[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 84 (Thursday, May 18, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1731-S1732]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                          National Police Week

  Mrs. FISCHER. Mr. President, this week is National Police Week. It is 
an opportunity to show our gratitude to the men and women in blue who 
risk their lives every day for our safety, as well as honor those who 
have lost their lives in the line of duty.
  This Police Week I want to tell a story of a police chief in my home 
State of Nebraska.
  Local broadcast outlet KETV recently interviewed the new police chief 
of Ashland, a city of about 3,000 on the eastern side of the State. 
According to KETV, Chief Ryan Brady worked 19 days in a row at one 
point last year. He logged over 170 hours in a 2-week period. Chief 
Brady clocked more than 800 overtime hours last year. But he is on 
salary. So he is not paid for any of it.
  I am amazed at Chief Brady's dedication to the job. He works day 
shifts, night shifts, and picks up his partners' shifts when they get 
sick.
  But why does he have to do all that work? Why does he have to do so 
much? Well, because his department has encountered a staffing crisis. 
Between retirements and trouble recruiting, the Ashland Police 
Department has dwindled down to only a handful of officers.
  Chief Brady told KETV:

       Somebody's got to work. So the buck stops here. So, you 
     know, if no one else can work, I work.

  I have spoken with police officers and sheriffs all over my State, 
and I can tell you this is not a problem that is unique to Ashland. No, 
it is not even a problem unique to Nebraska. Severe police staffing 
shortages are affecting departments all across our country.
  The Police Executive Research Forum found that agencies are losing 
officers faster than they can hire new ones. There were 47 percent more 
resignations in 2022 than in 2019, in addition to 19 percent more 
retirements over the same time period. That means that large groups of 
officers are leaving the force while few are trickling in. Understaffed 
staffs are doing their best to keep up with these changes, but there 
are also roadblocks we can help them remove when it comes to hiring.
  Over the past year, I have worked with police departments across 
Nebraska, as well as national law enforcement groups representing 
departments across this country. From these conversations, I introduced 
the Recruit and Retain Act, which would help police departments tackle 
these staffing roadblocks.
  This bipartisan bill would boost officer recruitment opportunities 
through the Justice Department's Community Oriented Policing Services 
hiring grants. These grants can keep departments afloat. But 
recruitment expenses like background checks, psychological evaluations, 
and other tests are not currently included in the eligible expenses. So 
this bill would allow COPS grants to cover these specific costs and 
make it easier to onboard new officers. Reducing the cost of hiring 
would go a long way in helping law enforcement raise staffing levels.
  My bill would also establish the Pipeline Partnership Program, a new 
initiative aimed at fostering youth interest in law enforcement 
careers. Departments and local schools would work together to launch 
mentorship opportunities, job fairs, and other activities that give 
young people better insight into law enforcement work. This program 
would bolster community relationships. It would help to open up 
stronger local hiring pipelines for police departments too.
  Finally, the bill would direct the Government Accountability Office 
to study both the causes of this latest recruitment and retention 
challenge as well as the effects they have on public safety.
  I would like to thank Senator Coons for working with me on this bill 
for many months, as well as Senators Cornyn and Klobuchar. It was great 
that we saw the Judiciary Committee pass this bill by voice vote today, 
and I look forward to its advancement.
  I was also glad to join my colleague Senator Cornyn to help introduce 
two bills that further support law enforcement's tireless work. The 
Project Safe Neighborhoods Act of 2023 would reauthorize the Project 
Safe Neighborhoods program through fiscal year 2026. The PSN program is 
an effective bipartisan solution to violent crime that has been working 
since 2001.
  In Nebraska, PSN coordinates enforcement and prosecution partnerships 
among Federal, State, and local law enforcement, in addition to 
involvement with Nebraska communities to bring violent offenders to 
justice.
  The second bill, the Back the Blue Act, would protect police officers 
by creating new Federal criminal penalties for attacking law 
enforcement officers. Too often police officers are harmed rather than 
honored in our country, and it is time that we make a Federal statement 
that attackers will be punished.
  Another vital area to continue addressing is the mental health of our 
police officers, who face daily strains from the intensity of their 
jobs. I am planning to reintroduce a bill that would direct the 
Department of Health and Human Services to create a publicly accessible 
online dashboard so that organizations, including law enforcement 
groups, can easily search for Federal funding opportunities that 
support mental health. Potential applicants would be able to search for 
the

[[Page S1732]]

right mental health grants and track the status of those grants. This 
bill could truly be a lifeline to officers reeling from staffing issues 
or difficult cases.
  In his interview, Ashland Police Chief Brady said:

       I love this community. The hours that I'm putting in are 
     because of my care for the people.

  That dedication is what we honor during National Police Week, but 
let's not leave our appreciation for our selfless hard-working police 
officers behind on Saturday when Police Week ends. I urge my colleagues 
to continue backing the blue throughout the year and, especially, to 
pass these very critical bills.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. RICKETTS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.