II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4749 

To improve grants administered by the Office of Community Oriented Policing 

Services, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

AUGUST 2, 2022 

Mr. BOOKER introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To improve grants administered by the Office of Community 

Oriented Policing Services, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘COPS Responsible Ad5 ministration and Management Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) The Office of Community Oriented Policing 

9 Services (referred to in this section as the ‘‘COPS 

10 Office’’) was established within the Department of 


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1 Justice pursuant to the Violent Crime Control and 

2 Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (Public Law 103– 

3 322; 108 Stat. 1796) in order to provide grant fund4 ing to law enforcement agencies to improve policing 

5 and add 100,000 police officers to law enforcement 

6 agencies across the United States. 

7 (2) Since 1994, the COPS Office has distrib8 uted more than $14,000,000,000 to more than 

9 13,000 State, local, and Tribal law enforcement 

10 agencies to fund the hiring and redeployment of 

11 more than 135,000 law enforcement officers under 

12 the program established under part Q of title I of 

13 the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 

14 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10381 et seq.) (referred to in this 

15 section as the ‘‘COPS program’’). 

16 (3) For fiscal year 2022, Congress appropriated 

17 $246,000,000 for the COPS Hiring Program under 

18 section 1701(b)(2) of title I of the Omnibus Crime 

19 Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 

20 10381(b)(2)) (referred to in this section as the 

21 ‘‘CHP’’). 

22 (4) The total amounts appropriated for the 

23 COPS programs has steadily increased over the last 

24 several years from $222,000,000 for fiscal year 

25 2017 to $512,000,000 for fiscal year 2022, adding 


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1 to the administrative of responsibilities and workload 

2 of the COPS Office. 

3 (5) For fiscal years 2021 and 2022, in addition 

4 to continued funding for the CHP, COPS Office 

5 grants were awarded for a wide variety of purposes 

6 for law enforcement agencies to improve public safe7 ty and implement best practices. 

8 (6) In authorizing COPS program funding at 

9 increasing levels each year, Congress is obligated to 

10 monitor how these Federal dollars are invested and 

11 that funds are spent as effectively as possible to 

12 carry out the goals of the COPS program. 

13 (7) As the COPS program has expanded to pro14 vide increased funding for public safety, the critical 

15 need to dedicate resources to administering this pro16 gram, overseeing its implementation, and tracking 

17 its efficacy becomes more pressing. Law enforcement 

18 agencies will likely need more resources to comply 

19 with accountability requirements as additional law 

20 enforcement officers are hired and training pro21 grams are made more robust. 

22 (8) The Federal Government should be invest23 ing in evidence-based, proven training strategies that 

24 will make the communities of the United States 

25 safer. Yet, many training techniques have not been 


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1 sufficiently studied or do not empirically reduce use 

2 of force incidents. 

3 (9) When local law enforcement agencies receive 

4 Federal funding, they must comply with civil rights 

5 laws. 

6 (10) It is the duty of Congress to— 

7 (A) ensure the accountability of recipients 

8 of Federal funds; 

9 (B) manage taxpayer dollars in a respon10 sible and efficient manner; and 

11 (C) prevent Federal dollars from sup12 porting policing, or any other practices, that 

13 violate the civil and constitutional rights the 

14 people of the United States. 

15 (11) It is the duty of Congress to ensure that 

16 Federal funds are invested in effective law enforce17 ment training techniques and technologies that— 

18 (A) reduce negative or dangerous encoun19 ters between communities and police, including 

20 use of force incidents; 

21 (B) increase the diversion to mental health 

22 and other social service of calls for service; and 

23 (C) improve public safety. 


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1 (12) The COPS Office does not evaluate its 

2 programs or grant awards to ensure investments in 

3 activities that— 

4 (A) improve police relationships with com5 munities; and 

6 (B) reduce negative or dangerous inter7 actions between law enforcement officers and 

8 the public, including use of force incidents. 

9 (13) Congress must act to remedy this lack of 

10 oversight and ensure that— 

11 (A) the COPS program is operating in an 

12 effective way; and 

13 (B) funds are invested in activities that 

14 promote and enhance public safety and respect 

15 the dignity and rights of all people. 

16 (14) To ensure the efficient administration and 

17 responsible management of the COPS program, 

18 Congress must provide the Department of Justice 

19 sufficient resources to achieve these goals. 

20 (15) Accountability and transparency in law en21 forcement and all other government activities are es22 sential to a healthy democracy and a functional sys23 tem of public safety. Providing the Department of 

24 Justice and law enforcement agencies with the re25 sources to implement, monitor, and optimize policing 


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1 strategies will improve both community safety and 

2 public trust in law enforcement. 

3 SEC. 3. EVALUATION OF THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE 

4 COPS OFFICE GRANT PROGRAM. 

5 Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 

6 of this Act, the Director of the Office of Management and 

7 Budget shall— 

8 (1) conduct a review of the grant program es9 tablished under section 1701 of title I of the Omni10 bus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 

11 U.S.C. 10381), including a review of grants used for 

12 the purpose described in subsection (b)(2) of that 

13 section, to assess— 

14 (A) the efficiency of the administration of 

15 the program, including the processes for devel16 oping and drafting solicitations, reviewing grant 

17 applications, and choosing grant recipients; and 

18 (B) the oversight of grant awards, includ19 ing— 

20 (i) audits of grant awards; 

21 (ii) a verification that funds are used 

22 for the approved program activities; 

23 (iii) reporting requirements and anal24 ysis of information reported by grant re25 cipients; 


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1 (iv) evaluation of the outcomes and 

2 impacts of the grant program across demo3 graphic categories; and 

4 (v) other performance metrics use to 

5 assess the effectiveness of program activi6 ties in achieving the stated goals of— 

7 (I) improving community rela8 tionships; and 

9 (II) the reduction of negative or 

10 dangerous interactions between law 

11 enforcement officers and the public, 

12 including use of force incidents; 

13 (2) conduct a review of all Federal grant pro14 grams to identify duplicative grants; and 

15 (3) submit to the Attorney General, the Com16 mittee on the Judiciary of the Senate, and the Com17 mittee on the Judiciary of the House of Representa18 tives a report that— 

19 (A) summarizes the findings of the reviews 

20 performed under paragraph (1) and (2); 

21 (B) makes recommendations to enhance 

22 the administration, oversight, transparency and 

23 management of the grant program described in 

24 paragraph (1); and 


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1 (C) identifies duplicative grants and makes 

2 recommendations for the consolidation or dis3 continuation of grant programs where possible. 

4 SEC. 4. EFFECTIVENESS OF GRANTS. 

5 (a) EVALUATION PLAN.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

7 the date of enactment of this Act, Director of the 

8 Office of Management and Budget, in consultation 

9 with appropriate experts and stakeholders, shall de10 velop a plan for the Office of Community Oriented 

11 Policing Services to evaluate the effectiveness of 

12 grants awarded under section 1701 of title I of the 

13 Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 

14 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10381) in achieving— 

15 (A) the goals and objectives of improving 

16 public safety through a reduction in negative or 

17 dangerous interactions between law enforcement 

18 officers and the public, including use of force 

19 incidents; and 

20 (B) compliance with Federal law. 

21 (2) CONTENTS.—The plan developed under 

22 paragraph (1) shall— 

23 (A) establish— 


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1 (i) implementable reporting require2 ments for the purpose of assessing grant3 funded activities; 

4 (ii) performance metrics that— 

5 (I) promote compliance with civil 

6 and human rights law and principles; 

7 (II) reduce negative or dangerous 

8 interactions between law enforcement 

9 officers and the public, including use 

10 of force incidents; and 

11 (III) measure the impact of grant 

12 activities on communities across de13 mographic categories; 

14 (iii) the role of components of the 

15 Federal Government other than the Office 

16 of Community Oriented Policing Services 

17 in assisting in the oversight of those 

18 grants, including the Office of Manage19 ment and Budget, the Office of the Inspec20 tor General of the Department of Justice, 

21 the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the Bu22 reau of Justice Assistance, and the Na23 tional Institute of Justice; and 

24 (iv) the process for the continued sup25 port of promising practices through the deVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:54 Aug 07, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4749.IS S4749

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1 velopment and testing of innovative strate2 gies; 

3 (B) build knowledge about effective prac4 tices and outcomes; 

5 (C) support new, creative approaches to 

6 preventing crime and promoting safe commu7 nities; 

8 (D) include a plan for the discontinuation 

9 of grant-funded activities that are in violation 

10 of the laws described in section 5(1) or other 

11 civil rights laws; 

12 (E) include a description of the resources 

13 necessary for the Department of Justice and 

14 the Office of Community Oriented Policing 

15 Services to implement the plan. 

16 (b) IMPLEMENTATION OF EVALUATION PLAN.—Not 

17 later than 180 days after the date of completion of the 

18 plan required under subsection (a)(1), the Attorney Gen19 eral, in consultation with the Director of the Office of 

20 Management and Budget, the Inspector General of the 

21 Department of Justice, the Director of the Bureau of Jus22 tice Statistics, the Director of the Bureau of Justice As23 sistance, and the Director of the National Institute of Jus24 tice, shall implement the plan. 


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1 (c) FUNDING.—There are authorized to be appro2 priated to the Director of the Office of Community Ori3 ented Policing Services to carry out subsection (b) 

4 $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 through 2028. 

5 SEC. 5. CIVIL RIGHTS COMPLIANCE. 

6 Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 

7 of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Attorney General, 

8 in coordination with the Director of the Office of Justice 

9 Programs, the Director of the Office of Community Ori10 ented Policing Services, and the Director of the Office on 

11 Violence Against Women, shall— 

12 (1) conduct a review of the implementation and 

13 administrative enforcement by the Department of 

14 Justice of title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 

15 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.) and section 809(c)(1) of 

16 title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 

17 Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10228(c)(1)) in con18 nection with Federal financial assistance the Depart19 ment of Justice provides under any grant program; 

20 (2) implement a formal review process to ensure 

21 that recipients of grants under section 1701 of title 

22 I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets 

23 Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10381) are in compliance 

24 with civil rights laws; 


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1 (3) establish a system for verifying that an ap2 plicant for grants administered by the Department 

3 of Justice demonstrate compliance with civil rights 

4 laws before the date on which the applicant receives 

5 any funds from such a grant; 

6 (4) suspend the award of any grant adminis7 tered by the Department of Justice to a law enforce8 ment agency that does not cooperate with a civil 

9 rights compliance review or investigation conducted 

10 by the Attorney General, including an investigation 

11 conducted pursuant to section 210401 of the Violent 

12 Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 

13 (34 U.S.C. 12601), by rejecting document requests, 

14 restricting access to information or data, or other15 wise obstructing the review or investigation, until 

16 the law enforcement agency— 

17 (A) cooperates with the review or inves18 tigation; or 

19 (B) otherwise demonstrates compliance 

20 with the laws described in paragraph (1); and 

21 (5) submit to the Committee on the Judiciary 

22 of the Senate and the Committee on the Judiciary 

23 of the House of Representatives a report summa24 rizing the findings of the review conducted under 

25 paragraph (1). 


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1 SEC. 6. IMPROVING THE COPS GRANT PROGRAM. 

2 (a) USE-OF-FORCE DATA GRANTS.—Not later than 

3 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Attor4 ney General shall— 

5 (1) establish a grant program within the Office 

6 of Community Oriented Policing Services to provide 

7 grants to law enforcement agencies of States, units 

8 of local government, or Tribal governments to pay 

9 for the costs associated with participation in the Na10 tional Use-of-Force Data Collection of the Federal 

11 Bureau of Investigation; and 

12 (2) through the Bureau of Justice Assistance, 

13 develop and provide technical assistance to law en14 forcement agencies of State, units of local govern15 ment, or Tribal governments for participation in the 

16 National Use-of-Force Data Collection of the Fed17 eral Bureau of Investigation. 

18 (b) UNIFORMITY IN POLICING POLICIES.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

20 the law enforcement agency of a State, unit of local 

21 of government, or Tribal government that applies for 

22 a grant under section 1701 of title I of the Omnibus 

23 Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 

24 U.S.C. 10381) shall certify in the application for the 

25 grant that the law enforcement agency has in place 


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1 a chokehold policy and a no-knock entry policy con2 sistent with— 

3 (A) Executive Order 14074 (87 Fed. Reg. 

4 32945; relating to accountable policing and 

5 criminal justice practices); and 

6 (B) the policy contained in the memo7 randum issued by the Department of Justice on 

8 September 13, 2021 entitled ‘‘Chokeholds & ca9 rotid restraints; knock and announce require10 ment’’. 

11 (2) MORE STRINGENT RULES.—The law en12 forcement agency of a State, unit of local govern13 ment, or Tribal law enforcement that applies for a 

14 grant under section 1701 of title I of the Omnibus 

15 Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 

16 U.S.C. 10381) may certify in the application for the 

17 grant that the law enforcement agency has in place 

18 a policy that— 

19 (A) is more stringent than a policy de20 scribed in paragraph (1); 

21 (B) entirely bans the use of chokeholds or 

22 carotid restraints; or 

23 (C) entirely bans the use of no-knock en24 tries. 


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1 (c) PREFERENTIAL CONSIDERATION.—In awarding 

2 grants under section 1701 of title I of the Omnibus Crime 

3 Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10381), 

4 the Attorney General shall give preferential consideration 

5 to applicants that— 

6 (1) participate in the National Use-of-Force 

7 Data Collection of the Federal Bureau of Investiga8 tion; or 

9 (2) have implemented a policy described in sub10 paragraph (B) or (C) of subsection (b)(2). 

11 (d) FUNDING.—There are authorized to be appro12 priated to the Director of the Office of Community Ori13 ented Policing Services $20,000,000 for each of fiscal 

14 years 2023 through 2028 to increase staff, hire analysts, 

15 establish data collection and review systems, and establish 

16 the grant program under subsection (a)(1). 

Æ 


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