[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 5207 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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117th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 5207
To authorize the Attorney General to make grants to improve public
safety, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
December 7, 2022
Ms. Smith introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To authorize the Attorney General to make grants to improve public
safety, 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 ``Supporting Innovation in Public
Safety Act''.
SEC. 2. INNOVATION IN SAFETY DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS.
(a) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means the Committee on
the Judiciary of the Senate and the Committee on the Judiciary
of the House of Representatives.
(2) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means--
(A) a State government;
(B) a local government;
(C) a Tribal government; and
(D) a nonprofit organization.
(3) Law enforcement agency.--The term ``law enforcement
agency'' means any government agency that has the principal
functions of--
(A) the prevention, detection, and investigation of
crime; and
(B) the apprehension of alleged criminal offenders.
(4) Nonprofit organization.--The term ``nonprofit
organization'' means--
(A) an organization described in section 501(c)(3)
of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from
tax under section 501(a) of such code; and
(B) an organization that is a nonprofit
organization under the law of the State in which the
organization is located.
(5) State.--The term ``State'' means any State of the
United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of
Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American
Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and
any possession of the United States.
(6) Tribal government.--The term ``Tribal government''
means the government of an Indian tribe (as defined in section
4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act
(25 U.S.C. 5304)).
(b) Grants Authorized.--
(1) In general.--The Attorney General shall award grants,
on a competitive basis, to not less than 100 eligible entities
to perform a demonstration project described in paragraph (2).
(2) Demonstration projects.--An eligible entity receiving a
grant under paragraph (1) shall perform a demonstration project
that supports the development and implementation of programs
and policies that improve public safety with innovative
strategies, including--
(A) improving mental health crisis response;
(B) reassigning some functions of law enforcement
officers to unarmed public employees;
(C) creating programs designed to reduce the
incidence of violence, harassment, and civil rights
violations by law enforcement officers;
(D) reducing the financial and operational reliance
of law enforcement agencies on the collection of fines,
fees, and other charges; and
(E) identifying, and making publicly available a
report relating to, potential--
(i) reforms to State criminal statutes in
order to--
(I) eliminate unnecessary fines,
fees, and other charges; and
(II) eliminate or reduce mandatory
minimum sentences; and
(ii) reforms to State criminal statutes and
local ordinances that--
(I) contribute to the
criminalization of poverty; or
(II) are enforced in a racially
disparate manner.
(3) Duration.--A demonstration project performed under
paragraph (2) shall be performed for a period of not less than
5 years.
(4) Limitation on receipt and use of funds.--A law
enforcement agency may not receive or use any funds from a
grant awarded under this subsection.
(5) Administration.--An eligible entity that receives a
grant under this section may enter into an agreement with a
nonprofit organization to--
(A) administer the grant; or
(B) provide support to the eligible entity in the
administration of the grant.
(c) Tribal Government Allocations.--In awarding grants under
subsection (b), the Attorney General shall allocate to eligible
entities that are Tribal governments not less than 10 percent of the
funds that are made available to carry out that subsection.
(d) Data Collection.--
(1) In general.--The Attorney General shall collect the
following data for the jurisdiction of an eligible entity
performing a demonstration project with a grant under
subsection (b) for each year during which the eligible entity
performs the demonstration project:
(A) Population characteristics, including
statistics on race, ethnicity, nationality, religion,
average and median income levels, and poverty.
(B) Average educational attainment.
(C) Employment rates.
(D) Housing market characteristics.
(E) Demographic characteristics of individuals who
are arrested, charged, and convicted of crimes during
the period of performance of the demonstration project
by the eligible entity.
(2) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter until the date
on which each demonstration project performed under subsection
(b) is complete, the Attorney General shall submit to the
appropriate congressional committees a report that includes--
(A) the total number of eligible entities
performing demonstration projects with a grant under
subsection (b);
(B) a description and status assessment of each
demonstration project described in subparagraph (A);
and
(C) the data collected under paragraph (1).
(e) Evaluation.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date on
which the Secretary awards the first grant under subsection
(b)(1), and annually thereafter until the date on which each
demonstration project performed under subsection (b) is
complete, the Attorney General, in consultation with the heads
of other appropriate agencies, shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees an evaluation relating to the
demonstration project performed by each eligible entity
receiving a grant under subsection (b).
(2) Contents.--The evaluation required under paragraph (1)
shall include, for each eligible entity performing a
demonstration project with a grant under subsection (b)--
(A) how the demonstration project--
(i) has saved costs for the eligible
entity;
(ii) has contributed to a reduced incidence
of use of force by law enforcement officers in
the jurisdiction of the eligible entity;
(iii) has contributed to improved relations
between community members and law enforcement
agencies and officers in the jurisdiction of
the eligible entity; and
(iv) has met the performance goals of the
eligible entity; and
(B) other appropriate analysis of the outcome of
the demonstration project.
(3) Use of data.--In preparing the evaluation required
under paragraph (1), the Attorney General shall use the data
collected under subsection (d).
(4) Public availability.--The evaluation required under
paragraph (1) shall be publicly available.
(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated--
(1) to carry out subsection (b) $500,000,000; and
(2) to carry out subsections (d) and (e) $100,000 for each
of fiscal years 2023 through 2027.
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