Public Safety Officer Support Act of 2022
Bill: S.3635 | Sponsor: Sen. Duckworth, Tammy (D-IL)
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement

Summary:
Public Safety Officer Support Act of 2022
This bill extends death and disability benefits under the Public Safety Officers' Benefits Program (PSOB) to certain public safety officers and survivors of public safety officers who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, acute stress disorder, or a trauma and stress-related disorder following an exposure to one or more traumatic events while on duty. The PSOB program provides death, disability, and education benefits to public safety officers and survivors of public safety officers who die or become disabled as a direct and proximate result of a personal injury in the line of duty.

To amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to 
 authorize public safety officer death benefits to officers suffering 
 from post-traumatic stress disorder or acute stress disorder, and for 
                            other purposes.

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

<DELETED>SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    This Act may be cited as the ``Public Safety Officer 
Support Act of 2022''.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 2. FINDINGS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    Congress finds the following:</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) Every day, public safety officers, including 
        police officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians, 
        and others, work to maintain the safety, health, and well-being 
        of the communities they serve.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) This means public safety officers are 
        routinely called to respond to stressful and potentially 
        traumatic situations, often putting their own lives in 
        danger.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) This work not only puts public safety officers 
        at risk for experiencing harm, serious injury, and cumulative 
        and acute trauma, but also places them at up to 25.6 times 
        higher risk for developing post-traumatic stress disorder when 
        compared to individuals without such experiences.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (4) Psychological evidence indicates that law 
        enforcement officers experience significant job-related 
        stressors and exposures that may confer increased risk for 
        mental health morbidities (such as post-traumatic stress 
        disorder and suicidal thoughts, ideation, intents, and 
        behaviors) and hastened mortality.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (5) Public safety officers often do not have the 
        resources or support they need, leaving them at higher risk for 
        long-term mental health consequences.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (6) Whereas, although the Department of Defense 
        already considers servicemember suicides to be line-of-duty 
        deaths and provides Federal support to eligible surviving 
        families, the Federal Government does not recognize public 
        safety officer suicides as deaths in the line of 
        duty.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (7) In 2017, the Department of Justice approved 
        481 claims under the Public Safety Officers' Benefits Program 
        under subpart 1 of part L of title I of the Omnibus Crime 
        Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281 et seq.), 
        but not one of them for the more than 240 public safety 
        officers who died by suicide that year.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (8) Public safety officers who have died or are 
        disabled as a result of suicide or post-traumatic stress 
        disorder do not qualify for the Public Safety Officers' 
        Benefits Program, despite the fact that public safety officers 
        are more likely to die by suicide than from any other line-of-
        duty cause of death.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 3. PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICER DEATH BENEFITS FOR POST-
              TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER AND ACUTE STRESS 
              DISORDER.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) In General.--Section 1201 of title I of the Omnibus 
Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281) is amended 
by adding at the end the following:</DELETED>
<DELETED>    ``(o) Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Acute Stress 
Disorder.--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(1) Definitions.--In this section:</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(A) Mass casualty event.--The term `mass 
                casualty event' means an incident resulting in 
                casualties to not fewer than 3 victims, including--
                </DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(i) an incident that exceeds the 
                        normal resources for emergency response 
                        available in the jurisdiction where the 
                        incident takes place; and</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(ii) an incident that results in 
                        a sudden temporal surge of injured individuals 
                        necessitating emergency services.</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(B) Mass fatality event.--The term `mass 
                fatality event' means an incident resulting in the 
                fatalities of not fewer than 3 individuals at 1 or more 
                locations close to one another with a common 
                cause.</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(C) Mass shooting.--The term `mass 
                shooting' means a multiple homicide incident in which 
                not fewer than 3 victims are killed--</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(i) with a firearm;</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(ii) within 1 event; 
                        and</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(iii) in 1 or more locations in 
                        close proximity.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(2) Personal injury sustained in line of duty.--
        </DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(A) In general.--Except as provided in 
                subparagraph (B), as determined by the Bureau--
                </DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(i) post-traumatic stress 
                        disorder or acute stress disorder suffered by a 
                        public safety officer, and diagnosed by a 
                        licensed medical or mental health professional, 
                        shall be presumed to constitute a personal 
                        injury within the meaning of subsection (a), 
                        sustained in the line of duty by the officer, 
                        if the officer, while on duty, engages in 
                        situations involving stressful, tensional, or 
                        traumatic law enforcement, fire suppression, 
                        rescue, hazardous material response, emergency 
                        medical services (including responding to 
                        opioid overdoses, or traumatic psychological or 
                        psychiatric distress calls), prison security, 
                        disaster relief, or other emergency response 
                        activity;</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(ii) post-traumatic stress 
                        disorder or acute stress disorder suffered by a 
                        public safety officer who has contacted or 
                        attempted to contact the employee assistance 
                        program of the agency or entity that the 
                        officer serves, a licensed medical or mental 
                        health professional, suicide prevention 
                        services, or another mental health assistance 
                        service in order to receive help, treatment, or 
                        diagnosis for post-traumatic stress disorder or 
                        acute stress disorder, shall be presumed to 
                        constitute a personal injury within the meaning 
                        of subsection (a), sustained in the line of 
                        duty by the officer, if the officer, while on 
                        duty, engages in situations involving 
                        stressful, tensional, or traumatic law 
                        enforcement, fire suppression, rescue, 
                        hazardous material response, emergency medical 
                        services (including responding to opioid 
                        overdoses, or traumatic psychological or 
                        psychiatric distress calls), prison security, 
                        disaster relief, or other emergency response 
                        activity; and</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(iii) post-traumatic stress 
                        disorder or acute stress disorder suffered by a 
                        public safety officer who engages in a response 
                        to a mass casualty incident, mass death 
                        incident, or mass shooting involving stressful, 
                        tensional, or traumatic law enforcement, fire 
                        suppression, rescue, hazardous material 
                        response, prison security, disaster relief, or 
                        other emergency response activity shall be 
                        presumed to constitute a personal injury within 
                        the meaning of subsection (a), sustained in the 
                        line of duty by the officer.</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(B) Exceptions.--</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(i) Disorder unrelated to 
                        engagement.--Subparagraph (A) shall not apply 
                        if the Bureau establishes, by clear and 
                        convincing evidence, and based on competent 
                        psychological or medical evidence, that the 
                        post-traumatic stress disorder or acute stress 
                        disorder was completely unrelated to engagement 
                        in situations described in clause (i), (ii), or 
                        (iii) of that subparagraph.</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(ii) Other direct and proximate 
                        cause.--Subparagraph (A) shall not apply if 
                        competent psychological or medical evidence 
                        establishes that the post-traumatic stress 
                        disorder or acute stress disorder was directly 
                        and proximately caused by something other than 
                        the mere presence of post-traumatic stress 
                        disorder or acute stress disorder risk 
                        factors.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(3) Death or disability.--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(A) In general.--</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(i) Death by suicide of any 
                        officer.--For purposes of a claim under 
                        subsection (a), if a public safety officer 
                        described in clause (i), (ii), or (iii) of 
                        paragraph (2)(A) of this subsection dies by 
                        suicide, that death shall be presumed to be a 
                        direct and proximate result of the post-
                        traumatic stress disorder or acute stress 
                        disorder suffered by the public safety 
                        officer.</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(ii) Disability of diagnosed 
                        officers.--For purposes of a claim under 
                        subsection (b), if a public safety officer 
                        described in paragraph (2)(A)(i) of this 
                        subsection is permanently and totally disabled 
                        as a result of the post-traumatic stress 
                        disorder or acute stress disorder suffered by 
                        the public safety officer, including as a 
                        result of attempted suicide, that disability 
                        shall be presumed to be a direct and proximate 
                        result of the post-traumatic stress disorder or 
                        acute stress disorder suffered by the public 
                        safety officer.</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(iii) Disability of non-
                        diagnosed officers due to attempted suicide.--
                        For purposes of a claim under subsection (b), 
                        if a public safety officer described in clause 
                        (ii) or (iii) of paragraph (2)(A) of this 
                        subsection is permanently and totally disabled 
                        as a result of attempted suicide, that 
                        disability shall be presumed to be a direct and 
                        proximate result of the post-traumatic stress 
                        disorder or acute stress disorder suffered by 
                        the public safety officer.</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(B) Permanent and total disability.--For 
                purposes of clauses (ii) and (iii) of subparagraph (A), 
                an individual shall be considered permanently and 
                totally disabled as a result of an attempted suicide or 
                of post-traumatic stress disorder or acute stress 
                disorder if the individual is unable to serve as a 
                public safety officer in the same or a substantially 
                similar role as the individual was serving prior to the 
                attempted suicide or prior to suffering from post-
                traumatic stress disorder or acute stress disorder, 
                respectively.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(4) Applicability of limitations on benefits.--
        </DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(A) Intentional actions.--Section 
                1202(a)(1) shall not apply to any claim for a benefit 
                under this part that is payable in accordance with this 
                subsection.</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(B) Substance use.--Section 1202(a)(2) 
                shall not preclude the payment of a benefit under this 
                part if the benefit is otherwise payable in accordance 
                with this subsection.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Retroactive Applicability.--The amendment made by 
subsection (a) shall take effect as if enacted on January 1, 2019, and 
shall apply to any public safety officer who dies or is permanently and 
totally disabled on or after that date.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 4. GAO REPORT.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this 
Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to 
Congress a report that details benefits issued pursuant to subsection 
(o) of section 1201 of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 
Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281), as added by section 3, and 
includes any recommendations to improve that subsection.</DELETED>

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Public Safety Officer Support Act of 
2022''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Every day, public safety officers, including police 
        officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians, and 
        others, work to maintain the safety, health, and well-being of 
        the communities they serve.
            (2) This means public safety officers are routinely called 
        to respond to stressful and potentially traumatic situations, 
        often putting their own lives in danger.
            (3) This work not only puts public safety officers at risk 
        for experiencing harm, serious injury, and cumulative and acute 
        trauma, but also places them at up to 25.6 times higher risk 
        for developing post-traumatic stress disorder when compared to 
        individuals without such experiences.
            (4) Psychological evidence indicates that law enforcement 
        officers experience significant job-related stressors and 
        exposures that may confer increased risk for mental health 
        morbidities (such as post-traumatic stress disorder and 
        suicidal thoughts, ideation, intents, and behaviors) and 
        hastened mortality.
            (5) Public safety officers often do not have the resources 
        or support they need, leaving them at higher risk for long-term 
        mental health consequences.
            (6) Although the Department of Defense already considers 
        servicemember suicides to be line-of-duty deaths and provides 
        Federal support to eligible surviving families, the Federal 
        Government does not recognize public safety officer suicides as 
        deaths in the line of duty.
            (7) In 2017, the Department of Justice approved 481 claims 
        under the Public Safety Officers' Benefits Program under 
        subpart 1 of part L of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and 
        Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281 et seq.), but not one 
        of them for the more than 240 public safety officers who died 
        by suicide that year.
            (8) Public safety officers who have died or are disabled as 
        a result of suicide or post-traumatic stress disorder do not 
        qualify for the Public Safety Officers' Benefits Program, 
        despite the fact that public safety officers are more likely to 
        die by suicide than from any other line-of-duty cause of death.

SEC. 3. PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICER DEATH BENEFITS FOR POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS 
              DISORDER, ACUTE STRESS DISORDER, AND TRAUMA- AND STRESS-
              RELATED DISORDERS.

    (a) In General.--Section 1201 of title I of the Omnibus Crime 
Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281) is amended by 
adding at the end the following:
    ``(o) Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, Acute Stress Disorder, and 
Trauma- and Stress-related Disorders.--
            ``(1) Definitions.--In this section:
                    ``(A) Covered disorder.--The term `covered 
                disorder' means post-traumatic stress disorder, acute 
                stress disorder, or a trauma- and stress-related 
                disorder.
                    ``(B) Exposed.--The term `exposed', with respect to 
                an event, includes--
                            ``(i) directly experiencing or witnessing 
                        the event; or
                            ``(ii) being subjected, in an intense way, 
                        to aversive consequences of the event 
                        (including a public safety officer collecting 
                        human remains).
                    ``(C) Mass casualty event.--The term `mass casualty 
                event' means an incident resulting in casualties to not 
                fewer than 3 victims, including--
                            ``(i) an incident that exceeds the normal 
                        resources for emergency response available in 
                        the jurisdiction where the incident takes 
                        place; and
                            ``(ii) an incident that results in a sudden 
                        temporal surge of injured individuals 
                        necessitating emergency services.
                    ``(D) Mass fatality event.--The term `mass fatality 
                event' means an incident resulting in the fatalities of 
                not fewer than 3 individuals at 1 or more locations 
                close to one another with a common cause.
                    ``(E) Mass shooting.--The term `mass shooting' 
                means a multiple homicide incident in which not fewer 
                than 3 victims are killed--
                            ``(i) with a firearm;
                            ``(ii) within 1 event; and
                            ``(iii) in 1 or more locations in close 
                        proximity.
                    ``(F) Traumatic event.--The term `traumatic event' 
                means an event that is--
                            ``(i) a homicide, a suicide, or the violent 
                        or gruesome death of another individual 
                        (including such a death resulting from a mass 
                        casualty event, mass fatality event, or mass 
                        shooting);
                            ``(ii) a harrowing circumstance posing an 
                        extraordinary and significant danger or threat 
                        to the life of or of serious bodily harm to any 
                        individual (including a mass casualty event, 
                        mass fatality event, or mass shooting); or
                            ``(iii) an act of criminal sexual violence 
                        committed against any individual.
            ``(2) Personal injury sustained in line of duty.--As 
        determined by the Bureau--
                    ``(A) a covered disorder suffered by a public 
                safety officer and diagnosed by a licensed medical or 
                mental health professional shall be presumed to 
                constitute a personal injury within the meaning of 
                subsection (a), sustained in the line of duty by the 
                officer, if the officer was exposed, while on duty, to 
                1 or more traumatic events and that exposure was a 
                substantial factor in the covered disorder;
                    ``(B) a covered disorder suffered by a public 
                safety officer who has contacted or attempted to 
                contact the employee assistance program of the agency 
                or entity that the officer serves, a licensed medical 
                or mental health professional, suicide prevention 
                services, or another mental health assistance service 
                in order to receive help, treatment, or diagnosis for 
                the covered disorder shall be presumed to constitute a 
                personal injury within the meaning of subsection (a), 
                sustained in the line of duty by the officer, if the 
                officer was exposed, while on duty, to 1 or more 
                traumatic events and that exposure was a substantial 
                factor in the covered disorder; and
                    ``(C) a covered disorder suffered by a public 
                safety officer who was exposed, while on duty, to 1 or 
                more traumatic events shall be presumed to constitute a 
                personal injury within the meaning of subsection (a), 
                sustained in the line of duty by the officer if that 
                exposure was a substantial factor in the covered 
                disorder.
            ``(3) Presumption of death or total disability.--A public 
        safety officer shall be presumed to have died or become 
        permanently and totally disabled (within the meaning of 
        subsection (a) or (b)) as the direct and proximate result of a 
        personal injury sustained in the line of duty, if (as 
        determined by the Bureau)--
                    ``(A)(i) the officer took an action that--
                            ``(I) was intended to bring about the 
                        officer's death; and
                            ``(II) directly and proximately resulted in 
                        the officer's death or permanent and total 
                        disability; and
                    ``(ii) the officer's exposure to 1 or more 
                traumatic events was a substantial factor in the action 
                described in clause (i); or
                    ``(B)(i) the officer took an action, within 45 days 
                of the end of the officer's exposure to a traumatic 
                event, that--
                            ``(I) was intended to bring about the 
                        officer's death; and
                            ``(II) directly and proximately resulted in 
                        the officer's death or permanent and total 
                        disability; and
                    ``(ii) the action described in clause (i) was not 
                inconsistent with a psychiatric disorder.
            ``(4) Applicability of limitations on benefits.--
                    ``(A) Intentional actions.--Section 1202(a)(1) 
                shall not apply to any claim for a benefit under this 
                part that is payable in accordance with this 
                subsection.
                    ``(B) Substance use.--Section 1202(a)(2) shall not 
                preclude the payment of a benefit under this part if 
                the benefit is otherwise payable in accordance with 
                this subsection.''.
    (b) Retroactive Applicability.--
            (1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), the 
        amendments made by this section shall--
                    (A) take effect on the date of enactment of this 
                Act; and
                    (B) apply to any matter pending, before the Bureau 
                of Justice Assistance or otherwise, on the date of 
                enactment of this Act, or filed (consistent with pre-
                existing effective dates) or accruing after that date.
            (2) Exception.--The amendments made by this section shall 
        apply to any action taken by a public safety officer described 
        in subsection (o)(3) of section 1201 of title I of the Omnibus 
        Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281), 
        as added by this section, that occurred on or after January 1, 
        2019.

SEC. 4. TECHNICAL FIXES.

    (a) Subpoena Power; Employment of Hearing Officers; Authority to 
Hold Hearings.--Section 806 of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and 
Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10225) is amended--
            (1) in the first sentence--
                    (A) by striking ``The'' and all that follows 
                through ``Assistance'' and inserting ``The Assistant 
                Attorney General, the Bureau of Justice Assistance'';
                    (B) by striking ``by the Attorney General'';
                    (C) by striking ``Code)'' and inserting ``Code 
                (without regard to the days limitation prescribed 
                therein), but shall, in no event, be understood to be 
                (or to have the authority of) officers of the United 
                States)'';
                    (D) by striking ``such hearing examiners or 
                administrative law judges'' and inserting ``or 
                administrative law judges''; and
                    (E) by striking ``necessary to carry out'' and all 
                that follows and inserting the following: ``necessary 
                or convenient to assist them in carrying out their 
                respective powers and duties under any law administered 
                by or under the Office.''; and
            (2) in the second sentence--
                    (A) by striking ``The'' and all that follows 
                through ``Assistance'' and inserting ``The Assistant 
                Attorney General, the Bureau of Justice Assistance'';
                    (B) by striking ``or any'' and inserting ``, or 
                (subject to such limitations as the appointing 
                authority may, in its sole discretion, impose from time 
                to time) any'';
                    (C) by inserting a comma after ``thereby''; and
                    (D) by striking ``examinations and'' and inserting 
                ``examinations, and''.
    (b) Definitions.--Section 1204 of title I of the Omnibus Crime 
Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10284) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (11), by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (2) in paragraph (12)(B), by striking ``basis.'' and 
        inserting ``basis;''; and
            (3) in paragraph (14), by redesignating the second 
        subparagraph (F) as subparagraph (G).

SEC. 5. GAO REPORT.

    Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to Congress a 
report that details benefits issued pursuant to subsection (o) of 
section 1201 of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets 
Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281), as added by section 3, and includes any 
recommendations to improve that subsection.
                                                       Calendar No. 420

117th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                                S. 3635

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