Protecting America’s First Responders Act of 2021
Bill: H.R.2936 | Sponsor: Rep. Pascrell, Bill, Jr. (D-NJ)
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement

Summary:
Protecting America's First Responders Act of 2021
This bill makes changes to the Public Safety Officers' Benefits (PSOB) program. The PSOB program provides death, disability, and education benefits to public safety officers and survivors of public safety officers who are killed in the line of duty or permanently disabled as a result of catastrophic injuries sustained in the line of duty.
Among the changes, the bill

To amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 with 
 respect to payments to certain public safety officers who have become 
   permanently and totally disabled as a result of personal injuries 
         sustained in the line of duty, 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 ``Protecting America's First 
Responders Act of 2021''.

SEC. 2. PAYMENT OF DEATH AND DISABILITY BENEFITS UNDER PUBLIC SAFETY 
              OFFICERS' DEATH BENEFITS PROGRAM.

    Section 1201 of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 
Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``the Bureau shall pay a 
        benefit of $250,000, adjusted in accordance with subsection 
        (h)'' and inserting ``a benefit of $250,000, adjusted in 
        accordance with subsection (h), and calculated in accordance 
        with subsection (i), shall be payable by the Bureau'';
            (2) in subsection (b)--
                    (A) by striking ``the Bureau shall pay the same 
                benefit'' and inserting ``a benefit shall be payable'';
                    (B) by striking ``that is payable under subsection 
                (a) with respect to the date on which the catastrophic 
                injury occurred,'' and inserting ``in the same amount 
                that would be payable, as of the date such injury was 
                sustained (including'';
                    (C) by inserting ``, and calculated in accordance 
                with subsection (i)), if such determination were a 
                determination under subsection (a)'' before ``: 
                Provided, That''; and
                    (D) by striking ``necessary:'' and all that follows 
                and inserting ``necessary.'';
            (3) in subsection (c), by striking ``$3,000'' and inserting 
        ``$6,000, adjusted in accordance with subsection (h),'';
            (4) in subsection (h), by striking ``subsection (a)'' and 
        inserting ``subsections (a) and (b) and the level of the 
        interim benefit payable immediately before such October 1 under 
        subsection (c)'';
            (5) by striking subsection (i) and inserting the following:
    ``(i) The amount payable under subsections (a) and (b), with 
respect to the death or permanent and total disability of a public 
safety officer, shall be the greater of--
            ``(1) the amount payable under the relevant subsection as 
        of the date of death or the catastrophic injury of the public 
        safety officer; or
            ``(2) in any case in which the claim filed thereunder has 
        been pending for more than 365 days at the time of final 
        determination by the Bureau, the amount that would be payable 
        under the relevant subsection if the death or the catastrophic 
        injury of the public safety officer had occurred on the date on 
        which the Bureau makes such final determination.''; and
            (6) in subsection (m), by inserting ``, (b),'' after 
        ``subsection (a)''.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS WITH RESPECT TO PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICERS' DEATH 
              BENEFITS PROGRAM.

    Section 1204 of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 
Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10284) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2), (3), (4), (5), 
        (6), (7), (8), and (9) as paragraphs (4), (5), (6), (7), (8), 
        (9), (10), (13), and (14), respectively;
            (2) by striking paragraph (4), as so redesignated, and 
        inserting:
            ``(4) `catastrophic injury' means an injury, the direct and 
        proximate result of which is to permanently render an 
        individual functionally incapable (including through a directly 
        and proximately resulting neurocognitive disorder), based on 
        the state of medicine on the date on which the claim is 
        determined by the Bureau, of performing work, including 
        sedentary work: Provided, That, if it appears that a claimant 
        may be functionally capable of performing work--
                    ``(A) the Bureau shall disregard work where any 
                compensation provided is de-minimis, nominal, honorary, 
                or mere reimbursement of incidental expenses, such as--
                            ``(i) work that involves ordinary or simple 
                        tasks, that because of the claimed disability, 
                        the claimant cannot perform without 
                        significantly more supervision, accommodation, 
                        or assistance than is typically provided to an 
                        individual without the claimed disability doing 
                        similar work;
                            ``(ii) work that involves minimal duties 
                        that make few or no demands on the claimant and 
                        are of little or no economic value to the 
                        employer; or
                            ``(iii) work that is performed primarily 
                        for therapeutic purposes and aids the claimant 
                        in the physical or mental recovery from the 
                        claimed disability; and
                    ``(B) the claimant shall be presumed, absent clear 
                and convincing medical evidence to the contrary as 
                determined by the Bureau, to be functionally incapable 
                of performing such work if the direct and proximate 
                result of the injury renders the claimant--
                            ``(i) blind;
                            ``(ii) parapalegic; or
                            ``(iii) quadriplegic;'';
            (3) in paragraph (6), as so redesignated, by striking ``as 
        of the date of the public safety officer's fatal or 
        catastrophic injury'' and inserting ``at the time of the public 
        safety officer's death or fatal injury (in connection with any 
        claim predicated upon such death or injury) or the date of the 
        public safety officer's catastrophic injury or of the final 
        determination by the Bureau of any claim predicated upon such 
        catastrophic injury'';
            (4) in paragraph (7), as so redesignated, by inserting ``, 
        including an individual who, as such a member, engages in scene 
        security or traffic management as the primary or only duty of 
        the individual during emergency response'' before the 
        semicolon; and
            (5) in paragraph (9), as so redesignated by striking 
        ``delinquency).,'' and inserting ``delinquency),'';
            (6) in paragraph (13), as so redesignated, by inserting ``, 
        and includes (as may be prescribed by regulation hereunder) a 
        legally organized volunteer fire department that is a nonprofit 
        entity and provides services without regard to any particular 
        relationship (such as a subscription) a member of the public 
        may have with such a department'' before the semicolon;
            (7) in paragraph (14), as so redesignated,--
                    (A) by striking subparagraph (A) and inserting:
                    ``(A) an individual serving a public agency in an 
                official capacity, with or without compensation, as a 
                law enforcement officer, as a firefighter, or as a 
                chaplain: Provided, That (notwithstanding section 
                1205(b)(2) or (3)) the Bureau shall, absent clear and 
                convincing evidence to the contrary as determined by 
                the Bureau, deem the actions outside of jurisdiction 
                taken by any such law enforcement officer or 
                firefighter, to have been taken while serving such 
                public agency in such capacity, in any case in which 
                the principal legal officer of such public agency, and 
                the head of such agency, together, certify that such 
                actions--
                            ``(i) were not unreasonable;
                            ``(ii) would have been within the authority 
                        and line of duty of such law enforcement 
                        officer or such firefighter to take, had they 
                        been taken in a jurisdiction where such law 
                        enforcement officer or firefighter was 
                        authorized to act, in the ordinary course, in 
                        an official capacity; and
                            ``(iii) would have resulted in the payment 
                        of full line-of-duty death or disability 
                        benefits (as applicable), if any such benefits 
                        typically were payable by (or with respect to 
                        or on behalf of) such public agency, as of the 
                        date the actions were taken;'';
                    (B) by redesignating subparagraphs (B), (C), (D), 
                and (E) as subparagraphs (C), (D), (E), and (F), 
                respectively;
                    (C) by inserting after subparagraph (A), the 
                following new subparagraph:
                    ``(B) a candidate officer who is engaging in an 
                activity or exercise that itself is a formal or 
                required part of the program in which the candidate 
                officer is enrolled or admitted, as provided in this 
                section;''; and
                    (D) by striking subparagraph (E), as so 
                redesignated, and inserting the following:
                    ``(E) a member of a rescue squad or ambulance crew 
                who, as authorized or licensed by law and by the 
                applicable agency or entity, is engaging in rescue 
                activity or in the provision of emergency medical 
                services: Provided, That (notwithstanding section 
                1205(b)(2) or (3)) the Bureau shall, absent clear and 
                convincing evidence to the contrary as determined by 
                the Bureau, deem the actions outside of jurisdiction 
                taken by any such member to have been thus authorized 
                or licensed, in any case in which the principal legal 
                officer of such agency or entity, and the head of such 
                agency or entity together, certify that such actions--
                            ``(i) were not unreasonable;
                            ``(ii) would have been within the authority 
                        and line of duty of such member to take, had 
                        they been taken in a jurisdiction where such 
                        member was authorized or licensed by law and by 
                        a pertinent agency or entity to act, in the 
                        ordinary course; and
                            ``(iii) would have resulted in the payment 
                        of full line-of-duty death or disability 
                        benefits (as applicable), if any such benefits 
                        typically were payable by (or with respect to 
                        or on behalf of) such applicable agency or 
                        entity, as of the date the action was taken;'';
            (8) by inserting before paragraph (4), as so redesignated, 
        the following new paragraphs:
            ``(1) `action outside of jurisdiction' means an action, not 
        in the course of any compensated employment involving either 
        the performance of public safety activity or the provision of 
        security services, by a law enforcement officer, firefighter, 
        or member of a rescue squad or ambulance crew that--
                    ``(A) was taken in a jurisdiction where--
                            ``(i) the law enforcement officer or 
                        firefighter then was not authorized to act, in 
                        the ordinary course, in an official capacity; 
                        or
                            ``(ii) the member of a rescue squad or 
                        ambulance crew then was not authorized or 
                        licensed to act, in the ordinary course, by law 
                        or by the applicable agency or entity;
                    ``(B) then would have been within the authority and 
                line of duty of--
                            ``(i) a law enforcement officer or a 
                        firefighter to take, who was authorized to act, 
                        in the ordinary course, in an official 
                        capacity, in the jurisdiction where the action 
                        was taken; or
                            ``(ii) a member of a rescue squad or 
                        ambulance crew to take, who was authorized or 
                        licensed by law and by a pertinent agency or 
                        entity to act, in the ordinary course, in the 
                        jurisdiction where the action was taken; and
                    ``(C) was, in an emergency situation that presented 
                an imminent and significant danger or threat to human 
                life or of serious bodily harm to any individual, 
                taken--
                            ``(i) by a law enforcement officer--
                                    ``(I) to prevent, halt, or respond 
                                to the immediate consequences of a 
                                crime (including an incident of 
                                juvenile delinquency); or
                                    ``(II) while engaging in a rescue 
                                activity or in the provision of 
                                emergency medical services; or
                            ``(ii) by a firefighter--
                                    ``(I) while engaging in fire 
                                suppression; or
                                    ``(II) while engaging in a rescue 
                                activity or in the provision of 
                                emergency medical services; or
                            ``(iii) by a member of a rescue squad or 
                        ambulance crew, while engaging in a rescue 
                        activity or in the provision of emergency 
                        medical services;
            ``(2) `candidate officer' means an individual who is 
        enrolled or admitted, as a cadet or trainee, in a formal and 
        officially established program of instruction or of training 
        (such as a police or fire academy) that is specifically 
        intended to result upon completion, in the--
                    ``(A) commissioning of such individual as a law 
                enforcement officer;
                    ``(B) conferral upon such individual of official 
                authority to engage in fire suppression (as an officer 
                or employee of a public fire department or as an 
                officially recognized or designated member of a legally 
                organized volunteer fire department); or
                    ``(C) granting to such individual official 
                authorization or license to engage in a rescue 
                activity, or in the provision of emergency medical 
                services, as a member of a rescue squad, or as a member 
                of an ambulance crew that is (or is a part of) the 
                agency or entity that is sponsoring the individual's 
                enrollment or admission;
            ``(3) `blind' means an individual who has central visual 
        acuity of 20/200 or less in the better eye with the use of a 
        correcting lens or whose eye is accompanied by a limitation in 
        the fields of vision such that the widest diameter of the 
        visual field subtends an angle no greater than 20 degrees;''; 
        and
            (9) in the matter following paragraph (10), as so 
        redesignated, by inserting the following new paragraphs:
            ``(11) `neurocognitive disorder' means a disorder that is 
        characterized by a clinically significant decline in cognitive 
        functioning and may include symptoms and signs such as 
        disturbances in memory, executive functioning (that is, higher-
        level cognitive processes, such as, regulating attention, 
        planning, inhibiting responses, decision-making), visual-
        spatial functioning, language, speech, perception, insight, 
        judgment, or an insensitivity to social standards; and
            ``(12) `sedentary work' means work that--
                    ``(A) involves lifting articles weighing no more 
                than 10 pounds at a time or occasionally lifting or 
                carrying articles such as docket files, ledgers, or 
                small tools; and
                    ``(B) despite involving sitting on a regular basis, 
                may require walking or standing on an occasional 
                basis.''.

SEC. 4. DUE DILIGENCE IN PAYING BENEFIT CLAIMS UNDER PUBLIC SAFETY 
              OFFICERS' DEATH BENEFITS PROGRAM.

    Section 1206(b) of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 
Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10288(b)) is amended by striking ``the 
Bureau may not'' and all that follows and inserting the following: 
``the Bureau--
            ``(1) may use available investigative tools, including 
        subpoenas, to--
                    ``(A) adjudicate or to expedite the processing of 
                the benefit claim, if the Bureau deems such use to be 
                necessary to adjudicate or conducive to expediting the 
                adjudication of such claim; and
                    ``(B) obtain information or documentation from 
                third parties, including public agencies, if the Bureau 
                deems such use to be necessary to adjudicate or 
                conducive to expediting the adjudication of a claim; 
                and
            ``(2) may not abandon the benefit claim unless the Bureau 
        has used investigative tools, including subpoenas, to obtain 
        the information or documentation deemed necessary to adjudicate 
        such claim by the Bureau under subparagraph (1)(B).''.

SEC. 5. EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE TO DEPENDENTS OF CERTAIN PUBLIC SAFETY 
              OFFICERS.

    Section 1216(b) of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 
Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10306(b)) is amended, in the first 
sentence, by striking ``may'' and inserting ``shall (unless prospective 
assistance has been provided)''.

SEC. 6. TECHNICAL CORRECTION.

     Section 1205(e)(3)(B) of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 
Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10285(e)(3)(B)) is amended by striking 
``subparagraph (B)(ix)'' and inserting ``subparagraph (I)''.

SEC. 7. SUBPOENA POWER.

    Section 806 of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 
Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10225) is amended--
            (1) by inserting ``Attorney General, the'' before the 
        ``Bureau of Justice Assistance'';
            (2) by striking ``may appoint'' and inserting ``may appoint 
        (to be assigned or employed on an interim or as-needed basis) 
        such hearing examiners (who shall, if so designated by the 
        Attorney General, be understood to be comprised within the 
        meaning of ``special government employee'' under section 202 of 
        title 18, United States Code)'';
            (3) by striking ``under this chapter. The'' and inserting 
        ``or other law. The Attorney General, the''; and
            (4) by inserting ``conduct examinations'' after ``examine 
        witnesses,''.

SEC. 8. EFFECTIVE DATE; APPLICABILITY.

    (a) In General.--Except as otherwise provided in this section, the 
amendments made by this Act shall take effect on the date of enactment 
of this Act.
    (b) Applicability.--
            (1) Certain injuries.--The amendments made to paragraphs 
        (2) and (7) of section 1204 of title I of the Omnibus Crime 
        Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10284) shall 
        apply with respect to injuries occurring on or after January 1, 
        2008.
            (2) Matters pending.--Except as provided in paragraph (1), 
        the amendments made by this Act shall apply to any matter 
        pending, before the Bureau or otherwise, on the date of 
        enactment of this Act, or filed (consistent with pre-existing 
        effective dates) or accruing after that date.
    (c) Effective Date for WTC Responders.--
            (1) Certain new claims.--Not later than two years after the 
        effective date of this Act, a WTC responder may file a claim, 
        under section 1201(b) of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control 
        and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281(b)), that is 
        predicated on a personal injury sustained in the line of duty 
        by such responder as a result of the September 11, 2001, 
        attacks, where--
                    (A) no claim under such section 1201(b) so 
                predicated has previously been filed; or
                    (B) a claim under such section 1201(b) so 
                predicated had previously been denied, in a final 
                agency determination, on the basis (in whole or in 
                part) that the claimant was not totally disabled.
            (2) Claims for a deceased wtc responder.--Not later than 
        two years after the effective date of this Act, a claim may be 
        filed, constructively under section 1201(a) of title I of the 
        Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 
        10281(a)), where a WTC responder who otherwise could have filed 
        a claim pursuant to paragraph (1) has died before such 
        effective date (or dies not later than 365 days after such 
        effective date), or where a WTC responder has filed such a 
        claim but dies while it is pending before the Bureau: Provided, 
        That--
                    (A) no claim under such section 1201(a) otherwise 
                shall have been filed, or determined, in a final agency 
                determination; and
                    (B) if it is determined, in a final agency 
                determination, that a claim under such paragraph (1) 
                would have been payable had the WTC responder not died, 
                then the WTC responder shall irrebutably be presumed 
                (solely for purposes of determining to whom benefits 
                otherwise pursuant to such paragraph (1) may be payable 
                under the claim filed constructively under such section 
                1201(a)) to have died as the direct and proximate 
                result of the injury on which the claim under such 
                paragraph (1) would have been predicated.
            (3) Difference in benefit pay.--In the event that a claim 
        under section 1201(b) of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control 
        and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281(b)) and 
        predicated on an injury sustained in the line of duty by a WTC 
        responder as a result of the September 11, 2001, attacks was 
        approved, in a final agency determination, before the effective 
        date of this Act, the Bureau shall, upon application filed (not 
        later than three years after such effective date of this Act) 
        by the payee (or payees) indicated in subparagraphs (A) or (B), 
        pay a bonus in the amount of the difference (if any) between 
        the amount that was paid pursuant to such determination and the 
        amount that would have been payable had the amendments made by 
        this Act, other than those indicated in subsection (b)(1), been 
        in effect on the date of such determination--
                    (A) to the WTC responder, if living on the date the 
                application is determined, in a final agency 
                determination; or
                    (B) if the WTC responder is not living on the date 
                indicated in subparagraph (A), to the individual (or 
                individuals), if living on such date, to whom benefits 
                would have been payable on such date under section 
                1201(a) of such title I (34 U.S.C. 10281(a)) had the 
                application been, instead, a claim under such section 
                1201(a).
            (4) Special limited rule of construction.--A claim filed 
        pursuant to paragraph (1) or (2) shall be determined as though 
        the date of catastrophic injury of the public safety officer 
        were the date of enactment of this Act, for purposes of 
        determining the amount that may be payable.
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