HR 3325 — Recruit and Retain Act of 2024

changes in existing law made by 
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law 
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new 
matter is printed in italics, and existing law in which no 
change is proposed is shown in roman):

 OMNIBUS CRIME CONTROL AND SAFE STREETS ACT OF 1968

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TITLE I--JUSTICE SYSTEM IMPROVEMENT

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 PART Q--PUBLIC SAFETY AND COMMUNITY POLICING; ``COPS ON THE BEAT''

SEC. 1701. AUTHORITY TO MAKE PUBLIC SAFETY AND COMMUNITY POLICING 
 GRANTS.

 (a) Grant Authorization.--The Attorney General shall carry 
out a single grant program under which the Attorney General 
makes grants to States, units of local government, Indian 
tribal governments, other public and private entities, and 
multi-jurisdictional or regional consortia for the purposes 
described in subsection (b).
 (b) uses of grant amounts.--The purposes for which grants 
made under subsection (a) may be made are--
 (1) to rehire law enforcement officers who have been 
 laid off as a result of State, tribal, or local budget 
 reductions for deployment in community-oriented 
 policing;
 (2) to hire and train new, additional career law 
 enforcement officers for deployment in community-
 oriented policing across the Nation, including by 
 prioritizing the hiring and training of veterans (as 
 defined in section 101 of title 38, United States 
 Code);
 (3) to procure equipment, technology, or support 
 systems, or pay overtime, to increase the number of 
 officers deployed in community-oriented policing;
 (4) to award grants to pay for offices hired to 
 perform intelligence, anti-terror, or homeland security 
 duties;
 (5) to increase the number of law enforcement 
 officers involved in activities that are focused on 
 interaction with members of the community on proactive 
 crime control and prevention by redeploying officers to 
 such activities;
 (6) to provide specialized training to law 
 enforcement officers to enhance their conflict 
 resolution, mediation, problem solving, service, and 
 other skills needed to work in partnership with members 
 of the community;
 (7) to increase police participation in 
 multidisciplinary early intervention teams;
 (8) to develop new technologies, including 
 interoperable communications technologies, modernized 
 criminal record technology, and forensic technology, to 
 assist State, tribal, and local law enforcement 
 agencies in reorienting the emphasis of their 
 activities from reacting to crime to preventing crime 
 and to train law enforcement officers to use such 
 technologies;
 (9) to develop and implement innovative programs to 
 permit members of the community to assist State, 
 tribal, and local law enforcement agencies in the 
 prevention of crime in the community, such as a 
 citizens' police academy, including programs designed 
 to increase the level of access to the criminal justice 
 system enjoyed by victims, witnesses, and ordinary 
 citizens by establishing decentralized satellite 
 offices (including video facilities) of principal 
 criminal courts buildings;
 (10) to establish innovative programs to reduce, and 
 keep to a minimum, the amount of time that law 
 enforcement officers must be away from the community 
 while awaiting court appearances;
 (11) to establish and implement innovative programs 
 to increase and enhance proactive crime control and 
 prevention programs involving law enforcement officers 
 and young persons in the community;
 (12) to establish school-based partnerships between 
 local law enforcement agencies and local school systems 
 by using school resource officers who operate in and 
 around elementary and secondary schools to combat 
 school-related crime and disorder problems, gangs, and 
 drug activities, including the training of school 
 resource officers in the prevention of human 
 trafficking offenses;
 (13) to develop and establish new administrative and 
 managerial systems to facilitate the adoption of 
 community-oriented policing as an organization-wide 
 philosophy;
 (14) to assist a State or Indian tribe in enforcing a 
 law throughout the State or tribal community that 
 requires that a convicted sex offender register his or 
 her address with a State, tribal, or local law 
 enforcement agency and be subject to criminal 
 prosecution for failure to comply;
 (15) to establish, implement, and coordinate crime 
 prevention and control programs (involving law 
 enforcement officers working with community members) 
 with other Federal programs that serve the community 
 and community members to better address the 
 comprehensive needs of the community and its members;
 (16) to support the purchase by a law enforcement 
 agency of no more than 1 service weapon per officer, 
 upon hiring for deployment in community-oriented 
 policing or, if necessary, upon existing officers' 
 initial redeployment to community-oriented policing;
 (17) to participate in nationally recognized active 
 shooter training programs that offer scenario-based, 
 integrated response courses designed to counter active 
 shooter threats or acts of terrorism against 
 individuals or facilities;
 (18) to provide specialized training to law 
 enforcement officers to--
 (A) recognize individuals who have a mental 
 illness; and
 (B) properly interact with individuals who 
 have a mental illness, including strategies for 
 verbal de-escalation of crises;
 (19) to establish collaborative programs that enhance 
 the ability of law enforcement agencies to address the 
 mental health, behavioral, and substance abuse problems 
 of individuals encountered by law enforcement officers 
 in the line of duty;
 (20) to provide specialized training to corrections 
 officers to recognize individuals who have a mental 
 illness;
 (21) to enhance the ability of corrections officers 
 to address the mental health of individuals under the 
 care and custody of jails and prisons, including 
 specialized training and strategies for verbal de-
 escalation of crises;
 (22) to support hiring activities by law enforcement 
 agencies experiencing declines in officer recruitment 
 applications by reducing application-related fees, such 
 as fees for background checks, psychological 
 evaluations, and testing;
 [(22)] (23) to permit tribal governments receiving 
 direct law enforcement services from the Bureau of 
 Indian Affairs to access the program under this section 
 for use in accordance with paragraphs (1) through 
 [(21)] (22); and
 [(23)] (24) to establish peer mentoring mental health 
 and wellness pilot programs within State, tribal, and 
 local law enforcement agencies.
 (c) Preferential Consideration of Applications for Certain 
Grants.--In awarding grants under this part, the Attorney 
General may give preferential consideration, where feasible, to 
an application--
 (1) for hiring and rehiring additional career law 
 enforcement officers that involves a non-Federal 
 contribution exceeding the 25 percent minimum under 
 subsection (g);
 (2) from an applicant in a State that has in effect a 
 law that--
 (A) treats a minor who has engaged in, or has 
 attempted to engage in, a commercial sex act as 
 a victim of a severe form of trafficking in 
 persons;
 (B) discourages or prohibits the charging or 
 prosecution of an individual described in 
 subparagraph (A) for a prostitution or sex 
 trafficking offense, based on the conduct 
 described in subparagraph (A); and
 (C) encourages the diversion of an individual 
 described in subparagraph (A) to appropriate 
 service providers, including child welfare 
 services, victim treatment programs, child 
 advocacy centers, rape crisis centers, or other 
 social services; or
 (3) from an applicant in a State that has in effect a 
 law--
 (A) that--
 (i) provides a process by which an 
 individual who is a human trafficking 
 survivor can move to vacate any arrest 
 or conviction records for a non-violent 
 offense committed as a direct result of 
 human trafficking, including 
 prostitution or lewdness;
 (ii) establishes a rebuttable 
 presumption that any arrest or 
 conviction of an individual for an 
 offense associated with human 
 trafficking is a result of being 
 trafficked, if the individual--
 (I) is a person granted 
 nonimmigrant status pursuant to 
 section 101(a)(15)(T)(i) of the 
 Immigration and Nationality Act 
 (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(T)(i));
 (II) is the subject of a 
 certification by the Secretary 
 of Health and Human Services 
 under section 107(b)(1)(E) of 
 the Trafficking Victims 
 Protection Act of 2000 (22 
 U.S.C. 7105(b)(1)(E)); or
 (III) has other similar 
 documentation of trafficking, 
 which has been issued by a 
 Federal, State, or local 
 agency; and
 (iii) protects the identity of 
 individuals who are human trafficking 
 survivors in public and court records; 
 and
 (B) that does not require an individual who 
 is a human trafficking survivor to provide 
 official documentation as described in 
 subclause (I), (II), or (III) of subparagraph 
 (A)(ii) in order to receive protection under 
 the law.
 (d) Technical Assistance.--
 (1) In general.--The Attorney General may provide 
 technical assistance to States, units of local 
 government, Indian tribal governments, and to other 
 public and private entities, in furtherance of the 
 purposes of the Public Safety Partnership and Community 
 Policing Act of 1994.
 (2) Model.--The technical assistance provided by the 
 Attorney General may include the development of a 
 flexible model that will define for State and local 
 governments, and other public and private entities, 
 definitions and strategies associated with community or 
 problem-oriented policing and methodologies for its 
 implementation.
 (3) Training centers and facilities.--The technical 
 assistance provided by the Attorney General may include 
 the establishment and operation of training centers or 
 facilities, either directly or by contracting or 
 cooperative arrangements. The functions of the centers 
 or facilities established under this paragraph may 
 include instruction and seminars for police executives, 
 managers, trainers, supervisors, and such others as the 
 Attorney General considers to be appropriate concerning 
 community or problem-oriented policing and improvements 
 in police-community interaction and cooperation that 
 further the purposes of the Public Safety Partnership 
 and Community Policing Act of 1994.
 (e) Utilization of Components.--The Attorney General may 
utilize any component or components of the Department of 
Justice in carrying out this part.
 (f) Minimum Amount.--Unless all applications submitted by any 
State and grantee within the State pursuant to subsection (a) 
have been funded, each qualifying State, together with grantees 
within the State, shall receive in each fiscal year pursuant to 
subsection (a) not less than 0.5 percent of the total amount 
appropriated in the fiscal year for grants pursuant to that 
subsection. In this subsection, ``qualifying State'' means any 
State which has submitted an application for a grant, or in 
which an eligible entity has submitted an application for a 
grant, which meets the requirements prescribed by the Attorney 
General and the conditions set out in this part.
 (g) Matching Funds.--The portion of the costs of a program, 
project, or activity provided by a grant under subsection (a) 
may not exceed 75 percent, unless the Attorney General waives, 
wholly or in part, the requirement under this subsection of a 
non-Federal contribution to the costs of a program, project, or 
activity. In relation to a grant for a period exceeding 1 year 
for hiring or rehiring career law enforcement officers, the 
Federal share shall decrease from year to year for up to 5 
years, looking toward the continuation of the increased hiring 
level using State or local sources of funding following the 
conclusion of Federal support, as provided in an approved plan 
pursuant to section 1702(c)(8).
 (h) Allocation of Funds.--The funds available under this part 
shall be allocated as provided in section 1001(a)(11)(B).
 (i) Termination of Grants for Hiring Officers.--Except as 
provided in subsection (j), the authority under subsection (a) 
of this section to make grants for the hiring and rehiring of 
additional career law enforcement officers shall lapse at the 
conclusion of 6 years from the date of enactment of this part. 
Prior to the expiration of this grant authority, the Attorney 
General shall submit a report to Congress concerning the 
experience with and effects of such grants. The report may 
include any recommendations the Attorney General may have for 
amendments to this part and related provisions of law in light 
of the termination of the authority to make grants for the 
hiring and rehiring of additional career law enforcement 
officers.
 (j) Grants to Indian Tribes.--
 (1) In general.--Notwithstanding subsection (i) and 
 section 1703, and in acknowledgment of the Federal 
 nexus and distinct Federal responsibility to address 
 and prevent crime in Indian country, the Attorney 
 General shall provide grants under this section to 
 Indian tribal governments, for fiscal year 2011 and any 
 fiscal year thereafter, for such period as the Attorney 
 General determines to be appropriate to assist the 
 Indian tribal governments in carrying out the purposes 
 described in subsection (b).
 (2) Priority of funding.--In providing grants to 
 Indian tribal governments under this subsection, the 
 Attorney General shall take into consideration 
 reservation crime rates and tribal law enforcement 
 staffing needs of each Indian tribal government.
 (3) Federal share.--Because of the Federal nature and 
 responsibility for providing public safety on Indian 
 land, the Federal share of the cost of any activity 
 carried out using a grant under this subsection--
 (A) shall be 100 percent; and
 (B) may be used to cover indirect costs.
 (4) Authorization of appropriations.--There is 
 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this 
 subsection $40,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2011 
 through 2015.
 (k) COPS Anti-Meth Program.--The Attorney General shall use 
amounts otherwise appropriated to carry out this section for a 
fiscal year (beginning with fiscal year 2019) to make 
competitive grants, in amounts of not less than $1,000,000 for 
such fiscal year, to State law enforcement agencies with high 
seizures of precursor chemicals, finished methamphetamine, 
laboratories, and laboratory dump seizures for the purpose of 
locating or investigating illicit activities, such as precursor 
diversion, laboratories, or methamphetamine traffickers.
 (l) Cops Anti-heroin Task Force Program.--The Attorney 
General shall use amounts otherwise appropriated to carry out 
this section, or other amounts as appropriated, for a fiscal 
year (beginning with fiscal year 2019) to make competitive 
grants to State law enforcement agencies in States with high 
per capita rates of primary treatment admissions, for the 
purpose of locating or investigating illicit activities, 
through Statewide collaboration, relating to the distribution 
of heroin, fentanyl, or carfentanil or relating to the unlawful 
distribution of prescription opioids.
 (m) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
enactment of this subsection, the Attorney General shall submit 
to Congress a report describing the extent and effectiveness of 
the Community Oriented Policing (COPS) initiative as applied in 
Indian country, including particular references to--
 (1) the problem of intermittent funding;
 (2) the integration of COPS personnel with existing 
 law enforcement authorities; and
 (3) an explanation of how the practice of community 
 policing and the broken windows theory can most 
 effectively be applied in remote tribal locations.
 (n) Training in Alternatives to Use of Force, De-Escalation 
Techniques, and Mental and Behavioral Health Crises.--
 (1) Training curricula.--
 (A) In general.--Not later than 180 days 
 after the date of enactment of this subsection, 
 the Attorney General shall develop training 
 curricula or identify effective existing 
 training curricula for law enforcement officers 
 and for covered mental health professionals 
 regarding--
 (i) de-escalation tactics and 
 alternatives to use of force;
 (ii) safely responding to an 
 individual experiencing a mental or 
 behavioral health or suicidal crisis or 
 an individual with a disability, 
 including techniques and strategies 
 that are designed to protect the safety 
 of that individual, law enforcement 
 officers, mental health professionals, 
 and the public;
 (iii) successfully participating on a 
 crisis intervention team; and
 (iv) making referrals to community-
 based mental and behavioral health 
 services and support, housing 
 assistance programs, public benefits 
 programs, the National Suicide 
 Prevention Lifeline, and other 
 services.
 (B) Requirements.--The training curricula 
 developed or identified under this paragraph 
 shall include--
 (i) scenario-based exercises;
 (ii) pre-training and post-training 
 tests to assess relevant knowledge and 
 skills covered in the training 
 curricula; and
 (iii) follow-up evaluative 
 assessments to determine the degree to 
 which participants in the training 
 apply, in their jobs, the knowledge and 
 skills gained in the training.
 (C) Consultation.--The Attorney General shall 
 develop and identify training curricula under 
 this paragraph in consultation with relevant 
 law enforcement agencies of States and units of 
 local government, associations that represent 
 individuals with mental or behavioral health 
 diagnoses or individuals with disabilities, 
 labor organizations, professional law 
 enforcement organizations, local law 
 enforcement labor and representative 
 organizations, law enforcement trade 
 associations, mental health and suicide 
 prevention organizations, family advocacy 
 organizations, and civil rights and civil 
 liberties groups.
 (2) Certified programs and courses.--
 (A) In general.--Not later than 180 days 
 after the date on which training curricula are 
 developed or identified under paragraph (1)(A), 
 the Attorney General shall establish a process 
 to--
 (i) certify training programs and 
 courses offered by public and private 
 entities to law enforcement officers or 
 covered mental health professionals 
 using 1 or more of the training 
 curricula developed or identified under 
 paragraph (1), or equivalents to such 
 training curricula, which may include 
 certifying a training program or course 
 that an entity began offering on or 
 before the date on which the Attorney 
 General establishes the process; and
 (ii) terminate the certification of a 
 training program or course if the 
 program or course fails to continue to 
 meet the standards under the training 
 curricula developed or identified under 
 paragraph (1).
 (B) Partnerships with mental health 
 organizations and educational institutions.--
 Not later than 180 days after the date on which 
 training curricula are developed or identified 
 under paragraph (1)(A), the Attorney General 
 shall develop criteria to ensure that public 
 and private entities that offer training 
 programs or courses that are certified under 
 subparagraph (A) collaborate with local mental 
 health organizations to--
 (i) enhance the training experience 
 of law enforcement officers through 
 consultation with and the participation 
 of individuals with mental or 
 behavioral health diagnoses or 
 disabilities, particularly such 
 individuals who have interacted with 
 law enforcement officers; and
 (ii) strengthen relationships between 
 health care services and law 
 enforcement agencies.
 (3) Transitional regional training programs for state 
 and local agency personnel.--
 (A) In general.--During the period beginning 
 on the date on which the Attorney General 
 establishes the process required under 
 paragraph (2)(A) and ending on the date that is 
 18 months after that date, the Attorney General 
 shall, and thereafter the Attorney General may, 
 provide, in collaboration with law enforcement 
 training academies of States and units of local 
 government as appropriate, regional training to 
 equip personnel from law enforcement agencies 
 of States and units of local government in a 
 State to offer training programs or courses 
 certified under paragraph (2)(A).
 (B) Continuing education.--The Attorney 
 General shall develop and implement continuing 
 education requirements for personnel from law 
 enforcement agencies of States and units of 
 local government who receive training to offer 
 training programs or courses under subparagraph 
 (A).
 (4) List.--Not later than 1 year after the Attorney 
 General completes the activities described in 
 paragraphs (1) and (2), the Attorney General shall 
 publish a list of law enforcement agencies of States 
 and units of local government employing law enforcement 
 officers or using covered mental health professionals 
 who have successfully completed a course using 1 or 
 more of the training curricula developed or identified 
 under paragraph (1), or equivalents to such training 
 curricula, which shall include--
 (A) the total number of law enforcement 
 officers that are employed by the agency;
 (B) the number of such law enforcement 
 officers who have completed such a course;
 (C) whether personnel from the law 
 enforcement agency have been trained to offer 
 training programs or courses under paragraph 
 (3);
 (D) the total number of covered mental health 
 professionals who work with the agency; and
 (E) the number of such covered mental health 
 professionals who have completed such a course.
 (5) Authorization of appropriations.--There is 
 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this 
 subsection--
 (A) $3,000,000 for fiscal year 2023;
 (B) $20,000,000 for fiscal year 2024;
 (C) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2025; and
 (D) $1,000,000 for fiscal year 2026.
 (o) Administrative Costs.--Not more than 2 percent of a grant 
made for the hiring or rehiring of additional career law 
enforcement officers may be used for costs incurred to 
administer such grant.
 (p) COPS Pipeline Partnership Program.--
 (1) Eligible entity defined.--In this subsection, the 
 term ``eligible entity'' means a law enforcement agency 
 in partnership with not less than 1 educational 
 institution, which may include 1 or any combination of 
 the following:
 (A) An elementary school.
 (B) A secondary school.
 (C) An institution of higher education.
 (D) A Hispanic-serving institution.
 (E) A historically Black college or 
 university.
 (F) A Tribal college.
 (2) Grants.--The Attorney General shall award 
 competitive grants to eligible entities for recruiting 
 activities that--
 (A) support substantial student engagement 
 for the exploration of potential future career 
 opportunities in law enforcement;
 (B) strengthen recruitment by law enforcement 
 agencies experiencing a decline in recruits, or 
 high rates of resignations or retirements;
 (C) enhance community interactions between 
 local youth and law enforcement agencies that 
 are designed to increase recruiting; and
 (D) otherwise improve the outcomes of local 
 law enforcement recruitment through activities 
 such as dedicated programming for students, 
 work-based learning opportunities, project-
 based learning, mentoring, community liaisons, 
 career or job fairs, work site visits, job 
 shadowing, apprenticeships, or skills-based 
 internships.
 (3) Funding.--Of the amounts made available to carry 
 out this part for a fiscal year, the Attorney General 
 may use not more than $3,000,000 to carry out this 
 subsection.

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SEC. 1704. LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS.

 (a) Nonsupplanting Requirement.--Funds made available under 
this part to States or units of local government shall not be 
used to supplant State or local funds, or, in the case of 
Indian tribal governments, funds supplied by the Bureau of 
Indian Affairs, but shall be used to increase the amount of 
funds that would, in the absence of Federal funds received 
under this part, be made available from State or local sources, 
or in the case of Indian tribal governments, from funds 
supplied by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
 (b) Non-Federal Costs.--
 (1) In general.--States and units of local government 
 may use assets received through the Assets Forfeiture 
 equitable sharing program to provide the non-Federal 
 share of the cost of programs, projects, and activities 
 funded under this part.
 (2) Indian tribal governments.--Funds appropriated by 
 the 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 cost of programs or projects funded under 
 this part.
 (c) Hiring Costs.--Funding provided under this part for 
hiring or rehiring a career law enforcement officer may not 
exceed $75,000, unless the Attorney General grants a waiver 
from this limitation.
 (d) Guidance for Understaffed Law Enforcement Agencies.--
 (1) Definitions.--In this subsection:
 (A) Covered applicant.--The term ``covered 
 applicant'' means an applicant for a hiring 
 grant under this part seeking funding for a law 
 enforcement agency operating below the budgeted 
 strength of the law enforcement agency.
 (B) Budgeted strength.--The term ``budgeted 
 strength'' means the employment of the maximum 
 number of sworn law enforcement officers the 
 budget of a law enforcement agency allows the 
 agency to employ.
 (2) Procedures.--Not later than 180 days after the 
 date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General 
 shall establish consistent procedures for covered 
 applicants, including guidance that--
 (A) clarifies that covered applicants remain 
 eligible for funding under this part; and
 (B) enables covered applicants to attest that 
 the funding from a grant awarded under this 
 part is not being used by the law enforcement 
 agency to supplant State or local funds, as 
 described in subsection (a).
 (3) Paperwork reduction.--In developing the 
 procedures and guidance under paragraph (2), the 
 Attorney General shall take measures to reduce 
 paperwork requirements for grants to covered 
 applicants.

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