Bills
| 3.23.22

Letting Local Agencies Spend Justice Dept. Grants on Mental Health and Wellness Programs for Law Enforcement Officers (H.R. 2228)

Do you support or oppose this bill?

What is H.R. 2228?

(Updated July 30, 2021)

This bill was enacted on January 10, 2018

This bill would direct the Dept. of Justice (DOJ) to report to Congress on Dept. of Defense (DOD) and Dept. of Veterans Affairs (VA) mental health practices and services that could be adopted by law enforcement agencies. DOJ’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) would be required to report to Congress on programs to address the psychological health and well-being of law enforcement agencies. Grant funding under the COPS program would be allowed for use on peer mentoring mental health and wellness pilot programs within state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies.

DOJ would be required to coordinate with the Dept. of Health and Human Services in developing educational resources for mental health providers regarding the culture of law enforcement agencies and therapies for mental health issues common to law enforcement officers.

DOJ would also be required to:

  • Review existing crisis hotlines, recommend improvements, and research annual mental health checks;

  • Examine the mental health and wellness needs of federal officers;

  • Ensure that recommendations, resources, or programs under this bill protect the privacy of participating officers.

Argument in favor

Law enforcement officers put their lives on the line daily to protect our communities, it’s only right that agencies look for ways to provide them with mental health and wellness services given the emotional strain of their jobs.

Argument opposed

Federal law enforcement grants shouldn’t be available for local agencies to use on providing officers with mental health and wellness services. There are other ways those resources could be put to better use.

Impact

Law enforcement officers and their agencies at all levels of government; relevant federal agencies; and Congress.

Cost of H.R. 2228

The CBO estimates that enacting this bill would cost about $1 million in fiscal year 2018.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Sponsoring Rep. Susan Brooks (R-IN) introduced this bill to help agencies create or improve mental health services for law enforcement officers:

“Members of our law enforcement put themselves in harm’s way to protect our communities every day. Our officers deal with the unthinkable and daily face situations that can be hard to process and impossible to forget. They need the training and resources to protect their own emotional and mental wellbeing in these situations. This bill provides law enforcement officers with the skills to handle the stress and anxiety associated with their job as well as the resources to address serious mental health challenges that may arise like depression and PTSD. I am proud to support our law enforcement agencies, mental health providers and most importantly, our men and women in blue.”

Rep. Val Demings (D-FL), an original cosponsor of the bill, added:

“Our law enforcement officers are called to some of the most horrific situations and step into harm's way to protect of us every day. As Chief of Police, I made it a priority to talk to my police officers, to understand and know what they were dealing with on the streets.  We should do what we can to take care of them, so they are always prepared to take care of us.”

This legislation passed the House Judiciary Committee on a voice vote and has the support of 32 bipartisan cosponsors, including 21 Republicans and 11 Democrats.


Media:

Summary by Eric Revell

(Photo Credit: kali9 / iStock)