I

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1148

To provide financial assistance to law enforcement officers for continuing

education classes and to develop minimum standards for effective and

responsible policing.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

FEBRUARY 25, 1993

Mr. MORAN introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee

on the Judiciary

A BILL

To provide financial assistance to law enforcement officers

for continuing education classes and to develop minimum

standards for effective and responsible policing.

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 ‘‘Law Enforcement Re5 sponsibility and Improvement Act of 1993’’.
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1 TITLE I—CONTINUING EDU2 CATION FOR LAW ENFORCE3 MENT OFFICERS.

4 SEC. 101. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE.

5 It is the purpose of this title to assist States to estab6 lish scholarship programs which—

7 (1) assist State and local law enforcement ef8 forts to enhance the educational status of law en9 forcement personnel; and

10 (2) provide educational assistance to law en11 forcement personnel seeking continuing education;

12 SEC. 102. ALLOTMENT.

13 From amounts appropriated under the authority of

14 section 110, the Assistant Attorney General shall allo15 cate—

16 (1) 80 percent of such funds to States on the

17 basis of the number of law enforcement officers in

18 each State; and

19 (2) 20 percent of such funds to States on the

20 basis of a State’s shortage of law enforcement per21 sonnel and the need for assistance under this title.

22 SEC. 103. PROGRAM ESTABLISHED.

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—From amounts available under

24 this title, each State shall pay the Federal share of the

25 cost of awarding scholarships to law enforcement person-
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1 nel to enable such personnel during nonworking hours to

2 enroll in courses, not to exceed a total of 18 credit hours,

3 at an institution of higher education.

4 (b) FEDERAL SHARE.—(1) The Federal share of the

5 cost of scholarships under this title shall not exceed 60

6 percent.

7 (2) The non-Federal share of the cost of scholarships

8 under this title shall be supplied from sources other than

9 the Federal Government.

10 (c) LEAD AGENCY.—Each State receiving an allot11 ment under section 102 to conduct a scholarship program

12 in a State in accordance with the provisions of this title

13 shall designate an appropriate State agency to serve as

14 the lead agency in carrying out the provisions of this title.

15 (d) RESPONSIBILITIES OF ASSISTANT ATTORNEY

16 GENERAL.—The Assistant Attorney General shall be re17 sponsible for the administration of the program conducted

18 pursuant to this title and shall, in consultation with the

19 Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education, promul20 gate regulations to implement this title.

21 (e) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Each State receiv22 ing an allotment under section 102 may reserve not more

23 than 8 percent of such allotment for administrative

24 expenses.
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1 (f) SUPPLEMENTATION OF FUNDING.—Funds re2 ceived under this title shall be used to supplement, and

3 not to supplant, Federal, State, or local efforts to provide

4 for continuing education of law enforcement personnel.

5 SEC. 104. SCHOLARSHIPS.

6 (a) RESTRICTIONS.—Notwithstanding a change in

7 law enforcement positions or departments or an institution

8 of higher education, a law enforcement officer is eligible

9 to receive scholarship funds for a total of 18 credit hours.

10 (b) USE OF SCHOLARSHIPS.—A law enforcement offi11 cer awarded a scholarship under this title may use such

12 scholarship for educational expenses at an accredited insti13 tution of higher education.

14 (c) ELIGIBILITY.—A law enforcement officer shall be

15 eligible to receive a scholarship under this title if such in16 dividual has been employed in law enforcement for the 1-

17 year period immediately preceding the date on which as18 sistance is sought.

19 SEC. 105. STATE APPLICATION.

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Each State desiring an allotment

21 under section 102 shall submit an application to the As22 sistant Attorney General at such time, in such manner,

23 and accompanied by such information as the Assistant At24 torney General may reasonably require. Each such appli25 cation shall—
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1 (1) contain assurances that the lead agency

2 shall work in cooperation with the local law enforce3 ment liaisons, representatives of police labor organi4 zations and police management organizations, and

5 other appropriate State and local agencies to develop

6 and implement interagency agreements designed to

7 carry out the provisions of this title;

8 (2) contain assurances that the State shall ad9 vertise the scholarship assistance provided under this

10 title;

11 (3) contain assurances that the State shall

12 screen and select law enforcement personnel for par13 ticipation in the scholarship program under this

14 title;

15 (4) contain assurances that the State shall

16 make scholarship payments to institutions of higher

17 education on behalf of individuals receiving financial

18 assistance under this title; and

19 (5) identify model curriculum and existing pro20 grams designed to meet the educational and profes21 sional needs of law enforcement personnel.

22 SEC. 106. LOCAL APPLICATION.

23 Each individual desiring to receive a scholarship

24 under this title shall submit an application to the State

25 at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by such
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1 information as the State may reasonably require. Each

2 such application shall describe the academic courses for

3 which financial assistance is sought.

4 SEC. 107. SCHOLARSHIP AGREEMENT.

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Each individual receiving a schol6 arship under this title shall enter into an agreement with

7 the Assistant Attorney General.

8 (b) CONTENTS.—Each agreement described in sub9 section (a) shall provide assurances that such individual

10 shall make every effort to meet all course requirements.

11 SEC. 108. REPORTS TO CONGRESS.

12 Not later than April 1 of each fiscal year, the Assist13 ant Attorney General shall submit a report to the Attorney

14 General, the President, the Speaker of the House of Rep15 resentatives, and the President of the Senate. Such report

16 shall—

17 (1) state the number of present and past schol18 arship recipients under this title;

19 (2) describe the geographic, racial, and gender

20 dispersion of scholarship recipients; and

21 (3) describe the progress of the program and

22 make recommendations for changes in the program.

23 SEC. 109. DEFINITIONS.

24 As used in this title—
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1 (1) the term ‘‘Assistant Attorney General’’

2 means the Assistant Attorney General of the Office

3 of Justice Programs;

4 (2) the term ‘‘educational expenses’’ means ex5 penses that are directly attributable to a course of6 fered at an institution of higher education, including

7 the cost of tuition, fees, books, supplies and related

8 expenses;

9 (3) the term ‘‘institution of higher education’’

10 has the same meaning given such term in section

11 1401(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965;

12 (4) the term ‘‘law enforcement position’’ means

13 employment as an officer in a State or local police

14 force, or correctional institution; and

15 (5) the term ‘‘State’’ means a State of the

16 United States, the District of Columbia, the Com17 monwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Amer18 ican Samoa, Guam, and the Commonwealth of the

19 Northern Mariana Islands.

20 SEC. 110. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

21 There are authorized to be appropriated $3,000,000

22 for each of the fiscal years 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997,

23 and 1998 to carry out the provisions of this title.
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1 TITLE II—LAW ENFORCEMENT

2 RESPONSIBILITY PROVISIONS

3 Subtitle A—Police Accreditation

4 SEC. 201. APPLICATION FOR ACCREDITATION.

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsections (b) and (c),

6 law enforcement agencies of a State, unit of local govern7 ment, or non-Federal public agency may apply for law

8 enforcement agency accreditation.

9 (b) FILING OF ACCREDITATION APPLICATION.—Ap10 plications for accreditation as provided under section (a),

11 may be filed with the Commission on Accreditation of Law

12 Enforcement Agencies.

13 (c) FORWARDING TO JUSTICE DEPARTMENT.—A

14 copy of the application filed under subsection (b) shall

15 then be forwarded to the Accreditation Coordinator at the

16 Department of Justice as provided for in section 202(b).

17 (d) GOOD FAITH.—Law enforcement agencies shall

18 file the application for accreditation in good faith, and

19 shall use all good faith efforts to assist in processing the

20 application for accreditation.

21 SEC. 202. FEDERAL ASSISTANCE FOR AGENCIES SEEKING

22 ACCREDITATION.

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General shall be

24 given the discretion under section 524(c)(1) of title 28,

25 United States Code, to provide financial and technical as-
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1 sistance, as provided in subsections (b), (c), and (d) for

2 law enforcement agencies applying for accreditation as

3 provided in section 201.

4 (b) ACCREDITATION COORDINATOR.—The Attorney

5 General shall appoint an Accreditation Coordinator to as6 sist law enforcement agencies seeking Federal assistance

7 in processing accreditation as provided in section 201.

8 (c) ADDITIONAL ACCREDITATION STAFFING.—The

9 Accreditation Coordinator shall provide necessary person10 nel to assist law enforcement agencies in processing appli11 cations for accreditation and complete the accreditation

12 process as provided by section 201.

13 (d) REIMBURSEMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—

14 Upon request, the Accreditation Coordinator may reim15 burse a law enforcement agency for any administrative

16 costs incurred by such law enforcement agency in process17 ing the application for accreditation if—

18 (1) such law enforcement agency has requested

19 assistance from the Accreditation Coordinator;

20 (2) the Accreditation Coordinator did not fur21 nish such assistance but did certify the agency as

22 likely to benefit in terms of improved law enforce23 ment from the process and as eligible for expense

24 reimbursement; and
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1 (3) such law enforcement agency has success2 fully completed the accreditation process as provided

3 in section 201.

4 (e) FINANCING.—The total monies provided under

5 subsection (a) shall not be greater than $1,000,000 or 1

6 percent of those monies available to the Attorney General

7 under section 524(c)(1) of title 28, United States Code.

8 Subtitle B—Civilian Protection in

9 Cases of Police Misconduct

10 SEC. 211. CIVILIAN PROTECTION IN CASES OF POLICE MIS11 CONDUCT.

12 State, local, and public law enforcement agencies

13 shall have procedures as established in subsection (b), al14 lowing citizen submission of sworn complaints regarding

15 the action, or inaction, of the law enforcement agency, law

16 enforcement officers in the agency, or employees of the

17 agency.

18 SEC. 212. MINIMUM STANDARDS.

19 Subject to section 213, individual law enforcement

20 agencies shall provide, at a minimum, that—

21 (1) the general public has access to required

22 forms and information concerning the submission,

23 and disposition of sworn complaints;

24 (2) the law enforcement agency assist individ25 uals in filing complaints;
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1 (3) adequate records to allow regular monitor2 ing of the nature and disposition of such cases are

3 to be maintained by the agency;

4 (4) the law enforcement agency has established

5 written procedures for hearings; and

6 (5) the complainant receives a written report on

7 the final disposition of the complaint.

8 SEC. 213. SEALED RECORDS.

9 Any or all records required under section 212 may

10 be sealed to prevent public disclosure if—

11 (1) good cause has been shown by order of a

12 court of competent jurisdiction, and

13 (2) such order is public record and states rea14 sons for sealing.

15 Subtitle C—Law Enforcement

16 Officer’s Responsibility

17 SEC. 221. RESPONSIBILITIES OF LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFI18 CERS UNDER INVESTIGATION.

19 Whenever a law enforcement officer is under formal

20 investigation for alleged malfeasance, misfeasance, or non21 feasance of official duty, with a view to possible discipli22 nary action, demotion, dismissal, suspension, or criminal

23 charges, except as provided in section 226, the following

24 minimum standards shall apply:
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1 (1) The law enforcement officer shall be in2 formed in writing of all charges made against the of3 ficer, the nature and purpose of the investigation

4 and the name, rank, and command of the person or

5 persons conducting such investigation and shall be

6 given the opportunity to review any evidence or testi7 mony relevant to the charges, in the possession of

8 the law enforcement agency.

9 (2) Except when the officer is requested to ful10 fill normal administrative duties or to provide the

11 law enforcement agency with necessary reports on

12 performance of duty, no adverse inference shall be

13 drawn and no punitive action taken from a refusal

14 of the law enforcement officer being investigated to

15 participate in such investigation.

16 (3) The law enforcement officer being inves17 tigated shall be informed, in writing, of the date,

18 time, and location of such questioning, of all persons

19 who will be present during such questioning, and of

20 the rights established by this title.

21 (4) Except in emergency or adverse situations,

22 no questioning of any law enforcement officer shall

23 be conducted except during the officer’s regularly

24 scheduled working hours, unless the law enforcement

25 officer otherwise agrees and except when such ques-
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1 tioning is part of a normal supervisory operating of

2 the law enforcement agency.

3 (5) Any questioning shall be for a reasonable

4 period of time, in a reasonable place, and shall allow

5 for reasonable periods for the rest and personal

6 necessities of such officer.

7 (6) The law enforcement officer shall be entitled

8 to the presence of a person of the officer’s choice at

9 any interrogation in connection with the formal

10 investigation.

11 SEC. 222. NOTICE OF DISCIPLINARY ACTION.

12 Whenever a personnel action is taken against a law

13 enforcement officer which could result in any loss of pay,

14 benefits or seniority, or in suspension or termination, pur15 suant to an investigation of alleged malfeasance, misfea16 sance, or nonfeasance of official duty, such law enforce17 ment officer shall be notified and informed of the reasons

18 for such action at least five working days before such

19 action takes effect.

20 SEC. 223. ENTITLEMENT TO A HEARING.

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—If the investigation of a law en22 forcement officer results in the recommendations of dis23 ciplinary action, such as demotion, dismissal, or similar

24 action, then, except as provided in section 226, the law
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1 enforcement officer shall be entitled to a hearing before

2 an impartial decisionmaker.

3 (b) DECISIONS IN WRITING.—The decisions of the

4 decisionmaker, and reason therefor, shall be in writing,

5 shall be transmitted promptly to the law enforcement offi6 cer and to the chief executive officer of the law enforce7 ment agency.

8 (c) FINAL AND BINDING.—The decisions of the

9 decisionmaker shall be final and binding.

10 SEC. 224. REPRESENTATION ON COMPLAINT REVIEW

11 BOARDS.

12 Whenever a police complaint review board has been

13 established which includes in its membership persons

14 other than law enforcement officers of the agencies under

15 the jurisdiction of such board, such board shall include

16 a fair representation of such officers including at least one

17 officer of equal rank to the officer charged.

18 SEC. 225. PROTECTION FROM RETALIATION FOR EXERCIS19 ING RIGHTS.

20 There shall be no penalty nor threat of penalty to

21 any law enforcement officer for the exercise of the rights

22 established in this title.

23 SEC. 226. EXCLUSIONARY PROVISIONS.

24 The provisions of this subtitle do not apply to ques25 tioning carried out as part of a law enforcement agency’s
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1 routine supervision of a law enforcement officer, summary

2 discipline, administrative action, or emergency suspension.

3 Subtitle D—General Provisions

4 SEC. 231. PRIVATE ENFORCEMENT.

5 Any citizen or law enforcement officer shall have the

6 right to recover pecuniary and other damages including,

7 but not limited to, full reinstatement of a law enforcement

8 officer, from any person or agencies, including law en9 forcement agencies, which violate the rights established by

10 this title.

11 SEC. 232. OTHER REMEDIES NOT DISPARAGED.

12 Nothing in this title shall disparage or impair any

13 other legal remedy with respect to rights established by

14 this title or any other State or Federal law.

15 SEC. 233. EXCLUSION FOR STATES THAT MEET OR EXCEED

16 PROVISIONS.

17 Nothing in this title shall be construed to preempt

18 any State law which meets or exceeds the minimum

19 requirements set forth by this title.

20 SEC. 234. DEFINITIONS.

21 As used in this title—

22 (1) the term ‘‘complaint review board’’ means

23 any public body which has specific lawful authority

24 to investigate civilian complaints of improper con25 duct by law enforcement officers and take public ac-
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1 tion, including the issuance of findings and reports,

2 but shall not include any law enforcement agency, a

3 grand jury, or other judicially-appointed body;

4 (2) the term ‘‘law enforcement agency’’ means

5 any non-Federal public agency, except Federal law

6 enforcement agencies, charged with the duty to in7 vestigate crimes, apprehend persons charged with

8 such crimes, and hold in custody persons charged

9 with such crimes;

10 (3) the term ‘‘law enforcement officer’’ means

11 any sworn officer of a public agency, if the official

12 legal function of such agency is the investigation of

13 reports of criminal activity or crimes, or the appre14 hension or holding in custody of persons charged or

15 convicted of crimes, and includes all police, sheriffs’

16 deputies, bailiffs, and corrections guards as defined

17 by the applicable State law;

18 (4) the terms ‘‘summary discipline’’ and ‘‘ad19 ministrative action’’ mean discipline imposed for

20 minor violations of department rules and regula21 tions, which does not result in dismissal, demotion,

22 transfer, loss of pay, or similar action; and

23 (5) the term ‘‘emergency suspension’’ means

24 situations in which the head of the law enforcement

25 agency determines such temporary action is nec-
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1 essary to protect the interest of the public and the

2 law enforcement agency and do not continue longer

3 than the public necessity.

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