[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5060 Introduced in House (IH)]
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115th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 5060
To amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to make
reforms to the benefits for Public Service Officers, and for other
purposes.
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IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 15, 2018
Mr. Ruiz (for himself and Mr. Cook) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
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A BILL
To amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to make
reforms to the benefits for Public Service Officers, 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 ``Heroes Lesley Zerebny and Gilbert
Vega First Responders Survivors Support Act of 2018''.
SEC. 2. AMOUNT OF BENEFIT INCREASED.
Section 1201(a) of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act
of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281(a)) is amended in the matter preceding
paragraph (1) by striking ``$250,000'' and inserting ``$500,000''.
SEC. 3. DATE OF DETERMINATION OF AMOUNT OF BENEFIT.
(a) Disability Benefit.--Section 1201(b) of the Omnibus Crime
Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281(b)) is amended by
striking ``with respect to the date on which the catastrophic injury
occurred'' and inserting the following: ``with respect to the date that
a determination is made to make such payment''.
(b) Death Benefit.--Section 1201(i) of the Omnibus Crime Control
and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10281(i)) is amended by
striking ``as of the date of death of such officer'' and inserting the
following: ``as of the date that a determination is made to make such
payment subsequent to an application''.
SEC. 4. AMOUNT OF EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE.
Section 1212(a)(2) of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets
Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10302(a)(2)) is amended by striking ``shall be
computed on the basis set forth in section 3532 of title 38, United
States Code'' and inserting the following: ``shall be computed on the
basis set forth in section 1219''.
SEC. 5. COMPUTATION OF EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE ALLOWANCE.
Subpart 2 of part L of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and
Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.) is amended by adding
at the end the following:
``SEC. 1219. COMPUTATION OF EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE ALLOWANCE.
``(a) In General.--
``(1) Monthly rates.--The financial assistance on behalf of
an eligible person who is pursuing a program of education
consisting of institutional courses shall be paid at the
monthly rate of $2,000 for full-time, $1,600 for three-quarter-
time, or $1,160 for half-time pursuit.
``(2) Less than half-time basis.--The financial assistance
on behalf of an eligible person pursuing a program of education
on less than a half-time basis shall be paid at the rate of the
lesser of--
``(A) the established charges for tuition and fees
that the educational institution involved requires
similarly circumstanced noneligible persons enrolled in
the same program to pay; or
``(B) $788 per month for a full-time course.
``(b) Training.--The financial assistance to be paid on behalf of
an eligible person who is pursuing a full-time program of education
which consists of institutional courses and alternate phases of
training in a business or industrial establishment with the training in
the business or industrial establishment being strictly supplemental to
the institutional portion, shall be computed at the rate of $2,000 per
month.
``(c) Farm Cooperative.--
``(1) In general.--An eligible person who is enrolled in an
educational institution for a `farm cooperative' program
consisting of institutional agricultural courses prescheduled
to fall within 44 weeks of any period of 12 consecutive months
and who pursues such program on--
``(A) a full-time basis (a minimum of 10 clock
hours per week or 440 clock hours in such year
prescheduled to provide not less than 80 clock hours in
any three-month period);
``(B) a three-quarter-time basis (a minimum of
seven clock hours per week); or
``(C) a half-time basis (a minimum of five clock
hours per week),
shall be eligible to receive financial assistance at the
appropriate rate provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection,
if such eligible person is concurrently engaged in agricultural
employment which is relevant to such institutional agricultural
courses as determined under standards prescribed by the
Attorney General. In computing the foregoing clock hour
requirements there shall be included the time involved in field
trips and individual and group instruction sponsored and
conducted by the educational institution through a duly
authorized instructor of such institution in which the person
is enrolled.
``(2) Monthly amounts.--The monthly financial assistance to
be paid on behalf of an eligible person pursuing a farm
cooperative program under this subpart shall be $636 for full-
time, $477 for three-quarter-time, or $319 for half-time
pursuit.
``(d) Programs in Republic of Philippines.--If a program of
education is pursued by an eligible person at an institution located in
the Republic of the Philippines, the financial assistance computed for
such person under this section shall be paid at the rate of $0.50 for
each dollar.
``(e) Licensing or Certification.--
``(1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (3), the amount of
financial assistance payable under this subpart for a licensing
or certification test described in section 3501(a)(5) of title
38, United States Code, is the lesser of $2,000 or the fee
charged for the test.
``(2) Number of months.--The number of months of
entitlement charged in the case of any individual for such
licensing or certification test is equal to the number
(including any fraction) determined by dividing the total
amount paid to such individual for such test by the full-time
monthly institutional rate of the financial assistance which,
except for paragraph (1), such individual would otherwise be
paid under this subpart.
``(3) Limitation.--In no event shall payment of financial
assistance under this subsection for such a test exceed the
amount of the individual's available entitlement under this
subpart.
``(f) National Tests for Admission.--
``(1) National test for admission.--Subject to paragraph
(3), the amount of financial assistance payable under this
subpart for a national test for admission or national test
providing an opportunity for course credit at institutions of
higher learning described in section 3501(a)(5) of title 38,
United States Code, is the amount of the fee charged for the
test.
``(2) Number of months.--The number of months of
entitlement charged in the case of any individual for a test
described in paragraph (1) is equal to the number (including
any fraction) determined by dividing the total amount of
financial assistance paid such individual for such test by the
full-time monthly institutional rate of financial assistance,
except for paragraph (1), such individual would otherwise be
paid under this subpart.
``(3) Limitation.--In no event shall payment of financial
assistance under this subsection for a test described in
paragraph (1) exceed the amount of the individual's available
entitlement under this subpart.
``(g) Definitions.--Terms used in this section have the meanings
given such terms in section 3501 of title 38, United States Code.
``(h) Adjustment for Inflation.--Amounts under this section shall
be indexed annually to the college tuition and fees component of the
Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers.''.
SEC. 6. GAO STUDY.
The Comptroller General of the United States shall study and
identify ways to improve access to and the processing of claims under
the Public Safety Officers' Benefit program (34 U.S.C. Sec. Sec. 10281-
10308). In particular, the Comptroller General shall examine:
(1) factors that may hinder access to the Public Safety
Officers' Education Assistance benefit, such as lack of
awareness, delays in the application process, or the timely
processing of deaths and disability claims; and
(2) the extent to which eligibility is communicated to
officers upon employment and to eligible family members
following the loss of a covered officer.
Within 3 years of the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller
General shall issue a report, along with any recommendations, to the
Senate Committee on the Judiciary; House Judiciary Committee; Senate
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions; and House
Committee on Education and the Workforce.
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