[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7042 Introduced in House (IH)]
110th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7042
To amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to
provide adequate benefits for public safety officers injured or killed
in the line of duty, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
September 24, 2008
Mr. Cazayoux introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Ways
and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker,
in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the
jurisdiction of the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to
provide adequate benefits for public safety officers injured or killed
in the line of duty, 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 ``First Responders Support Act of
2008''.
SEC. 2. EXPANDING DISABILITY BENEFITS.
(a) In General.--Section 1201 of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe
Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) by striking ``$250,000'' and inserting
``$350,000''; and
(B) by striking ``subsection (h)'' and inserting
``subsection (h)(1)'';
(2) in subsection (b)--
(A) by striking ``permanently and totally''; and
(B) by striking ``, to the extent that
appropriations are provided'' and all that follows and
inserting ``a benefit in an amount determined in
accordance with subsection (h)(2) to such officer.'';
and
(3) in subsection (h)--
(A) by striking ``the effective date of this
subsection'' and inserting ``the date of enactment of
the First Responders Support Act of 2008'';
(B) by inserting ``(1)'' after ``(h)''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(2)(A) Subject to subsection (b) and subparagraph (B) of this
paragraph, the amount of a benefit paid under subsection (b) to a
public safety officer who has become disabled as the direct result of a
catastrophic injury sustained in the line of duty shall be in an amount
equal to the benefit that is payable under subsection (a) in the
applicable year, multiplied by the level of disability of the public
safety officer, as determined in accordance with subparagraph (C).
``(B) No benefit shall be paid under subsection (b) if the level of
disability of the public safety officer is less than 50 percent.
``(C) The Director shall adopt and apply a schedule of levels of
disability of public safety officers associated with specific injuries
or combinations of injuries, based upon the average impairments of
earning capacity resulting from the injuries concerned.''.
(b) Definition of Catastrophic Injury.--Section 1204(1) of the
Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796b(1))
is amended by striking ``permanently prevent an individual from
performing any gainful work'' and inserting ``substantially diminishes
the ability of an individual to perform gainful work''.
(c) Expediting Benefits.--Section 1201 of the Omnibus Crime Control
and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796) is amended by adding at
the end the following:
``(n) Not later than 3 months after the date on which a claimant
submits all information required for a claim under this subpart, the
Bureau shall determine whether the claimant is eligible to receive a
benefit under this subpart.''.
(d) Regulations.--Not later than 9 months after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall promulgate
regulations to carry out the amendments made by this section.
(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to the Attorney General, in addition to any other amounts
otherwise authorized to be appropriated, $3,000,000 for each of fiscal
years 2009 through 2013 to hire employees for the Bureau of Justice
Assistance and obtain the technology and equipment necessary to
expedite the processing of claims and make disability determinations
under subpart 1 of part L of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets
Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796 et seq.), as amended by this section.
SEC. 3. EDUCATIONAL BENEFITS.
(a) In General.--Section 1212(a) of the Omnibus Crime Control and
Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796d-1(a)) is amended--
(1) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following:
``(2)(A) Except as provided in paragraph (3), and subject to
subparagraph (C) of this paragraph, financial assistance under this
subpart shall--
``(i) consist of direct payments to an eligible dependent;
and
``(ii) be paid at the monthly rate of not more than $1,500.
``(B) The Director shall promulgate regulations to establish the
amount of financial assistance under subparagraph (A) for an eligible
dependent, which shall be based on the portion of the normal full-time
academic workload for the course of study, as determined by the
eligible educational institution, that the eligible dependent is
pursuing.
``(C) On October 1 of each fiscal year beginning after the date of
enactment of the First Responders Support Act of 2008, the Director
shall adjust the level of the benefit payable during that fiscal year
under subparagraph (A)(ii), to reflect the annual percentage change in
the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, published by the
Bureau of Labor Statistics, occurring in the 1-year period ending on
June 1 immediately preceding such October 1.''; and
(2) in paragraph (3)(A), by striking ``to which the
eligible dependent would otherwise be entitled to receive'' and
inserting ``that the eligible dependent receives''.
(b) Children.--Section 1212(a)(1) of the Omnibus Crime Control and
Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796d-1(a)(1)) is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``or'' at the end;
(2) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``a totally and
permanently disabling injury'' and inserting ``the officer's
catastrophic injury'';
(3) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as subparagraph (C);
and
(4) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following:
``(B) the child of the spouse of an officer described in
subparagraph (A) at the time of the officer's death or on the
date of the officer's catastrophic injury; or''.
SEC. 4. CREDIT FOR CONTINUING CARE OF FIRST RESPONDERS.
(a) In General.--Subpart C of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1
of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to refundable credits)
is amended by inserting after section 36 the following new section:
``SEC. 36A. CONTINUING CARE FOR INJURED FIRST RESPONDERS.
``(a) Allowance of Credit.--There shall be allowed as a credit
against the tax imposed by this subtitle for the taxable year an amount
equal to the qualified medical expenses paid or incurred during such
taxable year by a qualified injured first responder or a family member
of a qualified injured first responder.
``(b) Limitations.--
``(1) In general.--The amount of the credit allowed under
subsection (a) for any taxable year shall not exceed $7,500.
``(2) Limitation based on adjusted gross income.--The
amount of the credit allowed by subsection (a) (determined
without regard to this subsection) shall be reduced (but not
below zero) by 5 percent of so much of the taxpayer's adjusted
gross income as exceeds $75,000 ($150,000 in the case of a
joint return).
``(c) Definitions.--For purposes of this section--
``(1) Qualified injured first responder.--The term
`qualified injured first responder' means any public safety
officer who has suffered an injury that substantially
diminishes the ability of the public safety officer to perform
gainful work while performing an official duty as a public
safety officer.
``(2) Family member.--The term `family member' includes
family members described in section 267(c)(4).
``(3) Qualified medical expenses.--The term `qualified
medical expenses' means expenses paid or incurred, not
compensated for by insurance or otherwise, for medical care
(within the meaning of section 213(d)) in connection with an
injury of a qualified injured first responder which was
incurred while the qualified injured first responder was
performing an official duty as a public safety officer.
``(4) Public safety officer.--The term `public safety
officer' has the meaning given such term by section 1204(9) of
the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968.
``(d) No Double Benefit.--No credit or deduction shall be allowed
under this chapter with respect to any expenses which are taken into
account under this section.''.
(b) Conforming Amendments.--
(1) Paragraph (2) of section 1324(b) of title 31, United
States Code, is amended by inserting ``36A,'' after ``36,''.
(2) The table of sections for subpart C of part IV of
subchapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986
is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 36
the following new item:
``Sec. 36A. Continuing care for injured first responders.''.
(c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall
apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2008.
SEC. 5. EXPANDING COUNSELING AND MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES.
(a) Definitions.--In this section--
(1) the term ``Director'' means the Director of the Bureau
of Justice Assistance;
(2) the term ``eligible organization'' means an
organization that provides free or reduced cost mental health
services or counseling to public safety officers seriously
injured in the line of duty and the family members of public
safety officers killed or seriously injured in the line of
duty;
(3) the term ``public safety officer'' has the meaning
given that term in section 1204 of the Omnibus Crime Control
and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796b); and
(4) the term ``reduced cost'', relating to mental health
services or counseling, means that the organization providing
the services or counseling charges not more than 50 percent of
the amount that the organization would otherwise charge for the
services or counseling.
(b) Authorization To Make Grants.--The Director may make grants to
eligible organizations to provide mental health services or counseling
to public safety officers seriously injured in the line of duty and the
family members of public safety officers killed or seriously injured in
the line of duty.
(c) Application.--An eligible organization desiring a grant under
this section shall submit an application at such time, in such manner,
and accompanied by such information as the Director may establish.
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