{"bills":[{"photos":{"featured":"https://assets.countable.us/bill/photo/s125-114/featured_bulletproof-vest-partnership-grant-program-reauthorization-act-of-2015-1454545595.jpg","featured_large":"https://assets.countable.us/bill/photo/s125-114/featured_large_bulletproof-vest-partnership-grant-program-reauthorization-act-of-2015-1454545595.jpg","shareable":"https://n.countable.us/share-images/bills/s125-114.png"},"introduced_on":"2015-01-08","title_override":"Do the Feds Need to Chip In and Help State and Local Law Enforcement Buy Bulletproof Vests?","summary_override":"This bill would reauthorize a federal grant program allowing law enforcement agencies to purchase additional bulletproof vests, making appropriations totaling $30 million for each of the fiscal years between 2016 and 2020. This program would also provide incentives for obtaining uniquely fitted bulletproof vests for female law enforcement officers.

State or local governments may not use other funding received from federal grant programs to satisfy the cost of the 50 percent matching funds requirement.

Grantees that receive funding under this act must comply with the requirements for the use of grant funding, have a written policy requiring uniformed patrol officers to wear a bulletproof vest or body armor, and the armor must meet certain performance standards.

All funds that do not have \nobligations before December 31, 2022 would be transferred back the \nGeneral Fund of the Treasury before January 31, 2023. Congress expresses\n that appropriated funds should be limited to a two year period, and \nthat the funds shouldn’t be made available until they have been \nexpended.

","official_title":"A bill to amend title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to extend the authorization of the Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Program through fiscal year 2020, and for other purposes.","short_title":"Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Program Reauthorization Act of 2015","popular_title":null,"short_summary":"(This measure has not been amended since it was passed by the Senate on May 6, 2015. The summary of that version is repeated here.)\n\nBulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Program Reauthorization Act of 2015\n\n(Sec. 2) This bill amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to extend through FY2020 the authorization of appropriations for the Bulletproof Vest Partnership (BVP) program.\n\n(Sec. 3) It requires the transfer to the general fund of the Treasury, no later than January 31, 2023, of all funds appropriated for the BVP program for FY2016-FY2020 that are not obligated on or before December 31, 2022.\n\n(Sec. 4) The bill expresses the sense of Congress that amounts made available to carry out the BVP program should be made available through the end of the fiscal year following the one for which the amounts are appropriated and should not be made available until expended.\n\n(Sec. 5) It prohibits the use of federal funds under another grant program to pay or defer the cost of t...","summarized":true,"cost":null,"cost_commentary":"A current CBO cost estimate is unavailable. The CBO analyzed an identical version of this legislation in August 2013, finding that it would authorize the appropriation of $120 million between 2014 and 2018, and would cost $72 million to implement over that five-year period. However, it should be noted that appropriation amounts for this version fo the legislation are different.","impact":"Police officers who obtain bulletproof vests through this program, state and local law enforcement agencies, federal agencies administering the grants.","argument_for":"Reauthorizing this program will save the lives of police officers, and the matching funds requirement ensures that the federal government won’t be shouldering the cost alone.","argument_against":"State and local law enforcement agencies must find a way to obtain bulletproof vests without assistance from the federal government. The sad truth is there isn’t enough funding to accommodate this program.","bill_type":"s","published":true,"type":"FederalBill","id":"s125-114","bill_id":"s125-114","formal_id":"S. 125","chamber":"senate","congress":114,"last_action_at":"2016-05-16T00:00:00.000Z","active":true,"enacted":true,"enacted_at":"2016-05-16","vetoed":false,"last_vote_at":"2016-05-10T21:46:35.000Z","debated_on":null,"congress_url":"https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th/senate-bill/125","plain_text_url":"https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-114s125enr/html/BILLS-114s125enr.htm","shareable_image_url":"https://n.countable.us/share-images/bills/s125-114.png","congress_full_text_url":"https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th/senate-bill/125/text","is_current_congress":false,"last_version_on":"2015-01-08","related_bill_ids":[],"progress":"Enacted","house_passage_result":true,"senate_passage_result":true,"position_count":78,"committees":[{"name":"Committee on the Judiciary","chamber":"house","committee_id":"HSJU","subcommittee":false},{"name":"Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security","chamber":"house","committee_id":"HSJU08","subcommittee":true},{"name":"Committee on the Judiciary","chamber":"senate","committee_id":"SSJU","subcommittee":false}],"links":{"rollCalls":"/api/roll_calls?bill_id=s125-114","details":"/api/bills/s125-114/details","sharingMessage":"/api/sharing_messages/s125-114","positionsFor":"/api/bills/s125-114/positions/for","positionsAgainst":"/api/bills/s125-114/positions/against"},"upcoming":false,"cosponsors_count":24,"slug":"s125-114-bulletproof-vest-partnership-grant-program-reauthorization-act-of-2015","latest_chamber_votes_id":null,"official_url":null,"target_video":true,"following":false,"vote_count":774,"yea_vote_count":394,"nay_vote_count":378,"passed_house":true,"passed_senate":true,"vote_id":null,"my_position_id":null,"topic_ids":["crime-and-police","government"],"issue_ids":["crime-and-police","government","states","federal-agencies"],"sponsor_id":554}],"votes":[],"issues":[{"id":"crime-and-police","name":"Crime & Police","slug":"crime-and-police","description":"Federal legislation related to the prevention of crimes(from assault to organized crime to juvenile crime), firearms and explosives, correctional facilities and terrorism. Make your voice heard about the issues you care about.","page_title":"Crime Prevention Legislation - Vote on Bills, Stay informed, Hold Your Reps Accountable","icons":{"black":"https://assets.countable.us/issue/icon/crime-and-police/black_crime-and-police-1429042040.svg","grey":"https://assets.countable.us/issue/icon/crime-and-police/grey_crime-and-police-1429042040.svg","white":"https://assets.countable.us/issue/icon/crime-and-police/white_crime-and-police-1429042040.svg"},"cover_image_url":null,"is_following":false},{"id":"government","name":"Government","slug":"government","description":"Federal legislation related to the operations of the US Federal Government. Bills can encompass government administration, regulation of political parties, the US postal service, US territories and public contracts.","page_title":"US Government - Federal legislation - Vote on Bills, Stay informed, Hold Your Reps Accountable","icons":{"black":"https://assets.countable.us/issue/icon/government/black_government-1453508811.svg","grey":"https://assets.countable.us/issue/icon/government/grey_government-1453508811.svg","white":"https://assets.countable.us/issue/icon/government/white_government-1453508811.svg"},"cover_image_url":null,"is_following":false},{"id":"states","name":"States","slug":"states","description":"Vote on the latest federal legislation regarding States. Make your voice heard about the issues you care about. \r\n","page_title":"States Legislation - Vote on Bills, Stay informed, Hold Your Reps Accountable","icons":{"black":"https://assets.countable.us/issue/icon/states/black_states-1453508817.svg","grey":"https://assets.countable.us/issue/icon/states/grey_states-1453508817.svg","white":"https://assets.countable.us/issue/icon/states/white_states-1453508817.svg"},"cover_image_url":null,"is_following":false},{"id":"federal-agencies","name":"Federal Agencies","slug":"federal-agencies","description":"Vote on the latest federal legislation regarding Federal Agencies. Make your voice heard about the issues you care about. \r\n","page_title":"Federal Agencies Legislation - Vote on Bills, Stay informed, Hold Your Reps Accountable","icons":{"black":"https://assets.countable.us/issue/icon/federal-agencies/black_federal-agencies-1429042054.svg","grey":"https://assets.countable.us/issue/icon/federal-agencies/grey_federal-agencies-1429042054.svg","white":"https://assets.countable.us/issue/icon/federal-agencies/white_federal-agencies-1429042054.svg"},"cover_image_url":null,"is_following":false}],"users":[{"name":"Gene","vote_count":11,"photos":{"large":"https://countable-us.s3.amazonaws.com/user/avatar/default-2.png","small":"https://countable-us.s3.amazonaws.com/user/avatar/default-2.png","tiny":"https://countable-us.s3.amazonaws.com/user/avatar/default-2.png"},"links":{"following":"/api/users/4mKXrX29/following","followers":"/api/users/4mKXrX29/followers"},"about_me":null,"twitter_id":null,"facebook_id":null,"youtube_id":null,"google_plus_id":null,"website":null,"slug":null,"issue_count":13,"is_following":null,"influence_score":30,"influence_level":10,"follower_count":0,"following_count":1,"position_count":2,"id":"4mKXrX29","partner_id":null},{"name":"bart","vote_count":654,"photos":{"large":"https://assets.countable.us/user/avatar/0emQpZxM/large_0emqpzxm-1424728285.jpg","small":"https://assets.countable.us/user/avatar/0emQpZxM/small_0emqpzxm-1424728285.jpg","tiny":"https://assets.countable.us/user/avatar/0emQpZxM/tiny_0emqpzxm-1424728285.jpg","facebook":"https://graph.facebook.com/548826295/picture"},"links":{"following":"/api/users/0emQpZxM/following","followers":"/api/users/0emQpZxM/followers"},"about_me":"\"You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time\" Abraham Lincoln / Bob Marley. Believer in the power of an informed populace using smart tools at the right time. @Countable founder.","twitter_id":"bartolah","facebook_id":"bartmyers","youtube_id":null,"google_plus_id":"","website":"","slug":"bart","issue_count":56,"is_following":null,"influence_score":75645,"influence_level":40,"follower_count":1975,"following_count":931,"position_count":55,"id":"0emQpZxM","partner_id":null},{"name":"EricRevell","vote_count":805,"photos":{"large":"https://graph.facebook.com/10202802494077498/picture?width=150&height=150","small":"https://graph.facebook.com/10202802494077498/picture?width=75&height=75","tiny":"https://graph.facebook.com/10202802494077498/picture?width=20&height=20","facebook":"https://graph.facebook.com/10202802494077498/picture"},"links":{"following":"/api/users/akW3yomg/following","followers":"/api/users/akW3yomg/followers"},"about_me":"Legislative Director at Countable","twitter_id":null,"facebook_id":null,"youtube_id":null,"google_plus_id":null,"website":null,"slug":"ericrevell","issue_count":65,"is_following":null,"influence_score":11175,"influence_level":40,"follower_count":216,"following_count":276,"position_count":43,"id":"akW3yomg","partner_id":null},{"name":"KLF","vote_count":165,"photos":{"large":"https://assets.countable.us/user/avatar/Q9z8rjOZ/large_q9z8rjoz-1461508535.jpg","small":"https://assets.countable.us/user/avatar/Q9z8rjOZ/small_q9z8rjoz-1461508535.jpg","tiny":"https://assets.countable.us/user/avatar/Q9z8rjOZ/tiny_q9z8rjoz-1461508535.jpg"},"links":{"following":"/api/users/Q9z8rjOZ/following","followers":"/api/users/Q9z8rjOZ/followers"},"about_me":"","twitter_id":null,"facebook_id":null,"youtube_id":null,"google_plus_id":null,"website":null,"slug":"klf","issue_count":65,"is_following":null,"influence_score":670,"influence_level":30,"follower_count":6,"following_count":9,"position_count":49,"id":"Q9z8rjOZ","partner_id":null},{"name":"Dov1115","vote_count":63,"photos":{"large":"https://graph.facebook.com/10153876454981144/picture?width=150&height=150","small":"https://graph.facebook.com/10153876454981144/picture?width=75&height=75","tiny":"https://graph.facebook.com/10153876454981144/picture?width=20&height=20","facebook":"https://graph.facebook.com/10153876454981144/picture"},"links":{"following":"/api/users/yWjjMx5W/following","followers":"/api/users/yWjjMx5W/followers"},"about_me":null,"twitter_id":"","facebook_id":null,"youtube_id":null,"google_plus_id":null,"website":null,"slug":"dov1115","issue_count":52,"is_following":null,"influence_score":270,"influence_level":20,"follower_count":7,"following_count":13,"position_count":24,"id":"yWjjMx5W","partner_id":null},{"name":"Teri","vote_count":4,"photos":{"large":"https://countable-us.s3.amazonaws.com/user/avatar/default-with-flags.png","small":"https://countable-us.s3.amazonaws.com/user/avatar/default-with-flags.png","tiny":"https://countable-us.s3.amazonaws.com/user/avatar/default-with-flags.png"},"links":{"following":"/api/users/7904daq9/following","followers":"/api/users/7904daq9/followers"},"about_me":null,"twitter_id":null,"facebook_id":null,"youtube_id":null,"google_plus_id":null,"website":null,"slug":null,"issue_count":2,"is_following":null,"influence_score":0,"influence_level":0,"follower_count":0,"following_count":2,"position_count":2,"id":"7904daq9","partner_id":null}],"bill_position":{"flagged":false,"id":"e266a97e-a48b-47be-8265-0aad28d0ee6d","argument_for":"Peace Officers should not have to pay for their service weapon and protection vest to do their job. I can't imagine a company or corporations that does not provide their employees the tools and resources to do their job.","argument_against":null,"show_argument_for":true,"show_argument_against":false,"upvote_count":5,"upvotes_for_count":5,"upvotes_against_count":null,"has_upvoted":false,"endorsement_count":5,"links":{"self":"https://www.countable.us/positions/e266a97e-a48b-47be-8265-0aad28d0ee6d"},"body":"Peace Officers should not have to pay for their service weapon and protection vest to do their job. I can't imagine a company or corporations that does not provide their employees the tools and resources to do their job.","stance":"yea","created_at":"2016-05-09T21:52:54.859Z","shareable_image_url":"https://n.countable.us/share-images/positions/e266a97e-a48b-47be-8265-0aad28d0ee6d.png","note_color":null,"note_text":null,"bill_id":"s125-114","user_id":"4mKXrX29","endorser_ids":["0emQpZxM","akW3yomg","Q9z8rjOZ","yWjjMx5W","7904daq9"]}}

Like Countable?

Gene

Do the Feds Need to Chip In and Help State and Local Law Enforcement Buy Bulletproof Vests?