II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3635 

To amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to 

authorize public safety officer death benefits to officers suffering from 

post-traumatic stress disorder or acute stress disorder, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 10, 2022 

Ms. DUCKWORTH (for herself, Mr. CORNYN, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. TILLIS, Mr. 

KAINE, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. INHOFE, and Mr. BOOKER) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the 

Judiciary 

A BILL 

To amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets 

Act of 1968 to authorize public safety officer death benefits to officers suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder or acute stress disorder, 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 ‘‘Public Safety Officer 

5 Support Act of 2022’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) Every day, public safety officers, including 

2 police officers, firefighters, emergency medical tech3 nicians, and others, work to maintain the safety, 

4 health, and well-being of the communities they serve. 

5 (2) This means public safety officers are rou6 tinely called to respond to stressful and potentially 

7 traumatic situations, often putting their own lives in 

8 danger. 

9 (3) This work not only puts public safety offi10 cers at risk for experiencing harm, serious injury, 

11 and cumulative and acute trauma, but also places 

12 them at up to 25.6 times higher risk for developing 

13 post-traumatic stress disorder when compared to in14 dividuals without such experiences. 

15 (4) Psychological evidence indicates that law 

16 enforcement officers experience significant job-re17 lated stressors and exposures that may confer in18 creased risk for mental health morbidities (such as 

19 post-traumatic stress disorder and suicidal thoughts, 

20 ideation, intents, and behaviors) and hastened mor21 tality. 

22 (5) Public safety officers often do not have the 

23 resources or support they need, leaving them at 

24 higher risk for long-term mental health con25 sequences. 


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1 (6) Whereas, although the Department of De2 fense already considers servicemember suicides to be 

3 line-of-duty deaths and provides Federal support to 

4 eligible surviving families, the Federal Government 

5 does not recognize public safety officer suicides as 

6 deaths in the line of duty. 

7 (7) In 2017, the Department of Justice ap8 proved 481 claims under the Public Safety Officers’ 

9 Benefits Program under subpart 1 of part L of title 

10 I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets 

11 Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281 et seq.), but not one 

12 of them for the more than 240 public safety officers 

13 who died by suicide that year. 

14 (8) Public safety officers who have died or are 

15 disabled as a result of suicide or post-traumatic 

16 stress disorder do not qualify for the Public Safety 

17 Officers’ Benefits Program, despite the fact that 

18 public safety officers are more likely to die by sui19 cide than from any other line-of-duty cause of death. 

20 SEC. 3. PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICER DEATH BENEFITS FOR 

21 POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER AND 

22 ACUTE STRESS DISORDER. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1201 of title I of the Om24 nibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 


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1 U.S.C. 10281) is amended by adding at the end the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(o) POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER AND

4 ACUTE STRESS DISORDER.— 

5 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

6 ‘‘(A) MASS CASUALTY EVENT.—The term 

7 ‘mass casualty event’ means an incident result8 ing in casualties to not fewer than 3 victims, in9 cluding— 

10 ‘‘(i) an incident that exceeds the nor11 mal resources for emergency response 

12 available in the jurisdiction where the inci13 dent takes place; and 

14 ‘‘(ii) an incident that results in a sud15 den temporal surge of injured individuals 

16 necessitating emergency services. 

17 ‘‘(B) MASS FATALITY EVENT.—The term 

18 ‘mass fatality event’ means an incident result19 ing in the fatalities of not fewer than 3 individ20 uals at 1 or more locations close to one another 

21 with a common cause. 

22 ‘‘(C) MASS SHOOTING.—The term ‘mass 

23 shooting’ means a multiple homicide incident in 

24 which not fewer than 3 victims are killed— 

25 ‘‘(i) with a firearm; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) within 1 event; and 

2 ‘‘(iii) in 1 or more locations in close 

3 proximity. 

4 ‘‘(2) PERSONAL INJURY SUSTAINED IN LINE OF

5 DUTY.— 

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

7 subparagraph (B), as determined by the Bu8 reau— 

9 ‘‘(i) post-traumatic stress disorder or 

10 acute stress disorder suffered by a public 

11 safety officer, and diagnosed by a licensed 

12 medical or mental health professional, shall 

13 be presumed to constitute a personal in14 jury within the meaning of subsection (a), 

15 sustained in the line of duty by the officer, 

16 if the officer, while on duty, engages in sit17 uations involving stressful, tensional, or 

18 traumatic law enforcement, fire suppres19 sion, rescue, hazardous material response, 

20 emergency medical services (including re21 sponding to opioid overdoses, or traumatic 

22 psychological or psychiatric distress calls), 

23 prison security, disaster relief, or other 

24 emergency response activity; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) post-traumatic stress disorder or 

2 acute stress disorder suffered by a public 

3 safety officer who has contacted or at4 tempted to contact the employee assistance 

5 program of the agency or entity that the 

6 officer serves, a licensed medical or mental 

7 health professional, suicide prevention serv8 ices, or another mental health assistance 

9 service in order to receive help, treatment, 

10 or diagnosis for post-traumatic stress dis11 order or acute stress disorder, shall be pre12 sumed to constitute a personal injury with13 in the meaning of subsection (a), sustained 

14 in the line of duty by the officer, if the of15 ficer, while on duty, engages in situations 

16 involving stressful, tensional, or traumatic 

17 law enforcement, fire suppression, rescue, 

18 hazardous material response, emergency 

19 medical services (including responding to 

20 opioid overdoses, or traumatic psycho21 logical or psychiatric distress calls), prison 

22 security, disaster relief, or other emergency 

23 response activity; and 

24 ‘‘(iii) post-traumatic stress disorder or 

25 acute stress disorder suffered by a public 


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1 safety officer who engages in a response to 

2 a mass casualty incident, mass death inci3 dent, or mass shooting involving stressful, 

4 tensional, or traumatic law enforcement, 

5 fire suppression, rescue, hazardous mate6 rial response, prison security, disaster re7 lief, or other emergency response activity 

8 shall be presumed to constitute a personal 

9 injury within the meaning of subsection 

10 (a), sustained in the line of duty by the of11 ficer. 

12 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTIONS.— 

13 ‘‘(i) DISORDER UNRELATED TO EN14 GAGEMENT.—Subparagraph (A) shall not 

15 apply if the Bureau establishes, by clear 

16 and convincing evidence, and based on 

17 competent psychological or medical evi18 dence, that the post-traumatic stress dis19 order or acute stress disorder was com20 pletely unrelated to engagement in situa21 tions described in clause (i), (ii), or (iii) of 

22 that subparagraph. 

23 ‘‘(ii) OTHER DIRECT AND PROXIMATE

24 CAUSE.—Subparagraph (A) shall not apply 

25 if competent psychological or medical eviVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:02 Feb 14, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3635.IS S3635

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1 dence establishes that the post-traumatic 

2 stress disorder or acute stress disorder was 

3 directly and proximately caused by some4 thing other than the mere presence of 

5 post-traumatic stress disorder or acute 

6 stress disorder risk factors. 

7 ‘‘(3) DEATH OR DISABILITY.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.— 

9 ‘‘(i) DEATH BY SUICIDE OF ANY OFFI10 CER.—For purposes of a claim under sub11 section (a), if a public safety officer de12 scribed in clause (i), (ii), or (iii) of para13 graph (2)(A) of this subsection dies by sui14 cide, that death shall be presumed to be a 

15 direct and proximate result of the post16 traumatic stress disorder or acute stress 

17 disorder suffered by the public safety offi18 cer. 

19 ‘‘(ii) DISABILITY OF DIAGNOSED OFFI20 CERS.—For purposes of a claim under sub21 section (b), if a public safety officer de22 scribed in paragraph (2)(A)(i) of this sub23 section is permanently and totally disabled 

24 as a result of the post-traumatic stress dis25 order or acute stress disorder suffered by 


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1 the public safety officer, including as a re2 sult of attempted suicide, that disability 

3 shall be presumed to be a direct and proxi4 mate result of the post-traumatic stress 

5 disorder or acute stress disorder suffered 

6 by the public safety officer. 

7 ‘‘(iii) DISABILITY OF NON-DIAGNOSED

8 OFFICERS DUE TO ATTEMPTED SUICIDE.— 

9 For purposes of a claim under subsection 

10 (b), if a public safety officer described in 

11 clause (ii) or (iii) of paragraph (2)(A) of 

12 this subsection is permanently and totally 

13 disabled as a result of attempted suicide, 

14 that disability shall be presumed to be a 

15 direct and proximate result of the post16 traumatic stress disorder or acute stress 

17 disorder suffered by the public safety offi18 cer. 

19 ‘‘(B) PERMANENT AND TOTAL DIS20 ABILITY.—For purposes of clauses (ii) and (iii) 

21 of subparagraph (A), an individual shall be con22 sidered permanently and totally disabled as a 

23 result of an attempted suicide or of post-trau24 matic stress disorder or acute stress disorder if 

25 the individual is unable to serve as a public 


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1 safety officer in the same or a substantially 

2 similar role as the individual was serving prior 

3 to the attempted suicide or prior to suffering 

4 from post-traumatic stress disorder or acute 

5 stress disorder, respectively. 

6 ‘‘(4) APPLICABILITY OF LIMITATIONS ON BENE7 FITS.— 

8 ‘‘(A) INTENTIONAL ACTIONS.—Section 

9 1202(a)(1) shall not apply to any claim for a 

10 benefit under this part that is payable in ac11 cordance with this subsection. 

12 ‘‘(B) SUBSTANCE USE.—Section 

13 1202(a)(2) shall not preclude the payment of a 

14 benefit under this part if the benefit is other15 wise payable in accordance with this sub16 section.’’. 

17 (b) RETROACTIVE APPLICABILITY.—The amendment 

18 made by subsection (a) shall take effect as if enacted on 

19 January 1, 2019, and shall apply to any public safety offi20 cer who dies or is permanently and totally disabled on or 

21 after that date. 

22 SEC. 4. GAO REPORT. 

23 Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 

24 of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 

25 shall submit to Congress a report that details benefits 


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1 issued pursuant to subsection (o) of section 1201 of title 

2 I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 

3 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281), as added by section 3, and in4 cludes any recommendations to improve that subsection. 

Æ 


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