[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 9]
[Senate]
[Pages 12077-12078]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




  ON PASSAGE OF THE ``HOMETOWN HEROES SURVIVORS BENEFITS ACT OF 2003''

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I rise today to express my happiness over 
the Senate passage of the ``Hometown Heroes Survivors Benefits Act of 
2003 in the early morning hours of last Friday. I thank Senators Graham 
of South Carolina, Collins, Jeffords, Sarbanes, Schumer, Durbin, 
Landrieu, Nelson of Florida, Clinton, Snowe, Kohl, Smith, Stabenow, 
Kennedy, and Dayton for joining me as cosponsors of this multi-partisan 
legislation that will improve the Department of Justice's Public Safety 
Officers' Benefits, PSOB, Program by allowing families of public safety 
officers who suffer fatal heart attacks or strokes to qualify for 
federal survivor benefits. I also thank Senator Minority Leader Tom 
Daschle for his hard work to pass our bill through the Senate last 
Friday at 2:30 a.m. Without his perseverance, passage of this bill 
would not have happened.
  I also thank each of our Nation's brave firefighters, emergency 
medical rescuers and law enforcement officers for the jobs they do for 
the American public day in and day out. Our public safety officers are 
often the first to respond to any crime or emergency situation. On 
September 11, the Nation saw that the first on the scene at the World 
Trade Center were the heroic firefighters, police officers and 
emergency personnel of New York City. These real-life heroes, many of 
whom gave the ultimate sacrifice, remind us of how important it is to 
support our state and local public safety partners.
  I commend Congressmen Etheridge, Weldon, Hoyer and Oxley for their 
leadership and fortitude during the last Congress on an identical bill 
in the House. I look forward to working with them, as well as House 
Judiciary Chairman, Sensenbrenner and Ranking Member Conyers, to pass 
our Senate bill through the House and send it to the President's desk 
for passage into law as soon as possible.
  Our legislation has received the endorsement of the Fraternal Order 
of Police, National Association of Police Organizations, International 
Brotherhood of Police Officers, Congressional Fire Services Institute, 
International Association of Arson Investigators, International 
Association of Fire Chiefs, International Association of Fire Fighters, 
National Fire Protection Association, National Volunteer Fire Council, 
North American Fire Training Directors, International Fire Buff 
Associates, National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians, 
American Ambulance Association, the American Federation of State, 
County and Municipal Employees, along with over 50 additional national 
organizations. I thank all of these organizations for their unwavering 
support for this legislation.
  Public safety officers are our most brave and dedicated public 
servants. I applaud the efforts of all members of fire, law 
enforcement, and EMS providers nationwide who are the first to respond 
to more than 1.6 million emergency calls annually--whether those calls 
involve a crime, fire, medical emergency, spill of hazardous materials, 
natural disaster, act of terrorism, or transportation accident--without 
reservation. Those men and women act with an unwavering commitment to 
the safety and protection of their fellow citizens, and forever willing 
to selflessly sacrifice their own lives to provide safe and reliable 
emergency services to their communities.
  Sadly, that kind of dedication can result in tragedy, which was 
reaped in abundance at the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on 
September 11, when scores of firefighters, police officers and medics 
raced into the jaws of danger with no other goal than to save lives. 
Every year, hundreds of public safety officers nationwide lose their 
lives and thousands more are injured while performing duties that 
subject them to great physical risks. And while we know that PSOB 
benefits can never be a substitute for the loss of a loved one, the 
families of all our fallen heroes deserve to collect these funds.
  The PSOB Program was established in 1976 to authorize a one-time 
financial payment to the eligible survivors of Federal, State, and 
local public safety officers for all line of duty deaths. In 2001, 
Congress improved the PSOB Program by streamlining the process for 
families of public safety officers killed or injured in connection with 
prevention, investigation, rescue or recovery efforts related to a 
terrorist attack. We also retroactively increased the total benefits 
available by $100,000 as part of the USA PATRIOT Act. The Program now 
provides approximately $262,000 in benefits to the families of first 
responders killed in the line of duty.
  Unfortunately, the issue of covering heart attack and stroke victims 
in the PSOB Program was not addressed at that time.
  When establishing the PSOB Program, Congress placed only three 
limitations on the payment of benefits. No award could be paid, first, 
if the death was caused by the intentional misconduct of the officer or 
by such officer's intention to bring about his own death; second, if 
voluntary intoxication of the officer was the proximate cause of such 
officer's death; or, third, to any person otherwise entitled to a 
benefit if such person's action was a

[[Page 12078]]

substantial contributing factor to the death of the officer.
  In years following, however, the Justice Department began to 
interpret the Program's guidelines to exclude from benefits the 
survivors of public safety officer who die of a heart attack or stroke 
while acting in the line of duty, arguing that the attack must be 
accompanied by a traumatic injury, such as a wound or other condition 
of the body caused by external force, including injuries by bullets, 
smoke inhalation, explosives, sharp instruments, blunt objects or other 
physical blows, chemicals, electricity, climatic conditions, infectious 
diseases, radiation, and bacteria. Barred are those who suffer from 
occupational injuries, such as stress and strain.
  Service-connected heart, lung, and hypertension conditions are silent 
killers of public safety officers nationwide. The numerous hidden 
health dangers dealt with by police officers, fire fighters and 
emergency medical personnel are widely recognized, but officers face 
these dangers in order to carry out their sworn duty to serve and 
protect their fellow citizens.
  Our multi-partisan bill would effectively erase any distinction 
between traumatic and occupational injuries. The Hometown Heroes bill 
will fix the loophole in the PSOB Program to ensure that the survivors 
of public safety officers who die of heart attacks or strokes in the 
line of duty or within 24 hours of a triggering effect while on duty--
regardless of whether a traumatic injury is present at the time of the 
heart attack or stroke--are eligible to receive financial assistance. I 
was serving my first term in the Senate when the Program was 
established, and I firmly believe that this is what Congress meant for 
the survivors of our nation's first responders to receive through the 
Public Safety Officers Benefits Program.
  Heart attacks and strokes are a reality of the high-pressure jobs of 
police officers, firefighters and medics. These are killers that first 
responders contend with in their jobs, just like speeding bullets and 
burning buildings. They put their lives on the line for us, and we owe 
their families our gratitude, our respect and our help. No amount of 
money can fill the void that is left by these losses, but ending this 
disparity can help these families keep food on the table and shelter 
over their heads. It helps them make the transition into their new 
lives.
  The gap hits families hard when tragedy strikes. Earlier this year, 
two Vermont firefighters suffered heart attacks while responding to 
emergencies. According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, 31 
firefighters died of heart attacks relating to their jobs in 2002, and 
based on statistics from the Officer Down Memorial Page, 8 police 
officers suffered heart attacks while carrying out their duties. Due to 
the current loophole in the PSOB Program, though, the families of these 
individuals will not receive federal survivor benefits without the 
Hometown Heroes Survivors Benefit Act. For example, in January 1978, 
special Deputy Sheriff Bernard Demag of the Chittenden County Sheriff's 
Office in Vermont suffered a fatal heart attack within two hours of his 
chase and apprehension of an escaped juvenile whom he had been 
transporting. Mr. Demag's family spent nearly two decades fighting in 
court for workers' compensation death benefits all to no avail. 
Clearly, we should be treating surviving family members of officers who 
die in the line of duty with more decency and respect.
  Public safety is dangerous, exhausting, and stressful work. A first 
responder's chances of suffering a heart attack or stroke greatly 
increase when he or she puts on heavy equipment and rushes into a 
burning building to fight a fire and save lives. The families of these 
brave public servants deserve to participate in the PSOB Program if 
their loved ones die of a heart attack or other cardiac related 
ailments while selflessly protecting us from harm.
  First responders across the country now face a new series of 
challenges as they respond to millions of emergency calls this year. 
They do this with an unwavering commitment to the safety of their 
fellow citizens, and are forever willing to selflessly sacrifice their 
own lives to protect the lives and property of their fellow citizens. I 
see no reason to hold up this important legislation--last Congress the 
House passed Congressman Etheridge's identical language, and only a 
single, anonymous Republican hold in the Senate prevented its final 
passage. I am proud that the Senate has chosen to do the right thing 
and shown its support and appreciation for these extraordinarily brave 
and heroic public safety officers by passing the Hometown Heroes 
Survivors Benefit Act. I urge the leaders of the House to follow our 
lead and pass this legislation.

                          ____________________