[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 309 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 309
To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to provide funding for the
National Law Enforcement Museum, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 9, 2025
Mr. Nehls (for himself, Mr. Panetta, Mr. Stauber, Mr. Costa, Ms.
Brownley, Mr. LaMalfa, Mr. Higgins of Louisiana, Mr. Thanedar, Ms.
Mace, Mr. Valadao, Mr. Babin, Mr. Ciscomani, Mr. Lawler, Mr. Amodei of
Nevada, Mr. Pappas, Mr. Kelly of Pennsylvania, Mr. Ryan, Ms. Craig, Mr.
Garbarino, Mr. Weber of Texas, Mr. Neguse, Mr. Moolenaar, Mr.
Fitzpatrick, Ms. Titus, Mrs. Hinson, Mr. Graves, Mr. Hudson, Mr. Bacon,
Mr. LaLota, Mrs. Fischbach, and Mr. Gottheimer) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural
Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to provide funding for the
National Law Enforcement Museum, 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 ``National Law Enforcement Officers
Remembrance, Support and Community Outreach Act.''
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds the following:
(1) The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial and the
National Law Enforcement Museum in Washington, DC represent the
only law enforcement campus in the United States and serves a
critical national mission of honoring and remembering those law
enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty,
educating the public about the important role of law
enforcement in a democratic society and working to reduce the
number of line of duty deaths and injuries among law
enforcement.
(2) It is in the national interest to ensure that the
unique education and outreach programs of the National Law
Enforcement Museum be maintained and enhanced.
(3) In 1984, Congress passed and President Ronald Reagan
signed into law a joint resolution to authorize the Law
Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, Inc., to establish a
National Law Enforcement Heroes Memorial (Public Law 98-534) in
Washington, DC.
(4) Dedicated on October 15, 1991, the National Law
Enforcement Officers Memorial honors Federal, tribal, State,
and local law enforcement officers who have made the ultimate
sacrifice for the safety and protection of our Nation and its
people. The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial is
centered in the 400 block of E Street, NW, Washington, DC and
is the nation's monument to law enforcement officers who have
died in the line of duty. The Memorial was built entirely with
private funds.
(5) In 2000, Congress passed and President William J.
Clinton signed into law the National Law Enforcement Museum Act
(Public Law 106-492), which authorized the National Law
Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, Inc. to build and operate
the National Law Enforcement Museum on Federal land in the
District of Columbia to honor and commemorate the service and
sacrifice of law enforcement officers in the United States.
(6) In April 2016, construction began on the National Law
Enforcement Museum in the District of Columbia across the
street from the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in
Judiciary Square. In October of 2018 the National Law
Enforcement Museum was completed and formally opened. No
Federal funds were used to build the Museum.
(7) The National Law Enforcement Museum's mission is--
(A) to honor and commemorate the extraordinary
service and sacrifice of America's law enforcement
officers;
(B) to serve as an important bridge between law
enforcement's past and present, between the heroes of
yesteryear and those who have followed in their
footsteps, and between America's peace officers and the
public they serve; and
(C) to increase public understanding and support
for law enforcement and to promote law enforcement
safety.
(8) The programs of the National Law Enforcement Museum
play a critical role in educating the public about the vital
importance of law enforcement in a democratic society, the
critical role law enforcement plays in protecting and serving
the public, and the sacrifices law enforcement officers have
made to serve in this role.
(9) The community education and outreach programs,
activities, and special exhibits within the National Law
Enforcement Museum help bring local law enforcement agencies
closer to the communities they serve, and help to foster a
better understanding between law enforcement and communities.
(10) The National Law Enforcement Museum's Officer Safety
and Wellness education and outreach programs and activities
help provide local, State and Federal law enforcement agencies
with critical information on best practices to reduce the
number of line of duty deaths and injuries and provide
communities and the public with education concerning the
sacrifices made. These programs, activities, and special
exhibits are vitally important at a time when annual line of
duty deaths among law enforcement officers remain at an
historically high level.
(11) Since the establishment in 1991 of the National Law
Enforcement Officers Memorial, and the dedication of the
National Law Enforcement Museum in 2018, the National Law
Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund and the National Law
Enforcement Museum have worked cooperatively with local, State
and Federal law enforcement agencies to properly honor the
sacrifices made by law enforcement, and provide key programming
to reduce the number of law enforcement fatalities and
injuries, and foster better understanding between law
enforcement and the communities they serve.
(12) Law enforcement agencies around the country are
dedicated to continuous improvement and innovation in officer
and community safety, and to building trust through community-
based engagement and interventions.
(13) Since 2020, there has been a significant increase in
the number of law enforcement officers resigning or retiring.
According to the Police Executive Research Forum, over the past
three years there has been an almost 24-percent increase in the
number of law enforcement officers retiring, and more than 47-
percent increase in the number of law enforcement officers
resigning.
(14) A number of law enforcement agencies across the
country remain under-staffed, and many law enforcement agencies
have been forced to declare personnel emergencies and require
mandatory overtime.
(15) The resulting deficit in confidence and support
jeopardizes public safety. There is a critical need to enhance
public understanding and appreciation of law enforcement, and
to improve the safety and wellness of officers who serve our
communities. Fostering a more informed and positive
relationship between law enforcement and the public is
essential for societal safety and cohesion. A sustained
national effort to restore confidence and understanding in law
enforcement is urgently needed.
SEC. 3. SUPPORT FOR THE NATIONAL LAW ENFORCEMENT MUSEUM.
During the first seven fiscal years beginning after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior shall award a
grant to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund for the
expenses associated with operating and enhancing the community
outreach, public education, and officer safety and wellness programs of
the National Law Enforcement Museum, including programs to:
(1) Memorialize law enforcement heroes who die in the line
of duty and compile statistics on law enforcement fatalities
and injuries.
(2) Honor and commemorate the extraordinary service and
sacrifice of America's law enforcement officers.
(3) Develop and make available accurate, relevant, and
accessible resources to promote the understanding of law
enforcement history and officer safety and wellness training,
which include digital resources and other types of resources,
such as print resources and traveling exhibitions.
(4) Increase technical resources to better engage the
public in person and via online platforms to educate and inform
the public about community policing and officer safety and
wellness.
(5) Create, expand and disseminate scholarly work through
research, curricula, in-house and traveling exhibitions,
publications, and other outreach initiatives.
(6) Expand the collection acquisition and collection
processes, including staffing, conservation, processing, and
digitization.
(7) Augment law enforcement history and officer safety and
wellness education activities, including the development,
dissemination, and implementation of principles of sound
pedagogy for teaching about law enforcement history and officer
safety and wellness.
(8) Promote professional development including local,
regional, and national workshops; teacher trainings; and
partnerships with appropriate entities to better educate and
inform the public about law enforcement history and officer
safety and wellness education.
(9) Engage with local and independent educational agencies
and expand teacher engagement to cultivate and support the
development of leaders in the teaching of law enforcement
history and officer safety and wellness education.
(10) Engage with State and local education leaders to
encourage the adoption of resources supported under this Act
into curricula across diverse disciplines.
(11) Create, develop, implement, replicate, or take to
scale entrepreneurial, evidence-based, field-initiated
innovations for museum and officer safety and wellness
improvement, and rigorously evaluate such innovations.
(12) Provide for the free admission to National Law
Enforcement Museum for active and retired law enforcement
officers and family members of fallen officers; and dedicated
free admission hours for the general public at least once a
week.
(13) Develop online Law Enforcement History and Officer
Safety and Wellness Education Resources for the general public
and scholarly research.
SEC. 4. PROGRESS REPORTS; CERTIFICATIONS.
(a) Progress Report.--For each of the first seven fiscal years the
National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund shall submit a report
to the Secretary of the Interior that--
(1) documents, consistent with the funding provided from
the Department, the progress in delivering public education,
community outreach and officer safety and wellness programming;
and
(2) provides a formal accounting of total amounts of
Federal funds expended during the fiscal year.
(b) Submission to Congress.--The Secretary of the Interior shall
share this report with Congress every fiscal year and make the report
available on the U.S. Department of Interior website.
SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
(1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated to
the Secretary of the Interior to carry out this section
$6,000,000 for each of the first 7 fiscal years beginning after
the date of the enactment of this Act.
(2) Exception.--If in any fiscal year the amount
appropriated pursuant to the authorization under paragraph (1)
is not the full amount provided by such paragraph, the
Secretary may transfer such sums as may be necessary from the
National Park Service, up to the amount specified in paragraph
(1), to carry out this section.
SEC. 6. CONTINUATION OF ACTIVITIES.
To the extent that the National Law Enforcement Museum is engaged
in an activity described on the date of the enactment of this Act, the
Secretary may use the funds appropriated under section 5 to continue
that activity.
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