IC 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1208 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 16, 2019 

Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

AN ACT 

To amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets 

Act of 1968 with respect to payments to certain public 

safety officers who have become permanently and totally 

disabled as a result of personal injuries sustained in 

the line of duty, 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, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Protecting America’s 

3 First Responders Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. PAYMENT OF DEATH AND DISABILITY BENEFITS 

5 UNDER THE PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICERS’ 

6 DEATH BENEFITS PROGRAM. 

7 Section 1201 of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control 

8 and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281) is amend9 ed— 

10 (1) in subsection (b), by striking the period at 

11 the end and inserting the following: ‘‘, unless the 

12 claim under this subsection has been pending for 

13 more than 1 year, in which case the amount payable 

14 shall be the amount that would be payable if the cat15 astrophic injury occurred on the date on which the 

16 Bureau makes a final determination that the public 

17 safety officer is entitled to a benefit payment under 

18 this subsection.’’; 

19 (2) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘$3,000’’ and 

20 inserting ‘‘$6,000, adjusted in accordance with sub21 section (h),’’; 

22 (3) in subsection (h), by inserting ‘‘and the 

23 level of the interim benefit payable immediately be24 fore such October 1 under subsection (c)’’ after 

25 ‘‘subsection (a)’’; 


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1 (4) by striking subsection (i) and inserting the 

2 following: 

3 ‘‘(i) The amount payable under subsection (a), with 

4 respect to the death of a public safety officer, shall be the 

5 greater of— 

6 ‘‘(1) the amount payable under that subsection 

7 as of the date of death of the public safety officer; 

8 or 

9 ‘‘(2) the amount that would be payable under 

10 that subsection if the death of the public safety offi11 cer occurred on the date on which the Bureau makes 

12 a final determination that the public safety officer is 

13 entitled to a benefit payment under that sub14 section.’’; and 

15 (5) in subsection (m), by inserting ‘‘, (b),’’ after 

16 ‘‘subsection (a)’’. 

17 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS FOR THE PURPOSES OF THE PUBLIC 

18 SAFETY OFFICERS’ DEATH BENEFITS PRO19 GRAM. 

20 Section 1204 of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control 

21 and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10284) is amend22 ed— 

23 (1) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the 

24 following: 


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1 ‘‘(1) ‘catastrophic injury’ means an injury, the 

2 direct and proximate consequences of which— 

3 ‘‘(A) permanently prevent an individual 

4 from performing any gainful work; or 

5 ‘‘(B) cause an individual to become— 

6 ‘‘(i) paraplegic; 

7 ‘‘(ii) quadriplegic; or 

8 ‘‘(iii) blind;’’; 

9 (2) in paragraph (3), in the matter preceding 

10 subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘at the time of the 

11 public safety officer’s fatal or catastrophic injury’’ 

12 and inserting ‘‘as of the date of the public safety of13 ficer’s death from a fatal injury or the date of deter14 mination of the public safety officer’s disability from 

15 a catastrophic injury’’; 

16 (3) in paragraph (4), by inserting ‘‘, including 

17 an individual who, in the capacity of the individual 

18 as such a member, engages in scene security or traf19 fic management as the primary or only duty of the 

20 individual during emergency response’’ before the 

21 semicolon; 

22 (4) by redesignating paragraphs (5) through 

23 (9) as paragraphs (6) through (10), respectively; 

24 and 


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1 (5) by inserting after paragraph (4) the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(5) ‘gainful work’— 

4 ‘‘(A) means any activity usually performed 

5 for pay or profit, regardless of whether a profit 

6 is realized; and 

7 ‘‘(B) does not include work performed in a 

8 situation in which, after an individual sustains 

9 an injury— 

10 ‘‘(i) the individual— 

11 ‘‘(I) re-enters the workforce; and 

12 ‘‘(II) leaves the workforce after 

13 less than 90 days because of the in14 ability of the individual to overcome 

15 the injury; 

16 ‘‘(ii) because of the injury— 

17 ‘‘(I) the individual is permitted, 

18 in carrying out work, to— 

19 ‘‘(aa) perform at a lower 

20 standard of productivity or effi21 ciency than other similarly situ22 ated employees; 

23 ‘‘(bb) work irregular hours; 

24 or 


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1 ‘‘(cc) take frequent rest pe2 riods; or 

3 ‘‘(II) the individual is only able 

4 to work within a framework of spe5 cially arranged circumstances, such as 

6 a circumstance in which 1 or more 

7 other individuals are required to assist 

8 the individual in preparing for work 

9 or traveling to and from work; 

10 ‘‘(iii)(I) the individual practices a 

11 hobby usually performed for pay or profit, 

12 regardless of whether a profit is realized; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(II) the primary intent of the indi15 vidual in practicing the hobby described in 

16 subclause (I)— 

17 ‘‘(aa) is physical, mental, or emo18 tional rehabilitation of the individual 

19 from the injury; and 

20 ‘‘(bb) is not realization of profit; 

21 or 

22 ‘‘(iv) the individual is given the oppor23 tunity to work— 

24 ‘‘(I) despite the injury of the in25 dividual; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) on the basis of— 

2 ‘‘(aa) a family relationship 

3 of the individual; 

4 ‘‘(bb) a past association of 

5 the individual with the employer 

6 giving the individual the oppor7 tunity to work; or 

8 ‘‘(cc) any other altruistic 

9 reason;’’. 

10 SEC. 4. RETROACTIVE APPLICABILITY. 

11 (a) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this sec12 tion— 

13 (1) the term ‘‘covered beneficiary’’ means an in14 dividual who— 

15 (A) is, or was, a child or spouse of a cov16 ered individual described in paragraph (3)(B); 

17 and 

18 (B) would have been eligible for edu19 cational assistance under subpart 2 of part L of 

20 title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 

21 Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.) 

22 if the amendments made by section 3 of this 

23 Act had been in effect on the date on which the 

24 determination described in paragraph (3)(B)(i) 

25 of this subsection was made; 


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1 (2) the term ‘‘covered claimant’’ means an indi2 vidual who is a claimant on the estate of a deceased 

3 covered individual— 

4 (A) described in paragraph (3)(B); and 

5 (B) who died on or before the date of en6 actment of this Act; 

7 (3) the term ‘‘covered individual’’ means— 

8 (A) a beneficiary of a benefit under the 

9 Public Safety Officers’ Death Benefit Program 

10 that was paid— 

11 (i) with respect to a death or dis12 ability of a public safety officer sustained 

13 as the direct or proximate result of a per14 sonal injury sustained in the line of duty; 

15 and 

16 (ii) during the covered period; or 

17 (B) a public safety officer who— 

18 (i) was determined during the covered 

19 period to be ineligible for a benefit pay20 ment under section 1201(b) of title I of 

21 the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 

22 Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281(b)); 

23 and 

24 (ii) would have been eligible for a ben25 efit payment under subpart L of that title 


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1 due to the disability of the public safety of2 ficer if the amendments made by section 3 

3 had been in effect on the date on which the 

4 determination described in clause (i) was 

5 made; 

6 (4) the term ‘‘covered period’’ means the pe7 riod— 

8 (A) beginning on the date of enactment of 

9 title XIII of the Crime Control Act of 1990 

10 (Public Law 101–647; 104 Stat. 4834); and 

11 (B) ending on the day before the date of 

12 enactment of the Protecting America’s First 

13 Responders Act; 

14 (5) the term ‘‘public safety officer’’ has the 

15 meaning given the term in section 1204 of title I of 

16 the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 

17 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10284); and 

18 (6) the term ‘‘Public Safety Officers’ Death 

19 Benefit Program’’ means the program established 

20 under part L of title I of the Omnibus Crime Con21 trol and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281 

22 et seq.). 

23 (b) APPLICABILITY.—The amendments made by sec24 tions 2 and 3 shall apply to a death or disability of a public 


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1 safety officer sustained as the direct or proximate result 

2 of a personal injury sustained in the line of duty— 

3 (1) subject to subsection (c), during the covered 

4 period; or 

5 (2) on or after the date of enactment of this 

6 Act. 

7 (c) PAYMENT.— 

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

9 upon application of a covered individual, covered 

10 beneficiary, or covered claimant, the Bureau of Jus11 tice Assistance shall make a lump sum payment to 

12 the covered individual, covered beneficiary, or cov13 ered claimant in the amount equal to the difference, 

14 if any, between— 

15 (A) in the case of a covered individual— 

16 (i) the amount of the total benefit 

17 payment the covered individual would have 

18 received under the Public Safety Officers’ 

19 Death Benefit Program as of the date of 

20 the lump sum payment, if the amendments 

21 made by sections 2 and 3 had been in ef22 fect on the date on which the covered indi23 vidual— 


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1 (I) received the final benefit pay2 ment under the Public Safety Offi3 cers’ Death Benefit Program; or 

4 (II) was determined to be ineli5 gible for a benefit payment under sec6 tion 1201(b) of title I of the Omnibus 

7 Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 

8 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281(b)); and 

9 (ii) the amount of the total benefit 

10 payment the covered individual received 

11 under the Public Safety Officers’ Death 

12 Benefit Program before the date of enact13 ment of this Act; 

14 (B) in the case of a covered beneficiary, 

15 the amount of the total benefit payment the 

16 covered beneficiary would have received under 

17 subpart 2 of part L of title I of the Omnibus 

18 Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 

19 (34 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.) if the amendments 

20 made by section 3 of this Act had been in effect 

21 on the date on which the determination de22 scribed in subsection (a)(3)(B)(i) of this section 

23 was made; and 

24 (C) in the case of a covered claimant, the 

25 amount of the total benefit payment the covered 


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1 individual on whose estate the covered claimant 

2 is a claimant would have received under the 

3 Public Safety Officers’ Death Benefit Program 

4 as of the date of the lump sum payment, if the 

5 amendments made by sections 2 and 3 had 

6 been in effect on the date on which the deter7 mination described in subsection (a)(3)(B)(i) of 

8 this section was made. 

9 (2) APPLICATION.—A covered individual, cov10 ered beneficiary, or covered claimant desiring a lump 

11 sum payment under paragraph (1) shall apply to the 

12 Bureau of Justice Assistance for such lump sum 

13 payment not later than 3 years after the date of en14 actment of this Act. 

15 SEC. 5. DUE DILIGENCE IN PAYING BENEFIT CLAIMS 

16 UNDER THE PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICERS’ 

17 DEATH BENEFITS PROGRAM. 

18 Section 1206(b) of title I of the Omnibus Crime Con19 trol and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10288(b)) 

20 is amended by striking ‘‘the Bureau may not’’ and all that 

21 follows and inserting the following: ‘‘the Bureau— 

22 ‘‘(1) shall use all available investigative tools, 

23 including subpoenas, to— 

24 ‘‘(A) expedite the processing of the benefit 

25 claim; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) obtain necessary information or docu2 mentation from third parties, including public 

3 agencies; and 

4 ‘‘(2) may not abandon the benefit claim unless 

5 the Bureau has used the investigative tools available 

6 to the Bureau to obtain the necessary information or 

7 documentation, including subpoenas.’’. 

8 SEC. 6. EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE TO DEPENDENTS OF 

9 PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICERS KILLED OR DIS10 ABLED IN THE LINE OF DUTY. 

11 Section 1216(b) of title I of the Omnibus Crime Con12 trol and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10306(b)) 

13 is amended, in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘may’’ and 

14 inserting ‘‘shall’’. 

15 SEC. 7. COLLECTION OF DATA ON KILLED OR DISABLED 

16 LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS. 

17 Section 534(a) of title 28, United States Code, is 

18 amended— 

19 (1) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

20 end; 

21 (2) in paragraph (4), by striking the period at 

22 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

23 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(5) operate a central clearinghouse for statis25 tics on law enforcement officers under the Uniform 


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1 Crime Reporting Program, including data on law en2 forcement officers who, while performing their du3 ties, were— 

4 ‘‘(A) feloniously killed; 

5 ‘‘(B) accidentally killed; 

6 ‘‘(C) feloniously assaulted; or 

7 ‘‘(D) severely and permanently disabled.’’. 

8 SEC. 8. GAO REPORT ON MEDICAL COSTS. 

9 (a) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘disabled 

10 officer’’ means a public safety officer to whom a benefit 

11 is payable under subpart 1 of part L of title I of the Omni12 bus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 

13 U.S.C. 10281 et seq.) based on the permanent and total 

14 disability of the officer, as described in section 1201(b) 

15 of that subpart (34 U.S.C. 10281(b)). 

16 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

17 of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the 

18 United States shall submit to the Committee on the Judi19 ciary of the Senate and the Committee on the Judiciary 

20 of the House of Representatives a report that estimates 

21 the average medical costs incurred by a disabled officer 


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1 over the lifetime of the officer after sustaining the injury 

2 that caused the disability. 

Passed the Senate May 16, 2019. 

Attest: JULIE E. ADAMS, 

Secretary. 


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