I 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4018 

To improve the Public Safety Officers’ Benefits Program. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 14, 2012 

Mr. FITZPATRICK (for himself and Mr. SMITH of Texas) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To improve the Public Safety Officers’ Benefits Program. 

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 title may be cited as the ‘‘Public Safety Officers’ 

5 Benefits Improvements Act of 2012’’. 

6 SEC. 2. BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN NONPROFIT EMERGENCY 

7 MEDICAL SERVICE PROVIDERS AND CERTAIN 

8 TRAINEES; MISCELLANEOUS AMENDMENTS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title I of the Omnibus Crime 

10 Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3711 

11 et seq.) is amended— 

12 (1) in section 901(a) (42 U.S.C. 3791(a))— 


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1 (A) in paragraph (26), by striking ‘‘and’’ 

2 at the end; 

3 (B) in paragraph (27), by striking the pe4 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

5 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(28) the term ‘hearing examiner’ includes any 

7 medical or claims examiner.’’; 

8 (2) in section 1201 (42 U.S.C. 3796)— 

9 (A) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘fol10 lows:’’ and all that follows and inserting the fol11 lowing: ‘‘follows (if the payee indicated is living 

12 on the date on which the determination is 

13 made)— 

14 ‘‘(1) if there is no child who survived the public 

15 safety officer, to the surviving spouse of the public 

16 safety officer; 

17 ‘‘(2) if there is at least 1 child who survived the 

18 public safety officer and a surviving spouse of the 

19 public safety officer, 50 percent to the surviving 

20 child (or children, in equal shares) and 50 percent 

21 to the surviving spouse; 

22 ‘‘(3) if there is no surviving spouse of the public 

23 safety officer, to the surviving child (or children, in 

24 equal shares); 


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1 ‘‘(4) if there is no surviving spouse of the public 

2 safety officer and no surviving child— 

3 ‘‘(A) to the surviving individual (or individ4 uals, in shares per the designation, or, other5 wise, in equal shares) designated by the public 

6 safety officer to receive benefits under this sub7 section in the most recently executed designa8 tion of beneficiary of the public safety officer on 

9 file at the time of death with the public safety 

10 agency, organization, or unit; or 

11 ‘‘(B) if there is no individual qualifying 

12 under subparagraph (A), to the surviving indi13 vidual (or individuals, in equal shares) des14 ignated by the public safety officer to receive 

15 benefits under the most recently executed life 

16 insurance policy of the public safety officer on 

17 file at the time of death with the public safety 

18 agency, organization, or unit; 

19 ‘‘(5) if there is no individual qualifying under 

20 paragraph (1), (2), (3), or (4), to the surviving par21 ent (or parents, in equal shares) of the public safety 

22 officer; or 

23 ‘‘(6) if there is no individual qualifying under 

24 paragraph (1), (2), (3), (4), or (5), to the surviving 

25 individual (or individuals, in equal shares) who 


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1 would qualify under the definition of the term ‘child’ 

2 under section 1204 but for age.’’; 

3 (B) in subsection (b)— 

4 (i) by striking ‘‘direct result of a cata5 strophic’’ and inserting ‘‘direct and proxi6 mate result of a personal’’; 

7 (ii) by striking ‘‘pay,’’ and all that fol8 lows through ‘‘the same’’ and inserting 

9 ‘‘pay the same’’; 

10 (iii) by striking ‘‘in any year’’ and in11 serting ‘‘to the public safety officer (if liv12 ing on the date on which the determination 

13 is made)’’; 

14 (iv) by striking ‘‘in such year, ad15 justed’’ and inserting ‘‘with respect to the 

16 date on which the catastrophic injury oc17 curred, as adjusted’’; 

18 (v) by striking ‘‘, to such officer’’; 

19 (vi) by striking ‘‘the total’’ and all 

20 that follows through ‘‘For’’ and inserting 

21 ‘‘for’’; and 

22 (vii) by striking ‘‘That these’’ and all 

23 that follows through the period, and insert24 ing ‘‘That the amount payable under this 

25 subsection shall be the amount payable as 


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1 of the date of catastrophic injury of such 

2 public safety officer.’’; 

3 (C) in subsection (f)— 

4 (i) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘, as 

5 amended (D.C. Code, sec. 4–622); or’’ and 

6 inserting a semicolon; 

7 (ii) in paragraph (2)— 

8 (I) by striking ‘‘. Such bene9 ficiaries shall only receive benefits 

10 under such section 8191 that’’ and in11 serting ‘‘, such that beneficiaries shall 

12 receive only such benefits under such 

13 section 8191 as’’; and 

14 (II) by striking the period at the 

15 end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

16 (iii) by adding at the end the fol17 lowing: 

18 ‘‘(3) payments under the September 11th Vic19 tim Compensation Fund of 2001 (49 U.S.C. 40101 

20 note; Public Law 107–42).’’; 

21 (D) by amending subsection (k) to read as 

22 follows: 

23 ‘‘(k) As determined by the Bureau, a heart attack, 

24 stroke, or vascular rupture suffered by a public safety offi25 cer shall be presumed to constitute a personal injury withVerDate Mar 15 2010 22:58 Feb 15, 2012 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4018.IH H4018

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1 in the meaning of subsection (a), sustained in the line of 

2 duty by the officer and directly and proximately resulting 

3 in death, if— 

4 ‘‘(1) the public safety officer, while on duty— 

5 ‘‘(A) engages in a situation involving non6 routine stressful or strenuous physical law en7 forcement, fire suppression, rescue, hazardous 

8 material response, emergency medical services, 

9 prison security, disaster relief, or other emer10 gency response activity; or 

11 ‘‘(B) participates in a training exercise in12 volving nonroutine stressful or strenuous phys13 ical activity; 

14 ‘‘(2) the heart attack, stroke, or vascular rup15 ture commences— 

16 ‘‘(A) while the officer is engaged or partici17 pating as described in paragraph (1); 

18 ‘‘(B) while the officer remains on that duty 

19 after being engaged or participating as de20 scribed in paragraph (1); or 

21 ‘‘(C) not later than 24 hours after the offi22 cer is engaged or participating as described in 

23 paragraph (1); and 


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1 ‘‘(3) the heart attack, stroke, or vascular rup2 ture directly and proximately results in the death of 

3 the public safety officer, 

4 unless competent medical evidence establishes that the 

5 heart attack, stroke, or vascular rupture was unrelated to 

6 the engagement or participation or was directly and proxi7 mately caused by something other than the mere presence 

8 of cardiovascular-disease risk factors.’’; and 

9 (E) by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(n) The public safety agency, organization, or unit 

11 responsible for maintaining on file an executed designation 

12 of beneficiary or executed life insurance policy for pur13 poses of subsection (a)(4) shall maintain the confiden14 tiality of the designation or policy in the same manner 

15 as the agency, organization, or unit maintains personnel 

16 or other similar records of the public safety officer.’’; 

17 (3) in section 1202 (42 U.S.C. 3796a)— 

18 (A) by striking ‘‘death’’, each place it ap19 pears except the second place it appears, and 

20 inserting ‘‘fatal’’; and 

21 (B) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘or cata22 strophic injury’’ the second place it appears and 

23 inserting ‘‘, disability, or injury’’; 

24 (4) in section 1203 (42 U.S.C. 3796a–1)— 


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1 (A) in the section heading, by striking 

2 ‘‘WHO HAVE DIED IN THE LINE OF DUTY’’ 

3 and inserting ‘‘WHO HAVE SUSTAINED

4 FATAL OR CATASTROPHIC INJURY IN THE

5 LINE OF DUTY’’; and 

6 (B) by striking ‘‘who have died in the line 

7 of duty’’ and inserting ‘‘who have sustained 

8 fatal or catastrophic injury in the line of duty’’; 

9 (5) in section 1204 (42 U.S.C. 3796b)— 

10 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘con11 sequences of an injury that’’ and inserting ‘‘an 

12 injury, the direct and proximate consequences 

13 of which’’; 

14 (B) in paragraph (3)— 

15 (i) in the matter preceding clause 

16 (i)— 

17 (I) by inserting ‘‘or permanently 

18 and totally disabled’’ after ‘‘de19 ceased’’; and 

20 (II) by striking ‘‘death’’ and in21 serting ‘‘fatal or catastrophic injury’’; 

22 and 

23 (ii) by redesignating clauses (i), (ii), 

24 and (iii) as subparagraphs (A), (B), and 

25 (C), respectively; 


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1 (C) in paragraph (5)— 

2 (i) by striking ‘‘post-mortem’’ each 

3 place it appears and inserting ‘‘post-in4 jury’’; and 

5 (ii) by redesignating clauses (i) and 

6 (ii) as subparagraphs (A) and (B), respec7 tively; 

8 (D) in paragraph (7), by striking ‘‘public 

9 employee member of a rescue squad or ambu10 lance crew;’’ and inserting ‘‘employee or volun11 teer member of a rescue squad or ambulance 

12 crew (including a ground or air ambulance serv13 ice) that— 

14 ‘‘(A) is a public agency; or 

15 ‘‘(B) is (or is a part of) a nonprofit entity 

16 serving the public that— 

17 ‘‘(i) is officially authorized or licensed 

18 to engage in rescue activity or to provide 

19 emergency medical services; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) is officially designated as a 

21 prehospital emergency medical response 

22 agency;’’; and 

23 (E) in paragraph (9)— 

24 (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

25 ‘‘as a chaplain, or as a member of a rescue 


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1 squad or ambulance crew;’’ and inserting 

2 ‘‘or as a chaplain;’’; 

3 (ii) in subparagraph (B)(ii), by strik4 ing ‘‘or’’ after the semicolon; 

5 (iii) in subparagraph (C)(ii), by strik6 ing the period and inserting a semicolon; 

7 and 

8 (iv) by adding at the end the fol9 lowing: 

10 ‘‘(D) a member of a rescue squad or am11 bulance crew who, as authorized or licensed by 

12 law and by the applicable agency or entity (and 

13 as designated by such agency or entity), is en14 gaging in rescue activity or in the provision of 

15 emergency medical services.’’ 

16 (6) in section 1205 (42 U.S.C. 3796c), by add17 ing at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(d) Unless expressly provided otherwise, any ref19 erence in this part to any provision of law not in this part 

20 shall be understood to constitute a general reference under 

21 the doctrine of incorporation by reference, and thus to in22 clude any subsequent amendments to the provision.’’; 

23 (7) in each of subsections (a) and (b) of section 

24 1212 (42 U.S.C. 3796d–1), sections 1213 and 1214 

25 (42 U.S.C. 3796d–2 and 3796d–3), and subsections 


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1 (b) and (c) of section 1216 (42 U.S.C. 3796d–5), by 

2 striking ‘‘dependent’’ each place it appears and in3 serting ‘‘person’’; 

4 (8) in section 1212 (42 U.S.C. 3796d–1)— 

5 (A) in subsection (a)— 

6 (i) in paragraph (1), in the matter 

7 preceding subparagraph (A), by striking 

8 ‘‘Subject’’ and all that follows through ‘‘, 

9 the’’ and inserting ‘‘The’’; and 

10 (ii) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘re11 duced by’’ and all that follows through 

12 ‘‘(B) the amount’’ and inserting ‘‘reduced 

13 by the amount’’; 

14 (B) in subsection (c)— 

15 (i) in the subsection heading, by strik16 ing ‘‘DEPENDENT’’; and 

17 (ii) by striking ‘‘dependent’’; 

18 (9) in paragraphs (2) and (3) of section 

19 1213(b) (42 U.S.C. 3796d–2(b)), by striking ‘‘de20 pendent’s’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘per21 son’s’’; 

22 (10) in section 1216 (42 U.S.C. 3796d–5)— 

23 (A) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘each de24 pendent’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘a 

25 spouse or child’’; and 


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1 (B) by striking ‘‘dependents’’ each place it 

2 appears and inserting ‘‘a person’’; and 

3 (11) in section 1217(3)(A) (42 U.S.C. 3796d– 

4 6(3)(A)), by striking ‘‘described in’’ and all that fol5 lows and inserting ‘‘an institution of higher edu6 cation, as defined in section 102 of the Higher Edu7 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002); and’’. 

8 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

9 Section 402(l)(4)(C) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

10 1986 is amended— 

11 (1) by striking ‘‘section 1204(9)(A)’’ and in12 serting ‘‘section 1204(10)(A)’’; and 

13 (2) by striking ‘‘42 U.S.C. 3796b(9)(A)’’ and 

14 inserting ‘‘42 U.S.C. 3796b(10)(A)’’. 

15 SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS; DETER16 MINATIONS; APPEALS. 

17 The matter under the heading ‘‘PUBLIC SAFETY OF18 FICERS BENEFITS’’ under the heading ‘‘OFFICE OF JUS19 TICE PROGRAMS’’ under title II of division B of the Con20 solidated Appropriations Act, 2008 (Public Law 110–161; 

21 121 Stat. 1912; 42 U.S.C. 3796c–2) is amended— 

22 (1) by striking ‘‘decisions’’ and inserting ‘‘de23 terminations’’; 

24 (2) by striking ‘‘(including those, and any re25 lated matters, pending)’’; and 


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1 (3) by striking the period at the end and insert2 ing the following: ‘‘: Provided further, That, on and 

3 after the date of enactment of the Public Safety Of4 ficers’ Benefits Improvements Act of 2012, as to 

5 each such statute— 

6 ‘‘(1) the provisions of section 1001(a)(4) of 

7 such title I (42 U.S.C. 3793(a)(4)) shall apply; 

8 ‘‘(2) payment shall be made only upon a deter9 mination by the Bureau that the facts legally war10 rant the payment; 

11 ‘‘(3) any reference to section 1202 of such title 

12 I shall be deemed to be a reference to paragraphs 

13 (2) and (3) of such section 1202; and 

14 ‘‘(4) a certification submitted under any such 

15 statute may be accepted by the Bureau as prima 

16 facie evidence of the facts asserted in the certifi17 cation: 

18 Provided further, That, on and after the date of enactment 

19 of the Public Safety Officers’ Benefits Improvements Act 

20 of 2012, no appeal shall bring any final determination of 

21 the Bureau before any court for review unless notice of 

22 appeal is filed (within the time specified herein and in the 

23 manner prescribed for appeal to United States courts of 

24 appeals from United States district courts) not later than 

25 90 days after the date on which the Bureau serves notice 


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1 of the final determination: Provided further, That any reg2 ulations promulgated by the Bureau under such part (or 

3 any such statute) before, on, or after the date of enact4 ment of the Public Safety Officers’ Benefits Improvements 

5 Act of 2012 shall apply to any matter pending on, or filed 

6 or accruing after, the effective date specified in the regula7 tions, except as the Bureau may indicate otherwise.’’. 

8 SEC. 4. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

10 (b), the amendments made by this title shall— 

11 (1) take effect on the date of enactment of this 

12 Act; and 

13 (2) apply to any matter pending, before the Bu14 reau of Justice Assistance or otherwise, on the date 

15 of enactment of this Act, or filed or accruing after 

16 that date. 

17 (b) EXCEPTIONS.— 

18 (1) RESCUE SQUADS AND AMBULANCE

19 CREWS.—For a member of a rescue squad or ambu20 lance crew (as defined in section 1204(8) of title I 

21 of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act 

22 of 1968, as amended by this title), the amendments 

23 made by this title shall apply to injuries sustained 

24 on or after June 1, 2009. 


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1 (2) HEART ATTACKS, STROKES, AND VASCULAR

2 RUPTURES.—Section 1201(k) of title I of the Omni3 bus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, as 

4 amended by this title, shall apply to heart attacks, 

5 strokes, and vascular ruptures sustained on or after 

6 December 15, 2003. 

Æ 


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