119-hr3458

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3458 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 3458

 To amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to 
 provide that COPS grant funds may be used for local law enforcement 
recruits to attend schools or academies if the recruits agree to serve 
 in precincts of law enforcement agencies in their communities.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 May 15, 2025

 Mr. Moran (for himself, Ms. Ross, and Mr. Ivey) introduced the 
 following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to 
 provide that COPS grant funds may be used for local law enforcement 
recruits to attend schools or academies if the recruits agree to serve 
 in precincts of law enforcement agencies in their communities.

 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

 This Act may be cited as the ``Strong Communities Act of 2025''.

SEC. 2. STRONG COMMUNITIES PROGRAM.

 

Section 1701 of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 
Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10381) is amended by adding at the end 
the following:
 ``

    (q) COPS Strong Communities Program.--
 ``

    (1) === Definitions. ===
-In this subsection:
 ``
        (A) Eligible entity.--The term `eligible entity' 
 means--
 ``
            (i) an institution of higher education, 
 as defined in 

section 101 of the Higher 
 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001), that, 
 in coordination or through an agreement with a 
 local law enforcement agency, offers a law 
 enforcement training program; or
 ``
            (ii) a local law enforcement agency that 
 offers a law enforcement training program.
 ``
        (B) Local law enforcement agency.--The term 
 `local law enforcement agency' means an agency of a 
 State, unit of local government, or Indian Tribe that 
 is authorized by law or by a government agency to 
 engage in or supervise the prevention, detection, 
 investigation, or prosecution of any violation of 
 criminal law.
 ``

    (2) Grants.--The Attorney General may use amounts 
 otherwise appropriated to carry out this section for a fiscal 
 year (beginning with fiscal year 2025) to make competitive 
 grants to local law enforcement agencies to be used for 
 officers and recruits to attend law enforcement training 
 programs at eligible entities if the officers and recruits 
 agree to serve in law enforcement agencies in their 
 communities.
 ``

    (3) Eligibility.--To be eligible for a grant through a 
 local law enforcement agency under this subsection, each 
 officer or recruit described in paragraph

    (2) shall--
 ``
        (A) serve as a full-time law enforcement officer 
 for a total of not fewer than 4 years during the 8-year 
 period beginning on the date on which the officer or 
 recruit completes a law enforcement training program 
 for which the officer or recruit receives benefits;
 ``
        (B) complete the service described in 
 subparagraph
        (A) in a local law enforcement agency 
 located within--
 ``
            (i) 7 miles of the residence of the 
 officer or recruit where the officer or recruit 
 has resided for not fewer than 5 years; or
 ``
            (ii) if the officer or recruit resides in 
 a county with fewer than 150,000 residents, 
 within 20 miles of the residence of the officer 
 or recruit where the officer or recruit has 
 resided for not fewer than 5 years; and
 ``
            (C) submit to the eligible entity providing a law 
 enforcement training program to the officer or recruit 
 evidence of employment of the officer or recruit in the 
 form of a certification by the chief administrative 
 officer of the local law enforcement agency where the 
 officer or recruit is employed.
 ``

    (4) Repayment.--
 ``
        (A) In general.--If an officer or recruit does 
 not complete the service described in paragraph

    (3) , 
 the officer or recruit shall submit to the local law 
 enforcement agency an amount equal to any benefits the 
 officer or recruit received through the local law 
 enforcement agency under this subsection.
 ``
        (B) Regulations.--The Attorney General shall 
 promulgate regulations that establish categories of 
 extenuating circumstances under which an officer or 
 recruit may be excused from repayment under 
 subparagraph
        (A) .''.

SEC. 3. TRANSPARENCY.

 Not less frequently than annually, the Attorney General shall 
submit to the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the 
Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives a report 
that details, with respect to recipients of grants under 

section 1701

    (q) of title I of the Omnibus and Crime Control and Safe Streets 
Act of 1968, as added by 

section 2--

    (1) during the 1-year period preceding the date of the 
 report--
        (A) the number and location of those recipients; 
 and
        (B) the number of law enforcement officers and 
 recruits each recipient intends to send to law 
 enforcement training programs at eligible entities (as 
 defined in paragraph

    (1) of such 

section 1701

    (q) ) with 
 amounts from the grant; and

    (2) during the period between the date of enactment of this 
 Act and the date of the report--
        (A) the number of law enforcement officers or 
 recruits who attended the training described in 
 paragraph

    (1)
        (B) with amounts from the grant and 
 returned from the training as employees of the 
 recipient; and
        (B) the number of law enforcement officers or 
 recruits described in subparagraph
        (A) who remain an 
 employee of the recipient.
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