Honoring Civil Servants Killed in the Line of Duty Act

Bill: 117-hr-7376
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Connolly, Gerald E. [D-VA-11]
Introduced: 2022-04-04
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
Subjects: Cemeteries and funerals

Diplomacy, foreign officials, Americans abroad

Employee benefits and pensions

Family relationships

Government employee pay, benefits, personnel management

Inflation and prices
Latest action: action_date: 2022-05-10
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.

Summaries:
action_date: 2022-04-04
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><b>Honoring Civil Servants Killed in the Line of Duty Act</b></p> <p>This bill increases benefits to survivors of federal employees who die in the line of duty.</p> <p>Specifically, the bill increases the death benefit for federal employees from $10,000 to $100,000 and increases the funeral benefit from $800 to $8,800. Both amounts must be adjusted annually for inflation.</p>

tv_txt: I 117th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 7376 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES April 4, 2022 Mr. Connolly introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Reform , and in addition to the Committees on Foreign Affairs , Armed Services , Veterans' Affairs , Transportation and Infrastructure , and Homeland Security , for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To amend title 5, United States Code, to increase death gratuities and funeral allowances for Federal employees, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Honoring Civil Servants Killed in the Line of Duty Act . 2. Increasing death gratuity for Federal employees killed in the line of duty (a) Amendments to title 5, United States Code (1) In general Subchapter VII of chapter 55 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 5571. Employee death gratuity payments (a) Definition (1) In general Notwithstanding section 5561(2), in this section, the term employee means an individual who has been determined by the Secretary of Labor to be an employee within the meaning of section 8101(1), but not including any individual described under subparagraph (D) of such section. (2) Exclusive authority A determination described in paragraph (1) may be made only by the Secretary of Labor. (b) Gratuity (1) In general With respect to the death of an employee, the head of the agency at which the employee was employed shall pay from appropriations made available for salaries and expenses of that agency a death gratuity to the person identified under subsection (c)(2), if the death of the employee— (A) results from injuries incurred— (i) in connection with such employee’s employment with the Federal Government; or (ii) as a result of a criminal act, an act of terrorism, a natural disaster, or any other circumstance as determined by the agency head; and (B) is not— (i) caused by willful misconduct of the employee, as determined by a review conducted by the applicable office of Inspector General; (ii) caused by the intention of the employee to bring about the injury or death of the employee or another; or (iii) proximately caused by the intoxication or self-impairment of the employee. (2) Amount (A) In general Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the amount of a death gratuity paid under paragraph (1) with respect to an employee shall be $100,000, as adjusted each March 1 by the amount determined by the Secretary of Labor to represent the percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (all items; United States city average) published for December of the preceding year over that Index published for the December of the year prior to the preceding year, adjusted to the nearest 1/10 of 1 percent. (B) Local compensation plans For an employee compensated under a local compensation plan established under section 408 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 ( 22 U.S.C. 3968 ), the amount of a death gratuity paid under paragraph (1) with respect to the employee shall be in an amount determined in rules issued by the Secretary of State. (c) Recipient of payment (1) Child defined In this subsection, the term child means a child of an employee of any age, including— (A) an adopted child or a stepchild; and (B) a foster child but only if the child lives with the employee in a regular parent-child relationship. (2) Order of precedence A death gratuity paid under subsection (b) with respect to an employee shall be paid in the following order of precedence: (A) (i) To the beneficiary designated to receive the gratuity by the employee in a signed and witnessed official Federal Government form that is received by the agency employing the employee before the date of the death of the employee. (ii) A designation, change, or cancellation of beneficiary in a will, or another document not described in clause (i), shall have no force or effect for the purposes of that clause. (B) If there is no beneficiary described in subparagraph (A), to the surviving spouse of the employee. (C) If neither subparagraph (A) nor (B) applies, to any child (or grandchild if the child who is the parent of such grandchild is deceased) such that each such child or grandchild (as the case may be) receives an equal amount of the gratuity. (D) If none of subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) applies, to the surviving parents of the employee such that each such surviving parent receives an equal amount of the gratuity. (E) If none of subparagraphs (A) through (D) applies, to the duly appointed executor or administrator of the estate of the employee. (F) If none of subparagraphs (A) through (E) applies, to the person designated according to the laws of the State in which the insured individual legally resided. . (2) Repeal of death gratuity payment authority Section 651 of the Treasury, Postal Service, and General Government Appropriations Act, 1997 ( 5 U.S.C. 8133 note) is repealed. (3) Technical and conforming amendments (A) Subchapter heading The heading for subchapter VII of chapter 55 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by striking employees and inserting persons and payments for disability or death . (B) Other conforming changes The table of sections for chapter 55 of title 5, United States Code, is amended— (i) by striking the item relating to subchapter VII and inserting the following: SUBCHAPTER VII—PAYMENTS TO MISSING PERSONS AND PAYMENTS FOR DISABILITY OR DEATH ; and (ii) by inserting after the item relating to section 5570 the following: 5571. Employee death gratuity payments. . (b) Other employees (1) FAA Section 40122(g)(2) of title 49, United States Code, is amended— (A) in subparagraph (I)(iii), by striking and after the semicolon; (B) in subparagraph (J), by striking the period at the end and inserting ; and ; and (C) by inserting after subparagraph (J), the following: (K) section 5571, relating to death gratuities resulting from an injury sustained in the line of duty. . (2) Certain TSA employees Section 111(d)(2) of the Aviation and Transportation Security Act ( 49 U.S.C. 44935 note) is amended by adding at the end the following: (C) Death gratuity Section 5571 of title 5, United States Code, shall apply to any individual appointed under paragraph (1). . (3) VHA employees Section 7425 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: (d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this subchapter, the Administration shall provide, with respect to individuals appointed to any position described in section 7421(b) who are employed for compensation by the Administration, the death gratuity under section 5571 of title 5. . (c) Applicability The amendments made by subsections (a) and (b) shall apply with respect to any death occurring on or after the date of enactment of this Act. 3. Funeral expenses (a) In general Section 8134(a) of title 5, United States Code, is amended— (1) by inserting (1) after (a) ; (2) by striking $800 and inserting $8,800 ; and (3) by adding at the end the following: (2) The amount described in paragraph (1) shall be adjusted on March 1 of each year by the percentage amount determined by the Secretary of Labor under section 8146a for that year. . (b) Applicability The amendments made by subsection (a) shall apply with respect to any death occurring on or after the date of enactment of this Act. 4. Death gratuity for injuries incurred in connection with employee’s service with an Armed Force (a) In general Section 8102a of title 5, United States Code, is amended— (1) in subsection (a)— (A) by striking The United States and inserting the following: (1) In general The United States ; (B) in paragraph (1), as so designated, by striking up to ; and (C) by adding at the end the following: (2) Adjustment The amount described in paragraph (1) shall be adjusted each March 1 by the amount determined by the Secretary of Labor to represent the percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (all items; United States city average) published for December of the preceding year over that Index published for the December of the year prior to the preceding year, adjusted to the nearest 1/10 of 1 percent. ; (2) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the following: (c) Relationship to other benefits With respect to a death occurring on or after the date of enactment of the Honoring Civil Servants Killed in the Line of Duty Act, any compensation otherwise payable to an individual under this section in connection with any death shall be reduced by any amounts payable to such individual under any other program funded in whole or in part by the United States (excluding any amount payable under section 5569(d)) in connection with such death. ; and (3) in subsection (d), by adding at the end the following: (7) If a person covered by this section does not have any eligible survivors, as described in this subsection, and that person has not designated an alternate person to receive a payment under this section, the payment shall be paid to the personal representative of the person’s estate. . (b) Applicability The amendments made by subsection (a) shall apply with respect to any death occurring on or after the date of enactment of this Act. 5. Agency gratuity for deaths sustained in the line of duty abroad (a) In general Section 413 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 ( 22 U.S.C. 3973 ) is amended— (1) in subsection (a)— (A) in the first sentence, by striking dependents and inserting beneficiaries ; and (B) in the second sentence, by inserting , except as provided in subsection (e) after payable from any source ; (2) by amending subsection (b) to read as follows: (b) Executive agencies The head of an executive agency shall, pursuant to guidance issued under subsection (c), make a death gratuity payment authorized by this section to the surviving beneficiaries of— (1) any employee of that agency who dies as a result of injuries sustained in the performance of duty abroad while subject to the authority of the chief of mission pursuant to section 207; or (2) an individual in a special category serving in an uncompensated capacity for that agency abroad in support of a diplomatic mission, as identified in guidance issued under subsection (c), who dies as a result of injuries sustained in the performance of duty abroad. ; (3) by striking Guidance.— and all that follows through pursuant to section 207. and inserting the following: (c) Guidance Not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2014, the Secretary shall, in consultation with the heads of other relevant executive agencies, issue guidance with criteria for determining eligibility for, and order of payments to, survivors and beneficiaries of any employee or of an individual in a special category serving in an uncompensated capacity for that agency who dies as a result of injuries sustained in the performance of duty while subject to the authority of the chief of mission pursuant to section 207. ; (4) by striking subsection (d); (5) by redesignating subsection (e) as subsection (f); (6) by inserting after subsection (c) the following new subsections: (d) Eligibility under chapter 81 of title 5, United States Code A death gratuity payment shall be made under this section only if the death is determined by the Secretary of Labor to have resulted from an injury (excluding a disease proximately caused by the employment) sustained in the performance of duty under section 8102 of title 5, United States Code. (e) Offset Any compensation otherwise payable to an individual under this section in connection with any death shall be reduced by any amounts payable to such individual under any other program funded in whole or in part by the United States (excluding any amount payable under section 5569(d)) in connection with such death. ; and (7) in subsection (f), as so redesignated by paragraph (5), by amending paragraph (2) to read as follows: (2) the term surviving beneficiaries means the person or persons identified pursuant to the order of precedence established under section 5571(c)(2) of title 5, United States Code. . (b) Applicability The amendments made by subsection (a) shall apply with respect to any death occurring on or after the date of enactment of this Act. 6. Adjustment of certain death gratuities under title 10 of the United States Code (a) In general Section 1478(a) of title 10, United States Code, is amended by inserting after $100,000 the following: , as adjusted each March 1 by the amount determined by the Secretary of Labor to represent the percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (all items; United States city average) published for December of the preceding year over that Index published for the December of the year prior to the preceding year, adjusted to the nearest 1/10 of 1 percent . (b) Applicability The amendments made by subsection (a) shall apply with respect to any death occurring on or after the date of enactment of this Act. 7. Emergency supplemental authorization of appropriations (a) Definitions In this section— (1) the term agency means an agency that is authorized or required to make a payment under a covered provision; and (2) the term covered provision means— (A) section 5571 of title 5, United States Code, as added by section 2 of this Act; (B) section 8102a of such title, as amended by section 4 of this Act; or (C) section 413 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 ( 22 U.S.C. 3973 ), as amended by section 5 of this Act. (b) Authorization If the head of an agency determines, with the concurrence of the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, that a natural disaster, act of terrorism, or other incident would result in costs that would exceed the amounts available to the agency to make additional payments under a covered provision— (1) there are authorized to be appropriated to the agency such additional sums as may be necessary to make those additional payments; and (2) the head of the agency may make such additional payments to the extent additional such additional sums are made available for those purposes. (c) Sense of Congress It is the sense of Congress that, not later than 30 days after the date on which the head of an agency submits to Congress a request for supplemental appropriations for the purposes described in subsection (b), Congress should take action with respect to that request.