119-hr3846

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3846 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 3846

 To amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to 
 establish a grant program to help law enforcement agencies with 
 civilian law enforcement tasks, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 June 9, 2025

 Mr. Harder of California (for himself, Mr. Fitzpatrick, Mr. Swalwell, 
and Mr. Nunn of Iowa) 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 
 establish a grant program to help law enforcement agencies with 
 civilian law enforcement tasks, and for other purposes.

 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 ``Retired Law Enforcement Officers 
Continuing Service Act''.

SEC. 2. GRANT PROGRAM.

 Title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 
(34 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:

 ``PART PP--CIVIL LAW ENFORCEMENT TASK GRANTS

``

SEC. 3061. DEFINITIONS.

 ``In this part:
 ``

    (1) Civilian law enforcement task.--The term `civilian 
 law enforcement task'--
 ``
        (A) includes--
 ``
            (i) assisting in homicide investigations;
 ``
            (ii) assisting in carjacking 
 investigations;
 ``
            (iii) assisting in financial crimes 
 investigations;
 ``
            (iv) assisting in compliance with 
 reporting requirements;
 ``
            (v) reviewing camera footage;
 ``
            (vi) crime scene analysis;
 ``
            (vii) forensics analysis; and
 ``
            (viii) providing expertise in computers, 
 computer networks, information technology, or 
 the internet; and
 ``
        (B) does not include the ability to make arrests 
 or use force under the color of law.
 ``

    (2) Eligible entity.--The term `eligible entity' means a 
 State, local, Tribal, or territorial law enforcement agency 
 that certifies that retired law enforcement personnel hired 
 using amounts from a grant under this part--
 ``
        (A) have appropriate and reasonably current 
 training and experience to effectively carry out the 
 tasks described in 

section 3062

    (a) ; or
 ``
        (B) will participate in appropriate continuing 
 education programs to satisfy subparagraph
        (A) .

``

SEC. 3062. GRANTS AUTHORIZED.

 ``

    (a) In General.--The Attorney General may award grants to 
eligible entities for the purpose of hiring retired personnel from law 
enforcement agencies to--
 ``

    (1) train civilian employees of the eligible entity on 
 civilian law enforcement tasks that can be performed on behalf 
 of a law enforcement agency; and
 ``

    (2) perform civilian law enforcement tasks on behalf of 
 the eligible entity.
 ``

    (b) Disciplinary Records.--
 ``

    (1) In general.--An eligible entity receiving a grant 
 under subsection

    (a) shall make a good faith effort to 
 determine whether a retired law enforcement officer seeking to 
 be hired by the eligible entity using amounts from a grant 
 under this part has a disciplinary record or an internal 
 investigation record by--
 ``
        (A) conducting a search of the National 
 Decertification Index; or
 ``
        (B) requesting the personnel record of the 
 retired law enforcement officer from each law 
 enforcement agency that employed the retired law 
 enforcement officer.
 ``

    (2) Hiring determinations.--Before making any hiring 
 determination, the highest ranking law enforcement officer of 
 an eligible entity receiving a grant under subsection

    (a) or a 
 designee of that law enforcement officer shall review any 
 findings of misconduct that arise as a result of a search or 
 request conducted pursuant to paragraph

    (1) .

``

SEC. 3063. ACCOUNTABILITY PROVISIONS.

 ``

    (a) In General.--A grant awarded under this part shall be subject 
to the accountability requirements of this section.
 ``

    (b) Audit Requirement.--
 ``

    (1) === Definition. ===
-In this subsection, the term `unresolved 
 audit finding' means a finding in a final audit report of the 
 Inspector General of the Department of Justice that an audited 
 grantee has used grant funds for an unauthorized expenditure or 
 otherwise unallowable cost that is not closed or resolved 
 within 12 months from the date when the final audit report is 
 issued.
 ``

    (2) Audits.--Beginning in the first fiscal year beginning 
 after the date of enactment of the Retired Law Enforcement 
 Officers Continuing Service Act, and in each fiscal year 
 thereafter, the Inspector General of the Department of Justice 
 shall conduct audits of recipients of grants under this part to 
 prevent waste, fraud, and abuse of funds by grantees. The 
 Inspector General of the Department of Justice shall determine 
 the appropriate number of grantees to be audited each year.
 ``

    (3) Mandatory exclusion.--A recipient of grant funds 
 under this part that is found to have an unresolved audit 
 finding shall not be eligible to receive grant funds under this 
 part during the first 2 fiscal years beginning after the end of 
 the 12-month period described in paragraph

    (1) .
 ``

    (4) Priority.--In awarding grants under this part, the 
 Attorney General shall give priority to eligible entities that 
 did not have an unresolved audit finding during the 3 fiscal 
 years before submitting an application for a grant under this 
 part.
 ``
            (c) Annual Certification.--Beginning in the fiscal year during 
which audits commence under subsection

    (b)

    (2) , the Attorney General 
shall submit to the Committee on the Judiciary and the Committee on 
Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on the Judiciary and the 
Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives an annual 
certification--
 ``

    (1) indicating whether--
 ``
        (A) all audits issued by the Office of the 
 Inspector General of the Department of Justice under 
 subsection

    (b) have been completed and reviewed by the 
 appropriate Assistant Attorney General or Director; and
 ``
        (B) all mandatory exclusions required under 
 subsection

    (b)

    (3) have been issued; and
 ``

    (2) that includes a list of any grant recipients excluded 
 under subsection

    (b)

    (3) from the previous year.
 ``
            (d) Preventing Duplicative Grants.--
 ``

    (1) In general.--Before the Attorney General awards a 
 grant to an eligible entity under this part, the Attorney 
 General shall compare potential grant awards with other grants 
 awarded by the Attorney General to determine if grant awards 
 are or have been awarded for a similar purpose.
 ``

    (2) Report.--If the Attorney General awards grants to the 
 same applicant for a similar purpose, 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 includes--
 ``
        (A) a list of all such grants awarded, including 
 the total dollar amount of any such grants awarded; and
 ``
        (B) the reason the Attorney General awarded 
 multiple grants to the same applicant for a similar 
 purpose.''.
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