides 
just arguing those lawsuits, she had to file a lot of amicus briefs 
providing the courts with the views of the business community.
  During her time at the Chamber, she challenged a handful of the 
thousands of regulations promulgated by Federal agencies. The arguments 
Ms. Brand made in those lawsuits or amicus briefs were generally that 
the agency had acted beyond the scope of the authority Congress had 
granted that particular agency or had failed to follow the reasoned 
decisionmaking processes required by the Administrative Procedure Act 
of 1946. In many of those cases, the courts agreed with the Chamber 
that the government had acted unlawfully.
  To summarize her work during that time at the Chamber, Ms. Brand 
argued that government agencies went beyond the authority Congress had 
given

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them. She also argued that these agencies weren't acting under the 
scope of the congressional authority granted to the agency, and she 
argued that congressional authority had to be respected. It seems to me 
that it is up to Congress to give these agencies more authority if we 
think they need it. But it is not a good reason to vote against Ms. 
Brand's nomination because she argued a very commonsense and 
constitutional position that Federal agencies need to follow the laws 
of Congress.
  Finally, some Senators have maintained that they are concerned about 
her views on the Voting Rights Act. She responded very well to that. 
During her hearing, Ms. Brand told the committee that she shares 
concerns for anyone who would violate the Voting Rights Act and would 
suppress votes in the process of violating that act, and she believes 
``enforcement of that statute to be a core enforcement function of the 
civil rights division.'' I don't know about my fellow colleagues, but I 
take her at her word that she strongly believes in voting rights.
  It is more than a little puzzling, then, that when Republicans 
opposed a woman for a government position, we heard from the other 
side. The Democrats would always bring up gender politics. But when 
they oppose a woman for a position, that is somehow OK. I don't see how 
they can expect to have it both ways.
  I believe Ms. Brand will be a superb Associate Attorney General--the 
first female in this role, I might add--and that she will serve the 
office with very great distinction. I urge my colleagues to join me in 
supporting her nomination.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent for 5 or 6 minutes to speak on 
another subject as in morning business.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.