S 2878 — HEROES Act of 2018

(a) The Attorney General shall— (1) acquire, collect, classify, and preserve identification, criminal identification, crime, and other records; (2) acquire, collect, classify, and preserve any information which would assist in the identification of any deceased individual who has not been identified after the discovery of such deceased individual; (3) acquire, collect, classify, and preserve any information which would assist in the location of any missing person (including an unemancipated person as defined by the laws of the place of residence of such person) and provide confirmation as to any entry for such a person to the parent, legal guardian, or next of kin of that person (and the Attorney General may acquire, collect, classify, and preserve such information from such parent, guardian, or next of kin); (4) exchange such records and information with, and for the official use of, authorized officials of the Federal Government, including the United States Sentencing Commission, the States, including State sentencing commissions, Indian tribes, cities, and penal and other institutions; and (5) provide a person licensed as an importer, manufacturer, or dealer of firearms under chapter 44 of title 18 with information necessary to verify whether firearms offered for sale to such licensees have been stolen. (b) The exchange of records and information authorized by subsection (a)(4) of this section is subject to cancellation if dissemination is made outside the receiving departments or related agencies, except for dissemination authorized under subsection (a)(5) of this section. (c) The Attorney General may appoint officials to perform the functions authorized by this section. (d) Indian Law Enforcement Agencies.— (1) In general.— The Attorney General shall permit tribal and Bureau of Indian Affairs law enforcement agencies— (A) to access and enter information into Federal criminal information databases; and (B) to obtain information from the databases. (2) Tribal Access Program.— (A) In general.— The Attorney General shall establish a program, to be known as the “Tribal Access Program”, to enhance the ability of tribal governments and their authorized agencies to access, enter information into, and obtain information from national criminal information databases under this section. (B) Authorization of appropriations.— There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out the Tribal Access Program under subparagraph (A) $6,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 through 2027, to remain available until expended. (3) Information sharing.— To the extent otherwise permitted by law, any report issued as a result of the analysis of information entered into national criminal information databases or obtained from Federal criminal databases shall be shared with each Indian tribe of jurisdiction, including Indian tribes located in the State of Maine. (e) For purposes of this section, the term “other institutions” includes— (1) railroad police departments which perform the administration of criminal justice and have arrest powers pursuant to a State statute, which allocate a substantial part of their annual budget to the administration of criminal justice, and which meet training requirements established by law or ordinance for law enforcement officers; and (2) police departments of private colleges or universities which perform the administration of criminal justice and have arrest powers pursuant to a State statute, which allocate a substantial part of their annual budget to the administration of criminal justice, and which meet training requirements established by law or ordinance for law enforcement officers. (f) (1) Information from national crime information databases consisting of identification records, criminal history records, protection orders, and wanted person records may be disseminated to civil or criminal courts for use in domestic violence or stalking cases. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to permit access to...

(a) Amount; recipients In any case in which the Bureau of Justice Assistance (hereinafter in this subchapter referred to as the “Bureau”) determines, under regulations issued pursuant to this subchapter, that a public safety officer has died as the direct and proximate result of a personal injury sustained in the line of duty, a benefit of $250,000, adjusted in accordance with subsection (h), and calculated in accordance with subsection (i), shall be payable by the Bureau, as follows (if the payee indicated is living on the date on which the determination is made)— (1) if there is no child who survived the public safety officer, to the surviving spouse of the public safety officer; (2) if there is at least 1 child who survived the public safety officer and a surviving spouse of the public safety officer, 50 percent to the surviving child (or children, in equal shares) and 50 percent to the surviving spouse; (3) if there is no surviving spouse of the public safety officer, to the surviving child (or children, in equal shares); (4) if there is no surviving spouse of the public safety officer and no surviving child— (A) to the surviving individual (or individuals, in shares per the designation, or, otherwise, in equal shares) designated by the public safety officer to receive benefits under this subsection in the most recently executed designation of beneficiary of the public safety officer on file at the time of death with the public safety agency, organization, or unit; or (B) if there is no individual qualifying under subparagraph (A), to the surviving individual (or individuals, in equal shares) designated by the public safety officer to receive benefits under the most recently executed life insurance policy of the public safety officer on file at the time of death with the public safety agency, organization, or unit; (5) if there is no individual qualifying under paragraph (1), (2), (3), or (4), to the surviving parent (or parents, in equal shares) of the public safety officer; or (6) if there is no individual qualifying under paragraph (1), (2), (3), (4), or (5), to the surviving individual (or individuals, in equal shares) who would qualify under the definition of the term “child” under section 10284 of this title but for age. (b) Benefits for permanent and total disability In accordance with regulations issued pursuant to this subchapter, in any case in which the Bureau determines that a public safety officer has become permanently and totally disabled as the direct and proximate result of a personal injury sustained in the line of duty, a benefit shall be payable to the public safety officer (if living on the date on which the determination is made) in the same amount that would be payable, as of the date such injury was sustained (including as adjusted in accordance with subsection (h), and calculated in accordance with subsection (i)), if such determination were a determination under subsection (a): Provided, That for the purposes of making these benefit payments, there are authorized to be appropriated for each fiscal year such sums as may be necessary. (c) Interim benefit payment Whenever the Bureau determines upon showing of need and prior to final action that the death of a public safety officer is one with respect to which a benefit will probably be paid, the Bureau may make an interim benefit payment not exceeding $6,000, adjusted in accordance with subsection (h), to the individual entitled to receive a benefit under subsection (a) of this section. (d) Deduction of interim payment The amount of an interim payment under subsection (c) shall be deducted from the amount of any final benefit paid to such individual. (e) Repayment of interim payment; waiver Where there is no final benefit paid, the recipient of any interim payment under subsection (c) shall be liable for repayment of such amount. The Bureau may waive all or part of such repayment, considering for this purpose the hardship which would result from s...

(a) Retroactive eligibility Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a spouse or child of a Federal law enforcement officer killed in the line of duty on or after January 1, 1978,,1 and a spouse or child of a public safety officer killed in the line of duty on or after January 1, 1978, shall be eligible for assistance under this part, subject to the other limitations of this part. (b) Retroactive assistance The Attorney General shall (unless prospective assistance has been provided) provide retroactive assistance to a person eligible under this section for each month in which the person pursued a program of education at an eligible educational institution. The Attorney General shall apply the limitations contained in this part to retroactive assistance. (c) Prospective assistance The Attorney General may provide prospective assistance to a person eligible under this section on the same basis as assistance to a person otherwise eligible. In applying the limitations on assistance under this part, the Attorney General shall include assistance provided retroactively. A person eligible under this section may waive retroactive assistance and apply only for prospective assistance on the same basis as a person otherwise eligible.