I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1792
To provide crime-fighting scholarships to certain law enforcement officers.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MAY 13, 1999
Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi (for himself, Mr. HUTCHINSON, Mr. SHOWS,
Mr. ETHERIDGE, and Mr. HOLDEN) introduced the following bill; which
was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
A BILL
To provide crime-fighting scholarships to certain law
enforcement officers.
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 ‘‘Bipartisan Rural Law
Enforcement Crime-Fighting Scholarship Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds that—
(1) the organization of illegal gangs and many
systems of illegal drug trafficking and distribution
have become increasingly similar in both urban and
rural areas of the United States;
(2) crime- and drug-ridden neighborhoods in
both urban and rural areas demonstrate many of the
same characteristics;
(3) many law enforcement agencies in urban
areas utilize the most modern technology and cut-
ting-edge police tactics to fight gangs, abolish illegal
drug trafficking and distribution systems, and create
safer neighborhoods and communities; and
(4) law enforcement agencies in rural areas
may improve their efforts in the community if offi-
cers have an opportunity to participate in a program
permitting them to conduct firsthand observations of
the strategies and technologies utilized by Federal
and urban law enforcement agencies to fight gangs,
abolish illegal drug trafficking and distribution sys-
tems, and create safer neighborhoods and commu-
nities.
SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE RURAL LAW ENFORCE-
MENT CRIME-FIGHTING SCHOLARSHIP PRO-
GRAM.
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General, through
the Office of Justice Programs and in consultation with
the National Center for Rural Law Enforcement at the
University of Arkansas, shall establish a rural law enforce-
ment scholarship program by providing grants to rural law
enforcement agencies and consortia of law enforcement
agencies. The grants shall be used to allow law enforce-
ment officers to observe the advanced strategies and tech-
nologies employed by Federal and urban law enforcement
agencies to fight gangs, abolish illegal drug trafficking and
distribution systems, and create safer neighborhoods and
communities.
(b) SITE IDENTIFICATION AND NOTIFICATION.—
(1) 
IDENTIFICATION.—Before 
grants 
are
awarded and not later than 90 days after the date
of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General
shall identify Federal and urban law enforcement
agencies willing to allow rural law enforcement offi-
cers to observe the strategies and technologies used
for fighting crime and creating safer neighborhoods
and communities.
(2) NOTIFICATION.—Not later than 120 days
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the At-
torney General shall publish in the Federal Register
a list of the urban and Federal agencies identified
under paragraph (1).
(c) GRANT AMOUNTS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General shall
determine the appropriate amount of each grant
award after considering the relative costs associated
with each observation opportunity.
(2) MAXIMUM
GRANT
AWARD.—Each grant
award may not exceed $2,500 for an individual rural
law enforcement agency and $7,500 for a consor-
tium of law enforcement agencies.
(d) PARTICIPATION REQUIREMENTS.—Officers se-
lected for a rural law enforcement scholarship may partici-
pate in a particular observation opportunity for a max-
imum period of 1 month. Not more than 1 officer from
the same rural law enforcement agency may participate.
In cases in which 1 or more rural law enforcement agen-
cies establish a consortium, not more than 1 officer from
each agency in the consortium may participate.
(e) USES OF FUNDS.—Subject to subsections (c) and
(d), a grant received under this Act may be used to pay
the costs of official travel, lodging, and expenses that law
enforcement officers incur while participating in the pro-
gram.
SEC. 4. ELIGIBILITY AND SELECTION.
(a) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a grant
under this Act, a rural law enforcement agency, on its own
behalf or for a consortium of law enforcement agencies
shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time,
in such manner, and containing such information as the
Secretary may reasonably require.
(b) SELECTION.—The Attorney General shall select
grant recipients by using the following criteria:
(1) CRIMINAL ACTIVITIES.—The extent of vio-
lent crime, drug trafficking and distribution, drug
use, and other major indicators of crime that threat-
en the public safety in the area served by the rural
law enforcement agency, as identified in studies con-
ducted by the Department of Justice and in State
applications submitted under part E of title I of the
Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of
1968 for the Edward Bryne Memorial State and
Local Law Enforcement Assistance Programs.
(2) PROGRAM BENEFITS.—The extent to which
the observation opportunity is likely to provide law
enforcement officers who participate in the scholar-
ship program with knowledge or skills that can be
successfully employed in the area that the rural law
enforcement agency serves.
SEC. 5. REPORTING.
Not later than 3 years after the date of the enact-
ment of this Act, the Attorney General shall submit to
the Committees on the Judiciary of the House of Rep-
resentatives and the Senate a report regarding the success
of participating rural law enforcement agencies in employ-
ing strategies or technology observed during participation
in the rural law enforcement scholarship program.
SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.
For purposes of this Act:
(1) The term ‘‘consortium of law enforcement
agencies’’ means not less than 1 rural law enforce-
ment agency that executes an agreement with other
law enforcement agencies which may include sheriff,
highway patrol, and police departments that seek to
organize more comprehensive crime-fighting strate-
gies in rural areas.
(2) The term ‘‘law enforcement officer’’ has the
same meaning given such term in section 1204(5) of
title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe
Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796b(5).
(3) The term ‘‘metropolitan statistical area’’
has the same meaning given such term by the Bu-
reau of the Census.
(4) The term ‘‘rural law enforcement agency’’
means a law enforcement agency that serves—
(A) a city, town, township, borough, or vil-
lage outside a metropolitan statistical area;