Title: Police CAMERA Act of 2020
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement

Summary:
Police Creating Accountability by Making Effective Recording Available Act of 2020 or the Police CAMERA Act of 2020
This bill authorizes the Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Assistance to make grants to states, local governments, and Indian tribes to purchase or lease body-worn cameras for use by law enforcement officers and to implement body-worn camera programs.


[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4962 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 4962

  To amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to 
  authorize a grant program to assist State and local law enforcement 
   agencies in purchasing body-worn cameras and securely storing and 
        maintaining recorded data for law enforcement officers.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            December 3, 2020

  Mr. Schatz introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
               referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to 
  authorize a grant program to assist State and local law enforcement 
   agencies in purchasing body-worn cameras and securely storing and 
        maintaining recorded data for law enforcement officers.

    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 ``Police Creating Accountability by 
Making Effective Recording Available Act of 2020'' or the ``Police 
CAMERA Act of 2020''.

SEC. 2. MATCHING GRANT PROGRAM FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT BODY-WORN CAMERAS.

    Title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 
(34 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:

``PART OO--MATCHING GRANT PROGRAM FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT BODY-WORN CAMERAS 
                           AND RECORDED DATA

``SEC. 3051. GRANT PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.

    ``(a) In General.--The Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance 
(in this section referred to as the `Director') may make grants to 
States, units of local government, and Indian tribes to purchase or 
lease body-worn cameras for use by State, local, and tribal law 
enforcement officers (as defined in section 2503) and expenses related 
to the implementation of a body-worn camera program in order to--
            ``(1) deter excessive force, and unlawful stops, searches, 
        and arrests;
            ``(2) improve supervision, accountability, and transparency 
        of use of force by law enforcement officers;
            ``(3) assist in responding to complaints against law 
        enforcement officers; and
            ``(4) improve evidence collection, data collection, and 
        retention.
    ``(b) Duration of Grants.--
            ``(1) In general.--Grants awarded under this part shall be 
        2 years in duration.
            ``(2) Disbursement of grant amount.--In disbursing a grant 
        awarded to an entity under this section--
                    ``(A) upon awarding the grant to the entity, the 
                Director shall disburse 50 percent of the total grant 
                amount to the entity; and
                    ``(B) upon demonstration by the entity of 
                completion of the requirements in subsection (d)(1), 
                the Director shall disburse the remaining 50 percent of 
                the total grant amount to the entity.
    ``(c) Use of Funds.--Grants awarded under this section shall be--
            ``(1) distributed directly to the State, unit of local 
        government, or Indian tribe; and
            ``(2) used solely for--
                    ``(A) the purchase or lease of body-worn cameras 
                and voice recorders for law enforcement officers 
                authorized to work in the jurisdiction of the grantee, 
                including use while on patrol or during a secondary 
                employment;
                    ``(B) any costs relating to the implementation of a 
                body-worn camera program, including law enforcement 
                officer training or the storage, maintenance, or 
                security of recorded data collected under a body-worn 
                camera program; or
                    ``(C) implementing policies or procedures to comply 
                with the requirements described in subsection (d).
    ``(d) Requirements.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Director shall award a grant under 
        this section to a State, unit of local government, or Indian 
        tribe requesting the grant that commits to, not later than 30 
        days after the date on which the grant is disbursed--
                    ``(A) establishing and enforcing policies and 
                procedures in accordance with the requirements 
                described in paragraph (2) before law enforcement 
                officers use or operation of body-worn cameras;
                    ``(B) ensuring law enforcement officers follow such 
                policies and procedures through defined accountability 
                metrics and systems, including supervisors' routine 
                audits of recorded video and audio;
                    ``(C) adopting consistent and proportional 
                disciplinary actions when policy violations occur, and 
                maintain detailed personnel and disciplinary records 
                that reflect all violations of the policies and 
                procedures described herein;
                    ``(D) adopting recorded data collection and 
                retention protocols as described in paragraph (3) 
                before law enforcement officers use of body-worn 
                cameras;
                    ``(E) making the policies and protocols described 
                in subparagraphs (A) and (D) available to the public;
                    ``(F) complying with the requirements for use of 
                recorded data under paragraph (5);
                    ``(G) ensuring the grantee's department uses a 
                fully functioning and up-to-date collection database, 
                that adheres to the requirements of this part; and
                    ``(H) prohibiting the use or implementation of 
                facial recognition and biometric technology.
            ``(2) Required policies and procedures.--An entity 
        receiving a grant under this section shall--
                    ``(A) solicit, document, and incorporate input from 
                impacted persons, communities, or organizations, 
                including representatives of local civil rights 
                organizations and victims of police use of force or 
                unlawful stops, searches, and arrests and publish for 
                public view policies and protocols for--
                            ``(i) the safe and effective use of body-
                        worn cameras, including the activation and 
                        termination of recordings, including the 
                        activation of a body-worn camera when a law 
                        enforcement officer removes the weapon of the 
                        officer from the holster;
                            ``(ii) the secure storage, handling, 
                        retention, and destruction of recorded data 
                        collected by body-worn cameras;
                            ``(iii) the use of recorded data in making 
                        incident reports, including a prohibition on 
                        the viewing of recorded data during the course 
                        of an investigation and prior to filing 
                        reports, making statements, or participating in 
                        interviews, by all the officers and supervisors 
                        present during the incident;
                            ``(iv) protecting the privacy rights of any 
                        individual who may be recorded by a body-worn 
                        camera;
                            ``(v) prohibiting a law enforcement officer 
                        from viewing the recorded footage before making 
                        an initial written report or statement, if that 
                        officer is under investigation;
                            ``(vi) the release of any recorded data 
                        collected by a body-worn camera in accordance 
                        with the open records laws, if any, of the 
                        State; and
                            ``(vii) making recorded data available to 
                        prosecutors, defense attorneys, other officers 
                        of the court, recorded subjects, and the public 
                        in accordance with paragraph (5); and
                    ``(B) conduct evaluations of the security of the 
                storage and handling of the body-worn camera data not 
                less frequently than once every 6 months.
            ``(3) Recorded data collection and retention protocol.--The 
        recorded data collection and retention protocol described in 
        this paragraph is a protocol that--
                    ``(A) requires--
                            ``(i) a law enforcement officer who is 
                        wearing a body-mounted camera, at the beginning 
                        of an activity, to provide an explanation if an 
                        activity that is required to be recorded by the 
                        body-mounted camera is not recorded by 
                        activating the body camera's visual and audio, 
                        and state on camera that the officer will not 
                        record the following activity, and the 
                        officer's justification, before terminating the 
                        recording;
                            ``(ii) periodic auditing of recorded data 
                        by supervisors to ensure compliance with 
                        policy;
                            ``(iii) a law enforcement officer who is 
                        wearing a body-mounted camera to obtain verbal 
                        consent, captured, and recorded on the body 
                        camera, from a crime victim or witness before 
                        interviewing the victim or witness;
                            ``(iv) the system used to store recorded 
                        data collected by body-worn cameras shall 
                        automatically log all viewing, modification, or 
                        deletion of stored recorded data and shall 
                        prevent the unauthorized access or disclosure 
                        of stored recorded data;
                            ``(v) any law enforcement officer be 
                        prohibited from accessing the stored data 
                        without explicit authorization from a 
                        commanding officer, and only when the officer 
                        has an authorized purpose to view or listen to 
                        such footage;
                            ``(vi) during an incident investigation, a 
                        law enforcement officer shall--
                                    ``(I) be required to provide an 
                                initial written statement, that may not 
                                be later edited in any form, before 
                                reviewing any recorded data involving--
                                            ``(aa) an officer-involved 
                                        shooting;
                                            ``(bb) an in-custody death;
                                            ``(cc) a criminal matter;
                                            ``(dd) a critical incident; 
                                        or
                                            ``(ee) any other 
                                        investigation conducted 
                                        pursuant to an internal or 
                                        civilian allegation of 
                                        misconduct; and
                                    ``(II) have an opportunity to 
                                review recorded data depicting the 
                                incident with a representative or 
                                attorney, only after being subject to 
                                an interview, and providing the initial 
                                written statement described in 
                                subclause (I); and
                            ``(vii) the law enforcement agency to 
                        collect and report annual statistical data on--
                                    ``(I) all incidences of use of 
                                force, including an officer's display 
                                or discharge of a firearm, 
                                disaggregated by race, ethnicity, 
                                gender, and age of the victim, type of 
                                force used, and any resulting charges;
                                    ``(II) the number of all complaints 
                                filed against law enforcement officers, 
                                disaggregated by the type of action 
                                complained of and the race, ethnicity, 
                                gender, and age of the complainant;
                                    ``(III) the disposition of all 
                                complaints filed against law 
                                enforcement officers, including any 
                                discipline imposed;
                                    ``(IV) the number of times camera 
                                footage is used for evidence collection 
                                in investigations of crimes, 
                                disaggregated by the type of crime; and
                                    ``(V) any other additional 
                                statistical data that the Director 
                                determines should be collected and 
                                reported;
                    ``(B) allows an individual, including anonymously 
                or on behalf of a third party, to file a complaint, 
                both online, via telephone, or in-person, with a law 
                enforcement agency relating to the improper use of 
                body-worn cameras, receive a complaint tracking number, 
                and have all evidence relating to the complaint 
                reviewed and properly investigated before the grantee 
                makes a disposition on the complaint; and
                    ``(C) complies with any other requirements 
                established by the Director.
            ``(4) Reporting.--Statistical data required to be collected 
        under paragraph (3)(A)(vi) shall be reported annually to the 
        Director, who shall--
                    ``(A) establish a standardized reporting system for 
                statistical data collected under this program;
                    ``(B) establish a national database of statistical 
                data recorded under this program; and
                    ``(C) ensure that statistical data is made publicly 
                available, not later than 15 days of receipt of the 
                report, in accessible and alternative formats, 
                including on the website of the grantee and in print 
                form at various locations.
            ``(5) Use or transfer of recorded data.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Recorded data collected by an 
                entity receiving a grant under this section for a body-
                mounted camera may be used in internal and external 
                investigations of misconduct by a law enforcement 
                agency or officer, general supervision, integrity 
                audits, and training purposes. The Director shall 
                establish rules to ensure that the recorded data is 
                used only for the purposes described in this 
                subparagraph.
                    ``(B) Prohibition on transfer.--Except as provided 
                in subparagraph (E), an entity receiving a grant under 
                this section may not transfer any recorded data 
                collected by the entity from a body-mounted camera to 
                another law enforcement or intelligence agency.
                    ``(C) Public access.--An entity receiving a grant 
                under this section shall implement a process that at a 
                minimum allows the public to obtain recorded data 
                collected by the entity.
                    ``(D) Recorded subject access.--An entity receiving 
                a grant under this section shall implement an expedited 
                process that allows a recorded subject to obtain 
                recorded data collected by the entity from an incident 
                involving the recorded subject.
                    ``(E) Exceptions.--
                            ``(i) Criminal investigation.--An entity 
                        receiving a grant under this section may 
                        transfer recorded data collected by the entity 
                        from a body-mounted camera to another law 
                        enforcement agency or intelligence agency for 
                        use in a criminal investigation if the 
                        requesting law enforcement or intelligence 
                        agency has reasonable suspicion that the 
                        requested data contains evidence relating to 
                        the crime being investigated.
                            ``(ii) Civil rights claims.--An entity 
                        receiving a grant under this section may 
                        transfer recorded data collected by the law 
                        enforcement agency from a body-mounted camera 
                        to another law enforcement agency, body, 
                        institution, or individual for use in an 
                        investigation of any right, privilege, or 
                        immunity secured or protected by the 
                        Constitution or laws of the United States, or 
                        to evaluate, either in individual or cumulative 
                        form, whether the grantee's practices or 
                        patters violate any right, privilege, or 
                        immunity secured or protected by the 
                        Constitution or laws of the United States.
    ``(e) Matching Funds.--
            ``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (3), the 
        Federal share of the cost of a program carried out using a 
        grant under this part may not exceed 75 percent of the total 
        cost of the program.
            ``(2) Indian assistance.--Any funds appropriated by 
        Congress for the activities of any agency of an Indian tribal 
        government or the Bureau of Indian Affairs performing law 
        enforcement functions on any Indian lands may be used to 
        provide the non-Federal share of the matching requirement 
        described in paragraph (1).
            ``(3) Waiver.--The Director may waive, in whole or in part, 
        the matching requirement described in paragraph (1) in the case 
        of fiscal hardship, as determined by the Director.
    ``(f) Allocation of Funds.--For each of fiscal years 2020 through 
2022, of the amounts appropriated to the Bureau of Justice Assistance, 
$30,000,000 shall be used to carry out this part.
    ``(g) Audit and Assessment.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
        enactment of this part, the Director of the Office of Audit, 
        Assessment, and Management shall perform an assessment of the 
        grant program and the policies and protocols of the grantees.
            ``(2) Reports.--Not later than September 1 of each year, 
        beginning 1 year after the date of enactment of this part, each 
        recipient of a grant under this part shall submit to the 
        Director of the Office of Audit, Assessment, and Management a 
        detailed report that--
                    ``(A) describes the progress of the body-worn 
                camera program, including data demonstrating the 
                frequency of which the grantee and its employees failed 
                to activate a body camera when required; and
                    ``(B) contains recommendations on ways in which the 
                Federal Government, States, and units of local 
                government can further support the implementation of 
                the program.
            ``(3) Review.--The Director of the Office of Audit, 
        Assessment, and Management shall evaluate the policies and 
        protocols of the grantees and take such steps as the Director 
        of the Office of Audit, Assessment, and Management determines 
        necessary to ensure compliance with the program.

``SEC. 3052. BODY-WORN CAMERA TRAINING TOOLKIT.

    ``(a) In General.--The Director shall establish and maintain a 
toolkit for law enforcement agencies, academia, and other relevant 
entities to provide training and technical assistance, including best 
practices for implementation, model policies and procedures, and 
research materials.
    ``(b) Mechanism.--In establishing the toolkit required to under 
subsection (a), the Director may consolidate research, practices, 
templates, and tools that have been developed by experts, law 
enforcement agencies, and civil rights organizations across the United 
States.

``SEC. 3053. APPLICATIONS.

    ``(a) In General.--To request a grant under this part, the chief 
executive of a State, unit of local government, or Indian tribe shall 
submit an application to the Director in a form and containing 
information as the Director may reasonably require.
    ``(b) Regulations.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the 
enactment of this part, the Director shall promulgate regulations to 
implement this part, including the information that shall be included 
and the requirements that the States, units of local government, and 
Indian tribes must meet in submitting the applications required under 
this section.

``SEC. 3054. STUDY.

    ``(a) In General.--Not later than 2 years after the date on which 
all grants are awarded under this part, the Director, in consultation 
with the National Institute of Justice and the Bureau of Justice 
Statistics, shall conduct a study on--
            ``(1) the efficacy of body-worn cameras in deterring 
        excessive force, and unlawful stops, searches, and arrests by 
        law enforcement officers, including a review of relevant data 
        and documentation, disaggregated by race, ethnicity, national 
        origin, gender, age, and disability of the victims;
            ``(2) the impact of body-worn cameras on the 
        accountability, supervision, and transparency of the use of 
        force, unlawful stops, searches, and arrests by law enforcement 
        officers;
            ``(3) the impact of body-worn cameras on responses to and 
        adjudications of complaints of excessive force and unlawful 
        stops, searches, and arrests;
            ``(4) the effect of the use of body-worn cameras on the 
        safety of law enforcement officers on patrol;
            ``(5) the effect of the use of body-worn cameras on public 
        safety;
            ``(6) the impact of body-worn cameras on evidence 
        collection for criminal investigations;
            ``(7) issues relating to the secure storage and handling of 
        recorded data from the body-worn cameras;
            ``(8) issues relating to the privacy of citizens and 
        officers recorded on body-worn cameras;
            ``(9) issues relating to the public's access to body-worn 
        camera footage;
            ``(10) issues related to the use of body-warn cameras while 
        officers are engaged in off-duty or secondary employment;
            ``(11) the need for proper training of law enforcement 
        officers that use body-worn cameras;
            ``(12) best practices in the development of protocols for 
        the safe and effective use of body-worn cameras;
            ``(13) a review of law enforcement agencies that found 
        body-worn cameras to be unhelpful in the operations of the 
        agencies;
            ``(14) a review of law enforcement agency use of body-worn 
        cameras disaggregated by race and ethnicity, national origin, 
        gender, age, and disability of the officers; and
            ``(15) any other factors that the Director determines are 
        relevant in evaluating the efficacy of body-worn cameras.
    ``(b) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date on which the 
study required under subsection (a) is completed, the Director shall 
submit to Congress a report on the study, which shall include any 
policy recommendations that the Director considers appropriate.''.
                                 <all>