The Federal Law Enforcement Dependents Assistance

(FLEDA) Act was enacted in October 1996 to enhance

the appeal of service in civilian federal law enforcement agencies by providing financial assistance for

higher education to spouses and children of federal law

enforcement officers killed in the line of duty. Congress

and the President amended the Act in 1998 to provide

educational assistance to spouses and children of police,

fire, and emergency public safety officers killed in the

line of duty, thus creating the Public Safety Officers’

Educational Assistance (PSOEA) Program. The PSOEA

Program also makes assistance available to spouses and

children of public safety officers permanently and totally disabled by catastrophic injuries sustained in the line

of duty.

Background

By amending the FLEDA Act, Congress and the President extended educational assistance to include not only

the families of federal law enforcement officers but all

public safety officers. In so doing, they made an important statement about how vital our public safety officers

are to our nation’s safety. 

The PSOEA Program recognizes that benefits available

to these families through the Public Safety Officers’

Benefits (PSOB) Program, administered by the Bureau

of Justice Assistance, U.S. Department of Justice, are

often consumed by basic needs and are not sufficient to

support costs of higher education. For many families,

however, access to higher education is instrumental in

their ability to move forward in the aftermath of a lineof-duty tragedy.

PSOEA Program Benefits

The PSOEA Program provides an educational assistance allowance to eligible survivors of public safety

officers whose deaths or permanent and total disabilities are the direct and proximate result of a traumatic

injury sustained in the line of duty. 

PSOEA benefits may be used solely to defray educational expenses, including tuition, room and board,

books, supplies, and education-related fees. The amount

of assistance is determined by whether the student

attended school as a full-time, three-quarter-time, or

half-time student. Also, the amount of assistance is subject to change consistent with the current computation

of educational assistance allowance set forth in Title IV

of the Higher Education Act, Section 3532 of Title 38,

United States Code.

PSOEA Program Effective Dates

Under the PSOEA Program, the families of federal,

state, and local police, fire, and emergency public safety

officers are covered for line-of-duty deaths that occurred

on or after January 1, 1978. The effective date for families of permanently and totally disabled federal law

enforcement officers is October 3, 1996. Families of

state and local police, fire, and emergency public

safety officers are covered for line-of-duty permanent

and totally disabling injuries that occurred on or after

October 1, 1997. Families of Federal Emergency

Management Agency (FEMA) personnel and state,

local, and tribal emergency management and civil

defense agency employees are covered for such injuries

sustained on or after October 30, 2000.

U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Justice Programs

Bureau of Justice Assistance

Public Safety Officers’ Educational 

Assistance Program 
Public Safety Officers’ Educational

Assistance Program Fact Sheet 

U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Justice Programs

Bureau of Justice Assistance

Washington, DC 20531

Official Business

Penalty for Private Use $300

PRESORTED STANDARD

POSTAGE & FEES PAID

DOJ/BJA

PERMIT NO. G–91

Eligibility for PSOEA Benefits

The PSOEA Program stipulates that PSOEA benefits

are to be provided directly to dependents who attend a

program of education at an eligible educational institution and are the spouses or children of federal, police,

fire, and emergency public safety officers whose deaths

or permanent and total disabilities are covered by the

PSOB Program (42 U.S.C. 3796 et seq.). Public safety

officers’ children are no longer eligible for assistance,

however, after their 27th birthday, absent a finding by

the Attorney General of extraordinary circumstances.

Assistance under the PSOEA Program is available for

45 months of full-time education or training or for a

proportional period of time for a part-time program. 

For Further Information

For more information about the PSOEA Program, to

obtain a copy of the PSOEA regulations and application

form, or to share your observations and recommendations, please contact:

Public Safety Officers’ Educational 

Assistance Program

Public Safety Officers’ Benefits Program

Bureau of Justice Assistance

810 Seventh Street NW.

Washington, DC 20531

1–888–SIGNL13 (744–6513)

Fax: 202–616–0314

World Wide Web: www.ojp.usdoj.gov/BJA

Bureau of Justice Assistance Clearinghouse

P.O. Box 6000

Rockville, MD 20849–6000

1–800–688–4252

World Wide Web: www.ncjrs.org

Clearinghouse staff are available Monday through

Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. eastern time. Ask them to

place you on the BJA mailing list.

Department of Justice Response Center

1–800–421–6770 or 202–307–1480

Response Center staff are available Monday through

Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. eastern time.

FS000270

July 2001