I 
118TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION H. R. 10322 
To improve the effectiveness of body armor issued to female agents and 
officers of the Department of Homeland Security, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 6, 2024 
Mrs. MCIVER (for herself, Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi, and Mr. EZELL) in-
troduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
Homeland Security 
A BILL 
To improve the effectiveness of body armor issued to female 
agents and officers of the Department of Homeland Se-
curity, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘DHS Better Ballistic 
Body Armor Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. PROCUREMENT OF BALLISTIC RESISTANT BODY 
ARMOR TO ENSURE THE PROTECTION OF FE-
MALE AGENTS AND OFFICERS OF THE DE-
PARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu-
rity shall require components of the Department of Home-
land Security, when procuring ballistic resistant body 
armor for agents and officers, to procure ballistic resistant 
body armor that complies with the following requirements: 
(1) Is specifically designed to fully protect the 
body shapes of agents and officers. 
(2) Is made to conform to the individual wearer 
and provide the best possible fit and coverage to 
allow for either a flat or shaped front panel. 
(3) Is assessed and verified, upon delivery, to 
fit properly and have sufficient coverage in accord-
ance with American Society for Testing and Mate-
rials (ASTM International) standards for fit. 
(4) Has enhanced and advanced fit and tech-
nology that stops a bullet from redirecting off the 
chest at an upward angle into the throat region or 
the spinal cord area. 
(5) Is certified by the National Institute of Jus-
tice (NIJ), pursuant to the NIJ standard for bal-
listic resistant body armor, and included on the as-
sociated NIJ Compliant Products List as success-
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fully passing the ballistic resistant body armor 
standards in accordance with the applicable ballistic 
protection level recommended by the NIJ, including 
passing testing that uses, for each test sample, the 
following: 
(A) Ballistic testing on clay or gelatin 
molds to ensure better contact of nonplanar 
panels with such clay or gelatin molds, as re-
quired by the body shapes of agents and offi-
cers. 
(B) Soft body armor front panels con-
tained in soft carriers on female-shaped clay or 
gelatin molds designed to fill the space behind 
the panel. 
(C) Shots to be placed on shaping features. 
(D) Angled shots. 
(E) An angled shot at the chest to address 
the concern of a bullet skipping into the neck-
line. 
(F) Any additional testing criteria rec-
ommended by the NIJ on or after the date of 
the enactment of this Act. 
(b) ANNUAL REPORTS.— 
(1) ISSUANCE OF BALLISTIC RESISTANT BODY 
ARMOR.—Not later than one year after the date of 
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the enactment of this Act and annually thereafter 
for the following two years, the head of each relevant 
component of the Department of Homeland Security 
shall submit to the Secretary of Homeland Security 
a report regarding the ballistic resistant body armor 
issued to female agents and officers of such compo-
nent, including with respect to the reporting period, 
information relating to the following: 
(A) The number of female agents and offi-
cers to whom ballistic resistant body armor was 
issued for performance of their official duties. 
(B) The number of ballistic resistant body 
armor units issued to female agents and officers 
before the date of the enactment of this Act, 
the use of which was discontinued due to non-
compliance with the requirements described in 
subsection (a). 
(C) The number of ballistic resistant body 
armor units issued to female agents and officers 
before the date of the enactment of this Act 
that are compliant with the requirements de-
scribed in subsection (a). 
(D) The percentage of female agents and 
officers of such component who, as of the last 
day of the reporting period, have been issued 
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ballistic resistant body armor that complies 
with the requirements described in subsection 
(a), disaggregated by duty station. 
(2) AGGREGATE REPORT.—Not later than 30 
days after receiving all of the reports required under 
paragraph (1) during a reporting period, the Sec-
retary of Homeland Security shall submit to the 
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Home-
land Security of the House of Representatives a re-
port that aggregates all of the data contained in 
such reports. 
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Not later than three years 
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
of Homeland Security shall ensure that all agents and offi-
cers of any component of the Department of Homeland 
Security whose duties require body armor shall have been 
issued body armor that complies with the requirements de-
scribed in subsection (a). 
(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the term ‘‘bal-
listic resistant body armor’’ means torso ballistic protec-
tion containing either soft ballistic panels, hard ballistic 
panels, or a combination of both, contained within a car-
rier, which may be concealable for wear under a uniform 
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shirt or external for wear over a uniform shirt, and holds 
panels and plates in position on the torso. 
Æ 
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