COPS on the Beat Grant Program Parity Act of 2022
Bill: S.4287 | Sponsor: Sen. Graham, Lindsey (R-SC)
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement

Summary:
COPS on the Beat Grant Program Parity Act of 2022
This bill makes changes to the Community Oriented Policing Services grant program.
Among the changes, the bill
Additionally, the bill requires the Government Accountability Office to report on whether law enforcement workforces are representative of the communities they serve, the percentage of law enforcement officers who live in the community they serve, the average pay of officers compared to the cost of living in the community they serve, and recommendations for improvements.

To permit COPS grants to be used for the purpose of increasing the 
  compensation and hiring of law enforcement officers, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``COPS on the Beat Grant Program 
Parity Act of 2022''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) The President's Task Force on 21st Century Policing 
        highlighted the importance of hiring law enforcement officers 
        who reflect the diversity and values of the community, and who 
        have both the mindset and the skills needed to engage with the 
        community.
            (2) Diverse workforces can be more effective, creative, and 
        resilient than homogenous workforces, and teams with broader 
        perspectives result in better decision making and problem-
        solving practices. Recruiting a diverse pool of candidates 
        includes qualified individuals from different races, genders, 
        ethnicities, and cultural backgrounds.
            (3) Effective recruitment practices can help law 
        enforcement agencies engender trust, develop good relations 
        with their communities, and ensure that the officers they hire 
        can best serve those communities. Recruitment efforts should 
        start in the community, and law enforcement agencies should 
        consider developing youth programs to attract younger 
        generations. This could include Explorer programs, internships 
        through local schools, cadet academies, university 
        partnerships, and youth mentorship programs that foster 
        relationships between young adults and departments. Not only do 
        these programs develop enthusiasm for a law enforcement career, 
        but they can also build relationships between law enforcement 
        agencies and the communities they serve.
    (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that the Office 
of Community Oriented Policing Services (commonly known as the ``COPS 
Office'') of the Department of Justice is uniquely suited to empower 
local law enforcement agencies to fulfill recommendations related to 
law enforcement hiring practices, including agencies being reflective 
of the communities they serve, both demographically and in values and 
vision, and possessing the mindset and skills needed to engage with the 
community.

SEC. 3. RURAL COMMUNITY ACCESS TO COPS GRANTS.

    (a) Uses of Grant Amounts.--Section 1701(b) of title I of the 
Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10381(b)) 
is amended--
            (1) by redesignating paragraphs (3) through (23) as 
        paragraphs (4) through (24), respectively;
            (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:
            ``(3) in the case of any State or unit of local government 
        that has a median household income of less than 70 percent of 
        the national median household income and qualifies for a 
        reduced contribution under subsection (g)(2), to increase wages 
        of career law enforcement officers to not more than 80 percent 
        of the national median household income;''; and
            (3) in paragraph (23), as redesignated, by striking 
        ``through (21)'' and inserting ``through (22)''.
    (b) Preferential Consideration.--Section 1701(c) of title I of the 
Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10381(c)) 
is amended--
            (1) by striking paragraph (1); and
            (2) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as paragraphs 
        (1) and (2), respectively.
    (c) Cost Share.--Section 1701(g) of title I of the Omnibus Crime 
Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10381(g)) is amended to 
read as follows:
    ``(g) Matching Funds.--
            ``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), the 
        portion of the costs of a program, project, or activity 
        provided by a grant under subsection (a) may not exceed 75 
        percent, unless the Attorney General waives, wholly or in part, 
        the requirement under this subsection of a non-Federal 
        contribution to the costs of a program, project, or activity. 
        In relation to a grant for a period exceeding 1 year for hiring 
        or rehiring or increasing the compensation of career law 
        enforcement officers, the Federal share shall decrease from 
        year to year for up to 5 years, looking toward the continuation 
        of the increased hiring and compensation level using State or 
        local sources of funding following the conclusion of Federal 
        support, as provided in an approved plan pursuant to section 
        1702(c)(8).
            ``(2) Reduced non-federal contribution.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The portion of the costs of a 
                program, project, or activity provided by a grant under 
                subsection (a), in any State or unit of local 
                government described in subparagraph (B), may not 
                exceed--
                            ``(i) 90 percent for the first year of the 
                        grant;
                            ``(ii) 85 percent for the second year of 
                        the grant;
                            ``(iii) 80 percent for the third year of 
                        the grant; or
                            ``(iv) 75 percent for the fourth year of 
                        the grant.
                    ``(B) State or unit of local government 
                described.--A State or unit of local government 
                described in this subparagraph is any State or unit of 
                local government--
                            ``(i) with a median household income that 
                        is not more than 80 percent of the national 
                        median household income;
                            ``(ii) that does not provide a single 
                        employee with compensation that is more than 
                        double the national median household income; 
                        and
                            ``(iii) that is a rural State, rural 
                        community, or rural area as such terms are 
                        defined in section 40002(a) of the Violent 
                        Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 
                        (34 U.S.C. 12291(a)).''.
    (d) Limitation on Hiring and Rehiring.--Section 1704(c) of title I 
of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 
10384(c)) is amended to read as follows:
    ``(c) Hiring and Compensation Cost.--
            ``(1) In general.--Funding provided under this part for 
        hiring or rehiring a career law enforcement officer may not 
        exceed $75,000, unless the Attorney General grants a waiver 
        from this limitation.
            ``(2) Reduced contribution.--In the case of a jurisdiction 
        that has a median household income of less than 70 percent of 
        the national median household income and qualifies for a 
        reduced contribution under section 1701(g)(2), a career law 
        enforcement officer who is hired or rehired or whose 
        compensation is increased under this part may not receive from 
        any funding provided under this part compensation exceeding 80 
        percent of the national median household income for work 
        performed as an on-duty law enforcement officer.''.
    (e) Allocation of COPS Grant Program Funds.--Section 1001(a)(11)(B) 
of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 
(34 U.S.C. 10261(a)(11)(B)) is amended by inserting after the second 
sentence the following: ``If funds remain available for obligation 
under this subparagraph in a fiscal year after all eligible and 
qualified grantees have been funded from the 50 percent of funding 
allocated for grants pursuant to applications submitted by units of 
local government or law enforcement agencies having jurisdiction over 
areas with populations exceeding 150,000 or by public and private 
entities that serve areas with populations exceeding 150,000, the 
remaining funds may be used for grants pursuant to applications 
submitted by units of local government or law enforcement agencies 
having jurisdiction over areas with populations 150,000 or less or by 
public and private entities that serve areas with populations 150,000 
or less.''.
    (f) Definitions.--Section 1709 of title I of the Omnibus Crime 
Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10389) is amended by 
adding at the end the following:
            ``(8) `Attorney General' means the Attorney General, acting 
        through the Director of the Office of Community Oriented 
        Policing Services.''.

SEC. 4. COPS OFFICE.

    Section 1701(a) of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 
Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10381(a)) is amended to read as follows:
    ``(a) Office of Community Oriented Policing Services.--
            ``(1) Establishment of office.--There is within the 
        Department of Justice, under the general authority of the 
        Attorney General, a separate and distinct office to be known as 
        the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (referred to 
        in this subsection as the `COPS Office').
            ``(2) Director.--The COPS Office shall be headed by a 
        Director who shall--
                    ``(A) be appointed by the Attorney General; and
                    ``(B) have final authority over grants under this 
                part and any other grants, cooperative agreements, and 
                contracts awarded by the COPS Office.
            ``(3) Grant authorization.--The Attorney General, acting 
        through the Director, shall make grants to States, units of 
        local government, Indian tribal governments, other public and 
        private entities, and multi-jurisdictional or regional 
        consortia for the purposes described in subsection (b).''.

SEC. 5. GAO REPORT.

    (a) In General.--In fiscal year 2026 and fiscal year 2031, the 
Comptroller General of the United States, after consultation with the 
Attorney General, shall submit to Congress and make publicly available 
a report that provides the information described in subsection (b) 
using a broad cross-section of law enforcement agencies--
            (1) from various regions of the United States;
            (2) of different sizes; and
            (3) from rural, suburban, and urban jurisdictions.
    (b) Information Required.--The information referred to in 
subsection (a) is--
            (1) a measure of how representative law enforcement 
        officers are of the communities they serve based on 
        demographics, including, at a minimum, gender and race;
            (2) the percentage of law enforcement officers who live in 
        the jurisdiction in which they are employed;
            (3) a measure of average law enforcement officer pay 
        compared to cost of living in the jurisdiction in which the law 
        enforcement officers are employed; and
            (4) legislative and administrative recommendations for 
        improving--
                    (A) the diversity of law enforcement agencies, 
                including officers, specifically in relation to the 
                communities they serve; and
                    (B) the number of officers who live in the 
                jurisdiction in which they are employed.
                                 <all>