A bill to expand and extend Sen. Patrick Leahy's Bulletproof Vest Act has been unanimously approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee. Leahy's bill, which President Clinton has declared an unqualified success, has funded more than 92,000 bulletproof vests for the nation's police officers since it was signed into law in 1998. Under the program, the federal government pays up to 50 percent of the costs of the vests purchased for state and local police officers.
Bulletproof vests save lives.
Two New Hampshire state troopers, not wearing protective vests, were killed in the gun battle. Under the bill, smaller jurisdictions, which often cannot afford the costs of the vests even with the matching federal funds, would be guaranteed the full 50 percent allowed by law. Leahy has announced that Vermont police officers will receive 175 new vests this year through the Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Act.